“The surest way to keep straps straight”: Joe Satriani and D’Addario have designed a $20 guitar strap that could completely eliminate the dreaded twisted strap problem
Designed specifically for rear-facing strap buttons, the Auto Lock Swivel Strap vows to move as freely as you do while always remaining locked in place
(Image credit: D'Addario)
D'Addario has debuted the Auto Lock Swivel Strap – a neat new twist on the humble guitar strap that might just have solved one of the most frustrating aspects of playing standing up.
It’s the stuff of nightmares: you’re playing a show, the crowd are eating out the palm of your hand and, as you go to rip a legendary solo, you notice your guitar strap is twisted all out of position.
Most players have experienced this uncomfortable annoyance – especially those who own an electric guitar or acoustic guitar that features a rear-facing strap button. With standard straps, it's all too easy for them to get twisted and tangled.
Wanting to eliminate that issue, D’Addario has partnered with Joe Satriani and headless guitar specialist Ned Steinberger for the Auto Lock Swivel Strap.
Using its Auto Lock tech as a starting point, D'Addario has created a strap system designed specifically for guitars with rear-facing strap buttons that can swivel and spin without getting tangled.
D’Addario recognizes that many guitars feature this particular strap button placement, and notes they can be a problem for standard straps. The firm says this setup can result in the strap stretching and twisting, harming comfort and running the risk of the guitar slipping free.
As such, Steinberger designed the Auto Lock, with Satriani formulating the swivel concept that rotates as the strap is naturally pulled in different directions during usage.
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Thus, the strap will never twist and get in a tangle. Bolstered by the firm’s Auto Lock tech, the Auto Lock Swivel promises to provide players with peace of mind that those twists and tangles will never harm them again.
Like the regular Auto Lock, it features a nifty, easy-to-use clip-on system, and is described as “the surest way to keep guitars secure and straps straight”. Pulling the strap's latch also allows for quick removal – handy for those mid-gig guitar swaps.
The D’Addario Auto Lock Swivel Strap costs $19.99 and is available today.
A freelance writer with a penchant for music that gets weird, Phil is a regular contributor to Prog, Guitar World, and Total Guitar magazines and is especially keen on shining a light on unknown artists. Outside of the journalism realm, you can find him writing angular riffs in progressive metal band, Prognosis, in which he slings an 8-string Strandberg Boden Original, churning that low string through a variety of tunings. He's also a published author and is currently penning his debut novel which chucks fantasy, mythology and humanity into a great big melting pot.
