With the holidays approaching, you may find yourself searching for the perfect gift for a friend, family member or significant other. If they happen to play the guitar then your search just got a whole lot easier because there are plenty of affordable guitar related products that make fantastic gifts.

As a guitarist, the following list of 10 guitar player gift ideas comes from personal experience. They are all products that I have either received, or would like to receive. I’ve also made personal product recommendations for each item on the list, so even if you are not familiar with guitar accessories, you can buy one with confidence knowing it is of high quality.

1. Guitar Strings

Guitar strings are almost as important as the guitar itself, and it is important to change strings often to maintain your guitar’s tone. This on-going process though requires buying quite a few packs of strings throughout the year, which guitar strings such a great gift idea.

I have the mindset that you can never have enough packs of backup strings. I’ll often take 3-4 sets with me when I play a show in case strings break during my performance.

Sites like Musicians Friend offer great deals on buying strings in bulk that save you money in the long run and are definitely worth checking out.

For acoustic guitars, I recommend the Martin SP Acoustic medium gauge strings. These strings are bright sounding, and do not break very often.

For electric guitars, I recommend Ernie Balls which are great strings that have been played by the pros for decades.

It’s important to mention that string gauge is usually a player preference, but you can’t go wrong with buying “medium” gauge strings in my opinion. In my experience, they’ve offered the best sound and playability.

Shop for Guitar Strings at EBay.com

2. String Cutter/Winder

This is probably one of my favorite guitar accessories, and it doesn’t even have anything to do with my guitar’s sound or playability.  It is a tool that makes re-stringing your guitar a breeze.

It has a winding feature, cutting tool and a slot that can easily remove bridge pins on an acoustic guitar. These are all aspects of the string changing process that can prove to be quite difficult at times, especially when you are in a hurry.

With this tool, I never have to go looking for wire cutters, pliers, etc. Everything I need is right at my finger tips.

My recommended product is Planet Waves Pro-Winder String Winder/Cutter. It is the same one I use, and could not imagine being without it.

Find guitar string winders at EBay.com

3. Guitar Picks

I find myself always losing picks, and struggling to find one no matter how many I buy at a time. This is why I’m sure any guitarist would appreciate getting a pack or two so they’ll always have one nearby.

Like strings, picks have different gauges as well that are based on their thickness. The common types of guitar picks are light, medium and heavy.

The gauge of a pick is commonly a player’s own personal preference, but if I was to make a recommendation I would  consider the following:

For acoustic guitar playing, I like using light gauge picks. I think it provides a softer sound and lets the guitar sing more. It also helps to prevent string breaks.

For electric guitar playing, I’ll use medium gauge picks, because they add a more bite and control to my playing.

My favorite brand of picks are Dunlop Tortex Standard picks. They have a texture that feels great in your hands and helps to keep them from slipping out while playing.

Search for Dunlop Guitar Picks at EBay.com

4. Guitar Stand/Holder

It is important to help protect your guitar when you are not playing it, and a guitar stand is the perfect solution to this problem. They hold and support a guitar, helping to prevent any possible accidents.

There are two types of guitar stands to consider, wall mounted and floor stands.

I’ve personally only ever used floor stands, but if I had a proper wall to hang my guitar from, I would definitely use a wall holder.

Find great guitar stands at EBay.com

5. Guitar Polish Kit

All guitar players love keeping their guitars looking good and protected, which is what makes a guitar polishing kit such a great gift idea.

These kits contain waxes and cleaners specifically designed for guitar finishes. They also normally include a cloth to use for waxing and a string cleaner solution.

A polish/cleaning kit is a must have for any guitarist, and I recommend buying a Dunlop brand kit for best results.

Find guitar polish kits at EBay.com

6. Capo

A capo is a cool guitar accessory that is used to change the key of the guitar by simply “clamping” it onto the strings at any point on the fret board.

Applying a capo can really change the mood and feel of a song or chord which is why musicians have used them for so many years.

I recommend the G7th 405 Performance Guitar Capo (Pictured Above) which is available at Musicians Friend. Any guitar player would be lucky to have a capo like this.

Find quality guitar capos at EBay.com

7. Guitar Stool

A guitar stool is a great gift idea because most chairs simply aren’t designed with the guitar player in mind. A guitar stool offers a comfortable, sturdy place to sit and practice the guitar.

There are several different styles of chairs that can be purchased, but I prefer the simple steel legs and black seat design. You can even get customized guitar stools, which can make the gift that much more special.

Find awesome guitar stools at EBay.com

8. Tabulature/Music Book of Favorite Group

I received a gift like this last year, and it is still something I use at least once a week. The book I received was a complete Beatles’s collection of song tabs and sheet music. I love it because I can literally sit down and figure out any Beatles’s song I can think of.

There are music books for almost all popular musicians and groups starting from the ’60s to the current day.

I recommend looking for a book with a hard cover, because it will stand the test of time better and become something treasured for many years.

9. Pedal Board

If the guitarist you know plays with a variety of effect pedals, then a pedal board will make a great addition to his/her setup. It will keep all of the pedals organized and powered, making it easy to set them up and transport them.

You can read more about pedal boards in this previous post.

I recommend looking at pedal board made by the brand Gator. They offer high quality products, at a very affordable price. I have owned one of their basic models for quite some time now and have never had a problem.

10. Multi-Track Recorder

Now for what I refer to as the “dream” gift. For around $200-400 dollars you can get a great multi-track recording station (I recommend Fostex brand). These units will do everything from recording multiple tracks of audio at once to mixing down the audio and burning the final CDs.

These recorders allow for the guitarist in your life to record himself, as well as other instruments and vocal tracks, ultimately making complete, great sounding songs.

