Portable audio recorders are versatile devices that are used for recording rehearsals, live shows, and field recordings. This guide is for you if you want to purchase a recorder to capture better quality audio than you can with a phone app.

Gearing up for recording has never been easier, all you need is your computer, instrument, microphone, and a good audio interface. With so many cheap audio interfaces available, we taken it upon ourselves to present you with a reliable list of current market favorites, updated October 2020.

Stage monitors allow performers to hear themselves and others on stage. Without stage or floor monitors it can be very difficult to stay in time and sing in tune. This guide features the highest rated powered and options currently on the market.

With so many low quality mics in the entry-level market, getting a good one can be quite daunting. To help you out, we present you with the highest rated microphones that you can buy for under $50.

When budget is limited, it is best to find gear that squeezes the most value for your money. This applies to condenser mics in the sub $100 price range, where you're mostly looking for an all-in-one budget friendly mic. This guide serves that demand, featuring condenser microphones that have proven themselves to be valuable additions to home studios.

When you need to work on your recorded music you need to hear exactly how it sounds, warts and all. Multimedia and hi-fi speakers are not suitable for the task because they color the sound. This is where good studio monitors come in...

Guitar amplifiers don't just amplify sound, they also shape and color the sound. This is especially true for tube amps, and is the reason why amps are considered as vital to tone as guitars themselves. Here we feature the best combo tube amps that fit the average guitarists' budget, based on actual user feedback and market sentiment.

Here we feature the best guitar straps for electric and acoustic guitars as well as for bass. We also include top rated strap button adapters and straps for classical guitars and ukuleles, to accommodate different instruments.

Acoustic guitars priced between $500 and $1,000 tend to have better tonewoods and construction than many of the cheaper options. You'll find many of these guitars also have better tonal definition and projection than their lower priced counterparts.

Gigging with an acoustic guitar can be a headache if you don’t have an acoustic guitar pickup, and if you don’t get the best acoustic guitar pickup for you you’re never going to get the tone you want. So rather than go in blind, check out our recommendations!

A reality of being a guitarist is that you can’t always play at full volume. If you live with other people, especially in an apartment complex, you have to keep your volume at a reasonable level. Thankfully, there’s a solution available: practice amps. To find the best practice amp for your situation, check out our recommendations.

Guitar amps are an integral part to your sound, but a lot of musicians just can’t justify dropping hundreds (or even thousands!) of dollars on a guitar amp. If you’re looking to get a great tone for as cheap as possible, check out our recommended list in this guide.

Solid state amplifiers offer a lot of advantages and there are a ton that sound amazing. They’re (generally) cheaper, more durable, don’t have to warm up/cool down, and are significantly easier to transport than most tube amps.

Nylon has been the material of choice for flamenco, classical, and many fingerstyle guitarists for decades. First introduced as an alternative to the gut strings used prior to the material’s introduction, nylon has proven itself to be a best option due to its affordability and resilience.

A battery powered guitar amp gives you the freedom to play on the go. Inspiration can also hit you from the most unexpected of times so an amp that is ready to play anywhere is a valuable tool for guitarists. Instead of taking time to fire up your entire rig just to get ideas down, a portable battery powered guitar amp can get you going right away.

Here are the highest rated 7-string electric guitars up to $2000 along with advice to help you find the best one for your needs.

The sub $500 price range is the sweet spot where you can find many guitar amps with good value and overall quality. Here we look at the best of these market leading combo amplifiers, to help you in your pursuit of great guitar tone and functionality.

Want something you can crank at home without annoying the neighbors? Maybe a small gig or two in the future? Need saturated dirty tones for recording? Small, Low Watt Tube Amps are the perfect solution for all these needs

For the modern electronic musician, performing goes beyond playing keyboard MIDI controllers and tweaking knobs. Songs arranged in the studio can now be performed and altered live. Sounds, samples or even entire sections of music can be triggered with the help of dedicated MIDI pad controllers assigned to specific functions in a DAW.

If you have an acoustic guitar with pickups you need a specialized acoustic amp if you want to bring out the natural tone of your instrument. These amps aim to be transparent so they are also good at amplifying vocals - this means that many of these amps are also designed to work well as small PA systems.

