Guitar players, what kind of ax do you play?

[Doc]

I've been playing guitars I've built for the past 35 years and have decided to get a professional/ly built one.  I'm having a hard time deciding what to get. 

 

Oh yeah, I'm into rock/hard rock/metal.  And I want a guitar with a Floyd Rose so that mostly eliminates the classics like a Fender or Gibson.

[johndhall1]

Gibson made  an SG with a Floyd rose tremolo.

hard to find. Not cheap.

Edited March 28, 2023 by johndhall1

[Joe Ferguson forever]

play acoustic (flat top).  my favorite is a Zager which is a chinese guitar set up to play very easily.  Like it better than my Martin and Taylor that have also been set up but not as good.  Zager files the frets just enoughh to avoid buzzing.  Only electric I have is a washburn gibson knock off..  It's only ok.  Play left handed.

[Sweet Lou]

Taylor GS Mini (acoustic with on-board electronics)

[Success]

I played a Les Paul Custom for decades (had 2 over the years - tobacco sunburst, and the classic black beauty).

 

But I've been enjoying a lot of Strat players lately, and love the sound they get.  That might be my next.

 

 

[SirAndrew]

Love the classic Les Paul and Strat sounds, but have Ibanez electric, and Taylor acoustic. Les Paul and Stratocasters models are great guitars if you order high end custom built guitars, but I’ve been very disappointed in the quality of the classic brands for quite some time. I actually have a Gibson purchased about a decade ago that lasted for a year before some major issues with the fret board. 

[jayg]

1 hour ago, Doc said:

I've been playing guitars I've built for the past 35 years and have decided to get a professional/ly built one.  I'm having a hard time deciding what to get. 

 

Oh yeah, I'm into rock/hard rock/metal.  And I want a guitar with a Floyd Rose so that mostly eliminates the classics like a Fender or Gibson.

 

There are so many choices these days  it's unbelievable. I grew up playing Rock/Metal and then studied  a little Jazz and would up getting a degree in Classical  Music Performance, lol. I still love metal though. I haven't bought a guitar since the 90s . I've always been partial to Gibson and currently have a Les Paul bought in 92 and Explorer an xmas gift from  Mom in 85. Had an SG at one time that was stolen.  All I can say is that I like the way they feel in my hands. I've tried Fender, Jackson , Charvel and others back in  the day and they just didn't feel good to me.  I had a Kahler whammy on my Explorer for a while but it just killed the action and whammy was just never my thing anyway. I just remembered that I liked PRS guitars and they are neck through body construction and I see that you can get them with a Floyd setup.   Also have Ramirez and Yamaha  classical guitars.

 

You may know about these guys channels. Rick is awesome in so many ways and he covers a lot of topics on his channel including music gear, interviews from a wide variety of musicians, music theory, etc. He's also from Rochester. 

 

https://www.youtube.com/@RickBeato

 

This guys reviews a lot of gear and I like his music.

 

https://www.youtube.com/@RabeaMassaad/videos

 

Edited March 28, 2023 by jayg

[Doc]

11 minutes ago, jayg said:

There are so many choices these days  it's unbelievable. I grew up playing Rock/Metal and then studied  a little Jazz and would up getting a degree in Classical  Music Performance, lol. I still love metal though. I haven't bought a guitar since the 90s . I've always been partial to Gibson and currently have a Les Paul bought in 92 and Explorer an xmas gift from  Mom in 85. Had an SG at one time that was stolen.  All I can say is that I like the way they feel in my hands. I've tried Fender, Jackson , Charvel and others back in  the day and they just didn't feel good to me.  I had a Kahler whammy on my Explorer for a while but it just killed the action and whammy was just never my thing anyway. I just remembered that I liked PRS guitars and they are neck through body construction and I see that you can get them with a Floyd setup.   Also have Ramirez and Yamaha  classical guitars.

 

You may know about these guys channels. Rick is awesome in so many ways and he covers a lot of topics on his channel including music gear, interviews from a wide variety of musicians, music theory, etc. He's also from Rochester. 

 

https://www.youtube.com/@RickBeato

 

This guys reviews a lot of gear and I like his music.

