Dave Hunter

Dave Hunter

Dave Hunter is a writer and consulting editor for Guitar Player magazine. His prolific output as author includes Fender 75 Years, The Guitar Amp Handbook, The British Amp Invasion, Ultimate Star Guitars, Guitar Effects Pedals, The Guitar Pickup Handbook, The Fender Telecaster and several other titles. Hunter is a former editor of The Guitar Magazine (UK), and a contributor to Vintage Guitar, Premier Guitar, The Connoisseur and other publications. A contributing essayist to the United States Library of Congress National Recording Preservation Board’s Permanent Archive, he lives in Kittery, ME, with his wife and their two children and fronts the bands A Different Engine and The Stereo Field.

Latest articles by Dave Hunter

An image of the Rivolta Quadrata showing three finish options

"One cool guitar from one of the hippest builders." The Rivolta Quadrata is a stylishly original take on a famous retro rock axe

By Dave Hunter published

Lightweight Simarouba wood for the body and glued-in neck keep this beauty at a respectable weight

A photo detail of the Fuchs Audio ODH

Fuchs' ODH hybrid tube/solid-state amp is a gig-worthy tone machine at an approachable price

By Dave Hunter published

Designed by Andy Fuchs to suit his own needs, the new head looks primed for broad acceptance

A photo showing the four pedal in Vox's Valvenergy range

Vox’s four new Valvenergy pedals aim to put tubey richness and compression in guitarists’ sight

By Dave Hunter published

The quartet of overdrive, booster, compress and graphic EQ pedals make use of Nutube technology

Fractal Audio VP4

Fractal's VP4 delivers much of what's in its big-brother powerhouse, the Axe-FX III, in a compact and price-friendly unit

By Dave Hunter published

The VP4’s size and demands of its features call for minor connectivity shortcuts,

A detail shot of the D. Kowalski Germanium Drive pedal

David Kowalski’s Rare Earth Germanium Device is one of the most innovative fuzzboxes we’ve seen

By Dave Hunter published

We put the Rare Earth Germanium Device to the test and discovered an inspiring variation on the iconic germanium fuzz

Florentine Empirial

“Within an iota of perfection”: Any way you choose to look at it, the Florentine Empirial is a stunner

By Dave Hunter published

This creation from the Fender Custom Shop’s former principal master builder looks fantastic, and utterly refuses to put any limits on whatever you intend to do with it

Silvertone H63 Espanada

Offered by Silvertone and Harmony, the H63 Espanada was the poor man’s Gibson ES-175

By Dave Hunter published

Like many of its Silvertone/Harmony siblings, the H63 Espanada makes up for its more corner-cutting features with a sound, vibe, and look all its own

Two Notes GENOME

“A sky’s-the-limit modeling environment”: Two Notes Genome review

By Dave Hunter published

Meet the impressive new DAW software plugin from digital guitar speaker cab and amp manufacturers Two Notes

RS Guitarworks Slab Lowboy close-up shot

“An enjoyable blend of the classic and the hot rod it’s intended to be”: RS Guitarworks Slab Lowboy review

By Dave Hunter published

How RS Guitarworks tapped into the Tele aesthetic and emerged with its own distinct P-90-loaded take on the classic formula

A vintage 1954 Gibson ES-295 electric guitar belonging to English musician Johnny Marr, photographed at his studio in Manchester, England, on April 30, 2018.

Overshadowed by the Les Paul, the Gibson ES-295 brought rock to concert stages in the hands of Scotty Moore

By Dave Hunter published

As played by Danny Gatton, Geordie Walker and Johnny Marr, the ES-295 was Gibson’s 'other' gold-finished electric guitar

Silktone Overdrive+

Silktone Overdrive+ review

By Dave Hunter published

The Overdrive+ is a characterful, original, and extremely versatile design that stands out in a sea of overdrives

Novo Miris J

“The absence of tradition invites players to pick up a Novo without any preconceptions of what the guitar is or what it does”: Novo's Miris J has the feel and vibe of a rediscovered make from the golden age of the electric guitar

By Dave Hunter published

Boasting a bespoke Mastery trem, this stylish, beautifully-playing guitar is another winner from Dennis Fano and the Novo stable

ToneLounge Shoreline TVL and 2TV

“These two models offer well-considered features, and cut a fresh figure in a crowded field”: ToneLounge's Shoreline TVL and 2TV models smoothly blend the old and the new

By Dave Hunter published

The latest creations from veteran luthier Brian Swerdfeger play brilliantly, and feature an intriguing trick or two up their sleeves

