[Closed] Guitarists - if you had £500 for something new...

Not new, but I know of a very nice 80's Japanese Strat going for about that....as well as being an awesome guitar, it's an investment!

No idea what the new Santana SE's are like, I've got one of the originals which is simply unreal for the money. Must take that one out gigging again soon.

Yamaha Revstars are nice

Cheers Tom.

I'm a bit wary of secondhand Japanese/Korean Fender/Squiers, it seems like a complete minefield.

Forgot to mention that I've tried a couple of G&L Tributes, the Legacy and S500. Both built by Cort and lovely, but a bit darker sounding than a Strat and similar tones to my Squier.

YGH, thanks.

Remember reading a review when they first came out out that suggested some the pots and switches were a bit cheap - non standard and difficult to upgrade.  Have to admit that they do really appeal apart from that.

A little research suggests that the PRS SE Standards aren't as solidly built as the SE Customs, different construction, lots of cost savings. That's a shame.

If I had the budget you had, and a liking for a Tele.. I go to Chapman Guitars (via Andertons in Guildford) and go get me one of these beauties..

Chapman Tele.. yours for the budget busting £380..

Yep.. £380.

Awesome spec, raved about and quality to beat Guitars three times the budget..

I'd buy something that did something significantly different from what I have, I've got a strat, so I wouln't buy a tele, hum buckers, p90s or not.. I've got a classical guitar, a bass, and a piano, so I'd probably spend the 500 on a nice acoustic.

I don't really see the point of having 6 slightly different versions of something.

PRS SE of whichever flavour takes your choice ?

I have an old PRS SE "Santana" model from 2006 that I got cheap on ebay and it's absolutely lovely.

<EDIT> - that's not mine below - just one from the Andertons website for £475

I was in a similar position and ended up buying a cheap strat..mexican but does the job.

Would be wary of ebay unless it's from a recognised shop. Once bought a les Paul epi from a UK seller and it turned out to be fake.

Rusty - if you're buying new as per your OP then I assume you can go to several shops and try a load of guitars out and see what you like?

Just to say - don't take too much notice of my recommendation above, putting into perspective - whilst calling into GuitarGuitar in Birmingham a few weeks ago (immense range of guitars BTW) I tried out a PRS SE (£700 ish) and a "real" PRS (£3600) and apart from cosmetic differences and a nicer neck finish they played and sounded pretty much the same to me. The "real" PRS is very, very pretty though 😉

£500 is a bit of a tough one these days, new just seems a bit cheap at that money from the likes of squier , epi etc.

Second hand bargains not easy to find anymore from the big names. I’d be going a bit off piste, what’s missing in the collection? You need a big guitar shop and an afternoon.. ive had a few from mikey at guitar guitar in Birmingham, an ovation semi acoustic which I love, a schecter v, a few other second hand gems elsewhere, an Ibanez herman li signature, an Ibanez 12 in a lovely ash, all sub £500. For a big birthday I’d just be going and playing loads and seeing what really got me going. Sometimes they just grab you - my Herman li I’d never have bought, it’s not me at all it’s too metal and has the silly cutouts. I just had a play on it and it was brilliant. I like what schecter are doing at that kind of money too.

Have a google for the little guitar shop in Birmingham, martin’s got some quite cool stuff especially if you like a bit of vintage Japanese. Just had a look and there’s quite a cool older epi les Paul with hand wound pups for your budget..

While you could go for something radically different, you could also just get something you like and will play. Perhaps kept in a different tuning.

I tried Les Pauls and other single cuts and alsways went back to the superstrat style. I’ve got a few but only a Couple of them are tuned the same.

I'm enjoying having a clear out at the moment. Selling amps, pedals and guitars that don’t get used regularly. It’s liberating, I finally feel like I know what I like and am happy sticking to it. I sell most of my gear on reverb now. Hassle free so far so would recommend you check it out and buy second hand.

