# Getting A New Electric



## ndiggity (Apr 2, 2008)

Hey guys, new member here. First, a little about me. I'm 19, going to university right now. I have been playing guitar for maybe 6 years? First learned on acoustic, took two acoustic guitar classes at my high school, learning how to play with and w/o a pick, rock and classical music. Then i bought a cheap electric, than a small 10 watt Marshall MGDX or something, and then I got an Epiphone Les Paul Standard from my cousin which I still play with.

So anyways, I sorta slowed down playing in grade 12 as I got fairly busy, but I have been playing alot lately on my acoustic and have brought out my electric. My friends want to start a band and it has really rejuvinated my desire to get good at guitar. So anyways, i'm thinking of getting a new electric guitar. I have no issues with my current Epi Les Paul, but it's pretty heavy which wouldn't exactly be nice for playing in a band with.

So i'm looking for recommendations for a new electric, or possibly a second electric to use in combination with my Les Paul for different styles of music. For my own taste in music, I listen to almost anything except rap or hip-hop. I listen to Led Zeppelin,Clapton,Stevie Ray Vaughan, Misfits,Sex Pistols, Clash, Eric Johnson, Vandals, Aerosmith, Bad Brains, Bad Religion, Anti Flag, Allman Brothers, Poison, Beatles, Billy Idol, Billy Joel, Blackflag, Black Sabbath, Bob Dylan, Bob Marley, Boston, Buddy Holly, Lou Reed, Chuck Berry,Cheap Trick, the Damned, Dire Straits, Doors, Everly Brothers, Dead Kennedys etc... So as you can see, all kinds of music.  Favourite songs at the moment are Rude Mood and Life By The Drop, both by SRV.

I'm looking at spending prob no more than 600 canadian. I have been browsing kijiji and ebay lots lately looking for deals. I saw a new Fender Strat Jimmy Vaughan for a buy it now of 500 CDN on ebay, thinking I should have gotten that. So for I have been looking at Strats, Teles, and a Gibson Special Faded SG, so I would love to hear any thoughts on my choices, or recommendations. I am still a little overwhelmed by alot of the terminology, I just know the basics such as pickups, neck, bridge, headstock, nut, so the descriptions sometimes are a little foreign sounding to me, so excuse my ignorance, and sorry for the extremely long first post! :smile:


----------



## Robert1950 (Jan 21, 2006)

ndiggity said:


> I saw a new Fender Strat Jimmy Vaughan for a buy it now of 500 CDN on ebay, thinking I should have gotten that. :smile:


You mean one of these:










Yes you should have. That was a good price. Got this used in January. Just LOVE the neck on this. Interesting pickup arrangement. Slightly overwound Tex Mex pups. Tone control on the neck and bridge - middle is raw,... no tone control. I'm mucho happy with it. Good luck on your hunt.


----------



## ndiggity (Apr 2, 2008)

Yeah, I'm dissapointed I didn't. Can you get a good SRV tone out of it or have you tried?


----------



## suttree (Aug 17, 2007)

i'd go for a tele if i were you. hard to mess up with a tele.


----------



## devnulljp (Mar 18, 2008)

suttree said:


> i'd go for a tele if i were you. hard to mess up with a tele.


OP sure sounds like s/he'd like a Strat though.
Here's a great pic of I think the Crossroads festival, and it's like a who's who of rock/blues guitar. Lots of Strats:










The Highway series aren't too expensive are they?


----------



## ndiggity (Apr 2, 2008)

I think i'm torn right now between a strat and a Gibson special faded SG. Would the Gibson be fairly similar to what I already have and be redundant? I like Tom Morello who plays a tele but I don't know too many other guitarists I listen to who use them mainly. And thats a sweet picture. In my guitar class in highschool for the last week, we got to watch a crossroads DVD. I saw buddy guy last summer and this summer Robert Cray is coming to our local jazz festival hooray!


----------



## devnulljp (Mar 18, 2008)

ndiggity said:


> I think i'm torn right now between a strat and a Gibson special faded SG. Would the Gibson be fairly similar to what I already have and be redundant? I like Tom Morello who plays a tele but I don't know too many other guitarists I listen to who use them mainly. And thats a sweet picture. In my guitar class in highschool for the last week, we got to watch a crossroads DVD. I saw buddy guy last summer and this summer Robert Cray is coming to our local jazz festival hooray!