The number one barrier to entry towards having a great microphone is that most of them require an audio interface for recording. Major manufacturers now offer some of their models as USB mics with built in analog-to-digital converters to address the needs of people who simply want a good microphone for recording without an audio interface.

Here are the highest rated $200 to $500 solidbody electric guitars in each of the following pickup categories: Single Coil, Humbucker, Filter’Tron and Mixed type combinations, to help you narrow down the options so you can confidently chose the one that suits you best.

Looper pedals have become indispensable thanks to their ability to create clones which you can use as virtual backup musicians and singers. Here we look at what the market considers as the best looper pedals, divided into two categories: Compact & Multiswitch.

In this edition we present the highest rated of both reverb pedals and delay-reverb combo pedals. You'll also get advice and important pointers to keep in mind while choosing which one to get.

61-Key MIDI keyboard controllers are big enough for complex two hand playing, while still keeping compact and portable profiles. These are ideal instruments for Keyboardists who are looking for a controller that can be used both in the studio and for live performances.

Compressor pedals are the unsung heroes of many musicians’ rigs. This type of pedal is used to remove a portion of a signal’s dynamic range. Depending on how you set the pedal, it either makes quiet notes louder or loud notes quieter (or both).

As the title suggests, this list features the highest rated MIDI keyboard controllers across all prices ranges. This way, you can narrow down your selection to the best ones that you can actually afford.

MIDI controllers have been fundamental tools for producing music due to their versatility and portability. They provide control over a computer software sequencers and virtual synthesizers, as well as external sound modules. This guide covers highly rated affordable keyboard controllers, with options ranging from 25 to 49 keys.

The great thing about 25 key MIDI controllers is their portability and the small amount of space they take up. They're not designed to replace a full size keyboard, but rather to offer convenience - that said some of the higher-end options are packed with an impressive range of features these days.

Keyboard workstations are versatile electronic instruments that integrate a keyboard with a sound module and sequencers. They are pretty much a "studio in a box" since they let you play and record ideas right away, practical and convenient for those who perform or create original music.

Anyone who has ever gigged with an acoustic guitar can tell you what a lifesaver acoustic pickups are. The days where guitarists had to carefully position their instrument in front of a microphone are long gone, because acoustic guitars have become plug and play instruments.

There's just no replacing the feel and sound of acoustic pianos, but they are not always practical when considering real world space and budget restrictions. This is where we come in with our feature on the Best Digital Piano keyboards, featuring market favorites in the sub $500 price range that have impressed student and professional pianists alike.

Unlike standard MIDI keyboards, a portable keyboard has built-in speakers so you can play anytime without having to plug in additional equipment. The keyboards included in this guide can also run on batteries so you can play them anywhere.

To make the most out of your studio monitors, you'll want to pair them up with top quality stands that are designed for studio use. In addition to positioning and securing your speakers, these stands prevent cabinet vibration from transferring to your floor or desk, which results in improved sonic clarity.

Stand alone mic preamps are a great way to enhance the quality and character of your microphone recordings as well as allowing you to add extra mic enabled channels to audio interface. Ordinary preamps built into audio interfaces and mixing desks are usually solid performers but dedicated preamps can add that extra warmth and clarity.

Building your very own personalized guitar has never been this easy, thanks to DIY (Do-It-Yourself) guitar kits. Here we look at what the market considers to be the best of them, covering a good variety of guitar shapes and styles.

This gear guide is focused on the best microphones for singing and rapping live as opposed to mics best suited to speaking conferences or making announcements over PA systems. All of these mics are great for vocals, but some can also be used on instruments, and some are also handy studio mics.

The acoustic guitar has long been, and continues to be, the most accessible music instrument available. Having the right mic to record this prolific instrument is critical to a good recording setup for any musician or studio.

Preamps for acoustic guitars and other acoustic instruments are great for bringing out a more natural and clear sound. Every kind of acoustic pickup has it's trade-offs and good preamps help emphasize the acoustic tone, add warmth and make the sound more realistic as well as reducing any unwanted frequencies.

Over a century after it was first introduced, the Condenser Mic continues to be an indispensable tool for music production. This guide focuses on the highest rated large and small diaphragm mics that cover all the tasks studio condensers are used for.

