Best Guitars for a laid back strat guy to play rockier for a change

T

Tone Control

Inspired
perhaps you guys can advise

In the old days I was a bit metal, but I've quietened down. Usually play strats or semis into clean/just-saturated 6L6s, or some AF2-soundalike
I have a souped-up Epiphone LP standard, but don't play it much

The rockier and metal patches on my AF2 have made me think of getting a dedicated rockier guitar, to use on all those nice AF2 patches: FAS lead, modern, Mark Day, CAE, etc .
I never got used to anything beyond original fender-trems btw, but I can learn

I thought to search ebay for a used one of these (in the UK):
a PRS custom (plenty up for sale)
an Ibanez prestige 6-string (plenty up for sale)
Tom Anderson (bit rare here I think)

I prefer something with woodgrain showing, rather than none more black
Not a pointy thing either. EMGs or passive would be OK

My first thought was LPs and PRSs, but I am a strat guy, so maybe the Ibanez range would suit me more????
 
jakel said:
My advice - get your hands on all the guitars you mention and see which feels the best.
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Perfectly reasonable advice, I have tried these all for those short moments you get in a shop or with someone else's gear
I remember them all feeling nice, but living with one is always different, and guys here will have worked with the patches with them - which is why I asked here
I usually shortlist kit then buy used, so I can resell without loss if the honeymoon fails.
 
Are you looking to spend a lot of money or is this just going to be a guitar to satisfy an itch? Super Strats are nice and Suhr has the Rasmus line... for now any way and I would recommend it to any Strat player that doesn't want to brake the bank and is looking for a guitar that can rock.

The GG signature model unfinished, sounds great and plays great right out of the gig bag... Unless you looking for a locking trem guitar you need to look at a different model. This line of guitars Suhr is a great deal for the money. You should be able to fined a used one on ebay and save more. I think it's a guitar that is a sleeper, meaning because it doesn't have the Suhr badge on the front of the head stock a lot of guys pass on it and for the life on me I can't figure out why. It plays just as good as any 3K US made Suhr I have picked up.
 
I am looking around £1000 used. Probably same as $1000 used in the US
Locking trem is not my preference really, but I would try to live with it
I'll not at the Rasmus models thanks. New Rasmus modern 200 is £760, standard 200 is £850.
GG is £1200 here at a diff store. I assume it's a better guitar

I will look for it amongst the used guitars on ebay

thanks
 
Tone Control said:
...I have tried these all for those short moments you get in a shop or with someone else's gear
I remember them all feeling nice, but living with one is always different...
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That's absoultely true. And It's also the biggest challenge to answering your question. It's like asking which woman you should live with. It's such a personal choice, and what works for me might not work for you.

You summed it up wonderfully, for guitars or women: "I remember them all feeling nice, but living with one is always different." :)
 
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If you are used to strats then maybe consider an Ernie Ball Musicman as they have the same scale length so will feel more strat-like. I'd recommend the 2 humbucker Albert Lee model but they are quite rare and have an unusual body shape. There are several other models to consider including the signature range (Petrucci, Morse, Lukather) which are all well worth considering. You won't go wrong with a PRS custom 24 either. Good luck, I hope you find the right one for you.
 
Rex said:
That's absoultely true. And It's also the biggest challenge to answering your question. It's like asking which woman you should live with. It's such a personal choice, and what works for me might not work for you.

You summed it up wonderfully, for guitars or women: "I remember them all feeling nice, but living with one is always different." :)
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yes, I expect only time will tell, that's why I now usually research a short-list, and avoid buying anything new. Just coming up to 25 years with my woman, so that plan is working so far.
I made an exception for the new AFx2, and a Gibson 335 since they are no cheaper new than used in the UK for some weird reason
After a small gig in his home town, I asked Matt Schofield which was his favourite pedal - not because I want to sound the same or because I am convinced I will like the same, but because asking someone who has put the time in and has the experience and skill will help me select a few to choose from over time, as I do an extended beauty contest with several at home rather than in a guitar store.
However, this is not really a technique you could expect to use when finding which women you are most compatible with, unless you're King Henry VIII.
 
Coldsummer said:
If you are used to strats then maybe consider an Ernie Ball Musicman as they have the same scale length so will feel more strat-like. I'd recommend the 2 humbucker Albert Lee model but they are quite rare and have an unusual body shape. There are several other models to consider including the signature range (Petrucci, Morse, Lukather) which are all well worth considering. You won't go wrong with a PRS custom 24 either. Good luck, I hope you find the right one for you.
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yes I should add those to the list
 
I've a MM Luke - great guitars - a simple floating bridge design that actually works - but they really have a pretty narrow fretboard - takes a bit of getting used to before you learn to not pull/push on the 1st and 6th strings too much or they fall off the edge of the fret.

