The consummate thumbpicker demos his two-sided flattop and keeps his father Merle Travis’ memory alive with a collection of instruments made in tribute.

When you’re one of the most recorded guitarists in Nashville, you make sure you can cover all the bases. Watch this in-depth look at the amazing vintage guitars, rare amps, and massive pedalboard that inspires one of Nashville’s first-call session players.

A time-tested formula fuels the hardcore band’s sound.

This modern-day Delta blues star goes deep on low-powered amps, vintage resos, and his open-tuned riffs.

The jazz-rock maverick spills the details on his no-frills, get-it-done setup.

Prog-metal architect Aaron Marshall shows off a pair of dazzling Mayones protoypes before he explains using a small digital footprint for tons of tones.

King Buzzo details his love for aluminum guitars and solid-state amps.

Huge arena-rock guitar tones meet heavy-metal Christmas jams on one of the year’s most successful tours. Go behind the scenes to see how the guitar tandem kick out the holiday jams.

The prog-metal juggernauts discuss how their signature axes cranked through Axe-Fx units create their brutal live tone.

A certified guitar legend invites us into his home studio to tell stories, talk shop, and pick on some amazing gear.

Premier Guitar is on location in Davenport, Iowa, where Jason Shadrick talks with blues wunderkind Joe Robinson. In this segment, Joe discusses his electric and acoustic rigs, and demonstrates his pedalboard.

The DIY rockers take PG on a tour of their live concert tone toys.

Lzzy Hale and Joe Hottinger display weapons of mass rock from a signature Gibson plugged into a matching Marshall to a Tele running into a couple of tilt-back Fenders.

Enthusiastic, nimble-fingered Dylan Mattheisen dances between technical mathcore and catchy rock with Teles and a trusty DL4.

The Garden State rockers walk us through their vintage-meets-modern setups.

The bluesy psych-rock trio shows off its souped-up import axes, pricier amps, and carefully planned pedal playgrounds.

Jason Shadrick is On Location in Chicago, IL, at the House of Blues where he catches up with Guns N' Roses guitarist Richard Fortus. In this segment, we get to see what Fortus is currently using for guitars, amps, effects, and cabinets during the most recent GN'R US tour in early 2012.

From rocking garages to filling arenas, Dan Auerbach’s gear has always been odd and eccentric. Still keeping it weird, he spotlights axes from a teenage hero, a custom build influenced by an industry master, and a token of his success in the shape of a Holy Grail Gibson.

Guitarists Laura Jane Grace and James Bowman achieve savage-punk tones through old-school loud tube-amps and pedals.

This acoustic alchemist shares the secrets within his multi-dimensional setup that goes well beyond traditional tones.

Chris Kies is On Location in Council Bluffs, IA, where he catches up with Social Distortion's Mike Ness and Jonny Wickersham and they talk to us about their current live rigs and setups.

Bursts, Benders, and Js, oh my! A pioneer of the new Nashville sound and his tone-heavy band spend 90 minutes covering the gobs of new gear that have joined their ranks since 2015.

The original prog-rock guitar hero goes head-first into the 21st century with a tubeless setup that is heavy on digital effects, MIDI switching, and ultimate control.

Premier Guitar is on location in Chicago, Illinois, where Rebecca Dirks meets up with Nicholaus Arson and Vigilante Carlstroem of the Hives. In this segment, the guys discuss their heavily battered go-to axes (and why it doesn?t really matter for garage rock anyways), along with their mix of boutique and vintage amps and effects.

What’s more punk rock than dueling angry P-90s straight into classic Marshalls? Answer: Nothing!

The Texas-metal-boogie masters chat about their minimalistic gear approach—including an amp with one knob—and the benefits of touring with a bassist that builds custom stompboxes.

The rising blues guitar star demos her No. 1 SG with her expanded pedalboard, and goes deep with her workhorse Jaguars, Stogie Blues cigar box, Delaney 512, Taylor acoustic, and Category 5 amps.

Chris Kies is On Location in Chicago, IL, at the Vic Theatre where he catches up with Thin Lizzy guitar tech Coty Allinson who walks us through guitarists Vivian Campbell and Scott Gorham's current touring rigs.

