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When asked for advice by a friend....


Bluesape

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Exactly, I bought it on name. I was young and naive. Now I am old and cynical.

 

Don't get me wrong, my Es-347 is a really nice piece. It was my main guitar for 15 years. The strings weren't falling off of the neck so it played fine and in tune.. But for what today would cost 3 grand, you would think the thing would be absolutly perfect. At that price you are paying for expensive woods and the mechanics shouldn't even be questioned.

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I tried a Behringer(spelling?) strat today for the hell of it. Decent black finish, maple board nice and straight. I started noodling on it, and kids finishing their lessons started looking on, which made me feel ridiculous. The thing is, this axe played so well I was AFRAID to plug it in!! I fancy myself a collector of sorts, and I was impressed with this 100.00(CDN) guitar that played like a Charvel, Ibanez, Strat, you name it. I couldn't even find the sticker saying what Pacific Rim country it came from, but they are really getting their act together. Sure, it's made of plywood or worse, and the electronics gotta be the cheez whiz of their realm, but if those guys start using nice wood and good guts, everyone else is gonna be sweatin' bullets tryin' to justify their prices. This same store has a 10,000.00(US) Strat that has a broken headstock, and can only be viewed by appointment!!! BBBBAAARRRFFF!!!! I'd far sooner have 100 of the one I played for the same money!
Never a DUH! moment! Well, almost never. OK, OK! Sometimes never!
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Blue... give that Berringer the use and abuse that I give instuments for about two years and it will fall apart in your hands! its not so much the electronics anymore the hardware geeks offshore have had that handled for alot of years now but road work wear and tear in and out of cases.. in places like Michigan winters.... NOPE not one of those for me man!
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I agree, Lee. And it's not for me either, but a great guitar to start out on, and set aside as one advances to better stuff, with a negligible investment if the interest in playing peters out.
Never a DUH! moment! Well, almost never. OK, OK! Sometimes never!
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Canadian blues guy Morgan Davis uses an old Mustang. He's a little guy, and it seems to fit his hands. He used to be in Toronto, but I think he's in 'Zan's neck of the woods these days.
Never a DUH! moment! Well, almost never. OK, OK! Sometimes never!
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Well it sounds silly to post a comment saying I don`t want to participate in a discussion-but it just sounds like you guys aren`t paying attention to the wider guitar universe-there are amazing guitars being built these days, far away from the usual suspects. One example is in the picture I FINALLY got to work as my avatar. At the end of the day it`s all a matter of what feels best to you but I`d advise against blanket statements about large swaths of the planet`s guitar output.

But of course it`s different when someone`e just starting. If they were to ask, well what do YOU play? I`d tell them it`s a different situation.

Same old surprises, brand new cliches-

 

Skipsounds on Soundclick:

www.soundclick.com/bands/pagemusic.cfm?bandid=602491

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I agree that the big name brands (Fender and Gibson) haven't gotten better over the years. But I think that would be pretty difficult to do. They were already very high quality instruments.

 

On the other hand, the bargain basement guitars have gotten to be amazingly good for the amount of money they cost.

 

The problem with them is that the workmanship (fit and finish) put into them as well as the materials aren't the same quality as what you'd find on Gibsons and USA Fenders.

 

With cheaper materials (but good designs) these guitars are great for the short run. But they will develop all sorts of problems over time whereas high quality instruments do not (I'm not just talking about Fenders and Gibsons here).

 

I have a Squier Standard Strat that plays as well as either of my "real" Strats. But over the years it will eventually have problems that the real Fenders will not. The expense of fixing those problems will eventually equal the purchase price of the real USA Fender. And it still won't have the resale value of the USA Fender.

 

That Squier did _not_ play like my USA Strats out of the box. I had to set it up first. Over the years I've come to expect to have to do that on every guitar I buy. I'm pleasantly surprised when I don't have to (witness the Ibanez AF-75 I tried out recently).

 

I have on occasion picked up a new Gibson or Fender that wasn't up to snuff. Usually it's just setup problems. Sometimes the guitar has been damaged by another customer. Sometimes they are damaged in shipping. Sometimes dealers actually screw up guitars trying to do their own setups.

