An Educated Person's Guide to Buying Musicians Gear

[czech]

I like the idea of this thread.

The ranges should be:

$100-$300
$301-$900
$901-$1500
$1501+

If we could come up with a collective opinion and just sticky it as the offical guitar buying thread I think it would cut down on a lot of threads.

agreed. and the format for this thread is pretty good so far with just edits to the initial post.

as far as price ranges, i think there should be more than that even, make a lot of praice tranges, the more in depth and more specific the less new threads and repeptitive advice needed to be given. I mean, you can't compare an Alvarez AD60SC to a larrivee 3 series.

[mangold]

Alright im taking out the +'s and -'s. i dont know why i thought that would work in the first place hah its a shitty idea.

ill add in any guitars people suggest and im gonna make the suggested models a completely seperate thing at the bottom and seperate all the info from the price ranges.

Thanks for all the advice keep the thread rollin.

and maybe i am an arrogant prick czech... just maybe haha

[mangold]

good idea.

jasmine i think makes a darn good $150 guitar.

also for the recomendations you need to add some tak g series and Alvarez RD8, RF8, RD20, and AD60SC.
Also a seagul model for he lower end. Good job on the washburn recomendations, people forget about those.

also a plus for fender and epiphone? those are two of the worst guitars i have ever played.

just some food for thought.

if you could give me a description of those guitars (editorialize) ill put em up. Ive only played the RD8 and my notes say it was average and tinny.

and yeh im addin the seagulls.

[czech]

good idea.

jasmine i think makes a darn good $150 guitar.

also for the recomendations you need to add some tak g series and Alvarez RD8, RF8, RD20, and AD60SC.
Also a seagul model for he lower end. Good job on the washburn recomendations, people forget about those.

also a plus for fender and epiphone? those are two of the worst guitars i have ever played.

just some food for thought.

if you could give me a description of those guitars (editorialize) ill put em up. Ive only played the RD8 and my notes say it was average and tinny.

and yeh im addin the seagulls.

jayme can do the rf8, tbill has the rd8, I can do the AD60SC, and i might buy the rd20 just for shits and giggles this week.

[czech]

you gonna update your initial post?


as for the RD20s, I just restrung it last night. I got the guitar with hard case for $120. The guitar was in very good condition with just a lot of grime on the fretboard. Everythign about the guitar is nice (for a $200 guitar) except the playability. the fretboard almost feels convex (?) to me. Like the D & G strings are the most sunken in. i know its just an illusion, but it really does suck as far as playability goes. The sound is great for a cheap guitar. I was very impressed with the sound and appearance. However I must say that I would prefer spending a little less and picking up an RD8, or spending the same and getting a used seagul.

I know this belongs in the guitar review thread but this thread should be stickied and have recomendations. and this guitar I would only recomend if you got a killer deal on it like I did.

[mangold]

you gonna update your initial post?


as for the RD20s, I just restrung it last night. I got the guitar with hard case for $120. The guitar was in very good condition with just a lot of grime on the fretboard. Everythign about the guitar is nice (for a $200 guitar) except the playability. the fretboard almost feels convex (?) to me. Like the D & G strings are the most sunken in. i know its just an illusion, but it really does suck as far as playability goes. The sound is great for a cheap guitar. I was very impressed with the sound and appearance. However I must say that I would prefer spending a little less and picking up an RD8, or spending the same and getting a used seagul.

I know this belongs in the guitar review thread but this thread should be stickied and have recomendations. and this guitar I would only recomend if you got a killer deal on it like I did.

ive updated it quite a few times since posting, ill add this in. thanks and anyone else who can give a legitimate and helpfulrecomendation of a guitar from any price range hook me up. i know you guys are out there cmon 714 fans!

[czech]

for $300 - $400 range I highly suggest the Alvarez AD60SC. The electronic are clear and pick every sound up. The guitar itself is beautiful, the inlays are gorgeous (especially the headstock), and the finish is shiny like a new sportscar. Sound wise it is great. When I first got mine brand new it had a bright tone and sounded similar to some taylors I had heard. After about 4 months of sitting in my room with a window open (i was in europe) the tone changed. It had much more bass (still nothign like a martin). Now with the guitar broken in and equipped with some Elixir Light Medium Phosphor bronze strings the sound is as perfect as you can hope for from a guitar bought new for $329.
Also, the playability I hold up to any other. I love how this thing plays, it sits well on my lap or on a strap, and the neck has a perfect feel, very good action (getting a little higher now from being out of a case), no fret buzzing once I moved to Light/mediums and or mediums (buzzing was very slight to begin with). Overall I have never played a guitar in its price range that sounded, looked, or played as well as my my AD60SC.

[mangold]

for $300 - $400 range I highly suggest the Alvarez AD60SC. The electronic are clear and pick every sound up. The guitar itself is beautiful, the inlays are gorgeous (especially the headstock), and the finish is shiny like a new sportscar. Sound wise it is great. When I first got mine brand new it had a bright tone and sounded similar to some taylors I had heard. After about 4 months of sitting in my room with a window open (i was in europe) the tone changed. It had much more bass (still nothign like a martin). Now with the guitar broken in and equipped with some Elixir Light Medium Phosphor bronze strings the sound is as perfect as you can hope for from a guitar bought new for $329.
Also, the playability I hold up to any other. I love how this thing plays, it sits well on my lap or on a strap, and the neck has a perfect feel, very good action (getting a little higher now from being out of a case), no fret buzzing once I moved to Light/mediums and or mediums (buzzing was very slight to begin with). Overall I have never played a guitar in its price range that sounded, looked, or played as well as my my AD60SC.

