It is currently Tue Mar 17, 2020 5:38 am

All times are UTC - 7 hours



Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 37 posts ]  Go to page 1, 2, 3  Next
Go to page 1, 2, 3  Next
Author Message
Post subject: Guitars in General
Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 10:07 am
Offline
Hobbyist
Hobbyist

Joined: Sun Mar 27, 2011 12:28 am
Posts: 6
I have been reading the forum for several years and I read nothing but disparaging comments about the Squire and MIM Fenders. I own a Squire and a MIM Strat. I have gone to the various music centers and tried out the cream of the crop. None I felt were worth the asking price. Your average person does not have $1500- $3000 laying around to spend on any guitar in which they are not making a living. When your buy a MIA Fender, all you are buying is the prestige and the name. You can take any guitar and if it is set up properly, play as well and sound as the high priced ones.
I make a tax free income of 6 figures and I play to entertain me and my friends. People don't care how much you paid or what the specs are, just you make music that is pleasing.
I do not own a guitar that costs above $700.00 and my best sounding Acoustic came from the Middle East.
The bottom line is you don't have to spend a lot to sound good and be satisfied.


Top
Profile
Fender Play Winter Sale 2020
Post subject: Re: Guitars in General
Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 10:12 am
Offline
Rock Icon
Rock Icon
User avatar

Joined: Wed Mar 31, 2010 12:48 am
Posts: 26417
Location: Tombstone Territory
Are you seeking absolution or merely looking to start an argument?

:?

Arjay

_________________
"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Guitars in General
Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 10:24 am
Offline
Hobbyist
Hobbyist

Joined: Sun Mar 27, 2011 12:28 am
Posts: 6
Neither, just stating a point of view.


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Guitars in General
Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 10:27 am
Offline
Aspiring Musician
Aspiring Musician
User avatar

Joined: Sun Jul 24, 2011 1:59 am
Posts: 492
whd1952 wrote:
You can take any guitar and if it is set up properly, play as well and sound as the high priced ones.


I really wish that were true, but it's just not. You can throw as much set up time as you like at an Affinity Strat (to take an extreme example) and it's not going to sound or feel like a US Standard. Even with a couple of hundred thrown in for upgrade pickups, etc, you're still not there. You can make a big improvement, but there's a limit as to how far you can go with a lot of the cheaper instruments before you're literally replacing everything.

Also, if music is your living, most upper end instruments give a level of reliability and consistency you just don't find in cheaper models, which is incredibly important. When I'm being paid for a session, I want things to work and work right - that's worth the extra outlay. You sit there faffing around with a guitar that keeps slipping out of tune, or has too much noise, or just one which just feels off that one day, you look like a goon and you're not getting rehired.

I'm a big fan of cheaper guitars, don't get me wrong. One of my favourites is a partscaster worth probably about £200 in bits, and the Squier neck on it (1990 Korean) is the favourite out of all that I own. It goes out working with me a fair bit, but if you add up all the time I spent tweaking to get it to the state it's in and charge for that, it would be cheaper to buy a couple of Paul Reed Smiths. :lol:

I have also played some absolute dogs which cost five figures, so no, money doesn't always guarantee a good instrument. ;)


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Guitars in General
Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 10:41 am
Offline
Aspiring Musician
Aspiring Musician

Joined: Thu Aug 02, 2012 6:15 am
Posts: 522
As you move up the price range, usually, the quality, playability and tone increase proportionately. Sorry your not at that point yet. Buy and play whatever you can afford or whatever your comfortable with.

Some people like a Fiat 500 some like a well tuned Shelby Cobra. Which one is more fun getting to your destination in? Never bring a bologna sandwich to a steak house.


