Aces High Bulletin Board
General Forums => The O' Club => Topic started by: vorticon on June 12, 2006, 12:33:02 PM
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sub $200 cheapness, any brands that are absolutly **** and should be avoided at all costs?
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Yeah, the ones under $200.
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Cheapest I'd suggest anyone is a Squire.
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Originally posted by SunKing
Cheapest I'd suggest anyone is a Squire.
ditto
the neck and frets and action and electronics in a sub $200 guitar will be so poor that in 1 year the guitar will be garbage not worth any repairs.
then you spend another $200 when you could have bought a $500 or so guitar that may last a decade
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I'd go with a used Made in Mexico Fender strat. They're pretty good guitars and used you can get one at around $200. It may have a few cosmetic flaws though. You'll probably end up spending about $250 though, but it will be worth it in the long run.
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Stay away from the cheap sub $200 guitars. Not only are the electronics crap, the hardware is awful too. Getting one of those things to stay in tune is like balancing a bowling ball on the tip of a sewing needle. Find a used music store and pick up one of the Mexican made Fender strats. You can get one used for around $250.
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Originally posted by United
I'd go with a used Made in Mexico Fender strat.
Winner.
My '96 MIM Standard Strat is still my #1 go-to guitar.
Only thing I've changed is the pickguard and had a refret done to it. I've also had it repainted but I don't consider that an issue.
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Originally posted by Cougar68
Stay away from the cheap sub $200 guitars. Not only are the electronics crap, the hardware is awful too. Getting one of those things to stay in tune is like balancing a bowling ball on the tip of a sewing needle. Find a used music store and pick up one of the Mexican made Fender strats. You can get one used for around $250.
k, 250 is managable, i'll start looking around. how do i know if its made in mexico?
thanks
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It'll say "Made in Mexico" or "Hecho en Mexico".
Those are the dead giveaway.
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That, and it'll be a Fender in decent or better shape for under $400.
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MIM Fenders always have the serial number on the front of the headstock, near the Fender logo. Most of them have a serial # starting with the letters MN as well.
If that isn't enough, look for the cheaper ones. :)
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Originally posted by United
MIM Fenders always have the serial number on the front of the headstock, near the Fender logo. Most of them have a serial # starting with the letters MN as well.
If that isn't enough, look for the cheaper ones. :)
Yes, the "M" means MIM but the letter afterwards indicates the decade the guitar was made. "N" means nineties and "Z" means the first decade of this century or "Zero" i.e. 00, 01, 02 etc...
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Ahh, I was unaware of that. Thanks for correcting me.
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Yamaha, they are good for 2 things, lighting on fire and smashing.
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Originally posted by United
Ahh, I was unaware of that. Thanks for correcting me.
Not a problem. I am a bit of a Fender freak. For the money I don't think there's a better value for the price. Plus, Leo was a genius. To think the basic design of the Strat has remained unchanged for well over 50 years means it was a classic design.
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Also, one more thing I want to recommend. Line6's GuitarPort amp modelling software. If you have a good set of PC speakers (at least a 2.1 setup) you can't go wrong and not have to clutter up your area with multiple amps. I can't say enough about this program. Tones, tones, tones...and in the end that's what it's all about. And it's less than $100 at Guitar Center.
Line6 GuitarPort 2.5 (http://www.line6.com/guitarport/)
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Danelectro.
Cheap..... and good.
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If your gonna buy one dont waste your money on crap buy the real deal. It dont have to be made in usa. I have a Fender Strat made in mexico. It is a great guitar and I bought it new for $400 Its lighter than the usa ones. and dont cost like $1000. Take my advice dont waste your money.
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I dont know I have an Ibenez g20 and an Epiphone SG playing both on a Line6 Spider II and they both sound pretty damn good for the price. I have had the Ibenez for about 4 yrs and the Epiphone about 1yr and never had a problem. Just my 2 cents
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Originally posted by nirvana
Yamaha, they are good for 2 things, lighting on fire and smashing.
Wrong...but carry on.
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A used made in Japan strat/tele is also an excellant value..Equal in quality to made in USA...I don't think they're made there anymore so your lookin at at least a 6 yr old guitar.
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Originally posted by SirLoin
A used made in Japan strat/tele is also an excellant value..Equal in quality to made in USA...I don't think they're made there anymore so your lookin at at least a 6 yr old guitar.
Indeed the Japanese Strat and Tele have become somewhat sought after as they were quite well made, (workmanship and materials), for an entry level guitar. If you can find one at a good price it is hard to go wrong.
