Do "guitar upgrades" really increase the value of the guitar? (poll)

[The Dali]

Hi everyone, I posted this on Gear Page (TGP) as well using my handle there (Hammers and Chords). I suspect I'll get a different answer here since we have a different mentality than most on TGP.

I've been re-building and customizing guitars using Hammers and Chords name for a while... mostly making the beer label and CD label guitars I've posted here from time-to-time. I've been trying to take older or blemished guitars and customize the look and also the playability and sound before I sell. Mostly we are talking about new pickups, pro wiring, and new tuners. These guitars tend to be $75 - $400 guitars so those components are usually the weakest. Well, I've wondered if it is worth these costly upgrades. The wiring, pickups and tuners usually run about $200 - $250 ($50 per pup, $100 for the wiring and new pots/switches, and $40 for tuners). While the guitars I sell are super playing and sound great, I wonder if I am limiting my market with resale - both by having a higher price and also with the specific types of upgrades.

So - with all that said - do you think upgrades and modifications INCREASE the value of a mid-tier guitar (or lower) or not? Every response on TGP was that the mods reduce the value and that they would prefer to buy a STOCK guitar - even a lower-tier guitar like Squier or Epi or LTD. I guess the point being that MY upgrades might not match YOUR upgrades/wishlist. Keep in mind, most TGP people seem to prefer $400 pickups over DiMarzio/Duncans...

So, what say you? You can vote for multiple options.

 

[DavidRavenMoon]

Re: Do "guitar upgrades" really increase the value of the guitar? (poll)

Upgrades make the guitar function the way you want.

Who cares about the value? Did you buy a guitar to sell or to play?


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[The Dali]

Re: Do "guitar upgrades" really increase the value of the guitar? (poll)

Upgrades make the guitar function the way you want.

Who cares about the value? Did you buy a guitar to sell or to play?

Totally get where you are coming from - and as a gigging musician I respect this point of view!! I'm coming from someone who mods guitars for resale. Like this below:

 

[DavidRavenMoon]

Re: Do "guitar upgrades" really increase the value of the guitar? (poll)

Totally get where you are coming from - and as a gigging musician I respect this point of view!! I'm coming from someone who mods guitars for resale. Like this below:

View attachment 105913

That’s cosmetic. It’s worth whatever someone will pay.

If it’s an inexpensive guitar to start with then it can be considered art. If you put some decent pickups and parts on it they usually play well.

One of my stage guitars is a FirstAct GarageMaster. I just made new pickups for it, and it plays and sounds great. But I probably couldn’t sell it for much.

I’m a luthier myself, and am planning on doing some guitars with graphics like this, and also having a friend do some painting.

What I would do is figure in the price you paid for the guitar and any upgrades, and then how much you want for your artwork. Try selling one and see if people are interested at that price.

I think it looks pretty cool.


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[solspirit]

Re: Do "guitar upgrades" really increase the value of the guitar? (poll)

Totally get where you are coming from - and as a gigging musician I respect this point of view!! I'm coming from someone who mods guitars for resale. Like this below:

View attachment 105913

No wonder you call yourself the Dali.
Pretty cool man,.. as far as the mods go I'm more apt to do my own than buy a guitar that is already modded, that's not to say that I wouldn't if it had some things I liked on it.

 

[ehdwuld]

Re: Do "guitar upgrades" really increase the value of the guitar? (poll)

if you put $500 worth of upgrades on a $200 Squire
you should be able to get $150 for it
the upgrades are only upgrades to you
the next buyer may want something else
making the "upgrades" useless

if you can pitch it well you may break even on the upgrades
but I doubt you can "make" money doing it

 

[GuitarStv]

Re: Do "guitar upgrades" really increase the value of the guitar? (poll)

No. Guitar upgrades can make a guitar play and sound more to your liking. Unless you find another buying with your exact tastes, it's unlikely that the upgrades will increase the sale price of the guitar.







And that's why you should never sell an upgraded guitar.

 

[PFDarkside]

Re: Do "guitar upgrades" really increase the value of the guitar? (poll)

Speaking in general terms, either you are modder or not. If you are a modder (like most here) you want to put your own twist on a instrument. If you aren’t, you basically play a bunch of guitars until you find one the “speaks to you”.

If I’ve got a MIM Strat, it stickers at $599 and you get them used around $350 now, right? About 60% of new value. If I take one and add:

Locking Tuners ($60)
Strap Locks ($40)
Pickups ($200)
Brass Block ($40)
Electronics ($40)
New nut with setup ($80 total)

I’ve now got an instrument that is about $1050 “new”. 60% of this is about $625. If you find someone that wanted to make those exact mods, you might be able to sell it but you took a 40% loss on your aftermarket parts. That’s why I always say keep the stock pickups in case you sell. In the example above, you’ll probably sit on that guitar for quite a while waiting for the right buyer and you’ll probably have to reject a few low ball offers while you’ve got it for sale. That’s all absolute best case too, like others in this thread, many will just say it’s worth that $350 price.

That’s just my opinion, I’m curious if other think differently.

By the way, I really like that CD cover guitar. For me, I’d probably want to be able to spec the exact pickups, tuners, etc. if I bought it because at this point it’s a custom Guitar.