When these pop-doom metalheads couldn’t lasso the tone in their heads Nuñez took the DIY route crafting his own company that now provides a formidable backline and fills their boards.

Rebecca Dirks is on location in Chicago where she catches up with Sigur Ros guitar and bass tech Silli Ragnarsson to discuss guitarist Jonsi Por Birgisson's one-off guitar, bow and accessories, and surprisingly sparse pedalboard, bassist Georg Holm's effects-heavy pedal rig, and the more traditional guitar-board-amp setup of touring guitarist Kjartan Dagur Holm (Georg's brother).

Purveyors of punishing ’90s-style hardcore chisel their heavy sound with down-tuned 7-strings and lighter hues of delay and modulation.

Rebecca Dirks is on location at NBC Studio 6B, GE Building, in New York, New York, where she catches up with Late Night with Jimmy Fallon's the Roots' guitarist "Captain" Kirk Douglas and bassist Mark Kelley.

The guitarist of Mike McCready’s favorite new band uses a straightforward setup that proves a swaggering, punk attitude and greasy rock ’n’ roll isn't just a man’s game.

PG's Jason Shadrick is On Location in Joliet, Illinois, where he catches
up with blues guitarist Buddy Guy. His guitar tech Gilbert Garza talks
about and shows off Buddy Guy's current equipment and signal chain
that's being used on the Living Proof 2011 tour.

The founding guitarist presents how single-coils through a true stereo setup peppered with some extreme effects forge a wide-ranging, Jekyll-and-Hyde approach to tone.

We were lucky enough to spend an afternoon behind the bricks of Roger Waters'' The Wall Live, chatting with techs Tim Myer and Colin Lyon.

The 20-year-old blues phenom shares his straight-ahead approach to burly, blues-rock tones.

PG's Jason Shadrick is at Manifold Recording in North Carolina talking gear with Jimmy Herring.

Visionary John Baizley and former Cirque du Soleil shredder Gina Gleason explain why their evolving style of sprawling heaviness now uses “scalpel-like” Fender single-coils and low-wattage tube combos. Plus, they share how a Philly Fuzz Heretic brought them together.

We were lucky enough to spend an afternoon behind the bricks of Roger Waters'' The Wall Live, chatting with guitarist Dave Kilminster.

Observe Yvette Young apply her formal piano background to musically communicate on a fretboard while expressing how modulation pedals have made her a better bandmate and a more dynamic writer.

PG's Shawn Hammond catches up with slide master Sonny Landreth. In this Rig Rundown segment, Landreth shares his Strat mods and road amps, and demonstrates his favorite pedal combinations.

Dubliner Kryz Reid details additions to his Star Wars family of guitars and why he went from vintage to digital, while Stephan Perkins’ tech explains why a laughable price tag should never disqualify an axe from becoming a main squeeze.

The thrash-metal vets keep it simple yet high-tech on their 2015 tour.

The king of gristle shares the signature gear he uses to unleash waves of unabashed sonic mayhem.

Jordan Wagner is On Location in Davenport, IA, where he catches up with Megadeth's guitarists Dave Mustaine and Chris Broderick. In this segment, both Dave and Chris walk us through their thrash metal setups.

The bluegrass-blazin’, death-metal-rooted whiz uses a few pedals to twist the traditional music of Kentucky towards the psychedelic sounds of San Francisco.

Grunge songstress Clementine Creevy hits us with the barrage of drives she uses for her band's lo-fi garage sound.

With a new Ibanez signature model, a backup axe, and a plug-and-play "fly rig", the rock heroine travels light to create the heavy tones on her solo debut, Controlled Chaos.

Article & photos: http://bit.ly/NitaStraussRR 
Don't Miss a Rundown: http://bit.ly/RIgRundownENL 

Furious, focused, and expansive, the playing of Nita Strauss is the stuff emerging-rock-guitar legends are made of. During soundcheck at Nashville’s Basement East, PG’s John Bohlinger checked in with Strauss, who was on a break from her regular gig with Alice Cooper, touring in support of her debut solo album, Controlled Chaos. Strauss wrote, produced, engineered, and recorded all the guitar and bass parts on the album, which, in testament to her abilities and her fan base, was made via a Kickstarter campaign that exceeded its $20,000 goal by $145,755. As she rips for our cameras, Strauss, the first woman to have an Ibanez signature model—which debuted at Winter NAMM 2018—talks about her JIVA10 and her backup S6570Q, and puts her fly rig, a Boss GT-100, though her core settings. Check out how Strauss shows off the JIVA10’s radical tuning stability at the 15-minute mark! And yes, she is a descendent of the Austrian composer Johann Strauss.

