Latest articles by Dave Hunter
“A fun vintage find that delivers unique and useful sounds”: Gibson’s GA-79RVT combo is an underrated gem – and cheaper than many of its rivals
One of the world’s earliest reverb-equipped combos, the GA-79RVT is a quirky, temperamental beast that nonetheless is capable of producing a wide array of sweet vintage tones
"Having played through Friedman's amps, I'd say the IR-X captures their very useable foundations…" Why you need to check out this new tube amp and pedal combo
Review: the Friedman IR-X Dual Tube Preamp and IR Pedal
“I thought whatever made me happy’s gonna make everybody happy. I didn’t think it out”: How legendary guitar designer Les Paul bet on the “Black Beauty” in 1954 and lost…
Despite its glammed up features and appearance, Gibson’s “Black Beauty” Les Paul Custom aka “the fretless wonder” was no match against the glitzy Goldtop. Discover its rocky road to guitar greatness
“Lush, evocative and a ton of fun to play with”: Gibson’s new retro-leaning Falcon 5 and Falcon 20 amps pay homage to the rare tweed-era 1961 GA-19RVT and “set a new bar for low-power tone”…
NEW & COOL How Gibson’s latest gorgeous retro-styled Falcon amp duo “recaptures vintage glories”
“More than enough firepower to keep up with a heavy-fisted drummer…” The high-tech, hard-rocking Soldano Astro-20 amp reviewed
This great-sounding, future-proofed high-gain tube amp wins an Editors’ Pick award for its power, features and flexibility
“An analogue powerhouse with surprising versatility…” The Benson Delay pedal reviewed
The award-winning Benson Delay pedal has near limitless note bending and sounds fantastic
Caught by the fuzz: The story of Electro-Harmonix’s tooth-rattling Big Muff, the stompbox guitarists have been falling in love with since the 1960s
Big Muff fanboys including Jack White, Dave Gilmour and The Edge, discover how Electro-Harmonix’s fuzzbox changed electric guitars forever
“It was waiting patiently for decades, kind of like lost tapes from an artist”: The Espada HH and Espada HH Active are G&L’s latest “dual-humbucker” takes on Leo Fender’s gorgeous long lost late-1960’s blueprints
Leo Fender’s long-lost 1960's Estrada is back again for 2024 thanks to G&L in two new “dual-humbucker” variations on the 2019 model
The quest for amps and speakers that can reproduce all that DSP-generated guitar tone as sound waves has yet to produce a clear winner: Could Fender's new Tone Master Pro FR-10 cab be the one?
Fender’s first full-range, flat-response Tone Master Pro FR-10 powered cab is super-affordable and just what fans have been waiting for
“The thick, punchy stereo sound from this rig simply rocks”: the Two Notes Torpedo Captor X SE is a cleverly designed unit that offers an incredible range of sound from a brick-sized box. And there are only 450 of them…
As a sound-crafting alternative to cabs and mics, Two Notes’ amazingly versatile Torpedo Captor X SE is a hard act to beat– and there are only 450 are available…
Believe the hype: The long-awaited Fender Tone Master Pro is one of the best-sounding, most powerful and easiest to use guitar processors ever and a worthy Editors’ Pick Award winner
Been waiting to get in on the guitar modeling craze? There's never been a better time to jump onboard thanks to the incredibly versatile and adaptable Fender Tone Master Pro
Gear of the Year: The best guitars, amps, pedals and more of 2023
Our guide to the greatest guitars, amps, pedals and accessories of 2023, handpicked by the Guitar Player team
The mission: create a multi-tone classic-sounding tube amp for the 21st century. 3rd Power founder Dylana Nova Scott on her inspiration behind the “optimal, gigable” Clean Sink MkII
“Players need inspiring tools to create and deliver their heart, soul and music to their audience That’s what 3rd Power does”: Discover the Clean Sink MkII, a game-changing tube combo with three blendable iconic amp tones
“From its bling to its stereo electronics, Gibson’s ES-355 launched the semihollow format to swank new heights in 1958”: Favored by everyone from B.B. King to Johnny Marr, here's what makes the ES-355 so special
Gibson's upgrade to the ES-335, the ES-355 was fancy but a little too fussy for some…
For those about to rock: we salute the Boss SD-1 Super OverDrive which has wowed lead guitarists for over 40 years with its jagged, granular tone
Boss brought out the SD-1 Super OverDrive in 1981, refining the circuit for more gain and aggression and adding a tone knob – and it’s sold by the millions
“One of the most seamless, natural and organic-sounding solid-state pedals we’ve ever played”: Crank it up to 11 with Dinosaural’s award-winning three-channel Cogmeister Overdrive
The Cogmeister Overdrive sounds fabulous – its three stages interact beautifully to create a range of tactile and tube-like clipping tones that suit any playing style – and richly deserves an Editors’ Pick award
"A streamlined hard-charging beast": the Peavey HP 2 Poplar Burl RM reviewed
The direct descendant of Peavey’s best-known and most historic rock axe of all time, the Wolfgang, returns — now handcrafted in the Czech Republic
"Eminently playable and fiercely versatile": the Yamaha Revstar Professional RSP02T reviewed
Yamaha's high-end Japanese-built powerhouse is back and better than ever with a makeover for 2023
What Did Johnny Cash, the Grateful Dead, and the Jackson 5 Have in Common? They All Embraced the Kustom Look and Sound
These bold, punchy solid-state amps rocked the backlines of many noteworthy stars
All You Need to Know About Gibson PAF Humbuckers
These hum-cancelling pickups are legendary for their tone, but is the “magic” just hype?
A Firm Favorite of Ry Cooder and Dan Auerbach, Here's Why the Humble Gold-Foil Pickup Can Deliver About as Much Aural Magic as Any of the A-List Coils
The cult of the gold-foil has acquired a mystique and made its place among us
Acoustic Control Gamma Effects Pedals Review
All are worth checking out, but the Atlas Boosted Overdrive and Narcissus Warm Delay deserve Editors’ Pick Awards
With a Surprising History Dating Back to the 1940s, Carvin Later Achieved Kudos With Endorsements by Steve Vai, Allan Holdsworth and Joe Walsh
Launched as a post-WWII startup, the firm grew into a guitar gear giant, one catalog sale at a time
