I need some advice on guitars/pickups

[AmirH]

Right now I play an epiphone sg. It's a cheap chinese copy, and it sounds the part. Everything good about the tone I get comes from my Vamp(my marshall when not recording) and no matter how I tweak it, it sounds cheap in the end. I do however, like the neck/action well enough- especially for slides and the body has been fucking bulletproof for the last four years. In that respect, I like it.

I really want to improve my tone however, and I honestly don't really know whether new pickups would completely fix the problem(wood plays a part too right?). I have a friend who works at guitar center who says he can meet me a little under halfway from cost and price. Example- an american les paul would set me back about 800 bucks give or take. If I buy a new guitar, I would want a wider, slightly thinner neck. My guitar has always felt small, especially since I started on bass. However, before everyone starts screaming "jackson!!" you should also know that I NEED tonal versatility. I can't buy a guitar meant only for metal unless I get the sg fixed up enough to sound good playing bluesy clean parts. I also can't afford anything over 7-800 dollars, so something as flashy as PRS is out of the question. SOOO... if anyone wants to recommend a guitar they think would fit me, and a good pair of pickups(if it will help) for the sg it would be greatly appreciated!

 

[drowssap]

With the PRS they do have affordable models. I think the Tremonti SE is in the 600 range. They also have ( I think) a Santana SE model that is reasonable. I have an SG like yours that collects dust right now. I went from an Ibanez to my PRS and what a difference. Sometimes that thing playes itself, and that's a good thing with me because I'm not really that good. I don't think I will ever play another guitar, with the exception of my Fender acoustic, which I do enjoy.

 

[Leper_/-\ffinity]

Well, Im gonna say go with a high end Schecter for that price...they are like a cheaper version of PRS, and are great for metal and all else...though there is nothing like a Jackson to shred up some metal...In terms of pickups, I suggest the 59 or a JAZZ for the neck (Seymour Duncans), and a Custom or a JB for the bridge. I play a Korean LP Custom by Epiphone in my school's jazz band with the Custom/59 combo and it sounds great.

 

[Indiooo]

Get yourself a used american or jap strat and throw a humbucker in there. Nothing beats a strat for versatility. You get the rock/metal tones, and then all the bluesy stuff (and more). Strat necks are usually thin and confortable. An even better option is to order from Warmoth and put together a guitar up to your specs.

 

[Leper_/-\ffinity]

I just fitted my Jackson RR with a JB in the bridge, and man, this has got to be one of my favorite pickups ever. Very balanced tone, great for metal, with a very good jazz tone when played clean, and the best thing about it is that it doesn't get all muddy at all, all notes cut through real nicely when playing 6 string chords under good distortion (which is important for me). Gonna try to get a jazz in the neck now sometime before christmas.

 

[AmirH]

I just fitted my Jackson RR with a JB in the bridge, and man, this has got to be one of my favorite pickups ever. Very balanced tone, great for metal, with a very good jazz tone when played clean, and the best thing about it is that it doesn't get all muddy at all, all notes cut through real nicely when playing 6 string chords under good distortion (which is important for me). Gonna try to get a jazz in the neck now sometime before christmas.

Yeah, I was actually thinking of doing something like this. Everyone seems to think Jackson has THE best neck you can ask for, so putting Duncans in one seems like a good idea. Best of all, I could take the emgs that come with it and put it in the epiphone hitting two birds with one stone. Hmm...

 

[Leper_/-\ffinity]

As far as I know you won't get real EMG's from a Jackson RR unless you buy a custom shop RR1, which is muy expensivo, but maybe you're talking about the Dinkys or the Soloists etc, in that case, they have EMG HZ's which suck quite a bit.

 

[AmirH]

As far as I know you won't get real EMG's from a Jackson RR unless you buy a custom shop RR1, which is muy expensivo, but maybe you're talking about the Dinkys or the Soloists etc, in that case, they have EMG HZ's which suck quite a bit.

Interesting... Does that mean the "sweet tone" archtop has shitty duncans as well? Because that's another option... I'd hate to buy a new guitar and still have to swap the pickups...

 

[WarHead]

Interesting... Does that mean the "sweet tone" archtop has shitty duncans as well? Because that's another option... I'd hate to buy a new guitar and still have to swap the pickups...[/QUOTE]


Welcome to my hell....:zombie: Getting pickups fitted into your guitar is fucking annoying considering it takes about a month or so to order them.

It will be worth it in the long run though.

 

[Blinded By Fear]

I have EMGs,81 and 85 and I would reccomend it to anyone wanting a good metal sound(and lead tone)

 

[AmirH]

With the PRS they do have affordable models. I think the Tremonti SE is in the 600 range. They also have ( I think) a Santana SE model that is reasonable. I have an SG like yours that collects dust right now. I went from an Ibanez to my PRS and what a difference. Sometimes that thing playes itself, and that's a good thing with me because I'm not really that good. I don't think I will ever play another guitar, with the exception of my Fender acoustic, which I do enjoy.

I meant to ask- which model PRS do you play?

 

[drowssap]

I have a McCarty ten-top in tobacco sunburst. I am left-handed, so obviously, I am limited. PRS is not making any more left-hand models, period. It makes me mad because there a left handers out there. I wanted a custom 24, but they never made them left-handed. They did a custom 22. I got the McCarty from sweetwater. They called a dealer in Colorado, got it shipped to them in Indiana, then sent it to me in MA. Took a while to track one down, about a month or so. I love it. What a nice guitar. The sustain is sweet. You can go have a sandwich, and it's still going. I would post a pic, but I have no clue how!

 

[AmirH]

WOW. That good sir, is well beyond my budget. Maybe in a few years though, hehe. Somehow I can't imagine myself buying prs, and going for the cheaper model. Seems like a better idea to just get a cheaper brand. For now Jackson and Schecter seem to be good options provided I swap the pickups.