What's your thoughts on Korean guitars?

[gordon_39422]

Re: What's your thoughts on Korean guitars?

BTW, my wife is now stationed in Korea. I already have a Schecter c-1 E/A en route for my upcoming 3oth B-day!!!!! Moo Moo Buckaroo!!!!!

 

[kherman]

Re: What's your thoughts on Korean guitars?

Carvin DC400 USA made
Carvin DC127 USA Made
Carvin DC200 USA made
Carvin DC727 USA made
Parker Fly deluxe USA made
Diodati 59Q Japan made
Fernandes Ravelle China made
Schecter V7 Korean made

They are all in my collection because they are well made, great playing, greating feeling, great sounding guitars.
Point of origin does not matter.

Any of the overseas factories can build a guitar on par with a USA.
It's just a matter of what the Brand Name Parent company is willing to pay for that
determines the end result of a instruments overall quality.

Brian Moore is willing to go the extra mile. Thier iM 2000 series are incredible guitars.
Easely a top notch professional guitar.
Same with the Conklin Groove Tools.
These companies are willing to pay the extra bucks to have these guitars made of
quality materials and workmanship.
These are $1100 range Korean made guitars.
Again great guitars.

Kent

 

[Hoss]

Re: What's your thoughts on Korean guitars?

i had a Brian Moore i1 and it was a very high quality guitar...and those EC-1000s seem to be really good as well...i think it just depends, but there's good models to be had out there for sure...from any country!!!

 

[Pepi]

Re: What's your thoughts on Korean guitars?

I think they are great. Inexpensive and you can do some mods for the fun. I use to be wrapped up with the "I own a Les Paul" ... not anymore. My favorite guitar today is a MIC SX Tele copy. I've got less than 200 bucks in it and this guitar pisses off a friend of mine who has a MIA Tele with (sorry) SD pups :laugh2:

 

[Chace]

Re: What's your thoughts on Korean guitars?

I have a JEM555 which was made in Korea and I'm very happy with that. I've played afew Japanese RG's which were around the same price and tbh I prefer the JEM and also it doesn't come with the crappy stock Ibanez pickups so I was chuffed all round

More recently I bought a Japanese Jackson DKMG... but that a whole different beast to the JEM series... For me the Jackson wipes the floor with my JEM but because they're so drastically different you can;t really put that down to where they were built

 

[nuntius]

Re: What's your thoughts on Korean guitars?

This goes for all guitars.

You can mod it untill you're blue in the face, but if it's a cheap guitar, it will always feel like a cheap guitar. Doesn't matter where it was built.

For me the neck is the most important part of a guitar when I'm looking to buy... If the feel isn't there I just won't consider it.

A Japanese or Korean luthier can make a guitar to the same standards as an American luthier... the country of origin doesn't matter so long as it's made right.

However, many companies choose to make their lower range models in Korea, hence the stigma (prejudice?) attatched with Korean guitars; that they're all low range/cheap axes.

Ramblings aside, if a guitar feels right, it is right.

 

[chcjunior]

Re: What's your thoughts on Korean guitars?

Interesting info there, Gordon.

One thing I've discovered about Korean guitars is the QC is often hit or miss. Also, it seems like you can't predict the quality of the wood from one guitar to the next. You can almost see the truck dropping off a huge load of wood and taking off.

That said, I loved my Schecter C1+ while I had it. Got lucky and got a winner off Ebay. Ordered one special from Guitar Center and it sucked.

 

[smauk43]

Re: What's your thoughts on Korean guitars?

to the original poster, go ahead and play the sz320, i have one and love it, korean or not. also had an ESP LTD EC400 series korean made. played better than and better constructed than all the epi lps i played and was on par with some gibby studios i played, better then some of them in fact. i don't think the sz is solely for shredders either, cause i'm not. not sure about the stock pups though, heard they weren't very good, not the ones in 2003 anyway. i bought my sz used with dimarzio hum from hell and tone zone already in it. it has an ugodly amount of sustain and is very well built, no flaws to be found in frets, binding, etc....

 

[That90'sGuy]

Re: What's your thoughts on Korean guitars?

I had a Dean Chafin Del Sol that I really loved for a while and I owned that more than any other guitars in my stable. It felt like a high quality guitar and the flame top looked as good as any Brian Moore and most PRS and Gibson. Given my luck with that one, I'd be willing to give others a chance, although my USA Gibson, Ovation and Don Grosh feel better than any other guitars I've played.

 

[Mr Wolf]

Re: What's your thoughts on Korean guitars?