I also got mine re-fretted with SS higher profile fret wire - the original was vintage 50's strat size - great for keeping intonation but it felt like I was scraping wood doing string bends.

If you're a strat guy why not look at the latest Deluxe's? You can retro fit those with drop in bridges, pups and electrics. They have the compound radius necks now too. Or even a Strat MIM Blacktop?

A high end PRS .... well that's a fairly safe choice ... as long as you get to play it first of course.
 
Coldsummer said:
If you are used to strats then maybe consider an Ernie Ball Musicman as they have the same scale length so will feel more strat-like. I'd recommend the 2 humbucker Albert Lee model but they are quite rare and have an unusual body shape. There are several other models to consider including the signature range (Petrucci, Morse, Lukather) which are all well worth considering. You won't go wrong with a PRS custom 24 either. Good luck, I hope you find the right one for you.
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I agree...check out the Ernie Ball Musicman models. I have had strats, Ibanez, Jackson, ebmm, charvels (currently), epiphone, gibsons, etc.
But, for a nice comfortable guitar...that can do many tones, ebmm would be my first pick. And Suhr would be up there as well...but more money of course.

These are the decisions we look forward to being stuck with making! Lol ;)
 
I had a similar issue, without the metal though :). I decided to try different pickups on one of my USA Deluxe Strats because I love the Strat necks and am very used to them. I ended up with:

JB Jr.™ SJBJ-1
High output single-coil-size "rails" humbucker. Great for everything from heavy blues to heavy metal. This twin coil design pickup gives you the character of our popular JB™ model humbucker in a single-coil size. Its adjustable pole pieces more closely emulate the magnetic field of a full size humbucker and allow you to fine tune the balance of your strings. You can expect great harmonics and a sweet high-end. Compared to Hot Rails, the output is reduced and there's more treble response. Comes with four-conductor hookup cable.

Middle_Duckbuckers™ SDBR-1 This was in the middle position but I swapped it out for a SD Cool Rails-fit my objective better

Little '59™ for Strat SL59-1
P.A.F.-voiced single-coil-sized humbucker.

My idea was not to have another strat sound but to have a fatter sound with the Strat body and neck

EDIT: I also agree with Max above-The musicman was my first choice (Neck radius on the ones I liked was 10"-very close to a Strat, which is of course 9 1/2 "-Just couldn'r swing the $$$
 
maxdown said:
I've a MM Luke - great guitars - a simple floating bridge design that actually works - but they really have a pretty narrow fretboard - takes a bit of getting used to before you learn to not pull/push on the 1st and 6th strings too much or they fall off the edge of the fret.

I also got mine re-fretted with SS higher profile fret wire - the original was vintage 50's strat size - great for keeping intonation but it felt like I was scraping wood doing string bends.

If you're a strat guy why not look at the latest Deluxe's? You can retro fit those with drop in bridges, pups and electrics. They have the compound radius necks now too. Or even a Strat MIM Blacktop?

A high end PRS .... well that's a fairly safe choice ... as long as you get to play it first of course.
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I think a narrow fingerboard would bother me, I sold my Taylor 314ce because the frets were all rolled off too far in,
at present I use the VG strat in humbucker mode to drive the afx2, so maybe an HH strat is worth thinking of
I got a MIM blacktop baritone tele. Plays OK since I had the saddles fixed (would not intonate, bridge plate was fitted in the wrong place, to be fair they paid the luthier fees).
They are routed for HSH I heard. I had my luthier put Fender SCN and an N3 in it, and they did not fit the scratchplate: the pickups in it were not standard fender size!!
But I agree a good platform for customising

I'd thought if I went upmarket to try something else rather than just customise another strat, since I've done that to many (not to fit HH pickups it's true though)

Are the PRSs variable, or do you just mean it's a lot to spend without testing?
 
Stratman68 said:
I had a similar issue, without the metal though :). I decided to try different pickups on one of my USA Deluxe Strats because I love the Strat necks and am very used to them. I ended up with:

JB Jr.™ SJBJ-1
High output single-coil-size "rails" humbucker. Great for everything from heavy blues to heavy metal. This twin coil design pickup gives you the character of our popular JB™ model humbucker in a single-coil size. Its adjustable pole pieces more closely emulate the magnetic field of a full size humbucker and allow you to fine tune the balance of your strings. You can expect great harmonics and a sweet high-end. Compared to Hot Rails, the output is reduced and there's more treble response. Comes with four-conductor hookup cable.

