Cheap, but not nasty

Matt_McG

Mine is and older Korean made one, not tried the recent Indonesian ones to compare.

roberty

stimpsonslostson said:

MagicPigDetective said:

Really enjoying my Vintage V100 Lemon Drop. It’s so playable. I’ve played the tribute Les Pauls in stores and there doesn’t seem much of a difference in terms of playing. It’s heavy though, with a lot of sustain, the wilkinson pickups sound great.  

https://i.imgur.com/GVeAhbk.jpg

I had one of those. Sounded & looked great, but the neck was too thin for me... And it weighed about the same as I do! 

I have a V100 as a backup, with dimarzio pickups fitted. I'm sure if I took it to rehearsal in place of my R8 no one would know the difference. The only thing I find is that some guitars seem to sound clearer without turning up the volume so much. These tend to be the posher ones but that is by no means a rule

skullfunkerry

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I'm just going to give another shoutout to my Squier Contemporary Active Strat: It was about £400 new from Peach, they're about £350 now so second hand would be about £30 I expect... the active pickups are really good, the fit and finish is excellent, and the neck is just as nice as my Charvel, which was twice the price.

RustySpanner

Until recently a black Squier Tele Custom II bought new from Johnny Roadhouse has been my only electric guitar. 

I like it very much indeed and it just keeps going.
It sounds wonderful and feels fine to me. 
Having P90's the sound is quite versatile and despite playing lots of much more expensive guitars, the only one that's ever  tempted me to buy new is a PRS SE Standard 24. 

Compared to my wife's recently purchased MIJ Paisley Tele, it's obviously a budget instrument, but I suspect it's better than I'll ever be. 

I recently bought a slightly battered Vintage VS6 to see if I get on with a shorter scale and humbuckers. 
Sounds excellent, but it's taking a bit of getting used to and we've not bonded yet. 
I should have a definitive answer in about 10 years. 

I play them both through a cheap Fender Champion 600 or a Vox AD50VT when a bit more oomph is required. 
I much prefer the sound of the little Fender, tbh.....

Kittyfrisk

TheMarlin said:

I’ve played a lot of cheap guitars over the years, most were rubbish, some good, some great...such as Classic Vibe teles. 

A few have really floated my boat though.  Right now, I’m playing through @dazzajl’s Supro Belmont that he picked up very lightly used for £250, and it’s a lovely thing. Sounds great, loads of fun to play, very engaging. 

I’ve tried to cajole and guilt-trip him into selling it to me, but no joy.  So keeping an eye on eBay. 
I also miss my old butterscotch Classic Vibe Tele. I did try to buy it back, but the buyer striped it for parts, and sold on the bits he didn’t need.  Found that kind of heartbreaking....

What cheapies are you lot enjoying at the moment?

ps. By cheapie, I mean around £250 used, or less. 

Possibly a dumb question (my favourite type) but do you mean around £250 now/today, or does that apply to any guitars bought for that figure at any time?
I only ask as I have a personal buying 'rule/quirk' that I adhere to, in that I have never spent more than £300 on any guitar that I have ever bought.

TheMarlin

Kittyfrisk said:

TheMarlin said:

I’ve played a lot of cheap guitars over the years, most were rubbish, some good, some great...such as Classic Vibe teles. 

A few have really floated my boat though.  Right now, I’m playing through @dazzajl’s Supro Belmont that he picked up very lightly used for £250, and it’s a lovely thing. Sounds great, loads of fun to play, very engaging. 

I’ve tried to cajole and guilt-trip him into selling it to me, but no joy.  So keeping an eye on eBay. 
I also miss my old butterscotch Classic Vibe Tele. I did try to buy it back, but the buyer striped it for parts, and sold on the bits he didn’t need.  Found that kind of heartbreaking....

What cheapies are you lot enjoying at the moment?

ps. By cheapie, I mean around £250 used, or less. 

Possibly a dumb question (my favourite type) but do you mean around £250 now/today, or does that apply to any guitars bought for that figure at any time?
I only ask as I have a personal buying 'rule/quirk' that I adhere to, in that I have never spent more than £300 on any guitar that I have ever bought.

Anytime. No rules here, more of a suggestion

Kittyfrisk

Thanks for the clarity, saves grief later on when I get told 'that breaks the rules'   

Kittyfrisk

Two Gibson 'The Paul's, Epi Spotlight, custom partscaster, mahogany 1 piece body Bare Knuckles.
Can't really dig any others out at present but there are quite a few.

steer

I picked up a used Fender Modern Player Jaguar last year for under £200. 2 x p90's, hardtail. So some purists might not like it, but it is absolutely awesome.

