The machine heads fitted to the headstock of an electric or acoustic guitar can come in many shapes and sizes: from closed oil-bed machine heads, to open-gear tuners, to the vintage tuners found blessing the heads of a Stratocaster or Telecaster, to the sunken tuning mechanics of a classical guitar. There is one flavour of machine head that is actually often demanded by guitarists: the locking tuner. Find out why right here.

Can a guitar or bass guitar that you buy online be set up and adjusted before it’s shipped off? This is a question that we get asked a lot. As such, we’ve put this little blog together to explain what actually goes into setting up a guitar or bass and why it’s not possible to – or actually understandable that we don’t – set up a brand new guitar before sending it out to you.

Effects: what’s out there and what do they actually do to sound? There’s a lot of ‘em, so if you’re already struggling to see the woods for the trees (or the other way around), then put the kettle on and make yourself comfy while we give you a glimpse of what’s possible. In this introductory blog, we’re poking our heads into the magical realm of reverb. Sprinkle it over your project to conjure atmosphere or completely submerge your track so it sounds like it’s calling to you from another world.

If you’re nothing but a humble mortal, it’s best not to even touch the mastering process. While this is a wide belief, is it actually a myth? The potential offered by most DAWs and a host of plug-ins certainly makes a DIY mastering job much easier, so why not give it a go? These 5 tips will not only ease your first few unsteady mastering steps but give you better results.

As an artist, you naturally want to share your music with the entire world, and platforms like YouTube, Facebook and even Instagram prove that you can interest and appeal to countless music fans. In this blog, you can find out just how much it costs to produce a music video, as guest-blogger and singer-songwriter Kevin explains that no budget is too small.

Whether you’re a singer-songwriter, keyboard player in a band, composer, or sound technician, sooner or later you might want to record the sound of a genuine acoustic piano. And I’m not talking about any pre-recorded Steinway or Yamaha C7 samples either, because no matter how good these sound, it wouldn’t be your own unique sound. So how do you record a piano, which microphones do you need and where do you even put them? Read on to find the answers to these questions and more!

While there are few things better than coming home with a fat stack of old records after a day spent scouring garage sales and antique shops, sometimes your ‘black gold’ sounds more like a piece of plastic. Don’t throw out your vinyl just yet though, the tips in this blog can help you make them sound fresh again!

It’s impossible to avoid the term ‘velocity sensitivity’ when you’re looking at electronic keyboard instruments such as pianos, keyboards and synthesizers. In this blog, we explain what velocity sensitivity is and what you can use it for.

If you can already see yourself pulling off mad dive-bombs and slick dime-squeals after witnessing a pro player showcase their skills, chances are you’ll end up buying an electric guitar with a floating tremolo bridge yourself – perhaps even one with a genuine Floyd Rose. What many beginners don’t realise, however, is that a floating bridge is rather sophisticated, which can quickly lead to confusion and irritation. To help you out, I’m going to show you exactly how you can tune a Floyd Rose, Ibanez Edge or any other comparable tremolo bridge system in just five steps.

Making a mixtape that’s good enough to enter into a contest can be a daunting task, but what you get in return is usually more than worth the hassle: valuable experience, exposure, new contacts, and so on … But how do you make a mixtape that distinguishes you, and only you, from the immense sea of other Djs out there? Guestblogger, Amar Amlani (Dice DJ) reveals everything he’s learnt about the subtle art of making contest-worthy mixtapes.

The range of effects you could use in a studio are pretty much unlimited, but there are a couple that are genuinely essential. Compression is one of these effects, whether it’s software-based compression or a hefty chunk of ‘real’ hardware. But what exactly is compression? And how do you actually use it? This blog will try to answer these questions and more.

Gaffer tape or duct tape? Line up a few rolls of each and you won’t be able to tell the difference but as soon as you get them in your hands, you’ll immediately know which is which. This isn’t much of a surprise since they are in fact completely different things. So, while duct tape is known for being able to fix any of the world’s problems, why is it that lighting and sound technicians turn to gaffer tape instead? We explain all in this little slip of a blog!