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Originally posted by DiabloTX
Plus, Leo was a genius. To think the basic design of the Strat has remained unchanged for well over 50 years means it was a classic design.
Gotta agree Diablo...and the man wasn't even a guitar player. He built the Strat as a tool from a workmans point of view and ended up with a work of art. Yeah, I like my Strat.:)
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Originally posted by aztec
Wrong...but carry on.
:lol Well alrighty. They are also good self defense items if that occurence ever comes up.
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Originally posted by nirvana
:lol Well alrighty. They are also good self defense items if that occurence ever comes up.
Thought you may be able to dig a little deeper....thanks for helping me prove generalities suck.
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Have you ever played those "First Act" guitars from Wal Mart?:rofl
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Originally posted by nirvana
Have you ever played those "First Act" guitars from Wal Mart?:rofl
No but apparently you have...try adding something useful to the topic Nirvana.
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Sorry sir, teen squelch doesn't work in here.
As has been said, the Strats made in Mexico are really nice for the price you pay, for a bit more you can go for a Telecaster, which I liked quite a bit but not as much as the good old Stratocaster. Don't get cheap with your guitar and it'll love you for a long time. Good luck!
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My first guitar was a Made in Korea Strat. I belive I paid around $150 USD for it new about 17 years ago.
Shortly after I bought it I modified it slightly - sanded the glossy lacquer finish off the back of the neck(my left hand tended to stick to the finish) and adjusted the action (I like the tone you get from heavy guage strings and needed to raise the action to accomodate the large diameter strings) and pickup height (again for tone). This was all done out of personal preference rather than necessity.
The only issue I've had with the guitar is the volume and tone controls needed to be rewired about 2 1/2 years ago. Not bad for an instrument that was over 15 years old...
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I put and EMG 81 on the bridge of my Strat not more then 2 months after I got it.
Bad, when you say you adjusted the pick up height, do you mean you had to actually change something physically or were the pickups like they are today, you just tighten or loosen the screws to adjust height? I generally keep my 2 standard pick ups close to the springs and my EMG a little lower.
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Originally posted by nirvana
I put and EMG 81 on the bridge of my Strat not more then 2 months after I got it.
Bad, when you say you adjusted the pick up height, do you mean you had to actually change something physically or were the pickups like they are today, you just tighten or loosen the screws to adjust height? I generally keep my 2 standard pick ups close to the springs and my EMG a little lower.
Adjusting pickups (pups) is a simple matter of turning the adjustment screws on either side of the pup. As a general rule it is a bad idea to have standard, or really any pup, close to the string. It kills both the tone and the sustain as you are putting the magnetic field closer to the string.
But, your actual results may vary.
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Nirvana - the pickups are adjusted as Diablo said -
The trick with adjusting the height is finding the "happy medium" too high and you can as Diablo stated lose tone, and sustain or even have the strings come into contact with the pickup poles causing a buzzing sound... Too low and you end up sounding muddy...
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Exactly.
There's a fine art to it. Proper single coil pups have staggered magnetic poles. The actual distance from a pole to it's respective string differs from position to position. That's why when Leo researched the proper distance for each string he found that it differed from each one. It's also why tone-guru-freak Eric Johnson would take his vintage pups and readjust the pole heights himself. NOT recommended for those who don't know what they're doing.
Also, bear in mind that 90% of your tone is going to come from your hands in the technique that you use. That's why great guitarists will sound the same no matter what guitar they play.
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Thanks for the information, i'll have to do what when i get all my stuff set up again, it's been a long 4 months without it:(
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Originally posted by nirvana
Thanks for the information, i'll have to do what when i get all my stuff set up again, it's been a long 4 months without it:(
Brother...I feel your pain.
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Originally posted by DiabloTX
It's also why tone-guru-freak Eric Johnson would take his vintage pups and readjust the pole heights himself. NOT recommended for those who don't know what they're doing.
Also, bear in mind that 90% of your tone is going to come from your hands in the technique that you use. That's why great guitarists will sound the same no matter what guitar they play.
That Eric johnson is a tone freak...He can literally tell you wether u have an alkaline or carbon 9v in an Ibanez Tube Screamer...
Check out his first cd "Tones"...an just like Hendrix..take it from there...:aok
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Originally posted by Nash
Danelectro.
Cheap..... and good.
Jimmy Page's first guitar was one of these.
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"Also, bear in mind that 90% of your tone is going to come from your hands in the technique that you use. That's why great guitarists will sound the same no matter what guitar they play."
so im pretty much f*ed for tone, no matter what i buy.
