Which Guitar?

[BennisHahn]

Hello all,

I'm new here and this looks like a great site. I have a very broad question for you folks out there.

I am currently looking into purchasing a new guitar. I have been playing for around four years and while I do not possess a great wealth of talent, I feel like I am right were I should be in my playing. I currently have a standard, made in Mexico, Fender Strat. I like it and feel like it is a great guitar to learn on but am looking for something maybe a little more specific.

Now before anyone suggests I go and try out all the guitars I can lay my hands on, let me tell you two things:

1) I am left-handed.

2) I am overwhelmed.

While the second seems a bit strange, I have no idea of what to look for so calling up stores and asking them if they have a certain guitar ion stock it pointless to me right now.

I am looking for a guitar to jam with and record with. I don't play live as of yet so anything that entails doesn't matter to me. I play a lot of Incubus-type stuff and really like their sound so I am looking for something similar. I want a mellower tone them I am getting right now. I like a jazzy clean tone (not bright and sparkly) and a warm overdrive (The song "Wish You Were Here - Incubus, is exactly what I am after). I just can't get that with my guitar. Also, as I am a teen, I don't have a lot of loose change weighing me down so the cheaper the better. Where do you all think I should start looking?

Thanks.

 

[Bass Freak]

the guitar, that, when you plug it into an amp....makes loud noise




freak

 

[Henri Devill]

Maybe a Epiphone Les Paul would do ya...Look for used guits they are a little cheaper and sometimes better deals




Don

 

[rpe]

Or an Epiphone "ES-335" style (semi-hollow) for that jazzy, mellow sound (in addition to really being able to scream/distort with the humbuckres it has).

have fun,

rpe

 

[foo]

This is a question that comes up about once every two months. But it is the first time for you, so . . .

Typically, a Yamaha Pacifica or one of the Godin models comes out as the usual recommendation - but you seem to be looking for something different as you already have those sounds (or similar) on your Strat.
I am not familiar with Incubus - but "jazzy clean tone and warm overdrive' seems to indicate at least a 335-style guitar or even more on the jazz side, such as a 175.
If you've been playing for four years, you now have a good idea of what sounds you lika and are looking for - and that's half the battle.

As you are a teenager, I think that you may not be able to afford a Gibson - but the Epiphone guitars made by them are generally good quality and significantly cheaper. If you can spend more, then check out 'Heritage' guitars. They are made in Kalamazoo Michigan in the original Gibson factory and are excellent instruments - not just excellent for the money.
If you can save up and are willing to wait, you can get a great guitar for about $1,600. A used Gibson Dot-neck re-issue will be a life-long friend and you can now buy one that is twenty years old. They were exceptional guitars when they were first available in the early 80's, and you can now get great ones with twenty years of 'playing-in' on them.

Saving up for the right guitar is my recommendation - and you will end up keeping the guitar for your lifetime - because it will always be at least as good as you need it to be.

Let us know how your search goes.

 

[Light]

I know you don't want to hear this, but the only way you are going to figure this out is to play a lot of guitars. If you don't play them, you have no frame of reference. Now, being left handed you have a much smaller selection, which is unfortunate, but there are still guitars out there. The other possibility is to take a friend who plays with you. When you find the one which sounds right for you, order a lefty of that model. It is not as good as playing it yourself, but trusting your own ear means much more than listening to a bunch of strangers on the net, even someone like me who spends his life working on guitars. I know what I like, but I haven't a clue what you like.

That being said, I seem to recall that the guy from Incubus plays a Paul Reed Smith hollow body (the fat one, what ever they are calling it). That is not a guitar which suggests itself to a teenager, as it is VERY expensive. It does, however, suggest a direction for you to go. If you want that sound, you are probably looking at a guitar with two humbuckers, and a scale length which is shorter than your Fenders. Les Pauls (I would assume Epiphones, at the price range you seem to be talking about) seem a good direction to look, but also look at the lower end of the PRS line. Perhaps the Santana, though I do not know their line very well. That one just comes up because we had a very lovely lady in here with one yesterday, and I remember the guitar along with the lady. It seemed a nice guitar. But like I said, the only real way to find YOUR guitar is to play as many guitars as you can.

Besides, spending a Saturday afternoon in the guitar store playing a bunch of guitars is fun. And it will help you become less overwhelmed.

Don't worry, we all feel overwhelmed at some point, like when I walk into the basement at Gruhn's, and realize that they have 50 guitars in there which are older than my father, (who is sixty) and 10-12 which are older than my grandfather would be. The only way to get over it is to just play them all. It really does get better.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi

 

[Richard Monroe]

Well, you've got a Strat, or pretty close to it. I think Light is on the right track, that you need some guitar with a couple of humbuckers on it. Problem- you gave us no price range. ?200
?$2000- big difference. The Les Paul is a good option, as long as you don't have to stand up with it for 4 hours. A great studio guitar. The Gibson and Fender are like the yin and yang of solid bodys. So give us a price range, which will nail it down a lot. If you have lots of money, it's hard to beat a Parker Fly for versatility.-Richie