Please inform me about guitars, humans!

My friend plays an ESP Horizon. Its probably the nicest guitar I've ever played. Of course, its also a $2200 custom model too.
 
Guru too lazy to log in said:
OK ignore most of what mike said .... lol Sorry dude :p

Seriously go and play some guitars, feel them, hold them, caress ..... no forget that last one.

See what feels comfortable to play anf buy that, Believe me any decent guitarist can make anything sound good. Its possible.

Most important is PRACTICE and stick with it. Just cause you cant play a loomis solo after a year doesnt mean you suck!!!

Jeffs playing over 20 years, Start with the easy stuff, Classic Metallica, Guns & Roses, start there and work your way up.

As far as the gear get something YOU LIKE !!! Dont get a guitar without a floyd rose cause Mike said they were gay. Mike IS gay so he shouldnt talk ... ha ha ha

Hell i can think of 5 of the guitar greats right off the top of my head that used guitars with floyd roses, and i dare anyone here to play as good as them.

Vai, Satriani, Petrucci, Becker, Friedman, Van Halen.... there ya go 5 awsome shredders who all used Floyd's or Floyd tupe trems now or at some point.

Go with you gut not what your friends tell you is cool.

Actually, I have to agree with Mike about the Floyd, making your first guitar one with a Floyd is a very bad idea, because they are a pain in the ass until you learn how to properly set one up, something you can't expect a person new to the guitar to be able to begin to grasp.
DO NOT GET A TREMOLO ON YOUR FIRST GUITAR, ESPECIALLY A FLOYD, you will most likely fuck your action and intonation up, changing strings will be very difficult for a while, changing your tuning will require a lot of work, and you will most likely have to spend more money having someone set it up after you render it implayable. Chances are, you'd end up playing less due to problems caused by not nowing how to set up the Floyd.
Get something with a fixed bridge, you'll thank yourself later.

I wouldn't suggest dumping a whole lot of cash into your first guitar, most people quit when they realize how much work it is. Dumping a lot of money into your first would be foolish IMO, and you probbaly won't have the playing skills to justify an expensive guitar for a decent while. You should be able to get a very good basic (basic as in without crap you don't need, not basic as in crippled) learner guitar for around $300 or so, sometimes less, just make sure you discuss your purchase with someone who knows guitars. Here's an excellent example of what a great beginner guitar would be: http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Ibanez-RG321-Electric-Guitar?sku=512492

It's got a fixed bridge, a 24 fret neck, dual humbuckers (something you're definitely going to want for any kind of heavy music), a simple electronics configuaration (something that you'll apreciate when you go to change pickups down the line), a mahogany body (which is a great sounding tonewood, a lot of cheaper guitars skimp out on good body woods), and a beginner-friendly neck (Ibanez necks are thin).
No bullshit, good woods, clean looks, and easily upgradeable for $279, and there's a good chance you've got a music store in the area who would have one in stock to try out.
 
retarded penguin said:
Mike>> fuck that attitude. fact is, if I want to be great at guitar, I will be. why drop a fair fraction of a grand, get good, then go over a grand? dumb moves, friend.

Not a dumb move at all. You don't have to have an expensive guitar to be great at it and have it sound great. Beyond skills (which are going to take a while), all you need to sound great is a good setup (something a simple guitar without a goddamn tremolo will facilitate easily), good woods, and at least a good bridge pickup. If you stick with it and get good, buy a higher tier guitar in a couple of years, you will feel more like you have earned it (as opposed to jumping into an expensive instrument like a spoiled rich kid), and if you bought a solid starter (and upgrade it with good pickups), you'll have an excellent backup you can use for alternate tunings or something. Also, learning about setups and modifications is better on a cheaper guitar (like the one I linked you to, not a Wal-Mart guitar) because you aren't risking something very expensive, and when you move onto the next tier you will have the understanding experience brings.
 
mpigott said:
Floyds are awsome once you figure them out..All you need is for someone to teach you how to work with a floyd and then its just about as easy as stringing a fixed bridge guitar, with the perks of a whammy bar, and youre strings wont go out of tune with hard bending. Im not taking the piss out of fixed bridge guitars, im just all for equal opertunity axe purchase....and as for shredding.....comeon everyone secretly wants to

They have their uses, but I don't think any sane person would suggest a Floyd to a starting guitarist. Learning how to set them up is something better suited to a person who is already experienced with the guitar.
 