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Guitars in General
Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 10:43 am
Offline
Aspiring Musician
Aspiring Musician
User avatar

Joined: Fri Apr 23, 2010 7:15 am
Posts: 405
I somewhat agree with you except the words "you can take any guitar." Believe me, you can't take any guitar and make it feel and sound like a MIA or some high priced guitar. Are there some MIM's and MIJ's that are high quality for less the price? Yes. Are there MIJ Squiers out there that are high quality? yes. I am a upgrader. It's what I do. I buy lower priced guitars and upgrade parts as money is available, and end up with some nice guitars. I'm partial to MIJ Fenders and Squiers. They are by far the best to mod (in my opinion). I have a e-series MIJ Squier that is one of my favorite players. I even have an E-series MIK that blows away anybody that plays it. There are jewels out there to be had that can be modded to MIA quality if you want to call it that, but you have to play a lot of crap to find "the one." The neck is the key to me. You have to realize that there are a lot of MIA guitars that are not that great too. You have to play everything before you buy and make sure it feels good and sounds good to you.


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Guitars in General
Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 10:47 am
Offline
Rock Star
Rock Star

Joined: Mon Apr 05, 2010 2:37 pm
Posts: 8708
Location: Natural Bridge, Virginia
whd1952 wrote:
Neither, just stating a point of view.


As have many others here, pro and con. What makes your's different or special?

BTW, I own a MIM Strat, an AVRI 52 Tele, a Chinese made Affinity Tele, a Chinese made Epiphone LP Jr, a Chinese made Ibanez, and an unknown origin Lyon by Washburn. All play and sound great and each sounds different from the other.

_________________
Bill

Image


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Guitars in General
Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 10:54 am
Offline
Rock Star
Rock Star
User avatar

Joined: Sun Dec 21, 2008 8:29 am
Posts: 4238
Location: Pgh Pa
whd1952 wrote:
I have been reading the forum for several years and I read nothing but disparaging comments about the Squire and MIM Fenders. I own a Squire and a MIM Strat. I have gone to the various music centers and tried out the cream of the crop. None I felt were worth the asking price. Your average person does not have $1500- $3000 laying around to spend on any guitar in which they are not making a living. When your buy a MIA Fender, all you are buying is the prestige and the name. You can take any guitar and if it is set up properly, play as well and sound as the high priced ones.
I make a tax free income of 6 figures and I play to entertain me and my friends. People don't care how much you paid or what the specs are, just you make music that is pleasing.
I do not own a guitar that costs above $700.00 and my best sounding Acoustic came from the Middle East.
The bottom line is you don't have to spend a lot to sound good and be satisfied.

Sorry I disagree with you


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Guitars in General
Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 11:03 am
Offline
Aspiring Musician
Aspiring Musician
User avatar

Joined: Tue Dec 23, 2008 4:06 pm
Posts: 534
Location: Northern Virginia
whd1952 wrote:
I have been reading the forum for several years and I read nothing but disparaging comments about the Squire and MIM Fenders. I own a Squire and a MIM Strat. I have gone to the various music centers and tried out the cream of the crop. None I felt were worth the asking price. Your average person does not have $1500- $3000 laying around to spend on any guitar in which they are not making a living. When your buy a MIA Fender, all you are buying is the prestige and the name. You can take any guitar and if it is set up properly, play as well and sound as the high priced ones.
I make a tax free income of 6 figures and I play to entertain me and my friends. People don't care how much you paid or what the specs are, just you make music that is pleasing.
I do not own a guitar that costs above $700.00 and my best sounding Acoustic came from the Middle East.
The bottom line is you don't have to spend a lot to sound good and be satisfied.


Umm......OK. But don't you think that you're being way too general in your opening statement? Either that or you have only been reading posts that target lower end Fenders and Squiers (and yes; they do exist). I mean is that really ALL you read on this forum?


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Guitars in General
Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 11:11 am
Offline
Rock Star
Rock Star

Joined: Tue Jul 17, 2007 1:53 am
Posts: 4242
Vulpinity wrote:
You can throw as much set up time as you like at an Affinity Strat (to take an extreme example) and it's not going to sound or feel like a US Standard.


True. Still, you can do a thorough setup on an Affinity (OK, some mods like a good nut may be required) and it plays like a decent guitar should, and sounds like a Stratocaster should... :wink:

But this "do you get your money's worth when you buy an expensive guitar" conversation has been dealt with in numerous chains already. Different price classes & different products for different customers - still, both usually do the job.


