Guitar Brands

US · est. 1902 · 1156 models

Gibson is an American guitar manufacturer founded in Kalamazoo, Michigan, in 1902 and now headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee. It builds solidbody, semi-hollow and archtop electrics alongside a long-running line of flat-top acoustics. The electric catalog centers on the Les Paul, SG, ES-335, Explorer, Flying V and Firebird, while the acoustic side is led by the J-45, Hummingbird and SJ-200. Gibson introduced the humbucking pickup in the 1950s, and its instruments are closely tied to blues, classic rock, hard rock and jazz. Production spans affordable Studio-grade models, standard USA builds and heavily detailed Custom Shop reissues.

702 models

Harley Benton is the in-house instrument brand of Thomann, the German music retailer based in Treppendorf, Bavaria. The guitars are built to Thomann's specification by contract factories in Asia and sold only through Thomann, which puts them at the low end of the price scale. The catalog is deliberately broad and covers most familiar formats: ST, TE, SC and DC electrics, the Fusion and Amarok series, Jazz- and Precision-style basses, dreadnought and classical acoustics, resonators, and multi-scale and extended-range models. Left-handed and short-scale variants are offered across much of the range, which is widely used by beginners and as a base for modification projects.

US · est. 1873 · 603 models

Epiphone traces its history to a family instrument workshop founded in 1873 that settled in New York early in the twentieth century and took the Epiphone name in the 1920s. It built archtops and was Gibson's main rival in that market before Gibson acquired the company in 1957. Epiphone now operates as Gibson's more affordable marque, offering its own designs such as the Casino, Sheraton, Coronet and Crestwood alongside licensed versions of the Les Paul, SG, ES-335 and Gibson's flat-top acoustics. The range runs from entry-level instruments to the closely specified Inspired by Gibson Custom reissues, and covers rock, blues, folk and country playing.

JP · est. 1908 · 557 models

Ibanez is a Japanese guitar brand owned by Hoshino Gakki of Nagoya, whose musical instrument business dates to 1908; guitars have carried the Ibanez name since the middle of the twentieth century. Flagship models are built in Japan, with larger-volume series produced elsewhere in Asia. The brand is known for thin, flat neck profiles and for the RG, S and Iceman electrics, the SR bass family and the Artcore hollowbodies, plus a substantial acoustic range. Ibanez was an early producer of factory seven- and eight-string guitars, and the catalog leans toward metal, djent, shred and fusion while still covering jazz, blues and folk.

JP · est. 1975 · 392 models

ESP is a Japanese guitar maker founded in Tokyo in 1975. It began by supplying replacement parts and building custom instruments to order before establishing a brand of its own, and it still runs a custom shop alongside series production. The line is split into tiers: ESP and E-II for Japanese-built instruments and LTD for lower-priced imports, covering the Eclipse, Horizon, M, Viper and Arrow body shapes together with matching basses. Baritone, seven-string and Evertune-equipped variants are common. ESP is strongly identified with thrash and heavy metal, and has produced signature models for players including James Hetfield, Kirk Hammett and Alexi Laiho.

US · est. 1980 · 242 models

Jackson is an American electric guitar brand that emerged in California around 1980, when Grover Jackson's shop began putting its own name on custom-built instruments. It has been part of the Fender group since the early 2000s. Jackson is defined by angular, high-performance designs: the Soloist and Dinky superstrats and the pointed Rhoads, King V, Kelly and Warrior shapes, generally with thin necks, deep cutaways and high-output humbuckers. Models run from the entry-level JS and X series through Pro and Pro Plus up to USA-built signature guitars, and basses are offered alongside the six- and seven-string electrics. The brand is tied closely to heavy metal, thrash and shred.

199 models

Cort is a South Korean guitar company that has been producing instruments since the 1970s and ranks among the largest guitar manufacturers in the world. A large share of its output is contract production for other brands, made in its own factories in South Korea, Indonesia and China. Under its own name Cort covers most of the market: Earth, Gold and Grand Regal steel-string acoustics and acoustic-electrics, the G, KX and X series electrics, the C and GB bass families, and a small nylon-string range. Instruments are aimed mainly at the budget and mid-price segments, with the electric line running from vintage-styled models to extended-range designs for heavier styles.

US · est. 1985 · 189 models

PRS Guitars was founded by luthier Paul Reed Smith in 1985 and builds its American instruments in Stevensville, Maryland. The designs sit between Fender and Gibson conventions, typically combining a carved figured-maple top and glued-in neck with a 25-inch scale length. The range runs from the imported SE line through the US-made S2 series to Core, Private Stock and limited-edition models, headed by the Custom 24, McCarty 594, Hollowbody and Silver Sky. Bird fingerboard inlays are a recurring visual signature. PRS electrics are widely used in rock, blues and fusion, and the catalog also includes acoustic guitars and a small number of basses.

US · est. 1976 · 170 models

Schecter Guitar Research was founded in California in 1976, initially making replacement pickups, bodies and necks before moving into complete instruments. Its Diamond Series is produced overseas, while a US custom shop handles smaller runs and signature builds. The current catalog centers on the C-1 double-cutaway and its Hellraiser, Blackjack and Damien variants, the PT and Model-T single-cutaways, and the Stiletto and Diamond-P basses. Seven- and eight-string models, active pickups and left-handed versions are unusually well represented. Schecter is associated with modern metal, metalcore and hard rock, and has built signature instruments for players such as Synyster Gates and Jeff Loomis.

