This is all the new guitar gear that has caught my eye this week – and it includes my new dream reverb machine
Elsewhere, Ibanez shows its RG range some love and Dunlop hopes to make you a better player with some newly engineered guitar picks...
Latest
How Este Haim ended up buying her dream ’70s Fender Precision Bass on Craigslist for a bargain – from one of her favorite guitarists
Haim had been scouring the internet for years for her dream bass, until she spotted one on Craiglist for less than $2,500
Irish guitar firm announces a new U.S.-based distribution hub to tackle tariff impact – will other manufacturers follow suit?
By setting up a States-based distribution hub, Emerald Guitars is hoping to better serve its American customer base by absorbing the tariff costs and eliminating any “surprise fees”
Eddie Van Halen and Keanu Reeves nearly ended up on the John Wick soundtrack
The soundtrack that could have been...
Why The Cars' Elliot Easton believes a guitar's setup is more important than its price tag
Is it worth breaking the bank for a guitar? The Cars' six-stringer doesn't think so...
Why Andertons’ captain, Lee Anderton, believes there’s still space for dedicated guitar stores
A series of high-profile guitar shops have permanently closed their shutters over the last couple of months – but one of the UK’s most well-known music stores, Andertons, is navigating the storm
Chrissie Hynde warns how global warming will likely impact the existence of outdoor summer shows
The Pretenders icon recalls playing shows with Foo Fighters and Guns N’ Roses over the last few years amid intense heatwaves
Bassists
Jack Bruce’s final encounter with Jaco Pastorius
According to his brother, Rory Pastorius, Jaco was influenced by the late Cream bassist’s midrange sound and aggressive lead style
Nile Rodgers on what made Bernard Edwards a bass genius – and the making of some iconic 4-string moments
With Chic, Bernard Edwards delivered some of the most infectious basslines of all time
How Este Haim ended up buying her dream ’70s Fender Precision Bass on Craigslist for a bargain – from one of her favorite guitarists
Haim had been scouring the internet for years for her dream bass, until she spotted one on Craiglist for less than $2,500
Glen Matlock on how the Sex Pistols have changed, while his bass rig never has and never will
The punk icons’ most accomplished musician explains what Frank Carter has brought to the band, the financial advantages of not using a pick, and the chance of new music with their latest recruit
How Stevie Ray Vaughan's biggest hit benefitted from one of the baddest rhythm sections in blues history
Also known as Double Trouble, Tommy Shannon and Chris Layton laid down an unfaltering groove for SRV’s 1983 debut
Joe Satriani’s best basslines (Yes, he plays bass, too)
The phenomenal guitar playing of Joe Satriani needs no introduction, but he also handled bass duties on his first two albums
Alex ‘V-Man’ Venturella on the secret to metal’s heaviest bass tone and nailing his Slipknot audition
Slipknot's low-end specialist discusses his epic amp collection, the brilliance of Eloy Casagrande and how James Hetfield shaped his technique
Bootsy Collins on the musician that totally “changed his mind” about bass playing
James Jamerson's immense contribution to Motown Records in the ’60s and ’70s went largely uncredited – but his game-changing adoption of the P-Bass, coupled with his off-kilter technique, makes him an electric bass pioneer
Bass Gear
“Esoteric boutique vibe, superb ergonomics and a powerful, unique preamp”: Tobias Growler IV review
The cult-classic Growler bass makes a long-overdue return to the bass market
Sterling by Music Man completes its trilogy of Joe Dart signature models with a trio of made-to-order basses that cost less than $500
The Vulfpeck funk maestro has unveiled two all-new models that slash more than $2k off the price of his Ernie Ball Music Man basses – and revived the OG Sterling Dart I that proved such a hit last year
Laney and Nathan East team up for a versatile signature bass head that ends a 40-year wait for the session legend
East, one of the most celebrated bass players in history, knows a thing or two about tone – and he’s put practicality at the forefront of his new signature model
Tobias instruments were trailblazers in the bass world. Now they’re back as part of the Gibson family
Luthier Michael Tobias’ ergonomic and tonally versatile bass guitars were lauded in the late ’70s, and now Gibson has spearheaded their return
“We’ve only changed the strings one time”: Travis Barker reveals the bass he uses on everything he records
The Blink-182 drummer and producer has made a revelation about a go-to bass that has proved perfect for almost every record he's produced
Seymour Duncan pushes the boundaries of its PowerStage series with dedicated bass unit
The latest PowerStage offers an onboard preamp and built-in overdrive in a bid to cover all bases for bassists
Jack Bruce’s Gibson EB-1 is going up for a one-time-only public display
Bruce’s iconic EB-1 will go on display for four weeks at the Gibson Garage in London as part of the Gibson Garage Fest later this month
Reviews
“As a compact amp modeler/cab simulator/Capture device, this is perhaps the best option out there, screen or no screen”: Neural DSP Nano Cortex review
The follow-up to the game-changing Quad Cortex is here at last, and with its ultra-powerful Nano Cortex, Neural DSP has set its sights on challenging IK Multimedia and Kemper to offer the ultimate all-in-one rig solution
“Esoteric boutique vibe, superb ergonomics and a powerful, unique preamp”: Tobias Growler IV review
The cult-classic Growler bass makes a long-overdue return to the bass market
“My initial reaction was to marvel at just how creative an effect it is”: DigiTech MonoNeon Whammy review
Designed in collaboration with bassist Dywane Thomas Jr, aka MonoNeon, this tone-bending pedal delivers signature sounds in the Whammy format
“Playing the Bass VI is a really strange experience”: Squier Limited Edition Classic Vibe Bass VI review
Part bass, part guitar, we get to grips with the Classic Vibe version of Fender’s very own dichotomy of tone
“Gene Simmons used a Grabber for a reason – because they play like nothing else on earth”: Epiphone Grabber Bass review
With its classic looks and budget-friendly price tag, is the revived Grabber still as iconic?
“In terms of sheer value for money, it’s hard to beat”: Sterling by Music Man Joe Dart Artist Series Bass review
On paper, the Sterling Joe Dart model looks like a remarkable reproduction of Music Man’s pro-standard version. Could this be as good as it gets for a $399 bass?
“Thrill-seekers wishing to add ear-melting fuzz to their bass will be in tonal nirvana”: Goliath FX Hornburg Fuzz review
With drive tones verging on the mythical, is this the ultimate bass fuzz?
Fender Vintera II ’60s Precision Bass review
Vintage looks? Timeless P-Bass tones? We size up the latest incarnation of Fender’s flagship 4-string
“You’d be hard-pushed to find a bass sound that you couldn’t gig with almost immediately”: Boss Katana-500 Bass Head review
This newly developed, feature-packed bass head features an Amp Feel switch and ‘Cabinet Resonance’ calibration technology to get the best from your cab – but is it a game-changer for bassists?