Your experiences/input on Suhr & Anderson guitars

T

Tone Collector

Inspired
I'm in the market for a new six string electric guitar, for use in standard tuning. I play a very wide assortment of Rock. (Not sure if I'll get/want a hardtail or a bar.)

Open to your thoughts, experiences & research on Suhr and Anderson guitars. thanks
 
I played my first anderson,a Cobra, sometime around 2003 or 2004. I immediately fell in love with the neck and unplugged sound of the guitar. At the time I thought a guitar that expensive was a pipe dream, but a close friend back in 08 actually purchased one for me. I've had my Hollow Cobra S since 08 and its as ridiculously awesome today as it was then. Its the tone in my head and the feel my hands look for when I play. I've played a few Suhrs over recent years and they are stellar pieces of work as well. I don't know one, however.

Fit and finish, design and execution, build quality, wood quality, electronics.. Its really hard to fault either one of these companies. They're a couple of companies who do it right from beginning to end. I've spoken to both Roy and Tom with questions regarding my build at the time and a couple of times since then. They were always very welcoming to (what I felt were) even the most basic of questions and never gave the impression that they didn't have the time or didn't appreciate the call.

I don't believe you can go wrong either way. I'll give a nod to Anderson simply because I own it and love it. From a question of tone, Their pickups are fantastic. If you specified what you were after they could help build the perfect axe for you. I have no doubt Suhr could do the same.
 
Good points above. I'll just add that I bought my Suhr and Anderson used on eBay for less than $2000 a piece. Didn't think I would find an Anderson for that price, but I did. I figured that way I could resell it if I didn't like it for close to what I paid. I would love to custom order a guitar from either company, but I can't afford it, and the resale value would be far less than buying used. Just something to think about.

Also, all Tom Andersons use buzz feiten tuning system. Suhr stopped using it after 2007 I believe.
 
I agree, you can find some steals at used prices from time to time. If you're not super picky, or luck out to find exactly what you want then its a no brainier, IMO.

I'm hoping I can find a bulldog for a reasonable price in a few years.. I want a PRS single cut, but those bulldogs are something special. Evans music city has had a blue one and a yellow T style for a little while that I can't help but lust over when I swing by.


Not sure where you're located, but if you happen to live within range if a dealer, they generally know their stuff about these companies. I know Anderson requires a dedicated sales guy who knows how to answer questions and give legitimate information. I'd be surprised if Suhr doesn't treat their gateway to the customer base the same way.


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You can't go wrong with either!

When I was initially looking for my 40th birthday present for me (I do buy myself the best gifts), I shopped around and picked up a lot of guitars. I was initially thinking PRS but then it came down to Anderson and Suhr in the end. I just love the feel of a strat style guitar.

The quality out of the Suhr's and Anderson's REALLY surprised me. I had played some good guitars in my time and simply was amazed how nice the quality was. I just didn't realize it got that good. The neck is incredible. The fretwork is the best I have played.

In the end I went with a Suhr. I'm sure I would have been equally satisfied with the Anderson. I just happened to like the balance and weight of the Suhr I picked up better. Purely personal preference. Both guitar manufacturers IMO were of equal quality. Best guitars I ever played.

Own two Suhr's now. An S4 and a Classic.

Would love to get my hands on an Anderson. Or another Suhr ;-)
 
Another thing. Anderson guitars all have stainless steel frets. My Suhr does too, but not all of them do. I don't think I'll ever buy an expensive electric guitar without stainless steel frets in the future if I can help it. Both guitars play just as well and cleanly as the day I got them. Since the frets stay perfect and the necks are very precise, the action and playability is really nice, and the setup has not needed to be adjusted except to compensate for string gauge changes. My nickel fretted guitars show fret wear within a year, so this has been a really nice feature for me so far.
 
I've got 3 Anderson's and recently picked up a Suhr carve top modern. They're both great guitars. I think the Andy's have a more traditional feel (at least more traditional than the modern) and the necks are super comfortable. The quality of both companies is superb. The Tom Anderson forum is a great resource. The folks are awesome and Tom is on regularly answering questions. His response to his customers reminds me of Cliff's which is no small praise (although I'm still waiting for my first "guitar update" :). My new Suhr is top notch. The neck is really fast, it sounds great, and the top is drop dead gorgeous. Go play them both and pick which you like best. I think you'll be extremely happy either way!
 
