Ray
Good day, Sort of hitting mid-life crisis I guess so wanting to take a bit of a stroll down memory lane. Some people buy motocycles bit I am looking to get an electric guitar. Way back (ie. at least 25 yeas back) used to mess around with a few electric guitars and looking to get back into playing a bit. Been scouting around a bit and looks like Cort is a good option. The price seems right and nobody seems to knock the quality. Indeed, Alan Rattcliffe gives the G-series some pretty good words. The G260 grabs my fancy, but I cant find one! The SSH config seems to be a pretty reliable one. Can anyone give some advice here? Should I wait until I find one? Should I look at another make with similar conifg/price/quality? What sort of amp should I get for home for home use (but sufficient to cause some discomfort in the neighborhood)? Hey! quite important! Maybe there are some out of the ordinary sources for equipment that someone can wise me up to?
MikeM
Hey man
The Corts are nice, but I've heard some amazing things about the NEW squires. I'll check which model specifically, but they're really nice. I played one a couple weeks ago and was suitably impressed.
I'd say look at a Fender super champ or a Vox valvetronix for home use ?
Ray
Yes, someone said tat I should look at the Squier Fat Strat for the same config. I just dont know what sort of quality it would be, in comparison to the Cort that is.
themanthatwalks
I have a cort G260 - But mine is the one with the hot rail pickups. This means all are humbucker or single coil, depending on your tap switch selection. Is a nice guitar. I get ok tone but its not a Fender. If you plan to just play by your self then its great, but if your a tone freak then you hould have more money ? .
The tuning system is great-(mine has locking tuners).
Anyway, its a decent guitar if you are not obsessed, I would sell you mine for an upgrade but alas no extra moola
AlanRatcliffe
Hi Ray
The SSH pickup config is a very flexible one indeed, which is why they are so common. Everything from blues through funk to rock and metal. You don't mention your budget or the style of music you are interested in, but I'm guessing from your Tull reference that you are into classic rock.
I am a fan of the G-series, particularly of the G260. There is no stock at the suppliers at the moment, but I would guess that there is another shipment due sometime (I'll phone and ask tomorrow). They are worth the wait if some are on their way. The only thing is that since the last shipment, the Rand has fallen from R7.5 to R10 against the Dollar, so I think the retail price may be somewhere in the vicinity of R4,300 when they next land.
Muz.co.za
still list them at R3,195, but I don't know if they actually have stock.
I've no idea of current prices, but another range of guitars well worth a look are the Yamaha Pacificas. Some of the cheaper Ibanez guitars are also worth looking at.
+1 on the Vox Valvetronix amps
AlanRatcliffe
@Mike - I think the Squiers that have been getting a lot of attention are the "Vintage Modified" models. Haven't played then, so I can't comment, but buyer's reviews seem good (for what that is worth).
BTW - No promises yet, But I'm considering getting rid of my heavily modded G-VT and building myself a fretless with the proceeds. I promised someone I would give them first option though, and I must also decide if it's worth keeping as is for sale or if I should reverse some of the mods before selling (the pickups in it cost nearly as much as the whole guitar did ?).
Ray
OK, maybe someone can tell me, what the difference is between USA Fender and Mexican Fender. Maybe jus the accent? Hell, Sorry for that!
MikeM
Build quality, wood quality, finish quality, pickup quality ?
But the Mexican is real nice too!!!
Gearhead
+1 on Mike's answer. Let's elaborate:
- pickup quality accounts for imho >60% of the tonal difference;
- wood choice and build may affect stability in some guitars, while other guitars built the same day from the same tree have no problems. Stability refers to the neck remaining straight over time, tuning the one string does not affect the other, the instrument does not detune due to the weather etc;
- parts choice in terms of nuts and bridges affect tone and sustain whereas cheaper electronics mainly need replacement sooner (some say they hear the difference from one pot to the other, I am still trying to do that);
- finish contributes very little to tone (again, some say it does).
Think of it this way: If Fender would feel that they should make better guitars in Mexico, they would use the best parts, wood etc. which would make the guitars more expensive than the USA ones. They're not more expensive.
There was a time when cheap labor countries were producing better Strats than Fender. Some Japanese copies from the seventies are worth considerably more than the USA originals from the same era, and for a reason. There were lawsuits. Those days are over.
One more thing about price: obviously an expensive guitar costs a lot of money, but the resale value is also higher. You might even pay the same amount of money per year that you own the guitar. Ever see 15 year old starter packs for sale?
Bottom line: Don't take advice for either Mex, Jap or Yank. The best choice in general is the one that suits your wallet, hands and ears.
MikeM
+1 to Gearheads post.
Pick up a guitar. Don't look at the price. Don't look at what it looks like ? Play it. Feel it. Listen to it. Make your decision from there. I've played MANY Mexicans that I percieve to be better than their US counterparts.
If I were to suggest an axe, it'd definately be the vintage mod squiers. Or a Squier Tele with a hum in the neck ? But that is my fav axe currently so I'm obviously biased.
