More newbie advice please :)

BRISTOL86

Hey folks

So I decided I was going to buy an electric guitar around the middle of next year and have already decided that I'm not waiting that long  

I've found a Yamaha Pacifica and Orange Crush 10W amp on Gumtree for £100 which seems like it would be a great choice for a beginner and the price seems good. If I decide I want something a bit better next year then I will probably get back what I paid for it without any dramas. 

But I've also seen this which I really like the look of. Any thoughts on this model? I remember my brother had a sparkly green Tanglewood about 20 years ago, and I had an acoustic of theirs many years ago. Wouldn't be able to play before buying but I've dealt with Rich Tone before and found them great 

http://www.richtonemusic.co.uk/products/tanglewood_tsb_94_mt_honeyburst_2nd_hand-ytanglewood44919.asp

I can't find too much info on these online but looks like they were £400-£500 new so is this a significant upgrade on the Pacifica for another £100?

While I have the ear of experts - as I'm going to be doing a lot of playing through the amp whilst headphones are connected - should I be looking at an investment in a decent pair of headphones rather than a £25 Amazon job? I haven't worn over-ear headphones in about 15 years so would appreciate any steer!

Thanks  

JookyChap

Tanglewood are decent - but I think you may do better for £200 to be honest, I'd look at a Squier or Epiphone, you'll get good guitars from both and more resale when you come to upgrade.

Other than that and it probably sounds daft, but we've had a couple of the ultra cheap Harley Benton guitars turn up in the last couple of weeks and they are really nice. Seem to go sub-£100 second-hand and they play well and sound good too. Might be worth checking out, but really, there are shed loads to choose from that are good in that price range

monoamine

I would say the pacifica and orange are an awesome combination to get started on... and for £100 you are getting a hell of a lot of value

headphone wise, check cnet.com reviews on over the ear headphones but if i recall correctly they basically recommend a £15 paur of senheissers (that i actually own myself) as best value and i can confirm they are just that

BRISTOL86

Thanks both. I was leaning towards the Pacifica and Orange combo anyway as it's local and seems like a terrific deal for a beginner to get started on.

I'm just waiting for the seller to let me know the serial number so I can find out how old it is etc. It looks near mint though, my gut is telling me it's a beginner who gave up. 

Halikus

I've never liked any Tanglewoods I have played, build quality  especially fretwork which is of prime importance and play-ability just haven't been there on models I've come across.  I'd definitely go Pacifica for my first electric if i were in that situation again as the build quality on the Yamahas are a cut above 99% in the price bracket.

As for headphones I recommend Sony MDR 7506's,  not the £25 the cheapo ones , nearer £100 but there's a reason these are in many many studios, they are quality and a worthy investment.

BRISTOL86

Halikus said:

I've never liked any Tanglewoods I have played, build quality  especially fretwork which is of prime importance and play-ability just haven't been there on models I've come across.  I'd definitely go Pacifica for my first electric if i were in that situation again as the build quality on the Yamahas are a cut above 99% in the price bracket.

As for headphones I recommend Sony MDR 7506's,  not the £25 the cheapo ones are, nearer £100 but there's a reason these are in many many studios, they are quality and a worthy investment.

Thanks - will give the Tanglewood a wide berth then. Have heard lots and lots of good things about the Pacifica's for the money so looks like a good beginner choice

I could go up to £100 at a stretch on the headphones but through a low power amp am I going to really notice a tangible difference between a £25-50 pair to something in that price range? 

I'm an advocate of buying something that will last rather than going for the cheap option though so if so, happy to spend a bit more. 

maltingsaudio

Actually that Tanglewood looks really sweet, I would have a punt on it over buying New, as to headphones the best bang per buck at the lower end of the market  are the Red5 ones http://www.red5audio.com/acatalog/Accessories.html

Alnico

I use Sennheiser HD280 Headphones. They were on Amazon last year at half price, down from £140.

They're very good and so crystal clear and revealing, i went back and re listened to music i knew really well to hear things i'd never heard before (Mainly recordings by The Doors).

For guitar, well they're very revealing so they're great for hearing every nano-mistake. They don't sound like your amp will when it's playing to air through it's speaker so remember it's a totally different sound and it will hit your EQ quite heavily too, so note down your settings both ways.

If it's crystal clear you want though, studio headphones will give you that.

Jack_

Tanglewood make great acoustics, their electrics are meh.

Go with the Yammy.

p90fool

I'd want to know about the quality of the headphone output on the amp before spending big money on headphones to be honest.
If it's awful you'll just be reproducing that awfulness accurately! It may be fine, but you'll need to know if it's speaker emulated at least.

