Electric Guitar (Page 1 of 2)

or a good strat copy, play them all, and then pick the one for you looking at sound and price, you will buy a fender later
tonyblue

Hi Bazzip,

  Well see, now you've done it ind opened up that old can of worms again!  Just joking....  Opinions vary, but really it is going to come down to what sound you like.  The Strat is a very good choice for all the reasons given, but it does not emulate that "acoustic sound" that you may be used to hearing.  So keep in mind while you  are shopping (and playing everything you can), that electric guitars (especially solid-bodies) are really just lumber with some electronics attached.  Not the same animal that you have been making music with to this point.... same kingdom, different species.

Take Care, and Good Hunting:
Doug

Many thanks on all that replyed....I was thinking the same as when I was younger and venturing into music (Keyboard) every guitar was a Fender of some sort and Fender Strat or Gibson Les Paul were household names. That is where I will start....Thanks!

Bazzip

Good point. I thought about that but sonically I think the strat is a little more versatile but you're right the bridge is less simple. Either is a great choice

Take some one with you that plays electric, because it's a differant animal then an acoustic IMHO

What he said. Good posting.

Jerry

I agree.
Not only do strats have that whole wacky whammy-bar thing going on that throws your tuning out-of-whack.
They also have the funky knob setup with 2 volumes and 1 tone or 2 tones and 1 volume.

If you're going to go that complicated route...get a les paul or SG...lol.

I like to keep it simple.
A telecaster/Squire '51 is the only guitar for me.

=]
Dm

Agree with Jerome.  It's not a question what's more like this or that, but what are you venturing into musically.  Also, important to know that some amps and guitars go together better than others and tube amps will sound much different than digital amps.  Lastly, just for your guitar features to consider I'd avoid locking tuners at the head, just not convenient.  I'd say the tremelo is cool if you want it and mine on a Yamaha Pacifica (strat style) stays in tune very well.  Just my thoughts, good luck!

Hunter, you're asking a question that is purely subjective. A guitar isn't like an F1 car, there isn't a "best" or a "one size fits all" solution. The best guitar is the one that's best for you. In terms of quality there are loads of "boutique" luthiers that will build you a superb guitar that will be at least the equal of anything Fender or Gibson will sell you and you can specify your own requirements but it'll cost you. An example of is Matt Bellamy of Muse who uses guitars built by a small luthier in Devon, England.

Fender and Gibson both build great guitars and you can buy them almost anywhere but equally there are plenty of good guitars coming out of the Far East these days that have great build quality. Prices vary hugely from a few dollars to a mortgage for a vintage guitar. With the big manufacturers back up should be good and spares will be plentiful, not so much the case with the smaller manufacturers.

Play a few and see what you like and don't get hung up on a name, it's the only way to decide.

Jerry

Patrick,  This is exactly what I was talking about. Open E tuning is a little stressful on normal guitars, but on a Strat, its a disaster.  Does your Strat have the six screw bridge or is it a newer "two post pivot" variety?  If you have the six screw "vintage" variety, put on another spring or two.  If its a two post pivot type, you may need a device that I have on my Strat, it's made by Hipshot and its called a Tremsetter.  This device solved all of my tuning/ bridge position problems.  On the other hand, I never take my Strat out of standard tuning.  Nor do I ever change string gages or string Manufacturer.  Tremelo bridges are touchy and you shouldn't mess with them a whole lot.  If you're going to be changing tunings a lot, you might want to consider getting a fixed bridge guitar.

thanks tandm and buzzwagon for the info. I never intended to make any ajustment or changes myself. I never thought to think about checking a luthiers credentials and that makes good sence. as far as the bridge posts I have the newer version which seems to me to be a cheeper vesion and thats part of what I was talking about when speaking of the quality going down. I notice the price has not gone down. I have tuned to open E on other strats that I have owned in the past with no problems at all. (making sure the guitar had light guage strings) Duane Allman almost always played slide in open E although I realize he did not use a strat, but there are a lot of slide players that do. Bonnie Raitt and Sonny Landrith just to mention a few. it will be a while before I can take it to a profesional due to money being a little tight at this time. I will let you all know what happens when I do. so for the meantime I wonder if I should just keep light guage strings on it and remain in standard tuning. I have recently come to prefer medium guage for playing in standard tuning. again I guess I will see what happens with that. it just sucks having to deal with such issues with a guitar only a little over a year old when the price is in the $1200.00 (US) range