The Guitar Plugged Recommends
Gear we've played, owned, gigged, and recorded with — and would buy again. Affiliate links support the magazine at no cost to you.
GUITARS
The instruments we'd actually buy with our own money
Fender American Professional II Stratocaster
The benchmark modern Strat — quiet pickups, smooth neck, road-ready hardware.
Gibson Les Paul Standard '60s
Burstbuckers, slim taper neck, the classic LP voice we've owned and gigged for years.
PRS SE Custom 24
Best value high-end factory guitar going. Plays and sounds like double the price.
AMPS
Tube and modeling rigs we trust on stage and in the studio
Fender Tone Master Deluxe Reverb
All the Deluxe Reverb tone, half the weight, full attenuation. Brilliant for clubs.
Marshall DSL40CR
Affordable real-tube Marshall crunch for blues, classic rock, and modern hard rock.
Fractal Audio FM3
The modeler we actually use. Pro-grade tones in a pedalboard-sized footprint.
Headrush Core
Best modeler under $500 right now. Punches well above its price class.
PEDALS
Drive, modulation, and time pedals that earn their place on our board
Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer
The reference mid-hump overdrive. SRV, Mayer, every blues player ever.
Boss DD-8 Digital Delay
Modern Boss delay with looper, modes for every style, and bulletproof build.
Strymon Flint Reverb & Tremolo
Our favorite always-on ambience pedal — classy 'verb, vintage trem, easy to dial in.
STUDIO GEAR
Home-studio essentials we use every day to record demos and content
Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 (4th Gen)
The home-studio default for a reason. Clean preamps, zero-drama drivers.
Sennheiser HD 280 Pro
Closed-back tracking headphones that aren't lying to you.
Yamaha HS5 Studio Monitors
Honest near-fields. If your mix sounds good on HS5s, it sounds good everywhere.
BOOKS & LEARNING
Resources we actually keep on the shelf
Guitar Aerobics — Troy Nelson
365 daily exercises across every style. The most-used practice book on our shelf.
Fretboard Logic SE — Bill Edwards
The clearest explanation of CAGED and fretboard mapping we've found.
Hal Leonard Guitar Method
The standard beginner method for a reason — graded, patient, and complete.
TrueFire subscription
Our favorite online lesson platform — partners we work with, courses we actually take.
Affiliate disclosure: some links earn us a small commission at no cost to you. See our Affiliate Disclosure.