That Epiphone / faded Gibson thing is sure coming up a lot lately.
I think you're te only one that can answer those questions though. Try a bunch and see how you feel? I went through years of flipping from LP to Strat and back. Finally settled on a 335 but I just turned 40 so there you go. 

Great you're getting to see so many legendary players too. I think after seeing Buddy Guy and RC you'll want a Strat.


----------



## ndiggity (Apr 2, 2008)

devnulljp said:


> That Epiphone / faded Gibson thing is sure coming up a lot lately.
> I think you're te only one that can answer those questions though. Try a bunch and see how you feel? I went through years of flipping from LP to Strat and back. Finally settled on a 335 but I just turned 40 so there you go.
> 
> Great you're getting to see so many legendary players too. I think after seeing Buddy Guy and RC you'll want a Strat.


Yeah I will definetly have to try some out. But like what do I look for in differences between two guitars of the same model? I know they say that you need to play a few before you find one that's set up better and such, but I have no idea what i'm supposed to look for. Also, do you usually buy the guitar they have out to play or do you try and get one that hasn't been played yet? I have played guitar for a few years now, but I still don't know the nuances and stuff so any help is greatly appreciated.

It is exciting to see alot of great players at a young age. I'm going to see Mark Knopfler in July and hopefully see Rush in may.


----------



## rockinbluesfan (Mar 3, 2008)

You should check out some japanese guitars- they are getting more popular with excellent quality. Tokai and esp are a few of the brands, just bought a tokai myself although I don't have it yet! Check out tokairegisrty.com or even ebay for a possibility. FYI


----------



## cdub66 (Dec 13, 2007)

ndiggity said:


> Yeah I will definetly have to try some out. But like what do I look for in differences between two guitars of the same model? I know they say that you need to play a few before you find one that's set up better and such, but I have no idea what i'm supposed to look for.


When I went to buy my first, all I knew was how to form a "C" chord and that I'd put off learning to play guitar too long.

Off to L&M with full intentions of buying an Aerodyne Telecaster that was in the Boxing week flyer. After plonking my c chord on some 15-20 different guitars (including the Aero Tele, buncha Strats, few ESP LTDs and assorted Epiphones) I kept coming back to one certain MIM Strat. It felt "nice" for some reason I couldn't understand. I bought that one. $465.00 (+gst)

Now, 3 months later, I've really polished up that C chord, and am playing it (and a few others :banana on the same Strat, and have been fortunate enough to have bought even better feeling and sounding (to me) guitars in a Highway 1 Tele and finally, an AV62RI. (although the budget's increased on each one:smile

With your prior experience, I'd think you'd find one or two in short order that feel "better" at your local guitar store. 

Good luck in your search, and have fun!


----------



## suttree (Aug 17, 2007)

devnulljp said:


> OP sure sounds like s/he'd like a Strat though.
> Here's a great pic of I think the Crossroads festival, and it's like a who's who of rock/blues guitar. Lots of Strats:


yah, you're right.. but then the list of music likes made me say a tele. i don't think a strat is quite as at home in punk rock (of which there's a lot listed) as a tele... also jimmy page has always been a big tele guy. 

don't get me wrong, it's the way you play the thing, not the thing itself that matters... the OP certainly won't go wrong with a strat (or an SG). i just thought i'd ring in on the tele side of the debate, because of all the guitars out there, i really am beginning to think it's the most versatile (which is odd considering it's about as simple as a guitar can get)...


----------



## ndiggity (Apr 2, 2008)

suttree said:


> yah, you're right.. but then the list of music likes made me say a tele. i don't think a strat is quite as at home in punk rock (of which there's a lot listed) as a tele... also jimmy page has always been a big tele guy.
> 
> don't get me wrong, it's the way you play the thing, not the thing itself that matters... the OP certainly won't go wrong with a strat (or an SG). i just thought i'd ring in on the tele side of the debate, because of all the guitars out there, i really am beginning to think it's the most versatile (which is odd considering it's about as simple as a guitar can get)...


My list of music i listen to was very random and not an indicative example of the ratio of genres of music i listen to. I don't listen to punk rock any more than say I listen to rock & roll, alternative, old metal, blues or jazz for instance. I apologize for the misleading post. With that in mind, would you still recommend a tele?