 

https://www.youtube.com/@RabeaMassaad/videos

 

I know. 

 

And that's funny about Rick Beato.  Years ago one of my good friends told me about his "what makes this song great" videos.  Never knew he was from Fairport.

[Joe Ferguson forever]

Best acoustic you can buy but you'll have to wait 2 years like Clapton did or win his youth picking contest where the prize is his one of his guitars is by Wayne Henderson from his shop in the Virginia mountains.  Would be totally wasted on me.  Wayne's a helluva bluegrass player as well

https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/claptons-guitar-watching-wayne-henderson-build-the-perfect-instrument_allen-st-john/381035/item/4683368/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=pmax_high_vol_midlist_under_%2410&utm_adgroup=&utm_term=&utm_content=&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI3KKppoOA_gIV7smUCR2CNwJxEAQYAiABEgKLRPD_BwE#idiq=4683368&edition=3605041

Edited March 29, 2023 by redtail hawk

[Gugny]

5 hours ago, Doc said:

I've been playing guitars I've built for the past 35 years and have decided to get a professional/ly built one.  I'm having a hard time deciding what to get. 

 

Oh yeah, I'm into rock/hard rock/metal.  And I want a guitar with a Floyd Rose so that mostly eliminates the classics like a Fender or Gibson.

My son is a very good guitarist and he is a metal head. 
 

When he began delving into the floating tremolos, he got an ESP (Kirk Hammett model). 
 

He had a lot of trouble keeping it in tune. After taking it to a few different people to work on, he finally gave up and traded it in for something else. 
 

He got a mid-level Ibanez and that was the guitar he used to teach himself how to set up a floating tremolo so it would stay in tune. That guitar is still his baby. 
 

In hindsight, the ESP was likely not the problem. Not knowing how to properly set the guitar up was the problem. 
 

Since then, he’s bought a few different guitars with the floating tremolo and has set them up to where he can literally pick the guitar up by the tremolo bar and it will still stay in perfect tune. 
 

I’m only sharing to know that these guitars (like most) are not perfect out of the box. 
 

As far as brand names with the Floyd, he now has the Ibanez and a Dean (Dimebag).

 

His other “metal” guitars are all Schecters. He’s got two 6-strings, a 7-string and an 8-string. Awesome guitars. 
 

Just watching him grow, I’d recommend ESP, Ibanez or Schecter, based on actual experience. 
 

Jackson makes very nice guitars and Charvel has made a nice comeback, too. 
 

But there are a lot of moving parts to those floating tremolos. Just replacing a broken string isn’t like replacing a string on a Strat. 
 

You’ve got the locking nut and the fine tuners at the bridge. 
 

Once you get it down, you’ll be able to do it on your sleep (my son just turned 20). 
 

Lastly, you can get away with going mid-range, as far as a brand’s series of guitars. The differences between mid and high range are usually hardware and maybe pickups. 
 

The lower range guitars are likely not worth it, unless you’re planning on replacing stuff. 
 

Looking forward to seeing what you get!

[Joe Ferguson forever]

It isn't the wand, It's the magician

 

[GETTOTHE50]

Marc bolan les Paul and a gretsch duo jet. 
 

the duo jet is fun to play through the twin. it’s hypnotizing and easy to get lost in the sound. 

[Doc]

9 hours ago, Gugny said:

My son is a very good guitarist and he is a metal head. 
 

When he began delving into the floating tremolos, he got an ESP (Kirk Hammett model). 
 

He had a lot of trouble keeping it in tune. After taking it to a few different people to work on, he finally gave up and traded it in for something else. 
 

He got a mid-level Ibanez and that was the guitar he used to teach himself how to set up a floating tremolo so it would stay in tune. That guitar is still his baby. 
 

In hindsight, the ESP was likely not the problem. Not knowing how to properly set the guitar up was the problem. 
 

Since then, he’s bought a few different guitars with the floating tremolo and has set them up to where he can literally pick the guitar up by the tremolo bar and it will still stay in perfect tune. 
 

I’m only sharing to know that these guitars (like most) are not perfect out of the box. 
 