US · est. 1974 · 71 models

Taylor Guitars was founded in southern California in 1974 and is based in El Cajon, with additional production in Tecate, Mexico. It builds acoustic and acoustic-electric guitars almost exclusively, and was an early adopter of computer-controlled machining and of a bolt-on acoustic neck joint. Models are organized by numbered series, from the 100 and 200 lines up through the 800s and 900s to the koa K series, alongside the compact GS Mini, Baby Taylor and GT bodies and the T5z hollowbody hybrid. The Grand Auditorium body shape and factory-fitted electronics are Taylor hallmarks, and the guitars are common in singer-songwriter, folk, country and pop settings.

JP · est. 1887 · 34 models

Yamaha is a Japanese manufacturer founded in Hamamatsu in 1887 as a maker of reed organs, and is now one of the largest musical instrument companies in the world. Guitars are one part of a catalog that also spans pianos, drums, wind instruments and audio equipment. The guitar range is unusually broad: CG and C series nylon-strings from student to concert level, FG, L and A series steel-string flat-tops, APX and CPX acoustic-electrics, the SLG silent and TransAcoustic models, Pacifica and Revstar electrics, and the TRBX and BB basses. Yamaha instruments are a fixture of music education and are also used professionally across most genres.

20 models

Solar Guitars is a metal-oriented brand founded by the Swedish guitarist Ola Englund, who built the company's audience through online video before launching the instruments. Specification and design are handled in-house, with manufacturing contracted to factories in Asia. The range is organized around a small set of body shapes identified by letter — A, E, S, T, V and X — in six- and seven-string form, usually in matte black or other flat finishes with high-output humbuckers and either a fixed bridge or a Floyd Rose. Basses share the same naming scheme, and the lower-priced models are sold under the S by Solar name.

US · est. 1946 · 7 models

Fender is an American instrument manufacturer founded by Leo Fender in Fullerton, California, in 1946. Its bolt-on-neck solidbody designs were among the first electric guitars conceived for mass production rather than one-off craft assembly. The Telecaster and Stratocaster set the template for the modern electric guitar, and the Precision Bass and Jazz Bass did the same for the electric bass; the offset Jazzmaster, Jaguar and Mustang followed. Fender instruments are central to blues, country, surf, rock, funk and pop, and the company has an equally long history in guitar amplification.

US · est. 1833 · 2 models

C. F. Martin & Co. was founded by Christian Frederick Martin in New York in 1833 and has been based in Nazareth, Pennsylvania, since 1839, making it one of the oldest continuously operating instrument makers in the United States. It builds steel-string flat-top acoustics almost exclusively. Martin developed X-bracing in the nineteenth century and popularized the dreadnought, which became the standard large steel-string body shape. Models are named by body size and trim style — the D-28, D-18, OM-28 and 000-28 among the best known — and the guitars are strongly associated with bluegrass, folk, country and singer-songwriter playing.

US · est. 1931 · 2 models

Rickenbacker is an American manufacturer based in Santa Ana, California, whose origins lie in the Electro String company formed in 1931. Its early electric lap steel is generally counted among the first commercially produced electric guitars. The modern line is small and has changed little: the 300-series semi-hollow six- and twelve-string electrics, including the 330 and 360, and the 4000-series basses such as the 4003. Neck-through construction, distinctive single-coil pickups and a bright, chiming voice make the instruments easy to identify, and they are associated with 1960s beat groups, folk rock and jangle pop, and — in the case of the basses — with hard rock and progressive rock.

US · est. 1997 · 1 model

Córdoba is an American company founded in 1997 and based in California that specializes in nylon-string instruments. Its guitars follow traditional Spanish construction, with lightweight fan-braced cedar or spruce tops and wide, flat fingerboards. The classical range is graded largely by number, from student models such as the C5 up to higher-grade concert instruments, and it is joined by flamenco guitars, the Fusion crossover series with slimmer necks and radiused fingerboards for players coming from steel-string or electric guitars, and a line of ukuleles. The instruments are used mainly in classical, flamenco and Latin styles.

US · est. 1883 · 1 model

Gretsch was founded in Brooklyn, New York, in 1883 and built banjos, drums and tambourines long before it became known for guitars. Since the early 2000s the guitar line has been managed by Fender under an agreement with the Gretsch family, and the company retains a substantial drum business. Gretsch is identified with large hollow and semi-hollow electrics — the White Falcon, 6120 and Country Gentleman among them — typically fitted with Filter'Tron pickups and a Bigsby vibrato, alongside the Duo Jet and Jet solidbodies. The sound is closely linked to rockabilly, country, rock and roll and 1960s pop.

US · est. 1974 · 1 model

Ernie Ball Music Man is an American manufacturer that began in California in 1974 and has been owned by the string maker Ernie Ball since the mid-1980s. Instruments are built in San Luis Obispo, California, with a lower-priced import line sold as Sterling by Music Man. The company is best known for the StingRay bass, an early production instrument with an onboard active preamp, and for the Sterling and Bongo basses that followed. The electric guitar range includes the Axis, Cutlass and Albert Lee models and a long-running John Petrucci signature series. Music Man basses are a common sight in rock, funk and progressive music.