At age nine, Guthrie Govan and his brother Seth played guitar on a Thames Television programme. He was nine years old and already good enough to appear on television. By his own description, he learned guitar “mainly by ear,” working out chords and solos from records, starting with Elvis Presley and Jerry Lee Lewis and working forward through the Beatles, Hendrix, Frank Zappa, and AC/DC. He won Guitarist magazine’s Guitarist of the Year competition in 1993 — before he had released a studio album, before most people knew his name, before his reputation as possibly the most technically complete guitarist alive had fully formed.
He released Erotic Cakes in 2006, when he was thirty-four. The album demonstrated, across eleven tracks of instrumental guitar, a facility with every style the instrument can produce — country chicken picking, funk slapping harmonics, jazz chord-melody sophistication, neo-classical shredding, blues, fusion — each deployed not as demonstration but as genuine musical language, each sounding equally natural from the same pair of hands.
Dizzee Rascal hired him. Steven Wilson hired him. Hans Zimmer hired him. The Aristocrats — the brutal technical trio with Bryan Beller and Marco Minnemann — has been his most celebrated vehicle for the past fifteen years. Every single musician who has worked with him has described the experience in terms of disbelief.
His gear is the most considered and most versatile in this series. One guitar that does everything — that’s not a fantasy, it’s an engineering brief he gave to first Suhr and then Charvel. One amp that fits in a carry-on bag. A pedalboard built for a working musician who flies to any gig and needs to be ready for anything.
This is the complete gear story.
Background: Oxford English Literature, Shrapnel Records, and the Guitarist of the Year Nobody Had Heard Of
Guthrie Govan was born December 27, 1971, in Chelmsford, Essex. His father was a guitarist who encouraged his son’s musical development from the age of three — teaching him three chords and introducing him to his record collection. The musical environment was genuine and comprehensive: alongside the classic rock education, Govan developed through school music, formal guitar study, and the self-directed ear training that would give him the ability to play in any style with equal authenticity.
He is half-Scottish, and has cited Zal Cleminson — the Scottish guitarist best known for his work with the Sensational Alex Harvey Band — as an early and significant influence. His first electric guitar was a Gibson SG Special, which he still keeps at home. After secondary school, he won a place at St Catherine’s College, Oxford, to study English literature. He dropped out after a year to pursue music — a decision framed by Govan as a genuine internal conflict that was ultimately resolved by a commitment to the guitar rather than the academic career.
Around 1991, he sent demos to Mike Varney of Shrapnel Records — the same label that had launched Paul Gilbert, Yngwie Malmsteen, and the neo-classical shred movement. Varney heard something exceptional in the demos. Around the same time, in 1993, Govan won Guitarist magazine’s Guitarist of the Year competition — before any widely available recording of him existed for most of the guitar community. This timing — critical recognition preceding wide public documentation — meant that when his playing did become broadly available (through teaching at the Academy of Contemporary Music in Guildford, the Brighton Institute of Modern Music, and eventually through Erotic Cakes), the reputation had already been established by word of mouth among serious guitarists.
His career has defied neat categorisation. He has played prog rock with Asia, toured with the UK hip-hop artist Dizzee Rascal, released instrumental fusion albums, fronted The Aristocrats with Bryan Beller and Marco Minnemann, played guitar for Steven Wilson’s elaborate progressive rock productions, and served as lead guitarist on Hans Zimmer’s orchestral touring shows — playing alongside strings and brass for film music audiences who may not think of themselves as guitar fans at all.
He teaches. He writes about gear for guitar magazines. He gives clinics globally. He is, in the most complete sense, a working musician — the career of someone who has built a professional life around being exceptionally good at the instrument rather than around being famous.
Tone note: He dropped out of Oxford to play guitar. He has never, in any available interview, expressed regret about this decision. The decision was correct.
The Rig: Guthrie Govan’s Guitars, Amps & Gear — Complete Era-by-Era Breakdown
Govan’s gear evolution tracks his career contexts — from PRS and early boutique instruments through the extended Suhr relationship to the current Charvel signature that he describes as the result of years of careful collaborative refinement. The amp story moves from Cornford to Brunetti to Suhr Badger to Victory, with Fractal and Kemper supplementing or replacing conventional amps for specific touring contexts.
Guitars: The Quest for the One Guitar That Does Everything
Gibson SG Special — The Beginning
Govan’s first electric guitar was a Gibson SG Special — the P-90-equipped entry-level version of the SG, with the lightweight mahogany body and fast neck profile that suits a developing guitarist’s physical demands. He keeps this guitar at home. It is the instrument on which he began; it is not now part of his professional setup. But as the starting point of a career that would eventually produce some of the most technically demanding guitar playing available, it deserves its place in the history.
Through his early career — the years of building his reputation through teaching and clinics before Erotic Cakes — Govan used a PRS guitar as his primary professional instrument. The PRS appears extensively in his instructional videos from this period: well-built, versatile, with the dual-humbucker or HSH configuration that his wide stylistic range required.
