Skip to main content
MusicRadar MusicRadar The No.1 website for musicians
UK EditionUK US EditionUS AU EditionAustralia SG EditionSingapore
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • Artist news
  • Recording Week 25
  • Music Gear Reviews
  • Synths
  • Guitars
  • Controllers
  • Drums
  • Keyboards & Pianos
  • Guitar Amps
  • Software & Apps
  • More
    • Recording
    • DJ Gear
    • Acoustic Guitars
    • Bass Guitars
    • Tech
    • Tutorials
    • Reviews
    • Buying Guides
    • About Us
More
  • "That spark... gone"
  • Leonard Skinner
  • Prince and The Beatles
  • 95k+ free music samples
Don't miss these
TC Electronic Polytune clip-on tuner on a Martin acoustic guitar headstock
Guitar Tuners Best clip-on guitar tuners 2025: Top headstock and soundhole tuners to buy right now
Man plays Alesis Nitro Max drum kit with black sticks
Electronic Drums Best beginner electronic drum sets 2025: top-rated entry-level e-drums, reviewed by experts
The t.bone RB 500 ribbon microphone in front of a guitar amp
Microphones Best cheap microphones for recording 2025: Budget microphones for the home studio
Earplugs being tested at a loud band rehearsal
Tech Best earplugs for musicians 2025: protect your hearing with these essential audio attenuators, for the practice room to your next gig
A selection of IK Multimedia plugins for music production on a purple background
Plugins Buy one $49.99 IK Multimedia plugin and get a whopping 38 free with the best plugin deal of the year so far
A PRS McCarty 594 on a hard case
Electric Guitars Best electric guitars 2025: Our pick of guitars to suit all budgets
A Fender Player II Stratocaster and Telecaster on a white piece of wood with lots of holes in it
Electric Guitars Best electric guitars under $1,000/£1,000 in 2025: My top picks for players of all styles
Close up of Squier Classic Vibe '50s Telecaster
Electric Guitars Best electric guitars under $500/£500 in 2025: Affordable electrics
Debbie Gough of Heriot demoes the new Jackson Pro Plus Metal Phase II Warrior on a darkened studio set.
Guitars Jackson adds Warrior, King V and Concert Bass to its limited edition Pro Plus Pure Metal range
Fender Hammertone Boost and Breakup Drive pictured in close-up, with the background out of focus.
Guitars Fender adds analogue heat to the Hammertone lineup with the budget-friendly $99 Breakup Drive and Boost pedals
Fender's American Professional Classic series photographed against the side of a chrome tour bus [L-R]: Jaguar in faded Sherwood Green Metallic, HSS Stratocaster in Faded Lake Placid Blue, Stratocaster in Faded Firemist Gold, Telecaster in Faded Butterscotch Blonde, Precision Bass in Faded 3-Color Sunburst.
Guitars Fender gives its US lineup a retro-modern makeover with the American Professional Classic range
Harley Benton ST-80 FR MN
Electric Guitars “Some might say a guitar at this kind of price point has no business resonating so well”: Harley Benton ST-80 FR MN review
A Yamaha Revstar electric guitar on a blue background
Electric Guitars Thomann's Guitar Days sale just hit up to 70% off with £474 off an Epiphone semi-hollow, £132 off a Death By Audio pedal, plus loads more massive savings
A family photo of the newly refreshed Gretsch Streamliner and Electromatic Jet singlecut electric guitars, in various classic and bold finishes.
Guitars Gretsch relaunches the Jet in Streamliner and Electromatic series – and there is a single-pickup rock 'n' roll machine FTW
The Seymour Duncan Joe Bonamassa Bolin Burst Signature Pickup Set replicates the same humbuckers that are in the blues superstar's 1960 Les Paul Standard once owned by Tommy Bolin.
Artists Seymour Duncan expands Joe Bonamassa range with humbucker set based on pickups from his ‘Bolin Burst’ Les Paul
  1. Artists
  2. Guitarists

Buy their sound: Jeff Beck

News
By Total Guitar ( Total Guitar ) published 29 July 2014

One budget and one blowout gear list

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Introduction

Introduction

Jeff Beck has long been one of the pantheon of greats, yet he remains an enigma. Here we look at two rigs that will give you the base for Beck’s legendary tone: one on a budget and one that will require significant saving power.

