Guitar Recommendations?

I've been thinking about getting a new guitar from some time now. I've been doing a lot of research, but I was hoping for a third-party opinion. I play in a church band, but don't let that fool you too much. We're like a diluted rock band of a sort, but I'm their wildcard mainly because I'm the newest electric guitarist, next to just two others.

SO!

Here's what's going on: I am working off of a $500 budget. That said, I plan on getting a job so I can save up more. However, if I do save up, my limit would be $900, and $1000 is pushing it because I don't believe I'm good enough to have a high-end guitar past $1000.

I've been using double-humbuckers ever since I started out, so the sound of the sparkly singl-coils has really alienated me, thus I'd prefer warm humbuckers that don't might go full-metal, but are meant for pushing like that. Les Paul's are what I've been looking at, but the Gibsons are ridiculously overpriced. Epiphone has a few nice guitars, but like I said, I need a third-opinion.

Also, telecasters are nice. I was dead-set on this (for the HH design): http://www.fender.com/guitars/telecaster/special-edition-custom-telecaster-fmt-hh/0262000561.html#start=1

However, the Pearly Gates humbucker doesn't sound very appealing. Not sure, though. Seymour Duncan makes it sound pretty terrible. Southern Rock? Not really, but I could be wrong. Also, a normal tele would be fine, but I'd prefer a humbucker on the bridge.

Finally, I have a few Les Pauls that appeal, here are the links: http://www.ebay.com/itm/301683021986?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT http://www.ebay.com/itm/181802726141?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT The first is an EPIPHONE Les Paul Classic-T. The other is a GIBSON Studio Les Paul.

SG's are also pretty good, however I'd never buy a red SG. Can't imagine why. I took a look at this, though: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Epiphone-SG-G-400-Limited-Edition-Custom-Shop-Silverburst-No-Reserve-/301689185568?

And then there's this: http://www.ebay.com/itm/221825072239?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT Because for some screwed up reason, I love that seven string. I want it so bad, but that extra string would be useless to me.

Final note on humbuckers. From what I hear, the Seymour Duncan '59 is a lovely pickup to use. Jonsi of Sigur Ros, and frankly, that's good. My work in ambient guitar has improved a lot, so I need pickups that can really fit a dark humbucker that can really push the distortion. Cleans are also important, which is why the bridge pickup is still unknown to me.

since you seem to be on a budget... DO NOT BUY A NEW GUITAR AT RETAIL IF YOU HAVE SECOND HAND OPTIONS!

here's why:

1) they don't dry the wood the same anymore 2) so many guitars come from overseas on container ships and are exposed to lots of humidity, then dry out rapidly on trucks with no air conditioning headed to the store (even if there's a QC facility in the USA where they get set-up and checked, I know guys who worked at Ibanez right near my parent's house and they are ordered to pass guitars that should fail as long as the problems caused by shipping are not immediately obvious. These problems with neck joints and fret boards will quite likely worsen over time 3) a used import may have been exposed to all these dangers, but its had time to stabilize (or not), if a used import is a player then the guitar is probably fine for life if you keep up with basic maintenance... and you can get a lot of vintage import guitar for your money, not to mention how much more sued American guitar you get for the retail price of a Korean or Indonesian model new 4) if the guitar you want (like an Epi SG) has shitty electronics stock, the previous owner will probably have taken care of at least SOME of that during his time with the guitar and this will save you pouring money into a guitar with poor resale. The idiot selling it to you already did some of the work and will take some of the loss!

You can get a whole lot more guitar for 500 to 700 USD used than the Chinese, Korean and Indonesian guitars you are considering.

If you must buy new I highly recommend a current-production Reverend. These are the best guitars coming out of Korea at this time. http://www.reverendguitars.com/

Also, check out Axl guitars and Hanson guitars. Great and affordable instruments in the Gibson vein.

The Duncan 59 is a great pickup, but may not be as warm as you want. Its very sparkly do to its moderate windings and bright Alnico 5 magnet. You may like it in the enck position, but the bridge may not be to your liking. Also, if you are not a great player, these vintage PAF style humbuckers are VERY unforgiving. Weak fretting will translate through fairly heavy overdrive. You may prefer something a little stronger and warmer at the bridge like the Duncan "whole lotta humbucker" which is in the 59 camp but rounder and hotter. It all depends on the guitar you are putting these pickups in though. A maple-topped guitar will sound inherently brighter than an all mahogany guitar like the SG.That said, the Pearly Gates is great, really. Don't go by the website clips. Listen to a ZZ Top concert. Any bucker equipped guitar is either a Pearly Gates or a TV Jones Powertron. Very similar DNA in these pickups I might add!