Tone note: His first electric was a P-90-equipped Gibson SG. His mature sound revolves around HSH-configured superstrats. The journey from P-90 warmth to single-coil shimmer to humbucker aggression and back covers the full spectrum of electric guitar tone — which is precisely the range Govan demands from his current instruments.
Suhr Guthrie Govan Signature Models — The First Signature Era (approximately 2008–2013)
Govan joined Suhr’s roster and collaborated on multiple Guthrie Govan Signature models — at least three distinct signature versions, plus three custom Standard models, a Modern 24-fret, a Classic, and a Classic T. The Suhr relationship produced guitars built to his specific requirements, which he described as “entirely unreasonable”: he wanted one guitar that could produce “passable George Benson” to “a convincing funky clean tone, a bit of country twang and a gnarly overdriven tone, so I could fly to any gig confident that one guitar would be able to cope with every situation.”
The Suhr Guthrie Govan Signature specifications:
- Body: Two versions — basswood and mahogany; the mahogany version for the warmer, rounder character of his earlier set-neck guitars; the basswood for the lighter, more Strat-like response
- Neck: Bolt-on; modern elliptical neck carve (.800″–.850″ at nut and 12th fret); 16″ radius fingerboard; virtually friction-free stainless steel frets
- Frets: 24 jumbo stainless steel — Govan specifically cited the almost-flat 16″ radius and stainless frets as making speed effortless
- Pickups: HSH configuration; Suhr SSV (neck humbucker), Suhr FL (middle single coil), Suhr SSH+ (bridge humbucker); output “isn’t overly high” for a signature guitar — Govan specifically does not want extremely high-output pickups
- Switching: 5-way blade; pull-up tone pot splits the neck humbucker for additional tonal configurations
- Bridge: Wilkinson VS100N tremolo with Tremol-No system — the Tremol-No is a device that locks the tremolo with hex screws, converting it from floating tremolo to hardtail without any permanent modification. Govan uses this for compound bends and pedal-steel-like techniques that require stable tuning
The Tremol-No is one of Govan’s most practically important gear choices. His playing style involves complex compound bends — pushing and pulling multiple strings simultaneously for pedal steel-style intervals — that absolutely require a tremolo system that doesn’t detune sympathetically with each bend. The Tremol-No solves this by locking the bridge when activated, giving him a hardtail feel when needed while retaining the floating tremolo for passages that use it expressively.
In January 2013, Govan and Suhr parted ways. By this point he had already been seen with a prototype Charvel, and Charvel had confirmed the collaboration publicly by July 2013.
Tone note: The Tremol-No is the most important practical guitar modification for his specific technique. Compound bends on a floating tremolo produce constant detuning — the Tremol-No eliminates this while preserving the tremolo for when it’s actually needed. That’s a hardware solution to a technique requirement, not a tonal preference.
Charvel Guthrie Govan Signature — The Primary Guitar (2013–present)
The Charvel Guthrie Govan Signature is described by Govan as the result of “a good couple of years refining the design” — a true collaborative effort between himself and Charvel’s luthiers to produce his ideal instrument. The relationship officially began in 2014 at NAMM, though he had been playing a prototype from mid-2013.
Key specifications of the USA-made Charvel Guthrie Govan Signature:
- Body: “Caramelised” (heat-treated/roasted) basswood — the heat treatment reduces moisture content and produces a more stable, resonant wood with tonal characteristics closer to ash than standard basswood. The ash-bodied version has a slightly more Strat-like character. Both available as main variants.
- Neck: Caramelised maple bolt-on with graphite reinforcement for stability; heel-mount truss rod adjustment wheel (accessible without removing the neck); satin finish on back
- Fingerboard: 12″–16″ compound radius caramelised maple — starts at 12″ at the nut (comfortable for chords) and flattens to 16″ at the 24th fret (effortless bending in the upper register)
- Frets: 24 jumbo stainless steel — same philosophy as the Suhr; maximum playability and durability
- Pickups: HSH — custom Michael Frank-Braun pickups in the early USA models. The MJ San Dimas SD24 CM features three custom Charvel-wound pickups with a two-way mini toggle for single-coil simulation in humbucker positions — hum-cancelling single-coil simulation that matches the output level of the full humbucker setting. Govan specifically valued this because output-matched switching means driving the amp consistently in all positions.
- Bridge: Custom in-house floating tremolo bridge, Floyd Rose-style but without fine-tuners in the original USA models. The MJ version uses a recessed Charvel locking tremolo with pop-in arm and brass block. Tremol-No can be fitted as aftermarket mod.
- Tuners: Sperzel locking (original) or Gotoh die-cast locking (MJ version)
- Luminlay side dots — luminescent position markers for stage visibility in low light
The MJ San Dimas SD24 CM (Made in Japan) was introduced as a more affordable production version with slightly different specifications but preserving the key design elements. Govan confirmed using this model on The Aristocrats’ 2019 album You Know What…?
