Upgrading

ElaElaElano

Hey everyone,

I've been playing for about ten years now and still have my first guitar, an Epiphone LP. It's served me well and I love playing it, but a few months ago it had a bit of an accident and needs quite a bit of work.

The thing is I'd been humming and hawing over upgrading to a real Fender or Gibson for a while and now it's either fork out circa €100 to have my current guitar fixed, or just fork out the €600ish for a brand spanking new one, which I could end up fancying a couple of years down the line anyway.

Would those of you who went on to buy the real deal say there's a marked improvement or are they only pricier because of the name?

While I'm here, another quick question- has anyone here used the Boss Micro BR 4 track? I saw one on ebay for €150 which seems like a pretty sweet deal. I've got an itch to record some songs and want to get something that isn't too expensive but will do the job reasonably well.


Cheers

68 lost souls

Where are you getting 600 for a US fender or Gibson from? A US Standard Les Paul new willl set you back €2000 and a US standard Fender will be €1000. There is a notable difference between these and the squier/fender ranges.

Between an epiphone and a Gibson Studio les paul (€1000) there is not a huge noticeable difference.

EDIT: Forgot about the micro BR question. They are handy enough if you dont have a computer to record on. If you had a computer you could record on I would opt for a sound interface and some software. I would also look at buying in a bricks and mortar shop rather then ebay. They are about 170-180 in Dublin and would save you shipping fees and if you had any troubles the warranty would be sorted.

8k2q1gfcz9s5d4

As mentioned the jump from a standard epie LP to a gibson studio isn't massive. The neck is nicer on the gibson. You could get a second hand studio for around 700, used gibson standard from 1200 upwards. As for the fenders, for a second hand American, they go from 700 upwards.

Thornography

68 lost souls wrote: »

Where are you getting 600 for a US fender or Gibson from?

577euro on eBay from UK for stand American stratocaster.

That outa the way, There is a huge difference,

I played a fender squire stratocaster for 6-7 years as my first guitar, got the american standard on ebay a while ago and it blew my mind in the difference.

The natural sustain on notes is much improved, the feel of the neck is smooth and slippy for a bit of shredding, The build quality as a whole is just perfect, even the machine heads, they feel soft to tune but stay rock hard in tune.

Go for a standard if possible, But don't go beyond. Unless your going for something completely custom, I don't see the point in spending 2000+ on a guitar when you can buy several standards for the same price and never get bored

ElaElaElano

68 lost souls wrote: »

Where are you getting 600 for a US fender or Gibson from? A US Standard Les Paul new willl set you back €2000 and a US standard Fender will be €1000. There is a notable difference between these and the squier/fender ranges.

Between an epiphone and a Gibson Studio les paul (€1000) there is not a huge noticeable difference.

EDIT: Forgot about the micro BR question. They are handy enough if you dont have a computer to record on. If you had a computer you could record on I would opt for a sound interface and some software. I would also look at buying in a bricks and mortar shop rather then ebay. They are about 170-180 in Dublin and would save you shipping fees and if you had any troubles the warranty would be sorted.

Well, waltons are selling a standard tele for €530 reduced from €700. I know it's not the creme de la creme but that's my price range.

But actually I've just seen a beautiful 72 custom tele in black on adverts, that the guy is selling for €420 when it costs nearly €800 to buy. I've put a bid in, looks like a bargain if everything's in order, which he says it is.

Thanks for the tip on the micro BR.

Alanstrainor

The standard tele in waltons isn't an american standard though. It's a mexican, and they can be bought for less than 400 online. Here's one on GAK, and they're a great shop to deal with: LINK

68 lost souls

Thornography wrote: »

577euro on eBay from UK for stand American stratocaster.

In his first post he stated a new guitar, thats the price of a second hand guitar, just checked ebay myself to double check things and yup 800 sterling for a new one.

The mexicans upgraded their guitars in 2008 with better hardware and paint and since the new batch they are much closer to a us standard, the strat for example now has a thicker trem block which is much better then the thin ones they used to use.

You will notice the difference, like Thorn said, tuning stabillity is where you will notice it a lot. Epiphones are notorious for tuning issues, the machine heads on the higher models will be a decent bit better.

The best thing to do is play them and see what you think.

Thornography

68 lost souls wrote: »

In his first post he stated a new guitar, thats the price of a second hand guitar, just checked ebay myself to double check things and yup 800 sterling for a new one.

I bought mine brand new with tags e.t.c must have been lucky!

