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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…

Jesse Johnson
Quad City Funk
In the early 1980s, Jesse Johnson traveled from Rock Island, Illinois, to Minneapolis and found fame with The Time and…

Jeff Senn and Crazy Aces
Dealing Out Twang
When you build guitars for a living, you might unwind with another hobby – say, beer-can collecting or crochet. Not…

Larry Parypa
Sonics Thunder
“I never thought this would happen to us all these years later,” marvels Sonics guitarist Larry Parypa on the reception…
D’Angelico’s EXL-1 and EX-SS
Deco Redux
3rd Power Solo Dream/Switchback amps Price: $1,859 list/$1,149 street (EXL-1); $1,999 list/$1,409 street (EX-SS) Info: www.dangelicoguitars.com. Images of John D’Angelico…

Kim Simmonds
1947-2022
The British blues movement of the late ’60s lost one of its original proponents and practitioners when Savoy Brown lead…

Pop ’N Hiss: The Rolling Stones’ Beggars Banquet
Feast Your Ears
The Rolling Stones were back. Well, they’d never really gone anywhere, but most fans thought they’d lost their way with…
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Rickenbacker’s Electric 12-Strings
Double-bound for Glory
George Beauchamp and Adolph Rickenbacher founded Electro String in 1931 to manufacture what everyone would soon call “Rickenbacker” guitars. Success came early and their lap steels set standards of quality,…
ARTISTS

Eric Johnson
Rescued Relics
For nearly 50 years, Eric Johnson has been a revered guitarist/multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and vocalist whose music expands far beyond the…

The Doobie Brothers
Road Rules
If you’re making a list of beloved bands with a long string of hook-heavy hits, the Doobie Brothers will surely…

Elliot Easton
Different Directions
Lefty guitarist Elliot Easton has chosen a different route for his most recent musical venture, but its sonic direction should…

Kenny Lovelace
The Killer’s Axe Man
Playing behind the Killer, you wouldn’t want to hit a wrong note. Kenny Lovelace has picked his guitar with Jerry…
CLASSIC INSTRUMENTS

Gibson GA-200 Rhythm King
Preamp tubes: two 12AX7, one 12AY7, two 6BJ8, two 6SK7, one 6V6 (used as a voltage divider) Output tubes: two…

Guyatone Micro Effects
Little Boxes, Big Effects
Musical-instrument accessories importer Guyatone introduced its first series of Micro Effects three years ago to widespread praise. Knowing it was…

The Murph 12-String
Tugging At Your Heartstrings
Here’s a story that has “Hollywood blockbuster” written all over it. It’s got so many cinematic staples, you can almost…

Guardians of Grandeur
The Men Who Tend to the Guitars of the Hard Rock Cafe
“A lot of people think I go in [to a sale] with an open checkbook, but that’s not the case;…
NEWSWIRE
APPROVED GEAR
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Live Wire
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Narrow(field) Win
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Take Flight

Vox Real McCoy Chrome Wah Ltd and V846 Vintage Wah
Replica Treadles
Thanks to notable users ranging from Del Casher and Frank Zappa to Jimi Hendrix and Kirk Hammett, the “wah wah”…

Austin Mics DIY Summer Reverb
for Kicks and More
Rick Wilkinson’s Austin Mics company, based in San Diego, specializes in do-it-yourself ribbon-microphone kits and DIY guitar pedals. His latest…

Holbrook TS50 Tommy Skeoch Head
More Than Modded
After Kevin Holbrook and rock guitarist Tommy Skeoch began working on a custom amp, the former took several trips to…
Rybski Cougar
Wild Cat
Rybiski Cougar Price: $3,850 Info: www.rybskiguitars.com. Before moving to the United States, Rybski founder Slawomir Waclawik repaired and built upright…
WHAT ELSE IS NEW
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More Personal
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Rare Pioneer
Arbiter Fuzz Face
When Jimi Hendrix released his first album, 1967’s Are You Experienced, he launched a new level of guitar heroics as…

Fender’s “First-Gen” Strat
The Fender Stratocaster is arguably the most popular electric guitar model in the world. From the time of its introduction…

1963 Fender Twin Reverb Prototype
The Twin has long been the flagship of Fender’s high-wattage amp lineup, and it achieved/retained that status through several iterations…

Martin D-28 and D-45
Definitive Flat-tops
Martin’s pre-WWII dreadnought guitars set the standard for the modern flat-top, and thus both have been inducted into the VG…














