Go to marshall music or somewhere. Play as many guitars as you see fit on a decent amp. Find the sound YOU're looking for ?
AlanRatcliffe
Some random musing:
Country of origin doesn't mean as much as it used to, but price range is still a decent general indicator (except in the case of companies like Gibson and Cort). The single biggest cost in producing guitars (indeed, anything these days), is labour. The less time a human has to work on a guitar the lower the cost - this includes quality control. Take into account the difference in labour costs between Asia/Mexico and US/European countries and you start to see why the Asian instruments are a lot cheaper, but not necessarily worse (except by design in some cases - remember how Fender stopped imports of their own Japanese instruments because they were competing with the US models?).
Of course the older, more established guitar building countries have an advantage in having more skilled artisans which the younger factories cannot usually match ...but they are getting there (much as Japan did 25 - 30 years ago. Look at the higher priced models from Eastern and Mexican factories (for which they utilise their more skilled builders) and you will find much better guitars than their standard production ranges, often rivalling the US production models and at much lower cost (Baja Telecaster anyone?). In fact in the case of Fender, it wouldn't surprise me if we start seeing more of the production line stuff coming from Mexico in the future and eventually only the Custom Shop instruments being made in the US.
A guitar is the sum of it's parts - EVERYTHING makes a difference. Some things have less effect than others, but they all play a role in shaping the final sound. Having high quality parts and wood is no guarantee that a guitar will be great (or that a cheaper guitar will be worse) ...but it does increase those chances greatly - as does the more stringent quality control (which involves more labour and a higher rejection rate) with higher priced instruments.
Wood, hardware, finishes and other "small" factors have a huge effect on the tone of a guitar. The very inconsistency in tone between examples of the same guitar model is mostly down to the wood (the only real variable in the equation). Ever play a Steinberger? That's about the most dramatic example of the effect wood (or lack therof, in the case of the Steinie) has on tone.
Wood, hardware, construction all affect the guitar as an acoustic instrument and as such, affect the tone that the pickup hears. Pickups are transducers - they can only take what is already there and capture it with varying degrees of accuracy. They do shape the sound, but more by subtraction (not capturing what the guitar is producing) than by adding anything to the sound.
Ray
Excuse the intrusion once again good people. Can anyione tell me anyting about "Vintage" guitars? Paging thru Guitarist mag and saw an ad for them and went to the site jhs.co.uk. Are these any good? Who sells them in this neck of the woods? How do they ratre up to Cort? Tnx
AlanRatcliffe
Vintage are the range of guitars designed by Trevor Wilkinson, but built in China. Good, solid, good value-for-money instruments by all accounts. Kind of like Cort in many respects. I don't know if they have a local agency though.
Mr-M
Vintage Guitars are available at Music Connection in Craighall Park, JHB. They are the importers according to the sales guy - 011 787 6222
Checked them out about a month ago when I was last there and was impressed with their build quality and tone for the money - pretty much what Guitarist UK says is true. Mostly within the R3000 - R5000 range from what I recall. There were a few more expensive ones though.
I'm sure somebody on this forum bought an SG-Style Vintage Guitar in PTA a while back? I remember asking him where he got it...
Here it is:
http://www.guitarforum.co.za/your-gear/my-new-baby/
Ray
OK people, help me some more. I bought an Ibanez guitar from one of the forum members. I am happy, neighbors arent, everything is purrrrfect! Now, I have a bit of a classical music background so my pitch is awright. I also have a piano (2 uprights in fact). But what is the best way to go? Should I get myself one of these electronic tuning magafters? What about the ones that are combined with a metronome? any good brands, any brands to steer clear of?
Squonk
Boss make quite good tuners. I have had a Boss Tu-12 for about 10 years and it's still works well.
I see boss do a Boss TU-80 that combines a tuner and a metronome, But i have never used it.
Gearhead
Depends on what you want to do. When practicing 'home alone' style methinks you should work with the piano and save yer money. The electronic tuners are very useful if you play in a band - not everybody likes to hear you tune up. When buying a tuner, better get one that automatically notices what note you're playing - saves 50% of the time since you don't have to manually select something. Look for ease of use and stable, large size readout - anyone can make a frequency counter device but that's just not the same as helping you tune.
Metronome to me is not the same as drums track - you can make your own on your PC.
Mr-M
Korg. Hands down. The inventors of the electronic tuner (according to them - and, hey I believe them!), so they know what they're doing. The Korg GA-30 I have has been with me for many a year and many a bump and it's still going strong. Easy to use, accurate and cheap at around R150.
Besides that one I have a CA-40 Chromatic, a Pitchblack Pedal Tuner, a Pitchjack tuner (newest addition - really cool!) and my sister has a DT-10 Pedal Tuner. Never an issue. Highly recommended. They do the TM-40 Tuner/ Metronome. Never tried it, but if it's as good as my other Korgs then it is worth a look.
