Budget of about 500ish English pounds. I want one with a really 'warm' bridge pickup suond. I like really scuzzy blues playing. My first consideration is this PRS.. sounds incredible on the bridge pickup in the video, and I've heard goot things about the build quality of PRS guitars..
http://www.musicstreet.co.uk/prssecustomsemihollowgigbagnatural-p-2047.html
But then, the telecaster is one of those real can't-go-wrong guitars, and has the advantage of having the 5 way tone selector. I imagine the bridge pickup would also sound lovely on this guitar too, and it's £100 cheaper..
and I also love the look of it. So there you go, I like the look of both guitars. I think I should probably aim to get out there and play on them both.
prs
have horrid headstocks.
from that site, i'd go for something along the lines of:
http://www.musicstreet.co.uk/gretsch-electromatic-special-electric-guitar-p-787.html?osCsid=vilkitthj9k6f0t3o7fd13lpl1
that looks nice
by horrid headstocks do you mean that the tuning slips? or is it just a dodgy design?
i'm sure
they stay in tune like a dream(as well as my burns? neva!) just, they look all horrid.
+ nickleback use them, reason enough to stay away?
heh, i'm just not as fan of the look of them
they do?
ugh. Mind you, so does Santana, does that balance it out? I think I'm veering towards the fender. There arent too many places around here these days to test guitars, the internet's killing the shops ¬_¬
my friends got the
electromatic projet with the bigsby and although it is a lovely guitar it is a wee bit brittle and clean sounding for what hes after, i always recommend them but the Tokai Firebird copies are great, really bassy and growly.
hmmm
I'd suggest this
http://cache.kotaku.com/assets/resources/2006/08/parappa_guitar.jpg
unoriginal...
i think the guitarist out of operator please uses that one...
Hahah
I knew what that was, but i still clicked on it and laughed out lol. Im sooo getting one.
what about a thinline tele?
or maybe a 335?
thinline tele = my dream guitar
they make me wet.
lots of great fenders for that money
the 335's going to be out of reach unless he finds a screamin deal somewhere. My Son is a guitar scholar. His spare time is consumed by either playing guitar or shopping (not buying) guitars online. He plays a gibson 335, gibson melody maker and a fender mustang- he is saving his money for a gibson les paul classic custom but he almost bought one of these last weekend and I think it is close to you money allowance.
http://www.elderly.com/new_instruments/items/ECII-VTBEMG.htm
I played it too and I have to admit it had amazing action and the tone (although I couldn't crank it cause we were in a shop) was very Les Paul-ish. A very impressive guitar!
PRS
Playing one instantly makes you a dickless wonder. They are the epitomy of a wanker's guitar.
Get a Gordon Smith. Handmade in England... not some mass produced, soulless crap made by a machine... and actual instrument made by a human being.
http://gordonsmithguitars.co.uk/
You can choose pretty much any config you like. I've been using one for years and it's awesome. I have a telecaster and it's the best guitar I own by a mile.
AND
they're not very expensive.
i nearly got one off ebay a while back, then i realised i couldn't really afford it, no matter how good it was :(
THIS!
http://www.imuso.co.uk/ProductDetail.asp?StockCode=EG02196
i bet that sounds like absolute turd
it doesnt
depends what ur after, pretty versatile in terms of tone
They
Are all cheapo shit. All those guitars that look weird and wonderful but cost 300 odd quid are absolutely abysmal. Badly made to look nice and retro so people buy them on the strength of their look.
have you played one, have you?
have you bollocks.
It's got pretty decent reviews:
http://reviews.harmony-central.com/reviews/Guitar/product/Italia/Mondial/10/1
They were very well reviewed
by the guitar mags as well.
And they do play nicely, though I can't vouch for the tone 'cause I only tried it unplugged. I play a Gordon Smith as well BTW.
.
http://www.nevadamusic.co.uk/Guitars/Electric_Guitars/Electric_Guitars/p4596.aspx
.
http://www.google.co.uk/products?q=daisy+rock&hl=en&show=dd
no. just, no.
:(
its the most awesome guitar ever
here is a list of guitars I currently want:
Squier classic vibe duo sonic (don't care if its squire as discussed to death last week)
Fender jaguar (just always wanted one)
Fender starcaster or imitation(as in the original 'starcaster' semiacoustic)
Telecaster (as you can tell I have a thing for fender)
Ibanez ORM1 (I dont like his band but I like his guitar)
Any 335 style guitar
sounds like you need this
http://www.blueskyguitars.com/images/1962_es-335_cherry-_pafs_006_resize.jpg
but I don't know where you'd get one for £500 unless you scoured classified ads and fleeced someone
you might be able to find something like an old fender coronado for around that price though
telecaster tone is too thin for scuzzy blues - unless you have a beast of an amp
never had a prs but friends who've had them say they sound great but can't take much of a bashing on the switches/inputs and the weight balance often feels 'muso'
good luck
...
If you decide to listen to this person, you're a fool.
