The Guitar Showcase 2023 The hottest guitars and gear, star players, essential tips and more Focusrite at the Guitar Showcase 2023: Introducing Scarlett 4th Gen – the perfect interface for the guitarist Great feel and sound, low latency, plug and play simplicity – these are just some of the features that can be found on the latest version of the world’s best-selling audio interface Line 6 at Guitar Showcase 2023: How to sound like Chris Buck Chris Buck shows you how to achieve his sound with Line 6 Helix Ashdown at the Guitar Showcase 2023: The LB 30 2.N bass amplifier – a fusion of classic valve tone and modern precision Combining the classic tone of valve amps and modern dynamic response technology, Ashdown's LB 30 2.N delivers a one-stop solution for all modern day bassists Ashdown at the Guitar Showcase 2023: The MF-484 2.N and MF-284H – 30 and 15 watts of all-valve tone with some very cool modern features Take a closer look at two standout gems from the boutique British amp builder's stellar lineup Flattley Guitar Pedals at the Guitar Showcase 2023: Meet the award-winning boutique effects pedal builder dedicated to tonal excellence Get to know the family-owned British brand – and hear its stellar Ace boost and DG Fuzz pedals in action IK Multimedia at the Guitar Showcase 2023: iRig HD X – Ultimate guitar experience. Anywhere. A great interface is the one that’s always there for you Rotosound at the Guitar Showcase 2023: IDLES’ Adam “Dev” Devonshire gives the low-down on his musical journey inside the UK’s joyfully defiant post-punk band Watch the bassist break down his biggest influences, and take a deep-dive into his tone and gear – of which Rotosound strings play a crucial role Laney Amplification at the Guitar Showcase 2023: The best boutique combo for under $800? Plus see why Guthrie Govan made the switch to Laney Ibanez at the Guitar Showcase 2023: The alternative acoustic brand At the forefront of innovation in the acoustic guitar industry Grid List Latest news “Every guitarist should be in search of their toothpaste tone!” Larkin Poe explain how good guitar tone can make your playing better By Amit Sharma published 29 September 23 Roots rock sister duo Megan and Rebecca Lovell on what makes drive pedals essential for shaping your soloing, why even blues players shouldn’t dismiss amp modelers – and what toothpaste tone actually is… Two-hand tapping is one of the most versatile guitar techniques you can learn – here are 5 ways to make it work for you By Simon Barnard published 29 September 23 Tapping lit up the guitar world with Eddie Van Halen, but in this lesson, inspired by EVH, Joe Satriani, Nuno Bettencourt and more, you'll find all kinds of ways to add this legato superpower to your game Are your drive pedals sounding the best they could? Here are 19 ways to get more from your overdrives, distortions and fuzzes – and make them work with your rig By Chris Bird published 29 September 23 Whether you’re using overdrive, distortion, boost or fuzz, there are plenty of ways you can tweak your setup for maximum tone “Rick Rubin is one of the most inspirational guitar players of my childhood. It’s a curveball, isn’t it?!” Justin Hawkins names the 14 guitarists who shaped his sound By Ellie Rogers published 29 September 23 The Darkness frontman turned YouTube personality on why Keith Richards’ playing is underrated, what makes Eddie Van Halen’s solo blueprint so spectacular, and why guitarists who “make you feel like you want to grab a guitar and do it” are more important than any virtuoso Line 6 at Guitar Showcase 2023: How to sound like Chris Buck By Guitar World Staff published 29 September 23 Chris Buck shows you how to achieve his sound with Line 6 Helix 10 times an iconic band swapped out their guitarist for a fresh face By Andrew Daly published 28 September 23 These star players swooped in to occupy a vacant guitarist spot – sometimes it made the lineup better, sometimes it saved the band entirely… Types of guitar pickups explained: learn the difference between single coils, humbuckers, P-90s and active designs By Chris Bird published 28 September 23 If the wood is the soul of the electric guitar, the pickups are the brains of the operation. We walk through the most common pickup styles and what they mean for electric guitar tone 15 icons of electric guitar tone – and how they can inspire your playing By Jon Bishop published 28 September 23 Go behind the players with some of the most legendary guitar sounds in history – and learn how you can steal their style and make it yours Focusrite at the Guitar Showcase 2023: Introducing Scarlett 4th Gen – the perfect interface for the guitarist By Guitar World Staff published 27 September 23 Great feel and sound, low latency, plug and play simplicity – these are just some of the features that can be found on the latest version of the world’s best-selling audio interface Ashdown at the Guitar Showcase 2023: The LB 30 2.N bass amplifier – a fusion of classic valve tone and modern precision By Guitar World Staff published 27 September 23 Combining the classic tone of valve amps and modern dynamic response technology, Ashdown's LB 30 2.N delivers a one-stop solution for all modern day bassists Ashdown at the Guitar Showcase 2023: