What's a decent guitar, and what would you pay for it?

57Deluxe

/\ haha LOL yeah...

Rocker

fandango said:

It makes me laugh that people are assuming I’m asking about decent guitars because i want to buy a guitar.

I’m not asking for my benefit, I am just putting the question out there.

What is the point of your post then if not to buy a decent guitar?

Clarky

a good superstrat [double locking bridge, HH / HSS / HSH], 24 fret, nice long horns
mid range Ibanez, Schecter, Jackson types
£500 to £650 range

set it up really well, whip off the pups and replace them with Bulldogs
and you'll have a nice little beast that is extremely versatile

stimpsonslostson

A decent guitar to my is one I'd "trust" enough to play in public. 
It has to be comfortable to play, stay in tune & not have any electrical issues. 
New- I'd say £400 is where these start- my Gibson 50s tribute SG was £399 new & ticked all those boxes. 
Second hand- considerably less! 

That said, my current guitars are both self built partscasters- one of which started life as a £80 Harley Benton Tele copy! (Although virtually nothing of that guitar remains). 

Phil_aka_Pip

I just paid ~£650 for an Epiphone archtop. Excellent guitar, worth every penny. I've paid more and also paid less. If you can afford it and it's ticking your boxes, then it's a "decent" guitar at a price you're willing to pay - unless you happen to know that other people are selling that kind of thing for a lot less, in which case buy from them instead.

andy1839

An hour ago I bought a Jem Jr. For £150. 

Its a decent guitar and thats what what I paid for it!

  

midlifecrisis

my favourite guitar at the moment (these things change as we know) is my epiphone 339, paid £170 used would cost £400 new. not my most expensive guitar but it makes me very happy. i get the sounds i want and its comfy to play. and every two gigs i do with it, it pays for itself.

fandango

Rocker said:

fandango said:

It makes me laugh that people are assuming I’m asking about decent guitars because i want to buy a guitar.

I’m not asking for my benefit, I am just putting the question out there.

What is the point of your post then if not to buy a decent guitar?

FFS 

GoldenEraGuitars

I haven’t read a single comment on this thread tbh but I think that question is too open ended.

Far too many variables to even begin answering it sensibly.

poopot

Blue or red at a push.

Clarky

been thinking about this thread...
the best value for money guitar I ever got was my Ibanez RG470
new in 1992 is was about £420. so not the cheapest thing around but miles away from top of the line..
for about £50 I got some 2nd hand Di'M PAF Pro pups to sling on it...
worked beautifully

it's still an absolute joy to play...
has Bulldog pups on it now, which raised the bar even more..
the down side is the bridge.. it's on its 3rd bridge..
Ibanez bridges are beautifully designed but the blades are like that are made out of putty

I'm considering going to a luthier to get a non-Ibe bridge fitted to it..
maybe a Floyd Rose..

Garthy

Clarky said:

been thinking about this thread...
the best value for money guitar I ever got was my Ibanez RG470
new in 1992 is was about £420. so not the cheapest thing around but miles away from top of the line..
for about £50 I got some 2nd hand Di'M PAF Pro pups to sling on it...
worked beautifully

it's still an absolute joy to play...
has Bulldog pups on it now, which raised the bar even more..
the down side is the bridge.. it's on its 3rd bridge..
Ibanez bridges are beautifully designed but the blades are like that are made out of putty

I'm considering going to a luthier to get a non-Ibe bridge fitted to it..
maybe a Floyd Rose..

On either Jemsite or 7String there is a useful FAQ about which trems drop straight in to which RGs without woodwork. Alternatively you could look for a hardened steel version of your current baseplate, they seem to crop up on ebay/facebook from time to time.

JezWynd

If you can't make music with a £180 Squier Affinity, having another £5k to spend won't help you.

dazzajl

An Interesting question and I’m not too sure what the criteria required. I’ve got nice nice guitars, have owned and played master built custom shop ones and my Duesenberg is the equal of anything I’ve ever held for sheer quality and attention to the finest detail. 

My favourite and first choice for feel and sound is a completely beaten up old Mexi Strat that I’d do well to get £200 for. 

I occasionally daydream that if I was a well known and regarded player (NEVER going to happen) whether people would be paying many thousands for custom shop replicas of this old beater?? 

slacker

I have a problem with paying over a grand for a guitar. 

Roland

lonestar said:

I haven’t read a single comment on this thread tbh but I think that question is too open ended.

Far too many variables to even begin answering it sensibly.

The question could be paraphrased as “What is your definition of a decent guitar?”

darthed1981

dazzajl said:

I occasionally daydream that if I was a well known and regarded player (NEVER going to happen) whether people would be paying many thousands for custom shop replicas of this old beater?? 

Would you still be playing it?

The one thing that would happen to you as a well known and regarded player is that you would be sent whichever guitars you wanted for free in endorsement deals.  You would also have effectively unlimited cash.  You don't need to be U2 popular to tip over the line into genuinely significant levels of income.

I'm not saying any of those would be better instruments, as everyone keeps saying, love the one you are with and there is really no reason why a banged up mexi strat couldn't be the best guitar you ever play.

But could you resist the allure of megabucks guitars if you had megabucks?

mattyk1971

Cost is a lot less important than the feel of the guitar...if it feels good, sounds good, looks good, it’s the one for you. Try a load out and go with your gut feeling!

dazzajl

darthed1981 said:

dazzajl said:

I occasionally daydream that if I was a well known and regarded player (NEVER going to happen) whether people would be paying many thousands for custom shop replicas of this old beater?? 

Would you still be playing it?

...........

That’s a very good question and obviously, I can only tell you what happens in the idle daydreams of an average hack

But I reckon I could be??? If I had the money to play with I’d definitely buy all sorts of wonderful toys and I think I’ll always have more than I actually need but nothing feels as right to make music with as my favourite. 

darthed1981

dazzajl said:

darthed1981 said:

dazzajl said:

I occasionally daydream that if I was a well known and regarded player (NEVER going to happen) whether people would be paying many thousands for custom shop replicas of this old beater?? 

Would you still be playing it?

...........

That’s a very good question and obviously, I can only tell you what happens in the idle daydreams of an average hack

But I reckon I could be??? If I had the money to play with I’d definitely buy all sorts of wonderful toys and I think I’ll always have more than I actually need but nothing feels as right to make music with as my favourite. 

Good answer

In my idle daydreams success wouldn't get to me, I'd still be on TFB talking about gear etc. in reality, I'm highly unlikely to find out!