Having several guitars over the years, in those moments where I have had more than 1, I've noticed how different any two instruments that sound good could at the same time be so different.

Tonewise, you can find yourself deciding between definition vs sustain.

At one time I was using a friends' CBS black lefty Strat.
I played lead, the other guy's nameless Strat sounded better than mine.
This was definition taken to the extreme.
It had a super distortion single-coil in the bridge, it didn't help, because when you had .008's on it, you felt the strings digging into your fingertips.

I've also had guitars that have sustain to the point that you can't pick chords because the sounds overlap to the point that you can't tell what's going on.

Its up to the musician to figure out what kind of sound he needs,
If you can't try it, don't buy it.
If the guitar doesn't sound good unplugged, don't buy it.
If it doesn't sound good playing it clean, don't buy it.
If that hunk of wood doesn't sound good, there is nothing in the world that will help you.

In Korea, I bought a 3-4 foot slab of of Phillipine mahogany for less than $10, those were the days...
I then carved out a blend between a Les Paul and a Strat, hardwired a pickup, placed a Strat neck on it, and plugged in.
It made a big difference, the sound changed, I wish I kept it...

Switching necks is a cheap alternative compared to paying megabucks for custom gear that might not be worth the cost.
Some of the older guys will remember how one guy in the '90s placed a lump of clay on his violin's headstock, changing the tone to where it sounded almost like a stradivarius.

You can see how the entire instrument vibrates, the neck being more like a tuning fork, the possiblility of anything changing the mass density having the possiblity of changing the tone.

Having said all that, if your strativarius ist gut-sounding, its worth experimenting when it comes to components and circuits.

I just watched a video that came in the recent issue of the guitar world magazine about a set of pickups they're promoting, however the guy first played a really original vintage gibson from the early 60's I think and then he played a re issue of that same model, he first played them both unplugged and the resonance the original vintage gibson had, unplugged, was tremendously amazing.... it was REALLY loud unplugged, and the reissue was just very quiet compared to the original one, the guy said that' because of the vintage wood the vintage guitar had sounded really nice unplugged, so that's pretty cool I think eventually I will be in the hunt for a really used and old strat body to experiment with ..maybe put a fender neck to it and listen it's natural resonance

Ain't it the truth! I have 6 (six) old DiMarzio SDS-1 (high output, super distortion) pickups resting peacefully in a couple nice plastic boxes. Hotter ain't better. All IMHO of course.

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Member #26797
My other guitar is a Strat.

Tonality is a mixture of the resonance of the instrument, the strength of the players hands i.e. touch , pick ups, string height, neck shape and the gauge of the strings. That is why an amazing sounding guitar to your ears may sound different in your own hands and possibly not so amazing.


I am fortunate enough to own at least one very amazing instrument which could not have been better designed for my hands, the way I lift off the strings and style of slides that come naturally to how my hands operate. I just shake my head sometimes from how amazing I sound on this guitar. I can put it down, pick up my other guitar and implementing the same runs I sound about average. This is partially due to the pickups, resonance but also the width and shape of the neck and how my hands operate under the conditions of this instrument.


This variance never ceases to amaze me from all the variables that come into play for each player and instrument. Truly a chemistry lesson with no predictable outcome.

Let me reply bit by bit

While I've heard of people having success buying a guitar without trying it out--I would agree with you here. I have played everyone first--with the exception of my first--a gift. That was a classical, and it worked out okay. But if I'm spending my money on it--I want to try it. Every guitar is at least a little bit different--even with CNC. I've picked up guitars and put them back down before even playing them. I didn't like the feel.


I've said this for years, yet even now salesmen look at me funny when they ask if I want to plug it in, and I reply maybe later. If you don't like the sound unplugged, you shouldn't buy it. If you like the sound unplugged, but not plugged in--you can change the pickups and/or electronics, but if you don't like it unplugged-you won't like the sound no matter what you do.


Even if you only play metal or punk or distorted stuff--a good sounding clean guitar will get you more variety and better sound. It will reveal faults of the guitar and your playing more readily--why do you think most salesmen will hook prospective buyers up to an amp that isn't set for clean?



See my second response--I agree wholeheartedly--be patient and find one that sounds good to you unplugged & clean.

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It wasn't Willy-Nilly, it was at crows.

I also red someware to first play a guitar unplugged and if you can feel it vibrate while your playing it then it will probably wale when its plugged in.

I dont even play em to check the resonance, just strike one of the open treble strings and feel round the body for vibration. Everything else is changable, when you go into neck/body replacement it essentialy becomes a new guitar to my mind.

Its rare i'll plug a guitar into a amp in a shop. if i do go that far i probably wont buy it. Most guitar shops are wide open spaces with decent height ceilings. The i've long suspected guitar shops are set up for the best acoustics the shop can offer. Thats why stuff sounds different when you get it home.

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No no and no

I agree--this is especially true of acoustic guitars. Those rooms they have them in are for proper humidity--but also for sound quality. Even the electrics are often in the place they are for that reason. It's fun to try them different places.

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It wasn't Willy-Nilly, it was at crows.

All about the wood? Here's a nutty thing... Yamaha developed a system to artificially mimic the vibration an instrument is subjected to over years of use, which some people reckon changes the structure of the timber on a microscopic level and helps an older instrument sound better than a new one.

It is called Initial Response Acceleration: a machine into which the completed instrument is placed, where it is vibrated at different speeds to discover its individual "resonant frequency" and then is subjected to a prolonged dose of vibration at that level. They claim this treatment produces "a measurably smoother and more balanced sustain with more linear decay".

Apparently they developed the system to use with their ten grand and up violins, and have now extended it to their (moderately expensive) SG1000 and SG2000 electric guitars.

...If we are prepared to pay for it, Yamaha are ready to help us with the burden our wallets must have become to us!

Go figure...

Cheers - C

This is an interesting topic (to me anyway). Recently, I have noticed quite a bit of vibration in my American Vintage ‘70s Stratocaster. You can strike an open string and feel different levels of vibration at various points of the body and neck. The reason I’ve noticed, is that the vibration has actually caused stress cracks (roughly ½” long).in the polyester finish around the neck socket area of the body. That also seems to be the area of the guitar body, where I feel the most vibration.