6 guitar training tools: practice made perfect

With looks designed for the living room rather than the stage, AMPLIFi 150 is a fully-fledged guitar amp-cum-stereo system.

Play along to streamed music through a 12-inch Celestion speaker while taking advantage of Line 6’s stereo effects, editable presets, phrase-training facilities and more, blending your guitar sound in with the music playback as you go.

Read the full MusicRadar Line 6 AMPLIFi review.

4.5 out of 5

More info: line6.com

Korg’s Pandora is a diminutive multi-effects unit, with 158 models and 200 presets onboard.

You can create your own sounds in a seven-slot signal path, but the real benefits for practice here are the inclusion of 100 rhythm patterns and an auxiliary input (with pitch shift) to pipe in music to play along with. Hold down the footswitch for a tuner, too.

Read the full Korg Pandora Stomp review.

4 out of 5

More info: www.korg.com.

The smallest of Blackstar’s ID:Core range of beginners’ amps may only have two three-inch speakers, but it’s packed with editable effects and tone-shaping options.

Plus, it’s so much fun to use, we’d bet that many a seasoned player will be buying one as a go-to for recording, practice and more.

Read the full Blackstar ID:Core Stereo 10 review.

4 out of 5

More info: www.blackstaramps.com

This Mac-based phrase-training software can slow down songs while retaining pitch, reduce vocals to isolate guitar parts, transpose a song’s key and more – but its ace in the hole is its ability to automatically work out the chords of a song.

Read the full Supermegaultra groovy Capo 3 review.

3 out of 5

More info: www.supermegaultragroovy.com

Like Yamaha’s THR and the ID:Core series, Vox’s SoundBox Mini is a stereo amp with guitar-friendly features, such as onboard effects and amp models.

Unlike its rivals, the SoundBox is supremely portable, and runs on batteries – and while it doesn’t have the fullest tone ever, it does a great job of simulating a 3D stereo sound with its twin four-inch speakers.

Read the full Vox Soundbox Mini review.

4 out of 5

More info: www.voxamps.com

Timing is an underrated art, and it takes musicians years of practice and playing with others to truly perfect.

Creating and playing along with your own loops is a fun and creative way to improve your timing, and TC Electronic’s Ditto X2 looper is packed with features.

Read the full TC Electronic Ditto X2 Looper review.

4.5 out of 5

More info: www.tcelectronic.com