Fritzo
Lifer
I get PMed "What guitar should I buy" about twice a week, so I'd like to make an official list of good starter guitars so people have a reference (and I can just start sending a link as a reply 🙂 )
1) Squire Vintage Modified Tele SH">http://guitars.musiciansfriend...tric-Guitar?sku=512575</a>- made of an unusual Indian red cedar, the pickups and playability are as good as a $1200 tele. The bridge and tuners suck though- might need to upgrade them. If you do, you have a perfect Telecaster at a quarter the price. $299
2) Squire Vintage Modified Strat HSS - Same as above- great potential but needs new tuners/bridge (these are easy replacements). $299
3) Epiphone Les Paul Chameleon - Has an awesome paintjob and upgraded electronics, Grover tuners, and a tune-o-matic bridge. The pickups are a bit on the dark, heavy side, so this is a great choice for metal/rhythm players. This is a very well made guitar for the price. $399
4) ESP LTD FX-260 - A Gibson Explorer clone, this is probably one of the best deals on the low end market. It have ESP 300 pickups, which get crystal clear highs and very defined lows. It even has built in coil tapping (the ability to cut off half a pickup, giving it a Strat like sound). The only downside may be the guitar's shape- you can only play these if you're a stander---no sitting 🙂 The neck and frets are large too, so it might be too big if you have small hands. $399
5) Dean '79 Series - Dean is reissuing some of it's classic 70's designs, and they're really doing a nice job. Their new '79 series is made in Korea, but inspected and tested in the US. Great hardware and construction plus flashy designs are what made Dean famous. They have an "Explorer" version, plus a harder to find "V" version. Also featured are "out of phase" pickup wiring, which gives a unique sound when both pickups are used (listen to old BB King albums to hear what out of phase pickups sound like). This will give you a good classic rock/heavy metal sound, but as in the ESP, it's a stander---can't really sit and play with it. $499 - $619
6) Hagstrom Swede - Build quality on the Swedes are amazing for the price. They're like a cross between a Les Paul and a Gretsch, so you're going to get a range of sounds from classic rock to rockabilly to country. Not the best choice if you're a death metal player, but if you're into Brian Setzer, Scott Moore, Vince Gill, or Brad Paisley, you should drop everything and go buy this axe. $599
7) Michael Kelly Patriot - This guitar is another incredible bargain. High end Grover tuners, tune-o-matic bridge, and beautiful inlays aren't usually seen on guitars under $1000. It's a swiss army knife of tones as well...the PAF humbuckers work well with nearly any style. I love the company motto too- "You don't have to sell your car to buy a good guitar." It's got a medium neck and the frets about medium, so it's good for smaller hands but shredders may have some issues with speed. $369
8) Schecter C-1 FR and Damien FR The C-1 and it's offspring, the Damien FR are your speed metal champs. If you're able to bob your head 1000 miles an hour and play at 200bpm, this is the guitar for you. The pickups are made for distortion- the more the better. The locking Floyd Rose bridge actually stays in tune as well...something of a rarity in low end guitars. The tradeoff is, clean tones suck. The pickups are just too hot to give any clean signal. It's a one trick pony, but it does it better than anything else in it's price range. $499
9) Ibanez S320 S Series - These are in the same class as the Schecter above, but a bit more versatile. The locking Floyd Rose bridge actually holds tune, but the pickups aren't quite as hot as the Schecter, making it a bit more versatile. The build quality isn't quite as good as the Schecter, but it's still very good for it's price range. A definite must buy if you like heavy metal but want the option to play other styles. $499
10) Washburn Idol Series WI45 - One of the cooler low end axes out there, it can pretty much play anything. It's got a couple of unique features--- one is a very thin body. The body is actually wider, giving you more resting room for your hands, and it's decreased thickness make it comfortable to curl around (good for "sitters"). It also features Voice Contour Controls (VCC), which allows you to control the "hotness" of each coil on the humbucker. This is a pretty cool tool- you can get a lot of amazing tones from this. Hardware is top of the line, and build quality is on par with a $1500+ guitar. Highly recommended for nearly any style of playing. The only down side is the thin, wide body may not be comfortable for smaller sized players. $550.
