
Matt McCracken
Matt is a Junior Deals Writer here at Guitar World. He regularly tests and reviews music gear with a focus on guitars, amps, pedals, modelers, and pretty much anything else guitar-related. Responsible for over 60 buying guides, a large part of his role is helping guitarists find the best deals on gear. Matt worked in music retail for 5 years at Dawsons Music and Northwest Guitars and has written for various music sites including MusicRadar, Guitar Player, Guitar.com, Ultimate Guitar, and Thomann’s t.blog.
A regularly gigging guitarist with over 20 years of experience playing live and writing and recording in bands, he's performed everything from jazz to djent, gigging all over the UK in more dingy venues than you can shake a drop-tuned guitar at. When he's not holed up in his home studio recording new songs or tweaking pedal settings, you’ll find him making a racket with Northern noise hounds JACKALS.
Latest articles by Matt McCracken

Best combo amps 2025: the best all-in-one amps for every budget
By Matt McCracken last updated
The ultimate tube, solid state, and modeling combo amps for every genre, from Motown to metal and everything in between

Best delay pedals 2025: our pick of the coolest delay pedals for your pedalboard
By Alex Lynham last updated
Whether you prefer digital or analog delay pedals, the options in this round-up will help boost your creativity on the guitar

Best acoustic guitar strings 2025: our best rated strings for your acoustic
By Chris Corfield last updated
Top picks from the best acoustic guitar string brands including Ernie Ball, D’Addario, Elixir, and more

Best electric guitar strings 2025: our top-rated strings for your electric
By Chris Corfield last updated
Keep your axe feeling fresh with the best guitar strings for electric guitar

Best beginner guitar amps 2025: top guitar amplifiers for beginners
By Chris Corfield last updated
Looking for one of the best guitar amps for beginners? We’ve rounded up our favorites for players of any style from brands including Blackstar, Orange, Boss, and more

Best looper pedals 2025: go it alone with the greatest loop pedals for practice, live performance and jamming
By Alex Lynham last updated
Whether you're writing songs or woodshedding solos, using a loop pedal will make you a better guitarist – these are the best looper pedals from Boss, TC Electronic, Line 6 and more

Best chorus pedals 2025: top choices for your 'board
By Michael Astley-Brown last updated
From analog to digital, and shimmery to subtle, let us show you the top chorus pedals you can buy today

Best pedalboards 2025: perfect platforms for your pedals
By Jonathan Horsley last updated
Get the best from your effects with expert-recommended 'boards from Pedaltrain, Voodoo Labs, Boss, and more

Best clip-on guitar tuners 2025: hit the right note with these cost-effective tuners
By Jonathan Horsley last updated
Whether you play acoustic, electric, or bass, these clip-on tuners offer a quick, easy, and affordable way to achieve concert pitch every time

“For players who want to get lairy, experiment with the interactions between stompboxes, and create auditory chaos”: Eventide x Third Man Hardware Knife Drop review
By Matt McCracken published
Time to get weird with this synth/octave/overdrive from FX masters Eventide and Jack White's Third Man Hardware

Best pedalboard power supplies 2025: juice your ‘board with pro-grade power
By Michael Astley-Brown last updated
Make sure your effects are firing on all cylinders with our pick of the best pedal power supplies from Strymon to Ernie Ball

Best Stratocasters 2025: The best Strats for every budget and playing style
By Amit Sharma last updated
Find your fit with our top pick of the best Fender Strats

Best FRFR speakers 2025: transparent tone for multi-effects and amp modelers
By Richard Blenkinsop last updated
From on-the-go options to arena-filling mammoths, our pick of the best FRFR speakers for guitar is sure to have every musician covered

Best Telecasters 2025: top Teles for every taste
By Amit Sharma last updated
Whether it’s your first Telecaster or you’ve walked in the boots of guitar-playing royalty, our top Telecasters will help you get your twang on

Best Neural DSP plugins 2025: 10 Neural plugins tested with sound samples
By Matt McCracken published
From bass to hi-gain, get the lowdown on some of the top guitar amp modeling plugins with our favorite Neural DSP plugins ranked

Grab yourself a guitar like no other with huge 20% discounts on these web-exclusive Squier guitars
By Matt McCracken published
Snag a limited edition finish from just $159.99 with these online-only deals on some stunning looking instruments you won’t find anywhere else

Best guitar capos 2025: top choice capos for acoustic and electric guitar
By Chris Bird last updated
A capo is a great way to boost your creativity on the instrument. Here’s our expert picks for electric and acoustic guitar, ukulele, 12-string and beyond

Best guitar straps 2025: play in comfort and secure your guitar in style
By Chris Corfield last updated
Our expert pick of straps for electric, acoustic and bass, covering all budgets and materials

Best guitar amps 2025: tube, solid-state and modeling amplifiers for all levels and budgets
By Chris Corfield last updated
These are the best combo amps and heads from Orange, Fender, Marshall, Boss, and more

“Playing the Bass VI is a really strange experience”: Squier Limited Edition Classic Vibe Bass VI review
By Matt McCracken published
Part bass, part guitar, we get to grips with the Classic Vibe version of Fender’s very own dichotomy of tone

Best multi-effects pedals 2025: replace your rig
By Alex Lynham last updated
Our pick of the best multi-fx pedals from Neural DSP, Kemper, Line 6, Boss, and more

The best guitar songs of 2024 – as chosen by Guitar World editors and pro players
By Jonathan Horsley published
With the help of pals including Eric Gales and Vernon Reid, we run down the songs that lit up the guitar-o-sphere this year, including a remarkable hardcore breakthrough, a virtuoso collab for the ages and the prodigy that everyone’s talking about

Best guitar amp headphones 2025: 6 options for when the neighbors need a break
By Amit Sharma last updated
From studio stalwarts, to fully fledged amps you wear on your head, these are the best headphones for guitar amps
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