A good guitar headphone amplifier will let you enjoy your instrument without testing the limits of other people's noise tolerance. Here we look at the best of these headphone amps for guitar, updated for 2020, also included are top rated compact guitar processors that can do the job just as well.

This gear guide will help you find the right studio recording microphones for your budget and needs. The focus is on top rated condenser and dynamic mics that are currently being used to record vocals in home recording and professional studios.

Finding the best drum sticks can be a challenge. There’s so much that goes into how they’re designed, and if you don’t get the right type for your needs and skill level you’re not going to get the tone or response you want.

When it comes to acoustic guitars, a huge part of your tone is decided by the strings you use. The gauge, the material they’re made from, and their design can all transform your tone; for better or worse. Make the most out of your instrument, equip it with the best sounding acoustic guitar strings - check out our recommendations!

Overdrive is an incredibly useful effect. To start with, it gives you familiar rock guitar tones, from subtle grit to crunch. On more complex setups, it can be used to add girth to an already distorted sound, and give your lead the cutting boost to take your solos to the next level. If you’re looking for the best overdrive pedals, check out our recommendations!

Guitar stands are kind of like a belt. They’re cheap, and you’re not going to see a lot of people debating the pros and cons of different models on forums, but if you don’t get a good one you’ll end up regretting it. So rather than trying to search through scores of different models through online retailers, check out our recommendations.

Distortion is the sound that powers hard rock and metal. As such, many guitarists' first pedal is a distortion box, and the love for this effect continues to grow with experience, with some having tried many different distortion pedals by the time they're playing on stage.

The soprano ukulele is the smallest standard size and it produces the trademark bright ukulele sounds we've come to know and love. If you're looking for the classic, traditional ukulele tone then this is the size you are looking for. Coming in at about the same size is the lesser known "pineapple" ukulele.

As you take your home recording to the next level, you will outgrow your 2-channel audio interface. This guide is designed to help you with this expansion, featuring the best stand-alone audio interfaces that have 4 to 16 simultaneous analog inputs. NB: We have separate guides devoted to 2-Channel and iPad audio interfaces.

Whether you play Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Acoustic-Electric Guitar or Bass, we've got you covered when it comes to choosing your next tuner. In fact, we short-listed 52 tuners and analyzed over 23,000 sources to bring you what we believe is the most comprehensive guitar tuner guide currently available.

A guitar rig is only as strong as its weakest link, so it pays to get the right patch cables for the job. Here we present you with what the market considers to be the best guitar patch cables, covering a variety of price ranges and bundles. Our list of recommendations includes detailed descriptions of each one, along with noteworthy feedback from real world users.

57 combo bass amps analyzed for this guide covering all of the information that you’ll need in order to make an informed purchase, and we’ve recommended some great amps in case you don’t feel like scrolling through scores of different options trying to figure out which one will work best for your situation.

Balanced XLR Cables are used to connect microphones and other balanced output music gear into mixing consoles. They continue to be the industry standard for both recording and live performance because they can shield your signal from interference, and transfer your audio over longer distances.

Your playing experience is decided just as much by your accessories as it is by your actual instrument, and there’s no better example of this than drum thrones. If you’re looking for the best drum throne, check out our recommendations!

This guide is for anyone looking for a new compressor for their 500 Series rack. For this October 2019 update we have separated our recommendations into single channel compressors and stereo compressors to better distinguish a unit's potential applications.

Guitar cables can't make you sound better, but bad ones can make you sound bad, if not totally cut off your sound. This results in uninspiring and often awkward experiences that musicians try to forget. To avoid this we present the best guitar and instrument cables, covering a wide price range so you can choose one that fits your preference and budget.

 
Delay is a unique effect in that it has a place in every genre. Whether you’re looking for dry country slapback chunk or the smooth “filling out” effect you hear in metal. Essentially, if you play guitar you will want to pick up a delay pedal at some point.

While good guitar cases are not cheap, investing in them will save you more in the long run, especially when considering the cost of repair or replacement. More importantly, you can't put a price on peace of mind, so please heed our advice - do not skimp on your acoustic guitar's protection and storage.

Getting a wireless system for your guitar can free you up from being tied to your amplifier and reduce cable clutter on stage. We short-listed the 23 most popular systems at major online American music gear stores and examined over 4,300 sources to bring you the highest rated options on the market.