For the Hans Zimmer tours, Govan has used a Strandberg 8-string — a completely different instrument concept (headless, multiscale, ergonomic body design) suited to the orchestral contexts where extended range and specific tonal colours were required by the arrangements.
He also plays a Vigier Excalibur Surfreter Supra fretless guitar — not endorsed, purchased personally — which he demonstrates extensively in instructional contexts, showing the kind of fretless vocabulary typically associated with bass or jazz guitar.
Tone note: He asked Charvel for two years of development time and genuine collaborative input. They agreed. The result is a guitar whose design philosophy — do everything, eliminate nothing, serve any musical situation — is his broadest and most complete instrument since he started playing.
Complete Guitar List
- Gibson SG Special — First guitar; still kept at home
- PRS (various models) — Pre-Suhr primary; used in early instructional videos and career through approximately 2007
- Suhr Guthrie Govan Signature (×3 versions, plus custom Standards) — 2008–2013; HSH, Tremol-No, 16″ radius SS frets
- Charvel USA Guthrie Govan Signature (caramelised basswood, birdseye or flame maple top) — 2014–present; the primary guitar for most touring and recording
- Charvel USA Guthrie Govan Signature (ash body) — Alternative body wood; used on the most recent Aristocrats tour
- Charvel MJ San Dimas SD24 CM — Japanese-made production version; used on You Know What…?
- Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster — Used in specific contexts; seen in a Regret #9 solo video
- Fender Jazzmaster (vintage 1960s) — Used in the studio on “Spiritus Cactus”; Govan stated after the session that he should acquire one, having discovered how it inspired different musical ideas
- Strandberg 8-string (Boden 8 Custom Shop with True Temperament frets) — Hans Zimmer tours; extended range for orchestral arrangements
- Vigier Excalibur Surfreter Supra (fretless) — Not endorsed; personal purchase; used in instructional demonstrations
- Various other guitars used in studio/demo contexts — Vox AC30 sessions used a Strat-type in specific pickup settings that he described as “thin Stratty-sounding”
Amps & Cabinets: Cornford to Suhr Badger to Victory V30 to Fractal
Cornford Amplifiers — The Erotic Cakes Era
For the recording of Erotic Cakes (2006), Govan used Cornford amplifiers — British boutique tube amps from a small manufacturer in East Sussex. The sleeve notes specifically identify a Cornford RK100 (100W), MK50 (50W), and Hellcat in the recording. Cornford amps are known for their British voicing, touch sensitivity, and dynamic response — qualities that suit Govan’s wide tonal range from clean through to driven without losing the note-by-note articulation that his technique demands.
He continued using Cornford through his live shows with Asia and his solo touring during 2007–2010. The Cornford relationship produced some of the most celebrated guitar tones of his career — the varied, responsive character of those amps is audible across the stylistic range of Erotic Cakes.
Brunetti CustomWork Mercury 50 — European Tours (2010–2011)
For European touring in 2010 and 2011, Govan used the Brunetti CustomWork Mercury 50 — an Italian boutique amp he had in common with guitarist friend Dave Kilminster. The Mercury 50 is a 50-watt tube amp with a specific, rich harmonic character that suits the complex tonal demands of his style.
Suhr Badger 30 — The Aristocrats Debut Era
With the formation of The Aristocrats, Govan moved to the Suhr Badger 30 — the 30-watt all-tube head that Suhr built during his amp-manufacturing period. He used it live for The Aristocrats’ early touring and on the debut album, alongside a CAA (Custom Audio Amplifiers) PT-100 for additional tonal range.
He described his preference for the Badger straightforwardly: “When I’m playing with The Aristocrats, I’m generally using this splendid amp here, the Suhr Badger.” The Badger’s responsive, clean-to-driven character and relatively modest 30-watt power rating suited his playing style — enough headroom for clean passages, enough power-amp response for the driven tones.
Victory V30 “The Countess” — The Carry-On Amp (2013–present)
In 2013, Govan switched to Victory Amplification — the British boutique amp brand designed by Martin Kidd, who was previously the engineer behind the Cornford designs. This connection is not coincidental: the Victory V30 “The Countess” has the Cornford DNA that Govan found essential on Erotic Cakes, developed and refined by the same engineering mind.
The V30 is Govan’s most celebrated amp choice and the one most associated with his current sound. Its critical advantage: it fits in a carry-on bag. At 30 watts with a lightweight design, the V30 allows Govan to tour internationally without checking guitar amps — the amp goes on the plane with him. For a musician who tours as extensively and internationally as Govan, this practical advantage cannot be overstated.
Govan worked closely with Martin Kidd on the V30 and V30 MkII development — the relationship is collaborative in the same way as the Charvel signature, with his specific requirements shaping the final product. The V30 MkII includes a switch between old and new voicings; Govan has described preferring the new voicing for most applications (slightly more American-voiced midrange) while using the old voicing for specific tracks like “Bonnie and Clyde.”