I love my Kramer, had Epiphone electronics in it that i swapped out and it is a great solid player. Ive played the LTD EC-1000 and thought that was alot of guitar for the money, well equipped and played very very well. Im GASing for a LTD EC-400AT, searching for summer job so i can get one

 

[LesStrat]

Re: What's your thoughts on Korean guitars?

...One thing I've discovered about Korean guitars is the QC is often hit or miss.

Funny, I've noticed the same thing with Gibson (especially finishes).

I LOVE my ESP LTD B304 bass (Black Beauty). I was considering changing the cheapo ESP pickups, then I thought "this thing sounds great already...why tamper with it?"

 

[frankencat]

Re: What's your thoughts on Korean guitars?

All I know is I have been playing and buying guitars for a long time (25+ years) and I have seen and owned great USA made guitars and crap USA made guitars as well as great MIK and MIJ guitars and crap MIK and MIJ guitars. Made in USA used to mean better quality but the tables are turning. Supply and demand favors lower priced/higher quality instruments and for the last few years S. Korea is answering the call with a vengeance. I own a MIK Ibanez (SZ520QM) that is an incredible instrument in every way and is as good or better quality and materials wise as my USA made axes. I also have USA made Fenders, G&L's, and Martins, and have owned a few Gibsons and Jacksons as well. I just bought a MIK Agile LP copy and while it is not the same quality as the Ibanez it is at least the same quality as some of the 70's Gibsons that I have owned - the difference being I didn't spend $600+ for it and the isses that made those 70's Gibby's "suck" are mere annoyances to be overlooked at the prices you pay for stuff like Agile. I also have an absolutely KILLER '75 Aria Pro II Jazz Bass copy that I have had unbelievable offers on over the years. It literally blows the current USA made Fender stuff into the weeds and is more like a vintage USA Fender than a copy. I also own a '75 Alvarez HD-28 copy that is one of my favorite acoustic guitars made with all of the best stuff. Gives my brand new USA made Martin D-15 S&R a run for it's money and it was less a third of the price of the Martin. The bottom line is that if you are a player you buy INSTRUMENTS not investments. I buy an instrument for it's total value - that is sound/feel/features/looks/cost. I may give preference to something that is made in USA just because but after that anything that meets the criteria is fair game. All that to say that I think the current crop of MIK stuff is the best value in guitars right now.

 

[JacksonMIA]

Re: What's your thoughts on Korean guitars?

True, expecially considering most of the guitars from both continents are made on CNC machines, so there isn't much of a human element anyway. For the part that is done by humans, you're probably right.....QUOTE]

I agree with the point you are making about the pride in craftsmanship, but you couldn't be farther from the truth in regards to CNC machinery. I am a CNC machinist who builds hydraulic cylinders for Caterpillar, Bush Hog, and many others with tolerances measured in 1/1000 of an inch. When a groove diameter has to be 2 1/2 inches, that is 2.500. Most tolerances I work with allow for a deviant tolerance of +/- .003, so that would be between 2.497 and 2.503. By manually making the machine using a lathe or a mill, it can be more time-consuming, but the person is in control. True the computer can execute more precise movements, but the computer can not measure. The operator measures the produced part, and computes the offset in the program so the NEXT part is within tolerance, or to specs.

That being said, the same lack of pride is displayed when the operator doesnt really care if that groove measures 2.485. Heck that is only 15/1000 of an inch. Who cares? The CONSUMER!! In my case, Caterpillar would be pissed when the bulldoser cant raise the blades because the internal pressure is too high due to excess friction caused by undersized cylinders.

In the case of the guitar, a majority of the players out there dont even play in tune relative to the guitar, much less do they properly intonate their guitar. Who is gonna notice that the 10th-15th frets are .010" lower that the rest?

Moral of the story..... Dont put faith in something simply because a machine recalls the same pattern of executable tasks over and again. There is still a human that interfaces the finished part with the program. That level of craftsmanship is either there, or not.... The quality of the product is the only proof of that...... Unless you have a stringent Quality Assurance Program as we do......


Allen

You know, I wasn't even thinking about that. While I've never used a CNC machine, I'm pretty familiar with how they work. I guess the human element of it all slipped my mind. And what I was really trying to get at is that if a Gibson LP and an Epiphone LP are both made on CNC machines, they're probably using the same numbers so the machines will produce very similar shaped cuts. The difference would come on the set-up and other non-computerized steps. I don't know that those two are made that way, it's just a hypothetical example.

That's the reason I worry about most mass produced guitars. I think their quality control is slipping in all of the factories. That's why you can get to gutars that were made on CNC machines in the same factory that should be identical, but one plays great and the other isn't worth burning.