New Guitar Time

fuz

fuz

fuz

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Joined
1 Mar 2004
Posts
1,551
Location
Notts
I'm getting a serious case of GAS again (Guitar Acquisition Syndrome ;)) and have up to £1200 to spend on a nice new guitar. I've picked out a few possibles but any suggestions would be great... I've been looking at a few ESP's, Gibsons and even a few Tokai's/Yamaha.

I know that a few on here own or have played Ibanez (GEM/RG series?) guitars, how are they for anything other than shredding/metal?

I already own 2 strats, telecaster, epi 335 and a Goldtop LP (Sold Gibson SG) so something different would be nice. That being said a Les Paul style guitar would still be ok (ESP/LTD do them I think?)
 
Looking at your collection I would say that you now need something different like an Ibanez Jem or PRS and £1200 should be able to get you in that ballpark.
 
Ibanez RGs/Jems are incredibly versatile in terms of pickup selections, they are not just for rock style music.

The necks will be very very different to your current guitars though so if you look into Ibanez i'd suggest trying them out first (as you should do anyway!) to see if you like the neck.

For £1200 i'd look for a used J-Custom on ebay. There's one in the classified section of Jemsite.com for sale at the moment for £1300, it's an RG8670 in translucent blue finish and it's gorgeous (the other guitarist in my band has one and it's a fantastic guitar) here's the link: http://www.jemsite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=45820

At £1300 it's already a steal as they're incredibly hard to get hold of in the UK and that particular model is now discontinued.

Along the Ibanez route still you might like to look at the JS (Joe Satriani) signature guitars too, the JS1000 or JS1200 (same as 1000 just in a CA - Candy Apple red finish) are also great and have a much more of a strat feel in terms of the neck.

/Ibanez advice :p
 
*Jumps in with fanboyism*

Parker Parker Parker Parker Parker Parker Parker Parker Parker!

You know you want to....... ;)

Theres a ex-demo one 'cheap' at Peter Cook's website - http://petercooks.co.uk/index.php but to be honest its an old model and the old style pick ups are just too bright... I have to turn the tone down a bit and I have the more recent model!

Oh and I thought the JS1200 had a different neck pick up, the paf 'joe'? (More mid or something...).
 
Nitefly said:
*Jumps in with fanboyism*

Parker Parker Parker Parker Parker Parker Parker Parker Parker!

You know you want to....... ;)

Theres a ex-demo one 'cheap' at Peter Cook's website - http://petercooks.co.uk/index.php but to be honest its an old model and the old style pick ups are just too bright... I have to turn the tone down a bit and I have the more recent model!

Oh and I thought the JS1200 had a different neck pick up, the paf 'joe'? (More mid or something...).
Click to expand...

Meh, it might do, I know they've introduced a new pup but I thought it was on the JS1000 too, either is good i'm sure.
 
Nitefly said:
Nope, BTB all the way :p

Candy apple indeed.... tsk...
Click to expand...

lol I meant in terms of specs.

I hear you though, I LOVE the burnt trans blue finish, I used to GAS after one of those so much. I haven't seen a JS1200 in the flesh yet but the finish on those is supposed to be something too.

JS1000s are getting really cheap s/hand now, i've seen a good cond. black pearl js1000 go for about £700 and there's a dealer regularly selling JS1200s for £999 or something.
 
I have a Les Paul, a Strat and a JS1000 and the JS is the best guitar I have ever played. Its got awesome pickups, is light and is perfectly tuned to Joe Satriani's needs (which is good cos I play most of his stuff!)
 
Cheers for the advice guys, I think something like an Ibanez is the way to go, as I need to expand my musical horizons anyway. I have played a few and the neck is something that I will have to get used to, since i've always liked the big chunky C profile necks that 60s strats give. As for the finish, i've always had a soft spot for some good quality quilted maple ;)

About the parker; I tried a few flys when they first came out and was impressed by the sound, however they lack something for me, maybe they were just a little too different.

Will get down to a few stores in Notts next week and get trying out... also i'm guessing i'm looking at second hand PRS's in this price range?

Thanks again.
 
Hi dmpoole, I'm liking that Yamaha, is it an older model? also what year is the 70s strat?

I've seen a JS1000 for a touch over a grand online, i'm guessing that is a standard price for the model?

I only have a poor phone pic of my current guitars

Cheers
 
fuz said:
Hi dmpoole, I'm liking that Yamaha, is it an older model? also what year is the 70s strat?
Click to expand...

The Yamaha is a 70's model and is very heavy but the sound is awesome.
My strat is a 79 but I butchered it to death.

Just got back from watching a pub band who are a blues based trio. The guitarist was brilliant and used a Squire Telecaster all night. Last year I watched a Stevie Ray Vaughan tribute band in the same pub and even though he had two SRV Strats on stands, he still used his £30 Squire Strat that he got 2nd hand.
Sometimes you can really drop on a Squire.
 
fuz said:
I've seen a JS1000 for a touch over a grand online, i'm guessing that is a standard price for the model?
Click to expand...

Is that new? There's a seller on ebay who sells JS1200s and 1000s for £998.99 or something like that and he has a great reputation.

If you look second hand you can get JS1000s quite cheap now (£700ish maybe a bit more if you find one in excellent condition).

Personally i'd go for an older JS1000 with the Lo-pro edge trem as the newer models (Post 2003) have the new Edge-pro design trems which do not feature locking studs which can tend to make some bridges go out of tune a little more than they should.
 
GAK do the JS1000 for £998 and the Candy Apple JS1200 for £1049... think i'll go check out some secondhand ones like you said though.
 
I love my JS1200 to bits but there are a couple of things to be aware of. Firstly while the tone is awesome for lead playing its not that great for rhythm. Secondly, the chrome finish dings VERY easily, and there is nothing more sad than denting/scratching your thousand pound guitar. Lol.
 
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