AustrianJohn

If you can use a soldering iron, buy a Harley Benton guitar and upgrade the pickups with something from Iron Gear. That'll get you a great value guitar that looks good, sounds good and plays good for under £200. Also, as @JookyChap says, Epiphone or Squire are great options at this proce point.

Sassafras

I find big, cheap phones work best with guitar playing. You don't need ultra accurate cans when you're noodling away. Especially if you've got a poor headphone output on the amp.

TTony

BRISTOL86 said:

I'm just waiting for the seller to let me know the serial number so I can find out how old it is etc. It looks near mint though, my gut is telling me it's a beginner who gave up. 

Why?

Doesn't really matter how old it is - it's not like it's a car where value is related to age.  TBH, I doubt you'd do better for £100 with pretty much guaranteed resale.

The next obvious option at a high price point is a s/h PRS SE, for which you'd need min £200, and probably £250.  But that's a step for a few months time, when you've decided that guitars are good.

AustrianJohn said:

If you can use a soldering iron, buy a Harley Benton guitar and upgrade the pickups with something from Iron Gear. That'll get you a great value guitar that looks good, sounds good and plays good for under £200. 

I wouldn't touch HBs unless you were happy with doing whatever set-up work turned out to be required.  Plus, you'd still be left with an HB with some cheap after-market pickups (good VFM though Iron Gears are), so resale would be a challenge.

BRISTOL86 said:

I could go up to £100 at a stretch on the headphones but through a low power amp am I going to really notice a tangible difference between a £25-50 pair to something in that price range? 

I'm an advocate of buying something that will last rather than going for the cheap option though so if so, happy to spend a bit more. 

Headphones - decent headphones - are designed to handle a wide frequency range, with all of the musical detail.  That's what makes them decent and able to command the money.

If you're just going to be playing guitar through them, you don't need the frequency range or the ability to interpret all of that musical detail.  You'd be hard pushed to tell the difference in sound quality between a £10 pair and a £100 pair, if you're only listening to guitar through them.

IMHO of course.

Modellista

Which model Pacifica is it?  If it's the 012 it's really basic, and £100 is probably a bit steep.  The bits 'n' pieces could be worn, particularly the pots and switch, and maybe the tuners.

You might be able to do better.  I've had a Crafter Strat for £20 that's as good if not better than a Pacifica 012, a Squier 51 for around £100 which is superb, you should be into a PRS SE for £200, and other off-brands like Schecter and Ibanez for around the same money.

Even though there is truth in the year not mattering too much, it will of course indicate may give an indication of the amount of play it's had, which will in turn give a rough idea of the likelihood of fret wear and electrical gremlins which may have crept in.  A reasonable thing to know, but the actual model number is more important to know what you're going to get.

Gassage

TTony said:

The next obvious option at a high price point is a s/h PRS SE, for which you'd need min £200, and probably £250.  But that's a step for a few months time, when you've decided that guitars are good.

That's the guitar equivalent of grooming.

Disgraceful.

steer

I know there seems to be a lotta love for Harley Benton on here, but my mate has both a Tanglewood and a Harley Benton, and the tanglewood blows the HB away. Better finish, better quality wood, better action, better electronics. Just saying.

For £200 around you could get a secondhand mexican fender tele or strat.

andyoz

Pacifica with its Humbucker in bridge is a good starting point.

If you're drawn to the humbucker more than the single cool (or vice versa) it'll help you chose your next step up the ladder.. 

rpr

This a good buy in the classifieds- http://www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/87800/fs-ibanez-sa360fm-149-delivered  

Jimbro66

I'd forget the Tanglewood. They are difficult to move on at anything like a decent price when you want to upgrade. For £100 the guitar and amp you've seen are great value as long as they have no problems. Then if you want to upgrade next year you probably won't lose anything selling them. That's the time to look at Epiphones, Squiers and others suggested in this thread.

Jack_

I've got a Squier VM and a MiM Telecaster that are both available, I just spent a chunk of time today making the Tele perfect, clean frets, clean hardware, action, intonation.

BRISTOL86

Thanks all for the advice, lots to take on board!

modellista said:

Which model Pacifica is it?  If it's the 012 it's really basic, and £100 is probably a bit steep.  The bits 'n' pieces could be worn, particularly the pots and switch, and maybe the tuners.

Not sure, waiting for the seller to let me know the full details and hopefully the SN so I can check it out on Yamaha's website, as I'm presuming it'll tell me the model no and date.

Jack_ said:

I've got a Squier VM and a MiM Telecaster that are both available, I just spent a chunk of time today making the Tele perfect, clean frets, clean hardware, action, intonation.

Hi Jack - please PM me some details but I'm guessing both would be out of my price range....I shouldn't even be looking until the middle of next year haha. The reason I'm looking at that Yammy now is because it's dirt cheap and I can shift it on in 6 months time probably for the same or more!