Anyway, some good used guitars to look for that might fit your needs are without breaking the bank:

Greco EG500 or lower, any year after 1977 (these are great value guitars if you don't care about tiny details and just want a wicked player with great tone out of the case, if you raise your sights over the $600 mark you can score an eg700, which is a really nice Les Paul with good resale that is 90% built like a 70s Gibson and will play and sound better. If you can spend a bit more then think about an eg800 or higher from the 70s, these guitars are built exactly like a Gibson of the era only better)

Gibson Les Paul Special w/humbuckers (mid '00s, discontinued, great value for $$$, solid resale)

Gibson SG1 (early '00s, an SG Jr with a humbucker, great if you can deal with 1 pickup)

ANY early 90s Epiphone that was made in Korea

Hamer XT series Sunburst or Studio (90s Korean low-end Hamers that are pretty good copies of real ones, all things considered)

I could go on and on. I would not buy a new guitar that retails under a grand other than the aforementioned reverends.

Greco EG500 or lower, any year after 1977 (these are great value guitars if you don't care about tiny details and just want a wicked player with great tone out of the case

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Greco-1978-made-EG-500-LP-Custom-Black-Finish-Made-in-Japan-/311402258220?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4881055f2c

I think I just flipped.

This is from 1978, pre-lawsuit by the looks of the headstock.

There's also thus: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Greco-Super-Power-LPC-EG500C-1980-/121703176614?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item1c561319a6

Very cheap, also pre-lawsuit, but I don't know those pickups.

Greco pickups were made by Maxon up until 82. they are all very good. they tend to be warm and sparkly without thumping lows or harsh highs. On the lower end models they tend to have higher output and stronger magnets to drive a tube amp easily and have more natural compression that makes them forgiving for intermediate players. EG500 guitars are just great, but they don't have fret-edge binding (those Gibson nibs) like their big brothers and are not lacquer finished, but the poly is thin and well-applied. No Epiphone LP, even an MIJ elitist, has these features.

Also look up Edwards (ESP's current-production, clone brand for the Japanese market). These can be had cheaply and are wonderfully built. 80s Burny LPs are good too.

The 1980 EG500 has fret-nibs, nice.... the Maxon U1000s use high-output Alnico 8 magnets that have the compression of A2 and more of a ceramic output. U1000s sound really good.

The 1978 is not one of the better low-end grecos. Its semi-hollow. It will be light, but feedback-prone and will not sound like an LP.

One thing about pre-82 Grecos is they have the 70s Gibson Norlin-era low-wide frets that are not to everyone's taste.

The 1980 is a nice specimen even with the glue repair and WILL bid up substantially.

here are some winners:

https://reverb.com/item/831470-greco-eg-900-made-in-japan-1977-8-w-duncan-pus

https://reverb.com/item/635787-greco-les-paul-eg59-1983-turquoise

https://reverb.com/item/504069-nearest-rival-of-tokai-ls-greco-eg-700-1978-tobaccoburst-w-gibson-57classic-pus-and-esp-gigbag

The last one is a great guitar, but if you look you can see its been refretted and that's why its so cheap for a 700 of that era. it should have low frets with binding nibs and the guy who did the refret cut the nibs off (most people do even on vintage gibbies) and put jumbos on it and they go right OVER the binding, which is poor attention to detail but will not affect playability unless they aren't dressed well.

https://reverb.com/item/880696-ibanez-artist-ar50bk-1980-black-les-paul-killer

https://reverb.com/item/659266-1981-ibanez-artist-ar-100-polar-white

https://reverb.com/item/833880-yamaha-sg-600-vintage-great-shape-low-action-great-tones

https://reverb.com/item/882964-tokai-love-rock-1984-black-mij-les-paul-made-in-japan-cij-vintage-tokai-57-paf-pickups

https://reverb.com/item/884563-burny-super-grade-les-paul-sunburst-mij-made-in-japan-cij-vintage

https://reverb.com/item/885530-burny-les-paul-custom-super-grade-vintage-white-mij-made-in-japan-cij

Guitar dump, much?

Where did you learn about all these brands? I've never heard of any of them.

obsessiveness... I could tell you crazy shit about just about any guitar brand... ya gotta know this stuff if you want to internet shop, or even to know what guitars to pick up when you walk into a used emporium like Daddy's Junky or Atomic

I joke with buddies that the really good but affordable guitars just find me and stick to me, but I actually am constantly trolling online and dropping into stores, sifting the dogs out.

Also, I have always done a lot of set=ups, repair and electronic work for people I know (and occasionally as a job), so lots of guitar pass through my hands on a regular basis and I am taking them apart anyway so I make notes on any off-brands, weird models or abnormal specimens of famous guitars (generally just the act of writing down my observations and measurements commits them to memory for me). Then I do some internet research and learn everything I can if its an instrument that impressed me.

