What guitar??
 

I have been playing guitar for a year and 3 months (self-taught), and as of now I have an Epiphone Les Paul studio. My amp is a Line 6 Spider(but that doesnt really matter).

Alright.... So my birthday is coming soon:beer:, and if my calculations are correct ill have about $600(it may be a little more or a little less that that) by next week. I want to buy a guitar, but I dont know which one, so please post your opinions and help me out.



Music I play: Punk, blues, metal, (basically everything)
Im looking for a guitar that costs around $600, plays well on clean settings as well as with distortion.

Thanks.

I've been a bit of an Ibanez junkie. I know a lot of people would disagree with me because a lot of their guitars have seemed to be rip offs of more popular guitars. But given that you've been playing a short while, try an Ibanez for a decent price/performance ratio. The action tends to be lower on many Ibanez models, too, which is good for a relative newcomer.

Hi piwinner

It's a hard question to answer because it depends on several factors. You said that you play punk, blues and metal. Based on that, I would think maybe a strat or an RG series Ibanez. You can play punk on any sort of guitar. Blues you maybe want the single coil pickups - look at Stevie Ray Vaughan and Eric Clapton - they both play Fender Strats. Metal guitarists play Ibanez, ESP, Dean, Jackson - there are loads to pick from.

Aside from that, it's about personal choice. You already have the Les Paul Studio, so a strat would give you a different (single coil) sound for the blues. Your LP would be better for playing rock and metal.

$600 is about £400, so you could get a mid range strat with that. It would also buy you a fairly decent Ibanez RG.

You should also try and play a few different guitars in your local store. The Line 6 Spider is a common amp, so I'm sure you can find your model, or at least a similar Spider in that range to play through. What guitar looks cool? What plays nicely. That's half the fun of buying a new guitar - spending the best part of a day in the store!

I run a guitar site over at blind-summit.co.uk and would be happy to try and help you more if you so wish.

Hope that's helped a little.

i have to agree that having a les paul means you got the humbucker soud pretty much covered. i love the way a strat neck feels in my hand but i hate the way they sound. my reccomendation is take the $600 and buy a really nice but used effects processor. then you can make what ever sound you want. or buy a talk box, they are fun also, and you'd have $$ left over.

that's pretty much what i paid for my mexican strat back on my 19th birthday hehe. as others have mentionned too, an ibanez would give you a nice alternate feel and tone. same with a strat but then you end up being one of the many faceless in the horde of 'guys with strats'. :laughing:

An effects pedal would give you some new sounds - but he has a Spider amp - don't they have amp modelling and onboard effects?

What about a Telecaster if you don't want to join the "Strat Pack".

With the Ibanez, you can always get a SSH configuration so you can play rock and punk on the bridge pickup, and flick to the single coils for the blues.

But like I said, you need to think about what you like and also go try a load of guitars. No point spending $600 on a guitar that people reccoment unless you actually play it yourself and compare it to a few others.

Good luck and let us know how you get on.

I think I have had an influence on the forum. I'm not the only guy recommending Ibanez these days...

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Now playing on Winamp: Joe Satriani - Clouds Race Across The Sky
via FoxyTunes

:p:

i've never been against them hehe, i was actually eyeing a few models last year. mainly the artcore series, and a local pawnshop had a nice semi-hollow talman. turns out one of my buddies picked it up recently so i'll get a chance to really try it out sometime this summer hopefully.

Buy a PA system and start a band.
You'll find an infinite amount of social enrichment and personal fulfillment.

This.
If you have a p.a. system every musician on the block will want to be in your band regardless of your talent, and knowing people counts.
I got my current accommodation (in an economic and housing crisis) through being in a band, not to mention a whole bunch of good mates.