Classic gear: Gibson ES-350T By Rod Brakes The history of the revolutionary thinline hollowbody that became a leading voice in rock ’n’ roll
The story of Frank Zappa and the Mu-Tron Bi-Phase By Rod Brakes, Chris Buono Eilon Paz and Dweezil Zappa unpacks the relationship between guitar's most maverick player and the ultimate phaser
Kirk Douglas: “I wanted to give other like-minded players the ability to use an SG in a way they haven’t been able to before“ By Rod Brakes The Roots guitarist's new signature Gibson might just be the most versatile SG yet. He walks us through its many features...
Calexico’s Joey Burns: “Dynamic range is something I think about a lot as a guitar player. It can be really emotional“ By Rod Brakes From Bartók to bossa nova, Burns talks about the diverse styles that keep him interested and inspired
The history of the Sola Sound Tone Bender By Rod Brakes Tone Bender builder David Main of D*A*M cleans up the fuzzy picture of these classic British stompboxes
The curious tale of Epiphone‘s own single-coil pickup, the ‘New Yorker‘ By Rod Brakes The “chief mad scientist” at Curtis Novak Classic Pickups shares his findings on Epiphone‘s lesser-known Spectrum single coils
Classic gear: Fender Electric XII By Rod Brakes The story behind every '60s studio's not-so-secret weapon – an electric 12-string that played well and sounded even better
Classic gear: Fender 'Tweed' Deluxe By Rod Brakes The definitive tweed tone that still sounds “as modern as tomorrow”…
How Gibson rescued Epiphone in the late-1950s By Rod Brakes Gibson's head of product development, Mat Koehler, recants the story of a pivotal moment in Epiphone history
The history of Gibson's electric archtops By Rod Brakes We shed light on some of the key differences between Gibson’s early flagship models…
Classic gear: Gibson CF-100E By Rod Brakes This cutaway electric flat-top set a template for modern acoustic design
The history of the Fender Musicmaster, Duo-Sonic and Mustang By Rod Brakes Three classic student models demystified by Fender historian, collector and co-author of Fender: The Golden Age 1946–1970, Terry Foster
How Fender recreated Eddie Van Halen's Frankenstein so accurately that he mistook it for the original By Rod Brakes Brian McDonald tells the story of how Fender built the ultimate EVH tribute – the original tone monster
Marshall Plexi guitar amps: everything you need to know By Rod Brakes Marshall’s archivist and technical specialist Phil Wells on the amps that put power into flower power
Classic gear: Gibson ES-345 By Rod Brakes The history of the stereo guitar that promised “new magic to your music”
What you need to know about Gibson 'Dreadnought' Jumbos By Rod Brakes We decipher some of the mumbo jumbo surrounding Gibson’s most popular flat-top acoustics
Classic gear: Gibson Trini Lopez Standard By Rod Brakes The story of the classic signature model that offered a new twist on Gibson's semi-hollow designs
Kurt Vile: "A guitar or any piece of gear has to look cool – it’s almost equally as important as the sound" By Rod Brakes From battered Martins and vintage Gibsons to pre-CBS Fender Jazzmasters we talk to the Philadelphian indie-rocker about all the guitars he’s loved and lost
Gretsch Chet Atkins signature models: everything you need to know By Rod Brakes Chet Atkins will always be remembered for his golden-era Gretsch guitars, but can you remember which one’s which?
Gibson Custom Shop's rarest signature Les Paul Standards: Jimmy Page, Joe Walsh, Don Felder and Billy Gibbons 'Burst replicas examined in-depth By Rod Brakes Historic Hardware: we get up close and personal with some of the most coveted guitars to come out of the Custom Shop
Mini-humbuckers: exploring the tonal magic of Seth Lover's 'other PAF' humbucker By Rod Brakes Ben Fletcher of Fletcher Pickups goes in deep with a mid-'50s Gibson classic
Classic gear: Gibson Flying V By Rod Brakes Futuristic in both design and success, the Flying V was ahead of its time
Kirk Hammett reflects on Peter Green's legacy: "You could put Oh Well or Green Manalishi up against the first two Sabbath albums" By Rod Brakes The custodian of the Greeny Les Paul recounts his recent meeting with Peter to reunite him with the guitar after decades apart
Everything you need to know about Gibson Non-Reverse Firebirds By Rod Brakes The 'bird that never quite flew was a radical new angle for '60s Gibson design
The history of Martin's earliest acoustic guitar designs, from the 1800s to the early 1900s By Rod Brakes Historic hardware: Martin & Co’s museum and archives specialist Jason Ahner guides us through some pivotal 19th and 20th-century Martins