He has also used the Victory V50 The Earl and V10 The Duchess for specific contexts. His cabinet preference: 4×12 or 2×12 with Celestion Vintage 30 speakers, with a slight preference for Mesa, Orange, or Bogner cabinets for their thick wood construction and resonance.
In mid-2022, Govan stopped using real amps for live shows entirely, moving to Fractal digital solutions. For the Hans Zimmer tours specifically — where an orchestra is on stage and in-ear monitors are used throughout — blasting through a guitar cabinet is simply impractical. The Kemper Profiler serves that context. For other touring, the Fractal FX-8 or Axe-FX has provided the Victory V30’s profiled character in a more portable format.
Tone note: The V30 fits in a carry-on. He has toured globally with it in the overhead locker. That’s not a compromise — that’s an amp designed for the realities of working-musician touring life, by someone who understands those realities from experience.
| Amp | Era | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Cornford RK100, MK50, Hellcat | Erotic Cakes era (2006–2010) | British boutique tube; sleeve notes confirm specific models; rich harmonic character |
| Brunetti CustomWork Mercury 50 | European tours 2010–2011 | Italian boutique 50W; shared with Dave Kilminster |
| Suhr Badger 30 + CAA PT-100 | Aristocrats debut era | 30W all-tube Suhr head; live with Aristocrats and on debut album |
| Victory V30 “The Countess” (30W, carry-on size) | 2013–2022 (primary touring amp) | Co-developed with Martin Kidd (ex-Cornford); fits in carry-on bag; preferred cabs: Mesa/Orange/Bogner 4×12 with Celestion V30s |
| Victory V50 The Earl | Aristocrats era | 50W version; used in specific Aristocrats contexts |
| Kemper Profiler | Hans Zimmer tours | Required for in-ear monitor/orchestra context; Victory V30 profile |
| Fractal Axe-FX / FX-8 | 2016–present (live) | Replacing physical amps since mid-2022 for live shows; analog fan who pragmatically embraced digital |
| Vox AC30 | Studio, various | “I discovered I really like Vox AC30s for a certain kind of clean tone” — used on specific studio tracks |
Pedals & Signal Chain: Analog Philosophy, Practical Compromises, and the Best Cheap Pedal in the World
Govan describes himself as an “analog fan” in terms of his pedal philosophy — a player who has historically preferred the organic response of analog circuits over digital processing. This preference is well-documented in his gear discussions. The practical compromise came gradually from 2016 onward, when the Fractal FX-8 entered his rig for touring convenience, leading eventually to the current digital-dominant live setup.
Free The Tone Red Jasper — Primary Overdrive
The Free The Tone Red Jasper is Govan’s main overdrive pedal — a Japanese boutique overdrive with a specifically musical, touch-responsive character that suits his dynamic playing style. Free The Tone is a high-quality Japanese effects manufacturer; the Red Jasper’s circuit produces overdrive that responds to picking intensity in a way that allows the full range from clean to driven within a single setting, depending on how hard the strings are struck.
The Guyatone WR-3 — “The Best Pedal in the World”
One of Govan’s most enthusiastically documented gear opinions: at a clinic, he held up the Guyatone WR-3 Autowah and stated that “arguably the best pedal in the world is on this board, and it’s the cheapest one.” The WR-3 is a budget auto-wah that costs a fraction of boutique alternatives but produces the specific envelope filter character that Govan finds essential for the funky passages in his playing. This endorsement — given entirely on tonal rather than commercial grounds, for a pedal he wasn’t being paid to promote — became one of his most quoted gear observations.
Tone note: He called the cheapest pedal on his board the best pedal on his board. That’s the most honest gear recommendation in this entire series.
Core Pedalboard Components
- Free The Tone Red Jasper Overdrive — Primary drive; touch-responsive, musical character
- Guyatone WR-3 Autowah — “The best pedal in the world, and it’s the cheapest one”
- Xotic EP Booster — Clean boost based on the Echoplex preamp circuit; adds subtle warmth and presence without colouring the tone significantly
- Providence Anadime Analog Chorus — Analog bucket-brigade chorus for warm, organic modulation
- Dunlop Jerry Cantrell Signature Wah — His wah pedal choice; Jerry Cantrell’s (Alice in Chains) signature model, which has a specific Q and sweep character Govan finds useful
- Dunlop Volume Pedal — For dynamic control and volume swells
- TC Electronic Polytune — Polyphonic tuner allowing all strings to be tuned simultaneously
- TC Electronic Flashback X4 Digital Delay — Delay in the effects loop; multiple delay types accessible via TonePrint
- TC Electronic HOF (Hall of Fame) Reverb — Reverb in the effects loop
- TC Electronic Ditto Looper — For clinic use; not typically used in live performance with The Aristocrats
- Boss LS-2 Line Selector — Routing between clean and driven signal paths or amp channels
Earlier Documented Pedals
- Cornford FX pedals — During the Cornford amp era
- Fractal FX-8 — From 2016 for live touring; provides multiple effects in a compact format; analog purist’s concession to practical touring reality
Tone note: He is an analog fan who uses a Fractal FX-8 live because touring internationally with a pedalboard full of analog pedals is logistically demanding. The philosophy and the pragmatism coexist without contradiction — the same way his music coexists every style of guitar simultaneously.
