Electric Guitar needed in my budget.

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finalfury1

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Ok guys! I am getting into electric guitar after studying music on acoustic. I feel the time is right because I have advanced fast enough to begin writting my own songs and all my favorite songs sound empty without the electric backing them up.

Here is my budget as of now (will change due to getting paid on the 5th of May and tax returns): 700.

It is 700 because my mom, as a graduation present, has decided to pay half of any guitar set up. That means in two weeks, I could have a lot more money to spend on a guitar and amp.

Want
  • A great sounding guitar for a "Taking back Sunday" sort of sound with more of a simple plan twist.
  • A amp which can bring my guitar to the sound it needs.
  • A long lasting guitar set up (at least 2 years +).

Looking at currently (suggestions)
  1. New Mexi Fender Telecaster ($400)
  2. New Epiphone Les Paul Standard Plain Top Electric Guitar ($449.00)
  3. Possibly a mesa boogie amp setup.
  4. Fender Super Champ XD Guitar Combo Amp (thanks elenore19).
  5. Fender amp solid state (of some kind).

I need to know if I should wait because I want a guitar that will take me through the next few years playing guitar in a band I am starting. Suggestions appreciated because I have no idea what kind of amp to look at or which of the two guitars I should get.
Good used gear I am looking at too... Any suggestions on sites to trust buying used gear please leave as well!

Thanks All!
 
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I have been playing an Epi LP for the last 4+ years. I have tried others and haven't found a reason to change yet.

Also, it took a while to find a sound I liked with this but I got it. A Peavey Bandit 112. Neat little combo. But I still want a proper TUBE amp. Mesa Boogie has a great sound and a price tag to match.:( If your going to be playing out, I would say a 30ish watt tube amp with a 2x12 cab would be a good way to go. A Line6 Bogner combo may work well.
 
aight

Alright... Ill check that out. Also if anyone knows where I can find mesa boogies that would be nice because I want to go ebay last resort. I can't find a merch which sells them. Link me if you can. Thanks!
 
Finalfury:
Don't go into a store looking to cop someone else's sound. Go in to create your own sound. Go in and pick up and play every guitar/amp combination you can think of. One will sing to you. It may be the exact sound you are looking for now, it may not. I'm a strat cat but don't let that influence you. The best guitar I've ever played was a 1938 Epiphone "Blackstone" my dad had given me.
Find your own voice. Good Luck!
Ralph
 
finalfury1 said:
Alright... Ill check that out. Also if anyone knows where I can find mesa boogies that would be nice because I want to go ebay last resort. I can't find a merch which sells them. Link me if you can. Thanks!
Click to expand...

I'm not familiar with "Taking Back Sunday." Can you list more bands or a general style?
 
go check out the agiles at www.rondomusic.com they are great guitars and not just for the price.

also check out the xaviere line at www.guitarfetish.com i have an xv-700 and i love it!

edit: also check out the crate palamino or v-series amps. they are cheap but some of the best sounding tube amps under $1000
 
Definetely need more info on the sounds you like. Also, there's a huge discrepency between a Mesa and a solid state Fender in terms of both sound and price.
 
I googled Taking Back Sunday and saw one of their guitarists with a Gibson SG. This leads me to a pretty general question, do you want humbuckers or single coil pickups? That'll narrow the field considerably.
 
For an amp.

Go with the Fender Super Champ XD.

AMAZING amp for the price. Seriously. It will get any sound you're looking for. Just read the reviews as well.

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Fender-SuperChamp-XD-120V-Guitar-Combo?sku=483075

Seriously. It's portable, loud and Cheap. Not to mention the amazing tube sound. I love when I get the opportunity to turn the clean channel all the way up to hear the natural tube crunch. Fuckin' fabulous.


Anyways, there's my rant about an amp. I've always found that it's about the amp for sound, and the guitar for playability. So if you really need a certain sound, pay more attention to your amp.
That's my thought. If someone else thinks differently, I'd definitely like to hear the opinions.

Well. There ya go.


-Elliot
 
elenore19 said:
I've always found that it's about the amp for sound, and the guitar for playability. So if you really need a certain sound, pay more attention to your amp.
That's my thought. If someone else thinks differently, I'd definitely like to hear the opinions.

Well. There ya go.


-Elliot
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I play a Heritage H-555 and a G&L ASAT Jr through an old Gibson amp. The two sounds are NOT interchangeable.
 
You may want to include a G&L Tribute ASAT special on your list to look at, and Eastwood Guitars on your sites to view. But really, just go out and try a bunch of guitars and let your ears and fingers tell you what to get. Don't pay TOO much attention to the headstock.

Unless your drummer is heavy handed, 12 - 18 watts is enough in a tube amp. Go higher with solid state. The surface area of your speaker setup matters more for volume. I much prefer tubes myself, but let your ears make the decision, not the opinions of others. Solid state is more portable.

+1 on the Super Champ. The Peavey Classic 30 is also a good value.

Don't be afraid of used gear
 
TelePaul said:
I googled Taking Back Sunday and saw one of their guitarists with a Gibson SG. This leads me to a pretty general question, do you want humbuckers or single coil pickups? That'll narrow the field considerably.
Click to expand...

I am looking for double hambuckers I think but I am honestly open to any sound.
To all wondering:
I am asking this question on suggestions because I have never owned an electric guitar but only a fender acoustic. I gave a kind of sound genre I wanted by listing taking back sunday. I know what sound I want and it is a rather unique sound which I am not sure how to attain. I was just asking suggestions for guitars to try out first (also amps) before I went off and played around for a couple hours. Thanks all for your help and keep posting ideas plz... :)
 
TelePaul said:
Definetely need more info on the sounds you like. Also, there's a huge discrepency between a Mesa and a solid state Fender in terms of both sound and price.
Click to expand...

I was listing things that I was told was a good idea to check out... The mesa has a sound like blink 182 and maybe bands like relient k. Um... I was just listing them because I was considering...
 
Need some other advice...

Does anyone know any trustworthy used guitar gear sites? I am thinking about buying the amp used or maybe the guitar for budget purposes.... Always on the lookout for deals I spose...:D
 
I like the clean sound of my Laney Pro-Tube 50 and they go under 500 used, and they have more gain than you'd need for what you wanna play.

Guitar wise.. Epiphone LPs are great and G&L make damn fine strats and teles.. I love my S-500..
 
+1:

Fender Super Champ XD (may be upgraded with a new speaker down the road). This is the perfect 1st amp while you play around with sounds/effects and decide what you like.

a guitar from RondoMusic.com (you might either get a really nice one or even a couple of good ones there within your budget or just get a nice one and some pickups/parts from guitarfetish.com for upgrades).

Rondo has plenty of offerings that beat MIM Fender and entry-level Epi offerings. You can read up on them, talk to others at agileguitarforum.com
 
I know I'm just echoing what a bunch of other people said before, but it really is worth going to a shop and trying out a whole bunch of stuff. Something might pop out at you that you never would have thought of. Always play a guitar before you buy it anyway. One mex tele or epi les paul will most likely not sound the same as the next
 
At the very least you should do a live sound comparison between a Strat (single-coil pickups) and something with humbuckers through the same amp. Each pickup type has its advantages and and disadvantages, and the two types sound totally different.

Tom
 
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