
Matt McCracken
Matt is a Junior Deals Writer here at Guitar Player. He regularly tests and reviews music gear with a focus on guitars, amps, pedals, modelers, and pretty much anything else guitar-related. Responsible for over 60 buying guides, a large part of his role is helping guitarists find the best deals on gear. Matt worked in music retail for 5 years at Dawsons Music and Northwest Guitars and has written for many music sites including MusicRadar, Guitar World, 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 UK in more dingy venues than you can shake a drop-tuned guitar at. When he's not holed up in his practice space jamming new songs or ogling yet another guitar, you’ll find him making a racket with Northern noise punks Never Better.
Latest articles by Matt McCracken

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
By Matt McCracken last updated
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
By Matt McCracken last updated
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
By Matt McCracken published
To celebrate being independently owned again, Reverb is offering up to 66% off new, B-stock, and used gear

Best jazz guitars: great jazz guitars for traditional and modern players
By Richard Blenkinsop last updated
My pick of the best electric guitars for jazz from Ibanez, D'Angelico, Fender, Gibson, and more

Best distortion pedals: dirty up your tone with my top choices
By Alex Lynham last updated
It's time to get heavy with my top-rated distortion pedals for metal, rock, bass, and more

Best beginner acoustic guitars: start as you mean to go on
By Richard Blenkinsop last updated
My pick of tried-and-tested beginner acoustics from trusted brands including Taylor, Fender, Epiphone, and more

Best overdrive pedals: saturate your guitar tone
By Connor Godfrey last updated
Push your sound to break-up with the best OD pedals from Boss, TC Electronic, JHS, Ibanez and more

Best Klon clones: unobtainium overdrive tone for the masses
By Connor Godfrey last updated
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?
By Matt McCracken published
Dead string begone with this awesome deal on D’Addario XS coated guitar strings

Best pedal amps: power up your pedalboard with an amp simulator pedal
By Matt McCracken last updated
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
By Matt McCracken published
There might not be a Sweetwater Memorial Day sale this year but for guitarists, there are some great deals to take advantage of

Best PRS guitars: PRS models for every playing style
By Daryl Robertson last updated
From the iconic Custom 24 and top-of-the-range signature guitars to budget-friendly SE models

Best electric guitars: top quality electrics for all budgets
By Daryl Robertson last updated
My pick of the finest electric guitars at every price point from the likes of Gibson, Fender, PRS, Reverend, Music Man, Jackson, and more

Best acoustic guitars: my pick of the very best beginner, intermediate, and top-end acoustics
By Matt McCracken last updated
From high-quality entry-level models to top-of-the-range collector’s pieces, I look at the best acoustic guitars available today

Musician’s Friend is leading the charge for guitarists with up to 50% off for Memorial Day – get $450 off a Gibson Les Paul and over $1,000 off a Taylor acoustic
By Matt McCracken published
From premium acoustic guitars to budget-friendly offsets, Musician's Friend is the place to be if you want an early Memorial Day deal on guitars

Fender just fired up its Memorial Day sale early with up to 20% off – these are the 5 best guitar and accessory deals I’m grabbing
By Matt McCracken published
Grab an early deal well ahead of Memorial Day with this excellent sale over at the official Fender shop

Best guitar slides: my picks to unlock classic slide tone
By Daryl Robertson last updated
Achieve the ultimate slide sound with the best slides for guitar on the market from Dunlop, Fender, MojoTone, Rock Slide and Shubb

Best Telecaster pickups: expert recommendations for perfecting that unmistakable Tele twang
By Richard Blenkinsop last updated
From traditional tones to modern high-gain options, these should be your go-to pickups to breathe new life into your Telecaster

Best guitar cables 2025: Hard-working cables that will preserve your tone
By Matt McCracken last updated
The ultimate plug in and play guide: the best guitar cables from the likes of Mogami, Ernie Ball, D’Addario and more

Best Fender amps: the finest Fender amplifiers you can get your hands on
By Ross Holder last updated
Tube warmth or modern modeling? I've taken a look at the best Fender amps for all players and budgets

Best guitar amps: tube-driven triumphs and peerless pedal platforms for home, studio, and stage
By Daryl Robertson last updated
From solid-state practice amps to all-tube stage amps, here’s our pick of the best amplifiers on the market – featuring Boss, Blackstar, Orange, and more

Best chorus pedals 2025: the best options from Boss, Universal Audio, Ibanez, and more
By Richard Blenkinsop published
Digital or analog; bypass or buffered? We look at the best chorus pedals you can buy right now

Best guitar amps under $500: premium tones from budget-friendly amplifiers
By Matt McCracken last updated
Who said great tone has to cost an arm and a leg? These amps from Boss, Marshall, Fender, Blackstar, and more deliver incredible sound – all for under $500
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