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BIZARRE: Ernie ball | Mind Blowing Facts

“When you notice one of these signs, it’s probably time to open a fresh set of strings”: When should you change your guitar strings? We asked the world’s biggest string brands to get the definitive answer

Experts at Ernie Ball, D'Addario and more explain when it’s time to break out a new set, how environmental factors play their part, and what you can do to make your strings last longer

Guitar World

“While the 6-string is my comfort zone, I missed the physical freedom of the 4-string bass”: Ernie Ball and Fender top this month's low-end releases with signature models celebrating two of the bass world’s most influential voices

John Myung’s new artist model kicks off another stacked month of bass releases, alongside an eye-catching Squier, a semi-acoustic Rickenbacker, and a raft of player-friendly upgrades

Guitar World

“It’s a genuinely unique instrument – and it always raises a smile”: Nigel Tufnel's “World on Fire” guitar, used during Spinal Tap's Live Earth performance, is headed to auction

An Ernie Ball Music Man Silhouette at its core, the guitar features a working thermometer and a snow globe containing a figurine of former US Vice President Al Gore

Guitar World

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“A lot of guitar players are like, ‘Oh, well, Jimmy Page was fine with that, so I guess I don’t need more fret access, or I don’t need better balance’”: Tosin Abasi on the art of designing cutting-edge instruments that keep the guitar’s core

The Kaizen – which Abasi designed in collaboration with Ernie Ball Music Man – looks to drag guitar design into a bold new future

Guitar World

“I said, ‘It’s everything I need. Can I borrow it to do my demo?’ They went, ‘Let me ask Ern’”: Steve Morse on how a gear nightmare lead him to Ernie Ball – and the signature guitar of his dreams

Morse has become one of Ernie Ball’s most loyal and high-profile endorsers – and it all started with a broken volume pedal

Guitar World

“It was like, ‘Here’s what we need.’ They said, ‘But you have to use Fender parts.’ I said, ‘Alright, I’ll see you guys later’”: Steve Morse on why his ill-fated Fender signature guitar never got off the ground

Before partnering with Ernie Ball Music Man for his now-iconic signature, Morse was courted by Fender – but the project didn’t get far

Guitar World

“One of the coolest things we saw at Fender’s invite-only NAMM event”: All the guitar gear that has caught my eye this week – including the answer to all your modeler tone woes

Fresh new drops from Taylor, Fender, Gibson, Eastwood and more...

Guitar World

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“It was like, ‘Congratulations, you just bought Leo Fender’s company. Now you gotta learn how to make guitars’”: The origins of Ernie Ball Music Man – and how it all started with a bass

The StingRay was worked on by Sterling Ball, Leo Fender and others, initially under the Music Man brand name

Guitar World

NAMM 2026: The best new things in bass from the biggest music instrument event of the year

From Aguilar to Ashdown and beyond, here’s a look at the new gear that had bassists abuzz at this year’s NAMM show

Guitar World

“What’s Japanese for shameless?” Tosin Abasi's Animals As Leaders bandmate lambasts Ibanez's new Alpha guitar design

Guitar World

“Engineered from the ground up”: Ibanez issues its answer to Ernie Ball and Abasi Concepts with the Alpha Series – its most progressive guitar design to date

The shred and metal expert leans into the contemporary design trends currently dominating the prog guitar scene for a landmark launch

Guitar World

I've been playing guitar for 24 years, and this care package is what every new guitarist needs for 2026

I've assembled the essential kit every new guitarists needs to jumpstart their playing in 2026

Guitar World

"It's cut so that you can have boobs and play guitar, which is so awesome": Olivia Rodrigo explains why she loves playing her custom Ernie Ball Music Man St Vincent Goldie signature model

She also discusses her Rock & Roll Hall of Fame performance of a White Stripes song and duetting with The Cure’s Robert Smith at Glastonbury

MusicRadar

“Nobody can play better than that guy, man!”: In a new in-depth interview, guitar virtuoso Steve Morse discusses the supernatural powers of John Petrucci, Eric Johnson, Angel Vivaldi and Deep Purple legends Jon Lord and Ritchie Blackmore

His new Steve Morse Band album Triangulation is an audacious work of instrumental rock

MusicRadar

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Guitar World

“This is the bass I’ve wanted to make for years”: Sterling by Music Man releases signature bass with two dummy knobs that do absolutely nothing for MxPx bassist Mike Herrera

The punk rock icon is serving his go-to wiring setup without harming the heritage of the StingRay design

Guitar World

"The building blocks of ’60s-style rock and roll, R&B and funk/soul": Ernie Ball Pino Palladino Smoothies flatwound bass strings review

Inject some vintage flavour without becoming entirely throwback with the bass legend's new signature flatwound string set

Guitar World

“All the same comfort and playability as their American counterparts”: Rabea Massaad’s Sterling by Music Man Sabre has been one of the firm’s most anticipated builds – and now it’s finally here

A year and a half after the highly refined $4,000 Ernie Ball Music Man model arrived, a sub-$1k version has landed

Guitar World

"A simple move up the neck can open up new voicings, textures, and moods you would never get from standard open chords": 5 creative ways to use a capo

A capo can offer your playing so much more than a key change. Here are my favorite creative ways to use a capo

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Guitar World

“Martin and Taylor, watch out. There’s a new small-bodied build on the block”: This is all the new guitar gear that has caught my eye this week – and I think I've been convinced to finally go wireless

All-new drops from PRS, Furch, Victory and more

MusicRadar

“Since I bought that bass, that just really changed my career”: He’s worked with the Who, Jeff Beck, Beyoncé, NIN… Now Pino Palladino teams up with Ernie Ball Music Man for a signature StingRay inspired by the fretless bass that started it all

Available fretted or fretless, the Pino Palladino StingRay is resplendent in 79 Burst – and there's a super limited edition Icon Series model that replicates all the wear of his original

Guitar World

“I said to my tour manager, ‘I need 350 bucks,’ which he wasn’t happy about. That bass changed my career”: In 1981, Pino Palladino bought a fretless StingRay that altered the course of his musical life – now it’s been recreated as a signature model

In 1981, Pino Palladino bought a fretless StingRay that altered the course of his musical life – now it’s been recreated as a signature model

Guitar World

“It’s built to reflect how I play”: Ryan “Fluff” Bruce’s Sterling by Music Man signature is finally here – and it’s more than $2k cheaper than the premium model

Fishman Fluence humbuckers make way for “do-it-all” Seymour Duncans, but otherwise, it’s a faithful recreation of the YouTuber’s Swiss Army riff machine

MusicRadar

"The first thing I notice is a bit of surprise": A guitarist tries 9.5 gauge guitar strings for the first time with the new Ernie Ball Tim Henson signature set

Are these strings a sweet spot for players? Guitarist Pete Emery finds out with this long-term test

MusicRadar

“There is no stage in the world that's too big for the music that you play on an acoustic guitar.”: John Mayer and Ernie Ball just co-designed a set of next-gen Earthwood acoustic guitar strings inspired by cymbals and bells

The Earthwood Bell Bronze acoustic strings are made from an all-new proprietary alloy that offers “bold, rich, full-bodied tones with enhanced resonance and projection”

Guitar World

“If your idea works on an acoustic guitar, you can change the world”: John Mayer and Ernie Ball’s string experiments continue with the launch of the firm’s “most sonically complex” acoustic set yet

With a little inspiration from drum cymbals, the revamped Earthwood Bell Bronze strings boasts a richer low-end that promises not to get too dark

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