I've done it both ways, in the process of building my "WMD (Weapons of Musical Destruction) arsenal." My Squier Bullet Special, Fender So-Cal Speed Shop Strat and Fender Standard Precision bass all came from Musician's Friend, while my Epiphone PR100 I bought from a long time IRC chat buddy from Pennsylvania.
With the Fender So-Cal Speed Shop Strat being the same basic configuration as the Squier Bullet Special (and the Fender Tom DeLonge Blink 182 Strat), I knew it'd be a better guitar than the Squier, and once I started jamming on it, I realized that the Squier can't even hold a candle to the Fender. That'll soon be fixed, as soon as I have the chance to get the Squier to the local shop to have the factory original humbucker replaced by a TV Jones PowerTron. When I bought the Squier from Musician's Friend, it wasn't like I didn't know what I was getting into. I'd tried one out at the (now defunct) Mars Planet through several combo amps, including a Fender Twin Reverb (and almost knocked myself out of my shoes and socks, with that one), and was truly amazed at the sounds coming from the amps.
Right now, I'm taking a bit of a break from my guitar collecting, but when I get back to it, I'm planning to order one of the ocean blue Ibanez Artcore AFS75s through the same shop I'm taking several of my guitars to, for upgrades/repairs. This is the same place where I've bought my Ibanez Artcore AG75TBS, and Ibanez JTK2 Jet King.
Pretty much, if I have a clue what the guitar's s'pposed to sound like, I'm not beyond ordering if from a source such as Musician's Friend. If I haven't yet picked around on a particular brand/model, I usually eventually wander to the nearest store that stocks 'em, and give it a test drive.
Matt
With the Fender So-Cal Speed Shop Strat being the same basic configuration as the Squier Bullet Special (and the Fender Tom DeLonge Blink 182 Strat), I knew it'd be a better guitar than the Squier, and once I started jamming on it, I realized that the Squier can't even hold a candle to the Fender. That'll soon be fixed, as soon as I have the chance to get the Squier to the local shop to have the factory original humbucker replaced by a TV Jones PowerTron. When I bought the Squier from Musician's Friend, it wasn't like I didn't know what I was getting into. I'd tried one out at the (now defunct) Mars Planet through several combo amps, including a Fender Twin Reverb (and almost knocked myself out of my shoes and socks, with that one), and was truly amazed at the sounds coming from the amps.
Right now, I'm taking a bit of a break from my guitar collecting, but when I get back to it, I'm planning to order one of the ocean blue Ibanez Artcore AFS75s through the same shop I'm taking several of my guitars to, for upgrades/repairs. This is the same place where I've bought my Ibanez Artcore AG75TBS, and Ibanez JTK2 Jet King.
Pretty much, if I have a clue what the guitar's s'pposed to sound like, I'm not beyond ordering if from a source such as Musician's Friend. If I haven't yet picked around on a particular brand/model, I usually eventually wander to the nearest store that stocks 'em, and give it a test drive.
Matt