Is your no 1 guitar your easiest to play?

axisus

Every time I pick up my Parker Fly, I am astounded by the ease of playing. mega low action, super smooth slinky SS frets. It really is a peach to play, but ....... I never pick it up! The only reason I ever pick it up to be honest is the fact that son no:1 likes it and keeps leaving it out (Grrr!). My no 1 guitar is heavier by a long shot and definitely takes a bit more effort, but it is firmly no1.

Do you go for the ease of playability or prefer something different?

Fretwired

My go to guitar is my 2007 bog standard Fender US Stratocaster .. nice rolled neck and easy to play.

Here she is ...

meltedbuzzbox

I tend to pick up my 7.25" neck guitars which are generally deemed more difficult to play (string bends etc)

The action is a little higher but its not high by any means.

I generally struggle the most with my les paul, it is dead easy to play but for some reason the flatter radius keeps catching me out If that makes sense?

digitalscream

Yep - my Jaden Rose S2, followed closely by my Washburn N4.

Those are really the only guitars I have, and it's no coincidence

richardhomer

I have a couple of acoustics strung with 13s (one has a 23.5" scale length and is tuned to concert, the other is a D28 tuned down a full tone). Both of these require a fair degree of strength.

After playing either of these any electric seems easy to play.

That said, my electrics are all pretty playable. Apart from my 'slide' Strat, they are set up with fairly low actions and none is strung with anything heavier than 10s.

Stevepage

My Prs, yeah. It's why I fell in love with it when I first played in the shop I bought it from.

meltedbuzzbox

I have 11s on all my guitars. I think you just get used to a heavier gauge.

Acoustics do always seem to retain a degree of stiffness that electrics dont.

Maybe due to the material used for the string?? (a guess on my behalf) 

mike_l

Most played, Jackson, Charvel, Ibanez

Slightly less played, ESP, Strat.

Only because the more played guitars are sat on the front stands.

57Deluxe

The guitar that makes me drawl at the thought and sight of it is my Cherry ES 335, but although it plays well and sounds epic, I will most likely pick up my PRS Spaopbar as it is the easiest to play and will dial ANY tone required easily. Hell it even sounds good unplugged.

I get guilty no longer lavishing all my attention on my 73 Strat - but it has had the lion's share of it since i got it as a teen! My Yamaha SG2000s has always been just too powerful for home practice playing and as such invokes similar feelings of guilt...

http://i232.photobucket.com/albums/ee301/snotmale/Things that make you go Ding/SEllcustom.jpg

GuyBoden

For what it's worth, an easier to play lower action doesn't sound best, a higher action that is still playable has better tone.

Gagaryn

My easiest guitar to play by a long way is my '79 ES-347 - action is very low and it has the old style flat frets and an ebony board. Superfluous photo below. Lately I think I've been playing my tele more though.

Zodiac51

^ My Parker midi-fly is by a country-mile the easiest, most comfortable guitar to play. An absolute joy.

But ditto - It's not the guitar I play most often, both the PRS's are.

Grunfeld

Easiest to play:

Ibanez RG 1570



Most gigged since I got it cos it looks great and sounds great, and even though it's nowhere as easy to play as the RG I feel very "right" with it.

Jazzmaster

ThePrettyDamned

GuyBoden;272385" said:

For what it's worth, an easier to play lower action doesn't sound best, a higher action that is still playable has better tone.

Depends what you want. Don't gibbons use a super low action with light strings?

Not a 'big' sound, but a good one. I like it anyway.

I like 10-52 tuned to flats. Currently taking my jazzmaster apart to rewire, so I only have one playable guitar.

MattG

I actually have 2 go to guitars my PRS SC245 is the guitar i play the most and is the guitar i'm best with however my Tele is built like a tank and versatile as hell (stacked humbucker in the bridge with coiltap and 4way switching plus a kill switch) also being a second hand mexican it is dirt cheap and a little damaged so it get used alot as it just gets left out and is taken to rehaersals when i dont want to take the PRS

Majorscale

My #1 favourite is a Collings City Limits, but it's not the easiest to play. That award goes to a Music Man LIII. 

The LIII while very nice cannot compete with a Collings on a tone/construction/looks basis but it is a lot less strenuous to play.

Gassage

Not quite the easiest to play, but a flat fretboard, lovely thick deep neck with loads of flame and the best seperation I've ever had on my guitars....SSL1C and 2 red dot CS pups.....

1996 Custom Shop Cunetto finished, masterbuilt by J. Black.

ICBM

meltedbuzzbox said:

I have 11s on all my guitars.

Same here! That really surprises me, I've never come across anyone else who does this apart from us two now.

meltedbuzzbox said:

I think you just get used to a heavier gauge.

Yes, although they're considered 'wimpy' on an acoustic .

meltedbuzzbox said:

Acoustics do always seem to retain a degree of stiffness that electrics dont.

Maybe due to the material used for the string?? (a guess on my behalf) 

I think the stiffness of the acoustics is down to the slightly higher action and the gauges not actually being the same - only the 11 top E is, all the others are slightly heavier in the acoustic sets. (11-15-22W-32-42-52 vs. 11-14-18P/20W-28-38-49)

My favourite guitar sound-wise is not my easiest to play, but my favourite to play is the easiest… if that makes sense!

Lixarto

ICBM said:

meltedbuzzbox said:

I have 11s on all my guitars.

Same here! That really surprises me, I've never come across anyone else who does this apart from us two now.

He's not around these parts lately, but Goji would regard those strings as unnecessarily light

Dave_Mc

I don't have a #1. It's the same when people ask me what my favourite band is, or my favourite film, or whatever. I don't have to choose, so why would I? ) It depends on how I'm feeling at that particular moment, too, so even if I did try to think up what I liked best just then, it'd be liable to change anyway.

xSkarloey

I'd class my 62 RI Strat as my main guitar, and yes it's the most effortless to play in terms of lowest action. The neck radius is different and if I go to it straight after playing a guitar with a flatter board I have to readjust slightly but that's no big deal.