Hope this helps those seeking answers.
1) Squire Vintage Modified Tele SH">http://guitars.musiciansfriend...tric-Guitar?sku=512575</a>- made of an unusual Indian red cedar, the pickups and playability are as good as a $1200 tele. The bridge and tuners suck though- might need to upgrade them. If you do, you have a perfect Telecaster at a quarter the price. $299
2) Squire Vintage Modified Strat HSS - Same as above- great potential but needs new tuners/bridge (these are easy replacements). $299
3) Epiphone Les Paul Chameleon - Has an awesome paintjob and upgraded electronics, Grover tuners, and a tune-o-matic bridge. The pickups are a bit on the dark, heavy side, so this is a great choice for metal/rhythm players. This is a very well made guitar for the price. $399
4) ESP LTD FX-260 - A Gibson Explorer clone, this is probably one of the best deals on the low end market. It have ESP 300 pickups, which get crystal clear highs and very defined lows. It even has built in coil tapping (the ability to cut off half a pickup, giving it a Strat like sound). The only downside may be the guitar's shape- you can only play these if you're a stander---no sitting 🙂 The neck and frets are large too, so it might be too big if you have small hands. $399
5) Dean '79 Series - Dean is reissuing some of it's classic 70's designs, and they're really doing a nice job. Their new '79 series is made in Korea, but inspected and tested in the US. Great hardware and construction plus flashy designs are what made Dean famous. They have an "Explorer" version, plus a harder to find "V" version. Also featured are "out of phase" pickup wiring, which gives a unique sound when both pickups are used (listen to old BB King albums to hear what out of phase pickups sound like). This will give you a good classic rock/heavy metal sound, but as in the ESP, it's a stander---can't really sit and play with it. $499 - $619
6) Hagstrom Swede - Build quality on the Swedes are amazing for the price. They're like a cross between a Les Paul and a Gretsch, so you're going to get a range of sounds from classic rock to rockabilly to country. Not the best choice if you're a death metal player, but if you're into Brian Setzer, Scott Moore, Vince Gill, or Brad Paisley, you should drop everything and go buy this axe. $599
7) Michael Kelly Patriot - This guitar is another incredible bargain. High end Grover tuners, tune-o-matic bridge, and beautiful inlays aren't usually seen on guitars under $1000. It's a swiss army knife of tones as well...the PAF humbuckers work well with nearly any style. I love the company motto too- "You don't have to sell your car to buy a good guitar." It's got a medium neck and the frets about medium, so it's good for smaller hands but shredders may have some issues with speed. $369
8) Schecter C-1 FR and Damien FR The C-1 and it's offspring, the Damien FR are your speed metal champs. If you're able to bob your head 1000 miles an hour and play at 200bpm, this is the guitar for you. The pickups are made for distortion- the more the better. The locking Floyd Rose bridge actually stays in tune as well...something of a rarity in low end guitars. The tradeoff is, clean tones suck. The pickups are just too hot to give any clean signal. It's a one trick pony, but it does it better than anything else in it's price range. $499
9) Ibanez S320 S Series - These are in the same class as the Schecter above, but a bit more versatile. The locking Floyd Rose bridge actually holds tune, but the pickups aren't quite as hot as the Schecter, making it a bit more versatile. The build quality isn't quite as good as the Schecter, but it's still very good for it's price range. A definite must buy if you like heavy metal but want the option to play other styles. $499
10) Washburn Idol Series WI45 - One of the cooler low end axes out there, it can pretty much play anything. It's got a couple of unique features--- one is a very thin body. The body is actually wider, giving you more resting room for your hands, and it's decreased thickness make it comfortable to curl around (good for "sitters"). It also features Voice Contour Controls (VCC), which allows you to control the "hotness" of each coil on the humbucker. This is a pretty cool tool- you can get a lot of amazing tones from this. Hardware is top of the line, and build quality is on par with a $1500+ guitar. Highly recommended for nearly any style of playing. The only down side is the thin, wide body may not be comfortable for smaller sized players. $550.
Hope this helps those seeking answers.
