Three pins, and nearly every signal in this business passes through them.

The magazine is named after the cable: the microphone in the booth, the line to the desk, the DMX run that fires the lights. Studio, stage and rig share the same cable. Most magazines pick one of the three. This one covers all of it, because the people we read do too — the engineer mixing a record on Tuesday is on front of house by Saturday.

Around a hundred and sixty sources, in English, Japanese, Spanish, German, French, Chinese and Italian: makers and their release notes, reviewers who put a hand on the thing, studios and touring crews, the producers and collectives surfacing this month and the scenes they came out of. Synths and modular, plugins and DAWs, guitars and drums, microphones, monitors, PA and lighting. What the trade is talking about is counted and plotted. The editor's letter has just started; it will find its rhythm.

For each story: a headline, a short excerpt, one picture and the link out. We never reprint the article, and the picture belongs to the maker or the photographer. A German review appears in German and a Japanese one in Japanese, as the writer published it; the link goes to the original.

Nothing is sold on this site. When a link leads to a shop, it is the maker's shop, not ours.

← XLR MAG Archive

Guitar PlayerGuitars

Mark Knopfler on why he’s ditched the pick in favor of fingerpicking

10.31

Mark Knopfler has long been regarded as one of the premier electric guitar fingerstylists in the game .

Read at Guitar Player ↗

One letter a week, starting soon.

Latest

Mark Knopfler on why he’s ditched the pick in favor of fingerpicking

More from Guitar Player on XLR MAG

GuitarsWe review the LiquiSlide Jules Leyhe Signature glass slide Guitar Player

GuitarsWhen Dolly Parton shocked heavy metal legend Rob Halford: “She goes, ‘I love your beard,’ and starts to clean it!” Guitar Player

GuitarsSue Foley serves up five game-changing blues guitar tips: “That’s where you control your tone” Guitar Player

GuitarsDonita Sparks on L7’s farewell tour and mourning Jennifer Finch: “I’m not sure I’ve processed it completely yet” Guitar Player

GuitarsFender Japan unveils two Pokémon guitars for 30th anniversary — but there's a catch Guitar Player

GuitarsJimi Hendrix hooked Alice Cooper up with his longtime manager while Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison looked on Guitar Player