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Taylor® Guitars Kicks Off 2026 With Two Major Launches – The Next Generation Of Its Flagship Grand Auditorium Guitars And New Gold Label Square-Shoulder Dreadnoughts
Taylor upgrades its most iconic models, adding “Next Generation” features to its Grand Auditorium body shape while expanding its recently introduced Gold Label Collection with traditional, square-shoulder dreadnoughts EL CAJON,…
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Thomas Custom Guitars
Rarities from the Pacific Northwest
Certain makes and models of electric guitars are rightfully prized for their elegant physical designs and superior craftsmanship. Even better are those also revered for their playability and particularly rich…
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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…

Spacey T
Eclectic Journeyman
Tracey Singleton, better known as Spacey T, is a post-Hendrix guitar wizard with an eclectic soul and chops to match.…

Bad Cat Black Cat 1×12 Combo
Roarin’ Back
When Bad Cat Amplifiers trimmed its line to just four models with modern circuits, some wondered if they’d capture the…

Friedman IR-X Dual Channel Preamp
Stack in the Box
Most guitar-electronics companies make a direct-recording preamp, many promising to provide ultimate distortion and overdrive via impulse responses (IR) or…

The Peavey ValveKing II Micro-head 20-Watt Amplifier
Royal Rock
The Peavey ValveKing II Micro-head 20-Watt Amplifier Price: $429.99 Contact: www.peavey.com Famous for their sturdy build and quality overdriven sounds,…

deLisle Nickel Box
A Nickel For Your Chops
deLisle Nickel Box Price: $609 (list); $729 (as tested) Info: www.delisleguitar.com Low-watt amplifiers have enjoyed a run of popularity. Offering…

Nili Brosh
Bright Horizons
The saying goes, “If you want to get something done, ask a busy person to do it.” But don’t ask…
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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…
ARTISTS

Kristian Borring
Time Zone
Kristian Borring is a jazz guitarist who lives in Perth, Australia, but sends his fearless playing echoing around the planet…

Dan Auerbach
Black Keys’ Road Map Back to Blues, British Rock
Forget about the classic quartet. Forget the power trio. Forget any preconceived shortcomings you may have concerning a rock-and-roll duo.…

Chris Duarte
Not Mowin’ the Lawn
It’s been seven years since Texas blues rocker Chris Duarte issued a new album, but his 15th studio effort, Ain’t…

Honkytonk Homage
Guitars Venerate Bakersfield Landmark
Country-music fans familiar with the history of Bakersfield, California, know of Trout’s nightclub. The last of the venues that gave…
CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

An Odd Gibson EH-150
10 Strings, Lap-Style
Lap-steel guitars were the first commercially available electrics – ancestors of the guitars we plug in today, regardless of their…

Gibson Super 400
Much of America was still recovering from the Depression in 1934 when Gibson introduced a guitar at a price that…

Beat Portraits: Burns Volume 6
1964: Nu-Sonics and Transistor Trials
In early 2009, VG columnist Peter Stuart Kohman turned his focus on Burns, the pioneering British guitar builder. We’ve compiled…

Fender 5E7 Bandmaster
Preamp tubes: one 12AY7, two 12AX7 Output tubes: two 6L6s, fixed biased Rectifier: 5U4G tube Controls: Volume, Volume, Treble, Bass,…
NEWSWIRE
APPROVED GEAR
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Lively Drives
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Posh Squash
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Chet Powered!

EarthQuaker Devices’ Erupter
Bring The Fuzz
EarthQuaker Devices is one of the most admired pedal builders today, thanks to their original designs that feature tweakable controls…

Fryette Valvulator GP/DI Amp
Totally Tubular
Guitarists are often trying to get more convincing tube tones on their home and studio recordings, but finding authentic valve…

JHS’ SuperBolt and Morning Glory Pedals
Zep in a Box
Started with a quick repair to a Boss pedal in Josh Scott’s Mississippi apartment, JHS has evolved into a well-regarded…
Dutch Kazoo Analog Fuzz Pedal
OD Treat
Dutch Kazoo Analog Fuzz Pedal Price: $225 retail Info: www.dutchkazoo.com It’s not easy for a new boutique overdrive or distortion…
WHAT ELSE IS NEW
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Revisiting Room 335
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Plus, a Pro’s List of Repair Glues
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Rising Tides

Star Board: Craig Bartock
This month, we take a guided tour of the pedalboard belonging to Craig Bartock, guitarist with Heart. Craig Bartock, a…

The Return of Jerry Kennedy’s 00-18
Seventy Years Gone
Nashville legend Jerry Kennedy has won Grammy awards and owned numerous collectible instruments. And if Guinness World Records tracked such…

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…
Status Quo’s Francis Rossi
On Guitars, Music, and Elusive Success
“I’m only as good now as I should have been when I was 25,” laughs Francis Rossi, the 64-year-old lead…











































