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December, 2024

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Looking into a new electric guitar, $500-600 range

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Anathema
Posts: 21048 - Karma: 5,061
maybe a little more if it's a decent deal. i've always liked les paul models and think the epiphone copy is pretty sick, but is there anything else i should be looking into? i'm all rock with a nice clean crisp sound, maybe a little bluesy. guns and roses, scorpions, hendrix, led zeppelin, you name it. love me some good old rock.

any suggestions on brands or models i should be researching? strats also work for me.

also going to be looking in to an amp. 30w line6 spider? i've heard good things about it and have friends with that amp who love it. dont know much about anything else other than peavy and marshall.

thanks in advance.

im going spend happy these days. guess thats what happens when you work as much as i do. blehhh.
Apr 9 2013 8:27PM
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stokedelic
Posts: 1532 - Karma: 4,217
when if comes to guitars, i tend to look on craigslist. theres usually people that got them for christmas/birthday or whatever and are looking to get rid of them quickly. the other week i saw a perfect condition fender strat for 250 with a case and shitty amp included.
Apr 10 2013 4:26PM
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[~_~]
Posts: 20239 - Karma: 1,273
Humbuckers or single coils?

Save your money for a tube amp.
Apr 10 2013 4:35PM
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-AM-
Posts: 162 - Karma: 116
Pleaaaase dont buy an epiphone. Epiphones are extremely cheaply made. Buy something nice off of craigslist, go with a jazzmaster (or telecaster), or keep saving up. All of the epiphones I have used go out of tune constantly and have really bad tone.
Apr 10 2013 4:37PM
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-AM-
Posts: 162 - Karma: 116
Also, all of the amps youve described are known for their distortion, not clean sound. Go with a fender, orange, vox or some sort of tube amp if you want a nice clean sound.
Apr 10 2013 4:39PM
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Logan.
Posts: 717 - Karma: 1,862
Go to a good store and try out everything, even if you don't think you'll like it. Also make sure to try whatever you think would be your "perfect" guitar (i.e. an expensive guitar you can't afford but you love) so that you know what the best feels like, and you can get whatever is closest. I got an Epiphone SG and I love it ($400 i think it was)
Apr 10 2013 9:12PM
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[hamnuts]
Posts: 2356 - Karma: 439
Get a higher end Mexican strat
Apr 10 2013 9:14PM
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95959
Posts: 2765 - Karma: 377
Addressing your first post, Epiphone actually makes some quite nice hollow body guitars.
Secondly orange is definitely not known for they're clean tone.. That's a straight up British crunch rock amp, same with Vox to a slightly lesser extent. But you're definitely not gonna get a pure clean tone out of an AC 15/30. Of that group fender is the only way to go for cleans.
Apr 10 2013 9:23PM
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yuck
Posts: 8384 - Karma: 2,090
could not disagree with you more. epiphone makes entry level cheap guitars, yes, but they do make good stuff in and around OPs price range. i have an epiphone dot (es-335) and i absolutely love it (along with everyone else who has one i think). the twin humbuckers produce an incredible smooth and mellow tone, and while it may not be as twangy or bluesy as a single-coil will be (obviously) it sounds so nice clean. I love it.

Ezra Konig (i think thats his name) from vampire weekend chooses epi over gibson, not that it makes a difference but it shows that some people actually prefer epiphone.

Apr 10 2013 9:31PM
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grapejuice3000+
Posts: 2132 - Karma: 1,985
gretsch country gentleman
Apr 10 2013 9:38PM
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Anathema
Posts: 21048 - Karma: 5,061
distortion is fine, i just dont want heavy van halen overdrive. clean distortion, like those bands i mentioned. i want to be slash. that is my life goal. even have long flowy locks like slash.

though thall take me about 3 years to grow out :/
Apr 10 2013 10:09PM
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49566738265
Posts: 0 - Karma: 7,704
You can get a pretty decent Telecaster in that range. Really versatile and they sound great for that blues sound you're describing.
Apr 10 2013 10:27PM
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nagger
Posts: 1576 - Karma: 883
get some 7 string ibanez with a floyd rose they're just what you're looking for.
Apr 10 2013 10:31PM
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Darth.Maul
Posts: 2472 - Karma: 652
Schecter Omen 6 Extreme. Great guitar made in the USA and $649 MSRP which means you can prolly get for 600. Nice quilted maple top and you get lots of quality for what you pay for.