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Originally posted by vorticon
so im pretty much f*ed for tone, no matter what i buy.
Early on, yes you are. But as you listen to more guitarists and try to pick up their licks, your hands will learn to make the tones you're hearing. It's hard work, but it'll happen.
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Originally posted by DiabloTX
Adjusting pickups (pups) is a simple matter of turning the adjustment screws on either side of the pup. As a general rule it is a bad idea to have standard, or really any pup, close to the string. It kills both the tone and the sustain as you are putting the magnetic field closer to the string.
But, your actual results may vary.
Nirvana has an EMG-81 installed. This is an active pickup with very little magnetism compared to passive pickup. He needs to adjust them as close to the strings as possible without buzz. Its just the nature of the beast with those pickups.
important installation notes, step 5 (http://www.emginc.com/downloads/wiringdiagrams/Humbuckers_active.pdf)
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Originally posted by kevykev56
Nirvana has an EMG-81 installed. This is an active pickup with very little magnetism compared to passive pickup. He needs to adjust them as close to the strings as possible without buzz. Its just the nature of the beast with those pickups.
important installation notes, step 5 (http://www.emginc.com/downloads/wiringdiagrams/Humbuckers_active.pdf)
That's why I posted it as a "general rule" and not something written in stone. I didn't want him jacking up the EMG's so close they hit the strings whenever he played.
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Oh yeah, I know enough not to let the pick ups hit the strings:aok I'll try some adjusting though...in a month.
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ended up with a peavey raptor + 10w practice amp, bag, chords and tuner for $340...sales woman was very persuasive, and i missed a couple cryptic cues from the other guy to put it off until i had looked around more.
it'll last until i can afford something better.
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Actually, you've could done much, much worse. I had a friend who had a Peavey Predator(?) Strat-copy. Was a fairly good beginner guitar with some very good sounding pups on it.
Soon, very soon, the ugliest of uglies will be setting in...
gear lust.
You've been warned!
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Yeah, I laid down $450 for a GNX 4 effect board/recording "studio" few months ago. Looks at some cabs and heads now, mmmm:)
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Gear lust, so true.
lest see my list:
Gretsch Guitar (homer simpson)
Marshall stack (hehe)
Wireless setup
Left Guitar also Since im left handed but play right
but good luck. Lesson might also be a good idea. Sure have helped me.
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Originally posted by DiabloTX
Soon, very soon, the ugliest of uglies will be setting in...
gear lust.
You've been warned!
Haha, AKA "GAS" Gear Aquisition Syndrome. I'm definately a sucker when it comes to new gear. Unfortunately I have no money so I can play with stuff in the shop but have to leave it there.
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At the height of my geal lust:
(http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g308/txflood77598/6cd5.jpg)
Strats - 6
Les Pauls - 2
Tele - 1
6 String Acoustic - 1
12 String Acoustic - 1
3 Fender Amps
1 Marshall Micro-stack
1 Korg AXG-1000 Effects board
1 Ibanez TS-9 Tube Screamer
1 of the Strats and the Tele I later sold to Curt Mitchell. He's used the Strat in one of his online lesson videos.
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Diablo-
My uncle has a 12 string guitar that he's never even used, can you believe that? I't sprobably a collectors edition by now.
Over how much time did you collect all of that equipment? It's a very nice collection, how much do you have left?
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Originally posted by nirvana
Diablo-
My uncle has a 12 string guitar that he's never even used, can you believe that? I't sprobably a collectors edition by now.
Over how much time did you collect all of that equipment? It's a very nice collection, how much do you have left?
12 strings are awesome. And awesomely hard to play lead on unless your SRV...but that's a completely different thread.
I started my gear lust a long time ago. By 1996 all I had was a 1986 Jackson Soloist that I bought for myself on my 20th birthday while I was in the Navy. Then, that November (1996) I had a really wild hair go up you-know-where I and I started playing all the time. One thing led to another and I couldn't stop buying crap. That pic was taken sometime in 2000/2001. All I have left is the flip-flop "sunburst for the 21st century" Strat on the top row (that's my #1 guitar), the sunburst 60's re-issue Strat on the floor leaning up against the Marshall micro-stack, the Gretsch G3700 6-string acoustic, and a 2001 Gibson "Faded" SG (my #2 guitar) that's not in the pic. The Fender Blues Deluxe amp is gone but I still have the rest.