I think either a Chapman or Revstar will be my next guitar choice for around the £500 mark

I bought a Chapman Ghost Fret on a bit of a whim a while back and they are excellent guitars and great value. Huuuuuge fun to play and really versatile

Chapman

I wouldn't buy anything that egotistical muppet puts his name to.

Personally, I'd go for an Epi LP, possibly the 60s Tribute Plus, or maybe a PRS of some description. However, go into a few shops and try them.

From what I've heard, I'd also avoid Andertons as their CS is rubbish.

Off topic but since we have a few guitarist on this thread.

Digging about my mums loft i found an old epiphone ea 250 I use to play. 1970 hollow body job which I never got on with. Missing the tremelo arm, and scratch plate but I think I have that somewhere. As I recall the neck was pretty skinny and it didn't keep in tune very well, so probably needs some tlc.

Looks lovely but I wasn't a fan so its been gathering dust for last 20 years or so. Mixed reviews of it online .. Ranging from quite nice to suitable for firewood only. Anyone shed any light on it.. Is it worth selling, fixing up, or just burning for winter fuel?

Its this one..

https://reverb.com/uk/p/epiphone-ea-250-red

This is great, can we do one on banjos next?....

....

No? just me then 🙁

Chapman

I wouldn’t buy anything that egotistical muppet puts his name to.

Personally, I’d go for an Epi LP, possibly the 60s Tribute Plus, or maybe a PRS of some description. However, go into a few shops and try them.

From what I’ve heard, I’d also avoid Andertons as their CS is rubbish.

Each to their own.

But the guitars are worth trying out...

I can say Andertons have been very good to me.

Having recently got back into all this, and done a lot of reading round...!!

£500 seems to be good quality base level guitar (boardman/calibre MTB equivalents??)

Squire classic vibe get really good reviews, some Gretsch stuff is in budget and looks cool! Harley Benton guitars from Thomann seem to be well regarded and possibly worth a look.

as a curveball what about pricing up a parts guitar from somewhere like Warmoth. You’d get something unique..

A Warmouth parts guitar is well pricey. I costed one and for bugger all more I was able to get a deal on a US Strat.

I got a US-made Gibson SG in a local bike shop for £500. And I'm pretty sure I sold my US-made Les Paul Studio for £500 or so. I'd see what your local shop has. There might be bargains there.

I can say Andertons have been very good to me

Me too.  Bought quite a few things, returned something that I didn't like with no problems.  Have never had something go wrong which needs fixing/replacing so maybe that is where someone had a bad experience?

Prices are good and interest free credit above £300.

For £500 I would get an amp (Fender Blues Junior).  I have owned many guitars (as have most guitarists) and currently playing a £100 bullet mustang which I have changed to a single hum bucker and I love it.  Lightweight, nice neck and plays and sounds great.  I have no need for anything better/more expensive.

I just wish I was good enough to justify spending £500 on a guitar!

I'll happily spend £000's on nice bikes despite not being that good but still plodding along with a cheapo <£80 acoustic guitar that someone gave me as I'm not good enough to justify anything better 🤔

Use the money for a few upgrades/set up by a luther then spend some on a couple of pedals and or a new amp. I bought a hollow body a few years ago after really wanting one then never really used it much. Am now looking to get an LP junior and mod it a bit.

I wouldn’t link spend to how good you can play. Link it to much you enjoy it and want to spend

you never know, upgrading from a cheapo acoustic to something that plays and sounds nicer may motivate you to play more and improve faster.

Thanks for the advice everyone.

Just had a go of a Faith Venus electro which comes in under budget. Nicest acoustic I've ever played, so that's on the list.

Lots of Epis on Gumtree, many barely used, for very silly prices, so again, more to think about.

I’ve just built this for a £100  https://imgur.com/gallery/ehLTanc

Fun project and a decent guitar at the end of it

Use the money for a few upgrades/set up by a luther

Use the money for a few upgrades/set up by a luther

Idris Elba?

