Cutting down...?

knuckleberryfinn

I have about 10 guitars, and I've always felt that there are more guitars I'd like to get my hands on. But suddenly yesterday I thought to myself how much simpler it would be to have just one really great guitar and one really great amp and be done with it. I'd certainly play more.

So I'm thinking about selling everything and buying a vintage Gibson ES-225 (luckily one of the least desirable 50s Gibsons, so relatively cheap).

What do people thing about this? Am I being foolish?

geepers0677

Sounds like a plan. Maybe keep your favourite of the 10 as a back up.

Octahedron

If you're anything like me you'll say that now and then you'll sell one and be like nahhhh that hurt too much and you'll wish you hadn't done it and you'll want all 10 back again soon enough!

grungebob

Yeah do it, you'll be happy for awhile then once funds allow you'll start increasing numbers again

Iamnobody

I've thought the same. I reckon I could go down to 3 or 4.

I guess in theory though as I'm not gigging I only 'need' one guitar.

But sometimes just playing at home, I've been trying to work on something with little success and then picked up a different guitar and it's come out easily.

A little bit if variety might be useful...

Nunogilberto

Good luck with that; it's a noble concept I've considered myself now and again - try walking past the window of a music shop withough looking and fancying anything though

knuckleberryfinn

I'd have to keep one set up for slide. And an acoustic for teaching. Other than that the only problem I see is not owning a telecaster, the thought of which makes me feel pretty uncomfortable.

richardhomer

There was a time when I only owned a Strat - it did everything I needed a guitar to do.

As my musical taste widened, there were sounds that my Strat couldn't cover and I started to add other guitars.

I now have a solid guitar with humbuckers, a semi-solid with humbuckers, a Dreadnought acoustic, an electro-nylon string, a steel stung travel guitar, another Strat fitted with a Roland GR pick-up which is also set up for slide and a bass...

They all have a musical 'purpose'. To be fair, if times were really hard, I could lose a couple but none were bought as simply 'throphies'.

A friend of mine has 2 PRSs, two Strats, a Blade R4, an Historic Les Paul, a Suhr, 2 Music Mans and a few others - and both a MkIII and a MkIV Boogie....

I think there is a difference between stock-piling guitars for the sake of it and having a range of instruments which get used for there differing tonal qualities.

That said, life was simpler when I only had the Strat....

horse

geepers0677 said:

Sounds like a plan. Maybe keep your favourite 10 as a back up.

Edited that for you G

octatonic

knuckleberryfinn said:

I have about 10 guitars, and I've always felt that there are more guitars I'd like to get my hands on. But suddenly yesterday I thought to myself how much simpler it would be to have just one really great guitar and one really great amp and be done with it. I'd certainly play more.

So I'm thinking about selling everything and buying a vintage Gibson ES-225 (luckily one of the least desirable 50s Gibsons, so relatively cheap).

What do people thing about this? Am I being foolish?

Why would you say such a thing?

Now go to your room and smack yourself in the face with a PRS catalogue until you come to your senses.

ICBM

knuckleberryfinn said:

I have about 10 guitars, and I've always felt that there are more guitars I'd like to get my hands on. But suddenly yesterday I thought to myself how much simpler it would be to have just one really great guitar and one really great amp and be done with it. I'd certainly play more.

So I'm thinking about selling everything and buying a vintage Gibson ES-225 (luckily one of the least desirable 50s Gibsons, so relatively cheap).

What do people thing about this? Am I being foolish?

As long as you can bring yourself to part with what you have now, do it. One great guitar is much better than several good ones - I still bitterly regret not trading all my guitars for a 1956 Les Paul Custom back in '99, when I could have just afforded to... before I realised that.

The 225 is a great guitar - although the two-pickup model is far superior, I would think more carefully if it's a single-pickup one. I owned a single-pickup 225, and found it a bit limited. Also if it has the original tailpiece you'll need to find some way of securing the 'feet' to the top as well, they vibrate and move about otherwise. I just use thin double-sided tape.

chrisj1602

I've cut down, I had ten guitars. I have one electric now, the Les Paul I always wanted, and an acoustic. I will buy a nice Strat or Tele eventually and I'll be happy with that.

Phil_aka_Pip

Why not just buy the 225 as your 11th?

knuckleberryfinn

richardhomer said:

There was a time when I only owned a Strat - it did everything I needed a guitar to do.

As my musical taste widened, there were sounds that my Strat couldn't cover and I started to add other guitars.

I now have a solid guitar with humbuckers, a semi-solid with humbuckers, a Dreadnought acoustic, an electro-nylon string, a steel stung travel guitar, another Strat fitted with a Roland GR pick-up which is also set up for slide and a bass...

They all have a musical 'purpose'. To be fair, if times were really hard, I could lose a couple but none were bought as simply 'throphies'.

A friend of mine has 2 PRSs, two Strats, a Blade R4, an Historic Les Paul, a Suhr, 2 Music Mans and a few others - and both a MkIII and a MkIV Boogie....

I think there is a difference between stock-piling guitars for the sake of it and having a range of instruments which get used for there differing tonal qualities.

That said, life was simpler when I only had the Strat....

