What makes a good guitar?
Comments
Robots doing the grunt work, and people who care doing the last bits.
what’s the question being asked here?
I fully agree. I love a great Gibson or Fender, but there are so many other options, especially if you know exactly what you want and can’t get it from the big boys outside a very expensive one-off build. I’ve built a bunch of partscasters over the last few years and my latest are genuinely good enough that I wouldn’t trade for a Fender CS even if offered.
Gibsons are a little different as they’re a bit more complicated to make but again they’re not the option if you want humbucker or p90 equipped guitars.
But folks do really like to tell everyone how their stuff is the best (and therefore they have made good decisions…)
Errrm, the last line… with the question mark at the end.Revolutions said:what’s the question being asked here?
Is there a discussion to be had? Others have said brand & price dictate quality, you seem to suggest your taste for “personalised custom shop Guitars, with higher specification and more personalisation than anything that you can buy off a wall” is actually superior.Andy_Strings said:Errrm, the last line… with the question mark at the end.Revolutions said:what’s the question being asked here?
What does a good guitar even mean to any one of us? Without an objective definition of good, this is never going to be anything apart from opinions based on preferences.
Yup, I get that although I’ve got a stunning 58 Double Cut made by @GSPBASSES and 64 Epi Coronet replica built by a Fretboarder, both set neck, both wonderful guitars and both preferred to the big G offerings.stickyfiddle said:Gibsons are a little different as they’re a bit more complicated to make but again they’re not the option if you want humbucker or p90 equipped guitars.
The one that has the right combination of neck, weight, balance, tone and comfort that makes me want to pick up and play at every opportunity.
Not wanting to be arsey, but you mentioned "such strong and negative opinions", without giving an example of negative opinions.Andy_Strings said:Errrm, the last line… with the question mark at the end.Revolutions said:what’s the question being asked here?
If you're saying people with expensive brand-name guitars can be snobby about cheaper guitars and/or partscasters, then yes maybe they can be. But on the other hand they might just like buying what they can afford, what appeals to them, and they might genuinely think those guitars are really good.
You said yourself that your partscasters and custom guitars have "higher specification and more personalisation than anything that you can buy off a wall", so presumably they weren't cheap. You just chose to spend your money differently..?
On the question at the top of the thread, what makes a good guitar, for me, is a neck that feels good in the hand, a body shape that feels comfortable and well-balanced, and some resonance when you hit the strings. Pickups and parts can always be changed to taste.
I’m chasing discussion you seem to want an argument. I mentioned a preference based on feel, playability, tone and aesthetics yet there are people with badly setup guitars with old strings… but a £5k price ticket who believe theirs are wonderful & I emphatically disagree with a statement that money or badge automatically makes a good guitar.Revolutions said:Is there a discussion to be had? Others have said brand & price dictate quality, you seem to suggest your taste for “personalised custom shop Guitars, with higher specification and more personalisation than anything that you can buy off a wall” is actually superior.Andy_Strings said:Errrm, the last line… with the question mark at the end.Revolutions said:what’s the question being asked here?
What does a good guitar even mean to any one of us? Without an objective definition of good, this is never going to be anything apart from opinions based on preferences.
You’ve not said which Hill you stand on.
It’s almost as if we’re all different people with different preferences.
After visiting hundreds of vintage guitar shops and auction I can tell you there’s very little that makes a guitar intrinsically good or bad, it’s all about the player.
Of course, if you’ve spent £5000 on a guitar it’s likely you’ll try to justify that to yourselves and others.
In the end, the only negative opinion I can see here is yours. Play the music you like on the best gear you can afford and have fun. We’ll all be forgotten in a few years anyway.
After visiting hundreds of vintage guitar shops and auction I can tell you there’s very little that makes a guitar intrinsically good or bad, it’s all about the player.
Of course, if you’ve spent £5000 on a guitar it’s likely you’ll try to justify that to yourselves and others.
In the end, the only negative opinion I can see here is yours. Play the music you like on the best gear you can afford and have fun. We’ll all be forgotten in a few years anyway.
Am I missing something, you didn’t mention anything about feel, playability tone or aesthetics in your original post? Nor about old strings & bad setups.Andy_Strings said:I’m chasing discussion you seem to want an argument. I mentioned a preference based on feel, playability, tone and aesthetics yet there are people with badly setup guitars with old strings… but a £5k price ticket who believe theirs are wonderful & I emphatically disagree with a statement that money or badge automatically makes a good guitar.Revolutions said:Is there a discussion to be had? Others have said brand & price dictate quality, you seem to suggest your taste for “personalised custom shop Guitars, with higher specification and more personalisation than anything that you can buy off a wall” is actually superior.Andy_Strings said:Errrm, the last line… with the question mark at the end.Revolutions said:what’s the question being asked here?
What does a good guitar even mean to any one of us? Without an objective definition of good, this is never going to be anything apart from opinions based on preferences.
You’ve not said which Hill you stand on.
I don’t have a hill. I just like guitars.