That's the badger!

A wise man once said to me its worth spending money on a really nice guitar (like a Gibson, Martin or Ramirez, all of which make stunning playing and sounding guitars ) as they are an absolute joy to play, you'll end up playing for hours a day, and that is how you get to be a really good guitar player

or

or

Mexican duo sonic  with coil tap HB in the bridge. I'd have one now if they did a maple fret board version

I have a Duo sonic as mentioned by rocketdog, it's awesome.

I've got a "Vintage" (not vintage) Casino that I'm not playing if anyone fancies it. Short neck, Wilkinson soapboxes.

Does great Weller impressions in front of the mirror.

Bought a lovely pearl white MIM Strat with a maple neck in the black friday thing.  It was under £400.

I've a few guitars, some fairly expensive (by my standards) and recently bought a 2nd hand PRS Tremonti SE for £200. I bought it for the active EMG'S that are in it and was going to sell the guitar on. I've enjoyed it so much that it's now one of my favourites. Proof that you can't link price to sound/feel.

I really fancy a Revstar too...

I love my Epi SG Pro - OH bought it for me a few years ago and I had it serviced and set up properly about a year ago. It's lovely to play with a nice, low action. I'd only ever had strat style 25" guitars but when I tried a shorter scale Epi Les Paul I knew I wanted something like that. I'd quite like a ridiculous hair metal guitar at some point though.

I've just bought a Squire Deluxe Hot rail strat as a way to get back into playing again. I'm already looking at n + 1 😂.

They're worse than bikes.

£500 would have to be a nice acoustic guitar. Mainly because I might get to keep and play it in the house rather than a hard case, amp, cables and pedals tucked away in the workshop as they're so bulky. Then I might actually play it.

You'd get a nice acoustic for that money, or a really nice second hand one.

Agree with the above about buying stuff that's too similar.

I play my acoustic 95% of the time as you can just pick it up and play. Personal taste though I guess but if you're gonna have 2 guitars then one electric and one acoustic is a good shout.

I've got a washburn mg40 electric and a martin DRS1 dreadnought acoustic and just don't feel I need anything else.

If I ever do buy another guitar it'll probably be a higher model smaller bodied Martin acoustic as dreadnoughts are quite a lump.. But with a big body comes big sound.

Oh and an 'gibson' Epiphone semi acoustic, I forgot about that one.. It's laminate rather than real wood though and sounds too boxy/plastic compared to the martin so I don't really bother with it.

If you like the action on your guitar, why not get it rebuilt and change the pickups?

Oooh, what pick ups though? I got a Squier Mustang instead of a LP Junior and keep looking at soap bars!

That's a good point actually.. With an electric guitar, if you're happy with the weight, fretboard etc. General feel etc. Then maybe look at upgrading the electrics side of it.

Hiya!

Well, after a trawl of all the local guitar shops over a few months, I've actually bought something a bit unusual.....

An LAG T90A, solid top mahogany acoustic, from Pro Solo, my local music shop here in Burnley.

It's absolutely lovely, warm and sweet, auditorium size which suits me much better than a dread.

Secondhand, but barely used and has been set up perfectly.

Tried pretty much every acoustic within 40 miles, but this one just did it for me.

And nowhere near £500.

Happy days....🙂

👍🤙🤟

Me

Like.

Cheers fella.

Genuinely not a brand I'd considered, but my word, it's lovely.

Odd cove, Johnny guitar.....

Tried some very pleasant Yamahas and some cracking Tanglewoods (oddly, the cheaper ones were much nicer than the expensive models).

The new Fenders that are getting rave reviews didn't excite, and although I'd love a Seagull/Simon & Patrick, the LAG was still my favourite.

Yes, the Faiths were 'better', but even the Naked range were much more than twice the price and definitely not twice the guitar. Maybe next time.

So yeah, I'm a very happy sausage. 🙂

More porn....

