# Electric guitar shopping: recommendations? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 31, 2014, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-guitar-shopping-recommendations/703182 "2014-10-31T23:22:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Poto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ab992/32.png) [@Poto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poto)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2014, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-guitar-shopping-recommendations/703182/41 "2014-11-04T16:27:13Z")
> [@scabpicker](#): > > I’m sorry, but I strongly disagree with this reasoning. I’ve got off-brand guitars that are older than I am with straight, true necks. There may be good reasons to only consider name brands\*, but neck stability isn’t one I’ve ever heard of. > > \*E.G. Customer care. When you have a name, you have to protect it. We had a …Squire…made under Fender. The neck did not survive 2 teenagers. A real Fender would have. We repaired it and it did fine till we sold it. Sorry about the Les Paul Blunder. I’ve never played one. My 1969 guitar was a Del Rey from Woolworths. The neck outlasted the rest. ---
**Author:** ![Poto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ab992/32.png) [@Poto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poto)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2014, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-guitar-shopping-recommendations/703182/42 "2014-11-04T17:01:15Z")
> [@Satellite\_Guy](#): > > just checking out some pics of Pallbearer, it looks like they use Les Paul, SG, and even Strat and Telecaster. There are other guitars in the pics, but I don’t recognize the more generic styles. > I think a Les Paul might be the best of these, for rhythm. > In a video of them live, I see an [Orange](https://www.orangeamps.com/) amp. Beautiful amps, but pricey. I just checked out a demo of the amp you have, and it seems to be capable of doing the job just fine. SG sounds good. Reseach the SG. Not for everybody. A kind of heavy massive thing. Strong neck! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2014, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-guitar-shopping-recommendations/703182/43 "2014-11-04T17:26:45Z")
> [@Poto](#): > > SG sounds good. Reseach the SG. Not for everybody. A kind of heavy massive thing. Strong neck! 😃 Hmm, I think I may be being whooshed like the Wright brothers would be by a SR-71, but: SG’s have strong necks? Uhhhh-uhhhh. That Gibson I own with a repaired neck is an SG Jr., which has a baseball bat in comparison to a regular SG’s neck. The only Gibson neck that I think is more likely to snap in a fall is a Firebird, which has a similar profile as an SG on a longer body. If you’re just making a sonic boom as you’re passing by: I’m gullible as hell. Good one, but not a Herculean task. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Poto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ab992/32.png) [@Poto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poto)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2014, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-guitar-shopping-recommendations/703182/44 "2014-11-04T17:48:51Z")
There we have it then, original poster. Do not buy a Fender or Gibson or anything owned by them, because name brands are crap and the necks will break at first drop. 😃 Which American brand is left to trash? ---
**Author:** ![Poto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ab992/32.png) [@Poto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poto)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2014, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-guitar-shopping-recommendations/703182/45 "2014-11-04T18:11:06Z")
Scab, were you talking about the head stock? Cheap guitars like our Squire fail at the body to neck connection and won’t stay in tune. Nearly all guitars at discount stores are like that. Pay 800-1000 and you should be in reliable territory. ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2014, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-guitar-shopping-recommendations/703182/46 "2014-11-04T18:11:13Z")
> [@Poto](#): > > There we have it then, original poster. Do not buy a Fender or Gibson or anything owned by them, because name brands are crap and the necks will break at first drop. 😃 > > Which American brand is left to trash? :dubious: I don’t think I’ve trashed anyone here. If you read my posts, I advised buying an SG upthread. Otherwise, thanks for spreading misinformation. ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2014, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-guitar-shopping-recommendations/703182/47 "2014-11-04T18:18:24Z")