Strings, Picks & Setup
Strings: Rotosound strings — the specific gauges documented in the Aristocrats rig rundown as his touring strings. Rotosound are British-made strings known for their bright, punchy character and precise winding.
Picks: Red Bear Guthrie Govan Signature picks — Extra Heavy gauge with grip holes, speed bevel, and custom serrated top edge. Red Bear Trading Company makes picks from a synthetic tortoiseshell-like material (Kasein/galalith-based) that produces a warmer, rounder attack than nylon or Delrin picks, with exceptional durability. The serrated top edge of Govan’s signature pick is a specific modification that aids grip and prevents the pick from slipping in his hand during extended and energetic playing. The Extra Heavy gauge gives maximum rigidity for fast passages while the speed bevel at the tip reduces resistance per pick stroke.
Setup priorities:
- Compound radius fingerboard (12″–16″) — the single most important specification for both chording and upper-register lead work
- Stainless steel jumbo frets — durability and near-frictionless feel; he has specifically described the almost-flat radius plus stainless frets as making speed “not an issue”
- Tremol-No system — converts floating tremolo to hardtail for compound bending; essential for his pedal steel-influenced compound bend technique
- HSH configuration with hum-cancelling single-coil simulation — covers every tonal requirement from country twang to jazz warmth to metal aggression in a single instrument
- Output-matched pickups — the bridge humbucker and single-coil simulation are matched in output level; switching positions doesn’t require amp compensation
- Not using extremely high-output pickups — Govan has explicitly described preferring moderate output for dynamic range and touch sensitivity
Tunings: Standard E for the vast majority of his work. He uses alternate tunings for specific stylistic contexts — certain country and pedal steel-influenced passages require open or partial open tunings — but his primary playing is in standard.
Tone note: Moderate output pickups, compound radius, stainless frets, Tremol-No. Every specification serves the same goal: maximum playability across maximum stylistic range. Nothing about the guitar limits what he can do. The only limitation is in the playing itself.
Tunings & Tone Philosophy
Govan’s tone philosophy is built around a single, demanding, and deceptively simple principle: one guitar should be able to do everything required in any musical context. Not one guitar per style, not a different rig for jazz and another for metal. One guitar. One amp. A pedalboard that provides whatever the music needs.
This principle drives every specification decision — the compound radius (chord comfort plus lead access), the HSH configuration (every tonal colour available), the moderate-output pickups (dynamic range and touch sensitivity rather than raw aggression), the Tremol-No (compound bending technique preserved while floating tremolo available when needed). He described his requirements to Suhr as “entirely unreasonable” — George Benson clean jazz, funky clean, country twang, gnarly overdrive, all from one guitar. Suhr tried. Charvel refined the result further.
His amp philosophy echoes this: one amp that responds dynamically to the guitar’s signal across the full range from clean to driven, without needing channel switching or multiple amp configurations. The Victory V30’s character — responsive, musical, Cornford-DNA — serves this purpose. The Fractal serves it digitally when physical practicality demands it.
Tone note: “Entirely unreasonable requirements.” That’s what he asked for. That’s what he built. The unreasonable requirement produces the instrument that does the impossible thing. That’s the creative process in miniature.
Playing Style & Tone Philosophy: The Complete Guitarist
Guthrie Govan is described as the most technically complete guitarist alive by a significant portion of the guitar community — not the fastest, not the most emotionally devastating, but the most complete in the sense of having genuine facility with every style the instrument can produce. The claim is difficult to disprove.
The Stylistic Range
On Erotic Cakes, within eleven tracks, Govan demonstrates: neo-classical shredding (influenced by Yngwie Malmsteen and the Shrapnel Records tradition); funk and R&B techniques including slapped harmonics and rhythmic chordal work; country chicken picking with authentic Nashville inflection; jazz chord-melody playing with sophisticated voicings; blues vocabulary deployed with genuine emotional weight; fusion improvisation across complex harmony; and the ambient atmospheric material that links technical virtuosity to genuine musical feeling.
None of these sounds like an approximation of the style. Each sounds like the genuine article. The country track sounds like a country guitarist. The jazz track sounds like a jazz guitarist. The metal track sounds like a metal guitarist. This is unusual.
Most guitarists who develop technical facility do so within a primary style that then influences how they approach other styles. The blues player’s jazz phrasing has a blues flavour. The classical player’s blues playing has a classical stiffness. Govan’s stylistic separations appear complete — when playing country, he plays country; when playing jazz, he plays jazz. The why of this is partly the lifelong ear training that began with his father’s record collection at age three, and partly a musicological curiosity that led him to study each style on its own terms rather than as a variation on a single template.
