Suggestions for a new electric guitar+amp

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hawk128

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Hi guys,

Planning to get an electric guitar for myself.

I am pretty comfortable playing on my acoustic guitar, and hence decided to get my first electric one.

So if anybody can give me some good suggestions for a guitar+amp+(pedals), it would be great.

My budget is 20k +-3k - guitar+amp. Lesser the better. ;)

# My current plan is to get a good electric guitar

Haven't done much R&D on tremolo setup vs floyd rose.

So if you guys can suggest a guitar each with tremolo, without trem. and a floyd-rose set-up, it would be highly appreciated. :D

# Get a 15W/20W no frills amp.

# And then later get some good pedals as per liking. (Maybe upgrade amp also then)

Also,

Have found a liking for blues recently. So wanting to learn blues too. :)

p.s : Would have posted on IGT, but forum activity there is not that good these days,
 
FR trem unit within 20K + amp, not really possible if you ask me.

I would actually go with a hardtail unit at that price. You get less tuning issues and the guitar lasts longer.

Look at the Greg Bennett line, not too bad for what you pay and decent enough build. You can choose from Strat, Tele or Gibson body/pup styles. I prefer a more hum-resistant design than a regular Tele/Strat, so plumped for a Jackson with twin humbuckers. For a more faithful replica, the Squier guitars are a decent introduction to the Fender world.

Re amps, stay away from the cheaper Marshall line. Even a Stranger Cube 20 is a better amp than the 10W and 15W Marshall mini-cubes. The Hartke minis are also pretty good, as are the Vox but those are a little more expensive. You can try the Fender Frontman (25W). It should fit your budget or stretch it only mildly.
 
Well I am in the exact same dilemma now... Few things which in my opinion should be important for choosing a guitar

1) Try the guitars - Guitars sound very different from each other... So its like choosing something which has its own character... Go to the store tell them your budget and play all the guitars you can slightly above and even below your budget

2) Do a lot of research - Electric guitars are electronic gadgets which sound very different from type of pickups, wood used, strings, fingerboard thickness

I am a Les Paul fan so I am not considering Fender Strat style designs - They have in standard configuration 3 single coil pickups compared to the dual humbuckers on the Standard Les Paul style designs ... And Single coil sound so different from Humbuckers that you really have to make up your mind about the sound you want...

For Blues I think a Strat is better cause it has this clear sound which sounds like a bell bright and very clear... good for blues solos

I am more of a Rock music person so a Les Paul style dual humbuckers gives me the sound that I absolutely love...

Maybe I will get a Fender Strat later but for now I wanna get the Les Paul design....

As cranky suggested about Greg Bennett are really good guitars for a budget..

Les Paul Design Greg Bennett AV3 (Dual Humbucker) - Mahogany Body and good solid guitar

3) I can say try to avoid the floyd rose for now as in low end guitars it just gets the guitar off tune as its a entry level guitar... My friends who had them just removed it and used the guitar without the tremolo

Guitars I have tried so far

1) Epiphone LP Special II

2) ESP LTD EC 10

3) ESP LTD EC 50

4) Fender Squier Strat Bullet

5) Rally GL300

6) Gibson Les Paul Standard original :D (Cant buy just the shop keeper let me play it - God I love this guitar)

7) Epihphone Les Paul Standard (Again out of budget but just tried)

8) Washburn guitar dont remember model number

9) Hamer SFX2 - Lovely guitar but hated the color of blue

10) Hamer Monaco Elite - Bit over budget but lovely guitar

11) Craftsmen Les Paul model

Tried a few more but cant remember the name... I will try a few more before I actually buy my guitar which will be in Jan...

IMO ... When you buy the guitar the shop keeper should know you well cause you came so many times to try it :P
 
hawk_128 said:
Also,
Have found a liking for blues recently. So wanting to learn blues too. :)
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ronnie_gogs said:
For Blues I think a Strat is better cause it has this clear sound which sounds like a bell bright and very clear... good for blues solos

I am more of a Rock music person so a Les Paul style dual humbuckers gives me the sound that I absolutely love...
Click to expand...
^ Was just mentioning. But I am a total hard-core rock guy ! :D
 
hawk_128 said:
^ Was just mentioning. But I am a total hard-core rock guy ! :D
Click to expand...

Do check which sound you prefer...

[youtube]yudXHR6agaM[/youtube]

Also if you like metal riffs maybe a Strat is not a good choice ... Ibanez guitars are great for fast riffs due to the slim neck and smooth fingerboard... But again try the guitars in a shop to find what you like best...

