Premier Guitar features affiliate links to help support our content. We may earn a commission on any affiliated purchases.

Gear Award 2022

Underneath this bari’s jazz suit is a rock ’n’ roll machine.

Responsive playability. P-90s deliver loads of tone options. Solid construction and feel.

Jazz aesthetics might paint this one into a corner for some. Price may dissuade all but serious baritone players.

$2,199

D’Angelico Deluxe SS Baritone
dangelicoguitars.com

5
5
4.5
4.5




Read MoreShow less

The effects guru puts two historic pedals—the TS808 and the Nobels ODR-1—inside a single box, with a fresh circuit design that allows for four variations on their revered voices.

Read MoreShow less

Can a bona fide funk guru help design a better Klone?

Wide range of gain. Very useful EQ.

Doesn’t do the Klon clean boost as well as original.

$349

Jackson Audio The Optimist
jackson.audio

5
4.5
4.5
4

Jackson Audio’s pedal collaboration with modern funk hero Cory Wong could have taken a few different paths. Considering Wong’s style, a compressor would have been an obvious choice. Instead, the Optimist is a dual overdrive that builds on a Klon-inspired baseline, adds a second overdrive, and has a clever EQ to create a super-flexible overdrive. Named after Wong’s second album, The Optimist suits Wong’s exuberant and fun-loving personality. But it also describes the way you might approach a gig with this pedal in hand. Together, the two separate overdrives and active EQ give you enough tones to cover almost any gig this side of Slayer cover band.

Read MoreShow less

An accessibly priced gateway to a high-gain playground.

Killer sounds in a reasonably priced package. Huge gain range.

Begs for more footswitching options.

$899

EVH 5150 Iconic Series 40W 1x12 Combo
evhgear.com

5
4.5
4.5
5

The late Eddie Van Halen spent much of his early career in search of what’s now known as the “brown sound.” Years after cracking the code, he helped bottle various versions of the recipe into the 5150 line of amps. Various iterations of these amps are now studio and stage staples, and are often used in heavy genres that transcend Van Halen’s vision.

Read MoreShow less

A svelte and powerful high-end flattop that’s equally sweet and dynamic.

Not a construction flaw to be found. Sweet-to-powerful dynamic range. Comfy neck. Near-rosewood-level responsiveness from a mahogany back. Beautiful woods.

A full $1K more than a Standard 000-18.

$3,599

Martin 000-18 Modern Deluxe
martinguitar.com

4.5
5
5
3.5

It would be easy for a company of Martin’s stature to coast every now and again. Maintaining brand mystique is exhausting in an age when hype rules the day. Keeping quality and substance intact—and maintaining commitment from the folks on the shop floor that deliver it—is even harder. But year in and year out, Martin continues to make instruments that simultaneously dwell in the realms of the practical, the musical, and the exquisite.

Read MoreShow less