Well fuck. $450 for the thing on Musicians friend.



Apr 10 2013 11:04PM
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Darth.Maul
Posts: 2472 - Karma: 652
Don't get the cherry burst though. Lighter bursts look better IMO

But theres 3 colors anyways.
Apr 10 2013 11:06PM
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JWD*
Posts: 466 - Karma: 225
If your getting a fender go with the american made because the mexican are shit quality, make sure you try out the guitar before your buy it! I thought i would love the sg but it feels so weird if you're not playing rock. You could probably get any good american fender for 850-1000 depending on if you get a deal or not.
Apr 10 2013 11:36PM
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richard.
Posts: 873 - Karma: 55
Jackson or Ibanez
Apr 11 2013 12:13AM
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steezbox
Posts: 1394 - Karma: 701
I am personally an Ibby fanboy so I would always suggest that, but usually they are geared more towards metal. The Ibanez S series are some fun guitars to play.

If you want something versatile, go PRS. The SE (student edition - they are less expensive than the standards) series is definitely worth it. Every single PRS I have ever played, i have been blown away by the tone and feel. I love them. And I find they look much nicer than your typical les paul or strat (I hate those shapes).

And my advice for an amp - DONT GET THE LINE 6! I find their lower end stuff sounds waaaay to digital. I have a POD HD Pro and it is insanely good, but that can't even be compared. I would go for a Roland cube. 40 watts maybe - you can jam with drums then too.
Apr 11 2013 12:19AM
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steezbox
Posts: 1394 - Karma: 701
While those guitars are good for the price, that really is strictly geared towards metal. And from the looks of it, it has a Floyd Rose tremolo which I really don't suggest you get if you like changing tunings. It takes quite a bit of maintenance.
Apr 11 2013 12:23AM
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Blake.P
Posts: 9894 - Karma: 3,585
Epiphone les Paul classic. I have one and it sounds great. As long as you get a higher end one, its fine. As for a amp, check out the fender blues junior. 15 tube watts (still really loud) or you can get the 40 watt version. Super clean tone. If you want a heavier distortion, just add petals. Better to start with a clean sound and make it more distorted than try to clean a distorted sound
Apr 11 2013 1:02AM
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[~_~]
Posts: 20239 - Karma: 1,273
Slash uses an LP into a Marshall, so your best bet on a budget is some sort of budget LP design and a Blackstar HT-20 amp. Though I must say, buying gear to emulate your favorite player isn't nearly as fun as forging your own sounds. Go to a music store and try EVERY guitar, despite how ugly/uncool it is, and make your selection based on sound and feel of the neck.

The only worthy guitars Epiphone makes are hollowbodies. For LP/SGs, there's better alternatives, though I don't know what they are.

Also, a $500 guitar can play like a $1,500 guitar if it has a proper setup and neck work. Take it to a dedicated luthier (not some shop employee) and pay them to do a fret level/dressing + setup.
Apr 11 2013 2:34AM
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Darth.Maul
Posts: 2472 - Karma: 652
Lots of their guitars have EMG's and other active pickups which are great for metal but thats why i picked this one out. It has some standard alinco coil pickups which should provide a pretty broad soundrange and not be too hot since they're passive.

They make a non-FR version but I think its better deal to get the FR and i believe (not sure) that it is a locking bridge? Lots of the newer FR bridges allow you to lock them in place and use the tuning pegs to do different tunings.
Apr 11 2013 3:02AM
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zahava
Posts: 7791 - Karma: 12,039
Paging Aaron..... Aaron line two, Aaron line two.......
Apr 11 2013 3:04AM
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