> [@Poto](#): > > Scab, were you talking about the head stock? > > Cheap guitars like our Squire fail at the body to neck connection and won’t stay in tune. Nearly all guitars at discount stores are like that. > > Pay 800-1000 and you should be in reliable territory. Seriously, this is a known problem with Gibsons. If you haven’t seen them with repaired necks, then you haven’t been shopping old ones, or you’ve been lucky. I think this guy is hyperbolic, but he covers Les Pauls pretty well: [http://www.edroman.com/rants/les\_paul\_necks.htm](http://www.edroman.com/rants/les_paul_necks.htm) In reply to his rant (which by his claim must keep him in business, they’re 81% of his work): [Fix the damn thing.](http://www2.gibson.com/News-Lifestyle/Features/en-us/What-To-Do-When-Your-Guitar-Breaks.aspx) They usually play and sound beautiful, that they’re fragile is part of the bargain. ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2014, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-guitar-shopping-recommendations/703182/48 "2014-11-04T18:58:26Z")
> [@Poto](#): > > Cheap guitars like our Squire fail at the body to neck connection and won’t stay in tune. Nearly all guitars at discount stores are like that. > > Pay 800-1000 and you should be in reliable territory. And to address the neck/body connection: What are you talking about? The days of hollow-body electrics that can’t handle a set of heavy strings ended around the release of the Doors’ last record. You should get a good neck/body joint in any guitar that’s $100 or more these days. There’s a lot of improvement to be had in a Squier or a Wal-Mart special, but the neck/body joint is fine. It’s the hardware and pickups that might be a mess in 6 months. After 40 years, that hardware is abominable. My Squier Bass VI’s problem is that the bridge isn’t wide enough to intonate the strings it came with. My Chinese tele copy could intonate fine for a medium set of strings, but to string it with heavy strings, I had to grind down the back of the saddles. I’m still debating grinding the back of the Bass VI’s saddles, or buying a better guitar. I’ll probably do the former, because the joy of cheap guitars is that you can massacre them without remorse. Again, cheap hardware is the bugbear of the cheap guitar. If you’re plowing a ton of gain on there, and not just a little, the hardware is your Achilles heel. Not the wood, not the pickups, not the shape, it’s the hardware. I love cheap guitars, I’m a cheapskate. They’ve got problems, I love them anyway. Spending more than 1K on a guitar might get you a better guitar forever. I spent 3K on a guitar and I love it, but it’s not 10x the guitars I have bought for $300. I think paying more guarantees you some sort of response form support when you complain about it. But, then again, I’m going off of what internet forum posts claim. For all I know, they ignore you as if you had bought an Epiphone or a Squier, I’ve never called support on a guitar. ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2014, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-guitar-shopping-recommendations/703182/49 "2014-11-04T19:12:36Z")
And if you have the pickups from the Del Rey, I will buy them from you! ---
**Author:** ![Learjeff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/94ad74/32.png) [@Learjeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Learjeff)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2014, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-guitar-shopping-recommendations/703182/50 "2014-11-04T19:35:45Z")
> [@Cubsfan](#): > > Hmm… though I’ve played for a long time I’m definitely a leisure player at this point and wouldn’t categorize myself as an expert at any of this but I’d think anyone who has played an electric guitar for a year or more would easily be able to identify a single coil vs. humbucker in a blind test. Yes, it was hyperbole. > [@Cubsfan](#): > > Also #2. It may just be personal preference, but I refuse to play anything other than a fixed bridge now. No whammy needed or wanted, particularly a Floyd Rose style dive bomb floating system. They are godawful to keep in tune for any period of time, a pain in the ass to replace strings on (IMHO) and no body has used a WHAMMY bar since the late 90’s so f it. Floaters are hell to deal with in alternate tunings as the springs get all out of balance and shit, even for simple things like Drop D. When I got my 65 Jazzmaster, the tremolo bridge was already locked down. I left the trem bar in the case, for about 15 years, because I’m picky about tuning and had heard all the rumors, had played with guys with whammy bars and heard the results. Then one day on a lark I set it up, and LOVED it, always put it on when I play it, and never have any tuning issues. That said, the Jazzmaster has a relatively unusual tremolo bar, only good for subtle use, no dive bombing possible. I agree with your sentiments in general, but was surprised to find that it’s not a fundamental truth. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2014, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-guitar-shopping-recommendations/703182/51 "2014-11-04T19:42:34Z")