The Philly-based group explains how they use vintage Fender gear, classic tube amps, and a few homemade pedals to produce their brand of psychedelic folk-rock.

The sultan of sludge illustrates that his first band is a shuttle for sonic exploration launching into orbit on the backs of triple-humbucker guitars, a sierra of Oranges, and two boards the size of Cape Canaveral.

The country picker shows the tools of the trade as an in-demand guitar slinger.

The British blues player’s simple-but-brawny tool kit for tough tones.

The American metal core band spills the details on their three-guitar assault.

A look inside the sanctum of one of contemporary Nashville’s most respected artists, packed with cool guitars and plenty of other epic gear.

Myers talks about his unwavering loyalty to PRS Guitars showing us his current touring collection while Bass discusses his various signature Dean basses and why he's using a solid-state guitar head for distorted bass tones.

One of Americana’s rising stars (and a son of an outlaw legend) goes deep on his vintage Gibson, using a dual-amp setup, and why he eschews most pedals.

Simulated mutilations and fake blood aside, GWAR are gear junkies like the rest of us.

Inspired by the lutherie skills of Brian May and the tonal essence of Eric Johnson, this self-proclaimed “classic folk rocker” shows off her acoustic and electric setups.

Jason Shadrick is On Location at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, where he catches up with Justin Derrico and Eva Gardner on tour with Pink's The Truth About Love tour. In this segment, Justin and Eva detail their go-to instruments and signal chains.

Observe how the U.K. metalcore warriors utilize digital stomps, profiling amps, and modern pickups to break necks and ignite pits with an old-school aggression.

This alt-metal power trio proves that one focused, low-tuned guitar, pounding drums, and inventively effected bass can sound as huge live as a band rocking multiple guitars and keyboards.

Watch the pioneering British heavy metal band share the stories and secrets behind the gear that’s banged heads for 50 years and sold over 50 million records.

We were lucky enough to spend an afternoon behind the bricks of Roger Waters' The Wall Live, chatting with guitarists Dave Kilminster, G.E. Smith, and Snowy White, along with techs Tim Myer and Colin Lyon.

Take a look at how one of Sweden’s most enigmatic songwriters crafts layers of sonic magic with a handful of open tunings and a pile of pedals.

The thrash-metal legend keeps things simple with signature ESP guitars, and a mix of analog and digital gear.

The progressive metal band’s sultans of shred talk about the gear on their 2019 The Distance Over Time tour, including John Petrucci’s brand-new Music Man Majesty Series signature models and Myung’s potential 2020 signature bass.

PG's Chris Kies is on location in Des Moines, IA, at Wooly's where he catches up with the king of country western troubadours Unknown Hinson. In this segment, the Kang talks about his signature Reverend Guitar, using the Fender Super-Sonic 100 head and matching cabinet, Vox ValveTronix digital effects process, and what's his ideal wumern.

The seminal East Coast punkers prove that some beat-up guitars and undeniable hooks is all you need to tour the world for over three decades.

PG's Chris Kies is On Location at RIBCO Brewing in Rock Island, IL,
where he catches up with rockabilly guitar slinger Jim "Reverend Horton" Heath for another Rig Rundown installment.

Aside from melting faces and conquering all music, these younglings don’t take themselves or much else seriously, but one-half of the wise-cracking guitar tandem dishes on his “dope” signature gear from Ibanez and DiMarzio.

The dreamy, psychedelic-folk rocker explains how a salvaged-spruce offset colored with gobs of vibe, chorus, and trem give her freewheeling, Dead-inspired journeys constant movement and flow.

The Florida metal quartet goes ampless.

The self-proclaimed drummer shows off the old Teles and loud signature combos that are the chosen recipe for his brand of bayou blues.

