Thinking about a new guitar....any players get in here, need some opinions.....
 

i'm finally ready to step up from off the shelf buying and get a custom. what do you think:

holy crap..my drum set was only around a grand.. but I dont know anything about guitars... i could my my ATI kit for that amount, lol

that's actually cheap for a custom.

it's built exactly how i order it....totally one of a kind.



think of the guitar from the Jet City Woman video Chris Degarmo was playing (if you're old enough :smile:), it'll be something like that.

kinda like this, but in satin black (think primer):
http://img4.imageshack.us/img4/4469/degarmo3id.png

:drool:

ESP's are nice ax's man. Either wait for curt86iroc to chime in or pm him. he's a guitar player.

Have you looked into Jackson? Ive played just about every guitar out there, and Jacksons are my favorites by far. Jacksons custom shop is nothing short of amazing, and cheaper than ESP as well.

As far as specs go... I prefer:
-Maple or Ebony fretboard
-25.5 scale
-Recessed Origonal Floyd Rose
-1 11/16" nut
-Bridge Hum, Neck Hum or SC
-12/14-16" compound radius fretboard

For the basics that is.

i want a jackson in the worse way...........they play so nice
________
EXPERT INSURANCE

i thought about a Jackson, but i wasn't too thrilled with the neck on the last one i played. and it was a custom. that's why i'm leaning towards the ESP. it's gonna be more of a shredder than anything else, and the ESP necks always felt the fastest.

right now i have a Fender Mexican Fat-Strat, an early 80s Charvel Randy Rhodes V with an orig Rose, locking nut, SC neck/Hum bridge and 5 way switch, a no-name Tele, Fender Squire P-Bass, and a no-name Les Paul.

the Fat-Strat is my main player, the Charvel doesn't see much action anymore, the Tele and LP are beaters to just jam on when i need to get rid of some tension.

I played started playing the bass in fith grade learned a few songs then in like 6th grade I said screw it..Now I want to get a dean and then learn how to play the guitar

ESP is great for playing metal. Hetfield plays one...nuff said.
On a side note, I'm still steaming....I missed buying a Killswitch Engage autographed guitar this week by $1....got out bid with like 5 seconds left!

you got sniped.

i think 5k is way overboard for a custom. i would look around and pick up one that's close to the specs you want for like half of the retail (easily half) on ebay or one of the musician boards. what you want in a guitar has most likely already been done and that guy might want to get rid of his stuff...

the only bass i bought retail was the yamaha bx-1. i've never needed another bass and have only needed minor tweaking to it since i bought it. it was "off the shelf" but i have yet to find a bass with its ability or versatility.

think real hard about this purchase. like i said, you may be able to get someone else's custom for far less.

i've been looking for awhile now. all the auction sites, classifieds, etc.

the problem is what i want, set-up wise and sound wise, hasn't been done since the late 80s, and even then in low numbers from what i've been told. i'd love to just be able to order something and never have to swap out anything on it unless it's broken. i know the price seems high, but it's just the MSRP. figure about a thousand less or so for transaction price.

the only one i found used is a mid 80s BC Rich Gunslinger i'm bidding on now.

the Gunslinger is close to what i want. the only thing i'd change out at first is the bridge to an original Floyd Rose. it has a new liscensed on it now and i am not a fan.

I play bass, and right now I'm looking into getting either a Fodera, Alembic, or a Sadowsky, but most likely going with sadowsky after playing one. They may not look like much but they are custom built, however you want it, and it plays and sounds the best of any yet.

as far as your custom idea of a guitar goes, it looks like you pretty much know what you want. Any custom guitar or bass is upwards of 3k or more now, so the price you've come up with seems about right, but you might be able to find one for a grand less. My teacher has found some really good deals on custom basses on ebay, i know you're looking for a guitar, but you could find decent deal. But of course, having one built for you is always the best cuz you know exactly what you are getting.

Start looking up companies and the places that will actually take you in to order up what you want. Stay away from the Guitar Center and such. Go factory direct. And also, I suggest going to a guitar show convention. There's a lot of old stuff there but some new companies new that have pretty good stuff, that way, you get to see and play a lot of what is out there.

Word of advice. DO NOT buy anything from Warrior guitars and basses, they will screw you over.

that's not the first time i heard to stay away from Warrior.

and the ESP will be staright from the factory.

i hit up some conventions a few years back. i don't think anything made after 1992 caught my eye.

the one i'm looking at on ebay seems like it's in the lead as of right now, seeign as how it's not going for too much and is close enough to what i want i can mod it a bit and be happy with it, but i still want to get a custom down the road, just because i know it'll be set up EXACTLY the way i need it to be.

you can get a really great custom from Carvin, and build it right on the website, down to every nitpicking bit of it, and it'll probably cost less that the 4500 you are looking at now.

