Latest articles by Matt McCracken
Best guitar straps 2025: Keep your guitar safe and play in comfort
Make sure your guitar is secure when you step up to the stage with the best guitar straps
Best classical guitars 2025: My pick of the finest nylon-string acoustics
From small-scale acoustics for your first steps to stage-ready electro-classicals, here's what to look for
Best Taylor guitars 2025: my pick of the most popular Taylor acoustics
Marrying innovation with sustainability, these instruments are Taylor-made for your collection
Best bass guitars 2025: Low-end tones for any budget
From top-end Rickenbackers to budget-friendly squiers, the best basses take many forms – these are the ones to consider right now
Best guitar tuners 2025: clip-on, pedal, and app-based tuning options for all guitarists
Nail your tuning with our selection of tuners for guitar, bass, and more from the likes of TC Electronic, Boss, Korg, and D’Addario
Best acoustic guitar strings 2025: my pick of the best strings around
From coated options to custom gauges, these are the best acoustic strings on the market from Elixir, Ernie Ball, D’Addario, and more
Prime Day guitar deals 2025: The official sale is over, but you can still find deals on guitars, amps, pedals, accessories, and more – here's our top picks
Prime Day 2025 has ended, but there are still deals to be had on guitar-related gear. Grab them while you can
Thankfully, my go-to Tele for recording and gigging is still available with a $240 discount this Prime - but be quick as this offer won't last forever
My favorite Tele just got a massive discount in the Fender summer sale
These 8 guitar accessories and tools won't change your life, but they will save you some serious hassle and they're all on sale for the remaining hours of Prime Day
My pick of guitar accessories isn’t going to make you a better guitar player, but they will save you time, hassle, and most importantly, money. Grab a bargain while you still can
Quick! Last chance to bag a seriously discounted Fender patch cable kit on the final day of Prime Day – at $3 per cable, there's no reason to have a messy board
With almost $105 in savings at the Fender shop, now's the time to get that messy 'board in order - add another $5 item and they'll even ship your gear for free!
I just spotted the pedal deal of the year with the Electro-Harmonix Lizard Queen octave fuzz slashed to just $39.60 for Prime Day
Guitar Center continues to take the fight to Amazon with its Prime Day-rivalling savings – 60% off the EHX Lizard Queen is the perfect cheap Prime Day pedal deal
One of my favorite sub-$500 guitars just dropped to an even sweeter price with $136 off – here’s why I think it's the ultimate affordable workhorse
I didn’t think this Squier Tele could get any better for the price, then Guitar Center knocked 27% off for Prime Day
Whether you've got $200 or $2,000, the Fender Summer Sale is still going strong with up to $550 off guitars – here are my top 3 picks for any budget
Fender’s Summer Sale is one of the best around, with some massive discounts on Fender and Squier guitars
Guitar Center just cranked their 4th of July sale to a wild up to 60% off, including a massive $850 off Music Man guitars
Guitar Center has pumped up the discounts in their 4th of July sale, offering even more superb savings on guitar gear
I’ve scored some of my best used guitar gear finds at Reverb, and right now there's up to 66% off in their summer sale
To celebrate being independently owned again, Reverb is offering up to 66% off new, B-stock, and used gear
Best jazz guitars 2025: Great jazz guitars for traditional and modern players
My pick of the best electric guitars for jazz from Ibanez, D'Angelico, Fender, Gibson, and more
Best distortion pedals 2025: Dirty up your tone with my top choices
It's time to get heavy with my top-rated distortion pedals for metal, rock, bass, and more
Best beginner acoustic guitars 2025: start as you mean to go on
My pick of tried-and-tested beginner acoustics from trusted brands including Taylor, Fender, Epiphone, and more
Best overdrive pedals 2025: Saturate your guitar tone
Push your sound to break-up with the best OD pedals from Boss, TC Electronic, JHS, Ibanez and more
Best Klon clones 2025: unobtainium overdrive tone for the masses
Get killer Klon-tones from these excellent and affordable adaptations, including clones by Wampler, Warm Audio, Way Huge, and more
If World String Change Day isn’t enough to convince you to change your strings, how about 25% off D’Addario XS packs at Guitar Center?
Dead string begone with this awesome deal on D’Addario XS coated guitar strings
Best pedal amps 2025: Power up your pedalboard with an amp simulator pedal
Save on visits to the chiropractor with my pick of the best amp modeling pedals
Sweetwater is skipping the Memorial Day sale this year - but you can still get up to 50% off guitar pedals and amplifiers
There might not be a Sweetwater Memorial Day sale this year but for guitarists, there are some great deals to take advantage of