Does it vibrate when strumming? Y’no that inherent “tone” not a rattle.

I love that, it’s one of the qualities I look for in any guitar, if I can feel it, I tend to like it... then plug it in..

@Rusty S - Sweet! There’s something particular appealing about an acoustic with a mahogany top with no scratchplate. 👍🏼

Nice. I got a second hand lag t100ace for £55 from eBay (Inc hiscox case). The guy was selling as collection only so had little interest. They're really nice instruments. Really playable with a nice tone. I got it to donate to work as we have a few guitarists there and it's nice to keep something there in case of wet lunchtimes! I have a lakewood M1 at home which is somewhat nicer but was a bit more costly.

Yup. It's alive.....🙂

Paul at Pro Solo said it was filthy when he got it in, but he's done a remarkable job on it. It's spotlessly clean, just a couple of very minor scratches (behind the bridge?!?) and two very, very minor dings in the laquer that can only be seen when holding it directly under a bright light.

That won't last, I'm looking forward to putting my own mark(s) on it.
Tempted to get a pickguard fitted though....sorry CZ.

Nice. I got a second hand lag t100ace for £55 from eBay (Inc hiscox case).

Wow. This was a bit more than that, but I'm still convinced it was a bargain.

that's a nice accoustic 👍

Cheers mate, genuinely nice to see you back on the forum, hope all ok.

The need for a pick guard depends on how you play. If you are wearing out an acoustic you're probably making a lot of paracitic noise doing it - which may or may not be intentional. A mate uses it as a sort of percussion and wears his pick guards through. Watch the three guitarists in Oasis, they never touch anything but the strings, their unused fingers are tucked up out of the way.

Cheers mate, genuinely nice to see you back on the forum, hope all ok.

if you meant me thank you 😀 i am doing fine and hope you are well too 👍

Nice guitar rusty - a good set up makes a big difference on an acoustic and if you like playing it then it's a good choice.

Cheers Ed.

Yeah, the setup makes a huge difference. All the guitars at Pro Solo were tweaked to give their best, which gave me lots of confidence in the shop.
Compared this directly to a few new Corts (a very underrated brand) a secondhand Yam FG730S and some delightful Faiths.

In the end it was an easy decision.
The neck is an absolute beaut. Not too thick, yet a nice roomy fingerboard for fat fingers.
The tone is lovely - not hugely loud like a spruce dread but well balanced and warm.

I can't stop playing it, which is always a good sign. 🙂

I'd buy another LAG in an instant if the quality of this example is typical of the brand.

cool - what did the man at the shop say about the tuners? having poked around on the internet this is the only thing I can see where they might have used cheap diecast to get the price down. If you find yourself constantly tuning it or it doing that thing where you're winding and nothing happening then a big jump, that's usually a sign of cheap tuners - which can be swapped without hassle, anyone who can do basic bike maintenance can swap them over at home.

hmm, I think my acoustic needs some fresh strings and a right good clean

So long as tuners have a 14:1 ratio or better they won't budge if:

Always tune up never down, and if you over shoot go right back down and up again.

Do a big bend on each string as you tune it then check and tune up as necessary till it's stable.

A bit of pencil dust to lube the nut slots makes tuning easier.

If you find yourself constantly tuning it or it doing that thing where you’re winding and nothing happening then a big jump, that’s usually a sign of cheap tuners

Or a binding nut. I know what I'd be checking first.

To be honest, I've never experienced expensive tuners, but these seem ok.

Only ever owned a cheap Palma Classical, a Kay and a couple of cheap Teles - this is probably the 'nicest' out of the lot.

It's stayed in tune so far so fingers crossed!

Rusty Spanner - nice guitar! Have you tried Martin Monel strings? I bet they’d sound lovely.

They die off really nicely too - you’d get a lovely pink moon vibe with that guitar.

We've got a really nice Tokai Les Paul copy in. Plays almost as well as the Gibson Les Paul Customs we have.

