The Guitar Center Guitar-A-Thon is officially underway, and running now ‘til October 7, you can find up to 30% off an absolutely massive selection of gear. I’ve spent hours combing through the inventory, and thankfully, this isn’t just a clearance bin of unwanted accessories.
We’re talking substantial discounts on heavy-hitting electric guitars, acoustic guitars, bass guitars, guitar pedals, and guitar amps from top-tier names like Fender, Epiphone, Sterling by Music Man, and MXR.
Guitar-A-Thon usually heralds the start of the Black Friday guitar deals, so it’s well worth stopping by for a browse to see what early deals you can pick up ahead of the rush!
Whenever a major event drops, my eyes immediately dart toward the big manufacturers, and I was pleased to see a massive $267 slashed off the Fender Player II Stratocaster HSS. This isn’t last decade’s surplus; the Player II series brings heavily requested upgrades like rolled fingerboard edges and the triumphant return of real rosewood.
At $622.99, down from $889.99, getting your hands on this limited-edition Ocean Turquoise beauty feels like an absolute steal. The HSS pickup configuration is what really sells it for me, giving you everything from glassy, classic Strat chime in the neck to a thick, punchy humbucker roar in the bridge.
If the low-end is more your territory, however, the Sterling by Music Man DarkRay Electric Bass Guitar is sitting at a hefty $336 discount, bringing it down to $1,263.99. This is essentially a dream collaboration for modern rock and metal bassists, taking the iconic, punchy StingRay platform and shoving a custom Darkglass 2-band active preamp straight into it.
The built-in Alpha and Omega distortion circuits mean you can dial in earth-shattering, modern grit right from the control plate without ever touching a pedalboard. Having spent time putting the DarkRay through its paces, we can confidently say the Galaxy Shimmer finish looks just as good as this bass sounds.
If you’re interested in adding to your pedalboard, you really can’t walk away from a gear purge like this without treating yourself to a new stompbox, and the MXR M94SE Fat Sugar Drive immediately caught my attention.
Reduced from $139.99 to a very comfortable $94.99, this sparkly pink pedal houses one of the most sought-after overdrive circuits in modern pedal history. It’s essentially Way Huge’s acclaimed Sugar Drive – a meticulous Klon Centaur clone – stuffed into a rugged, pedalboard-friendly MXR enclosure. It works beautifully as a transparent clean boost to push your tube amp into natural breakup, or you can crank the drive for a thick, harmonically rich overdrive that refuses to get muddy.
If none of those happen to strike a chord with you, don’t stress – these are just a few of my personal favorites. With hundreds of items heavily marked down across the entire site, I highly recommend brewing yourself a coffee and browsing the full sale for yourself.