Where are you located by the way
 
ronnie_gogs said:
Do check which sound you prefer...
[youtube]yudXHR6agaM[/youtube]

Also if you like metal riffs maybe a Strat is not a good choice ... Ibanez guitars are great for fast riffs due to the slim neck and smooth fingerboard... But again try the guitars in a shop to find what you like best...

Where are you located by the way
Click to expand...

Yeah, even i am inclined towards an ibanez or g.bennett.
Located @hyd. :)

Got any idea about schecter guitars ?
 
ronnie_gogs said:
ULTIMATE GUITAR TABS ARCHIVE | 300,000+ Guitar Tabs, Bass Tabs, Chords and Guitar Pro Tabs!
The #1 online community for musicians | Harmony Central
Click to expand...
Been following ug forums since a few years. :)

ronnie_gogs said:
Again reviews here might be biased and not accurate so better to actually try the guitars... See the guitar try it out
Click to expand...
^ That's exactly what I am doing.
But the problem with that approach is you can't audition all guitars (unavailability @shops).
And another problem is, when i like the guitar, I don't like the amp at the shop and when i like the amp, i cant find the right guitar there.
What i mean is i want to audition them together and not seperate. :(

Anyway, thanks a lot cranky and ronnie. :)
 
I wouldn't worry too much if you're a new or somewhat new. 90-99% of tone is due to the player, not the guitar or the amp. Get that right and then you should start getting choosy. I've seen people playing a 3k local guitar and sounding far, far, far better than me and my 1L acoustic.

Your audition will be limited far more by your abilities than the guitar. Just pick one that plays well without buzzing, a nice low and straight neck and paint in reasonable condition. You should watch for any electrical buzz in an amp, and check if it starts to get into trouble at high levels. Apart from this, you shouldn't worry about whether they will sound perfect.

Good Luck.
 
@cranky: 1L acoustic? What do you do? That's damn rich :P

@OP: People are missing yamaha pacifica. It's a blues dominator with bridge HB and 2 single coils. That or greg bennet AV series is your best bet. I love blues (blackstratblues, satriani and similar) and i use yamaha pacifica 112 and fender mustang (it can be software controlled to generate diverse amp models & tones). this combo is very versatile. total setup would cost around 25k. I think I have read that AV has 22 frets instead of 24 so some songs are unplayable on it.
 
dragonball said:
@cranky: 1L acoustic? What do you do? That's damn rich :P

@OP: People are missing yamaha pacifica. It's a blues dominator with bridge HB and 2 single coils. That or greg bennet AV series is your best bet. I love blues (blackstratblues, satriani and similar) and i use yamaha pacifica 112 and fender mustang (it can be software controlled to generate diverse amp models & tones). this combo is very versatile. total setup would cost around 25k. I think I have read that AV has 22 frets instead of 24 so some songs are unplayable on it.
Click to expand...

Yeah Pacifica was also suggested to me .. Haven't been able to find one to audition yet...

What are you worried about 22 frets... A normal Les Paul is always 22 Frets unless you use a Buckethead edition monster :P

Gibson.com: Gibson Custom 1958 Les Paul Plaintop Reissue VOS -- Standard 22 frets... Its a 5.5k USD guitar

Greg Bennett Electric - AV3 -- Standard 22 frets

Gibson.com: Gibson Buckethead Signature Les Paul -- Jumbo 24 frets special Buckethead edition and that too cause he is like 6' 3" tall and has super long fingers

We are beginners 24 or 22 frets dont even come into the picture for us... :P Which songs are you referring too ? Cause you can get a variety of sounds from a guitar... Change the tuning and you have another sound ... Use a capo and you have another sound...
 
dragonball said:
@cranky: 1L acoustic? What do you do? That's damn rich :P
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You don't want to know what I had to give up to be able to afford it. It's not rich, its something I worked hard for and gave up stuff that I also loved, that I might save up enough for it. I have never been rich, but when I do buy something I ensure it's a little out of my reach. It is 5 years old now, and was about 3 months' salary at the time.

OTOH, I don't expect anyone else to do similar things, or even understand such a philosophy.
 
cranky said:
You don't want to know what I had to give up to be able to afford it. It's not rich, its something I worked hard for and gave up stuff that I also loved, that I might save up enough for it. I have never been rich, but when I do buy something I ensure it's a little out of my reach. It is 5 years old now, and was about 3 months' salary at the time.

OTOH, I don't expect anyone else to do similar things, or even understand such a philosophy.
Click to expand...

Love your passion... Wish I can learn the guitar well enough and save up so that I can buy a Gibson LP... Might take years but I will get it someday...
 
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