Condensing down to 1. THE guitar

Tex Mexico · February 2020

About twenty years ago I went into a guitar store in Northampton Massachusetts and thought I was being all clever and knowledgeable by telling the guy "so I'm looking for a guitar that combines, you know, the best bits of a Les Paul and a Telecaster."

He proceeded to school me for about an hour on why that's like asking for an instrument that combines the best bits of a piano and a saxophone. At the time I thought he was exaggerating - they're both electric guitars, right? - but over the years I've come to understand that a Les Paul and a Tele are as different as an electric and an acoustic, or an acoustic and a banjo. Or - open your mind real wide, here - a Les Paul and another Les Paul. Or a Les Paul on a Monday and the same Les Paul on the following Friday.

What I'm saying is that an instrument is only capable of being itself in that moment. It doesn't make sense to ask it to be anything else. You either have a strat or you don't, but the absence of a strat shouldn't lead you to therefore expect stratness of a non-strat you do own.

Humans, men especially, have a bad habit of wanting all solutions to be permanent. The reality is however that problems constantly evolve. The guitar you think will fix everything this week will turn out to be incapable of what you want to do next week. That's why the perfect guitar is the one you don't have yet.

Sassafras · February 2020

I've been quite happy with a Strat.
All right, I've got 2 of them, a hardtail and a trem G&L.

TTBZ · February 2020

I currently have just an SG. I wouldn’t say it’s perfect but I bonded more with it after selling my other guitars. I’m happier with a Les Paul though and could easily
make do with just one of them. The SG feels a bit flimsy tuning wise and sometimes the strap position does annoy me if I’m stood up a lot. Don’t trust it to sustain as well, or give the same beefy low end and compression of a Les Paul.

Tbh I think a 24.75” tele with fat P90 esque pickups might be close to perfection for me though. The same solid and reliable feeling of a Les Paul with a bit more simplicity and stability. Hard to find a short scale one without going Warmoth/custom or expensive though.

Voxman · February 2020

TTBZ said:

The SG feels a bit flimsy tuning wise

Which is exactly why I've just changed the standard 14:1 ratio Gibson Deluxe tuners for a set of 18:1 ratio Grover Rotomatics (direct drop in replacements, see my recent thread with pics). I'm delighted with them...not only are they far more accurate, stable, and easier to tune, but although they are only marginally heavier, there is still no neck dive and they make my SG feel more substantial and better weighted on the strap. I thoroughly recommend the upgrade.

slacker · February 2020

Play what guitar you like at any given time. If you can afford to keep the ones you currently do play, do so.

There are a number of versatile guitars but they IMHO don't have character.

Of all my guitars my current goto is a gretsch.

JerkMoans · February 2020

pintspiller said:

Doublecut Gibson?

...is where my own exciting and expensive Odyssey is leading me....

webrthomson · February 2020

JerkMoans said:

pintspiller said:

Doublecut Gibson?

...is where my own exciting and expensive Odyssey is leading me....

Probably, that or a telecaster

grungebob · February 2020

For the past two years I’ve only had the one guitar, a musicman sub 1 guitar. I learned to get the most out of that guitar even though it only has a bridge humbucker.

It was quite liberating just having the one to grab but ultimately I missed having a neck pickup tone.

I’ve since bought two guitars a Carvin TL60 hss and a rivolta combinata.

The Carvin has stainless steel frets and I can’t deal with the zingyness like I thought I could but the Rivolta is superb.

It’s quite a bright guitar but that works great with the P90’s and the tone control and can be tamed easily. It gives me all the sounds I want, is comfortable and lightweight and plays great.

I could make that my one guitar easily.

I currently have three guitars and I miss only having the one.

The Carvin will be sold and possibly the musicman.

rossi · February 2020

I guess my paulwonia bodied Tele.it has strat neck pickup .Neck is roasted maple Fender replacement .It gets all the tones I want and is very light and playable .

Teetonetal · February 2020

I think the approach to the problem is wrong.

Perfect guitar is not required, the truth is probably that almost any would actually do.

Alnico · February 2020

Just spent the insomnia hours with the 5 guitars I have, thinking about this thread and actually...no, I couldn't. What I've got is a good line up. Not that big, none are very expensive but all have my own work in them and they're all slightly unique in some way.

Nope, can't do it.

TheMarlin · February 2020

I tried to squeeze my collection down to a single guitar and amp a year or two ago.

I’m back up to 13 guitars.....and 4 amps..

They are all very different though! Ish.... not a bad one in there!

stickyfiddle · February 2020

I couldn’t and I’m fine with it. If I had to sell some to raise cash I could get down to 3 or 4. And obviously if I *really* had to I would go to just one. But I don't feel some moral imperative to own fewer guitars for the sake of it. Equally, I don't want to be a "collector" who has more than they can reasonably use. I don't know where the limit is, but probably between 10 and 20, assuming a good mix of electrics, acoustics and basses.

stickyfiddle · February 2020

TheMarlin said:

I tried to squeeze my collection down to a single guitar and amp a year or two ago.

I’m back up to 13 guitars.....and 4 amps..

They are all very different though! Ish.... not a bad one in there!

Don't you have, like, a bajillion Gretsch Nashvilles?

fields5069 · February 2020

You could do it out of necessity, that's probably a better question. I was lusting after the Johnny Marr jag recently, and thinking that if I sold everything I may be able to get it. But then I wouldn't have a hollow body, so that would never work.

TheMarlin · February 2020

stickyfiddle said:

TheMarlin said:

I tried to squeeze my collection down to a single guitar and amp a year or two ago.

I’m back up to 13 guitars.....and 4 amps..

They are all very different though! Ish.... not a bad one in there!

Don't you have, like, a bajillion Gretsch Nashvilles?

No. I have four Gretsches at the moment. Happy with my lot. Though, I might still try to hunt down a 1999 Gretsch 6120 Setzer Hot Rod...

stickyfiddle · February 2020

TheMarlin said:

stickyfiddle said:

TheMarlin said:

I tried to squeeze my collection down to a single guitar and amp a year or two ago.

I’m back up to 13 guitars.....and 4 amps..

They are all very different though! Ish.... not a bad one in there!

Don't you have, like, a bajillion Gretsch Nashvilles?

No. I have four Gretsches at the moment. Happy with my lot. Though, I might still try to hunt down a 1999 Gretsch 6120 Setzer Hot Rod...

I was half-joking

Though the new "smoke orange" Setzer model looks *really* good.

GuyR · February 2020

66 Tele has inhibited my search for further guitars

TheMarlin · February 2020

It is, though the green metal flake one calls to me more

Limehouse_Blues · February 2020

I like having a selection of guitars offering a variety of tones and each inspiring me towards different styles of playing. Tbh though I miss those days of just having one guitar (which for me was from age 11 to 31) that I really connected with. When I was just starting guitar as a kid, mountains of gear were just dreams on the pages of guitar magazines. So I just cracked on with playing what I had and wasted little or no time fretting over the perfect gear.

Today, even though I love LPs and have 3 LP style guitars (out of a total of 7 guitars - which is ridiculous) I know that if I had to limit myself to just one electric it would hands down be my Tele every day of the week. You can rule the world with a Tele.

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Condensing down to 1. THE guitar

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