As far as brand names with the Floyd, he now has the Ibanez and a Dean (Dimebag).

 

His other “metal” guitars are all Schecters. He’s got two 6-strings, a 7-string and an 8-string. Awesome guitars. 
 

Just watching him grow, I’d recommend ESP, Ibanez or Schecter, based on actual experience. 
 

Jackson makes very nice guitars and Charvel has made a nice comeback, too. 
 

But there are a lot of moving parts to those floating tremolos. Just replacing a broken string isn’t like replacing a string on a Strat. 
 

You’ve got the locking nut and the fine tuners at the bridge. 
 

Once you get it down, you’ll be able to do it on your sleep (my son just turned 20). 
 

Lastly, you can get away with going mid-range, as far as a brand’s series of guitars. The differences between mid and high range are usually hardware and maybe pickups. 
 

The lower range guitars are likely not worth it, unless you’re planning on replacing stuff. 
 

Looking forward to seeing what you get!

 

Yeah the floating trems can be tricky.  I installed one (meaning I routed-out the body myself) on the second guitar I built and am amazed I got it right.  But I plan on having the guitar I buy professionally set up.  

 

And I was looking at a Schecter C-1 FR-S SIlver Mountain.

 

 

Edited March 29, 2023 by Doc

[Draconator]

You can't go wrong with a Paul Reed Smith guitar. 

 

When I have an extra $7500, I'm going to get one of these basses made. Probably the 4 string model. All composite materials. Nice guys too. http://www.gusguitars.com/

[WhoTom]

I'm an acoustic guy. I have a Seagull S6 Original that I keep in open-G tuning and a Seagull S12 (12-string) that I play in standard tuning. A little over a year ago, I bought a low-end (as in <$1k) Martin Road Series. (It's a cutaway body, not the typical Martin dreadnought.) I fell in love with the Martin and started playing it exclusively. Then I realized that its lower action is what makes it much more playable, so I took the S6 to a guitar shop and asked them to lower the action. They only charged $60, and it made a huge difference. I'll probably take the S12 in for the same treatment.

 

The Martin's sound is a little less bold, being a smaller body, so I typically play it with an amp.

 

 

[Buffalosouth]

Slash signature epiphone is my favorite I have.ive always wanted a hollow body electric though. 

[Reed83HOF]

So out of what the 10 that I own...

 

1.) Charvel model 6

2.) USA black strat with the custom shop Gilmour electronics (had connections at fender for a bit)

3.) Mick Thompson custom shop Mike Shannon made jackson soloist (only like 15 made)

4.) Gibson LP studio with slash pickups

5.) Takamine electric acoustic

6.) ESP e11 mii

7.) jackson ltd wildcard

8.) Evh wolfgang (MIJ) stealth

9.) Evh USA signature

10.) USA charvel San Dimas (series 2) aka telecaster body

 

The EVHs might be the most comfortable guitars I have ever played and they are so stinking versatile and playable.

 

I'm really a jackson and charvel guy and nothing still beats a soloist, but these freaking EVHs are really close. I have toured the fender factory probably 5 times and it's like a kid in a candy store there. 

 

[Reed83HOF]

19 hours ago, redtail hawk said:

It isn't the wand, It's the magician

 

Seriously under-rated player. I saw him at the whiskey in 2019 on a j5 and the creatures tour. I have tons of videos I took that night. Duff McKagan's daughter opened, she was bad, her mom was smoking though, Jared James Nichols was next. The special guests were Corey Taylor, Fred coury, Chavo and Michael Anthony. Boy I miss LA sometimes...

3 hours ago, Buffalosouth said:

Slash signature epiphone is my favorite I have.ive always wanted a hollow body electric though. 

Best thing I did was rip put the 300k pots and Gibson pickups on my LP and upgrade to 500k pots and the slash pickups are freaking amazing. From a guitar I was meh on, it's great now. I may pick up another LP or 2 and throw a JB/59 set in it. 

[Nextmanup]

I am a Strat guy; have many of them.

I also made my own copy of Ed Van Halen's Frankenstrat.

 

 

[Doc]

Great stuff so far guys.  Keep it coming!