Beck has used Fender Esquires, a 1956 Gretsch 6128 Duo Jet, Les Pauls; he even used a Jackson Soloist on 1985’s Flash. Yet, he’s always been synonymous with Strats, favouring his white ’93 Custom Shop above all else.

You’ll find Marshall and Fender amps in his backline, too. But remember: the gear is just a fraction of the story. The rest is in his head and hands, just out of reach for we mere mortals.

Of course, you should really do it the hard way, so also check out How to play like Jeff Beck.

Page 1 of 12
Page 1 of 12
Squier Deluxe Hot-Rails Strat

Squier Deluxe Hot-Rails Strat

BUDGET: A versatile electric with a vintage feel and plenty of attitude from its Duncan Designed pickups.

Page 2 of 12
Page 2 of 12
Fender Mustang II V2

Fender Mustang II V2

BUDGET: With heaps of onboard modelling software, the Mustang’s a versatile choice.

Page 3 of 12
Page 3 of 12
Electro-Harmonix Soul Food Boost/Overdrive

Electro-Harmonix Soul Food Boost/Overdrive

BUDGET: This is a great approximation of Jeff’s Klon Centaur, at barely a 10th of the price.

Page 4 of 12
Page 4 of 12
Dunlop GCB95F Cry Baby Classic

Dunlop GCB95F Cry Baby Classic

BUDGET: This Cry Baby wah has a similar sweep and harmonic response to the very first Cry Babys.

Page 5 of 12
Page 5 of 12
Johnson's Baby Powder

Johnson's Baby Powder

BUDGET: Jeff always has a bottle on stage to stop his hands from gumming up.

Total spend on budget rig: £585/$677*

*(approx. based on web prices)

Page 6 of 12
Page 6 of 12
Fender Jeff Beck Stratocaster

Fender Jeff Beck Stratocaster

BLOWOUT: Jeff’s signature Strat has a fat C-shaped neck, is wired with dual-coil ceramic Noiseless pickups, and sounds incredible.

Page 7 of 12
Page 7 of 12
Fender Blues Deluxe Reissue

Fender Blues Deluxe Reissue

BLOWOUT: It lacks a little gain, but articulates the Strat’s tone perfectly, has reverb, and all-valve Fender soul.

Page 8 of 12
Page 8 of 12
Fulltone Clyde Deluxe

Fulltone Clyde Deluxe

BLOWOUT: This flexible wah features three modes, plus a 60s-style inductor for authentic vintage tones.

Page 9 of 12
Page 9 of 12
MXR Carbon Copy M169 Delay

MXR Carbon Copy M169 Delay

BLOWOUT: Jeff has been known to use both the M169 and a Way Huge Aqua-Puss - we’d go for the MXR.

Page 10 of 12
Page 10 of 12
Wampler Euphoria Overdrive

Wampler Euphoria Overdrive

BLOWOUT: A truly gorgeous transparent overdrive that can even be used as a volume/treble boost.

Page 11 of 12
Page 11 of 12
The Accidental Vegetarian: Delicious Food Without Meat

The Accidental Vegetarian: Delicious Food Without Meat

BLOWOUT: After all that effort to find an alternative to his Klon Centaur, you might as well copy his diet and go vegetarian.

Total spend on blowout rig: £2,728.99/ $3650.50*

*(approx. based on web prices).

Page 12 of 12
Page 12 of 12
Categories
Guitars
Total Guitar
Total Guitar
Social Links Navigation

Total Guitar is Europe's best-selling guitar magazine.

Every month we feature interviews with the biggest names and hottest new acts in guitar land, plus Guest Lessons from the stars.

Finally, our Rocked & Rated section is the place to go for reviews, round-ups and help setting up your guitars and gear.