The MF-484 2.N and MF-284H – 30 and 15 watts of all-valve tone with some very cool modern features By Guitar World Staff published 27 September 23 Take a closer look at two standout gems from the boutique British amp builder's stellar lineup Not sure what all those guitar tone buzz words mean? Get the lowdown with our jargon-buster By Chris Bird published 27 September 23 Fuzz this, intonation that – life can be confusing for the beginner player. This handy glossary explains what some of the most commonly heard terms mean “Know your history. But don’t be cliché and try to do what the guys in Chicago did in the ’60s. We don’t need more of that”: Josh Smith is on a mission to save the blues – he names 10 guitarists who are pushing the genre forward By Andrew Daly published 26 September 23 The defender of the blues faith names the players bucking the clichés and preventing the genre going stale, and explains why anyone who says Joe Bonamassa can't play the blues is “full of s**t” Flattley Guitar Pedals at the Guitar Showcase 2023: Meet the award-winning boutique effects pedal builder dedicated to tonal excellence By Guitar World Staff published 26 September 23 Get to know the family-owned British brand – and hear its stellar Ace boost and DG Fuzz pedals in action How to set up your electric guitar – improve your guitar’s tone and playability with this step-by-step guide By Stuart Williams published 26 September 23 How to set your intonation and pickup height, keep your guitar in tune and get it playing better than ever Introducing polychords – the mind-bending guitar shapes that will take your playing into new harmonic and melodic worlds By Richard Barrett published 26 September 23 Polychords are a neat way to expand your musical vocabulary and can be used in your rhythm and lead playing, as the great Larry Carlton has demonstrated time and time again IK Multimedia at the Guitar Showcase 2023: iRig HD X – Ultimate guitar experience. Anywhere. By Guitar World published 26 September 23 A great interface is the one that’s always there for you “Typical scale practice is downright damaging for expressive playing… That’s not how singers sing”: Paul Gilbert shows you how to make your guitar solos more vocal and expressive By Jon Bishop published 26 September 23 In this exclusive video lesson, the legendary virtuoso treats you to a masterclass on transferring vocal phrases to the guitar Rotosound at the Guitar Showcase 2023: IDLES’ Adam “Dev” Devonshire gives the low-down on his musical journey inside the UK’s joyfully defiant post-punk band By Guitar World Staff published 25 September 23 Watch the bassist break down his biggest influences, and take a deep-dive into his tone and gear – of which Rotosound strings play a crucial role The whammy bar could be the key to unlocking your voice on the guitar – learn 5 ways to make it work for you By Simon Barnard published 25 September 23 We look at the whammy bar styles of Duane Eddy, Steve Vai, Eddie Van Halen, David Gilmour and Jeff Beck – and how you can incorporate them in your own playing 12 Get The Pick NewsletterAll the latest guitar news, interviews, lessons, reviews, deals and more, direct to your inbox!Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors MORE FROM GUITARWORLD...1“A dirt device that covers all the gain bases”: Catalinbread sees the JHS Pedals Notaklön and raises the Knight School Overdrive – an $85 DIY pedal kit based on a timeless circuit favored by Stevie Ray Vaughan, John Mayer and Paul Gilbert2“I showed the Strymon BigSky to Lana, and she was like, ‘Oh, we need that.’ I plugged into a 100-watt Marshall, and the riff came out in 10 seconds”: Lana Del Rey guitarist Blake Lee thrives on making his Strat sound like anything but a guitar3Neil Young showcases his savage overdriven tones and channels Hendrix in the most menacing solo rendition of the Star-Spangled Banner you’ve ever heard4DADGAD guitar tuning: an introduction to the (not quite) open tuning favored by Jimmy Page5“Being in a band is so much more than the playing. Actually, the playing is down on the list”: Before Megadeth, Marty Friedman says he auditioned for Ozzy Osbourne – but “failed miserably”
“Every guitarist should be in search of their toothpaste tone!” Larkin Poe explain how good guitar tone can make your playing better By Amit Sharma published 29 September 23 Roots rock sister duo Megan and Rebecca Lovell on what makes drive pedals essential for shaping your soloing, why even blues players shouldn’t dismiss amp modelers – and what toothpaste tone actually is…
Two-hand tapping is one of the most versatile guitar techniques you can learn – here are 5 ways to make it work for you By Simon Barnard published 29 September 23 Tapping lit up the guitar world with Eddie Van Halen, but in this lesson, inspired by EVH, Joe Satriani, Nuno Bettencourt and more, you'll find all kinds of ways to add this legato superpower to your game
Are your drive pedals sounding the best they could? Here are 19 ways to get more from your overdrives, distortions and fuzzes – and make them work with your rig By Chris Bird published 29 September 23 Whether you’re using overdrive, distortion, boost or fuzz, there are plenty of ways you can tweak your setup for maximum tone