This is exactly how I feel about it.  I always used Strats, and only ever owned one at a time, and I was perfectly happy with what I had.  Then I had a long break from playing, and now I've come back to it I have in a few years got myself burdened with two OM acoustics, an archtop acoustic, a 1934 National Duolian, two Teles, a 70s SG Special, a Jap strat which I've hacked about, and three really awful curiosity pieces (an oil can guitar, a biscuit tin one, and my first guitar, an Encore Strat).  Unfortunately the Duolian is not mine, but is on permanent loan.  I think I just want the simplicity of one guitar back again, to the extent that I'm going to give the Duolian back to the owner without him even asking for it.

And don't even get me started on amps.

As for slapping myself with a PRS catalogue @octatonic, I'm afraid I can't stand them.  Or was that what you were saying?

And yes @ICBM, I would certainly get the two pickup version.

I think I'm pretty much decided.  But there's always that dread that I'll get a mint late-50s 225 and then snap the headstock off at a gig.

So the big question: how do you go about buying a vintage Gibson?

Iamnobody

Keep one of the Teles?

spark240

I suppose the good news is, in my 40 odd years playing I have never known anyone snap a headstock off ! The the law of averages is on your side I think? Could I survive with one guitar ....no way,

richardhomer

knuckleberryfinn;250275" said:

I'm going to give the Duolian back to the owner without him even asking for it

Look, I really want the help here.

If your friend has problems accepting the Duolian back, I've always wanted one, but have never been able to justify buying one.

If he'd like to lend it to me permanently, I would be okay with that. Hope this helps....

knuckleberryfinn

richardhomer said:

knuckleberryfinn;250275" said:

I'm going to give the Duolian back to the owner without him even asking for it

Look, I really want the help here.

If your friend has problems accepting the Duolian back, I've always wanted one, but have never been able to justify buying one.

If he'd like to lend it to me permanently, I would be okay with that. Hope this helps....

I hardly knew him when he he offered to lend it to me.  As far as I was concerned, he was just the bloke who ran the local bookshop who I had chatted to a couple of times and who had seen me play live.  He said, Do you want to borrow my guitar?  And I said very warily, Er, maybe, thinking he was going to offer me a Squier Strat.  

So, I don't think he'd mind at all.  In fact, I'll bring it straight over.

ICBM

Schnozzalee said:

It isn't possible to have 1 great guitar that does everything, I've tried for years and you can't do it with basses either, but you could maybe cut down to 2 or 3.

I could play anything I need an electric guitar for with just my PRS Standard 22, and anything I need a bass for with just my Rick 4001. I'd go so far as to say I will never need another bass. The only exception would be a fretless, which I did have one of a while ago but sold it. And I do play a wide variety of music.

You can get any sound and play any style you need with just a versatile guitar (needs a trem really, and possibly a mix of single coils and humbuckers although even without you can get a long way with amps and pedals, and the controls on the guitar) and almost any bass. Maybe not to satisfy guitar geeks, but easily enough for audiences.

It's *nice* to have more, but not in any way essential. To a very large extent there are only three electric guitar sounds - clean, crunch and lead - and only one bass sound.

knuckleberryfinn said:

I think I just want the simplicity of one guitar back again, to the extent that I'm going to give the Duolian back to the owner without him even asking for it.

Keep the Duolian if he doesn't want it back - it's always good to have an acoustic too.

knuckleberryfinn said:

I think I'm pretty much decided.  But there's always that dread that I'll get a mint late-50s 225 and then snap the headstock off at a gig.

Don't get a mint one, look for one with a bit of wear and damage around the top of the headstock - as well as one with a thicker 'wrist' area behind the nut - they do vary (although 50s ones are generally thicker here), and some are much stronger than others, it's very dependent on the exact piece of wood and how much the grain follows the curve.

I had a '57 LP Junior once that looked like it had had a repeated disagreement with the stairs and the neck had never been broken. It was just one of the strong ones.

A working-condition one will also be a lot cheaper.

knuckleberryfinn said:

So the big question: how do you go about buying a vintage Gibson?

Shame you didn't post this a couple of years ago! A friend of mine had a nice one which he sold pretty cheaply…

Ask @ESchap for advice - he's bought quite a few old Gibsons from the US. Avoid the vintage dealers over here, unless you want to either pay through the nose or be ripped off, or both.

xSkarloey

Personally I tried just what you suggest.

In 2006-ish I had three middling electrics and a budget acoustic. I sold them and bought a Strat and a Takamine. That was it. Just the two.

Now in 2014 I've still got the thembut they've been joined by a CV Tele, a £50 back up acoustic, a bass, and an 'ebay mistake' SG copy I got for £25.

In an ideal world I'd still just have the two, but I suppose I can just about justify the extra purchases (cover different ground etc).

So in my limited experience what you say makes sense but itneeds a high level of discipline and contentment to stick with it.

Lexie1

I am down to one and have to say I have never been happier. This won't work for all by any means and as I no longer gig, that too would have to be taken into consideration.

But I have slowly kept whittling the herd down and now, for my personal requirements I have got to the point where I play more, concentrate on my playing and technique more and am thoroughly enjoy every minute.