----------



## Stevo (Apr 3, 2008)

Yeah, I would go with a Tele or a Strat. An SG has a little more bite than a LP but it is in the same ballpark. 

I found a '50's Classic Player Strat on Ebay for $600 (not to be confused with the Classic Series, MUCH different guitars). New, they list for around $900 I think. They are made in Mexico but designed by the Custom Shop. They are fabulous guitars for the money. They feel/sound like a high end Strat but for quite a bit cheaper. I tried out a bunch of Strats and a local store and then tried to find the best deal I could, which happened to be Ebay (caveat emptor with online buying as always)

I have a Tele, a Strat and a PRS Custom 24 and they are all great for different things. I would say get a Strat right now if you like SRV/Eric Johnson/classic rock and then get a Tele later.


----------



## suttree (Aug 17, 2007)

ndiggity said:


> My list of music i listen to was very random and not an indicative example of the ratio of genres of music i listen to. I don't listen to punk rock any more than say I listen to rock & roll, alternative, old metal, blues or jazz for instance. I apologize for the misleading post. With that in mind, would you still recommend a tele?


you know, the more diverse your listening/playing tastes, the more i'd probably recommend a tele ... mike stern, jimmy page, jeff buckley, muddy waters, danny gatton, johnny greenwood, joe strummer, steve cropper, george harrison, andy summers, james root... there's a pretty wide variety of telecaster players.. the same can of course be said for strats and gibson stuff, too... i dunno.. you should buy the one you want the most, really... but i ended up with a telecaster after many guitars, and my tastes are more than a little eclectic.


----------



## biggreen (Mar 23, 2008)

Stevo said:


> Yeah, I would go with a Tele or a Strat. An SG has a little more bite than a LP but it is in the same ballpark.
> 
> *I found a '50's Classic Player Strat on Ebay for $600 (not to be confused with the Classic Series, MUCH different guitars). New, they list for around $900 I think. They are made in Mexico but designed by the Custom Shop. They are fabulous guitars for the money. They feel/sound like a high end Strat but for quite a bit cheaper. I tried out a bunch of Strats and a local store and then tried to find the best deal I could, which happened to be Ebay (caveat emptor with online buying as always)*
> 
> I have a Tele, a Strat and a PRS Custom 24 and they are all great for different things. I would say get a Strat right now if you like SRV/Eric Johnson/classic rock and then get a Tele later.



The Classic players strats are $800 at L&M. Personally I wouldn't buy it online for warranty reasons, and due to import duties and what not which can make it not worth while IMO just to save a couple bucks, plus supporting local is good as well, however...

I know quite a bit about this guitar, as I owned one for a couple weeks, but just returned it to the store yestarday. Here is the problem. It costs $800, and comes with a gig bag and a easily warped, cheesily white 1 ply pick guard. 

I started shopping around for a hardshell case, and even for a generic one it is $100, and to get a Fender 3 ply pickguard to dress it up a bit is another $50 bucks. Realizing that I could pick up an American standard for $999 it seemed pretty stupid to try and "save" $200, it would have cost me $200 alone to get the same SKB case that the American standard comes with. Not only that the American Standard came with a 1 peice body instead of a glued together like the Classic Players, nicer tuners, a thicker headstock, a better string tree, cream colord backlite instead of a weird combo of aged and brite white.

Don't get me wrong, the Players classic was well built and played well with it's awesome V neck, but for the money, it isn't worth it, not even close. The American standard is just leeps ahead of it, ever part of it is superior from the frets to the wood, not to mention the resale on mexi strats is pretty low. 

With all of that said, let me wrap this up by going back to my original point. I would have been stuck with the Players Classic and the bitter feeling of buyers remorse/stupidity had I not bought it locally from L&M. The allowed me to return the guitar 2 weeks after buying it and playing the hell out of it. I looked at teh American Standard but was loured into the thought of saving money, whcih turned out to be a non savings 2 weeks later when I was shopping for a new pick guard, hardshell case and better string tree. 

And even if you do decide to buy online, go with the American Classic, trust me on this one. The Players classic is priced out of it's range.