And pretty much any piece of gear I touch I will take apart if I can do it non-destructively. To see what makes it tick, you know?

some affordable Gibson USA models from (mostly) good years at your price point:

https://reverb.com/item/885641-gibson-les-paul-studio-1992-black (good year, good price)

https://reverb.com/item/59249-1997-gibson-sg-black (good year, probably a nice bare bones SG, price is fair, if you sell it you probably won't make a profit)

https://reverb.com/item/670629-gibson-sg-special-1997-ferrari-red-w-case-free-shipping (the later in the 90s an SG w/o binding is made, the less I like it, but this SG is probably still okay, the price is RIGHT considering the cosmetics are meh, this guitar is definitely better than a 2000s SG special but I doubt it will ever attain much more resale value)

https://reverb.com/item/687337-gibson-1998-les-paul-special-electric-guitar-s66801 (probably a decent instrument, price is fair and it should be able to be resold for a profit in a year or two)

https://reverb.com/item/692730-1998-gibson-les-paul-dc-studio (this is a real winner, I have come close to buying one of these on 2 different occasions... the price is REALLY good and these are becoming highly collectable)

https://reverb.com/item/354284-gibson-les-paul-studio-1999-black (not a great year for Studios, low end gibsons really take the piss around this time but this guitar might be okay and the price is very good)

https://reverb.com/item/605998-gibson-les-paul-studio-1996-wine-red (good year, good price, good for resale or trade-in)

https://reverb.com/item/265526-1981-gibson-firebrand-the-paul-deluxe-goldburst (might not be great, the 'firebrand' period of Gibson had a real range in quality control as Gibson recovered from the period that Norlin owned them and almost tanked the company, but 'the Paul' was a forerunner to the studio and the humbucker equipped specials which are becoming more and more collectable... so I think that even adjusting for inflation this guitar will have very good resale or trade-in)

https://reverb.com/item/321030-gibson-the-paul-les-paul-firebrand-deluxe-1981-silver (this "the Paul" just looks amazing and I am tempted to buy it out from under you just to have 2 silver les pauls from different eras! I guarantee that with such a cool finish this guitar will continue to rise in resale value at a rate that outruns inflation... though because a solid-silver Gibson is a really specialized market I wouldn't expect it to be a better trade-in instrument than the guitar I listed above it)

I think @jimmarchi1 answered this more thoroughly than I ever could, but I love the double cut les paul specials. I think they have a really great warm tone and you can pick up a nice used one for well under your budget.

Maybe not this '59 one, but you get the idea.... https://reverb.com/item/384200-gibson-les-paul-special-double-cut-cutaway-electric-guitar-w-hsc-1959

I used to have a TV yellow special DC and played the shit out of it.... there are a lot of lemons in affordable DC specials though and I advise people against buying online... I bought mine new at a big box store about a decade ago and played about a dozen before I found 3 good ones (2 in TV yellow)... I bought one with a rounder neck but the pickup switch took the piss in about 4 hours at a rehearsal so I drove abck to the store and swapped it for the only other good one in yellow (I had marked down the serials of the good ones)

I also ignored DC specials because Narcist is looking for Humbuckers and likes warmer-toned buckers at that. I love the P90, but I think the that soapbars will have too much stringiness and bite for him in the bridge position. A lot of the actual gibbies I picked for him will have Tim Shaws or 490 series humbuggies which he will probably like a lot.

Okay Narcist, on to Teles...

If you want a good tele, just build one... I put my best fender together from high end parts for about 700 bucks 5 years ago... I would not buy an off-the-shelf tele again unless I got a good price on an early JV serial 52 RI made by Fender Japan in the 80s.

The FMT set-neck tele you listed is currently made in Indonesia and has been since its 2nd year of production, but older ones were made in Korea and were pretty good (as was the MIK spalted maple top tele of the period, I played quite a few of these guitars when they came out but did not buy)... they are nice guitars but have scrawny necks and sketchy bridges.

Moved this to the new Guitarists & Bassists forum. :)

again, you guys are on the ball

You know, I remember someone who referred to a tele he had as a Parts Telecaster. I never understood until recently what I think it means. I think the saddle and pickups were replaced, hence the name Parts.

Unfortunately, I don't have the skill to build a guitar from scratch (I'd love to, though. I probably have the tools). I've always relied on a local shop that does repairs as well as the Guitar Centres' around the area.

Narcist,

1. Used is the way to go but only if you've put your hands on the same make/model before and know that you like the feel.

2. I do NOT recommend anything Gibson or Epiphone. I hate their products and the company as a whole. Their necks are thick and brick like and the tone is nowhere near what you pay for it. I played a 1000 Taylor once and then immediately played a 3000 Gibson acoustic. The Taylor won in every way.

3. I really like the 90's Ibanez RG Series that are made in Japan. Humbuckers, fast necks, solid tone, and they are usually in great condition. They can go for 400-500 usually. With the other 500, you could invest in a little stack or keep saving for a tube head.

4. 80's Takamine solid-bodies.... just saiyan

5. The thing about buying a guitar that you feel is beyond your skill; it makes you want to play it more and thus makes you a better player. A guitar that is set-up well and feels nice to play on will have you picking it up every time you walk near it.

6. Try to get a guitar with 24 frets and if you don't plan on learning advanced techniques, I'd also recommend getting a simple, non-tremolo bridge. It will make string and playing a lot easier for you.

7. Read HERE