Latest news
The best of the past, the best of the future: the hottest guitar amps and amp pedals coming out in 2024
GEAR EXPO 2024: Amps of all shapes and sizes, with some offering vintage features and others completely futuristic…
The 8 most innovative new music making gadgets of 2024
GEAR EXPO 2024: These must-have production wonders will have your eyes widening and your hands reaching for your wallets
A magnificent 7 softsynths to look out for in 2024
GEAR EXPO 2024: These have all scored well in recent reviews or look like setting 2024 alight with their sonic brilliance
Alesis Strata Prime: we’ve got our hands on Alesis’ brand-new, BFD-loaded electronic drum set - here are our first impressions
With the BFD sound engine built in, and a massive touchscreen to control it, here's what we love about the Alesis Strata Prime (and a couple of things we don't)
“Redefine what it means to take music on the road”: Harley Benton rolls out the TravelMate and TravelMate-E, affordable weather and climate resistant guitars for players on the go
The new additions to the Harley Benton travel guitar line have half-sized thinline carbon fibre builds, with the TravelMate-E equipped with an integrated smart pickup system
Minimal marvel or beige and boring? Vongon's Replay is likely to divide synth-heads with its unique aesthetic
This new virtual analogue synth from Vongon sounds great, but does it put style over substance?
Minimal Audio flexes its modulation muscles with Flex Chorus, a 24-voice, multi-band chorus plugin with two unique modes
Flex Chorus is capable of producing everything from scene-stealing unison effects to subtle stereo enhancement
“Make your music sound more like you”: Forever 89, the new company from Teenage Engineering and Ableton alumni, has released Visco, a flexible sample-modelling drum machine
Sounds can grabbed, pushed and pulled using “the blob”
“A budget-friendly instrument with core RD features”: Roland launches the RD-08 stage piano, the most affordable RD model yet
A compact stage piano that comes with built-in speakers, SuperNATURAL and ZEN-Core sound engines, and Roland Cloud expansion support
Punk Labs' OneTrick Keys is a lo-fi keys plugin based on a "vintage" physical modelling algorithm developed in the '90s
With six onboard effects, this synth plugin has more than one trick up its sleeve
The Great Synth Showdown: Oberheim OB-X8 hardware synth vs GForce Software OB-X
The polyphonic stakes are high...
Are software synths now better than hardware - and does it matter?
Grab your favourite softsynths and let us take you on a journey into their evolution. Learn how to get more out of them and see how they stack up next to the pioneers that inspired them
Is the Zoom MS-70CDR+ MultiStomp 2024's compact multi-effects pedal bargain? 149 reverb, delay and modulation effects suggest it might be
Ten years on, Zoom has updated its dark horse modulation, reverb and delay pedal
“It’s not just my job, it’s literally what I do for a hobby, too!”: Brian Wampler talks pedal culture, cork-sniffing, and the never-ending search for better tone
The guitar effects guru drops by to talk circuit design, gear obsessions, and the crazy used pedal market. “Like this Germanium Tumnus I’ve seen for $800 or $900. That’s insane! I would never buy that pedal for $800, $900. Ever”
iZotope takes Trash out of the trash and relaunches fan-favourite distortion plugin with free Lite version
The new version of Trash has been equipped with an envelope follower and a "scream filter", along with a redesigned interface and parameter randomization
Best electric guitars 2024: Our pick of guitars to suit all budgets
Find the top electric guitar for your budget and playing style, whether you play rock, metal, blues or beyond
“Holy sh*t, that's good!”: Foo Fighters’ Chris Shiflett on replacing his amps with the Quad Cortex for his solo tour – plus, the lowdown on the other essentials in his current rig
Amp modelling, why the Les Paul is a great country guitar and what fans can expect from his latest Fender signature model
The new era of the Line 6 POD is here: say hello to the POD Express Guitar and Bass
Ultra-portability and hands-on control in pedal form
‘Synth map of the world’ reveals that Roland and Behringer dominate other brands when it comes to Google searches
Roland is number one in 73 countries, while Behringer leads the way in 33
“People that get this guitar, it’s really going to make an impact on them because it doesn’t only look awesome, it sounds amazing”: Gretsch’s Chris Rocha signature Broadkaster Jr is a ltd edition stunner
This Electromatic series semi-hollow has a maple body with a chambered spruce centre block, a pair of Dual High Sensitive Filter’Tron pickups, and looks like it's made of ice cream and gold