Tone note: The country sounds like country. The jazz sounds like jazz. The metal sounds like metal. All from the same person. The question “how?” is less interesting than the observation that he cared enough about each style to learn it properly instead of approximating it.
The Compound Bend — Pedal Steel on Guitar
One of Govan’s most distinctive techniques is the compound bend — simultaneously bending one string upward and pushing another downward (or holding it while the first bends), creating the kind of interval movement associated with pedal steel guitar. The Tremol-No system is specifically in his rig to make this technique work reliably on a floating tremolo guitar: without the Tremol-No locking the bridge, a compound bend on a floating system detunes the unbent strings as the bridge moves to compensate.
The pedal steel vocabulary this produces is genuinely distinctive — it’s not a Strat player doing blues bends, it’s a guitarist bringing a steel guitar’s harmonic movement into a rock context. Combined with his country stylistic knowledge, it produces music that could legitimately be played at a high-level session in Nashville alongside the players who do this professionally.
Tone note: The Tremol-No exists because compound bending on a floating bridge detunes. He wanted to bend like a steel player. He modified the bridge to make it possible. The technique determined the hardware, not the other way around.
The Teaching Dimension
Like Paul Gilbert, Govan is a professional teacher as well as a professional player — his residency at the Academy of Contemporary Music, his association with the Brighton Institute of Modern Music, his writing for Guitar Techniques magazine, and his extensive clinic schedule are all genuine pedagogical commitments. His approach to teaching is characteristically comprehensive: he can explain what he’s doing and why in terms that are analytically precise without being academically forbidding.
The clinic footage is where his gear philosophy becomes most transparent — explaining why the Tremol-No is essential for compound bending, why the Guyatone WR-3 is the best cheap pedal, why the compound radius serves both chord and lead needs. These explanations are musician-to-musician rather than manufacturer-to-consumer, which is why they carry weight.
The Fusion Virtuosity — The Aristocrats
The Aristocrats context — the three-piece with Bryan Beller (bass) and Marco Minnemann (drums) — is where Govan’s most extreme technical vocabulary is most consistently on display. The band’s music demands simultaneous rhythm and lead playing from all three members at high tempos, across complex rhythmic structures, with the kind of note-choice sophistication that fusion audiences expect.
In this context, the all-purpose guitar philosophy proves its value: the same instrument that produces “Bonnie and Clyde”‘s clean funk must produce the aggressive lead tone of “Spiritus Cactus” must produce the country-inflected passages that appear unexpectedly in Aristocrats material. No switching guitars. No changing amps. One setup, every style, show after show after show.
How to Sound Like Guthrie Govan: Building the All-Purpose Tone
Govan’s tone philosophy is explicit and reproducible: one guitar that does everything, one amp that responds dynamically. The specific implementation — Charvel signature with compound radius, Victory V30 — is achievable or approximable at various price points.
The Guitar
HSH configuration, compound radius fingerboard, Tremol-No system on the tremolo. These three specifications together cover the essential Govan guitar setup at any price point.
- Charvel Guthrie Govan Signature MJ San Dimas SD24 CM — Production Japanese version with all key specs; most accessible authentic option
- Charvel USA Guthrie Govan Signature — The full USA-made original; more expensive but authentic to his touring instruments
- Ibanez RG550 or similar HSH superstrat — Budget starting point; add Tremol-No as aftermarket modification; compound radius available on some models
- Any HSH guitar with Floyd Rose and Tremol-No — The Tremol-No can be fitted to any Floyd Rose-equipped guitar; the compound radius is the harder specification to find at budget pricing
On pickup output: specifically do not use extremely high-output pickups. Govan’s moderate-output HSH configuration provides dynamic range — the ability to go from clean to pushed by varying pick intensity. High-output pickups compress this dynamic range. The SSH+/FL/SSV Suhr configuration or equivalent moderate-output Charvel pickups are the target.
The Amp
British-voiced, touch-responsive, dynamic. The Victory V30 is his specific choice; alternatives that share the character:
| Control | Setting (Victory V30 / British boutique) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Gain | 4–6 | Clean to edge of breakup; the overdrive pedal provides gain when needed |
| Treble | 6 | Present but not bright; the compound radius and stainless frets add clarity already |
| Middle | 6–7 | Midrange presence — essential for the organic, natural character Govan seeks |
| Bass | 5 | Controlled — the basswood/caramelised body adds natural warmth without needing bass boost |
| Presence / Bright | 5 | Moderate — articulation without harshness |
Alternative: Vox AC30 for specific clean tones. Cornford-style British boutique amps for the Erotic Cakes character.
