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Base theme by DesignModo & ported to Powered by Vanilla by Chris Ireland, modified by the "theFB" team.
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The things he believes need upgrading are the following and much of it is based on WD stuff/prices: -
- the bridge to achieve better and true intonation (allow £22-£49)
- Some new screws as they're the incorrect size (£6)
- Tele Control Plate (£16.95)
- Not really required but if you're going the whole hog, some Gotoh inline vintage tuners (£45)
As you can see, it can amount to the same as what you've spent on the guitar. However, if it's where it needs to be, will it be better than a Squier Classic Vibe, Epiphone or even an MIM?I'll get mine set up/tweaked to suit and then leave it there to see what I think and whether I need or decide to go with any of the above.
A few years ago, I spent a good couple of hundred pounds on an MIM Strat I liked and upgraded it with quality stuff (Fralins, Callaham, Gotoh). I knew I was never going to get my money back but it was perfect and became my workhorse for nearly 20 years and earnt its keep with all the gigs and functions I did. I stupidly broke it up to sell for parts in order to raise some money and move to a Suhr, Tyler, PRS. They've all gone and didn't quite reach the essence of that pimped MIM Strat.
But.. still very nice, I like them.
They do the uncovered ones on the other sc550 model anyway
Can I ask where you got the tortoiseshell scratchplate? Was it expensive?
Nil Satis Nisi Optimum
Scuse the mess. It's a Selmer Treble'n'Bass 50 from the 1970s, derived from a blonde Bassman circuit. It has bass and guitar channels that you can jumper for pedal platform fatness. I have two because another one came up cheap. Here's my other
I guess you should probably separate it into "more than the guitar COST" and "more than the guitar is WORTH". "COST" is what the guitar cost to buy. "WORTH" is what you personally feel the guitar is worth, once upgraded. If you still don't like the guitar (or suspect you won't) even with upgrades, then it's not worth it. If it makes you love a guitar you already like, then it may well be worth it. Especially if you love it more than anything else you could get for the same price- whether upgraded or not.
The other thing is, people upgrade expensive guitars, too. People talk (joke?) about Harley Bentons with a pickup swap being as good as a Gibson. But I didn't like the pickups in my Gibson! Or the electronics! Now I've upgraded them, it (a 2012 (IIRC) USA Standard SG that I got a pretty good deal on) probably sounds as good as a Harley Benton with a pickup swap...
Seriously, though, I mean I upgraded the pickups and electronics in my Edwards LP too, but stock... I think the Edwards sounded better. (There wasn't actually that much difference in the prices I paid, but the SG was a bit dearer, and I guess most people would say that the Gibson is "the real thing".) The Edwards had a Duncan JB/59 set and Alpha 500k pots, and the Gibson had the 498T/490R set and (I guess, I never measured them) 300k pots on a PCB. I found the JB far too hot for the style of guitar, but the 498T was too hot too, and both Gibson pickups had a kind of "murky" quality, for want of a better word, which was hard to work around. Raising the polepieces helped a fair bit, but still not really enough. It felt like there was a blanket over the speaker cabinet all the time. Now- even with that, there was something "musical" about them that I quite liked, but I still prefer a brighter tone.
To be clear, I think the Gibson has more "mojo", for want of a better word- it feels better in the hands, and looks better, too. It looks and feels more like a higher-end, more handmade instrument, whereas the Edwards feels more like a precision factory-made tool. If that makes sense.
There's certainly 'something' about a Gibson that no replica can match. I have always changed the pickups on every guitar I've bought and ironically, the only pickup change I regret was the 498T in a Les Paul. I really liked that pickup, though I admit the 490R was rubbish.
I am not a fan of satin finishes, this is the only thing about the guitar that I would change. I tried buffing it smooth with a drill attachment but this achieved nothing. It's like teflon or something. Probably best not to lick it
But if you get a good Gibson...
I should also add that the murkiness of the stock Gibson pickups was still there after I changed the pots- I changed the pots before I changed pickups, just in case.