NeonBlack69 said:
Agreed. Go for a wilkinson trem with sperzel locking tuners.

For a grand and change I would get a used carvin BOLT-T and a used Peavey 5150 combo. That's enough to set the world afire!

Locking tunes + a fixed bridge = the fastest string changes you could imagine. I have this setup on my main guitar, I love it.
 
retarded penguin said:
sorry Loner, but my theories and machinations extend beyond your path
I'm not quite sure what the hell that means, but if you want to go and dump a lot of money on something you might not stick with, go ahead. Just save yourself the frustration of a Floyd rose tremolo- get a fixed bridge guitar. Schecter makes a lot of good stuff around the $500-$800 range, I like this one in particular: http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Schecter-C1-Hellraiser-Electric-Guitar?sku=513105.
That one's already got good pickups and hardware, definitely a solid guitar that looks great. If you're intending on jumping straight into a US made guitar upwards of $1500, you're a fucking idiot.
Keep in mind that even a great guitar will sound like ass through a shitty amp, so I hope you're prepared to shell out for a good amp as well as your guitar.
 
john cobbett and mike scalzi of Hammers of Misfortune use them *shrug*

and they play with a very natural, great sound

I honestly was hoping someone would know the difference between ibanez, strats, esps, jacksons, etc...

the focus, or whatever

by all means, though, narrot! endorse esp away! I would read it very well.

edit: also, Loner reccomended one for a beginner, and he seems knowledgable
 
retarded penguin said:
john cobbett and mike scalzi of Hammers of Misfortune use them *shrug*

and they play with a very natural, great sound

I honestly was hoping someone would know the difference between ibanez, strats, esps, jacksons, etc...

the focus, or whatever

by all means, though, narrot! endorse esp away! I would read it very well.

edit: also, Loner reccomended one for a beginner, and he seems knowledgable

The sound trypically associated with Gibson comes from the woods used (mahogany body & neck, maple cap for a Les Paul), the fixed bridge, and the construction type (set neck vs. bolt on). A guitar like the Schecter Hellraiser I linked you to will sound like a Les Paul with active EMG's would, and it's a MUCH better value as far as the price to hardware ratio goes (the tone pros bridge, grover tuners, and EMG 81's are a definite upgrade to a stock LP standard, IMO). That Schecter is an import, but in recent years a lot of imports have gotten fucking good, and I believe the Schecters are one of them. The hellraiser is a damn good mid level guitar, definiely not something I'd have a problem using onstage (I almost bought one last year) after 8 years of playing. If you want to bypass the entry-level, I'd give it my endorsement, especially since you're interested in the "Gibson sound". Besides, Gibson's quality control has earned itself a poor reputation in recent years anyways.
If you have any specific questions, fire away.
 
Schecter's are fantastic, I have the c-1 classic and absolutely love it. The quality per dollar that Schecter has makes them very worthwhile.

I'm not too familiar with ESPs or Jacksons these days, so I have no idea how the quality of their products are currently.

Ibanez has definitely gone downhill over the past years, and I wouldn't want to invest in anything now other than their higher line models.

Every PRS I've played has played BEAUTIFULLY, but they're unfortunately much pricier.

As far as a starting guitar, I really see no reason to spend over $1000, but of course stay away from the cheap "beginner" models. You could spend $600+ (USD) and still get something amazing.
 
Schecter are the best bang for the buck as i said in my 1st post, Plus they are easily upgradeable as loner said ...

One of the C Seriese is the way to go in my opinion.