best tone for cheap hollowbody

daav

Flailing up a storm.
I'm thinking baout dropping some cash on a fairly cheap hollow body looking for general opinions about waht kind of tone i can expect to get. i am guessing the construction and wood choice here is probably as (if not more) important than a typical electric.

Looking at the epi options, dot, shereton, casino what are your thoughts? I am thinking that if i can get a shereton or casino with p90's for a reasonable amount, that might be pretty sweet. Alternately, is there anything that can be done with these things to improve them, pup replacement, etc?

Thanks
Daav
 
i currently own my father's old guitar from around 1970

its a harmony hollow body and i think it sounds pretty damn good


probably only payed 50 bucks for it
 
I was shopping for hollows recently. I tried the Epiphone Dot. The cheap ones are OK, the higher priced ones are a bit better. But even the least expensive Ibanez Artcore blew them both away IMO.
 
well i have always thought that used was the very best way to go on guitars but... hey as i see it you can go with what you like the looks/sound/feel/ of or you can go with what others say. now i like the artcore guitars but i also like the cheap Gretsch guitars that they are making, if you could get a used one it would rock your face off.... but another option that i would not recomend is to go to your local Scam Ash music store and play every single cheap thing they have in stock. one otehr guitar that just came to mind was Washburn they have a really nice little line of guitars that play good and sound even better.... i am thinking that they have some that start as low as $199 at MF. i would love to get rid of my strat and roll hollow for a while but i only play acoustic these days when i am gigging so its not worth spending the money.
 
I'm thinking about hollowbodies, too. The Artcores look like the best value. I'd like a trapeze tailpiece without a sustain block.
 
Here's another recomendation for the Artcore which in my opinion is one of the best in its price range. Like you I recently (about a year ago) wanted and bought an inexpensive hollow body. I played a lot before deciding on a Silvertone 330. You gotta check them out carefully though, the ones made in Indonesia are pretty good but the ones from China leave a lot to be desired. I swapped out the "Duncan designed" pickups and put in a set of P90s and now have a sweet sounding and a great playing hollow body. Hollow bodys are a little different from solid bodys, pick one up and you either love it or you hate it, each different one has it's own feel and if one dosen't feel right you wont play it as much so try out several before you make a decision.
 
I own an Epi Dot which is about 4 years old. While I'm satisfied with the tone and the playablity (for the price) , I must admit that the comparitively priced (or even lower priced) Artcores I've recently tried at various shops sure feel, play & sound pretty good.

One semi hollow is enough for me, but if I were to do it again, I would likely chose an Artcore over my DOT.
 
here's a +1 on the Ibanez Artcore. I've got a sunburst AG75, and it plays like a dream and has fantastic tone. and I got it for $200! :D


cheers,
wade
 
Thanks everyone for your opinions, i really like the look of those Agiles, I may look into trying to play one, if i can gett access somewhere.

The artcores are sounding good based on all these reccomendation (although a friend has one that i thought had a very thin tone to it, I guess i need to look around at other models).

Anyone with any more thoughts on the non-dot epis?


Daav
 
I checked out an Artcore over the weekend at GC. The details and workmanship were amazing for a $239.00 guitar.

The guitars at Rondo Music seem to be an excellent value to from what I've read. They're only available from Rondo Music in NJ, so unless you live nearby you can't check them out in advance.
 
Keep your eyes peeled for used Ibanez Artstars (not Artcores). They are no longer in production, but were made from the early 80's to 2002 or so in Korea (the Artcores are basically the same thing, but new and made in China, with cheaper components). Because the Artstars are out of production, and were because they are not Gretch or Rickys or Gibsons, they have lower resale value (unless you have an AS200).

I picked up an Artstar AS120 for $500 CDN. When it was in production it sold in shops for $1200-$1500. Nothing at all wrong with it, and it seriously compares well with Gibson ES335s. John Scofield uses an AS200, which is the same guitar as the AS120 but with fancier inlays, trim and tuning pegs (same pickups and body construction).

Artstars are the true hollowbody treasure to nail as they can be had for a decent price (more than an Artcore for a used Artstar, but the quality difference is huge). If you think the Artcores are nice (which they are for the price) try an Artstar.
 
The Artstars are a step up from the Artcores, if you can find one.

I've got an 1973 Artist(Japan), an even earlier version of Artstar and Artcore. It's like a small bodied ES-335 with a wide neck. Orange burst, bound body and neck, and pearl Ibanez torch inlay in headstock. It weighs a ton and plays beautifully. I bought it ten years ago for like three hundred bucks.
 
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Wow, it is like magic, my friend's is actually an artstar, not an artcore, and he tells me another friend has the same model (his is the AS200) and was looking to unload it.

The thing is, i always remember thinking that my freinds had poor tone, maybe i'll have to look back into it. i might have to play the thing throug my rig and see if it is indeed how i remember it.

Daav
 
i've found with my Artcore that you really have to have an amp that "works" with it.

my artcore REALLY likes my Vox Pathfinder 15R. the two of those really make a beautiful sounding combination. i'm in tone heaven with those two together. it's just dreamy sounding.

conversely, running the artcore through my Silverface Fender Champ sounds like absolute shit. The humbuckers must be too much for it or something, but it just sounds awful. but my tele SINGS through the Champ......and my tele doesn't sound so good through the Vox, either.

it's a classic example of how the guitar and amp are a living extension of each other......


cheers,
wade
 
daav said:
Wow, it is like magic, my friend's is actually an artstar, not an artcore, and he tells me another friend has the same model (his is the AS200) and was looking to unload it.

The thing is, i always remember thinking that my freinds had poor tone, maybe i'll have to look back into it. i might have to play the thing throug my rig and see if it is indeed how i remember it.

Daav

The artstar AS200 should have Super 58 pickups in it, if it is stock. I absolutely love those pickups and you will find many reviews saying they are the best humbuckers Ibanez ever made....
check it out again .
 
If it sounds like crap... a set up and pickup adjustment may work wonders. I have to agree that it is not just the guitar but the combination of guitar and amp that produces those really wonderfull tones.
 
mrface2112 said:
it's a classic example of how the guitar and amp are a living extension of each other......

Since Ive invested in some really nice amps and guitars I totally found that certain guitars sound 100% better through certain amps. A great expensive guitar can sound pretty "regular" through certain great expensive amps but in certain combinations you can have magic.
 
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