BC Rich makes really heavy guitars, and most of the material they use produces really thick heavy tones, when you want something more clear and vibrant. Unless of course you have already played the gunslinger and thats the sound you like. But i'd say building a custom from Carvin may be your best bet. IMHO

i played a Gunslinger way back when i was 12. it was my friend's father's. i never forgot that guitar.

a few years ago i had an NJ Warlock and loved it. they aren't hard to get good highs out of if they are set up right. and the necks are pretty fast.

i sold that one and a 7 string Ibanez for money for xmas gifts a few years ago for my folks, befor emy mom passed away. i'll never forget the look on her face when i told her i pawned those 2 for her and my dad's gifts. she almost fell over.

i did the build on that ESP right off their website. check it out if you get a chance, the options they give you are unlimited, just like Carvin.

i looked at the Carvins, they're still in my top 5 of customs.

i'm having such a hard time deciding, the choices are just so good :D . but if i get the Gunslinger, i can hold off on a custom for awhile.

Jackson necks are usually very thin... almost Ibanez Wizard thin, but they do have thicker profiles which can be ordered. Most Jackson players prefer thin necks.

I just built this on about a month ago... was my first Jackson, the only origonal parts left are the trem and body. This is pretty much the FASTEST neck Ive ever played, very thin and VERY slick. Pickups are Duncan JB TB4 and a Duncan Jazz 2 1kohm CTS vol pots, no tone. Not too thrilled with the Jazz though, probably going to swap it out for a '59.

http://home.comcast.net/~rpperformance/files/dr35.jpg

Then theres my DKMG... Also very fast, super low action, not as fast as the maple one though, great for riffing. EMG 85 and 89 installed with push/pull pot to split the 89, tone pot, and EMG Active 20db Afterburner. Origonal Floyd Rose Bridge as well.

http://home.comcast.net/~rpperformance/files/dkmg1.jpg


I dont buy custom shops... I build em. Wait till the new project gets finished... :D

I got 2 guitars that ive garbage picked that look in great shape. One is red, the other is black and white, both electric. Dunno if they work cuz I dont have an amp, so if anybody wants them, take them for free :-P

Ill take that deal! :-o I want to learn to play before I get my dean plus I have an amp and everything over hear :mrgreen:

Ive tried the guitar for like 3 months. Im no good at it. The only 2 songs I can play are Bulls on Parade and Know Your Enemy (RATM) :-\







No stairway.... DENIED!

you gotta wonder what kind of guitar ends up in the garbage. unless it was an evil, sadistic girlfriend/wife, throwing her hubby's carvin in the circular file...

i lied. i do have one other bass, it's a hybrid fretless that i built from parts of other basses that i had: a p-bass body, no-name maple neck with the frets removed and dean markleys all around (neck, p-bass and bridge). yes, the unused parts did end up in the trash. :mrgreen:

so i guess i can see the value of a factory building you exactly what you want. just not 5 grand worth.

i started playing guitar about a year ago, (looking for an activity to fill the void, once i am forced to stop skateboarding). i bought a Ibanez GAX. this is my first guitar and i am just noticing alof of fret buzz, especially playing around the 7th and 9th frets. i tried raising the bridge in the back a little bit and still get it. the guitar is always put away in a stand and is in my room at all times, so its not like its being exposed to a serious change of tempertures. do you think think the truss(sp*) rod could use a little tweaking? i would take it to a shop to get it done, but could use a little input before i spend any money. this question is just directed to anyone who can possibly help me out.

You're truss rod may need tweaking, but a lot of the fret buzz may have to do with the wood itself beginning to warp. stand the guitar up on it's end and look straight down along the strings from the headstock down to the bridge, and see if the strings appear to be grazing the frets or if the fingerboard has a strange curve to it. Either way, taking it to a shop they should just be able to figure out exactly what is buzzing it. there are all sorts of little adjustments they can make.

I still have to take my guitar to a shop to get it tuned. I have a Fender Performer. It's a weird thing. they only made them in 84 or something like that. to tell you the truth, I dont know much about it at all. :lol:

my primary guitar is an ibanez FG, my baby. i dont play it enough, considering how much i paid for it...

my first guitar was an ibanez gax, still have it and mess around with it every once in a while, i cant play on it after playing on the fg though, world of difference.

i suck though