Setting Up Effects

Certain Guidelines Apply to a Signal Chain, But Your Ears Are the Ultimate Judge

Patterson Hood

Drive-By Truckers Change Gears

The Pinter SB1-R

Days of Sustain

  • Joe Satriani

    Joe Satriani

    The hardest-working guitarist in show business, Joe Satriani recently wrapped up a successful Van Halen tour, a G3 Reunion tour, a live album, a residency in Las Vegas with Sammy…

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NEWSWIRE

ARTISTS

Bernie Marsden

1951-2023

July 11, 2024 · Bret Adams

Bernie Marsden, one of the founding guitarists of Whitesnake, co-writer of the band’s massive hit “Here I Go Again,” and…

Carlos Barbosa-Lima

January 4, 2023 · Jim Carlton

Classical guitarist Carlos Barbosa-Lima passed away February 23 in Paraty, Brazil. He was 77 and succumbed to a heart attack.…

Rick Nielsen

Rockford State of Mind

February 27, 2007 · Willie G. Moseley

One of the godfathers of the vintage guitar phenomenon, Cheap Trick guitarist Rick Nielsen was in an ebullient mood when…

Buddy Whittington

Guitar-Lover’s Smorgasbord

May 20, 2021 · Willie G. Moseley

Though his status as a member of John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers has changed since VG last talked to him, guitarist Buddy…


CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

Hallmark Swept Wing Semi-Hollow

April 30, 2010 · Willie G. Moseley

1967 Hallmark Swept Wing semi-hollow bass, serial #003127. Photo: Michael G. Stewart. Instrument and image courtesy of Bob Shade. The…

MXR Custom Shop GT-OD Overdrive

Snappy and Smooth

March 1, 2021 · Phil Feser

From its early days with the script-logo Distortion + to the modern Zack Wlyde overdrive, MXR has been a mainstay…

Green Amps

Turning America Green

June 9, 2004 · Kathleen Johnson

It hit Joel Wheeler in a flash of white light, a memory fried extra crispy into his brain. Just how…

William Peale, Jr. Gibson Super 400

Sharp-Shooter Special

April 9, 2019 · George Gruhn

The iconic “singing cowboy” was created by Hollywood actors like Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, Tex Ritter, and others. Many used…


APPROVED GEAR

Universal Audio Ruby, Woodrow & Dream

Model Of Perfection

July 28, 2023 · Pete Prown

With digital recording more popular than ever, audio designers are working to capture guitar tone directly, without miking an amp.…

The Supro Montauk 1×10

Club Combo

September 8, 2025 · Dave Hunter

Striking out from its more historically inspired models like the Black Magick and Delta King, Supro’s new Montauk 1×10 combo…

Sweet Swingin’ Royalty

July 18, 2008 · Bob Tekippe

Louis Rosano, proprietor of Louis Electric Amplifier Company, has been building and repairing guitar amps for 15 years. After spending…

Lotus Pedal Designs’ Snowjob Underdrive

Lotus Pedal Designs’ Snowjob Underdrive

Love That Yellow Snow

May 10, 2016 · Michael Dregni

You may be wondering, “What in the world is an ‘underdrive’ pedal?” Good question. Well, you know the traffic-jam of…

  • Classics: Tommy Castro’s ’66 Fender Stratocaster

    Classics: Tommy Castro’s ’66 Fender Stratocaster

    Tommy Castro has never been much for sitting with a guitar teacher, preferring instead to rely on good ol’ time in the saddle to hone his craft. But this 1966 Stratocaster has taught him a couple lessons. The guitar entered Castro’s universe in the hands of San Francisco music legend John Newton – known on…

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  • Classics: Arena-Rock Alternative Amps

    Classics: Arena-Rock Alternative Amps

    Mad Maxed

    As rock started hitting the big time in the mid ’60s, it became clear to guitar-amplifier manufacturers that 100 watts or more was the way to go. The best approach to big power, however, would follow several paths. The stories of the high-powered amps introduced by Fender, Marshall, and Vox through the ’60s have been…

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  • Vivi-Tone “Skeleton

    Vivi-Tone “Skeleton

    A Master’s Magnificent Misfire

    The eternal question “Who invented the electric guitar?” has no single answer. By the late 1920s, many players, tinkerers, and inventors were exploring ways to get more volume from fretted instruments. Steel-string flat-tops from Martin, f-hole archtops from Gibson, and metal-bodied resonators from National were louder than their predecessors, but ran up against physical limits.…

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  • Super PickupGiveaway 2025

    Super PickupGiveaway 2025

    Win Big! 11 Sets! 11 Winners! Win a set of pickups from one of these sponsors: Deadline is March 15, 2026. Complete the survey below to enter giveaway. One entry per customer, any double entries will be automatically disqualified. See previous winners!! *ELIGIBILITY. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED OR RESTRICTED BY LAW. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY.One entry per…

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  • Paul Johnson

    Paul Johnson

    The Hepcats Live at the Ajax Novelty Company

    This isn’t live, there may not be an Ajax Novelty Company, and the three felines known as the Hepcats are actually the brainchild of Paul Johnson, whose Belairs were early-’60s pioneers of surf music. Suspend reality and dig how the “trio” expertly articulates layers of acoustic guitar. Across decades, Johnson has embraced folk-rock, psychedelia, and…

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Jared James Nichols

Jared James Nichols

June 19, 2024 · Oscar Jordan

Pentatonic beast and Gibson ambassador Jared James Nichols’ third album bristles with out-of-the-box soloing amidst crafty tunes where blues-rock meets…

Beat Portraits: Burns Volume 7

1965: Summer Of The Hollowbodies

February 14, 2018 · Peter Stuart Kohman

The Way Back Beat survey of instruments designed by James Ormston Burns continues with the final products developed by his…

Six-String Kicks

Six-String Kicks

Wood from Famed Bowling Alley Set to Sing

March 31, 2016 · Ward Meeker

Few things scratch America’s cumulative itch for nostalgia like Route 66 – the famed wagon-trail-cum-highway that offered passage to those…

Ivan Pongracic and Jeremy DeHart

Atlantis Rising

September 9, 2024 · Pete Prown

Lords of Atlantis is something a surf supergroup, comprised of members from The Madeira, Aqualads, Insect Surfers, and The Manakooras…

Steve Vai

Vai/Gash

December 25, 2023 · Oscar Jordan

Recorded during two weeks in 1991, Vai/Gash is a collaboration between Steve Vai and late singer Johnny “Gash” Sombrotto, expressing…