'Signature' guitars.

Alnico

Nikc said:

I bought my Santana PRS SE because I love the guitar, I prefer the shape I have no need for coil splitting etc ... Never been a Santana fan I've got Moonflower on vinyl somewhere 

I had one of them which I gave to @thomasross20 last year.
They're seriously good, mine was the 'Special' with p90's and the build quality was amazing.

I'd definitely have another one if it came up at the right time.

vasselmeyer

I have a PRS DGT which seems to have moved beyond the usual boundaries of the man's fanbase into a desirable model in it's own right. It has its idiosyncrasies but it is a bloody good guitar.

Alnico

vasselmeyer said:

I have a PRS DGT which seems to have moved beyond the usual boundaries of the man's fanbase into a desirable model in it's own right. It has its idiosyncrasies but it is a bloody good guitar.

Yes it is.
NEVER sell that one H.

That's already a classic especially in plain gloss black like yours.

thomasross20

Alnico said:

Nikc said:

I bought my Santana PRS SE because I love the guitar, I prefer the shape I have no need for coil splitting etc ... Never been a Santana fan I've got Moonflower on vinyl somewhere 

I had one of them which I gave to @thomasross20 last year.
They're seriously good, mine was the 'Special' with p90's and the build quality was amazing.

I'd definitely have another one if it came up at the right time.

Yes, great guitar and what a heartfelt gesture!!!

JMP220478

The resale value of most guitars from new is not something to factor into a purchase decision - just accept most are unlikely to appreciate - there are of course exceptions but not that many imho .. 

some artist models do offer opportunities to get features that otherwise might have been custom options or custom guitar builds ..  I wanted a  nicely built , good weight Les Paul with a trem - so I bought a s/h PRS Tremonti  - whilst I like Mark Tremontis playing I'm by no means a fanboy , its just a particularly nice guitar that plays well and arguably much better quality than a Gibson equivalent for what I paid ..  I also expect its to roughly hold its current value ..

 

JerkMoans

punchesjudy said:

I own two signature guitars. 
.... a Ryan Jarman Musuar (Mustang, Jaguar mix).

As for the Ryan Jarman, I hate the Cribs so that held no sway over my purchase. It's just a Jag-Stang that isn't ugly as sin. 

Really like the look of those: Jag trem on a mustang body for all your short scale offset needs. Don’t seem to be many around...

For my own part while it’s not an Ibanez I have a Troy van Leeuwen Jazzmaster. Didn’t buy it for his name or Association (although I do like QOTSA well enough); rather it was a Mexican built JM with all US hardware which, when I played it, had been put together superbly and felt ‘right’. Add In the fact that I love love love the Oxblood colour and matching headstock and that I got it cheap on eBay after it had suffered an abusive rock n roll life, and it ticked all my boxes.

i think that signature models tend to be that little bit different, or give something ‘extra’. I do doubt whether they’re regularly a good investment idea, rather than a guitar that happens to come in a one off colour, or with an additional widdly bit or two.

guitars4you

two of the finest signature models I've played are the PRS DGT and the small run of Bonammassa 335's from 2009 and based on his 61 model - the Bonammassa 335 is so good I just don't know why Gibson don't run with it and just call it a 335 and forget the signature tag

Philly_Q

Iamnobody said:

If if I see one for sale I’ll give you a shout. The last few on eBay have been listed at optimistic prices though. Maybe they have gone up in value?

Thanks!  I had a quick look on eBay last night actually, there's one of the flightcase models ("PT" serial number), but without the second case, in the US.  Didn't seem hugely expensive compared with current custom shop prices (about $3,000 - before import duties of course). 

Neck dimensions a little skinnier than I remembered, though - I guess I've got used to fatter necks!

DavusPG

Reading this thread has made me realise that I've been a bit of a serial signature guitar buyer over the years. I've nearly always bought used though. Like others more often than not the attraction has been because of unique specs. I think the key is to buy used. That said I made money on a Trini Lopez I bought new. If you're looking to make money I think you need to go for the limited edition ones. 

I like the look of the Tom Quayle Ibanez and would think it'll be an excellent used buy if they come up. Still quite bemused as to why he got a sig model though. 

I've had half a dozen or so Ibanez Satriani guitars. Initially as a fanboy but I soon appreciated how good they are in their own right. I still have a JS6000 which is hard tail but sold the rest as I'd had enough of locking trems. Very tempted by the new Chromeboy though.