PG's Jason Shadrick is On Location in Moline, IL. at the iWireless Center where he catches up Nickelback Guitar tech Kris Dawson who shows us Chad Kroeger & Ryan Peake's gear and talks about their tour set up.

On the heels of his No. 1 album, Wasteland, Baby!, Irishman Andrew Hozier-Byrne reveals his connection with “alive” hollowbodies—including gas cans—that torch his moody, soulful blend of rock and blues.

The former King Crimson genius details the gear he uses to conjure vintage fuzz tones, animal sounds, and quirky soundscapes.

The sonic sorcerer illustrates how he meticulously builds the wall of textured sounds in the Axe-Fx III and details the creation of his new Electrical Guitar Company signature offset.

Dillinger Escape Plan guitarist Ben Weinman
talks in depth about his
upcoming signature model
and love for Mesa/Boogie
amps.

The fingers behind Ozzy’s Bark at the Moon shares the blisteringly loud setup used to power his new band, Red Dragon Cartel.

The Grammy-nominated outfit shows us the Ibanez guitars, Kiesel basses, and Kemper and Ampeg amps that ignite their metalcore sound.

Country music’s leading guitar tandem show us how they mix vintage axes and boutique pedals with high-powered amps and just a little bit of digital magic.

PG's Jason Shadrick is On Location in Milwaukee, WI, where he catches up
with guitarist John McLaughlin. In this Rig Rundown video segment,
McLaughlin talks to us about using his Godin Freeway and use of effects.

Try to keep your skull glued on while geeking out on the gear—especially amps—the Grammy-winning producer uses to make epic albums with Foo Fighters, Alice in Chains, Deftones, Korn, Rush, Mastodon, and others.

The punk-rock vet likes it both simple and high-tech, with signature Ibanez axes and an Axe-Fx combining to create a consistently brutal sonic punch.

A deep studio dive with one of the most recorded resonator players ever.

Guitarists Mike Ness and Jonny Wickersham show off their tried-and-true rock ’n’ roll machines.

We caught up with these two sons of American rock royalty—and their trove of storied guitars—as they were on their verge of launching their new Allman Betts Band.

PG's Joe Coffey is On Location in Des Moines, IA, where he
catches up with blues guitarist extraordinaire Joe Bonamassa. In this
portion, Joe talks and demos his current lineup of amps for the ongoing
tour.

One of the U.K.’s most buzzed-about rock bands shares the stories behind their gear that has two settings—loud and louder.

Rock’s biggest “DJ” proves that even though his gear has been unchanged since the early ’90s, he still can rip out fresh ideas with ease and flair.

The Appalachia crew prove that ripping T-styles seasoned with effects-rich pedal steel can still be in vogue in today’s country and Americana music.

The king of modern prog rock unveils his monstrous pedalboard and surprising dual-amp setup.

Get the lowdown on the axes, amps, and effects used by influential alt-rockers Charles Thompson and Joey Santiago.

The moody goth-folk songstress and her 6-string compatriot Evan Patterson detail the off-kilter double-cuts, dual-amp configurations, and reverb-dripping boards that give life to their jangly, ambient washes and doomy, crashing crescendos.

Nashville studio ace shows it’s more about chops than gear.

Observe how the Atlanta-based rockers keep instruments in the family and take a pragmatic approach by hitting the road with everyman gear to morph between their brutal heavy riffs and beautiful, cinematic soundscapes.

Warning for tone purists: The Willy Wonka of guitar glues pickups on a forgotten Squier and jams on a heap of throwaway misfits and boutique stomps to beep, bop, boop to his heart’s content.

PG's Rebecca Dirks is on location at Hollywood, CA, where she catches up with Conan guitarist Jimmy Vivino and bassist Mike Merritt. In this segment, we learn what guitars, amps, basses, and effects pedals both Vivino and Merritt use every night during taping, as well as take a look into Vivino's back room collection of guitars.

Watch how bassist Rodrigo Palma uses a simplistic, time-tested combination of Fender plus Ampeg, while guitarist Arun Bali employs a collection of classic guitars and stacks a hearty amount of fuzz pedals to color their brand of post-pop punk.