The Essential Pedals
- Free The Tone Red Jasper or equivalent touch-responsive overdrive — Ibanez Tube Screamer is the most accessible approximation; Xotic SL Drive or similar for slightly different character
- Auto-wah/envelope filter — The Guyatone WR-3 if you can find one; any decent auto-wah for the funk passages
- Xotic EP Booster — Subtle but present; adds warmth to the clean signal
- Analog chorus — Providence Anadime or any good bucket-brigade chorus
- Quality delay — TC Flashback X4 or equivalent; musical tempo-sync delay in the effects loop
Budget vs Pro Rigs
Budget — Erotic Cakes era approximation:
- Guitar: Ibanez RG450 or similar HSH superstrat with Floyd Rose; add Tremol-No (~$100)
- Amp: Vox AC30C2 or Orange Rocker 15 — British character, dynamic response
- Pedals: Ibanez TS9 overdrive + any auto-wah + quality analog chorus + delay
- Picks: Red Bear Extra Heavy or Dunlop Tortex Extra Heavy
- Strings: Rotosound .010 set
Pro — Full Govan approach:
- Guitar: Charvel Guthrie Govan Signature (USA or MJ)
- Amp: Victory V30 MkII into 2×12 with Celestion Vintage 30 speakers; or Fractal Axe-FX III for traveling
- Pedals: Free The Tone Red Jasper + Guyatone WR-3 + Xotic EP Booster + Providence Anadime Chorus + Dunlop Jerry Cantrell Wah + TC Flashback X4 delay + TC HOF reverb
Tone note: The Tremol-No is worth more to his tone than any pedal in the chain. Without it, the compound bend technique that defines his most distinctive playing is either impossible or constantly detuning. Add the Tremol-No before anything else.
The Technique
Listen to Erotic Cakes straight through, once, and notice which track you think you’re hearing the wrong artist on. That’s the one to learn first — the style that seems least like what you expect from him. Learn it properly: not as “Guthrie Govan playing country” but as “what makes a country phrase sound like country.” The specificity of each style is the lesson.
For the compound bending: find any two-string bend passage in a pedal steel recording (classic country works well) and work out the fingering on guitar. Start slowly. The technique requires independent string pressure control — pushing one string while bending another — that is physically demanding and takes time to develop muscle separation.
Influence & Legacy: The Most Complete Guitarist Alive and What That Means
Guthrie Govan’s influence operates at two levels: the community of advanced guitarists who consider him a peer-level reference point, and the broader community of younger players for whom he represents an aspirational standard.
At the peer level, his reputation is remarkable in its consistency. Every guitarist who has spent time with him, played alongside him, or worked with him on productions describes the same experience: complete disbelief at the range of what he can produce. Dizzee Rascal’s producers, Steven Wilson’s touring band, Hans Zimmer’s orchestra production team — contexts that could not be more different from each other — all describe the same response. This cross-context consistency suggests that the reputation is not genre-specific or community-specific. It reflects something genuinely unusual about his musical facility.
His gear influence is less dramatic than his playing influence — the Charvel Guthrie Govan Signature is well-regarded as an instrument, and the Tremol-No has gained wider use among players who discovered it through his endorsement, but he is not primarily a gear influence the way some players in this series are. What he influences, instead, is how guitarists think about what the instrument should be able to do: the “entirely unreasonable requirement” that one guitar serve all styles is a design philosophy that he has articulated and demonstrated more completely than any other player.
The Hans Zimmer touring connection — playing guitar for one of cinema’s most prolific composers on elaborate orchestral shows — has reached audiences who don’t follow guitar music at all. These audiences hear his playing in the context of live orchestral performance and respond to it without the category of “guitarists” being relevant. This is perhaps the clearest demonstration of what genuine musical facility looks like: useful in any context, not just the ones designed around guitar music.
He continues to tour, record, teach, and write. The Aristocrats released You Know What…? in 2019 and continues to be active. The Hans Zimmer shows continue. Clinics continue globally. The Charvel signature line continues to be developed. The Victory V30 continues to fit in the carry-on bag.
Tone note: The most common single descriptor applied to him by other professional musicians is “impossible.” As in: “it shouldn’t be possible to sound like this.” The response to hearing him play, from other excellent guitarists, is not admiration but a category of disbelief. That’s a different kind of influence — not showing you what to do, but showing you that the limits of what you thought the instrument could do are further out than you believed.
At the Academy of Contemporary Music in Guildford, a guitar teacher who studied English literature at Oxford and dropped out after a year is demonstrating something to a student. He may be showing them the Tremol-No and explaining how it makes compound bending possible without detuning. He may be holding up the Guyatone WR-3 and explaining why it’s the best cheap pedal in the world. He may be playing a country lick and then a jazz chord voicing from the same position on the same guitar through the same amp, demonstrating that the instrument’s stylistic range is limited only by the player’s knowledge.
The Charvel is strapped on. The V30 is in the carry-on in the corner. The Fractal is in the touring bag for tonight’s show.
He won Guitarist of the Year in 1993, before most people had heard him. He released Erotic Cakes at thirty-four. He asked Suhr for “entirely unreasonable requirements” and then asked Charvel to refine the result further. He called the cheapest pedal on his board the best pedal on his board.