Others I've had (mostly bought & sold on this forum) are:

Ibanez PGM301 - Killer guitar, but thought the neck was too wide at the time. Regret selling it.

Musicman JP6 - quickly traded as a despite being a lovely guitar, it was a bit sterile.

Musicman Luke 2 Dargie Delight - My favourite neck, amazing build quality, but hated the EMGs

Washburn N4 Swamp Ash & Padauk - superb guitars, an Alder one is definitely in my future.

Gibson Trini Lopez - Bought because i love the look of the split diamond inlays and diamond f holes. As an instrument it did nothing for me though.

Eric Johnson Rosewood Strat - Bought because i liked the idea of a Strat with Les Paul radius, bigger frets and bound fretboard. Absolutely love it. 

Jim Root Tele - Bought as I wanted a Tele humbuckers and love ebony boards. EMGs had been swapped for Dimarzio Transitions. It sounds huge. A real eye opener purchase as it's one of my best playing guitars and was the cheapest one I've ever bought

Musicman L3 - My favourite and most played guitar. Love the neck and the pickups

There's probably a couple more I've forgotten. I'd still like a Jem and Musicman EVH for nostalgia purposes.

Flanging_Fred

Are 'Hello Kitty' Squier Strats a signature model?

On one hand there is definitely a large signature on the back.
On the other, Hello Kitty is clearly a fictional cartoon pussycat without the ability to actually write a signature.

Im deeply conflicted on this issue.

kt66

I would happily lose a testicle for a Pete Townshend Sig 1998 Rickenbacker. And the Hutchins Brian Jones fanclub Teardrop is without doubt the worst attempt at a Sig guitar. Completely the wrong shape, shame as it could have been very cool 

Philly_Q

DavusPG said:

Jim Root Tele - Bought as I wanted a Tele humbuckers and love ebony boards. EMGs had been swapped for Dimarzio Transitions. It sounds huge. A real eye opener purchase as it's one of my best playing guitars and was the cheapest one I've ever bought

I'm not a Slipknot/Stone Sour fan and there are one or two features which put me off buying that guitar, but I think it's a very smart design.  The ebony board, EMGs, black hardware - there's nothing comparable anywhere else in the huge Fender range.

I assume it's not available any more, but I bet they sold quite a lot of them over the years.

olafgarten

If you want some cool signature guitars, look no further than Musicman.

They don't really base them on existing models, they design new guitars for their artists and just stick the artist's name on it.

mistercharlie

Sometimes a signature model is an actual new guitar, bit just a re-badged Strat. Music Man's guitars for instance -- the Valentine, St Vincent, and Albert Lee are all actual models. And all awesome. 

DavusPG

Philly_Q said:
I'm not a Slipknot/Stone Sour fan and there are one or two features which put me off buying that guitar, but I think it's a very smart design.  The ebony board, EMGs, black hardware - there's nothing comparable anywhere else in the huge Fender range.

I assume it's not available any more, but I bet they sold quite a lot of them over the years.

Ditto. I've never heard a Slipknot or Stone Sour song in my life, but the features on it, white & black colourway and the bargain price were too good to miss when it cropped up in the classifieds and I saw it was only a few miles down the road. I took a punt and was very pleasantly surprised.

gubble

Already echoed on here - The Fender Sambora Strat.

Both the MIM and the USA (mk1) Versions are brilliant instruments.

I've never played the black paisley Japanese version (or the other Japanese versions) but they're also meant to be superb.

I'm noticing a rising number of fakes appearing on the market at the moment which is unsurprising considering the values are going up.

JayGee

Graham Coxon Telecaster.

Because I like Telecasters, I like rosewood ‘boards, I like tortoiseshell ‘guards, I like neck humbuckers, and that guitar was all those things in a nicely put together, attractive looking package at a very reasonable price. :-)

Collings

Les Paul,s have been quite popular!!

People don't seem to mind the name on the headstock.

Flanging_Fred

Collings said:

Les Paul,s have been quite popular!!

People don't seem to mind the name on the headstock.

Really? The guitar world went positively apoplectic when they put his signature on the headstock of the 2015 .Models.

Collings

Flanging_Fred said:

Collings said:

Les Paul,s have been quite popular!!

People don't seem to mind the name on the headstock.

Really? The guitar world went positively apoplectic when they put his signature on the headstock of the 2015 .Models.

Fair point!!