“Rick Rubin is one of the most inspirational guitar players of my childhood. It’s a curveball, isn’t it?!” Justin Hawkins names the 14 guitarists who shaped his sound By Ellie Rogers published 29 September 23 The Darkness frontman turned YouTube personality on why Keith Richards’ playing is underrated, what makes Eddie Van Halen’s solo blueprint so spectacular, and why guitarists who “make you feel like you want to grab a guitar and do it” are more important than any virtuoso
Line 6 at Guitar Showcase 2023: How to sound like Chris Buck By Guitar World Staff published 29 September 23 Chris Buck shows you how to achieve his sound with Line 6 Helix
10 times an iconic band swapped out their guitarist for a fresh face By Andrew Daly published 28 September 23 These star players swooped in to occupy a vacant guitarist spot – sometimes it made the lineup better, sometimes it saved the band entirely…
Types of guitar pickups explained: learn the difference between single coils, humbuckers, P-90s and active designs By Chris Bird published 28 September 23 If the wood is the soul of the electric guitar, the pickups are the brains of the operation. We walk through the most common pickup styles and what they mean for electric guitar tone
15 icons of electric guitar tone – and how they can inspire your playing By Jon Bishop published 28 September 23 Go behind the players with some of the most legendary guitar sounds in history – and learn how you can steal their style and make it yours
Focusrite at the Guitar Showcase 2023: Introducing Scarlett 4th Gen – the perfect interface for the guitarist By Guitar World Staff published 27 September 23 Great feel and sound, low latency, plug and play simplicity – these are just some of the features that can be found on the latest version of the world’s best-selling audio interface
Ashdown at the Guitar Showcase 2023: The LB 30 2.N bass amplifier – a fusion of classic valve tone and modern precision By Guitar World Staff published 27 September 23 Combining the classic tone of valve amps and modern dynamic response technology, Ashdown's LB 30 2.N delivers a one-stop solution for all modern day bassists
Ashdown at the Guitar Showcase 2023: The MF-484 2.N and MF-284H – 30 and 15 watts of all-valve tone with some very cool modern features By Guitar World Staff published 27 September 23 Take a closer look at two standout gems from the boutique British amp builder's stellar lineup
Not sure what all those guitar tone buzz words mean? Get the lowdown with our jargon-buster By Chris Bird published 27 September 23 Fuzz this, intonation that – life can be confusing for the beginner player. This handy glossary explains what some of the most commonly heard terms mean
“Know your history. But don’t be cliché and try to do what the guys in Chicago did in the ’60s. We don’t need more of that”: Josh Smith is on a mission to save the blues – he names 10 guitarists who are pushing the genre forward By Andrew Daly published 26 September 23 The defender of the blues faith names the players bucking the clichés and preventing the genre going stale, and explains why anyone who says Joe Bonamassa can't play the blues is “full of s**t”
Flattley Guitar Pedals at the Guitar Showcase 2023: Meet the award-winning boutique effects pedal builder dedicated to tonal excellence By Guitar World Staff published 26 September 23 Get to know the family-owned British brand – and hear its stellar Ace boost and DG Fuzz pedals in action
How to set up your electric guitar – improve your guitar’s tone and playability with this step-by-step guide By Stuart Williams published 26 September 23 How to set your intonation and pickup height, keep your guitar in tune and get it playing better than ever
Introducing polychords – the mind-bending guitar shapes that will take your playing into new harmonic and melodic worlds By Richard Barrett published 26 September 23 Polychords are a neat way to expand your musical vocabulary and can be used in your rhythm and lead playing, as the great Larry Carlton has demonstrated time and time again
IK Multimedia at the Guitar Showcase 2023: iRig HD X – Ultimate guitar experience. Anywhere. By Guitar World published 26 September 23 A great interface is the one that’s always there for you
“Typical scale practice is downright damaging for expressive playing… That’s not how singers sing”: Paul Gilbert shows you how to make your guitar solos more vocal and expressive By Jon Bishop published 26 September 23 In this exclusive video lesson, the legendary virtuoso treats you to a masterclass on transferring vocal phrases to the guitar
Rotosound at the Guitar Showcase 2023: IDLES’ Adam “Dev” Devonshire gives the low-down on his musical journey inside the UK’s joyfully defiant post-punk band By Guitar World Staff published 25 September 23 Watch the bassist break down his biggest influences, and take a deep-dive into his tone and gear – of which Rotosound strings play a crucial role
The whammy bar could be the key to unlocking your voice on the guitar – learn 5 ways to make it work for you By Simon Barnard published 25 September 23 We look at the whammy bar styles of Duane Eddy, Steve Vai, Eddie Van Halen, David Gilmour and Jeff Beck – and how you can incorporate them in your own playing
