MusicRadar deals of the week: Celebrate the 4th of July in style with hundreds slashed off gear from Gibson, Fender, Alesis, Roland, Yamaha, Boss and more

Deals of the week
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Welcome to MusicRadar's deals of the week! Get ready to dive into a treasure trove of fantastic offers on top-rated musical gear from across the internet. We curate a fresh batch of jaw-dropping discounts every week, so be sure to swing by regularly to catch the latest steals. 

With Independence Day finally here, we're seeing all the major music retailers celebrate with huge discounts. Guitar Centre's Stars, Stripes, and Savings sale is in full swing and features a jaw-dropping 60% off a fantastic selection of music gear. With legendary names like Martin, Epiphone, Yamaha, and Squier in the mix, now's the perfect time to pick up your dream instrument for a whole lot less.

Next, we swing over to Sweetwater, where you can snag up to 60% off a host of big-name brands. Whether you're just starting out or a seasoned pro, this sale is for you, featuring top brands such as Roland, ESP, Guild, Boss, and many more.

Next up is Musician's Friend, which is offering up to 60% off a massive range of musical equipment, including electric guitars, microphonesacoustic guitars, digital pianos, and more. 

So, no matter what you are looking for, you'll be sure to find a bargain this holiday weekend.

Editor's picks

TrueFire 60% off All-Access deal: $249, now $99

TrueFire 60% off All-Access deal: $249, now $99
Kickstart July with a new practice and learning regime thanks to this crazy-low guitar lessons deal from TrueFire. We’re big fans of the unmatched volume of content, the massive range of star tutors and the learning paths which help you along the way in a coherent and progressive way.

Fender Player Plus Telecaster
Save $240
Fender Player Plus Telecaster: was $1,199.99 now $959.99 at Fender

If you’re in the market for a new Fender or Squier guitar this summer, then this is the guitar I think you should go for. With a massive $240 discount, it’s superb value for money, largely thanks to the addition of a series circuit that unlocks humbucker-esque tone. With rounded fingerboard edges and a set of locking tuners, you’ve got yourself a proper gigging workhorse for less than a grand.

Gibson Les Paul Studio Modern: $1,999, now $1,799

Gibson Les Paul Studio Modern: $1,999, now $1,799
The Gibson Les Paul Studio is as versatile as a Les Paul gets, featuring coil-splits and out-of-phase switches, and is available in a luxurious satin finish. If you're in the market for a bonafide rock machine, this has to be your next guitar – especially with Sweetwater slashing the price to just $1,799.

D'Addario XL Strings: Was $1.99, now $17.99

D'Addario XL Strings: Was $1.99, now $17.99
While purchasing fresh sets of strings might not be the most exciting thing, it's something all us guitarists need to do on a regular basis, so stocking up isn't a bad idea.

PRS SE Custom 24
PRS SE Custom 24: was $849 now $679 at Guitar Center

The PRS SE Custom 24 is one of our favorite guitars here at Guitar World. For me, it hits that sweet spot of affordability, playability, and great sound, making it a proper gigging workhorse that will sound just as good in the studio as it does on stage. It's got single coil sounds available alongside the humbuckers, and the build quality is amongst the best I've ever seen. With a $170 discount at Guitar Center, this is a must-have if you need a pro-grade guitar that doesn't cost the earth.

EHX x JHS Lizard Queen
EHX x JHS Lizard Queen: was $99 now $39.60 at Sweetwater Sound

Over at Sweetwater, you'll find my top deal on guitar gear, with the Electro-Harmonix x JHS Lizard Queen octave fuzz getting a massive $59.40 reduction, taking it to below half price. At just shy of $40, it's a no-brainer if you're looking for a new pedal, delivering an excellent fuzz tone with an adjustable octave for additional flexibility. It looks super cool too!

Universal Audio Ampex ATR-102 Mastering Tape Recorder
Save $251
Universal Audio Ampex ATR-102 Mastering Tape Recorder: was $300 now $49 at Sweetwater Sound

I’ve been using the UA ATR-102 on nearly every mix bus I’ve set eyes upon for the last few years. It just adds a lovely low-end warmth and beautiful top-end clarity to a track, even when you just leave it in its default state. It’s my go-to for enlivening the more sterile sounds you often get with the in-the-box recording, and it typically goes as the last thing on my mix bus before the limiter. It really brings the mix together at the final stage, and for just $49 in the Sweetwater sale, it’s truly superb value for money.

Ernie Ball Music Man St. Vincent Goldie: Save $600

Ernie Ball Music Man St. Vincent Goldie: Save $600
Featuring a trio of specially designed gold foil pickups, the Goldie is a fresh take on the modern classic that is the St. Vincent model. This stunning guitar also features a lightweight okoume body, roasted figured maple neck with reversed headstock, and rosewood fretboard. Save a whopping $600 at Musician's Friend.