The Players classic









The 08 American Standard


----------



## Stevo (Apr 3, 2008)

Hmmm, interesting. Well, there ya have it, two totally different takes on the same guitar. I have gigged with my '50's Classic Player for about 6 months now and it feels better/sounds better than an American Standard I had in the past. I haven't had any issues with the build quality on it, the neck is amazing, and the pickups pull off vintage exceptionally. Gear is such a personal thing though so I guess we all find what works best for us. 

Hit a bigger Fender dealer and try out all the Teles and Strats in your price range. You may have to upgrade pickups later but some of those midrange guitars play well.


----------



## ndiggity (Apr 2, 2008)

biggreen said:


> The Classic players strats are $800 at L&M. Personally I wouldn't buy it online for warranty reasons, and due to import duties and what not which can make it not worth while IMO just to save a couple bucks, plus supporting local is good as well, however...
> 
> I know quite a bit about this guitar, as I owned one for a couple weeks, but just returned it to the store yestarday. Here is the problem. It costs $800, and comes with a gig bag and a easily warped, cheesily white 1 ply pick guard.
> 
> ...


Beautiful guitars, I also love sunburst. I would LOVE to get an American Classic except it is out of my price range. That's why am looking at the SG special faded as I believe its like $720 or something, or atleast thats what it is on lamusic. So maybe I could get a used american strat.

And i'm definately going to have to try out a tele the next time I go to L and M. My other option is to sell my Les Paul and get a slightly more expensive guitar, but I don't know if its worth it. The Gibson is just a little more than what I want to pay for, so I am very undecided.


----------



## ndiggity (Apr 2, 2008)

Stevo said:


> Hmmm, interesting. Well, there ya have it, two totally different takes on the same guitar. I have gigged with my '50's Classic Player for about 6 months now and it feels better/sounds better than an American Standard I had in the past. I haven't had any issues with the build quality on it, the neck is amazing, and the pickups pull off vintage exceptionally. Gear is such a personal thing though so I guess we all find what works best for us.
> 
> Hit a bigger Fender dealer and try out all the Teles and Strats in your price range. You may have to upgrade pickups later but some of those midrange guitars play well.


The L and M in my city has basically a wall of fender guitars, there is defintely not a lack to choose from :smile:


----------



## biggreen (Mar 23, 2008)

ndiggity said:


> Beautiful guitars, I also love sunburst. I would LOVE to get an American Classic except it is out of my price range. That's why am looking at the SG special faded as I believe its like $720 or something, or atleast thats what it is on lamusic. So maybe I could get a used american strat.
> 
> And i'm definately going to have to try out a tele the next time I go to L and M. My other option is to sell my Les Paul and get a slightly more expensive guitar, but I don't know if its worth it. The Gibson is just a little more than what I want to pay for, so I am very undecided.



Well, I know what you mean by out of your price range, but maybe it is worth saving up for. I mean really, Whats another $280 when you are talking about a guitar that costs nearly 3 times that. Does the Gibson come with a case? If you already have a Les Paul, then maybe an SG might be a bit more of the same. For me 1 Single coil fender and one Gibson make a beautiful pair.

As far as tele's go, my last great guitar was a 52 tele, I loved it. I didn;t get nearly the same tone options howev er as either of my other guitars and the neck was to narrow across the nut for my playing style, I was always muting strings unitentionally.




Stevo said:


> Hmmm, interesting. Well, there ya have it, two totally different takes on the same guitar. I have gigged with my '50's Classic Player for about 6 months now and it feels better/sounds better than an American Standard I had in the past. I haven't had any issues with the build quality on it, the neck is amazing, and the pickups pull off vintage exceptionally. Gear is such a personal thing though so I guess we all find what works best for us.
> 
> Hit a bigger Fender dealer and try out all the Teles and Strats in your price range. You may have to upgrade pickups later but some of those midrange guitars play well.


I agree with the build quality on the 50s player, it was fine, except for the pick guard which was lifting so high by the tone dials I could fit 3 pick widths inbetween the body and guard. I also really like the neck and the pickups had great tone.

For me it came down to them being the same price after a pickguard and case upgrade, and to me I could not justify it at all. It isn't that the Mexican Fender wasn't up to par for me, it was just that the American standard outshone it in nearly every respect for me, except for maybe that glossy, tinted V neck... :smile: Mind you the substantially thicker neck and headstock on the AC seems like it hold tune better when I am muscling it.


