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GMC Forum _ GEAR & PRODUCTION _ Finally Got Enough
Posted by: steve25 Dec 27 2007, 08:05 PM
Merry 2 days after Christmas people! I hope everyone had a good one and that the new year will be good too. So now that christmas is getting out the way i'm going to have enough money to get a new guitar which i've been waiting to do for a while now. I like mine but meh i could do with a better one now not just for sound but for comfort as well.
So i'm looking for some recommendations or some to try out in the price range of i'd say £600 max? I might go a bit over but preferably not too much (thats roughly $1140 for Americans i think. So yeah around that please.
The style i like is melodic death metal/progressive/shred. Artists would include Arch Enemy, Amon Amarth, Opeth, Dream Theater (thanks to GMC actually!), In Flames, Dark Tranquillity, Steve Vai etc so you get the general idea of music. Whether thats a good or bad music taste i dunno but i like it.
My current setup is this:
Guitars: Strat copy, Ibanez RG321MH
Amps: Some silly little 3W i got with the strat, Roland cube 30 (its good enough, i practice at home so i don't need a huge amp yet or anything in case anyone says i should consider a new amp. 1 day i will but not yet)
Effects: Line6 PODxt, Behringer Ultra Distortion
So fire away people i'll be grateful for anythin you can give me. Also i live in the UK so preferably guitars that i can get over. Thanks.
Posted by: Tomy Jeon Dec 27 2007, 08:43 PM
Uhh... If you can get one, a Gibson Les Paul Studio? Or a real American Strat with some effects (like a wah). If you buy the Strat you have the pleasure of destroying your Strat copy if you wish 
Oh yeah, get a guitar with a cool body and bad pickups. Replace the pickups with these
http://www.seymourduncan.com/products/electric/humbucker/cutting-edge/lwch1_livewire/
http://www.seymourduncan.com/products/electric/humbucker/cutting-edge/lwhmet_livewire/
I'm not a guitar expert but I'm just trying to help 
Posted by: Juan M. Valero Dec 27 2007, 08:59 PM
do you have the model pack "metal shop" for your POD ??? it's really good !!! and so easy to install. I truely recomend it (if you don't have it)
Bye and happy christmas
Posted by: steve25 Dec 27 2007, 10:21 PM
Bye and happy christmas
Hey Juan yeah i've heard recordings of metal shop and it does sound the business but no i don't have it yet i'll be getting it at some point though. For now though i quite like solo 100 and Line6 Insane so its not a huge deal
Posted by: muntahunta Dec 27 2007, 10:27 PM
i'd suggest a schecter or ibanez. a good set of EMG's is also a good investment for ur music style 
Posted by: JVM Dec 27 2007, 10:45 PM
Get http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Music-Man-Silhouette-NonTremolo-Electric-Guitar?sku=515550. It's the model the John Petrucci, Steve Morse and Lukather signature models are based off of, and eddie van halen (plus muris, until recently when he got his custom) plays the axis, which is another guitar made by musicman. This things pretty wicked I assure you
Posted by: steve25 Dec 27 2007, 11:28 PM
Oh yeah, get a guitar with a cool body and bad pickups. Replace the pickups with these
http://www.seymourduncan.com/products/electric/humbucker/cutting-edge/lwch1_livewire/
http://www.seymourduncan.com/products/electric/humbucker/cutting-edge/lwhmet_livewire/
I'm not a guitar expert but I'm just trying to help
Not actually a fan of Gibson Les Pauls but surely that can't be the only good guitar out there
Posted by: muntahunta Dec 27 2007, 11:49 PM
heres some suggestions i'd make, ive never played any of them, but looking at the specifications and a few reviews ive read, id say they're good buy's.
http://www.guitarampkeyboard.com/en/74572
http://www.guitarampkeyboard.com/en/74571
http://www.guitarampkeyboard.com/en/73156
http://www.guitarampkeyboard.com/en/73178
http://www.guitarampkeyboard.com/en/ex-400/69548
http://www.guitarampkeyboard.com/en/ibanez-js-100/1162
http://www.guitarampkeyboard.com/en/ibanez-rg-2570e/67115
http://www.guitarampkeyboard.com/en/71824
http://www.guitarampkeyboard.com/en/74199
Posted by: Juan M. Valero Dec 28 2007, 08:22 AM
yes, those are great tones, but I recomend the "MS Big Bottom" (I'm not sure if it's the correct name BTW it would be something similar), it's really good, I love it. It's from Metal Shop. So I recomend you taste it, don't forget that when you buy the MShop and you install it you have a month to prove it and if you don't like you can return it
Posted by: steve25 Dec 28 2007, 03:20 PM
Yeah i'll check it out eventually i'm sure i'll probably try out all of them eventually .
Munt - thanks for those links i'll have a look at those. Any more from anyone?
Posted by: Goliath Dec 28 2007, 03:43 PM
If you're really looking for that vintage strat feel, pick up a G&L, not an American Fender. G&L is the company Leo Fender founded when he sold Fender guitars, tried to pick up the Music Man series after his 10 year "non compete" clause ran up, then he founded G&L along with George Fullerton (The 'G' to his 'L'). They're right around in that range that you're mentioning, so it might be worth having a crack at, if you can find them internationally.
Posted by: steve25 Dec 28 2007, 08:19 PM
Had a look around a certain site found a few ESPs i liked but they're a bit too espensive at the moment. Of course my dream guitar is a PRS custom 22, ever since i've played one thats it i've wanted one, but they're way too expensive for me.
