Tell me why this is dumb....

  • Thread starter Thread starter RWhite
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My primary guitar is a "Premier" Les Paul Standard copy, cherry sunburst. If you've seen a Epiphone Less Paul its pretty much the same thing. Bought it around 1978 I think. At the time a friend of mine was playing a real Les Paul Standard, which I though was nice but just too damn heavy. The one I bought is a lighter wood, had whiny pickups which I immediately replaced with a DiMarzzio. Left the bridge pickup, it sounds nice for some stuff. After 24 years it still feels as good as any guitar I've ever touched, and still has that huge 70's guitar crunch sound.

Moral of the story is that I'm more interested in how the thing plays & sounds than in what name is on it.

Only bad memory is that my friend later sold his Les Paul for $200, and NOT TO ME. Saw the same damn guitar up for sale recently for $3500. $$#@#@#$##!!!!
 
RWhite said:
I'm sorry, but when I walk through Guitar Center and see $400 Epiphone Les Pauls sitting next to virtually identical $4000 Gibsons, I just gotta laugh. For an acoustic intrument, sure. For a solid body electric, its just assinie.
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I would have to definitely agree with that. I would say once you hit about $1000 used, you are getting about as good an electric guitar as you can get, practically speaking. Anything beyond that is for cosmetics. Some exceptions might be handbuilt guitars such as Grosh, where you are paying for a craftman's labor, but even so, the differences are very, very slight.
As far as Gibson goes, I think their quality/price ratio has been badly out of wack for many years. I wouldn't even consider purchasing one.
Aaron
http://www.aaroncheney.com
 
RWhite said:
Only bad memory is that my friend later sold his Les Paul for $200, and NOT TO ME. Saw the same damn guitar up for sale recently for $3500. $$#@#@#$##!!!!
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Heh.

A buddy of mine traded his '82 Les Paul for a Kramer...
:eek: :eek: :eek:


-B
 
I keep hearing about Kramer, is this the same company that used to sell aluminum neck guitars? They stole the idea from Travis Bean, who made such guitars for a few years. Koa wood wraped around a single long piece of aircraft aluminum. I had one for awhile, it was originally custom built for a Detroit area guy (had his name inlaid on the 12th frett, "Gary" somebody), beautiful white body. Was stolen out of the Ann Arbor music store where I worked. Bet it's worth a bit now. But jezz, wear that thing for 30 minutes and all the blood flow into your arm would just die. The ultimate "heavy" guitar.
 
Kramer now is not the same....foreign made, with the exception of some electronics...Indonesia/Korea bodies and necks......Gibson bought the rights to the Kramer name.......and sorta markets them as "rock" guitars.....the cheap prices on the lowest end ones enable people, particularly kids, to be able to have a decent sounding guitar that looks good too....not a bad thing at all.....

I remember from high school (way back when) that guys who would buy top end stuff, would end up letting the guitars gather dust...but the kids that got the Silvertones and other cheap stuff, because that was all they could afford, seemed to appreciate their instruments and kept playing....of course, they eventually moved up to better quality as they could afford it....I think Harrison, Lennon, Clapton, and other musicians of some note, started out playing mail order gits that were practically made out of balsa wood......but they, like any natural musician, made those things sound better than whatever the poseurs were attempting to play...........and consequently got laid more than the poseurs too........gibs:D
 
Hi guys - it's been a long time since I was here, but I moved to California. Near San Diego. Life is good!

As for the Strat thing - I gotta agree with Daddy-O.

In the early 80's I was working in a guitar store, then I bought and sold vintage guitars for myself for about five years - if you can find a Tokai strat from about 1981, buy it. Every one of 'em that I ever saw was a really good guitar. They also made a great Les Paul, too. ... and cheap!

foo
 
cheap guitars, expensive guitars...

I would readily agree that there are more interesting guitars in the sub-$500 range than ever before.

But I must disagree when it comes to the high end stuff. There is definitely a difference in playability and tone between the Custom/Historic Gibson stuff and their main line.

I have had them all, Epi, Gibson and Gibson CS, and the reissues, are the top of the heap as istruments, not only looks. The intonation, action and tone are the best I have ever encountered. If you played one you know what I mean.

The low $ stuff can be great for making music just like the high end stuff, just like great music can be made one a stomp box plugged into a SB. But I'd much rather live with an instument that I don't have to fight so much with.
 
RWhite said:
I keep hearing about Kramer, is this the same company that used to sell aluminum neck guitars?
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Uhh. Possibly that. They're also the main guitar company that Eddie Van Halen endorsed in the 80's.

Uhh. You do know who EVH is, right?

I'm starting to feel old. Must go play guitar for youth fix.





-B
 
BBB
Have you ever played a decent Kramer? EVH only endorsed them because he was allowed to walk in the factory, spend a day picking the best necks and bodies he could find, and get them fitted with hardware that wasn't even offered on any of the Kramer lines.

I worked at a guitar store in from 88-93, and never played a Kramer that didn't suck. You'll notice EVH never played a Kramer production model, because they stank!!

Want a nice REAL CHEAP guitar. Look for an old Vantage Avenger especially the ones with brass nuts. They don't look great, but the necks are comfortable, and the humbucker's have coil taps. Same goes for the old Yamaha SE350H.
 
j,

I've never extensively played any Kramers. Can't comment on their quality. Only know that EVH endorsed them because he allegedly thought they gave good quality for the price.

That makes my post above even more disturbing about my bud trading the Les Paul for the Kramer. He was a good musician, but possibly not too quick on that deal. Big trend follower. Played in a Warrant/Poison wannabe hair band.



-B
 
jvasey,

I think thats the case with all the guys that do endorsements......if you really think these guys are playing guitars off the rack because it has their name on it, u r crazy.....
 
Anyone played a Phil Pro? Their supposed to be modelled after the Strats, so I'm told. I'm not a equipment buff so I purchased one and am playing it with some problems (noise and tone). I'm not sure I've experienced "real good tone" yet. Although I had a used gibson which was stolen years ago. Any comments on this guitar?
Specs
 
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