Middle_Duckbuckers™ SDBR-1 This was in the middle position but I swapped it out for a SD Cool Rails-fit my objective better

Little '59™ for Strat SL59-1
P.A.F.-voiced single-coil-sized humbucker.

My idea was not to have another strat sound but to have a fatter sound with the Strat body and neck
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yes, another good option - I tried a load of hot rails in the 90s, and some were nice, but not crisp and trebly enough for my main strat guitar, but I'd assume the mini JB and 59 would be crisper. Are they enough to drive the OD sounds properly?

I just sold an old amp, hence having money in my pocket before I thought of what to buy for a change
 
The cool rails are actually a humbucker and can be split if needed. I am happy with the 2 sc Size HB's. They are reall HB's-just smaller poles. I don't get real heavy but they have made simple old songs with OD sound Soooo much better. And my 2 other Strats both have nice sc's so that's sayin alot for me. One has Fralin Vintage hots and the other CS fat 50's.
I won't say the SC size HB's sound like a full hb, they don't-but they get me close enough. I actually have 2 but haven't decided if I want to part with it. You can get the whole original (with Duckbucker in the middle) from Sigler Music Cusdtom shop pretty cheap and ready to go-I mean fully wired with everything. Or they might swap the middle one for you. The duckbucker to me was too Stratty as weird a that sounds.

Once more, I love the OD with these, but they are NOT the same as a LP or PRs with HB's. But I didn't want that 12" radius. Hence my yearning for the Musicman-I actually was looking at the Axis-killer guitar but price was too much.

Check out Sigler Music online, the Custom Shop. Doesn't hurt to look.

SD also has audio examples of the Lil HB's on their website
 
Tone Control said:
Are the PRSs variable, or do you just mean it's a lot to spend without testing?
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I've picked up the odd high end PRS to try out and been disappointed with them - one secondhand one I tried had a very visible neck warp near the nut end - probably down to it's owner not looking after it properly (strange guy!).

Other new ones in shops that had not been set up properly (which really baffles me why they don't do this!!) have 'put me off' - but if I was 100% truthful, I wanted to be put off because they were out of my budget at the time. :)

However, don't let me discourage, most of the PRS's I tried were just beautiful no matter which neck profile they had .... just too expensive in UK terms I thought.

I ended up getting the 'UK PRS' - a Patrick Eggle Berlin Pro Custom HSS (this was back when PE was still the boss of the electrics end of production). Went to the factory in Coventry and had my choice of the showroom and the luthiers were there to tweak whatever I wanted - it was like the service you'd get if trying out a Rolls Royce (I imagine) .... Still have it, it's still all original parts and a beauty to play - gigged it solidly for 10 years with never a problem.

But yes, if you're going to shell out the money for any high end guitar it makes sense to me that you get hands on with it first
 
Some seriously rocky people play Strats....

If you want a new guitar, that's understandable - welcome to the slippery slide into guitar collection. Each of mine was supposed to satisfy a musical need. In fact I use any of them to play all kinds of music - except the Danelectro which stays in open tuning with raised action for slide. Even with the Axe, you can still hear their individual characters - but I've always thought with the Axe that you don't need to hotrod pickups and all that.

A Les Paul makes sense - as something different and complimentary. Mine was my sixth (after two Strats plus others) and my first brand new guitar. I was astounded at how good it is - having always had old ones. But do play lots of guitars, then chose the one that feels best to you. How it sounds through an amp is ithe last things I check out - so long as it works, and if it doesn't but you really like the guitar, it can always be fixed.... The Joy of Axe perhaps...
 
My rule of thumb is if you're not 100% sure what you want, don't spend too much. ;)

That said, I'd suggest grabbing a cheap S series Ibanez with a HSH configuration. The new ZR trems are dreaaaamy, and they're the most comfortable superstrat type guitars I've ever played. (I'm a small dude, 5'8, fits me perfect). I find the RG types to be heavy, and unergonomicalish. But you're a strat guy, you're almost used to it.

I know they're not exactly beautiful (to a strat guy), but have you considered an Ernie Ball John Petrucci guitar? Superstrat, awesome flat fretboard, trem is closer to what you're used to but can still whirr and meoww like a floyd, and you get the bonus of a piezo pickup so you can play all those acoustic sounds with your Axe Fx.
 
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