Looking for new mid-high priced guitar - advice

[Assmask]

Hi all

I recently had a Variax 700 on order, however after doing some frenzied last minute research I learnt to my dismay that they are very poor for palm muting - a method I use a lot for the style of music that I play.

So I cancelled the order.

I am now in a quandary. I have a Maverick F1 which I use as my main guitar, it's a beauty. However I would like to retire it to backup guitar and get a new main guitar for gigging and rehearsal. I currently use an Epiphone Les Paul Custom and a Jackson DK-2 which I'll be selling - the reason I don't want to use those is because the action and playability is not as fluid as the Maverick, and neither do they sound as good (if it was only sound I'd get new pickups but they ain't as playable so they be no good).

What I want is a really decent guitar - about £800-1100 worth. I don't want to go for a Gibson Les Paul Studio, so it looks like one of those is out as I'd be looking at a lot more. The best options I can see are either an ESP (as their EMG active pickups are meant to be great for palm mutes - however I'd probably have to go for an LTD model which doesn't really appeal) or maybe a Gibson SG.

However, is there anything else I should consider? For the record, I don't like strats.

This is for rock guitar, somewhere between metal and pop. I want really good crisp palm mutes but a good full roar with open strings. I play a lot of Power chords but often open chords, and I don't solo. Hard tail is a must. I do play the odd song on clean.

See Lately or The Dole on our Myspace page for an example.

Thanks for reading all that - if you did! My plan is to have an idea on what I want to try out and then go to one of the Big Three shops in Belfast to have a ply on them and see if I can negotiate a good price - but I'd rather go in with the knowledge of what I want to play with.

Also, I don't know if it makes a difference, but I play through a Line 6 Pod X3 via the PA. One day I might upgrade to a JCM200 TSL 100.

[melx]

Best Guitars at any price

http://www.gordonsmithguitars.com/

I play a GS-2 but with the money you are looking to spend I'd get a nice 'graduate' with all the extras.

They sound perfect for any kind of rock....handmade in the UK and piss all over anything else, I've had about 10 guitars over the years and nothing comes close imo. The pickups are really great too, handwound by his wife apparently.

[pete gusher]

yeah, i think you should consider a gibson firebird

it just so happens that im selling one, actually!

[Assmask]

Those GS guitars look very nice. I might look into those....

Pete, what model are you selling and at what price?

[Dark Lord of Barnet]

I recently had a Variax 700 on order, however after doing some frenzied last minute research I learnt to my dismay that they are very poor for palm muting - a method I use a lot for the style of music that I play.

I know someone who has one and he says they are OK for recording but not practical for live work as they need their own special power supply.

I currently use an Epiphone Les Paul Custom and a Jackson DK-2 which I'll be selling...I don't want to go for a Gibson Les Paul Studio.

What do you have against the Les Paul Studio? It should sound better than an Epiphone due to the different finish. My main guitar at the moment is a Les Paul BFG - which I love! Similar price to a Studio but you don't have to worry about knocks and dings. If you like a clean sound on some songs the P90 in the neck position on these guitars gives a killer clean rhythm sound while the Burstbucker 3 in the bridge position really rips it up for lead - a much more versatile guitar than normal Les Pauls.

[Assmask]

Thanks for that. The Variax needing power would nott have been a problem as I use a Pod X3 which would power it. However the palm mute thing was far too big an issue.

The reason I don't want a studio is because I'm played one and it's just not as good as a standard. Obviously it's not gonna be as it's getting on fro half the price of it - but after having played both I couldn't be happy with the inferior model.

However I'm at a cross roads now. After talking with the band over the weekend the guitarist and I have decided to get some good big valve amps. We're not getting a great sound onstage - I use a Pod X3 live and he uses a Pod XT live. You can tell they're not the real deal at high volume. Which is a shame as I thought they were the future.

So I'm going to sell the Jackson only I think and maybe add new pickups to my Epiphone LP. Bareknuckles maybe.

So, now. I need an amp. What to go for, what to go for!?

Current thinking: Has to be valve. Has to be combo. Either a Randall, or an Orange, or a Marshall TSL.

I want a heavy rock, bordering on metal tone which I would then use to play pop music.

[Pauly]

Currently I'm mostly playing my Ibanez Iceman IC350. The floyd makes it a bit awkward for muting but you get used to it. I also have an Epi Explorer with EMG 81's which is great for the 'Tallica riffage and was surprisingly cheap. I also have an Epi Les Paul Silverburst which looks lovely and plays great but the stock pups are rubbish. I'm going to get either Wizzard or Bare Knuckle pups. I've got a set of wizzards in another Les Paul which are great, the rest of the guitar lets them down though. I've got a Washburn Dime signiture model which I don't play much as it's a bit showy, even for me!! However the neck is lovely and the (genuine)floyd has a much nicer feel to it than the licenced one on the Ibanez.