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Guitars in General
Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 11:41 am
Offline
Aspiring Musician
Aspiring Musician
User avatar

Joined: Fri Aug 21, 2009 1:45 pm
Posts: 852
Location: SoCal323
whd1952 wrote:
People don't care how much you paid or what the specs are, just you make music that is pleasing.


I kind of understand this point. Roughly About 90% of the audience isn't going to be able to distinguish the difference between a strat and a les paul guitar, or for that matter a Marshall or a fender amp. And even if they guessed correctly, I guarantee they won't know whether it was a top of the line model or an entry level one. All they care about is whether it sounds like the song being covered or that its entertaining. The other 10% or so, the musicians, are the ones who can usually tell the difference.

I have this discussion with my band mates all the time. Just look at the audience dancing and having a good time. Walk up to any of them and ask them if they know what kind of guitar you were using or what amp you plugged into and they'll likely give you this look... :? Ask them what songs you just played and they'll most likely answer correctly.

I have been fortunate enough to own a deluxe strat, a les paul, and a few vintage Fender tube amps. But I didn't always have that luxury, so yes, I agree that there's a difference. But I also think that there is an even bigger difference in tone perception amongst musicians.

With that said, to each his own...... :wink:

_________________
Its a lifestyle.....

Image


Last edited by socal323 on Sat Feb 09, 2013 11:51 am, edited 1 time in total.

Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Guitars in General
Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 11:46 am
Offline
Professional Musician
Professional Musician
User avatar

Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2007 9:46 pm
Posts: 2041
whd1952 wrote:
I have been reading the forum for several years and I read nothing but disparaging comments about the Squire and MIM Fenders.
I have read the Forum for years, too, but for every "disparaging" remark about the Squier (correct spelling) and Mexican-made Fender guitars I have read, I have read another from another guitar player who loves his Squier or MIM Fender.

Surely if you have visited the Squier Forum you haven't heard nothing but bad.

_________________
Dennis in CR
Rockin' since 1963


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Guitars in General
Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 12:19 pm
Offline
Professional Musician
Professional Musician
User avatar

Joined: Wed Feb 08, 2012 1:33 am
Posts: 1247
whd1952 wrote:
The bottom line is you don't have to spend a lot to sound good and be satisfied.


The bottom line is: as long as you're satisfied, you're right! :wink:
Different people = different expectations & different expertise/knowledge

It's as easy as that!
As long as your expectations are fulfilled, you are satisfied.
1. If you don't expect much, you're satisfied much easier.
2. If you expect more, you need more for your satisfaction.
3. If you don't know what to expect, see #1.

If everybody would like the same guitar and would be of exactly the same level of experience, same level of dedication, same level of ambition, same level of talent and musical understanding, we would only have 1 guitar model available.

_________________
Kindest regards from Germany, Dee
My recordings --> http://www.soundclick.com/bands/page_mu ... dID=564337
STRATS ROCK!!! but Teles and Firebirds, too!


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Guitars in General
Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 1:55 pm
Offline
Roadie
Roadie

Joined: Fri Jul 11, 2008 11:13 am
Posts: 248
Hey, 1952, play what you like, and buy what you like, but don't be knockin' what I play, ok?


Top
Profile
Post subject: Re: Guitars in General
Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 2:24 pm
Offline
Rock Star
Rock Star
User avatar

Joined: Fri Feb 29, 2008 9:49 pm
Posts: 3233
Location: Memphis
Ive got MIM as well as upper end Americans... Love all of them but..... My Clapton Strat or my American deluxe Tele is by far, a much better quality than say my MIM classic 50. I purchased all of my instruments based on what I LIKED, regardless of manufactures and comments...

_________________
Hey, Boy Blue is back!


Top
Profile
Display posts from previous:  Sort by  
Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 37 posts ]  Go to page 1, 2, 3  Next
Go to page 1, 2, 3  Next

All times are UTC - 7 hours

Fender Play Winter Sale 2020

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 2 guests


You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum

Search for:
Jump to: