Hey everyone, so I'm looking to get a new guitar, and I'm willing to spend a little money to get a really nice axe. After my previous experiences with various brands, I think I've narrowed down what I'm looking for, and would love some suggestions!
In short: I want a good hard-tail guitar that excels at hard rock and metal, with the capability to do classic rock and blues (if possible). In the past I've owned many different guitars (American Std Strat, Les Paul Studio, PRS SE 24, Westbury Std, Ibanez RG550), but none of them has quite nailed *that* elusive tone in my head. My experience with the Ibanez convinced me that I DON'T want a Floyd Rose-equipped guitar (I never use it, and it's a hassle to change strings, etc.). I really loved the thick growl and tone of the LP, but it was TOO thick (though throwing a Custom in there did help a lot...) and the neck was too fat. So, I'm looking for something faster-playing/shreddy and a little more cutting, but still with that powerful sound.
From listening to many, many clips online (yeah, I know...) it seems that most traditional Superstrat guitars are too thin-sounding for my taste (e.g. the double cutaway Charvel, Jackson, Ibanez guitars, or HSS configs from Fender or Suhr, etc.). Not sure sure if this is the woods used, or the necks, but there's something lacking there, though of course that could be just the particular setup used in the videos.
In general, the guitars that seem promising tend to lean towards mahogany bodies with a maple top (though not all do), so perhaps that's a good indication of the tone woods that sound good to me. My budget is around $2,000, so I'm willing to spend a decent amount if the axe is right, I really want to invest in some quality equipment. Some guitars that seem quite promising are the following:
- ESP E-II Horizon series (what formerly was called the NT-II line)
- ESP E-II Eclipse series
- ESP E-II Mystique
- Jackson Randy Rhoads (e.g. the RRT-5)
- Schecter C-1
- Schecter Blackjack SLS
- Ibanez Artist series
- Music Man Axis
- Music Man Reflex
- Carvin CT6
- Hamer sunburst
Any thoughts/suggestions? I don't mind replacing the stock pickups (probably with a set of Duncans, maybe the Jazz/Custom8 or something similar), so the stock ones aren't an issue, though they do have to be passive (I don't want to deal with replacing EMG's).
Also, I absolutely love the sound of a distorted neck single-coil for bluesier tones, so a guitar (and pickup rec) that splits well is a huge plus. It doesn't have to come stock with coil taps, I don't mind putting in push-pull pots.
To give you an idea of the ballpark of the tone I'm looking for, check out the video below. This guitar happens to be a Music Man Reflex with a Custom 5 in the bridge. Most videos of the Reflex don't quite do it for me, so it's strange I like this one, but perhaps the Custom 5 is responsible (since most MM guitars come with Dimarzio pups, right?)...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xsAjeV2vqUM
Thanks for your suggestions everyone, always great ideas here on the Forums!
In short: I want a good hard-tail guitar that excels at hard rock and metal, with the capability to do classic rock and blues (if possible). In the past I've owned many different guitars (American Std Strat, Les Paul Studio, PRS SE 24, Westbury Std, Ibanez RG550), but none of them has quite nailed *that* elusive tone in my head. My experience with the Ibanez convinced me that I DON'T want a Floyd Rose-equipped guitar (I never use it, and it's a hassle to change strings, etc.). I really loved the thick growl and tone of the LP, but it was TOO thick (though throwing a Custom in there did help a lot...) and the neck was too fat. So, I'm looking for something faster-playing/shreddy and a little more cutting, but still with that powerful sound.
From listening to many, many clips online (yeah, I know...) it seems that most traditional Superstrat guitars are too thin-sounding for my taste (e.g. the double cutaway Charvel, Jackson, Ibanez guitars, or HSS configs from Fender or Suhr, etc.). Not sure sure if this is the woods used, or the necks, but there's something lacking there, though of course that could be just the particular setup used in the videos.
In general, the guitars that seem promising tend to lean towards mahogany bodies with a maple top (though not all do), so perhaps that's a good indication of the tone woods that sound good to me. My budget is around $2,000, so I'm willing to spend a decent amount if the axe is right, I really want to invest in some quality equipment. Some guitars that seem quite promising are the following:
- ESP E-II Horizon series (what formerly was called the NT-II line)
- ESP E-II Eclipse series
- ESP E-II Mystique
- Jackson Randy Rhoads (e.g. the RRT-5)
- Schecter C-1
- Schecter Blackjack SLS
- Ibanez Artist series
- Music Man Axis
- Music Man Reflex
- Carvin CT6
- Hamer sunburst
Any thoughts/suggestions? I don't mind replacing the stock pickups (probably with a set of Duncans, maybe the Jazz/Custom8 or something similar), so the stock ones aren't an issue, though they do have to be passive (I don't want to deal with replacing EMG's).
Also, I absolutely love the sound of a distorted neck single-coil for bluesier tones, so a guitar (and pickup rec) that splits well is a huge plus. It doesn't have to come stock with coil taps, I don't mind putting in push-pull pots.
To give you an idea of the ballpark of the tone I'm looking for, check out the video below. This guitar happens to be a Music Man Reflex with a Custom 5 in the bridge. Most videos of the Reflex don't quite do it for me, so it's strange I like this one, but perhaps the Custom 5 is responsible (since most MM guitars come with Dimarzio pups, right?)...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xsAjeV2vqUM
Thanks for your suggestions everyone, always great ideas here on the Forums!
