posted
OK, I am potentially in the market for a new electric guitar. I currently have an Ovation acoustic, a few saxophones, and drums and a keyboard laying around the house.
One thing that I have learned, especially with saxophones, is that I am not really interested in a "student" or "beginner" model when it comes to buying an electic.
The problem is that I have no experience whatsoever with what I need to accessorize either, and I want to avoid buying all this gear that I will end up replacing in a year. I plan on trying to play almost nothing but rock, not blues or jazz or any other styles.
If I had to throw out a few names, I love the Gibson Les Paul Studio and the Fender Stratocasters are nice too, but have never played either. I most likely will make a mecca to the nearest Guitar Center and see what they have before I make any serious decision, but I was hoping all Hatrack Guitarists could give me some sound advice (get it, "sound" har har!).
As far as accessories, I plan on getting a nice amp and have seen and heard this cool little box that Joe Satriani uses to sound so darn cool. I NEED one of those badly...
Do you have a local equivalent of the Recycler in the LA area, where people list things for sale? That's how my dad got his, a beautiful old ASAT. It's got this totally gorgeous sound. My dad's friend picked up a Legacy for $600 the same way. Also a wonderful sound.
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I live in the remote area of NW PA. Imagine the movie Deliverance with a Wal-Mart nearby and that is where I live. I love my small town lifestyle, but shopping occurs mainly over the internet. I have to make a trip to Pittsburgh to find any neat specialty shops or flyers to find what your relatives did.
BTW, G&L is a mystery to me. Help, it has been a hard week and I burned out all the really good brain cells.
My Uncle has this sweet Gibson, black and I introduced him to Joe Satriani once upon a summer in the late 80s. The next summer I went down, he had purchached this cool box that made him sound like Joe. He then popped a tape in his 16-track recorder and played the lead to a Satriani song in which his band played the background on the tape.
I was completely blown away. It was like Eddie Van Halen jamming right in my face. At that point when I heard my Uncle play, and knew that he had toured all up and down the East Coast with his band in the 70s, that I should give up my dreams of being a musician, and get a good day job. Especially since he was selling insurance for a division of American Express and now works admission at a college.
But my uncle is the best guitarist I have ever heard play (as far as being in the same room with and of course not counting going to a concert etc...)
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posted
G & L stands for George and Leo. The Leo in question is Leo Fender, the guy who founded the Fender Guitar company. G & L is the company they founded after Leo sold Fender.
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posted
Thanks, Derrell. Here's the official website. You will notice they are humongously expensive (although not that expensive, actually, for the quality they are.) Try to find a used one; they wear well and will still sound and look great if they've been taken care of.
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posted
No. But my dad plays at a pro level, and hangs out with a lot of pro and semi-pro musicians. I can tune a guitar by ear, just not play.
My dad used to be amazed, because when I was 6 or 7, I started saying, "Something on the bottom is flat...", and I was always right. It's cause I'd been around him tuning for 7 years!
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posted
I've been trying to teach myself to play. I have a Squier Stratocaster that was part of a beginner's package I bought from Musician's Friend, which is the online version of Guitar Center.
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I haven't practiced in about half a year, because the baby likes to "help" when she's awake, and I usually wake her when she's not. Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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posted
I used to play a mean electric bass. I plan on getting one for my mid-life crisis. Unfortunately, that's not scheduled for at least another fifteen years or so.
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I was way out there with saxophone in high school and college. I sold off my student model that I used for marching band, and ended up with an H-Couf E-flat Alto and a Conn Soprano that I had replated in silver. It is beautiful. Because I could tell such a difference between my Couf and my student model is my whole basis for trying to buy as much guitar as my talents could hope to use. Basically, I don't want to be shopping all over again in a year or two, but I suppose that too is part of the fun!
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posted
Hey, man, if this goes the way I hope it does, I plan on getting a bass, too. But I won't be as picky with what I play there. And yes, I am having a bit of a mid-life crisis. I have spent days and weeks on this revisitation of Iron Maiden, and have begun collecting all the Rush songs I miss from my adolescence.
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posted
To be honest, check the time of my post. I could not sleep, because I had not played before bed (had to work all day). So I am getting up to jam a while before work this morning.
Edit:
Here is a quick review from Guitar Player Magazine:
quote: M520 The next rung on the M Series ladder gets you to the M520, a more sophisticated ax that features mahogany construction, a set neck, neat binding (with just some minor paint bleed in a couple of spots), and a better setup. The 520 looks great with its honey-colored top, and its Mighty Mite pickups sound more complex than the exposed-coil Powersounds found on the M200. A hip extra is the coil-split function, which disables the inside coils of both humbuckers when you pull upward on the Tone control. It’s a handy thing on a guitar that has only one set of controls as it allows the M520 to elicit brighter, more detailed tones (albeit at slightly reduced volume) than the full humbuckers provide.
The M520’s medium-thickness, 12"-radius neck (the same radius used on all the M Series guitars) feels excellent, and the lightly polished jumbo frets make for silky bending and fast fingering. Upper fret access is groovatious thanks to the deep cutaway (another attribute shared by all of these guitars), and the moderate weight and neutral balance make the 520 a joy to perform with. The M520 sustains well, which is partly credited to its solid M2 bridge and top-loading stop tailpiece. With its robust tones and engaging feel, the M520 is a kick. It sounds bright and complex when played cleanly, and it pumps out massive grind when pushing a hot amp channel. The 520’s tonal spectrum makes it suitable for just about any style you want to throw at it, and even pro players should find a lot to like about this bargain-priced champ.
I like the mentality of the company a lot. Here are some more quotes from Art Thompson at Guitar Player on Cort and another model they make. I like the quotes because they hint at the mindset of the company: Professional guitars at bargain prices...
quote: Though Cort has long been synonymous with budget guitars, the company has elevated its status considerably in recent years with a series of high-end models that bear the signatures of pros such as Larry Coryell, Matt “Guitar” Murphy, Joe Beck, and Hiram Bullock. The M1200 is yet another reminder of Cort’s ability to deliver “custom shop” quality at a very reasonable price. Featuring a lovely maple top, a two-piece mahogany body, and a set mahogany neck with an intricate, tree-of-life inlay, the M1200 is a beautiful instrument by any measure. But, unlike many dolled-up imports, the M1200 truly plays and sounds like a pro guitar.
quote: Offering many of the fine cosmetic and workmanship details of guitars in the over-$3,000 class, the M1200 is a great choice for anyone who yearns for a flashy custom at a Wal-Mart price. But unlike one of those disposable Tag-Heuer lookalikes that grandma slips into your stocking at Christmas, the M1200 performs like the premium deal. It’s usually a dumb idea to buy a guitar based on looks alone, but if the M1200 catches your eye, rest assurred it’ll totally satisfy your other senses.
Like I said, I could have dumped a bunch of money on a Les Paul and bought a dinky amp, but I got a great guitar and twice the amp for less money than the Les Paul. I even had the shop throw in $100 of Freebies and negotiated a decent package deal.
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