I am a beginner, and would like to know if this is a good guitar...
It's a Greg Bennett (Samick) Ultramatic.
It's a Greg Bennett (Samick) Ultramatic.
Guitarists....i need your help
- Thread starter Tough As Steel
- Start date
Sunbane
Metalistic Madman
Ok, first I' like to say that I have no experience w. Samick whatsoever. I do own a Vantage (now owned by Samick), but mine is a pre-Samick model.
Second - it's hard to say just by looking at a pic (that probably is touched up) and a list of specs if it's a good guitar or not. Only hands on experience from someone who knows guitars can tell you that.
From what I can see, I can tell you this:
* Fixed bridge - good. As a beginner, the last thing you need to concern yourself with are floating bridges...IMO.
* Grover tuners - should be good. Grover is a brand name, and I _think_ that in terms of quality, they're up there with Schaller and Gotoh.
* They don't mention anything about the pickups. I checked at Samicks web-page too, and it just says "HB" (humbuckers). This probably means that the pickups are crap and that you'll want to replace one or two of them later. The good thing is that with humbuckers, there are a wide range of high-power replacements you can get.
It looks like a guitar you can grow with - but to make sure, you should dig out someone with a bit of knowledge and let him/her play it before you purchase. If that's not an option, try finding reviews on it on the web. Google is a good starting point.
Good luck,
Second - it's hard to say just by looking at a pic (that probably is touched up) and a list of specs if it's a good guitar or not. Only hands on experience from someone who knows guitars can tell you that.
From what I can see, I can tell you this:
* Fixed bridge - good. As a beginner, the last thing you need to concern yourself with are floating bridges...IMO.
* Grover tuners - should be good. Grover is a brand name, and I _think_ that in terms of quality, they're up there with Schaller and Gotoh.
* They don't mention anything about the pickups. I checked at Samicks web-page too, and it just says "HB" (humbuckers). This probably means that the pickups are crap and that you'll want to replace one or two of them later. The good thing is that with humbuckers, there are a wide range of high-power replacements you can get.
It looks like a guitar you can grow with - but to make sure, you should dig out someone with a bit of knowledge and let him/her play it before you purchase. If that's not an option, try finding reviews on it on the web. Google is a good starting point.
Good luck,
xenophobe
Active Member
I've played a few Samicks, ranging from half-assed to really decent quality.
Not bad for a beginner guitar though. I'd agree with Sunbane.
Not bad for a beginner guitar though. I'd agree with Sunbane.
Floyd
Member
FrostGiant
Mr. Pibb > Dr. Pepper
There's basically three types of necks. You got your bolt on which, well, bolts on. You got neck thru, which means that the guitar and the neck are kind of built together, or the guitar is built around the neck (I now what I mean but I don't really know how to explain it). And you got your set neck. This means the neck is glued onto the body instead of bolted.
IMO quality goes as such (best to worst): Neck Thru, Set Neck, Bolt on.
IMO quality goes as such (best to worst): Neck Thru, Set Neck, Bolt on.
Sunbane
Metalistic Madman
Yeah, or at least it seems that bolt-on is the cheapest to produce, so that's probably why many crappy, low-budget guitars are built that way. One benefit with bolt-on necks are that they are easilly replaced if damaged. There are many high quality guitars that are built with bolt-on necks - I think most Fenders have them for instance.
I'd guess that neck-through guitars are more difficult/costly to build, thus they are typically only found on expensive models.
Glued in necks (set neck) can be found on medium to high priced guitars. That this particular model has it is probably a good sign, but I'll stick to the recommendations I mentioned before: Do some research on the guitar to see what other people had to say about it. The drawback with a set neck that goes bad can't be fixed very easilly.
I'd guess that neck-through guitars are more difficult/costly to build, thus they are typically only found on expensive models.
Glued in necks (set neck) can be found on medium to high priced guitars. That this particular model has it is probably a good sign, but I'll stick to the recommendations I mentioned before: Do some research on the guitar to see what other people had to say about it. The drawback with a set neck that goes bad can't be fixed very easilly.
yourdeadgroom
Black Stone Wielder
#1 thing IMHO is how it feels to play, so if at all possible, spend a while in the shop with it. Unless you're ordering it, in which case this is no help at all 
xenophobe
Active Member
Set neck, bolt-on and neck-thru are just different ways to manufacture a guitar.
All three can be found on cheap or expenisve guitars.
It's mainly a preference thing. I prefer neck-thrus personally.
All three can be found on cheap or expenisve guitars.
It's mainly a preference thing. I prefer neck-thrus personally.
KorgX3
Redneck
Yeesh.
I started playing guitar on a submodel of a freaking Harmony guitar called the Discovery. Cripes. As if Harmony wasn't bad enough.
I started playing bass on a Harmony.
I started playing keys seriously on a Casio with tinykeys.
I dunno. I'd kind of recommend for anyone to start of with a piece of shit instrument because, once you get ahold of a piece of shit, playing a decent instrument is like....
I started playing guitar on a submodel of a freaking Harmony guitar called the Discovery. Cripes. As if Harmony wasn't bad enough.
I started playing bass on a Harmony.
I started playing keys seriously on a Casio with tinykeys.
I dunno. I'd kind of recommend for anyone to start of with a piece of shit instrument because, once you get ahold of a piece of shit, playing a decent instrument is like...
.
Sunbane
Metalistic Madman
My first:
A Hohner strat-clone. Plywood body. 3 singlecoil pickups. A non-locking tremolo. Overall crappy sound. Constant tuning hassles (just looking at the bridge would make it go out of tune).uke:
Damn strats. I love it when they burn 'em onstage. 
A Hohner strat-clone. Plywood body. 3 singlecoil pickups. A non-locking tremolo. Overall crappy sound. Constant tuning hassles (just looking at the bridge would make it go out of tune).
uke:Damn strats. I love it when they burn 'em onstage.
