Rick Dalton

A drive pedal in front of your amp adds preamp clipping, not power-tube breakup. How to hear the difference — and the one setup where the pedal does push the power section.

A 60Hz amp on 50Hz mains runs hot. The fix is to drop the voltage about 20 volts so the volts-per-hertz stays in line. A small bucking transformer does it for cheap — here's how to wire and meter one.

That tink-and-jump when you tune is a string sticking in the nut slot. Here's how to tell whether it's binding, a too-tight slot, or something graphite won't fix — and the right repair for each.

Plug a US tube amp into the wrong wall voltage abroad and you either lose headroom or cook a transformer. The region map — step-up, step-down, and the tonal change each one makes.

A touring guitar tech's workflow for checking stage outlet voltage before a gig with a $30 Kill-A-Watt. What the readings mean for your tube amp and when to act on them.

Wall voltage swings from 105V to 130V in a typical touring week. What that does to tube amp feel, how to measure it, and the fixes that actually work.

Both run real Marshall circuits in 20-watt format, but a JTM45 with KT66s and a 1959 Plexi with EL34s are different amps. Here's which Studio you should buy.

Both are 20-watt small-format Marshalls with the original Marshall circuits inside, but a 1959 Plexi and an 800 are different amps. Here's which Studio you actually want.

Three sub-$300 isolators, three different problems they actually solve. The Hum X is a power-line tool. The Twin-Iso is a signal-line tool. The EBTECH ELQ does both. Diagnose first, then buy.

Marshall's Studio Vintage line has three 20-watt heads (JCM800, Plexi, and Silver Jubilee). Here is which one fits which player, and the settings that prove it.

The 2555 Silver Jubilee sits between the JCM800 and the JCM900 in both era and gain structure. Here is what makes it different, who used it, and the settings that get you there.

Hybrid picking is one of those techniques that looks impossible until you break it into pieces small enough to actually practice. Here are the four right-hand drills that build the skill from zero in a couple of weeks of daily work. No Nashville pedigree required.

One pickup. One volume. One tone. No neck position, no coil split, no menu. The Les Paul Junior's single bridge P-90 into a clean amp is a complete tonal system. Here are the settings that prove it.

Hybrid picking isn't a country-only technique. Mark Knopfler, Albert Collins, and Scotty Moore built careers on it in rock and blues. Here's the technique, where it applies, and the specific moments where using your middle finger changes a phrase from good to right.

The Floyd Rose spring count question comes down to one number: the total string tension your gauge produces. Here's how to match it with springs and claw position so your bridge floats level and stays there.

Stacking a Tube Screamer and a Klon into a Marshall is a legitimate technique, not a boutique-pedal flex. Here's what each pedal is actually doing to the signal, plus the settings that make it work.

Floyd Rose bridges have a reputation for being difficult to set up. They aren't. There are three numbers. If you know them, the bridge does what it's supposed to.

How to use the tremolo arm for glide, flutter, and dive-bomb techniques, and what your bridge system can and can't do. Practical mechanics for Jazzmaster, synchronized Strat, and Floyd Rose.

Boss Blues Driver vs. BD-2W Waza Craft compared — the S mode vs. Custom mode clipping circuit difference, settings for blues and rock, and whether the upgrade is worth the extra $80.

The JCM900 was supposed to modernize the JCM800. Here's what actually changed in the circuit, why players have opinions about it, and which one fits your playing.

Everyone talks about Angus. But Malcolm Young built one of the greatest rhythm guitar tones in rock history. Here's what he used, how he set it, and why it worked.

The JCM800 2203 and 2205 look almost identical and share a name, but they're built around completely different preamp architectures. Here's what separates them, how to tell them apart, and which one does what you actually need.

Same amp, same guitar, same baseline. Rick and Jess ran five classic overdrives through their paces and compared notes, and disagreed more than expected.

BB King's tone secret isn't gear; it's gain structure and technique. Here's the amp setup, guitar settings, and what no pedal can replace.

Three of the most beloved overdrive pedals A/B'd through the same amplifier. What's actually different, and which one is right for your playing.

Boss BD-2 settings for blues, classic rock, country, and stacking. Clock-position sweet spots, amp pairing, the Tube Screamer comparison, and Keeley mod notes.

The big three modelers compared on sound, workflow, ecosystem, and value. Not specs. Real-world decision making for gigging and recording guitarists.

AC/DC guitar tone settings for both eras; the SG, the Marshall, amp dials by era, and how to approximate it on Helix and Quad Cortex.

Exact settings for the Marshall JCM800 across blues, classic rock, hard rock, and metal, on the real amp and on Helix, Quad Cortex, and Katana models.

A tube amp loyalist and a digital architect go head to head on the question every guitarist is asking. Real rigs, real settings, one honest answer.