We are spoilt for choice and for £ 200 you don't even have to put up with a budget brand name on the headstock.  

Mine is like this but with the odd dent:-

vonLayzonfon

One of my favourite guitars is a Vintage VH51 (Peavey Wolfgang copy) that I picked up for £40 on eBay. The chunky neck is a refreshing change from my usual Ibanezez and the Wilkinson pickups are, as previously noted, excellent. 

Kittyfrisk

1970's -ish Maya LP. 

ESBlonde

You need to try a few, but the first flush of improved/serious japanese guitars from late 70s early 80s are often very well made and play to a high standard. The Knock off Tele and strats can be nice but have a following now and prices to match. Anything Matsumoko made tends to be reasonable as an instrument so Greco, Aria, Westone, some washburns, Ibanez, some yamahas etc.

Go play a few and pick something you like.

Sassafras

I would feel sullied if I had to play a guitar that didn't cost at least £2k.

Having said that, my favourite cheap guitar is this thing:



Vintage AV-2.
Cost me about a £110.

TheMarlin

Vintage have made some great guitars.  I remember when I first joined here, most people were slamming Vintage LP's.

Nowadays, they're held in higher regard.  My friend has a lemon drop, and it's quite a lovely LP.  Nothing wring with it.  The same guy hates Gibson LP Traditionals because of how the bridge posts are anchored, so you can't please all the people all the time.

I've also really liked the Vintage V52 tele, was rather lovely, and most of the Vintage 'Icon' series.  Their Thomas Blug stat was fantastic.

Tenebrous

Sassafras said:

I would feel sullied if I had to play a guitar that didn't cost at least £2k.

Having said that, my favourite cheap guitar is this thing:



Vintage AV-2.
Cost me about a £110.

That's actually a really lovely looking guitar, besides from perhaps the questionable knob placements. If I saw one for £110, I'd be crazy tempted.

TheMarlin

I'm guessing the bottom most knob is a blend, same as in some of the fret King, and Reverend models.  Blends in another coil so you can go from single, to P90 tones, through to humbucker. 

Kittyfrisk

TheMarlin said:

Vintage have made some great guitars.  I remember when I first joined here, most people were slamming Vintage LP's.

Nowadays, they're held in higher regard.  My friend has a lemon drop, and it's quite a lovely LP.  Nothing wring with it.  The same guy hates Gibson LP Traditionals because of how the bridge posts are anchored, so you can't please all the people all the time.

I've also really liked the Vintage V52 tele, was rather lovely, and most of the Vintage 'Icon' series.  Their Thomas Blug stat was fantastic.

I agree with you about the lemon drop... apart from the truly woeful attempt at 'relicing'. My heart sinks every time I see it, but then again, it sounds lovely, if a bit of a boat anchor.

mbe

Tenebrous said:

Sassafras said:

I would feel sullied if I had to play a guitar that didn't cost at least £2k.

Having said that, my favourite cheap guitar is this thing:



Vintage AV-2.
Cost me about a £110.

That's actually a really lovely looking guitar, besides from perhaps the questionable knob placements. If I saw one for £110, I'd be crazy tempted.

He who questions a man's knob placement must be prepared to have his own knobs criticised.

Kittyfrisk

mbe said:

Tenebrous said:

Sassafras said:

I would feel sullied if I had to play a guitar that didn't cost at least £2k.

Having said that, my favourite cheap guitar is this thing:



Vintage AV-2.
Cost me about a £110.

That's actually a really lovely looking guitar, besides from perhaps the questionable knob placements. If I saw one for £110, I'd be crazy tempted.

He who questions a man's knob placement must be prepared to have his own knobs criticised.

Confucius? 

Tenebrous

mbe said:

Tenebrous said:

Sassafras said:

I would feel sullied if I had to play a guitar that didn't cost at least £2k.

Having said that, my favourite cheap guitar is this thing:



Vintage AV-2.
Cost me about a £110.

That's actually a really lovely looking guitar, besides from perhaps the questionable knob placements. If I saw one for £110, I'd be crazy tempted.

He who questions a man's knob placement must be prepared to have his own knobs criticised.

Oh god, I'm having flashbacks to unfortunate teenage incidents.