Subscribe: http://bit.ly/totalguitar

Stay up to date with the latest gear and tuition. image
Stay up to date with the latest gear and tuition.
Subscribe and save today!
More Info
Read more
A PRS McCarty 594 on a hard case
Best electric guitars 2025: Our pick of guitars to suit all budgets
 
 
A Fender Player II Stratocaster and Telecaster on a white piece of wood with lots of holes in it
Best electric guitars under $1,000/£1,000 in 2025: My top picks for players of all styles
 
 
Close up of Squier Classic Vibe '50s Telecaster
Best electric guitars under $500/£500 in 2025: Affordable electrics
 
 
Debbie Gough of Heriot demoes the new Jackson Pro Plus Metal Phase II Warrior on a darkened studio set.
Jackson adds Warrior, King V and Concert Bass to its limited edition Pro Plus Pure Metal range
 
 
Fender Hammertone Boost and Breakup Drive pictured in close-up, with the background out of focus.
Fender adds analogue heat to the Hammertone lineup with the budget-friendly $99 Breakup Drive and Boost pedals
 
 
Fender's American Professional Classic series photographed against the side of a chrome tour bus [L-R]: Jaguar in faded Sherwood Green Metallic, HSS Stratocaster in Faded Lake Placid Blue, Stratocaster in Faded Firemist Gold, Telecaster in Faded Butterscotch Blonde, Precision Bass in Faded 3-Color Sunburst.
Fender gives its US lineup a retro-modern makeover with the American Professional Classic range
 
 
Latest in Guitarists
Steve Morse plays his signature Ernie Ball Music Man electric guitar live with Dixie Dregs
Steve Morse on playing through the pain barrier and how arthritis is forcing him to change the way he plays guitar
 
 
Aapo Rautio, world air guitar champion
“For 60 seconds you’re allowed to be free, silly, the biggest rock star in the world”: How the World Air Guitar champion won his title
 
 
Ace Frehley on stage with Kiss in 1979
“All I did was crank it up to 10 and start to rock and roll!”: The 10 greatest Ace Frehley songs from his days with Kiss
 
 
Ace Frehley in 1980
“I hope the fans realised that I’m for real”: Kiss guitarist Ace Frehley inspired a generation of rock stars
 
 
Wolfgang Van Halen
“My list of voice memos is in the thousands!”: Wolfgang Van Halen on his songwriting process for his new Mammoth album
 
 
Alter Bridge record in 5150 Studios, the studio that the late Eddie Van Halen built, courtesy of an invite from his son and friend of the band Wolfgang Van Halen
Alter Bridge’s Myles Kennedy and Mark Tremonti on recording at the studio that Eddie Van Halen built
 
 
Latest in News
LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 17: Lily Allen joins Olivia Rodrigo on stage to duet her song 'Smile' at The O2 Arena on May 17, 2024 in London, England. (Photo by Nicky J Sims/Getty Images for Live Nation)
Lily Allen says that being invited on stage by a Gen-Z star played a big part in her musical comeback
 
 
MUNICH, GERMANY - AUGUST 30: Raye performs onstage during Superbloom Festival on August 30, 2025 in Munich, Bavaria. (Photo by Joseph Okpako/WireImage)
"I'm a maximalist": Raye breaks down the head-spinning vocal arrangement in Where Is My Husband!
 
 
eric asynths hexdrums
"The iconic essence of analogue electronic drums in a practical form factor": HexDrums, Erica Synths' "mutant" analogue drum machine, is available for pre-order
 
 
Gibson and Epiphone's new Back to the Future ES-345s are photographed against the DeLorean as used by Dr Emmett Brown in the movie
Gibson unveils Custom Shop Back To The Future ES-345 Collector’s Edition – and there’s a limited edition Epiphone too
 
 
OneAlphaTheta Library
With OneLibrary DJs can finally use their track libraries across different software applications
 
 
autotune
Antares announces AutoTune 2026 – and discontinues Artist and Access editions
 
 

MusicRadar is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Add as a preferred source on Google
  • About Us
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Terms and conditions
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Advertise with us
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Careers

© Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA. All rights reserved. England and Wales company registration number 2008885.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...