first electric guitar

[corg]

hey guys, im thinking about purchasing my first electric. as from my other post, i was thinking of a banjo or mandolin and a new guitar (i didnt work to save my money ) so, on the guitar front, originally i was thinking another acoustic, a martin hd28 or somethign, a nice rhythm guitar, deep rich lows, etc. then, i was getting around to thinking, "god these high frets are a pain in the ass" and went into looking at gibson sg's. a while back, at sam ash, i was playing around with a 61 reissue i believe, and really liked the feel and sound. it kinda stuck with me. today i did a little looking into it on the net, but need to go someplace pretty soon to try things out again. can someone just give me a little info on the sg, compare it to maybe a couple other guitars you might think would be good, give pros and cons, etc? i would really appreciate it. only other electrics ive ever played were a friends 71 fender telecaster thinline (believe thats what it was) and he had some other kinda weird electric (i think it might have been an ovation of some sort) so i dont know much on them. i really liked the telecaster too, but i think the sg felt better, so, thanks for anything you guys can offer! i really appreciate all the help!

corey

 

[corg]

oh, also, along the lines of amps, what do you think would be good to go with it, a clean sounding one (im not too into distortion and all yet). im looking at maybe putting 1500 or so into this, possibly more, less works for quality too. also, in comparison to les paul's too, i remember playing one of them i liked, dont know which one exactly. sorry for asking for so much. thanks!

corey

 

[Dr_simon]

SGs have a notoriously thin neck, they do have nice hot rockin pickups, I think very much of distorted guitar tones when people mention SGs ala Toni Iomie (Sp) or Angus young !

Have you thought about hollow body guitars, or semi acoustics Epiphone do a bunch that are probably worth checking out. Gibson Les Pauls are quite expensive, Id tread carefully there! A new classic LP comes in at about 1600 USD and a Standard LP will set you back 2K

As for amps, well it depends on what you want to do, it is no point having a 120 watt Jazz Clean amp if you are only playing to your wife and kids (and the neighbors all be it inadvertently) !

I have a 72 re-issue Tele (the one with the f-holes) it is a really clunky axe, very differant from your average Tele!

 

[corg]

wow, ok, didnt know much of this, well, thanks for some info. uhh, along the lines of an amp, no wife or kids (im 18), itd be nice to crank it up every once and a while and let the neighbors know what im doing, but pretty much in room use for most occasions. lets see, well, i guess these seemed good to me from playing acoustic too long, i dont really know what to look for. so, what can i go play to have the kinda jazzy sound, maybe some light crunch or distortion on occasion, but mainly clean. any suggestions are good, ill be going to sam ash to play some in a few days, and well, look at what they have. tele's or strat's? hmm, whats some of the big differences in the classic and standard LP? 1600 would be pushing it, but i guess i could always not eat for a while. just give me a general idea if possible about a lot of this stuff. ohh, im trying to keep the looks average too, no flying v's or anything no offense to those, just not my style. ibanez, cravin, give me an idea guys! thanks so much!

corey

 

[Wide Awake]

i dont really know what to look for. so, what can i go play to have the kinda jazzy sound, maybe some light crunch or distortion on occasion, but mainly clean. any suggestions are good,

corey

I recommend a small tube amp. Warm, round clean sounds, natural sounding distortion, spring reverb....I'm getting misty just thinking about them. Modeling and solid-state are the devil....resist the dark side.

Peavey Classic 30
Fender Blues Jr.

Both of those are about $400.

 

[Wide Awake]

tele's or strat's? hmm, whats some of the big differences in the classic and standard LP?

corey

The difference between the new ones are- the Classic has higher output pickups, a slightly thinner neck. The Standard has lower output pickups that try to get a more "vintage" 50's and 60's Les Paul sound. I think the Classic is a little bit less money. Great guitars, if you bought one of those you would look back ten years from now and be happy that you spent the money.

Fender makes good, affordable guitars. Standards, made in Mexico are around $350. The 60's and 70's Stratocaster are good, more like $500 or $600. The American Stratocaster or American Tele- $850

Les Paul Studio, Epiphone Dot, Casino, or Sheraton. Hamer guitars. Lot's of choices out there. Play a bunch of them and use your instincts to tell you what the right one is.

 

[Dr_simon]

Can't go wrong with a Strat or a Tele as a first electric !

Best advice in the world...play 'em and go for the one you like the best !