Two Reverend Chris Freeman signature guitars

Reverend Chris Freeman Signature review

By Dave Hunter published

Reverend has delivered big-league performance at semi-pro prices for many years – heck, even a couple of decades now – but the Chris Freeman Signature model offers up some hefty surprises nonetheless

An Ibanez Artist Model 2617 guitar, stood next to a Vox amplifier

How Ibanez turned a knockoff into a knockout with the Artist Model 2617

By Dave Hunter published

Forced to stop copying U.S. guitars, Ibanez launched the all-original Artist line and took America by storm

Dr. Z's Z-80 amplifier

Dr. Z Z-80 Head review

By Dave Hunter published

Chime with oomph, shimmer, bloom, and gutsy edge of breakup are the main tricks in the Z-80's toolbox, and it does them with a gloriously musical and inspiring voice

PRS's Custom 24 “Bonni Pink” guitar

The PRS Custom 24 “Bonni Pink” guitar is a stunning example of Paul Reed Smith's cornerstone model

By Dave Hunter published

Dedicated to a longtime PRS employee, the extremely flamey maple top, distinctive finish, and Paul Reed Smith autograph mark this guitar as a rare – and highly alluring – early PRS by any measure

A trio of Carr Bel-Ray amplifiers

“A three-in-one tribute to the best of British tone”: Carr Amplifiers Bel-Ray review

By Dave Hunter published

Steve Carr's latest creation packs the essence of classic British amp tone together with a tremolo that’s out of this world

A used microfelt tip reveals grime and corrosion from the jack of our vintage test guitar

Stedman PureConnect GP-2 and PK-3 cleaning kits review

By Dave Hunter published

The GP-2 and PK-3 provide a very functional means of performing necessary cleaning duties, and their mere presence in your gig bag offers a handy reminder to use them now and then

Two Notes Opus Amp Sim and IR Loader

“The Opus might not displace your Helix, Fractal, Kemper or Quad Cortex, but it offers a lot of good-sounding emulation in a compact and usable package at a fraction of the price”: Two Notes Opus Amp Sim and IR Loader Unit review

By Dave Hunter published

There’s a lot of sound and even more flexibility in this little box, and it should prove to be exactly what many guitarists are looking for

EBG-6 Jigsaw Crook

“As unusual as this model first presents, it becomes just another guitar once you’ve spent a little time with it, although a distinctive and characterful one”: The EBG-6 Jigsaw Crook is a post-modern masterpiece with tones as distinctive as its looks

By Dave Hunter published

This unique build is a very expressive and willing creative tool, and an inspiring guitar by any measure

Joe Perry holds a B.C. Rich Mockingbird guitar backstage at Madison Square Garden in New York City

“With a through-neck, two DiMarzio Super Distortion pickups, an onboard booster preamp, and a fixed adjustable wrap-around bridge, the B.C. Rich Mockingbird was the ultimate hard-rock weapon”: How a small Los Angeles shop changed the rock guitar game

By Dave Hunter published

Used by the Runaways’ Lita Ford, the Alice Cooper tandem of Dick Wagner and Steve Hunter, Slash, and Aerosmith's Joe Perry, the Mockingbird made the models of the '50s and ’60s look like old hat upon its mid-'70s debut

Joe Yanuziello's Gold Paisley Washi Paper Deluxe guitar

“Breathtakingly beautiful and strikingly different from just about everything that has come before”: An homage to the original Paisley Tele, Joe Yanuziello's stunning, Japanese paper-adorned Gold Paisley Washi Paper Deluxe is a guitar like no other

By Dave Hunter published

With a precision-engineered, modded Bigsby, a trio of Curtis Novak’s Guyatone-style GT-V Tokyo Vintage pickups, and a fascinating blend of Telecaster, Les Paul, Guyatone, and Harmony aesthetics, this gorgeous build has incredible looks and equally incredible tone

Tone King Royalist MkIII 1x12 Combo

“An impressive rethink of the best of early British rock tones”: The Tone King Royalist MkIII 1x12 combo is reviving the attitude of the British invasion

By Dave Hunter published

However you slice it, this amp cleverly packages classic British rock tones to suit a wide range of 21st century performance needs

A Gibson GA-79RVT amplifier

“A fun vintage find that delivers unique and useful sounds”: Gibson’s GA-79RVT combo is an underrated gem – and cheaper than many of its rivals

By Dave Hunter published

One of the world’s earliest reverb-equipped combos, the GA-79RVT is a quirky, temperamental beast that nonetheless is capable of producing a wide array of sweet vintage tones

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Archives