JP

^JP do you have any more details if it's for sale? I've wanted a nice Japanese LP Custom for ages. Imo current Gibson quality is rubbish and would always take a MIJ "knock off" over one.

Lovely looking acoustic you have there 🙂 I've always wondered if I should get a proper nice acoustic. I almost never play my old Crafter but can't tell if that's just because it's not a hugely inspiring guitar to play, or if I just prefer electrics.

Plays almost as well as the Gibson Les Paul Customs we have.

My busking mate has a Gibson Les Paul. Neither of us like it but having paid 2500e for it he can't bring himself to sell it at a loss. I"m suprised the Tokai doesn't play better than the Gibson. Even the pickups in the Gibson, 58s I think, are muddy and dull compared with the Duncan Pearly Gates I've got in one of my guitars.

Two of my cheapest guitars are presently my most played. Either available for probably less than £500, certainly s/h.

A Joe Pass Epiphone Hollow body, and a Gibson Special Les Paul faded double cut (twin p90, no maple cap).

My choice is very limited as I'm left handed.

The former is a bit funky on the appointments - Korean made with gold Grovers & pickup covers, fancy scratchplate, body and neck binding, big mop inlays, flamed maple sides. The latter a very stripped down back to basic solid body. - USA built 2 Pickups on a solid faded finish mahonany body. But both are great at what they do sinceI got them, My Strat has been gathering dust for years now - (dont like the scale length), my Rickenbacker 330 is unplucked (necks a bit deep and chunky for my little hands) and the SG is in retirement with a bit of fretwear.

I would say, though, have a look at a no frills Gordon Smith GS1 at £600. Fantastic playing, and great value for money.

Sorry for the thread hijack, but seeing as the OP has resolved their dilemma, and this kinda [loosely] fits into the OP hypothesis, I thought I'd tack it on 😀

I have a Squire Strat Delux Hot Rails w/ Duncan Designed Hot Rail pickups: I bought it in a sale for $280 CAD as a way of getting back into playing guitar. I have since bought a PRS SE Marc Holcomb, which I love and use in either D standard or drop C. My Strat is generally used in E standard, E flat standard, or drop D.

I like the Strat, but it has some issues: The tuners and nut need replacing as the thing is extremely difficult to tune (the tuners are either all or nothing), it needs a setup (not a big deal, I know) and the frets need filing down as they are sharp and not properly seated top and bottom and the top E catches. I've estimated this work will cost around $300 CAD (based on the price list of a local shop).

I also don't like trem units, and never use it, so it seems an unnecessary inconvenience.

Alternatively, I could buy a new guitar: Obviously, this would cost more money, but I'm wondering if dropping $300 on mods to a Squire Strat makes economic sense.

Thoughts?

Mikey - I'd agree with your thoughts re the sense of sinking that much money into your Squire Strat, especially as you describe it as a guitar you "like" whereas you "love" your PRS SE.
I've got a PRS SE (Santana II) BTW and it's great - I imagine broadly similar in character to yours.

Given what you've said I'd lean towards selling the Strat and find something you really like instead.

In true STW fashion, I'll recommend what I've got....
I recently picked up a surprisingly cheap used Squire Classic Vibe Telecaster - it's been very nicely set up and has had a hipshot tuner upgrade, and it's lovely - perhaps as good as the PRS, just in a different way.

Some of the Squiers have 7:1 or thereabouts tuners and they are lousy. It's a random, I've got one Squier Classic Vibe with Gotoh tuners but another came with the horrors. A set of Gotoh vintage 14:1 are about 55e. The nuts on even the cheapest Squiers have been fine up to 10-46 strings and I've played a good few. If it's a rosewood fretboard the first thing to do with uneven frets is give them a bash. Make up a wood block with the the appropriate radius, probably 9.5", and then make sure all the frets are properly seated. A protector for the fretboard and some fine wet and dry paper to polish the frets cost peanuts.