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Only andy experience here, have had as many as 5 at one time... ended up ordering on with all the best things I liked from each and then down to 2. Would like more but I'm not rich. Top quality materials, everything feels great, plays great, sounds great.. cant say enough. I even went to his factory and spent the day and he took me to lunch.. was an overall great experience, and he's a great guy, so are the other people that work there.

Tom builds what he thinks is cool or likes personally, so he's somewhat limited the line, but I'm just glad he likes the same stuff I do :)
 
I played a couple andersons but just didn't hit me. I never tried a suhr until 2 years ago. I took a small gamble and bought a Modern online from Dan at Rocket Music. It has an elliptical neck which took a little getting used to but now I prefer this neck to my charvels and jacksons. The body is also asymmetrical and felt more natural to me immediately. I now have a few Suhrs with different wood/specs. Each with its own magic!

Know who you're buying from, return policy etc, try it first(I couldn't find a place close enough to try) if you can, know the specs. I've seen pictures of both of John and Tom together, they are both 1st class acts and customer service to go along with it.

Good luck! And show some pics when you get yours whatever you choose. Can never have enough guitar-eye candy to look at. ;)
 
I blame this thread for the fact that I have been looking at Anderson guitars all over the web since last night. Started giving my Les Paul Standard and ESP the stink eye thinking about putting them up for sale to fund one.

I still love my tube amps. But the majority of GAS I get now is over guitars since I started using Fractal.

This is the one that has really caught my eye.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/121284099095?lpid=82
 
Cool Pic of the Tom Anderson (holding a Suhr) and John Suhr (holding and Anderson)

A2895653.jpg
 
sarge said:
Cool Pic of the Tom Anderson (holding a Suhr) and John Suhr (holding and Anderson)

A2895653.jpg
Click to expand...

Love it! When you’re at the top of your game, as both these guys undoubtedly are, there’s almost never any need to fear the competition but celebrate each others accomplishments and different styles.

Just bought myself a Suhr, I thought that my next guitar would be a PRS but now I’m thinking that one of those Tom Anderson Cobra’s look really sweet :)
 
Did you guy's order one online?

I've never purchased a guitar without playing it first.

I'm looking at one on ebay ( Suhr/Anderson dealer)..., seems a bit odd to spend 4k without playing it first.
 
Suhr modern pro in my hands for last two months. Perfect guitar for me. Gotoh Floyd Rose work like dream and you can play anything from jazz to metal.
 
suhrs are nice. I got a modern from Rocket and it's good for certain things, but I could do with out it. It's well built and plays nice but I realized I'm more of a vintage guy. I have a sadowsky, melancon, prs DGT, fender strat and a carvin that get more play than the suhr. I got on a stainless frets kick for awhile until a neck got a little twist in it. I realize now that I need to level those frets that the stainless just might be more of a pain in the ass than I bargained for. I won't go out of my way for stainless anymore, as I'll likely be doing the levelling. Don't know about Andersons, but I was looking for one a while back and after researching it on the web it seemed to me they were more modern sounding, sort of like the Suhr I have, so I forgot about it. I know suhr is very good and think Andersons are also, so you'd be getting a really nice guitar, but after you get it you may be surprised it's not all you thought it would be. Like Marks Tone said, better to play it first. I pretty much only get guitars that have a return policy, unless they just seem like a killer deal. You pay more for the return policy, but I think you get what you pay for.
 
Mark's Tone said:
Did you guy's order one online?

I've never purchased a guitar without playing it first.

I'm looking at one on ebay ( Suhr/Anderson dealer)..., seems a bit odd to spend 4k without playing it first.
Click to expand...

I definitely played a Suhr first, then ordered to have the model I tried made.

You want to atleast try the same model guitar before spending that kind of cash.
 
And for that much coin id point out it is worth traveling, if able.

I'm lucky enough to have a dealer 30 minutes away in downtown Houston. Others may not be as fortunate. Coordinate with vacation, work travel.. They're amazing guitars but they aren't for everyone. Let the hands and ears in person decide if possible. Especially buying new/ custom.


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