Happy Christmas from the gearnews.com team!

2016 is almost over, and what a great year it's been! For music gear, at least...

The 5 Best Microphones 2016: Shure, Lewitt, Chandler, Ocean Way, Townsend

This year has seen some significant advancements in microphone technology. Here's our run down of the Top 5 microphones, each with something to shout about.

Top 5 new guitar ranges of 2016

Here are five new guitar ranges launched in 2016 that should be on your radar!

Christmas Gift Ideas For Guitarists!

Christmas is almost upon us, and many of us are still looking for some last minute ideas for gifts. Here are some ideas for guitar-related stocking-fillers!

‘Brexit-busting’ budget guitar recording Pt. 1: Software

Want to record some of your great guitar tones? Crashing pound left you without the cash for a recording studio? Here are some great tips for recording guitars on very, very low budget...

New Guitar Amps 2016 Quiz

All year, our resident amp expert Jef Stone has been feeding you the latest news on the hottest amps, from 50s-style reissue Blues combos to 200-Watt Hair Metal monsters. Have you been paying attention?

How to sound like J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr

Coming out of the post-punk hardcore scene of the United States, J Mascis transformed from a drummer into guitar legend, his unique style was complemented by his love of classic rock and melded with his ...

Top 5 Signature Guitars and Basses 2016

Artist associations have come a long way over the years and this year we feel these are the best so far. What do you think?

Top 5 free mixing plug-ins in 2016

With so many free plug-ins available, we take a look at some of the hottest free mixing plug-ins released this year... so far!

Android – Why is it still so crap for making music?

If you are a musician and an Android smartphone user I guarantee that at some point you've looked at what's on offer and thought - 'If only I had an iPhone'.

Weird guitar pedals – Top 5

Our Top 5 Weird and Wonderful effects pedals of 2016 so far. Join us down the rabbit hole and seek inspiration on the road less travelled with these odd little stomp boxes of joy.

Top 5 modular synths for beginners

Intrigued by modular but don't know where to start? Here's our guide to the best gateway products for getting into Modular Synthesis.

Top 5 Audio Interfaces for 2016

Choosing the best audio interface can be a really difficult decision. Here's our selection of the Top 5 Audio Interfaces out this year, that we recommend.

Top 5 Fuzz Pedals: The best dirt boxes of 2016

We at GearNews believe that a good dirt box is an essential part of any guitarist's rig. We've rounded up our top fuzz pedals that have been released so far this year.

The 5 best new hardware synthesizers this year – so far

Another great year for synth enthusiasts: 5 of the most promising new Synthesizers from Korg, DSI, Yamaha, Arturia and Teenage Engineering!

James Bond’s latest (musical) gadgets

James Bond is amazing, quadrocopters are amazing - what if you got robot quadrocopters playing the James Bond theme? Pure awesomeness! These little guys are a little off most of the time, but the idea is great ...

Plugins for knobs

How many more 'one-knob' style plugins do we need? Who needs a professional anyway? Check out my latest 'Perfectizer' plugin!

Musikmesse 2016: The present and future of Europe’s biggest MI trade show

Musikmesse 2016 turned out to have a few highlights, as well as a few, well, lowlights. What was it like wandering around the show, and what future does Musikmesse have in the internet age? Our very own ...

Happy April Fools everyone! Audified announce ‘DeMixxer’

Fancy a laugh? I had to share this - what a great sense of humour!

London Bass Guitar Show 2016 – A pictorial roundup of some of the highlights

This years London Bass Guitar Show at Olympia was filled with all the new gear for 2016. The show spanned the weekend and gave us all the chance to check out what is up and coming in the world of bass.

Sonnox’s new Oxford Envolution on trial

Sonnox released their new Envolution plugin before the new year, so I put it through its paces to see if it's worth the old-school price tag.

Simon’s Column #1: Mi.Mu Gloves empowering disabled musicians

The first edition of my new column! Tonight I witnessed something unique - high-tech gloves make their disability debut

Why Apple needs to sort out its quality control issues

Recent releases of OS X do a disservice to the company’s reputation for excellence.

What’s behind the surging popularity of music hardware?

There was a time when it looked like hardware was on the way out, but it’s most definitely back with a vengeance. There are several reasons why this is happening...