You can block the trem quite easily with a small block of wood filed to shape and a couple of screws.

Thanks, both.

You can block the trem quite easily with a small block of wood filed to shape and a couple of screws.

I thought of that but I've read it deadens the sound quite a bit.

Your suspicions sounds about right: New tuners come in a round $100 CAD here. And, yes: The neck is the 9.5" radius variety. As a comparison, my PRS has a 20" radius neck.

I probably wouldn't sell it in its current condition, unless I made the buyer aware of the issues, which may reduce the sellability. If I keep it, and buy a new guitar, I might use this one as a crash test dummy to learn more advanced guitar maintenance.

Given what you’ve said I’d lean towards selling the Strat and find something you really like instead.

That's easier said than done 😀

If you’re up for learning guitar maintenance then go for it.

There is a “JustinGuitar” YouTube piece where they take a squier and give it some TLC which sounds like a good starting point for what you are talking about.

Re blocking the trem deadening the sound - I don’t know whether that’s the case or not, but Clapton and several others did it so I guess it must me OK

I blocked the trem on a borrowed Aria pro strat copy which went out of tune every time I used the trem, it made no difference to the sound, I didn't even consider it at the time. The owner was delighted when I eventually gave it back.

The trems on Squiers work pretty well once set up unless you really abuse them.

^JP do you have any more details if it’s for sale? I’ve wanted a nice Japanese LP Custom for ages. Imo current Gibson quality is rubbish and would always take a MIJ “knock off” over one.

Lovely looking acoustic you have there 🙂 I’ve always wondered if I should get a proper nice acoustic. I almost never play my old Crafter but can’t tell if that’s just because it’s not a hugely inspiring guitar to play, or if I just prefer electrics.

https://www.coffeehouseguitars.co.uk/

It's not my business, but belongs to my business partner (in the coffee business) - we run a few different online businesses from his warehouses.

JP

Not much to add apart from I love my PRS SE Zach Myers and that I blocked a Floyd on an old Washburn and it kind of felt like it sustained better (blocked both ways iyswim)

Plays almost as well as the Gibson Les Paul Customs we have.

My busking mate has a Gibson Les Paul. Neither of us like it but having paid 2500e for it he can’t bring himself to sell it at a loss. I”m suprised the Tokai doesn’t play better than the Gibson. Even the pickups in the Gibson, 58s I think, are muddy and dull compared with the Duncan Pearly Gates I’ve got in one of my guitars.

Les Pauls are very year specific (especially recently). The 2002 standard we have in is pretty nice as was the Custom Shop that's just been sold. I have played some duds from Gibson, though.

JP

I think it's 2010, we'll have to check the serial number. The nut is higher than I like, it binds and the frets feel tall and square, slides are yuk. The best Gibson I've played is an ES 335 from about the same time (despite having had its headstock glued back on) and the worst an SG new enough to have that auto-tune system which doesn't work, and the neck is so wide my thumb doesn't fall naturally over the top.

^ I have that exact same model of Tokai.
Bought it new in the early 2000s

Excellent guitar, would recommend!

You can buy brass blocking blocks for erm, blocking off your trem. I had one on a roadshouse strat, cost £7 and is a simple thing to add.

Or you could just wind the trem springs tight so the back of the trem sits flush on the body... I did that before buying the brass block. I did put a very thin piece of clear invisi-frame tape on the underside of the trem so when it sat flush to the body it didn’t leave a rub mark.

Erm.... I might have bought a new guitar 😏

I went into my local store and they had a used Charvel Pro Mod San Dimas HH HT hanging there, with Seymour Duncans and locking tuners.

Technically, I've rented it for the week, but I can go in and pay for it in full any time. They'll also take stuff in part-ex, so I'll probably do that.

I've been looking for one of these since before I bought my Strat, but they've never had any in.

Ha! We all had em’ BITD