The Most Versatile Guitar

Schnozz

Having searched for the most versatile Bass for a stupid amount of years, I've been doing the same for Guitar and think I've finally found it...

Previously, I've heard Guitarists say it's the RG550 for it's HSH pickup configuration, 24 frets and double locking bridge:
https://static.wixstatic.com/media/af23fa_039caba5e3a7425b8cd9cb310470d7c8.jpg/v1/fill/w_852,h_496,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01/af23fa_039caba5e3a7425b8cd9cb310470d7c8.jpg
Others have said it's the Telecaster for it's jazz, rhythm and rock positions and it's ability to alternate tune:
https://images.reverb.com/image/upload/s--xAr0ngMb--/a_exif,c_limit,e_unsharp_mask:80,f_auto,fl_progressive,g_south,h_620,q_90,w_620/v1446313625/sikhqnbhntw6ghl5coji.jpg
However, having owned the previous two, I think it's actually a p90 SG with bigsby:
https://files2.soniccdn.com/old/268284d46d992ec6db.jpg

If you went for an ES-330 instead of the latter, then that's a pretty darn good 'holy trinity' and would cover far more ground than a Stratocaster, Telecaster and Les Paul. That said, I'd be pretty happy with x3 SG's with bigsby and just have slightly hotter p90 in each.

What's yer thoughts?

jimmyguitar

Just a stock sss strat and a good player can do it all

Schnozz

jimmyguitar said:

Just a stock sss strat and a good player can do it all

Lies and deceit!! The RG550 came into play because someone noticed that Stratocaster pickups are too thin sounding and because the radius and frets were turd and because the tremolo is pretty naff and...and...

I like the Stratocaster by the way and I would substitute one for a Telecaster any day, but it'd have to be a G&L with something beefier in the bridge.

JerkMoans

Man this is so subjective, but my 'all in one' is my heavily modded jazzmaster. Wide range pickup at the bridge, Gold Foil at the neck and of course a rhythm circuit for a whole palette of tonal options in one offset bundle.

cant seem to post pics from phone but this link might work.

https://imgur.com/a/jVs1J

blobb

My Manson can make pretty much any sound you want, if you figure out how all the switches work.

olafgarten

My perfect guitar would probably be a Nashville Telecaster with a Strat Trem, a standard Tele bridge and Strat Middle pickup, but with a P90 in the neck.

Funkfingers

Uh-oh. Time to wheel out the infamous Chet Atkins story about when some fan got backstage and found the maestro in his dressing room.

The Gibson C.A. electro-acoustic was on a stand in the corner of the room. The fan swoons and praises the guitar to the skies. "That guitar sounds great, Mister Atkins." Chet looks at the guitar, looks at the fan, looks back at the guitar. He replies curtly, "well, it's not sounding so good now, is it?"

Schnozz

JerkMoans said:

Man this is so subjective, but my 'all in one' is my heavily modded jazzmaster. Wide range pickup at the bridge, Gold Foil at the neck and of course a rhythm circuit for a whole palette of tonal options in one offset bundle.

cant seem to post pics from phone but this link might work.

https://imgur.com/a/jVs1J

Noice

stimpsonslostson

After spending more money than I want to think about on guitars hunting for "that sound" I've come to the realisation that by the time I've factored in effects and amp settings the guitar I'm using is largely irrelevant. 
So long as it plays well and holds tune you can play whatever you want on whatever you want- the audience certainly isn't going to care. 

Once I came to this conclusion I just started playing my Esquire partscaster all the time.

stickyfiddle

blobb said:

My Manson can make pretty much any sound you want, if you figure out how all the switches work.

Ooh, which one? Pics please! Vids if you have them!

stratman3142

I find my HSS Strat with a coil split humbucker in the bridge position can approximate most sounds. The S-1 switching also allows the neck and middle pickups to be put into serial humbucker configuration, as the middle pickup is reverse wound with reverse polarity magnet.

But it doesn't totally replace my Tele, Les Paul and PRS.

guitars4you

if I had to have 1 guitar to do a lot whilst first thoughts when to a Strat I settled on a PRS DGT - with good coil tap options as well it covers plenty of bases

impmann

Having watched Robbie McIntosh play with McCartney, just using a single pickup Esquire, with a delay pedal and a Marshall - and played everything from Love Me Do to Live n Let Die with perfectly appropriate guitar sounds each time, I'd say that the guitar is the easy bit. It's the player that needs to be versatile, and needs to know how to manipulate the guitar, amp and any fx to suit the situation.
Sadly most players don't seem to understand that the most powerful tools are their own hands in conjunction with the controls on the guitar itself. We've all been force fed this bullshit that you 'need' equipment to sound 'professional' or 'authentic'. 

StuartMac290

For me it's still a 335, or a Tele with P90s. 

ICBM

Any guitar with two or more pickups and a trem.

JDE

I've often wondered if people who need really versatile guitars actually play lots of different styles? If you don't play, say, metal, why do you need a guitar capable of that style? I can't play funk for the life of me, so I don't need a guitar capable of that style. That said, you could give a funk player a Dimebag signature and he could make it work. It's much more about *being able to actually play the guitar* than the guitar itself. 

Voxman

My most versatile guitar, and the one I go to if I just take a single guitar to band practice, is my PRS Cu24.  H/B & single-coil tones, great trem, excellent build quality, nice locking tuners that make string changes fast & easy, its very comfortable to play with its wide-thin neck, is a nice weight, and its aesthetically pleasing too.  Jazz, funk, blues, classic rock - does everything I need. 

Only 'down-side' is that the PRS cases are particularly big and heavy - but it's the proper case and I do have something lighter I can use if I wanted to. 

After that, its my Yamaha 611VFM - H/B, P90, 3-way plus push-pull, locking tuners, trem, comfortable neck, light, great build quality, punches well above its weight.  Gotta sell it though - too much gear, not enough room, and its superfluous to my needs as I have the PRS.

57Deluxe

A Tele for max tonal spread but will be massive inconsistencies in build and playability, so in reality, any PRS will cover any base well

earwighoney

Marlin Sidewinder

amarok1971

My prs dgt is pretty much up there, especially with the excellent coil splits

Voxman

57Deluxe said:

A Tele for max tonal spread but will be massive inconsistencies in build and playability, so in reality, any PRS will cover any base well

I like Tele's but assuming you have a standard Tele with single coil p/ups they're not versatile from the perspective that they can't cover both single-coil and hum-bucker tones. You could equally argue that Strat's (3 single-coil) are the most versatile guitars - and Strats are way more popular than Tele's. 

Now, a Tele with h/b and single-coil, or an HSS Strat would be able to cover both bases albeit of course they will still feel/sound different.