"telecaster tone is too thin for scuzzy blues - unless you have a beast of an amp"
As if. Telecasters are perfect for it.
my last guitar
was a maverick x1 extreme, google it and you'll see i was in the midst of a heavy rock/shredding phase at the tender age of 15..
at 21 i'm more bothered about the tone and sound of a guitar, looking for smoething a little more simplistic. the tele's have 4 way pickup selector, right? i've read that the neck of the tele is quite 'fat', would you say the teles are still easy to find your way around on?
...
It completely depends on the guitar. Tele's have a three way normally as there are only two pickups in a standard one.
Geta gordon smith. That way you can choose pickup config, style of neck etc.
any particular model?
.
Whatever
Takes your fancy...
bah
unless you've got a hot warm amp, or you sing like Muddy Waters the scuzzy blues you get from your telecaster is gonna be a sham
Don't be a spoff
Unless you've got a good amp, any guitar will sound like shit.
Telecasters are played by tons of famous blues players and are played by tons of people who write "scuzzy" riffs that he mentions.
Keith Richards? Muddy Waters? Albert Collins?
clapton played an SG on a bunch of the Cream recordings
but you wouldn't recommend an SG would you?
I gave my opinion - that's what the poster was asking for. You quite clearly disagree and fine, I can live with that but you really don't need to jump up and down about yours.
also...
what are your opinions on getting a tele, and then getting some kind of custom pickup fitted inbetween the neck and bridge pickups? my friend did that and said he now has fearsome bluesy tones.
Telecaster = too thin, agreed
Great guitars for sharp, cutting tone but for warm, scuzzy blues it;s not ideal.
I had a Fender Toronado and the build was shocking - pan pots came off in your hands, intonation always slightly out,pick-up selector switch would get stuck in one position...sounded good though, but again, not warm!
Basically don't go for Fender
Fender Toronado -
http://cgi.ebay.com/Fender-Toronado-Electric-Guitar-(1998)-_W0QQitemZ200239072046QQcmdZViewItem?IMSfp=TL0807151549r34573
I've got one of these, it basically sounds a bit like a strat but with more pick up variations. For your money I reckon its a pretty good buy (if you get a good one), plus its pretty unusual which is nice. The ones they made later aren't good, 1998 to about 2001 mexican ones aren't too bad. I've played mine solidly for 8 years, had to fix the pick up switch but thats it. I like mine, but i have heard of some dodgy building on some others, as mentioned!
if you go for the tele...
definitely get it in that colour, it's undeniably sexy.
I think
I want it...
Jap 80's Squiers
anything that's japanese, from the 80's and says squier on it is bound to feel like a million bucks. i love them.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Fender-Stratocaster-JV-series-Squier-Japan-relic_W0QQitemZ320272615581QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item320272615581&_trksid=p3286.m14.l1318
shop around for a better deal, but that period stuff is usually dirt cheap and comparable with american-made stuff that's worth 3 or 4 times more.
that tele does look tasty, i must agree. but avoid prs personally.
I want....
a Fender Jazzmaster. a new issue has sorted out the bridge problems too :
http://www.dolphinmusic.co.uk/page/shop/flypage/product_id/37752
thoughts...?
I dont like these new ones
they have fixed 'problems' that were part of the guitars character.
surely you can't enjoy the bridge??
moving the tremolo up on the other hand was just wrong.. and those pickups are going to sound even less like a jazzmaster than the stock ones on the '62 re-issues..
I did the mustang bridge swap
although I never really had a problem with the old bridge except for I had no idea how to space the strings, wasnt sure if they should be in the center of each saddle of line up with the magnetic pole piece, the mustang bridge with one groove saddles fixed that. From what i've read a properly set up stock bridge with heavy gauge strings is pretty stable. The TOM bridge is bound to change the sound and proberly doesnt rock back and forth like it is supposed to, a mustang bridge would have been a much better choice and would fit the look better.
I dont like the neck radius change, I dont like the tremolo move as it doesnt need more sustain thats part of its sound, same with 'hot' pickups it is supposed to be a mellow guitar.
2nd hand strat (play it first)
For warmth - get a rosewood fretboard.
Buy a nice bridge pickup - probably a humbucker - and you're away. Your average luthier'll be able to cut the shape into the body and install it for you.
People get confused when buying guitars. Get something that plays nice and has an OK sound - with good amps, leads and pickups - you'll be sorted.
You're not going to get the best guitar at £500 - you'll get something average - so invest in the body and neck!
If you want a Gibson - you'll be looking at an SG at that price and they don't play so easy.
But if you want scuzzy blues - a twangy maple necked strat with a 59 lipstick pickup'll be only you need.
Bon chance.
Update!
Well, I settled on a guitar today!
http://www.geocities.com/lancehiggins/Lonestar02.jpg
I couldn't be more pleased with it. It wasn't what I originally want to go for. I played on both the PRS (horrible, didn't suit me at all, nice bridge pickup sound though, but I didn't agree with the shape of it) and I also played on the Baja Tele (WAY too chunky neck.. the guitar felt too brickish and again, I didn't like it. However the strat sounds like a dream, lovely for blues and that seymour duncan pickup really does squeal. At £499 it came with a hard (albeit plastic) case, Fender strap, and the bloke in the shop restrung it with fender strings before I bought it. A bit more than I could afford, but really pleased with it all the same.