----------



## Robert1950 (Jan 21, 2006)

ndiggity said:


> Yeah, I'm disappointed I didn't. Can you get a good SRV tone out of it or have you tried?


I can get a distant resemblance. The amps he used were also important to his sound - Super Reverbs and Vibroverb. I just use a 5 watt Gibson GA-5 Tweed with TS9 and an Ibanez SL9 Flanger at home Almost gets me in the ballpark.


----------



## ndiggity (Apr 2, 2008)

biggreen said:


> Well, I know what you mean by out of your price range, but maybe it is worth saving up for. I mean really, Whats another $280 when you are talking about a guitar that costs nearly 3 times that. Does the Gibson come with a case? If you already have a Les Paul, then maybe an SG might be a bit more of the same. For me 1 Single coil fender and one Gibson make a beautiful pair.
> 
> As far as tele's go, my last great guitar was a 52 tele, I loved it. I didn;t get nearly the same tone options howev er as either of my other guitars and the neck was to narrow across the nut for my playing style, I was always muting strings unitentionally.


Sorry, but what guitar are you referring to that costs 3 times that? I have an Epiphone Les Paul Standard. I'm not sure if its this your referring to and you thought I had a Gibson one. I wish :smile: So I was thinking maybe sell my Epiphone and get a Gibson SG or keep the epiphone and get a strat or tele.


----------



## ndiggity (Apr 2, 2008)

Robert1950 said:


> I can get a distant resemblance. The amps he used were also important to his sound - Super Reverbs and Vibroverb. I just use a 5 watt Gibson GA-5 Tweed with TS9 and an Ibanez SL9 Flanger at home Almost gets me in the ballpark.


Awesome. I also thought he used a blues jr or maybe i misread or i'm crazy :smile: Did you throw on thicker strings too?


----------



## suttree (Aug 17, 2007)

SRV used a dumble a lot, too. and those cost more than many nice cars these days. he also used 13 gauge strings, and he had fingers of doom with laser beam eyes and stood 18 feet tall on a short day.

his tone is one of the hardest things to get in this world, because most people just aren't willing to beat the crap out of their guitars like he did.


----------



## biggreen (Mar 23, 2008)

ndiggity said:


> Sorry, but what guitar are you referring to that costs 3 times that? I have an Epiphone Les Paul Standard. I'm not sure if its this your referring to and you thought I had a Gibson one. I wish :smile: So I was thinking maybe sell my Epiphone and get a Gibson SG or keep the epiphone and get a strat or tele.


I was refering to the SG studio you were thinking of. If it is $720 and that is your price range. Either way, at the end of the day I wouldn't order any of these guitars online based on some opinions you read on a message board. Go in and play them live somewhere so you will know what you prefer, becaseu obviously your mileage may vary, everyone has a differnet opinion here and your will be differnet as well. If you can save up $700 I am sure you can save up more if it means getting the guitar you really want and not the guitar you think you can afford. Money is time, so if it takes longer than so be it.

As far as selling you epi to get a gibson, make sure you are doing it for the right reasons and not just so you can have a better name on the headstock.


----------



## ndiggity (Apr 2, 2008)

biggreen said:


> I was refering to the SG studio you were thinking of. If it is $720 and that is your price range. Either way, at the end of the day I wouldn't order any of these guitars online based on some opinions you read on a message board. Go in and play them live somewhere so you will know what you prefer, becaseu obviously your mileage may vary, everyone has a differnet opinion here and your will be differnet as well. If you can save up $700 I am sure you can save up more if it means getting the guitar you really want and not the guitar you think you can afford. Money is time, so if it takes longer than so be it.
> 
> As far as selling you epi to get a gibson, make sure you are doing it for the right reasons and not just so you can have a better name on the headstock.


Yeah i'm not planning on ordering online or if I do, it will be after I have spent significant time at the music store playing the guitars. And I know what you mean about the Gibson. I will play it and see if their is a perceivable difference in quality in my own opinion to justify the price difference.


----------



## biggreen (Mar 23, 2008)

good luck.


----------



## ndiggity (Apr 2, 2008)

Thanks alot for your input. I'll report back later with my findings. Stupid finals getting in the way of my playing


----------



## Robert1950 (Jan 21, 2006)

suttree said:


> ... and he had fingers of doom with laser beam eyes and stood 18 feet tall on a short day...