The consistency in all of this is the complete absence of compromise. The guitar should do everything. The amp should fit in the luggage. The pick should be the right pick regardless of who makes it. The music should be whatever the music needs to be.
It was always going to be like this. You could tell from the beginning: he was nine years old, appearing on television, playing the guitar by ear.
If Govan’s demand that one guitar do everything across every style connects with you, check out our breakdown of Paul Gilbert’s guitars and gear — another player who specified his instruments in detail for specific musical purposes, and whose Makita drill approach to technique demonstrates a similarly irreverent relationship with conventional guitar-playing assumptions.
And for the most direct comparison to Govan’s all-styles-genuinely facility in an earlier generation, our complete guide to Larry Carlton’s gear history documents the player who was similarly uncategorisable in the session world of the 1970s and 1980s — equally at home in jazz, rock, funk, and pop, with one ES-335 and one amp as the delivery system.
FAQ: Guthrie Govan Guitars & Gear
- What guitar does Guthrie Govan play?
- The Charvel Guthrie Govan Signature — available in USA-made and MJ (Made in Japan) San Dimas versions. Key specifications: caramelised (roasted) basswood body with ash or birdseye/flame maple top, caramelised maple bolt-on neck, 12″–16″ compound radius fingerboard, 24 jumbo stainless steel frets, HSH pickup configuration with hum-cancelling single-coil simulation, locking tremolo bridge. Previously he used Suhr Guthrie Govan Signature models from approximately 2008–2013. His original first electric was a Gibson SG Special, which he still keeps at home.
- What is the Tremol-No and why does Guthrie Govan use it?
- The Tremol-No is an aftermarket device that uses two small hex screws to lock a floating tremolo bridge, converting it from a floating system to a hardtail configuration without permanent modification. Govan uses it for his compound bend technique — simultaneously bending one string upward while pushing another downward, producing pedal steel-style interval movement. On a floating tremolo without the Tremol-No, compound bends cause the bridge to move and detune all unbent strings sympathetically. The Tremol-No eliminates this problem while preserving the option to unlock the bridge when tremolo arm effects are needed.
- What amplifier does Guthrie Govan use?
- His primary amp from 2013 through 2022 was the Victory V30 “The Countess” — a 30-watt all-tube British boutique amp co-developed with designer Martin Kidd (formerly of Cornford amplifiers). The V30 fits in a carry-on bag, making it practical for Govan’s extensive international touring schedule. He uses it into 4×12 or 2×12 cabs loaded with Celestion Vintage 30 speakers, with a preference for Mesa, Orange, or Bogner cabinets. Since mid-2022 he has stopped using real amps live, using Fractal Axe-FX digital solutions instead. For Hans Zimmer tours, he uses a Kemper Profiler.
- What was Guthrie Govan’s amp on Erotic Cakes?
- Cornford amplifiers — specifically an RK100 (100-watt), MK50 (50-watt), and Hellcat, as documented in the album sleeve notes. Cornford were a British boutique amp manufacturer from East Sussex whose designer Martin Kidd later founded Victory Amplification. The Cornford DNA carries through to Govan’s Victory V30 relationship, as both amplifiers were shaped by the same engineering mind.
- What picks does Guthrie Govan use?
- Red Bear Guthrie Govan Signature picks in Extra Heavy gauge, with grip holes, speed bevel, and a custom serrated top edge. Red Bear Trading Company makes picks from a synthetic tortoiseshell-like material (Kasein/galalith-based) that produces a warmer, rounder attack than nylon or Delrin picks. The serrated top edge is Govan’s specific modification for grip security during extended performances. He has also endorsed the Red Bear approach as the best pick material he has used.
- What is Guthrie Govan’s most important pedal?
- He has specifically stated that “arguably the best pedal in the world is on this board, and it’s the cheapest one” — referring to the Guyatone WR-3 Autowah. His primary overdrive pedal is the Free The Tone Red Jasper. He uses a Xotic EP Booster, Providence Anadime Analog Chorus, Dunlop Jerry Cantrell Signature Wah, TC Electronic Polytune tuner, and TC Electronic Flashback X4 delay and HOF reverb in the effects loop. From 2016 he has used the Fractal FX-8 live to replace individual analog pedals for touring convenience, despite describing himself as an “analog fan.”
- How do I get Guthrie Govan’s guitar tone?
- The key elements: an HSH guitar with compound radius fingerboard (12″–16″) and moderate-output pickups; a Tremol-No or equivalent bridge-locking device for compound bending technique; a British-voiced tube amp (Victory V30, Vox AC30, or similar) set for edge-of-clean with pickup dynamics providing the volume and gain variation; Free The Tone Red Jasper or Tube Screamer-style overdrive for driven passages; a quality analog chorus and delay. The Tremol-No is the single most important hardware specification for replicating his compound bend technique. Red Bear Extra Heavy picks are the most authentic choice for his specific pick attack.