I’ve always loved recording my own music, it can really make you feel like you’re living the “rock ‘n roll dream” even though you are just in your bedroom.

All of the items mentioned in this post can be found directly at:

If you have any more suggestions for great gifts for guitar players, or if you would like to recommend a different brand or product I mentioned above, please feel free to leave a comment.

1. Your distortion pedal does not match your style of playing

There are three main types of distortion pedals; Distortion, Fuzz and Overdrive.

Each of these create different guitar tones that may/may not fit into your desired style of playing, and this is why you never want to buy a distortion pedal without either hearing, or playing it first.

• Distortion - A straight distortion pedal will offer increased sustain, gain and attack, and their levels can range from mild distortion to full blown metal. They fit well into almost all rock and metal genres.
• Overdrive - Overdrive pedals are designed to give your guitar a tone similar to that coming out of a quality tube amp with the gain turned up. They are great for adding an edge to your sound while also preserving the nuances of your playing. They do not provide the same level of sustain and gain as distortion pedals do, but are perfect for classic rock and blues. Their tone can be described as “warm”.
• Fuzz – A fuzz pedal allows you to turn up your amp and get some wild tones from your guitar. Jimi Hendrix made these types of pedals famous with his signature sound, and just like his pedals, your fuzz will provide a thick, sustain rich distortion. These types of pedals fit right into hard rock, blues and stoner rock. Guitarists from both the  Black Keys and White Stripes are current examples of rock bands that utilize the fuzz tone.

2. Your distortion pedals settings are not adjust correctly

Even the best pedals might require some tweaking to get their tone just right, and properly adjusting the settings is the preferred way to do this. Most distortion pedals will have, at the least, a volume, tone and distortion setting.

• Volume – This adjusts the output level of the pedal when it is engaged. You want to balance this level with your clean tone, because if both are at completely different levels, then switching between them will make your transitions sound unnatural. It is common though for your distortion pedals volume to be set higher than your clean tone so you get that extra attack of gain.
• Tone – No surprise here with this setting, it will alter your overall tone. It works by adjusting the mix of the highs and lows that are produced. My advice is to set the knob at 12 o’clock and tweak it as you play until it sounds just right.
• Distortion - This will adjust the level of distortion, over drive or fuzz that your pedal pushes out. It is generally a personal preference, so you if you like a lot of gain, turn it up.

3. Your effects pedal chain is not ordered correctly

Overtime, guitarists can accumulate a wide variety of effects pedals, and in order to play them at the same time, they are placed in a effects chain. Effects chains consist of numerous pedals that are are linked together, and the ordering of them can play a big role in your tone because some pedals could effectively zap your distortion pedal’s power/tone.

I wrote an article covering this topic in detail that you can view here.

4. Your distortion pedal’s batteries are weak/dying.

Although some people actually like the tones produced by their pedals when using weak batteries, some of us might not. If you are concerned with your pedal’s tone changing over the life of you battery you may want to consider purchasing an AC Adapter.

5. You are using an old or inferior guitar cable.

A guitar cable is the lifeline to your amp, and if you are not using a quality cable, neither your guitar’s tone, or your pedal’s tone will sound their best.

For detailed information on selecting the proper guitar cable, please read my article covering this topic here.

6. Your amp settings are not adjusted correctly

Just like the settings on your effects pedals, your amp settings also need to be fine tuned to get the perfect sound. This again, is somewhat of a personal preference and I am mentioning it basically as a reminder. If you are not satisfied with your guitar tone, making a few minor adjustments on the amp could make a world of difference.

Although we can’t all afford to buy the expensive cables a true audiophile might, that doesn’t mean we can’t get great tones out of a reasonably priced guitar cable.

A guitar cable, just like any piece of musical equipment, comes in a wide range of qualities spanning from superlative, to just plain awful. Even if your budget is a little bit tight, you definitely want to stay away from the low end cables as they won’t even be worth the little you pay for them. Here some things to look out for when determining the quality of a guitar cable.

• Low Microphonic Characteristics – This means that the cable should not easily produce audible noises from your amplifier when hit on the ground, or moved during playing. (A low quality cable will often times make a “thud” noise when hit off of the ground)
• Sturdy Plugs – I recommend purchasing a cable with coated ends, so that the persistent bending of the cable at the ends that occurs during playing does not affect your sound.
• Sturdy Look – This is one of those cases where you can judge a book by its cover. If it looks cheap, then it probably is cheap and you want to avoid it. Look for a quality coating on the wires, and sturdy end plugs.
• Quality Brand Name – A brand can only become well known for quality products in one way; Making quality products.
• Lack of Tone Loss – There should not be a noticeable loss in tone when using a cable that is a reasonable length of 20ft or less.

For most guitarists, I recommend avoiding the $100 dollar 12-foot guitar cables, and focusing your search in the $30-50 dollar range. This range has some great cables that will definitely do the job. The thing about the high end cables is that they can really affect your tone, and not in a positive way. These guitar cables do allow a lot more tone to come through, but there is such a thing as too much tone.

Often times guitarists are not used to hearing the highest of highs and the lowest of lows when playing, which can result in a sound that appears to be more harsh than one is used to. Purchasing such a cable could also result in having to re-adjust all of your amp settings and effects pedals to account for the additional tone. A small amount of signal loss that comes with a good quality guitar cable can actually be a good thing. This loss, or depletion of signal often adds a warmth to your sound.

In conclusion, it is important to get the cable that best suits your playing needs. Experiment with a few, and don’t stop until you find the perfect one.

Player Tip: If your high quality guitar cable is starting to lose some its sound, try cleaning the end plugs. Over time the plugs can develop a layer of tarnish that depletes your tone. I recommend using any standard contact cleaner for this.

Find guitar cables for sale in our online store