Yamaha P-125 B: $819.99, now $749.99

Yamaha P-125 B: $819.99, now $749.99
Yamaha's P-125 was undoubtedly one of the most popular beginner pianos on the market and one of our favourites for both newbies and more experienced players. Read our glowing 5-star Yamaha P-125a review to see why we love this piano.

Martin Special 000
Martin Special 000: was $1,049.99 now $849.99 at Musician's Friend

Musician’s Friend is making it seriously hard to stay out of the holiday fund with this 4th of July deal. Scoring a fully solid Martin Special 000 for just $850 feels borderline criminal. You are getting a solid Sitka spruce top, solid sapele back and sides, and the kind of sweet, balanced tone that makes this a go-to workhorse. It even comes with a plush Martin gig bag. I’ve always loved the 000 body shape, and that 24.9" scale length? It’s the secret sauce that keeps me coming back.

Alvarez LF710e Folk-OM
Alvarez LF710e Folk-OM: was $1,399 now $899 at Musician's Friend

If you're not familiar with Alvarez, allow me to introduce you. The love child of St. Louis Music and master luthier Kazuo Yairi, Alvarez has built a reputation on craftsmanship, quality, and affordability. Already a solid value proposition, Musician’s Friend is currently offering an unmissable $500 off this gorgeous LF710e Folk-OM in it's 4th Of July sale. I've played plenty of Alvarez guitars over the years, and I’m a big fan of their smaller OM body shapes. They are incredibly comfortable, with sweet sustain and impressive clarity. With a solid AAA Sitka spruce top and East Indian rosewood back and sides, this one delivers all that and more.

Looking for more bargains? Check out more recommended sales below:

How we choose our deals of the week

Here at MusicRadar, we are experts in our field, with many years of playing, creating and product testing between us. We live and breathe everything music gear-related, and we draw on this knowledge and experience of using products in live, recording and rehearsal scenarios when selecting the products for our deals.

Our mission is simple - to help you make the best buying decision, find the right gear at the right price, to make the best music you can.

For us to recommend a deal it has to be a product we rate that’s been reduced to a genuinely great price or part of a truly fantastic bundle. It’s also important that we only recommend retailers that we trust.

You can see more of our product recommendations in our buyer's guides and reviews.

Why you can trust our choices

Our editors and writers are all experienced musicians and experts in their fields. They have a deep understanding of the categories that they cover, which means that you can trust their choices when it comes to recommending products.

We pride ourselves on the independence, quality and reliability of our testing processes and the reviews it produces. It’s what has made us the world’s leading music-making publishing company. You can find more details on how we test some specific key product categories, but the principles apply across the board, rigorously assessing build quality, functionality, playability and, of course, sonic performance.

We cover a lot of the big sales events throughout the year, including Memorial Day, Black Friday, 4th of July sales and Amazon Prime Day, and we have a good view of which products are likely to receive the biggest discounts and when, the prices they’ve been in the past and which deals are genuinely worth a look.

Where are the best places to shop?

Online shopping is definitely a lot easier and more secure than it used to be, and we like to recommend a small handful of online retailers who have a sterling reputation and offer fantastic benefits like fuss-free returns, great customer service and, in some cases, full checks and setup of guitars before they are dispatched. So, all the deals we’ll recommend on this page are from retailers that tick these boxes.

What sort of deals should I look for?

Great deals come in all shapes and sizes. There are a few key types to look out for:

  • Single item - A single product with a great discount
  • Site-wide discounts - A single discount percentage on a large range of products across a site
  • Discount codes - Load your basket to a certain value and redeem a discount code for money off your basket contents
  • Added value deals - These include multi-buy discounts, or additional products or software for free when you buy certain items
Daryl Robertson
Senior Deals Writer

I'm a Senior Deals Writer at MusicRadar, and I'm responsible for writing and maintaining buyer's guides on the site - but that's not all I do. As part of my role, I also scour the internet for the best deals I can find on gear and get hands-on with the products for reviews. My gear reviews have been published in prominent publications, including Total Guitar and Future Music magazine, as well as Guitar World.com. I've also had the privilege of interviewing everyone from Slash to Yungblud, as well as members of Sum 41, Foo Fighters, The Offspring, Fever 333 and many more. 

I have a massive passion for anything that makes a sound, particularly guitars, pianos, and recording equipment. In a previous life, I worked in music retail, giving advice on all aspects of music creation and selling everything from digital pianos to electric guitars, entire PA systems, and ukuleles. I'm also a fully qualified sound engineer who holds a first-class Bachelor's degree in Creative Sound Production from the University of Abertay and I have plenty of experience working in various venues around Scotland.

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