What also isn't shown is the gear that I blew through between 1996 - 2001:
1998 PRS CE22
1999 Epiphone Joe Pass
1997 Epiphone Sheraton II
1998 Fender Custom Shop Strat
1999 Fender Deluxe Strat (had the "noiseless" single coils in it)
1997 Fender Roadhouse Strat
1997 MIM Standard Strat (2-tone 'burst)
1998 Studio Les Paul (bought of eBay...huuuge mistake, will never do that again!)
1998 Yamaha AE??? (I don't remember the model number but that's because the guitar was such a POS I didn't keep it long. Was ordered from Musician's Friend and, guess what, I won't be doing that again!)
That's all I remember. GAS will consume you if you can't learn how to check it. I finally did...but man, whatta ride!
:aok
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I bought a hand made accoustic guitar from this guy... "Mr. Potato" (or "Ted") just outide the gate at Osan AB. Lots and lots of AF guys buy from him and he's a great teacher too. Free lessons as long as you're in Korea if you buy a guitar from him. Nice guy, and he can get you almost any guitar you could possibly want. Custom designs, originals, copies, whatever, and the guys around here who "know" about guitars say that his guitars are a great deal.
Dunno if he can ship international or what that would cost though.
http://www.mrpotatoguitar.com/
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Some interesting guitars there.
I don't know if I could play a guitar with "Mr. Potato" on the headstock but if it's a great guitar, who knows. I especially like the ones with the "Oh nooo!!! Mr. Bill!!" sound holes. Hehe...
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This looks pretty damn cool. MIJ 12-string Strat without that goofy looking "droopy" headstock that a Fender XII has.
MIJ Fender 12-string Strat (http://cgi.ebay.com/Fender-Japan-Stratocaster-12-string-CIJ-Strat-XII_W0QQitemZ7422424782QQihZ016QQcategoryZ38082QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem)
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Here's the Curt Mitchell video I mentioned before. He's explaining the slow blues style of The Reverend Willie G. (aka Billy F. Gibbons) and why slow blues is such a hard style to totally master.
The Strat that he's playing is the one I sold him back in November. It was my #2 Strat and I had a really, really hard time letting go of it. Bottom line, I knew it was going to a good home and a brilliant player.
Diablo's MIM 60's re-issue Strat played by Curt Mitchell "Blue Jean Blues" (http://www.curt-mitchell.com/Video-Riff-10.wmv)
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The custom cutout on the potato guitars is a stylized eagle. It's his signature trademark.
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this things like crack, havent been able to keep my hands off it for more than a couple hours (other than a very restless sleep!) since i bought it. funny thing is, first time i ever held an electric was sunday.
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Originally posted by vorticon
this things like crack, havent been able to keep my hands off it for more than a couple hours (other than a very restless sleep!) since i bought it. funny thing is, first time i ever held an electric was sunday.
GAS has set in...
Personally, I think they mix crack in the paint. As soon as you touch it, you're hooked!
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I've decided that once string changing goes from a 15 minute job to an all day job, then its time to quit buying guitars...
and start focusing on amps. :D
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Originally posted by United
and start focusing on amps. :D
Tube amps?
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Originally posted by United
I've decided that once string changing goes from a 15 minute job to an all day job, then its time to quit buying guitars...
and start focusing on amps. :D
Getting that Line6 GuitarPort cured me of the amp lust.
I WILL eventually order me a Custom Shop Strat but not anytime soon unfortunately....wait a minute, if I sell my car, cash in my 401k...
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I used to think it better to go cheap when starting something new in case you end up quitting it, so it isnt a big waste. But with guitars the more you spend the better off you will be. Everything feels better, sounds better, easier to play. 20 years ago I bought a BC Rich Platinum Series. Kind of a cheaper design. My bud spent the extra on a real BC Rich. There was a huge difference in the hardware. Mine didnt hold up. Mine cost 400 bucks. His was closer to 1000 I think. Then again I thought I was Metallica,Slayer,and Anthrax all rolled into one. Played it hard.
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Although I am not averse to the mass produced cheap average quality chinese/mexican instruments, my next rig, a shortscale bass, will be made by this outfit:
http://www.birdsongguitars.com/
Going for a Cortobass standard, havent quite decided on what wood and hardware options.....but will be ordering in a few weeks.
I guess if your going to play, play well.
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Originally posted by nirvana
Tube amps?
Most certainly. Once I get enough money, the first thing I'm buying is a nice tube amp. I've been looking at the Epiphone Valve series, or perhaps the Blues Custom.
I played one of these at the shop and I must say, it is quite the little amp!
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Epiphone-Blues-Custom-30-Watt-2x12-Combo-Amp?sku=480288