I know there are a lot of guitar players here - Or just those that can appreciate a good guitar tone when hearing it. I guess I'm a reverse snob of sorts, all though I've owned some deadly costly ones. My favorite was a Japanese Fender with a black head stock and I'm sure a replacement treble pickup, as it did not hum. Also had a stock tremolo that actually could be used and stay almost in tune. A close second was a Ibanez, banana yellow Les Paul jr. Real balls and stayed in tune thru thick and then - all the way up the neck. Lastly, an old Fender Telecaster from the 50's I inherited. It has issues but unbelievable character and tone. Will not boar with others, but my Gibsons, save a reverse Firebird and a Melody maker never quite did it for me. Maybe bad luck...
I was gonna post this amazing song on A Blues Thread. Is this "Nancy" R.B.'s 1953 Fender Telecaster? <iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/mES8XjVYn3Y" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
First was a pos create, amp guitar combo, that got me the bug. 1997ish Upgraded to a Ibanez RG570jp 1999ish (This guitar got stolen from me in 2004 when my apt. got broken into and my band mates and I lost alot of gear) But that Ibanez is my "golden boy". Then I bought a ESP M400, because it was as close as I could get to the "golden boy" but with grover tuners and emg actives. I got a Gibson Gothic LP about 4 years ago, to add to ESP.. They are sitting behind me, and I haven't touched them in like 4 months.. I suck.. I will jam tomorrow... But to respond to your question I have jammed on a Gibson Lucille, (that is about as high end as I can go). But "cheap" guitars are also the amazing.. I know that my personal favorite guitar player Tom Morello, can appreciate cheap guitars... <iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/BYqmu1GxV7o" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Funny story. Me and a friend and fellow fan went to Memphis for a foo fighters concert a few years back. We were early but as fam boys we wanted to be close to the stage. So anyways we got some guys who agreed to save us a spot and we killed time by getting some awesome BBQ and touring the Gibson factory. We might've saw one of Dave Grohl's guitars being made but only a glimpse. Come back and turns out he was there greeting fans and getting coffee at the star bucks across the street.
There are expensive guitars out there that sound like ass because the bodies and/or necks are made with dead wood. If an electric sounds good unplugged, you've got a winner no matter the price tag. Les Paul Special P-90 is my favorite of all time.
The most expensive guitar isn't always the best depending on guitar player. For me at least playing guitar is all about feel and I would never buy a guitar over the internet and just presume it is right for me just because it was pricy and a famous model.
ive been playing guitar for over 22 years now and have never owned an "expensive" one. my grandpa bought my first guitar for christmas in 1990 and ive still got it. ibanez performance acoustic which he bought in a pawn shop in san antonio for about $100. it was actually the only acoustic i owned until i bought a cordoba nylon string last year - and i only payed $180 for that one. my main electric is an ibanez talman, which i think i payed $500 for back in 1997. kind of their version of the telecaster - its an interesting guitar as the body is made of wood particles and glue pressed together - its got a very "surfy" tone. great for shoegazey sounds! when my grandpa passed away i inherited his electra hollowbody jazz guitar. this thing plays like a dream. he bought it in 1977 and it never left the house...he had replaced the pickup at some point, but other than that this thing is in perfect condition. electra made high quality knock-offs of gibsons - some even preferred them to gibsons, especially since they were about half the price. he paid $600 for it back in '77 and i think it might be worth a grand now.
My 13 YO daughter recently said she wanted to learn to play the guitar, so I went out and bought a used one off of Craigslist. What's a good way to help her get self-started? We are going to look into lessons but is "Mel Bay" still the way to go?
The best thing you can do at this point is get the used guitar set up by a good tech - make sure the action is set low enough, that it will stay in tune, and so forth. Nothing will kill a newbie guitar player's enthusiasm quicker than an instrument that won't stay in tune and/or is too tight to hold down chords. The instrument may be just fine, but it's worth getting checked out.
Also I think for the price Schecter makes some great guitars. I had a Damien bass for a while that I bought for 350 and it sounded/ played great.
not only will low action all the down the fret board help to keep in tune, it's just damn easier to play and usually an indication of a well built guitar. i have an old hohner acoustic that has the living **** beat out of it but it is still awesome. $ not important. i will concur with others on the telecaster in as much as it is the most beautiful electric guitar, by far.
I've always loved this video for the great Telecaster playing. <iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/gHVG4kDurtY" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
A lot Tele fans here. I've liked their sound but never liked playing them. I have a Tele knock off that my drummer left at my house that I use as 3rd string back up but I don't use it much. I always hit the volume and switches when I strum hard and seem to have to play closer to the neck than I do with other guitars.
