Official buying advice thread

DONT buy a cheap guitar. there is no resale value and you can come across all sorts of problems.

i totally reccomend ibanez (as usual). quality gear for a good price
~gR~
 
:puke:

Those things are sorta retarded. Decent for metal I guess...crap for anything else...look sorta cool from a distance, then when you get close they just look stupid. Uncomfortable to hold. Too pointy. Poser guitar. No offence...just, those things seem stupid.

Depends on the type of warlock you get, if you have a cheap one with bc rich pickups, its only good for beginers who like metal. this pickups make some undesirable noises if you dont know how to handle it and sometimes evenif you lay good. There are other warlocks which are way expensive but have great sound and not only for metal. You have to try some to really have a judgment because people some people just go bashing things without even knowing.

And to this guy up, man no offense but you have problems. o_0
 
I think the best thing for you is to go down to your local music store and have a jam on some of the basses there, because at the end of the day its got have the tone, feel and design that YOU feel comfortable with.

Also look up some of the basses and equipment your favortie metal bands use :D Although they tend to be expensive you could consider getting a a cheaper bass from the same brand.
 
Can anyone suggest an overdrive pedal with a strong clear tone, perhaps similar to what Necrophagist uses for their solos? I've been looking around and listening to the demos on musiciansfriend.com and the BOSS OS-2 seems to be the most appealing so far. I don't really know what to look for in a pedal though, because I'm a composition person, not a gear person. The most important thing to me is that the tone be clear, not muddy. My amp is a Spider III 15W, but I may look into something bigger in the future.
 
well, if youre using a line 6, my guess is that every popular stomp box should be in there somewhere.
~gR~
 
Anyone that asks the question "what kind of _ _ _ do I need to play _ _ _ metal" needs to spend $200 on a cheap instrument and see if they can play and stick with it first, then hopefully while doing so they will learn something about music and instruments at the same time. Otherwise the only correct answer could be "why you need a metal bass... obviously"
 
Me to :D Although, my second bass is still pretty cheap XD

Razoredge is right, If your not too picky Pariah a starter pack isn't a bad idea! You can get a bass, amp, case, lead and strap for about £130 (about $250) You can always upgrade later :D
 
AHAHA

Bought a cheap bass and learned to play first.

I know I was just having fun with the origional topic, not you. :heh:
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Yea, so you start out with a cheap bass that you like the looks of and are comfortable playing. Then when you become a local giging metal star and buy a better instrument you have a spare bass.
 
I know about piss all about the bass, but I checked out a couple of local music shops and was looking for something used since I didn't want to spend much. I ended up with a used black Ibanez gsr190 for $150 cash, and although it's probably not that great of a bass I do think it does the job just fine for what I needed. I think it's a waste to buy one of those cheap disposable basses, get something solid that won't exceed your price range.
 
buying cheap gear is a bitter sweet idea. sure youre saving money on somthing you may not like. but alot of people will get discouraged if their bass is constantly falling out of tune and sounds like shit. buying a decent bass from the start will save some of the headaches.
~gR~
 
It depends on finances, if money is tight I would still recommend getting a cheap one, that way if you lose interest or don't have the time it won't be as bad. You can get some fair quality basses with rosewood fret boards at a reasonable price and you can always buy some more appropriate strings.

My second bass was only £180 and I think its a nice bass to play, it doesn't randomly knock its self out of tune drastically, its not too heavy and the fret board is comfortable. However if you only buy a bass, then you have to go out and find a suitable amp, case etc... which is why I think starter packs are good for beginners, after all, thats what they are designed for.

Theres always the second hand route though! Have a look at newspapers, websites and marketplaces.

Of course, if you have money to spare, feel free to buy whatever equipment you want :D and as I said above, see what gear your favorite musicians use.
 
What a great thread.

I'm in the market to buy a new guitar myself. My budget is not high so I'm not expecting some great guitar. I'd like to keep the price around $400

I'm looking for something that'll sound great for (mainly) Doom Metal. My current guitar simply is not cutting it at all for that style.

Thanks!
 
Yes, but you are only capable of doing that if you have the money to spend in the first place.

In my opinion it's better for someone with limited funds to get lower priced equipment first, this way, as I said before, if they dont like it theres not such a high amount of loss but it also means that while they are learning they can save up for new equipment which they know they will use, rather then doing nothing for a year and then buying expensive equipment straight away which they may never gain interest in and don't have much skill on.