MusicRadar deals of the week: Score $390 off a divisive Fender Stratocaster, $180 off a stunning Gretsch and hundreds off PA and live gear

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Welcome to MusicRadar's deals of the week, where we'll share with you the very best offers from around the web on some of our best-rated musical equipment. As the name suggests, we'll bring you a new batch of exciting discounts every week, so be sure to check back regularly to see what we've uncovered and stay ahead of the game.

Well, this week, Guitar Center is continuing to make some noise with its Big Bang Sale. This is one for all the drummers. Right now, you can score up to 25% off everything from cymbals to accessories, or even treat yourself to a shiny new kit. But they've also added $200 off select Fender models so that guitar players don't feel left out.

Now, is your band finally ready to take to the stage and get your music out there? Well, you're going to need to invest in some quality live sound equipment. Luckily, you'll be able to hit the road running, as Sweetwater is currently offering up to 35% off a range of live sound equipment. From speakers to mics, wireless systems, and mixers, you'll find discounts on everything you need to perform live.

Meanwhile, Musician’s Friend has kicked off the Guitar Fest Sale, which sees up to 40% off a massive range of gear. From Epiphone to PRS, Music Man to Gretsch, and so much more, all the big guns are included.

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