Enjoying yourself on this thread, **scabpicker**? 😉 Fighting Ignorance! I basically agree: Gibson’s design specifics and their contribution to their sound, and to unfortunate headstock breaks are well known. I have had one or many Gibsons in my _guitarsenal_ (bonus points for using that word!) for something like 30 years and never had an issue. Keep the guitar in a case and with you/locked some place. It’s not hard to figure out - but onstage knockovers are the worst, but can happen. Strap locks, people! ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2014, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-guitar-shopping-recommendations/703182/52 "2014-11-04T19:54:05Z")
I’d suggest the OP either buy used or watch for discounted close out sales. I linked a really good PRS model closeout earlier. with two sellers. I’m sure other brands have similar mark downs. One issue with metal playing is the extra wear and tear on the gear. I knew a guy years ago that taught me for awhile. He commented several times that a couple years playing metal messed up his gear. I know he replaced his amp and I’m not sure about his guitar & other gear. He was a working musician that played in various local bands. Country, metal, rock, it didn’t matter to him. It was a paycheck and he didn’t have to work 9 to 5. ---
**Author:** ![Poto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ab992/32.png) [@Poto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poto)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2014, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-guitar-shopping-recommendations/703182/53 "2014-11-04T19:58:17Z")
Thanks for playing, serious dude. If I had the interest to relearn all I’ve forgotten, I would get a Fender. As it is, I am playing only my daughter’s Ovation that she did not take to college this year. We got rid of the Squire and amp. ---
**Author:** ![Poto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ab992/32.png) [@Poto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poto)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2014, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-guitar-shopping-recommendations/703182/54 "2014-11-04T23:44:52Z")
Not exactly metal, but this is what I think of with Gibson SG [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/-Jh6wnmRbvQ/hqdefault.jpg "FRANK ZAPPA - muffin man - Live 1977") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Jh6wnmRbvQ) I only had one in my hand in the store, unplugged, and the fretboard is not for me. It was very awkward for someone who plays folk acoustic guitar mainly. My kids were the ones with the electric guitar lessons. ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2014, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-guitar-shopping-recommendations/703182/55 "2014-11-05T19:42:14Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > Enjoying yourself on this thread, **scabpicker**? 😉 Fighting Ignorance! > > I basically agree: Gibson’s design specifics and their contribution to their sound, and to unfortunate headstock breaks are well known. I have had one or many Gibsons in my _guitarsenal_ (bonus points for using that word!) for something like 30 years and never had an issue. Keep the guitar in a case and with you/locked some place. It’s not hard to figure out - but onstage knockovers are the worst, but can happen. Strap locks, people! Oooh, I might have come across as kinda shrill and know-it-all, there, huh? Really, I’m quite like-able in person. I’m a know it all, but I know that, too. **Poto** , you just spoke on two breeds of guitars I like a lot, and shop for quite a bit. Your opinions don’t reflect my experience. I was able to find lots of cites for Gibsons breaking, but none for a systematic problem with early Asian guitar necks warping. The difference in reported problems might be the converse of my argument. No one complains when their free Guyatone neck warps, but everyone who pays for a 1K Les Paul with a high fret is going to be unhappy. But in my experience, you pay your nickel and takes your chances, no matter how much you pay. If you pay more, you can expect to get it fixed if it’s funky when it’s delivered to you. Apropos of nothing in particular: I think I’m probably going to find a way to buy the SGJ 2014 that I recommended, it looks like it’s the perfect spot between cheap and good, and I wouldn’t have been looking without this