 

[muttznmongrelz]

Re: Do "guitar upgrades" really increase the value of the guitar? (poll)

Upgrades make a guitar sound and possibly play better depending on what you do to it but, like an automobile, don't expect it's value to increase simply because you put new wheels on it.

 

[The Dali]

Re: Do "guitar upgrades" really increase the value of the guitar? (poll)

Thanks everyone - yes, that is the same response I saw from TGP. It totally makes sense. I guess, now that I think of it, it makes MORE sense that you all would think that since you like modding guitars and would want to put your own twist on it. I get it! Yeah, one thought I was considering was offering a guitar where people could ask for specific customizations instead of just getting what I decided was the best configuration.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Do "guitar upgrades" really increase the value of the guitar? (poll)

I never buy anything with the intention of selling it, and through the upgrade process, I am just trying to get the guitar to work better for me. I would never think that these things would add value to the guitar. Besides, if I end up selling, I will probably put some of the stock parts back on, like pickups.

 

[JB_From_Hell]

Re: Do "guitar upgrades" really increase the value of the guitar? (poll)

If I was shopping for a MIM Strat, and found one with upgraded pickups, I’d be willing to pay more than with stock. Not the full value of the pickups, but maybe $50, or more if it was what I was going to get for it.

 

[devastone]

Re: Do "guitar upgrades" really increase the value of the guitar? (poll)

I started to pick the last option, but that's not the answer I want to give. The answer is typically just "No". If it is a $400 guitar, new pickups aren't going to make it sell for $500. It may make it sound the way you want it, but it won't increase its market value.

For high end guitars, it may actually lower the value, I mean changing the pickups in an Anderson would probably lower the value, unless you sent it back to Anderson for the work, and then it would just be a wash, you wouldn't get the $ for the change back out of it.

 

[Masta' C]

Re: Do "guitar upgrades" really increase the value of the guitar? (poll)

In my experience, including buying/selling guitars full-time for a number of years, upgrades do very little to add value to guitars.

Specific models tend to sell in a range, regardless of how "improved" they are.

"Desirability" increases with upgrades, so an upgraded guitar may sell more quickly than a similar one without, but it does not necessarily become "more valuable" with upgrades, as in bringing more money/commanding a higher price.

 

[Masta' C]

Re: Do "guitar upgrades" really increase the value of the guitar? (poll)

I started to pick the last option, but that's not the answer I want to give. The answer is typically just "No". If it is a $400 guitar, new pickups aren't going to make it sell for $500. It may make it sound the way you want it, but it won't increase its market value.

For high end guitars, it may actually lower the value, I mean changing the pickups in an Anderson would probably lower the value, unless you sent it back to Anderson for the work, and then it would just be a wash, you wouldn't get the $ for the change back out of it.

THIS! Well said, sir...

 

[solspirit]

Re: Do "guitar upgrades" really increase the value of the guitar? (poll)

You should make a menu of available mods for your customers.

 

[Artie]

It's always been my opinion that electronic upgrades won't increase the value, per se, but may increase the selling speed. If I'm looking at two identical Squier Strats, and one has Duncan pups, I'd probably buy it first, simply because I know I can sell the pups and recoup some of my money. Or use those funds to get what I actually want.

 

[dave74]

On a well-priced used guitar I would be more likely to buy if the pickups had been upgraded,,,,,,,even if they're not my choice they could be used in trades or installed elsewhere.
I wouldn't pay more for a mid-level guitar simply because of upgrades.

 

[ItsaBass]

No. I won't pay for someone else's modifications (the more objective term that I use instead of "upgrades"). The work that other people do on their guitars is rarely what I would do, in terms of specifications and in terms of quality. I have very high standards for workmanship, which almost nobody can meet IME, and my own very specific aesthetic and sonic taste, which doesn't seem to be shared by many others IME. As such, modded instruments are usually a turnoff for me. I'd usually prefer a stock blank slate to start from, and I like having the ability to easily take an instrument back to stock if I decide to sell before committing it to my collection. As such, I devalue an instrument if it doesn't come with all the original parts, at least on the side.

 

[idsnowdog]

People normally don't pay more for someone else's preferences. However, I look at things a bit differently. I often see guitars that have been modded with expensive pickups that are being sold for a price that is equal to the value of the hardware they have replaced. I like to snatch up those guitars because even if I don't like the pickups I can sell or trade the pickups to defray the cost of my modifications. For instance, I recently bought an Ibanez for $95 which had a set of EMG-81s installed. In this case the pickups were worth more than what I paid for the guitar and I could use those pickups to fit out my other projects. The person who did the install did a poor job and the grounds look like they never worked to begin with so I suspect the person who sold it got discouraged and gave up. I also bought a Telecaster Deluxe that had been completely rewired with CTS pots, quality 3-way, sprague caps, jack, and SD 59 pickups. Once again they couldn't make it work so they gave up and I snatched it up for less than the cost of the mods they performed. I was able to trade both pickups for other pickups which cost more than what I paid for the guitar. In both cases I didn't haggle with the seller at all and paid what they asked for.