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Lerxst Announces ATWAS – All The World’s A Stage Wah / Volume Pedal
A new performance-ready optical Wah & Volume pedal developed with Morley BURGAW, NC, January 22, 2026 (9:00am EST) – Alex Lifeson and Lerxst, in collaboration with legendary pedal innovators Morley,…
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Introducing The 50th Anniversary Limited Edition JB / Jazz Humbucker Set
SANTA BARBARA, January 22nd, 2026 – Seymour Duncan, a leading manufacturer of guitar and bass pickups, effects pedals, and pedal amps, is proud to announce The 50th Anniversary Limited Edition…
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New Studs and Colorways Drive Levy’s’ Latest Amped and Rebel Leather Series Expansions
1.22.2026 TAMPA, FL – Levy’s Music has broadened two of its leather guitar strap collections with new additions. The Amped Leather Series now includes new colorways and acousticformat models that…
Lotus Pedal Designs’ Snowjob Underdrive
Love That Yellow Snow
You may be wondering, “What in the world is an ‘underdrive’ pedal?” Good question. Well, you know the traffic-jam of…
Giffin Vikta
Feelin’ Special
Giffin Vikta Price: $2,295 Contact: www.premierbuildersguild.com Roger Giffin is a guitarmaker to the stars, having built for Eric Clapton, Pete…
1942 Martin D-45
The Martin D-45, offered from 1933 through 1942, is well-known as the Holy Grail of acoustic guitars. While players and…
Vernon Reid
Kind of Blue
Vernon Reid went against the grain of rock guitarists in the 1980s, conjuring Parliament-Funkadelic, Ornette Coleman, Bad Brains, Carlos Santana,…
David Hamburger: masterful playing, 00-18 deep dive
David Hamburger and his ’56 00-18 Singer/songwriter David Hamburger is also an impressive fingerstyle player who knows a great guitar…
Kramer 84 and Pacer Vintage
Tap, Shred, Dive!
Kramer 84/Pacer Vintage Price: $1,166 (84); $1,267 (Pacer Vintage) Info: kramerguitars.com It’s hard to think of ’80s guitars as vintage,…
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Carr Skylark Special 1×12
Take Flight
Arriving a little more than 10 years after the original Skylark, Carr Amplifiers’ new Skylark Special adds versatility and enhanced tonal depths to squeeze a lot more into this diminutive…
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ARTISTS
Ray Benson
Swing Ambassador: 50 Years of Asleep at the Wheel
“Why are you all playin’ that modern music?” Asleep at the Wheel guitarist Ray Benson fielded the question from Harry,…
Molly Miller
Dr. J(azz)
Molly Miller is on a quest to bring instrumental music back to storytelling. Her new album, St. George, fuses jazz,…
Anthony Gomes
Blues, Rock, and Joy
Blues-rock connoisseur Anthony Gomes stays on point with his latest, High Voltage Blues. Leaning into the heavier side, Gomes’ feisty…
Jeff Plankenhorn
New Innovations For Lap Steel
Jeff Plankenhorn has always made music his way, using stringed instruments he created. He picked up guitar at age 10,…
CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS
Marshall Amplifiers
From Birth to the 21st Century
From the first JTM to models for Clapton and Townshend, Jim Marshall has been building amps since the early 1960s.…
The Vox Saturn IV
In the mid 1960s, England’s Vox company was in the right place at the right time. Buoyed by frontline British…
Dallas Rangemaster and Scala Combos
Texas Two Step
Fascinating also-rans, C-list classics, or both, the amps manufactured by London-based Dallas Music Ltd beginning in 1959 tie directly to…
Danelectro’s Four-String Basses
The guitars and basses made by Danelectro in the ’60s epitomized “no frills.” And though they were considered the nadir…
NEWSWIRE
APPROVED GEAR
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Live Wire
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Narrow(field) Win
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Take Flight
The Bad Cat Era 30
Retro-Great
So often has the phrase “Mark Sampson era” been applied to pre-2000 Matchless amps or early examples of the Bad…
David Allen Fat ’59 Tele Pickups
Sparkle and Twang
At their best, Tele pickups deliver unparalleled twang – versatile and fat. Conversely, poor T-style pickups are flat and screechy…
Supercool “800,” The Thneed, and ’77 Fuzz Blender
Hip Sounds
Supercool Pedals is a Canadian company that makes stompboxes that sound hip and look seriously groovy. Among its offerings is…
Mu-FX Tru-Tron 3X
Get Tha Funk Out
The Mu-FX Tru-Tron 3X Price: $369.63 Contact: www.mu-fx.com. Think funk. Think Bootsy Collins’ wacked-out Parliament Funkadelic Space Bass lines. Think…
WHAT ELSE IS NEW
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And an Archtop Mystery
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Supergroup Alpha
David Bromberg
Swearing On The Blues
David Bromberg likes to quote the great fiddler Johnny Gimble, who once famously said, “There’s only two kinds of music…
McGregor Cozmic Fuzzball
Sweet & Gnarly
The culmination of a quest to build the perfect transparent overdrive, Garth Heslop’s Cozmic Fuzzball is the third pedal in…
Dan’s Guitar RX: Creating the Iris DE-11
Something New From Something Old
In last month’s “Approved Gear,” VG reviewed the Iris Guitar Company DE-11. If you missed it, I’d suggest you grab…
Sue Foley
Femme Flamenco
In a time when pop-music performers rely heavily on post-recording fix-ups and pre-recorded tracks onstage, it’s refreshing – even admirable…