There seems to be a bit of a badge of honour thing among some guitarists where they like to loudly proclaim that their partscaster or budget model will knock socks off any of the big brands.
Truth is that there are many outstanding partscasters and budget guitars, equally there are outstanding guitars made by Gibson, Fender, PRS, Ibanez, Duesenberg etc etc etc.
It really isn't a competition and we are lucky to have such a vast choice these days.
Truth is that there are many outstanding partscasters and budget guitars, equally there are outstanding guitars made by Gibson, Fender, PRS, Ibanez, Duesenberg etc etc etc.
It really isn't a competition and we are lucky to have such a vast choice these days.
That’s an easy hill to find neutral ground on. :)Revolutions said:I don’t have a hill. I just like guitars.
I live on a hill if that helps either way.
I’ve said nothing negative at all. I simply won’t accept a baseless argument that guitar A is better than guitar B because it cost more… or is from a revered brand. There are lots of other valid preferences and reasons, but not those two.
Lawriejones1 said:
Of course, if you’ve spent £5000 on a guitar it’s likely you’ll try to justify that to yourselves and others.
In the end, the only negative opinion I can see here is yours.
Given that a "Great guitar" is an entirely subjective combination of specs dependent on what feels and sounds good to play to a particular person, then then there is my view on it.
If we want to discuss pricing, then is that not a function if how well those specs are executed by a particular brand at a particular price point.
I rattle on about an original series or custom order ESP a lot, and that's going to be a 5-7k purchase. There's no other way to judge that but subjectively in terms of value for money.
Andy_Strings said:I’ve said nothing negative at all. I simply won’t accept a baseless argument that guitar A is better than guitar B because it cost more… or is from a revered brand. There are lots of other valid preferences and reasons, but not those two.Lawriejones1 said:
Of course, if you’ve spent £5000 on a guitar it’s likely you’ll try to justify that to yourselves and others.
In the end, the only negative opinion I can see here is yours.
I agree that price doesn’t mean quality (some of the latest Gibsons are a case in point).
A lot of people look at guitars as assets not tools. For them, there’s an incentive to justify their outlay by convincing themselves that big name (and big price) guitars are worth it.
If you barely play it’s not worth it.
There’s a big difference between playing for a bit at home and out gigging every week. My gigging double bass is a £800 ply one. I did 50 - 80 gigs a year and the whole set up costs less than £2000.
Right tools for the job and all that.
There’s a big difference between playing for a bit at home and out gigging every week. My gigging double bass is a £800 ply one. I did 50 - 80 gigs a year and the whole set up costs less than £2000.
Right tools for the job and all that.
Has anyone made that argument?Andy_Strings said:I simply won’t accept a baseless argument that guitar A is better than guitar B because it cost more… or is from a revered brand.
What makes a good guitar?
Twice this weekend (and quite emphatically) which is what prompted the post.Sporky said:Has anyone made that argument?Andy_Strings said:I simply won’t accept a baseless argument that guitar A is better than guitar B because it cost more… or is from a revered brand.
Well, it turns out I recognise the body on the left of the photo.
The player.
Ah. I missed that.Andy_Strings said:Twice this weekend (and quite emphatically) which is what prompted the post.Sporky said:Has anyone made that argument?Andy_Strings said:I simply won’t accept a baseless argument that guitar A is better than guitar B because it cost more… or is from a revered brand.
Anyways, what makes a good guitar is being kind to its friends and family.
Resonance. Some guitars have it more than others. It’s largely not price or even quality related, it’s down to the individual neck and body, and to a smaller extent the bridge and possibly the tuners and nut. The pickups are a surprisingly small part of it, although they change the overall sound.
A friend has quite a collection of vintage Fenders, including pre-CBS Strats and Teles… the best-sounding of the lot is a cheap ‘81 Bullet (the one with the vaguely Tele-shaped body and bent aluminium pickguard/bridge). It just sounds better than all the others. It’s not the model - I’ve played others, which were all pretty average - it’s the individual guitar.
A friend has quite a collection of vintage Fenders, including pre-CBS Strats and Teles… the best-sounding of the lot is a cheap ‘81 Bullet (the one with the vaguely Tele-shaped body and bent aluminium pickguard/bridge). It just sounds better than all the others. It’s not the model - I’ve played others, which were all pretty average - it’s the individual guitar.
It’s just a vibe, man. The guitar that makes you want to play just melts into your body and takes you places other guitars can’t go. How much an instrument costs has little to do with that feeling.
Huge ceramic magnet. Next question
Looks ACAF.
I’m sure you do, it’s fabulous and (in my humble opinion) much prettier than the off the shelf offerings.GoldenEraGuitars said:Well, it turns out I recognise the body on the left of the photo.
It looks a million dollars and that scores points for me - but does that contribute to other people’s vision of a great guitar?
Every comment has made sense to me, resonance, personal connections, the one you play the best & I completely agree. So, going back to my original question, why is there so much passive negativity about partscasters?
Unputdownability.
https://i.imgur.com/08AzaKd.jpeg