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Seriously: If you value it, take/fetch it yourself
Ibanez make great Semi's at all price ranges, but I think they sound different from Gibson's. Kind of brighter and tighter. Very different unplugged, although I'm comparing China Ibanez to US Gibson. I had a John Shcofield modle for a while, that was cool, but definitely different to classic 335 territory.
I'd be looking for a Sheraton myself, if you could get one for the right price some of the old Korean 90's ones were fantastic. My mate had one and it was the definition of woody jangle. Incidentally, I have a Midtown, which is great, but smoother and more solid sounding than I think you need based on the clips posted.
Also had a MIJ Tokai ES130, nice guitar but nowhere near as much woody goodness as the 90's Epiphone.
Nil Satis Nisi Optimum
One half baked plan is to sell both my Reverends (Club King and Manta Ray), buy another Reverend (Tricky Gomez - which is a cross between a Manta Ray and Club King) which would leave some change which I could use towards a decent'ish 2nd hand Ibanez or Epiphone. Complicated...
Over-thinking, doing nothing... I should just get back to playing!
Pleased it's not just me that appreciates the tone!
Regarding 335 alikes, I have owned 3 Ibanez, 2 Tokai Japan, Reverend Manta Ray, all the Gibson Midtowns and a Gibson 135, and at least ten or more cheaper 335 alikes (Samick, Arias, Vintage, Indie, Chibsons, etc). I've changed pots/looms, bridges, pickups (Seymour Duncan, Burstbuckers, Stormy Mondays, and more). Most have gone, with the rest for sale now.
What have I kept? All my Gibson 335s and one Tokai Japan.
My lengthy and expensive experiment proved: Cheap 335 alike plus the very best bits you can change does not equal a good Gibson 335. End of.
https://www.andertons.co.uk/guitar-dept/electric-guitars/hollow-semi-hollow-body-guitars/gibson-memphis-2018-es-335-anchor-stud-bigsby-vos-in-antique-ebony-es33518ebnb112407743
https://www.guitarinteractivemagazine.com/issues/issue-53/reviews/vintage-vsa500cr/
Does anyone have real life experience of this guitar?
Vintage are specced out and built in batches by whichever factory will do it for least money. So my expectations are low at that price. I am very surprised by the gushing review, although others have suggested Mr Quayle will say good things about any gear for a price.
Edit: Made me laugh where he says he's a big 335 fan and the neck on the VSA500 is "very close!" The necks on my 335s vary from 60s slim to 50s fat, so his assertion is nonsense.
Seriously: If you value it, take/fetch it yourself
What you say is so very true, no where near me seems to have any in stock. Vintage do seem to be pretty well thought of by owners (some on this site) and perhaps it does help keep their costs down. The problem is that if you take a punt and don't get on with the guitar it seems you've lost 50% of your money: (
There's a particularly nice one in Glasgow just now...
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein