Chinese guitars sure are getting pretty good...

[phucheneh]

I started trying to play a little while ago, after making a shitty attempt like ten years ago and quitting. Borrowed a cheap acoustic from a friend. Johnson, 'hand crafted in China' sticker inside it.

Not the easiest thing to play, but seems great for building chops. Also you get the 'playing with your buddy's johnson' jokes.

Decided to purchase a cheap electric. Assumed I would grab a cheap Strat clone. Walked out of Guitar Center with a Squier Telecaster for 150 bucks.

I am damned impressed. It both looks and plays great.

My only complaint is with (I think) personal preference stuff. Like the strings are way too light. Is this on purpose because of a weak bridge or truss rod or something? I'm told they're 9's...I probably want 11's. I have a set of 10's I can put on it, but am debating actually fooling with a brand new guitar, cheap as it may be. Once I start fucking with stuff...eh, it's a slippery slope.

Will post pics in a sec. Nothing special, just figured someone would say 'pics.' I'll try and include my manboobs.

 

[phucheneh]

Made of genuine gymnasium floor. Or something.

I can also record 'Mary had a Little Lamb' or something if you guys want.

 

[lxskllr]

I agree. You can get a playable instrument now for money that would have bought unplayable junk a couple decades ago. Nice choice. I love the Tele sound. You might as well play the strings until they break, and then put on what you want. I always liked Dean Markley 11s, and I'd replace the wound third with an unwound. You may have to tweak the truss rod, but that's part of normal setup. Same with the bridge intonation and height.

 

[Markbnj]

I don't play electric, but I had a similar experience a couple months ago when my Martin had to go to a luthier for a few weeks for a major overhaul. I picked up a $200 Yamaha to serve as a beater in the interrim, and was pleasantly surrpised at the build quality and playability. The quality of the wood isn't there, of course, so you get $200 worth of tone. But overall not bad.

 

[ViperXX]

I want a http://www.schecterguitars.com/ Please send money now.

 

[phucheneh]

I agree. You can get a playable instrument now for money that would have bought unplayable junk a couple decades ago. Nice choice. I love the Tele sound. You might as well play the strings until they break, and then put on what you want. I always liked Dean Markley 11s, and I'd replace the wound third with an unwound. You may have to tweak the truss rod, but that's part of normal setup. Same with the bridge intonation and height.

I had a bottom-rung Ibanez RG in high school because OMG METAL. For the $300 or so it costed (IIRC- RG270), you could definitely see some quality. Mostly in the neck and fretboard...the painted body...why oh why did I ever think gloss black was a good idea. But that sucker was heavy and just said "I'm made pretty damn well.'

But it makes me appreciate that this is light, simple, and all the things that actually matter are well-executed. Straight neck, low action; plays clean. Pickups are 'meh' but they make the proper 'Tele' sound and between the controls on the guitar and volume/tone on the little Marshall practice amp I'm using, I can get some pretty sweet sound.

Little bit of humming/interference issues, but they come and go with tweaking. With the selector in the middle, I am amazed at how clean it is, actually. Really good transition from an acoustic, as far as sound is concerned. Technique-wise....having issues. I was really beating that Johnson (har) and this is so delicate in comparison.

How much does changing the strings fuck it up? Like, if I wanted to aim for 11's and a step down on standard tuning, will I need to redo every adjustable widget on the thing?

edit: it's this guitar-
http://www.guitarcenter.com/Squier-...Special-Electric-Guitar-102320439-i1148535.gc

$155 in-store through Labor Day, I guess. The $90 Strats honestly seemed pretty decent, too. A <$100 Strat used to be something you bought from a pawn shop heavily used. With 'quirks.' ...not a brand-new perfectly-capable guitar. Tele seems have a wider range, though. All I have are two practice amps, and these two stock pickups, and boy can I lean every which way in the 'tonality' department. With or without some distortion.

 

[lxskllr]

Buzz is a single coil trait. It's hard to get away from that. Even with the buzz, I still prefer them to humbuckers. Heavier strings will almost certainly bend the neck more, and if that isn't acceptable, you'll have to tighten the truss rod. You may also need to raise the action a touch to prevent fret buzz. Since you're doing all of that, you might as well set the intonation if it isn't right, and fine tune the pickup height for optimal sound.

 

[phucheneh]

I understand the hum. It's okay. I was saying I was impressed with how much it drops out when you use both pickups. It's a very rich, clean sound from two pickups that would otherwise be mildly unimpressive.

Sooo...redo everything? Heh. I dunno if pickup height it adjustable. And I need to use a guide for intonation or something.

 

[lxskllr]

Are they 4 position switches now? Mine's a 53 reissue, and it's made to the original specs, which was a 3 position switch. You had to balance it to blend the pickups(which cancels hum). It's bridge position, neck position, and neck position in mud mode(very low tone). I don't remember how to set the pickup height on them. It's been forever since I picked up my guitars. The idea is you want maximum gain without choking off the string which kills sustain. That's just a preference. You don't /need/ maximum gain.

To set the intonation, you want the 12th fret to have the same pitch but an octave up from the open string. If it's flat, you move the bridge saddle towards the nut, and if it's sharp, move it away from the nut. Its a time consuming process, with lots of trial and error, but you only have to do it once unless you make major changes to the guitar geometry.

 

[phucheneh]

3 position switch. I think they used alter the tone with the switch, but no longer do. Though this Squier is obviously modelled after the vintage 50's guitar, it has the simple neck/blend/bridge switch and a separate tone knob. I can't remember how the old school tone knob worked, but IIRC it was different.

I'm guessing I gotta pull the pick guard to do anything with the pickups. Which I won't.

I already raised the action a bit on the heavy strings to avoid buzz, and also they just seemed loud when strumming chords, so hopefully that will quiet them a bit. But now I really need to set intonation, yeah?

 

[midwestfisherman]

Chinese crap. I own many guitars and have played since the early 80's. I will not buy a Chinese made guitar. Why should I reward them for ripping off the technology and artistry that was invented here in the U.S.? Screw 'em!

 

[Ksyder]

On a related note, except for the stupid brand name, like many chinese knockoff products, the Monoprice guitar line looks pretty decent for the price.

I went into guitar center with my brother who is a guitar aficionado recently and I couldn't believe how prices have come down. In the 90's when I was really into music, even the cheapest squire strats and such were at least $200.

 

[Triumph]

I agree that what you can get for the money is pretty crazy nowadays. My first guitar was a mid 90's squier strat apparently made out of recycled fence posts and pot metal. Nowadays you can buy a 200 dollar entry strat that doesn't cut your fingers on the frets and can actually hold tuning.

But, I won't buy a made in China guitar. Political reasons, mainly. I purposely looked for a used LTD made in Korea for that reason, and it's a Really nice guitar.

 

[mrblotto]

Congrats on the purchase. Have fun with it. One good thing about purchasing an 'inexpensive' guitar is when you mess up something, you're not too stressed over monkeying with a high value object.

I've messed with the intonation on one of mine (80's Ovation Preacher) and soon realized I didn't know wtf I was doing. It's still messed up, and I'm too lazy to take it anywhere atm. I didn't pay much for it, so it wasn't an expensive mistake lmao. I'll get it taken care of eventually tho. A couple friends mentioned using a 'strobe tuner' or something like that, but I'd rather take it to someone who actually knows how to do it lol.

On a semi-related note: The ONE time I took a guitar to a 'guitar store', it was to rewire an old-timey (well, ok early 80's) Washburn G2V w/the 50lb gigantor Wonderbar tremolo. Guy had it for like a week and never touched it. It wasn't like they were super busy either. I was like 'wtf dude', went back in and replaced the pickups, pots, locking nut, pickup selector switch, and pickguard myself.

On a related note - I usually use 10's on mine. Just a preference I reckon......

Did NOT come for manboobs pics

not leaving disappointed lol

Again, congrats on the purchase May your calluses form rapidly!

 

[phucheneh]

But, I won't buy a made in China guitar. Political reasons, mainly. I purposely looked for a used LTD made in Korea for that reason, and it's a Really nice guitar.

If it makes a difference, we're talking Taiwan, not Communist Motherland China.

There is political difference between the two, yes; but in a more general sense, Taiwanese products just ALWAYS seem to be head and shoulders above their mainland competitors.

And this is a computer forum...so chances are you've bought Acer, Asus, or other 'Chinese' (Taiwanese) products quite a bit.

blotto - Yeah I already done goofed...put the 10's on it. Fucked with the action. And thusly I assume all the intonation is boned. LOL. I'll fix it decent enough. Funny, though, makes me realize that this had a really good setup from the factory; just felt too delicate for my liking with the light strings and low action.

 

[phucheneh]

Chinese crap. I own many guitars and have played since the early 80's. I will not buy a Chinese made guitar. Why should I reward them for ripping off the technology and artistry that was invented here in the U.S.? Screw 'em!

Eh...The snob opinion used to be more 'LOL Chinese; you noob!'

Now it seems more like 'LOL, you don't know how much value some Chinese guitars give you? Noob!' ;P

But on the tech thing, well...can't exactly call it stealing. Squier has 'official' Fender associations for a reason...it's a symbiotic relationship. Helps move Squier products, but also continues to build the Fender brand and get people moving up the ladder into the real $$$ guitars.

 

[Imp]

Meh, if Mexican strats are supposedly as good as Americans, there's no reason they can't find a few thousand luthiers and guitar craftsmen among a billion people.

 

[Fritzo]

Eh...The snob opinion used to be more 'LOL Chinese; you noob!'

Now it seems more like 'LOL, you don't know how much value some Chinese guitars give you? Noob!' ;P

But on the tech thing, well...can't exactly call it stealing. Squier has 'official' Fender associations for a reason...it's a symbiotic relationship. Helps move Squier products, but also continues to build the Fender brand and get people moving up the ladder into the real $$$ guitars.

