Guitar World deals of the week: save over $600 on a Charvel, get a huge $130 off an MXR pedal, plus all the week's best deals

Stratocaster leaning against a Boss Katana amp
(Image credit: Future)

It's finally the end of the week and that means it's time for some hot deals action! As usual, we've been hard at work combing the 'net to find the biggest and best savings on guitar gear, so read on to bag yourself a bargain...

The best sale of the week for guitarists is definitely up to 20% off limited edition guitars over at the official Fender shop. There's a nice choice of Fender and Squier models available, all in some rather fetching colorways that are not your average 3-color sunburst. If you're after a great guitar for less, it's definitely the place to shop this week.

The big recording gear sale continues at Sweetwater, where you can grab up to 50% off software, interfaces, and more. Regardless of whether you want to release music or not, recording your own playing is a great way to improve your skills, and using an audio interface with software can unlock a huge array of epic guitar tones at the click of your mouse button.

Guitar Center still has their Live Sound Month sale on at the moment, but if you want something more guitarist-friendly, you should check out their Open Box sale. There are loads of used guitars available in the sale with some hefty discounts versus the RRP. You can also get a nice extra 10% off if you spend over $499, making it worthwhile if you're looking to spend a bit more and don't mind buying secondhand.

Musician's Friend also has a sale on live sound gear, but for guitarists there's a 20% off member-only accessory sale running with some cracking deals. Becoming a member only takes inputting your email address, so if you want to stock up on stands, cases, cables, strings, and more, it's the place to go. You have to spend over $99 to access the offer however, so it's not much use if you're only picking up a pack of strings.

That's all the best sales available this week but of course, we've picked out some of our favorite deals for you below. Make sure you check back next week for more deals, and until then, happy hunting!

Editor's picks

Heritage Standard H-150
Heritage Standard H-150: was $2,599 now $1,999 at Sweetwater Sound

If you're looking for a classic LP experience but don't want to drop north of $3k on one, this Heritage H-150 gives you all that classic flavor with a slightly different headstock. It's got a gigantic $600 discount over at Sweetwater, which is one of the biggest reductions we've seen this week. Two Seymour Duncan humbuckers deliver that iconic PAF tone, and with a Plek'd fingerboard it plays like an absolute dream.

IK Multimedia Tonex One
IK Multimedia Tonex One: was $179.99 now $149.99 at Guitar Center

If you're looking for a Swiss Army Knife pedal that doesn't take up loads of room on your 'board, the IK Multimedia Tonex One is an excellent bit of kit. Capable of being a guitar amp or an overdrive pedal, it's remarkable how much this tiny stompbox can do. You can use it as a headphone amp, send a signal to front of house for gigs, add another drive pedal to your pedalboard, and you can even power it via USB-C. With a $30 reduction taking it just below the $150 mark at Guitar Center, it's great value for a multi-role pedal.

Read more: IK Multimedia Tonex One review

Squier Limited Edition Affinity Telecaster Thinline
Squier Limited Edition Affinity Telecaster Thinline: was $339.99 now $288.99 at fender.com

Squier guitars are outstanding value for money even at full price, so an extra $51 off this Thinline Tele makes for a tempting proposition indeed. The chambered body is nice and lightweight, adding a resonant and airy sound to the classic Tele tone. The Squier pickups deliver that usual balance of bright and dark the Tele is known for, giving you great versatility in your tones that will let you straddle loads of different genres.

Vibes High Fidelity
Vibes High Fidelity: was $31.95 now $21.71 at Amazon

Your hearing is your biggest asset as a musician, so looking after your ears should be high up on your list of priorities. Whether you're in rehearsal, playing a show, or just watching your favorite band, a good set of earplugs is a necessity to ensure you keep your most important tool intact. These Vibes High Fidelity earplugs are great for a wide variety of situations, giving you a nice reduction in volume without cutting too much frequency response. With a nice $10.24 discount they're just above the $20 mark over on Amazon, making them an absolute no-brainer if you don't already have ear protection.

MXR TBM1 Tom Morello Power 50 Overdrive
MXR TBM1 Tom Morello Power 50 Overdrive: was $199.99 now $69.99 at Reverb

Even if you're not a Tom Morello fan, a massive $130 saving on this MXR TBM1 Overdrive pedal at the official MXR Reverb store is a super deal for those looking for another gain stage. It gives you plenty of deliciously crunchy Marshall-esque tones, and we found the EQ to be really powerful for dialing in the perfect tone. It's a B-stock item, so may show some signs of use, but at this price its easy to overlook a little cosmetic blemish or two.

Charvel Angel Vivaldi Signature
Charvel Angel Vivaldi Signature: was $1,499.99 now $879.97 at Musician's Friend

Whether you're a fan of signature guitars or not, this is an amazing deal however you look at it. It's got some beautiful design touches like a scalloped lower back bout and sculpted neck heel, plus a compound radius fingerboard for the ultimate in playability. Add in two DiMarzio humbuckers for hugely versatile tones and you've got yourself a proper player's guitar. The $620 discount over at Musician's Friend might just be the straw that broke the camel's back.

Guitar sales to shop

How we choose our deals of the week

Here at Guitar World, we are experts in our field, with many years of playing and product testing between us. We live and breathe everything guitar related, and we draw on this knowledge and experience of using products in live, recording and rehearsal scenarios when selecting the products we recommend.

First and foremost, we are guitarists, and we want to match other players with the right products for them, at the best prices.

For us to recommend a deal it has to be a product we rate that’s a genuinely great price or part of a truly fantastic bundle. It’s also important that we only recommend retailers where you will have a positive shopping experience.

Why you can trust our choices

We spend a lot of our time scouring guitar retailers for fantastic deals on our favorite gear. Not only is it our job to research and recommend the best gear in our buyer’s guides, but we’re also dedicated to helping players get the best deals for the gear they need, too. After all, the only thing better than new gear day is a hearty discount.

We cover a lot of the big sales events throughout the year, including Memorial Day, Black Friday, 4th of July sales and Amazon Prime Day, and we have a good view on which products are likely to receive the biggest discounts and when, the prices they’ve been in the past and which deals are genuinely worth a look.

Where are the best places to shop?

Online shopping is definitely a lot easier and more secure than it used to be, and we like to recommend a small handful of online retailers who have a sterling reputation and offer fantastic benefits like fuss-free returns, great customer service and, in some cases, full checks and setup of guitars before they are dispatched. So, all the deals we’ll recommend on this page are from retailers that tick these boxes.

What sort of deals should I look for?

Great deals come in all shapes and sizes. There are a few key types to look out for:

  • Single item - A single product with a great discount
  • Site-wide discounts - A single discount percentage on a large range of products across a site
  • Discount codes - Load your basket to a certain value and redeem a discount code for money off your basket contents
  • Added value deals - These include multi-buy discounts, or additional products or software for free when you buy certain items
Matt McCracken
Junior Deals Writer

Matt is a Junior Deals Writer here at Guitar World. He regularly tests and reviews music gear with a focus on guitars, amps, pedals, modelers, and pretty much anything else guitar-related. Matt worked in music retail for 5 years at Dawsons Music and Northwest Guitars and has written for various music sites including MusicRadar, Guitar Player, Guitar.com, Ultimate Guitar, and Thomann’s t.blog. A regularly gigging guitarist with over 20 years of experience playing live and writing and recording in bands, he's performed everything from jazz to djent, gigging all over the country in more dingy venues than you can shake a drop-tuned guitar at.

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