thread. Thanks, **spazurek**! I’ll blame you when I get asked questions by the wife. If I shopped less and played more, I’d be a better guitarist. But at the end of the day, you can rule the world with any guitar, if it’s the right guitar for you. Even with the weak-necked Gibsons (not all of them are), follow **WordMan** ’s advice, and it should last until you wear down the frets. At the very least, don’t lean it against your amp. A guitar stand is $20 or less, the repair bill will be many times that if it falls. Ok, now I must profess my ignorance, and possibly derail the thread. I’ve never seen a neck get (unintentionally) snapped. I have seen and played many guitars with bolt on, glue in, and neck-through construction. I’ve seen my prized (Korean) Goya electric take a simultaneous hit from a guitar and a cymbal that dented the brass bridge, but otherwise left it unharmed. The only evidence of snapped necks I’ve seen is from repairs to guitars with glue in necks. I know glue-ins can break, I’ve seen the repairs. Have you ever seen a bolt-on or neck-through guitar break, or seen evidence of them being repaired? ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2014, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-guitar-shopping-recommendations/703182/56 "2014-11-05T20:26:54Z")
> [@scabpicker](#): > > Oooh, I might have come across as kinda shrill and know-it-all, there, huh? > > Really, I’m quite like-able in person. I’m a know it all, but I know that, too. > > **Poto** , you just spoke on two breeds of guitars I like a lot, and shop for quite a bit. Your opinions don’t reflect my experience. I was able to find lots of cites for Gibsons breaking, but none for a systematic problem with early Asian guitar necks warping. > > The difference in reported problems might be the converse of my argument. No one complains when their free Guyatone neck warps, but everyone who pays for a 1K Les Paul with a high fret is going to be unhappy. But in my experience, you pay your nickel and takes your chances, no matter how much you pay. If you pay more, you can expect to get it fixed if it’s funky when it’s delivered to you. > > Apropos of nothing in particular: I think I’m probably going to find a way to buy the SGJ 2014 that I recommended, it looks like it’s the perfect spot between cheap and good, and I wouldn’t have been looking without this thread. Thanks, **spazurek**! I’ll blame you when I get asked questions by the wife. > > If I shopped less and played more, I’d be a better guitarist. > > But at the end of the day, you can rule the world with any guitar, if it’s the right guitar for you. Even with the weak-necked Gibsons (not all of them are), follow **WordMan** ’s advice, and it should last until you wear down the frets. At the very least, don’t lean it against your amp. A guitar stand is $20 or less, the repair bill will be many times that if it falls. > > Ok, now I must profess my ignorance, and possibly derail the thread. I’ve never seen a neck get (unintentionally) snapped. I have seen and played many guitars with bolt on, glue in, and neck-through construction. I’ve seen my prized (Korean) Goya electric take a simultaneous hit from a guitar and a cymbal that dented the brass bridge, but otherwise left it unharmed. The only evidence of snapped necks I’ve seen is from repairs to guitars with glue in necks. > > I know glue-ins can break, I’ve seen the repairs. Have you ever seen a bolt-on or neck-through guitar break, or seen evidence of them being repaired? Firebirds are neck-through and suffered from headstock breaks. Not related to the neck-through construction. Typically due to them being in the case and getting knocked over. The cases were uniquely, perfectly designed 😉 to have a support right at the wrong point - if the case flopped to the ground, it acted like a wedge to break the neck. Sigh. Bolt-on’s with the headstock NOT at an angle, like with Fender’s? Never seen a break. ---
**Author:** ![Poto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ab992/32.png) [@Poto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poto)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2014, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-guitar-shopping-recommendations/703182/57 "2014-11-05T22:57:01Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > Firebirds are neck-through and suffered from headstock breaks. Not related to the neck-through construction. Typically due to them being in the case and getting knocked over. The cases were uniquely, perfectly designed 😉 to have a support right at the wrong point - if the case flopped to the ground, it acted like a wedge to break the neck. Sigh. > > Bolt-on’s with the headstock NOT at an angle, like with Fender’s? Never seen a break. Yey! I will get my grand kids some Fenders. This may take a while. My kids are not married but could be in 5 years. But as stated earlier, it was not really the headstock that was my concern, simply wimpy necks. But let’s throw out the Gibsons anyway. For the grand kids. ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2014, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-guitar-shopping-recommendations/703182/58 "2014-11-05T23:06:22Z")
The neck of my first electric guitar warped (many years ago… I’m not a spring chicken now). A friend of mine also had the neck of his guitar warp. This was in the 1980s. Both were cheap Asian guitars. I talked to other folks at the time and they said this wasn’t exactly rare. I’ve never personally seen a neck break unless excessive violence against an innocent guitar was occurring at the time. Many years ago, I was in a band and one of the songs we were playing was Mr. Roboto by Styx. In the middle we needed two keyboards simultaneously, so i would switch from guitar to keyboard for that bit. I don’t know how many times I whacked the head of my guitar against the keyboard while switching instruments. While the sound of a guitar whacking a keyboard isn’t particularly pleasant when you’re standing next to the amplifier, it never caused any noticeable damage to the neck. I also had one guitar that we all called a “ground attractor”. Whatever I did, it was destined somehow to end up falling over and smacking itself very hard against the ground. Didn’t matter if it was hanging on a wall, sitting on a stand, or leaning against a keyboard. Wham. It was destined to hit the ground. This was a cheap Les Paul clone and other than a few dents and scuffs it never suffered any serious damage. If the neck was easy to break i would have expected that one to have been shattered more than once. So that’s my personal experience. Neck warpage on cheap guitars? Easy peasy. Actually breaking the neck or head? Very difficult. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2014, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-guitar-shopping-recommendations/703182/59 "2014-11-06T00:33:30Z")
> [@Poto](#): > > Yey! I will get my grand kids some Fenders. This may take a while. My kids are not married but could be in 5 years. > > But as stated earlier, it was not really the headstock that was my concern, simply wimpy necks. But let’s throw out the Gibsons anyway. For the grand kids. Seems like a fine choice. I have two Fender/Tele type electrics and four Gibson acoustics. I love Gibsons. Some can have slim necks, but all mine are comfortably chunky. ---
**Author:** ![handsomeharry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9c0ed/32.png) [@handsomeharry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handsomeharry)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2014, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-guitar-shopping-recommendations/703182/60 "2014-11-06T00:37:44Z")
> [@spazurek](#): > > My wife, who loves me very much, is thinking about buying me a nice electric guitar to replace the crummy cheapo I have that’s falling apart. But I’m pretty overwhelmed by the prospect. Our budget is $1000, but I’d be pleased to spend less if I could get something that will make me happy. > > First off, I’m sort of beginner/intermediate in skill. I’m good at chords, not so hot at knowing the fretboard. Also, I have a pretty basic amp, a [Line 6 Spyder IV](http://www.amazon.com/Line-Spider-IV-15-Amplifier/dp/B002GYWBIM). > > I know sound preference comes into play. My favorite music is super heavy doom metal. I intend to down-tune the guitar a couple of notes. But I’d also like to be able to get a decent clean sound. My current guitar is ok at low power chords but when I play individual notes on the upper strings it sounds like mud. > > I’m leaning toward Gibson Les Paul. If I go there, is it worth getting the Studio vs. the less-expensive Special? And what do you think about Epiphone? > > Should I consider another make instead? I know a little about the Fender Stratocaster (cleaner, not as heavy), but that’s about it. > > Gratsi! I have an Epiphone SG, basic model. That thing is fucking awesome. New, it was about 160 bucks. I bought it used for 90. I have _never_ had one feel that good before in my hands. I had previously owned a 62 Strat, and a (Leslie West-Television?) Gibson Les Paul Jr. My friend had an old SG way back when, but, I can’t remember how it felt, and of course, I haven’t touched a Les Paul in years. But, this is the only time that I can say that I was amazed by how a guitar felt in my hands. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-guitar-shopping-recommendations/703182.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/electric-guitar-shopping-recommendations/703182.md?page=4)