It's all in the wood and electrics. Chinese guitars are cheap because the tend not to use tone woods, meaning you'll get a playable guitar, but the sound and sustain are flat. Winding pickups is an art, and if you look at Chinese pickups they usually have wire wrapped all over hell, resulting in buzz and poor response.

I've had my share of Chinese instruments. They're fine to screw around with, but once you know what you're looking for you'll see why they're so cheap.

 

[mrblotto]

......blotto - Yeah I already done goofed...put the 10's on it. Fucked with the action. And thusly I assume all the intonation is boned. LOL. I'll fix it decent enough. Funny, though, makes me realize that this had a really good setup from the factory; just felt too delicate for my liking with the light strings and low action.

Just spent the last 1/2 hour googling 'intonation vs string size'.

I've seen everything from 'omg you need to change/adjust it!' to 'most folks wont notice a difference' when changing string gauges

So my guess on your intonation needing to be changed = maybe? I've not messed with my other guitars after my above-mentioned debacle.

I'm guessing:
-The intonation is set 'good enough' for me not to notice (probably this)
-I've used the same size (.010's) forever, thus no monkeying needed
-Got lucky

You may have to adjust the action tho a bit, although if you thought the action was too low, then thinner (lighter) strings should result in a minute difference. Only time will tell if it's to your liking. Did you get an amp with it as well?

 

[Triumph]

Thicker strings = more tension on floating bridge (if present) and on the neck (truss rod), so yes it can affect the distance between the nut and the bridge and thereby changing the intonation. But that's just theory, every guitar is different so you may or may not notice it.

 

[phucheneh]

It's all in the wood and electrics. Chinese guitars are cheap because the tend not to use tone woods, meaning you'll get a playable guitar, but the sound and sustain are flat. Winding pickups is an art, and if you look at Chinese pickups they usually have wire wrapped all over hell, resulting in buzz and poor response.

I've had my share of Chinese instruments. They're fine to screw around with, but once you know what you're looking for you'll see why they're so cheap.

I think that's just the thing, though- for stuff that's not terribly intricate and/or can be made through automated processes, I think cheap materials and labor can work pretty well.

The Telecaster is such a simple design, and I'm sure that the generally very positive reviews (considering price) of the Yako-made Teles has something to do with that. Everything is cheap but competently-manufactured, with the little bit of money they put into the instrument really going into what counts. In this case, I think the neck. The body seems nice, too, but it is, after all, just a hunk of wood with a decent-looking finish.

As far as an amp, I have a Fender 25R from high school that was gathering dust...and continues to. Been using a little 10w Marshall instead. It's still a cheapo amp, but it just seems to not have as much hum, feedback, or general noisiness issues. Might just be more sensitive to interference.

And as far as intonation and action on the Tele- the strings just seemed too low for me. A little buzz on the low ones, and generally just not that great for my not-so-precise touch. I need a little more feedback from the string, hence thicker and a little higher seeming like the right idea.

I can generally 'feel out' stuff good enough to set up a guitar decently. A pro might find it laughably bad, but it does what I want. I'm following instructions for intonation right now, though...we'll see how that goes.

Also of note, I was getting some more random stuff today and asked the Guitar Center dude if there was something kind of in the middle of your normal Fender light and medium picks. I got a 'not really' response, but he handed me a pack of Dunlop Tortex .60mm's and said they might be worth a try...shit! They're perfect! Why did I ever use Fender picks?! They actually are right in the middle...looks like Fender lights are .50mm and mediums are .73mm (of that's the supposed 'average,' at least). The Dunlops don't rotate themselves in my hand, either.

 

[lxskllr]

I always liked a fairly high action. I played slow and hard(and sloppy :^P ), so I didn't need the speed you get from a low action. I liked Tortex picks also. I got them in the standard Fender shape, whatever you call that, but I don't remember the gauge. Seems to me they were very similar to Fender mediums, but snappier.

 

[phucheneh]

Sounds like we have rather similar tastes. You must be a terrible guitar player. :awe:

I tried using the '12th fret harmonic' method for setting intonation. It works okay. It would help to have a) a better ear or b) a tuner that is not my cellphone

...although the funnily-named 'gStrings' is a really good little app to have. Even with my cheapass phone, it seems at least as accurate as a cheap tuner.

 

[Ichinisan]

He he i liek gitarrs huh huh huh

They are cool.

Seriously...you guys are talking way over my head. I thought about learning to play guitar and now I'm intimidated.

 

[mrblotto]

I love those Dunlop picks. I use the red .50's. They dont seem to get as 'slippy' and move around so much in my fingers.

I used a Line6 Pod when I attempted to set the intonation on my Ovation. Yeah, it did not go well:
-pluck open string - observe gauge/display thingee
-pluck 12th fret - see difference
-adjust saddle 'till it looks right on the display
-repeat for all 6 strings. Tune guitar - is completely out of whack
-completely forget where the original positions for saddles were
-say the hell with it and 'split the diff' from where I think the saddles originally were
-tighten everything down, go drink a beer and forget I even attempted it lol