I was say he had fingers like Oktoberfest sausages, but I like Suttree's, description, much better.


----------



## elindso (Aug 29, 2006)

A freind of mine got a players strat that was like new from Dave's in WI for $450 plus another $120 sundries.

It's a great guitar. 

Rosewood neck and dark body.


----------



## ndiggity (Apr 2, 2008)

I went in to L & M today to try the guitars. I made the mistake of going on a weekend but it's the only chance I had to go for the next few weeks because of finals. So I played a strat and tele briefly and both felt good in my hands. I picked up the SG special faded and was shocked and it's lightness. It was hard to judge with it because it had clearly been played ALOT. The finish on the back of the neck was rough, there were dings on the front and the top of the neck had grooves in it so the frets were sticking out a bit on top. Hopefully when I go back in a while they will have one out in better shape.

I also have a question about amps. I only have a 15 watt amp so I need something louder to be able to be heard over drums. What would you folks recommend for minimum wattage and also, your recommendation for a good general rock amp?


----------



## Guest (Apr 8, 2008)

Before you buy anything go try a Reverend. I'm sold on these guitars.


----------



## ndiggity (Apr 2, 2008)

So, any recommendations on an amp for general rock music and what wattage will I need to be heard over the drummer? Also, has anyone here ordered guitars off the net? I will def play the model in person to make sure I like it but i'm wondering what duty and such is on guitars.


----------



## Robert1950 (Jan 21, 2006)

How loud is your drummer? There are some here than can get by with a 15 watt tube amp. Unless the drummer is possessed by the demons of Moon and Bonham, then you definitely got to go louder. How much can you spend on an amp?


----------



## NB-SK (Jul 28, 2007)

Robert1950 said:


> I can get a distant resemblance. The amps he used were also important to his sound - Super Reverbs and Vibroverb. I just use a 5 watt Gibson GA-5 Tweed with TS9 and an Ibanez SL9 Flanger at home Almost gets me in the ballpark.


My CIJ Fender with Texas Specials gets me right in the ballpark...I just can't play any of his songs yet. Baby steps.


----------



## Budda (May 29, 2007)

if you're looking for an amp, post in the amp section.


----------



## ndiggity (Apr 2, 2008)

Robert1950 said:


> How loud is your drummer? There are some here than can get by with a 15 watt tube amp. Unless the drummer is possessed by the demons of Moon and Bonham, then you definitely got to go louder. How much can you spend on an amp?


Ok well i'm looking for a new guitar and amp. My drummer is fairly new so he hasn't exactly developed a style yet so i'm not too sure on his average loudness. I have about $700 and I was going to spend it all on a guitar until I realized my 15 watt marshall would not be heard over the drummer. But I can always sell my Marshall and my Epi Les Paul and use this new amp to practice and play and still get a nice guitar. I'm not exactly a guitar god and I really have no need for two electrics ATM until I develop a style and improve my skills.


----------



## Tarl (Feb 4, 2006)

I can keep up to our drummer (and he is loud) with my 5 watt Blackheart through a 2x12. It has zero clean headroom at that volume though. A 15 to 50 watt tube combo should do the trick. New or used, Crate V series, Peavey Classics and Valvekings and Traynor YCVs are the ones I'd look at.


----------



## Robert1950 (Jan 21, 2006)

Just in case,... 15 SS watts does not equal 15 tube watts. Tube watts mucho louder.


----------



## Mogwaii (Feb 16, 2007)

75 watts SS will keep up with a drummer(and mine is loud!)

10-15 watts Tube should keep up with your drummer


----------



## zontar (Oct 25, 2007)

Robert1950 said:


> Just in case,... 15 SS watts does not equal 15 tube watts. Tube watts mucho louder.


I found that out years ago--my Roland still kept up--but I had to crank it higher when I jammed with guys with tubes & stacks.


----------



## ndiggity (Apr 2, 2008)

Robert1950 said:


> Just in case,... 15 SS watts does not equal 15 tube watts. Tube watts mucho louder.


Yes, thats what I have been reading. So I guess I am going to invest in a nice guitar and possibly a nice tube amp.


----------