All of the above run through an Ibanez Tubescreamer, a Dunlop 95Q wah, a Boss tuner pedal then into my early 80's JCM800.

If you want actuve pups and don't mind the looks, may I suggest the Zakk Wylde siggy Epi LP?

http://www.guitarampkeyboard.com/en/epiphone-zakk-wylde-bullseye/6951

If it isn't your thing the Slash siggy model is a little bit more tasteful

http://www.musicradar.com/gear/all/guitars/electric/6-string-solid-body/slash-signature-les-paul-standard-plus-top-149704/review

The both above will save you enough to get a TSL60 and a 4x12" cab (nearly)... For most applications the 60 watt version will be more than sufficiantly loud. Also, do you really need three channels? If not the DSL would be fine, or a Vintage Modern, or maybe something a little different like Engl, Blackstar etc....?

Sorry, i've not helped much have I?

Anyways, have fun. Guitar shopping is top fun

[kriscoverdale]

Best Guitars at any price

http://www.gordonsmithguitars.com/

I play a GS-2 but with the money you are looking to spend I'd get a nice 'graduate' with all the extras.

They sound perfect for any kind of rock....handmade in the UK and piss all over anything else, I've had about 10 guitars over the years and nothing comes close imo. The pickups are really great too, handwound by his wife apparently.

I've got a G-60 Slimline. It's pretty much everything you've described above. Good for palm muting too, altho I do find certain palm muted riffs a little easier on a Les Paul - I think I tend to rest my hand against the bridge which works easier on the Les Paul.

Usual advice of try before you buy I think, but Gordon Smith certainly well worth a look

Cheers
Kris

[Dark Lord of Barnet]

The reason I don't want a studio is because I'm played one and it's just not as good as a standard. Obviously it's not gonna be as it's getting on fro half the price of it - but after having played both I couldn't be happy with the inferior model.

Don't just try one and judge the model on that - they are not all the same! You could try 2 apparently identical Les Paul Customs (or any other make/model) and one could sound and play noticably better or worse than the other. There are so many variables in guitars which even these days are still largely hand built/finished. And no two pieces of wood are the same - one Les Paul can be heavier/lighter and sound different to an 'identical' model. I tried two BFGs in the shop before I bought mine - they were both diiferent.

The reason for the large difference in price between the top end Les Pauls like the Standard/Custom and the Studio is in the finish. The materials/contruction are the same. A large proportion of the cost of a Standard or Custom is due to the very labour intensive finish on these models - whereas a Studio is just sprayed black/white or whatever. The carefully picked and beautiful looking woods the top guitars are made from account for quite a bit of the price tag, but it's purely cosmetic and doesn't make the guitar actually sound better.

[wildsam6o]

ive always swore by my les paul, and my flying v

personally i like guitars that are heavy in weight.

If you have the money, branch out and buy a gibson, though recently i payed £150 for a gibson les paul copy from china (looks real with gibson tags and everything and plays exactly the same as my les paul)

i was toying with the idea wether to get one or not, but im glad i did, thats my "throw around" guitar.

There is LOADS of guitars on this site

http://www.ioffer.com/search/items/gibs ... er/0/false

i must warn you, they are copies of gibson.....though they look, sound and play exactly the same.
They are so cheap because in china, you dont have to pay labour.....or something like that.

[Ross]

Yup, Line6 pods, while offering a great range of sounds, will do a hell of a lot to make your guitar sound thin and artificial. I'm a great believer in analogue effects (apart from delay, which is ace digital). I've always been well happy with the sound I get from a top end Epiphone Les Paul Custom, through a vintage RAT distortion pedal, into my Ampeg SS70c solid state amp. It's all about preserving the tone of your guitar. Once you start ladleing digital effects on top of it, you might as well be playing a Yamaha Pacifica.

[Dark Lord of Barnet]

i must warn you, they are copies of gibson.....though they look, sound and play exactly the same.

Really?!!! I find it very difficult to believe they sound the same. I recently tried a new Tokai (made in China) 335 copy in a shop and although it looked terrific it certainly didn't sound too good, and the tone and volume pots felt loose and cheap as well as making crackling noises. The neck and solid block in the body weren't made of mahogany like they are in Gibsons and this affects the tone as well as sustain. It was priced at £320 incidentally.

They are so cheap because in china, you dont have to pay labour.....or something like that.

The reason a lot of stuff made in China is so cheap is because much of it is made by forced labour in prison camps. China has thousands and thousands of 'political' prisoners, and many of them are making the cheap stuff you buy in the shops over here. Needless to say - they don't get paid for it either.