Those BC Rich guitars munt showed me i would like if it wasn't for the inlays, but i do quite like the look of the specs of the ESP EX-400, thanks for that
Posted by: muntahunta Dec 28 2007, 08:22 PM
no problem. i like to help
Posted by: Juan M. Valero Dec 28 2007, 08:48 PM
. Munt - thanks for those links i'll have a look at those. Any more from anyone?
yeah, it's a good idea, I'm also gonna try the Classic Cabinets, cos the experience with Metal Shop is really productive
Posted by: Toni Suominen Dec 28 2007, 10:47 PM
For that kind of music I would suggest either ESP or Schecters, both of them are great though
Posted by: Milenkovic Ivan Dec 29 2007, 05:55 PM
Les Paul Studio and a wah is a great buy.
Posted by: steve25 Dec 29 2007, 10:03 PM
I've actually found Schecters quite hard to find, anyone else been able to find anywhere on them? So far the ESP is winning but i'm quite limited for choice at the moment by the looks of things, i'm very fussy. You think maybe i should save up a little bit more?
Posted by: yell03 Dec 30 2007, 02:29 PM
I have been through alot of guitars lately.
Within the last year I have bought and sold some guitars that might appeal to you:
ESP LTD Viper 400
ESP LTD EC-400
Ibanez RGA121
My main reasons for selling all of them was the sound, I am not a huge fan of active pick-ups, yes they scream for metal, but they don't have the warmth to them needed for other styles of music.
The Ibanez RGA121 was a sweet guitar, played very nice, but the pick-ups were weak and lacked ballz.
What guitars made the cut to replace them.
I have a Fender Showmaster FMT HH and a Fender Telecaster FMT HH.
The Showmaster has:
24 frets with super easy access, Seymour Duncan 59(N) and Pearly Gates(
pick-ups, 5 position coil tapping, and a super thin body and ultra slim neck. It even has a trem, not a true locking trem, but I don't like trems anyway.
Plus it looks amazing.
EDit above the smiley, it was supposed to be ( for bridge pick-up, but it won't edit out.
The Telecaster has 22 frets with great access, the same hot pick-ups, and 6 position coil tapping. It has a slightly thicker body and also has a slim neck. The fretbboard is the smoothest I have every played on and has nice binding the enhances the smooth feel.
No trem.
It looks nice, but not as nice as the Showmaster.
The Showmaster is Basswood with a Flamed Maple top, so it is lighter and the sound is Brighter.
The Telecaster is Mahogany with a Flamed Maple Top, the sound is darker, I like it better.
Both guitars pull off pinch harmonics and squeals with ease.
If the Telecaster had 24 frets it would be a slight victor in playability and sound, but not in looks.
Both guitars sell New for $629.
I bought both used for $400 each, once came with a gigbag and one with a case.
Another guitar you might consider is a Gibson SG Standard for $1299.
I've included pics below.
Howard
Posted by: steve25 Dec 31 2007, 12:34 PM
Hey yell that was a great reply thanks. I couldn't find much on the EC-400 there but i was able to find the viper and the specs etc it looks pretty good. So i couldn't say who's winning at the moment lol. Also i have a quick question about active pickups. What is the difference between those and normal humbuckers except for that they need batteries. And also is it difficult to change the batteries in them. Oh and one more thing, will it let you know in some way when its getting to the stage where it needs to change or will they just cut out one day?
Thanks for the posts everyone keep them coming
Posted by: yell03 Jan 1 2008, 06:38 AM
Thanks for the posts everyone keep them coming
I didn't have mine long enough to need a replacement battery, but I didn't like having to depend on a 9v battery for optimum sound.
Replacing the battery is easy, the guitar has a compartment in the back, but again, I thought the active pick-ups had a sterile sound, no bluesy warmth to them. It is hard to explain, they scream, but they are not gritty and raw sounding.
I prefer normal humbuckers, the coil tapping on my style Fenders gives you the option to go single coil if you like a Strat type of sound once in a while.
But, Something about the Gibson sound grabs me for sure.
Howard
Posted by: Goliath Jan 1 2008, 09:29 AM
honestly if you're playing hi-gain rock, you're not going to miss anything "warm" sounding. In fact, you're not going to play much at all that isn't heavier sounding. That all said, unless you're playing blues or country exclusively, you're not going to miss out on the active tone. A fender is a bad idea unless you are considering swapping out pickups already. Why not just get the guitar you want with the pickups you're considering?
Posted by: steve25 Jan 29 2008, 07:16 PM
Sorry for digging up old posts but i thought it would be pointless making a new topic. So thanks for all the replies i've had a look at some of the guitars you gave me a link to look at. The thing is most of the them have active pickups and after looking into it i'm not so sure that i'd want active pickups. Not because its really meant for high gain but i don't think i'd want to rely on batteries. Just sort of want to plug in and go really whenever. So i have a few ideas at the moment. First is this one
http://www.thomann.de/gb/jackson_ke3_blk.htm
Seems ok specs are alright the only thing is i'm not sure which seymour duncan pickups it has. But it could be worth trying out. Also this one
http://www.thomann.de/gb/jackson_dk2_tbk_dinky_upgrade.htm
Once again another jackson and the same thing applies to the last one. However i heard they're not regular size guitars dinkys? Could be worth trying out though. And they're both in my price range.
There is another one i may try out as well. I was also thinking of maybe doing what someone said earlier that is getting a cheaper guitar and replacing the pickups. The thing is i've never done that before so would be a bit risky and also if it's a cheap guitar isn't it likely the wood and how it's made isn't going to be that good either? Anyway let me know what you guys think. Cheers.
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