 

There used to be a music dealer down on Broughton Street in Savannah (at the corner with W Broad St) that carried both Fender and Gibson guitars. I don't think I ever picked up a guitar in there that didn't have a screwed up setup. And that dealer offered "setup" services. :eek:

 

So I think dealers are the weak link when it comes to high quality guitars. Some of them are good businessmen but poor technicians. And the guitars that they sell reflect that.

Born on the Bayou

 

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A friend of mine has a strat-I think it`s a 1975. He is usually really attentive to detail about his purchases but somehow, he got one where the strings don`t align properly on the fretboard. The high E string is almost off the board near the bridge.

I will add a little qualifier about a lot of foreign made brands-it`s easy to find very playable instruments with so-so materials at really low prices simnilar to what LP is talking about. It`s also easy to find high-end but expensive luthier quality instruments that will last as long as any made in U.S. What hasn`t happened yet is merging those two aspects, a line of well made instruments with decent qualiy materials which don`t cost vast sums. When that happens we`ll have a real challenge to Fender or Gibson.

Same old surprises, brand new cliches-

 

Skipsounds on Soundclick:

www.soundclick.com/bands/pagemusic.cfm?bandid=602491

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Skipclone, I think now more than any time in my lifetime there are quite a few well made instruments at affordable prices. My Carvin is a good as any guitar I have ever played. I still would not recommend some one buy an obscure brand guitar unless they really new alot about what they wanted though. Godin, Yamaha, Hamer, and others are using basicly the same materials and argueably better workmanship than the big names, its just hard to convince people to buy them. Its a Catch 22, the big name stars don't play them since they are inbred into buying Gibsons, Fenders, and now PRS's, so the kids don't see their heroes playing anything else but a few guitars.
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Originally posted by Gruupi:

Skipclone, I think now more than any time in my lifetime there are quite a few well made instruments at affordable prices. My Carvin is a good as any guitar I have ever played. I still would not recommend some one buy an obscure brand guitar unless they really new alot about what they wanted though. Godin, Yamaha, Hamer, and others are using basicly the same materials and argueably better workmanship than the big names, its just hard to convince people to buy them. Its a Catch 22, the big name stars don't play them since they are inbred into buying Gibsons, Fenders, and now PRS's, so the kids don't see their heroes playing anything else but a few guitars.

Gruupi, I dont know about the stars being inbred! :D but for sure they dont have to worry about saving a few hundred dollars to get in on a great deal on a great playing less expensive insturment. The instruments they buy are taken care of by their techs and made to be perfect no matter what brand they are..they most likely from a pure business decision think that the value is higher and their assets for their equipment should meet certain standards set up maybe their accounts..not just guitars but all their equipment..which can be a very sizeable amount...what ya think..could this be the motivation?
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Gruupi

Yeah the original idea of this thread is what to tell a beginner. As I mentioned, I wouldn`t just say well I play one of these, it`s great. The person most likely would have never heard of it.

I have never dealt with Guitar Center but it kinda sounds like one of the large book chains. You know you can reliably find a full line of the top brands there and people who are knowledgable about it. Ask for something more unusual or exotic, and you`re likely to get a blank stare.

I believe the stars are often hedging their bets-brand tie-ins are here to stay. if they say something good about Gibson or Fender, well those guys are big enough to return the favor. If they say something good about a maker no one has heard of or isn`t available in most places, who`s going to benefit?

Same old surprises, brand new cliches-

 

Skipsounds on Soundclick:

www.soundclick.com/bands/pagemusic.cfm?bandid=602491

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Any store is going to embellish the virtues of their in-house brands. A salesperson overheard recommending an outside brand to a customer would prolly be snarled at by the owner. Little shops that don't carry the major brands, can't/won't pay the franchise fees, etc., are gonna plug their Arias, Washburns, Tokais, Godins, etc. The aforementioned brands are all good, they just don't enjoy the status of apex brands like Fender, Gibson, Martin, etc., and if they get something exotic, like a Parker or Zion, they'll extoll its virtues, and rightly so.
Never a DUH! moment! Well, almost never. OK, OK! Sometimes never!
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