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Everything you need to know about guitar compression: its history, how it works and how it can make your guitar sound better than ever before
By Huw Price published
Every guitar sound – whether on vinyl or Spotify – has been compressed. Here’s our guide to how to dial in your guitar compression settings, and what a compressor can do for you
“You feel the whole guitar shaking as you’re playing it, especially when you run it through an amp”: How Mule Resophonic Guitars is reinventing the resonator
By Jamie Dickson published
When Ida Mae guitarist Chris Turpin found his traditional 12-string resonator was getting too cumbersome to tour with, Matt Eich of Michigan’s Mule Resophonic Guitars came up with an innovative yet charismatically retro alternative
“Rubber-bridge guitar is another sonic hemisphere that existed this whole time but was going untapped. It’s really special”: Ariel Posen on his adventures in tone – and why songwriting is like hitting the gym
By David Mead published
Tonemeister Ariel Posen stops by to share his tonal revelations on new album Reasons Why – and the long list of guitars he used to make it happen
“Music saved me from a lonely existence, and now it’s teaching me how to relate to others and how to relate to myself”: Mat Davidson, aka Twain, found belonging with a guitar in his hand
By Glenn Kimpton published
Mat Davidson has played with Big Thief, The Low Anthem and more, but under his own steam as Twain he is chasing new horizons – with the help of the “Honda Civic” of acoustic guitars
“Take Jeff Beck, David Gilmour and Allan Holdsworth – Alan should be seen as being in that company”: Remembering the late Alan Murphy, the player Fender trusted as a tone consultant, who played with Kate Bush, Go West, and more
By Richard Barrett published
As November 2023 would have marked Alan Murphy’s 70th birthday, we look back at the man and his music, with personal recollections from the collaborators who knew him best
“These guitars illustrate the musical journey of one of popular music’s greatest artists”: Inside Christie’s’ epic $11.2 million Mark Knopfler guitar auction
By Jamie Dickson published
We got an up-close look at some of the most storied, rare and collectible of Mark Knopfler's guitars, just before they went under the hammer
“I’ve had all of the great guitarists in the world say to me, ‘Pete, you’re not in the top 10 for virtuosity, but you’re certainly No. 1 as an acoustic rhythm player’”: Pete Townshend on Who’s Next, Lifehouse, and fun times with Superstrats
By Jeff Slate published
In this brand-new interview, the Who mastermind looks back on Who's Next, the grand designs of Lifehouse, and why he is still having fun on the guitar thanks in no small part to Charvel and Jackson
Everything you need to know about a guitar's action: what it is and how to adjust it on your electric guitar
By Huw Price published
It's time for action. What does it mean? And how should we set it on our guitars? There is no right or wrong answer, but getting it right can help you get the most from your instrument
“Geordie was a true inventor of a massive sound that has influenced so damn many of us”: Remembering Geordie Walker, the sonic maverick whose playing could brutalise and beguile
By Henry Yates published
Guitarist remembers the Killing Joke guitarist, who died on November 26 2023
“The message for tube nostalgists is clear: enjoy today what may not be here tomorrow”: Can the tube amp survive in the digital era?
By Jamie Dickson published
As digital guitar amplification continues to wow the market and guitar players alike, is it realistic to assume that it will be business as usual for the tube amp?
Meet the Lightning Bar, the new Gibson Les Paul mod that might have just settled the top-wrapping debate once and for all
By Dave Burrluck published
Les Paul aficionados have long been divided over the string-through method or top-wrapping their strings. With the Lightning Bar, you can screw the tailpiece and enjoy the more acute string angle
“We tried to sell it and the guy in the shop said it was the worst guitar he’d ever seen in his life”: The Pretenders’ James Walbourne on a shocking first guitar, gear regrets and the big sounds of single coils
By David Mead published
The Pretenders guitarist recalls leaving a precious acoustic in the back of a taxi and why ’60s SG Juniors rock his world…
Everything guitar players need to know about reverb, from the history of the effect to how to get the best from your pedals
By Huw Price published
Whether you prefer a sprinkle or a soaking, reverb is the master of all musical effects. Here is our comprehensive guide to a guitar essential
“I think it’s the challenge right now, as it is for a lot of musicians”: Pete Townshend pinpoints the one thing Instagram players get wrong – and reveals who his favorite social media guitarist is
By Matt Owen published
The Who icon honed in on an aspect of guitar playing that many social media shredders overlook – but also offered a solution in the process
“As a kid, I became fascinated: blues, banjo playing, English traditional music, Scots music”: How Martin Simpson is reworking trad Appalachian standards and turning them into folk guitar masterworks
By Jamie Dickson published
The folk maestro’s latest record, Nothing But Green Willow, is a beautiful collection of songs from the Appalachian Mountains. Here he tells us how he breathed new life into them
“I still love that idea of a solo singer-songwriter being able to communicate with just their guitar and vocal”: Christina Martin on making the leap from cheap Gretsches to fancy Duesenbergs, and why pedals stress her out
By Glenn Kimpton published
On her new album, Storm, the Canadian-born, Austin-based singer-songwriter is cultivating a more orchestral sound, but as she explains, you can strip it all back to her voice and guitar
“I’ve always found them to be extraordinarily versatile guitars – you can play any kind of music on them”: Rockabilly great Darrel Higham on why he uses only Gretsch guitars – and that time he bought a 6120 he found lying around Jeff Beck’s house
By David Mead published
A lifelong Eddie Cochran fan who partnered with Jeff Beck for a tour celebrating the music of Cliff Gallup, Higham tells us why he can’t get enough of That Great Gretsch Sound
“Leslie West said: ‘I prefer your licks, Pete. Eric seems to be playing things he’s learned, that he’s picked up from other blues players’”: Pete Townshend says the Mountain legend favored his expansive rock licks over Eric Clapton’s blues vocabulary
By Matt Owen published
“I think that is a fair comparison, although I have seen Eric play live, where he really goes sky high,” the Who hero added
“I’ve used 4x12 cabinets and heavy Marshall heads, but it almost felt unnecessary”: Jake Kiszka explains why he only used combo amps on Greta Van Fleet’s last album
By Matt Parker published
The guitarist has been detailing his gear choices behind the band’s 2023 album Starcatcher
“I was playing at three times the speed that I normally play at”: Pete Townshend resisted buying “heavy metal” guitars for decades – but he just got his first Jackson at the age of 78… and loves it
By Matt Owen published
The Stratocaster loyalist decided it was time to branch into more metal territory with his latest six-string purchase – and he was pleasantly surprised with what he discovered