EDIT - just found out, dude was closing down his music shop in sussex, Explains the hella-cheap american strat

-Chris-

ElaElaElano wrote: »

Would those of you who went on to buy the real deal say there's a marked improvement or are they only pricier because of the name?

As the lads have said, there are various versions of "the real deal" depending on what guitar you're looking for. You'll need to do your research.

Take the Fenders for example, obviously you know the difference between a Squier and a Fender Strat, but when you've narrowed it down to a Fender Strat or Tele you then have to know if it's made in Mexico or Japan or USA.
A USA Strat is the "real deal", a mex strat is made in Mexico with cheaper bits and wood, but they're still good.
There's also a middle ground - the Mexican made Classic Player Strats are reputed to be excellent, and the Highway One Strats are USA made but have a simpler finish to make them cheaper than "real" USA Strats.

If you're not so hung up on the name, you can also look at G&L guitars - generally regarded as better guitars pound-for-pound but don't have the classic headstock/logo.

All the above applies to Teles too - it's a minefield!!! :P:D


The Gibsons are similar, Epiphone, Epiphone Elitist, Gibson Studio, "real" Gibson etc.
If you like the humbucker sound you have now, you could also look at the PRS SEs, they'd probably fit into budget too.


Start off by deciding what kind of guitar you like - Strats play very differently from Teles which play differently from Les Pauls.
Who's your favorite musician? Who would you like to sound like? Which guitar do you think looks cool (this is very important)?


When you have it narrowed down to a specific style of guitar, then you can start worrying about brands etc.

Thornography

-Chris- wrote: »

If you like the humbucker sound you have now, you could also look at the PRS SEs, they'd probably fit into budget too.

Agreed, If you dont want to go single coil I would highly recommend a PRS SE over a fender strat or tele.

8k2q1gfcz9s5d4

Thornography wrote: »

Agreed, If you dont want to go single coil I would highly recommend a PRS SE over a fender strat or tele.

or get a strat with a humbucker at the bridge. Works for me

-Chris-

I dunno, I'm a humbucker player but I liked the feel of my Strat so I put a stacked humbucker in the bridge. It doesn't sound quite right.

I realise some of it may be because it's stacked, but I also think that (for my sound) the humbucker is better suited to a mahogany body & neck than the alder body of my Strat. It growls more on the mahogany.

That being said, I find the humbucker on the Strat to be a nice compromise that gives a wider variety of tones. Horses for courses...

ElaElaElano

-Chris- wrote: »

As the lads have said, there are various versions of "the real deal" depending on what guitar you're looking for. You'll need to do your research.

Take the Fenders for example, obviously you know the difference between a Squier and a Fender Strat, but when you've narrowed it down to a Fender Strat or Tele you then have to know if it's made in Mexico or Japan or USA.
A USA Strat is the "real deal", a mex strat is made in Mexico with cheaper bits and wood, but they're still good.
There's also a middle ground - the Mexican made Classic Player Strats are reputed to be excellent, and the Highway One Strats are USA made but have a simpler finish to make them cheaper than "real" USA Strats.

If you're not so hung up on the name, you can also look at G&L guitars - generally regarded as better guitars pound-for-pound but don't have the classic headstock/logo.

All the above applies to Teles too - it's a minefield!!! :P:D


The Gibsons are similar, Epiphone, Epiphone Elitist, Gibson Studio, "real" Gibson etc.
If you like the humbucker sound you have now, you could also look at the PRS SEs, they'd probably fit into budget too.


Start off by deciding what kind of guitar you like - Strats play very differently from Teles which play differently from Les Pauls.
Who's your favorite musician? Who would you like to sound like? Which guitar do you think looks cool (this is very important)?


When you have it narrowed down to a specific style of guitar, then you can start worrying about brands etc.

Great post Chris, thanks for that mate..and everyone else.

I went down to my local music shop yesterday and tried out a good few different ones, but my heart was set on the Classic 72 Tele, don't know what it is exactly but I'm in love with it...so went ahead and bought one.

It's beautiful, really really nice to play and at €420 I think I got a bargain.

-Chris-

ElaElaElano wrote: »

my heart was set on the Classic 72 Tele, don't know what it is exactly but I'm in love with it...so went ahead and bought one.

That's probably the most important thing imho - my favorite guitar isn't my most expensive guitar, sometimes guitars just "talk" to you.

Wear well Eoin!

68 lost souls

Good luck with it and enjoy it.