Guitars

Jack White’s Third Man Records and Loog Guitars created this kit for kids and kids at heart. The diminutive 3-string electric guitar kit provides the satisfaction of having built your own instrument before you start playing it. We dig the pickguard, made from a vinyl record.

Inside the back of Yamaha’s innovative acoustic guitars is an actuator that vibrates against the guitar’s body in response to the strings. This gives you built-in chorus and reverb effects that you can adjust with the built-in control knobs. Runs on two AA batteries.

She might look like a darling little 11 year-old girl, but Lisa-X is a serious rocker. Watch as she gets the whole room going by shredding a speed metal rendition of Schubert’s Lullaby on her electric guitar in this commercial for JNB Visa Debit cards.

Watch musician Rob Scallon shred some tunes on an ordinary garden shovel that’s been converted into a one-string guitar. Given its rudimentary design, it plays surprisingly well. Keep an eye out on How to Make Stuff on 3/3/16 for DIY instructions.

This diminutive device lets you strum, play and fret like a real guitar, but you can carry it anywhere, and play in complete privacy. The Jamstik wirelessly connects with iOS or Mac systems, and is compatible with MIDI apps. Save 40% in The Awesomer Shop.

We’ve heard music from Star Wars playfully performed on a piano and rocked out on an electric guitar. Here’s Rafael Aguirre’s lively rendition, which he performed at Alhambra Guitars’ 50th anniversary. Damas y caballeros, La Guitarra de Las Galaxias.

Musician Rob Scallon demonstrates how to play a compelling tune with just a single guitar fret. Sure, he does a whole lot of string bending, but we’re still impressed with the versatility of that one little metal bar.

While we were touring the mountains in the new 2016 Camaro SS (yeah, hard life, we know), we dropped by the Bozeman, Montana factory where Gibson Acoustic has been crafting guitars for the last 30 years. Incredibly, almost every step of the process is still done by hand.

Musician Ian Ethan Case previews a bit of his new album Run Toward the Mountains, as his fingers fly across all 18 strings of his double-necked guitar. At times, his hands were moving so fast, we thought he was Doc Ock. The 92-minute double album drops 11/24/15.

Yamaha’s Silent Guitars have piezo pickups as well as high quality digital samples of acoustic guitar strings. You can play the sound through headphones or line out, and power them using batteries or its AC adapter.

We’ve heard of 6-string and 12-string guitars, but this is the first time we’ve seen or heard a 9-string guitar. Musician Rob Scallon shows off his nimble fingers on this unusual instrument with a track called Torque Soul, with Kevin Wade on drums.

California-based Prisma Guitars handcrafts stunning electric guitars and guitar accessories using discarded skateboard decks. Not only does this cut back on waste, it also means each product is unique.

Musician Esteban Antonio demonstrates a truly unique custom instrument. The Ha-Shem is a 17-string grand concert harp guitar that can be played by plucking, strumming or bowing it like a cello. Doc Ock needs one of these.

The ToneWoodAmp is a portable effects accessory for acoustic guitars. It lets you add different effects and boost the sound without the need to plug in to an amp. You can swap effects and use MIDI instruments via its mobile app.

Currently in beta, Riffstation Play is a free web-based app that figures out a song’s chords by analyzing its YouTube video. The chords can be laid out for a guitar, ukelele or piano. The desktop version lets you load any song.

Currently in development, Tabify is a mobile app that will automatically transcribe guitars – and possibly other string instruments – as you play. You can also go over created tabs and edit them. Note that the UI hasn’t been finalized.

An automatic tuner for guitars and other string instruments. Roadie Tuner works with iOS and Android devices to quickly and accurately tune your instrument. It can also wind, unwind and check the health of strings.

If you liked the SCLW, check out the Firefly Pick. It lights up whenever it strikes a guitar string or when your hand moves. Pair it with the NeckFX for a synchronized light show. You can watch demo videos of the pick on YouTube.

The equivalent of drum practice pads for guitarists. PocketStrings are small bars with real guitar strings and real frets that you can use to practice anywhere. Available in 4- and 6-fret variants. Also on ThinkGeek.

Guitar builder Jimmy DiResta made this custom electric guitar for musician Wyclef Jean, turning what was once an axe into an assault rifle. Jump to 6:35 to see the finished instrument.

This little robot will make sure your axe is always in tune. Install it behind your guitar’s headstock and it will mechanically tune your strings in seconds. Available for different guitar brands and models.

Invented by Paul Vo and beta tested with the synth experts at Moog Music, the Vo-96 is an innovative synthesizer that attaches to acoustic guitars, modifying its sound using magnetic fields to change the way the strings vibrate.

The twangy Bohemian Guitar line will offer choice of 3 oil can styles, maple necks with rosewood fingerboards and bridge, adjustable truss rods and chrome tuning machines. (Thanks Bryan!)

Etsy sellers Dustin and Stephanie make guitar picks out of American coins, some of them several decades old. The edges of the picks have smooth beveled edges to reduce the wear on guitar strings.

Unlike high end self-tuning guitars that have motors on their tuning pegs, the AT-200 uses pitch correcting software to digitally adjust the sound coming from its strings. A great kit for beginners.