Thanks man!

and to everyone else... be more like Czech... hes devoted to this forum...

[czech]

I just know i'll have to type the smae thing out 100 times more, i'd rather just do it right here. and honestly, this forum helped me pick my guitar, probably will again in the future. might as well help out in return.

[EnFuego]

you gonna update your initial post?


as for the RD20s, I just restrung it last night. I got the guitar with hard case for $120. The guitar was in very good condition with just a lot of grime on the fretboard. Everythign about the guitar is nice (for a $200 guitar) except the playability. the fretboard almost feels convex (?) to me. Like the D & G strings are the most sunken in. i know its just an illusion, but it really does suck as far as playability goes. The sound is great for a cheap guitar. I was very impressed with the sound and appearance. However I must say that I would prefer spending a little less and picking up an RD8, or spending the same and getting a used seagul.

I know this belongs in the guitar review thread but this thread should be stickied and have recomendations. and this guitar I would only recomend if you got a killer deal on it like I did.

ive updated it quite a few times since posting, ill add this in. thanks and anyone else who can give a legitimate and helpfulrecomendation of a guitar from any price range hook me up. i know you guys are out there cmon 714 fans!

I kind of skimmed it, but I can help out a little bit. I have a Larrivee OM-05 mahogony top that I paid just under $1000 with tax if you want me to make any comments about that I can. I also have a 714 LTD, but it is a 2001 (so a little older...I dont know how its any different from the new ones though) and its a LTD, so its cocobolo/cedar instead of IER, but if you want, I can write up something about that as well. Let me know.

[mangold]

you gonna update your initial post?


as for the RD20s, I just restrung it last night. I got the guitar with hard case for $120. The guitar was in very good condition with just a lot of grime on the fretboard. Everythign about the guitar is nice (for a $200 guitar) except the playability. the fretboard almost feels convex (?) to me. Like the D & G strings are the most sunken in. i know its just an illusion, but it really does suck as far as playability goes. The sound is great for a cheap guitar. I was very impressed with the sound and appearance. However I must say that I would prefer spending a little less and picking up an RD8, or spending the same and getting a used seagul.

I know this belongs in the guitar review thread but this thread should be stickied and have recomendations. and this guitar I would only recomend if you got a killer deal on it like I did.

ive updated it quite a few times since posting, ill add this in. thanks and anyone else who can give a legitimate and helpfulrecomendation of a guitar from any price range hook me up. i know you guys are out there cmon 714 fans!

I kind of skimmed it, but I can help out a little bit. I have a Larrivee OM-05 mahogony top that I paid just under $1000 with tax if you want me to make any comments about that I can. I also have a 714 LTD, but it is a 2001 (so a little older...I dont know how its any different from the new ones though) and its a LTD, so its cocobolo/cedar instead of IER, but if you want, I can write up something about that as well. Let me know.

write up the 714ltd if ya can, i can supply info on larri's taylors arent my area of expertise

[Cor]

Good post, man.

[czech]

you know what else would be nice. a matrix for different woods and sounds. like what a cedar top does for sound, spruce, maple backs and sides, etc....
also an explanation of different bracings.

EDIT: also, instead of price ranges, have like 4 or 5 ranges (beater, beginer, novice, expert, studio, etc) and inside each one beater can consist of $75 - $150, $151 - $250. then the next range up, etc..... just a thought.

and yes, a very kick as post.

[mangold]

you know what else would be nice. a matrix for different woods and sounds. like what a cedar top does for sound, spruce, maple backs and sides, etc....
also an explanation of different bracings.

EDIT: also, instead of price ranges, have like 4 or 5 ranges (beater, beginer, novice, expert, studio, etc) and inside each one beater can consist of $75 - $150, $151 - $250. then the next range up, etc..... just a thought.

and yes, a very kick as post.

i explained the woods already and i have sperated all of the suggestions into 100's because the way i see it you dont pick a guitar based on what level player you are you pick it based on what you can afford.

i think im gonna do an in depth string explanation next.

[EnFuego]

2001 714LTD:

My particular guitar is cocobolo back/sides with a cedar top. This is a great combination for fingerstyle guitar players. The cedar top is very responsive to a light touch and does well under fingerstyle, flatpicking, and light strumming. It is a very balanced guitar and has great bass (especially for a Taylor). The guitar is extremely playable. The action is low, which is another reason it is great for fingerstyle, but even under strumming there isn't any buzzing. The guitar is very well made and looks gorgeous. This particular Taylor has grover tuners, which are good quality tuners, but I believe that the new Taylors are made with Ping tuners (which I know nothing about). Overall, the guitar sounds great, plays great, looks great, and is built very well.
Keep in mind though that this guitar isn't built for heavy strumming. If you strum too hard, it can "overload" the top and become somewhat muddled.

I don't know how much they go for new, but I paid around $1800 used, but take into account that it is a limited with cocobolo back/sides and that it also has a LR Baggs IMix pickup installed, which is a fairly nice pickup, and costs aound $230 online...and thats without installation. This one was professionally installed.