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Guitars that punch above their weight.


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I was packing up after a gig tonight when the thought crossed my mind that I actually can't imagine a better strat than this one.  It's a 99 American Standard (I think).  Stock pups, dreaded bathtub rout (spelled it right for you @gtrdaddy), two-screw trem, and I think the truss rod may be frozen that I picked up for $600 if memory serves.  Yet it plays better than every guitar I own, and it also goes from twangy strat to shred monster with just a roll of the tone knob.  

I literally have no idea how a custom shop Fender, Anderson, Suhr, or any other strat-style guitar could get better than this, yet, on paper, it is just a late 90s, run-of-the-mill strat.  That's why I say it punches above its weight; it really should not be this good. Yet it is. I've owned one other guitar that played like this, and I sold it like an idiot.  I won't make that mistake again. 

What guitars do you have that inexplicably are just way better than they should be?

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Echoplexing your story in too many ways ... my '96 G&L Legacy that everyone's probably sick of seeing on this forum. For what my five senses seek in a strat platform, it's pretty much perfect. Any thing I try in it electronically works great. More importantly, the variables you just can't swap out and experiment with (weight, strap balance, resonance against your ribs, neck profile and body contours) fit like a decades-old baseball mitt or that old pair of blue jeans you just can't throw away. Guys come in my shop talking about refrets, and I often put my Legacy in their hands so they can test-drive a Jescar 58118 and oil finish neck trunk conversion (photo below when the oil finish was brand new, the fingerboard is darker and finger- and play-pattern stained since then). The conversation typically shifts to "is this guitar for sale?" I just laugh. 

Part of the reason is this guitar and I were separated for about a year about 12 years ago when I was going through a really tough time in life. Some very good friends, one in particular, who double as long-time HFCers as it happens, conspired to get the guitar back in my hands, under the simple premise that the guitar was/is "me" and can't belong to anyone but me, ever, regardless of what curve balls life threw me. So add "karma" and "fate" to her list of indescribable but beyond desirable variables.

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When Hamer put out the P-90 version of the Special in the early 1990's it was more bang for the buck than anything like it. 

The first Dean imports of the 1990's were really nice, especially the solid top acoustics. 

Any Peavey bass feels good regardless of its price range. 

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I bought a new Gretsch Bobtail resonator (round-neck) from Sweetwater about four years ago for $469 and it is killer. Right out of the box it was set up great, sounds amazing acoustically and the Fishman pickup in it gives that same mid-rangey metallic sweetness through a sound system. I use it a lot. Best money I ever spent on a guitar.

 

 

 

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Red sunburst MIK Standard. Since it were stuffed with true single coils, the all alder guitar finally had lift the curtain. With any humbucker I had tried before it just felt not right. The Phat Cats were a great option too.

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7 hours ago, BTMN said:

Hamer Slammer Series Flat top Sunburst models.

This.  My only non-Telecaster, and it's all the Gibson-style guitar I'll ever need.  Of course, Josh helped a bit.  :)

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I forgot to mention that I gigged with the little Vox MV50 through a Mesa Thiele (EVM12L)... It sounded really good.  I'm 100% certain you could get through a bigger gig with that little sucker and not be too put out by using. 

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Black MIK Hamer slammer Eclipse for $130 including shipping. I just love the neck on it. Now the cheap Kent Armstrong pickup's were replaced with a set of Lollar's  mini hum's I picked up for $50 bucks off craigslist. If you ever have a chance to get one grab it they are just simple basic RnR  machine.

  

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MIM '72 reissue Telecaster Custom. Bone stock save for Dunlop straplocks and Gotoh compensated saddles. This one has seen a lot gigs lately and covers a larger swath of tonal territory that probably any guitar I own. Yeah, I know it's not a true WRHB and sports a 7.25" radius and tiny frets. Doesn't matter; it just works, and works exceptionally well. Sorry, no glamour shots just yet.

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I like the Fender road worn stuff...    have a flea bass that's just fantastic... and I really

never would have thought of playing one.   $1200 hell no, but used they're a deal and

a half.     My other one was an epiphone casino coupe,   it's a casino in the body size

of a 339... p-90's trapeze tailpiece... very resonant   3 hundy ish used... deal!

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I got my Japanese made Fender Aerodyne Strat used and beat to hell for $299 and it is my #1 guitar (though with mods my out of pocket pushes $800). My stock Korean made Vox SSC-55 is my favorite single cutaway G style guitar, and I paid $599 for it used but pristine. All of the Chinese made Bedell acoustic guitars were great values.

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On 4/16/2018 at 1:01 PM, DaveL said:

I like the Fender road worn stuff...    have a flea bass that's just fantastic... and I really

never would have thought of playing one.   $1200 hell no, but used they're a deal and

a half.     My other one was an epiphone casino coupe,   it's a casino in the body size

of a 339... p-90's trapeze tailpiece... very resonant   3 hundy ish used... deal!

I got a Fender Road Worn P-bass for my son a few years back and it is just killer. Light, resonant, comfy like an old slipper.

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Made in Korea DeArmond guitars from the 90's. They came with USA made pickups and were based on existing Guild guitars. I bought my M75 when they had been discontinued and the store was blowing them out at 50% off. $400 if I remember correctly.

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On 4/15/2018 at 8:17 AM, Willie G. Moseley said:

Almost any Peavey I've ever owned. Currently have one utility guitar and one utility bass of that brand.

This.

my Peavey Firenza is top quality USA goodness. It rocks.

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The Ibanez Revstar guitars from the 80s are an amazing Japanese made guitar and you can find them under $300 all the time.  I wish I bought the one that my instructor had.  It was ugly as hell, but that body came alive when you played it and it played great.

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'83 Ibanez Roadstar on the left; '85 Ibanez Roadstar on the right ... paid $250 for each ... killer basses ... '80s Ibanez Roadstar and Blazer guitars and basses are routinely under $300 and really nice instruments.

 

Agree that Peavey USA guitars and basses are great.

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I have a MIM Cabronita Telecaster that I bought on clearance for $399 new. It's one of my favorites and probably gets more play than any of my other guitars. I had the opportunity to try its USA made counterpart earlier this year and it felt like shit in comparison.

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I had a similar experience.   Back in '97 I bought a brand new American Lonestar Strat (HSS).  It was teal metallic with a rosewood board.   With the Pearly Gates pickup in it, I could play damn near any style of music through my Marshall and it never went out of tune and just felt so right.   In a case of stupidity, I sold it after acquiring a Jeff Beck Strat and a Jackson shredder (thinking I'd probably use those more) and I always wish I had that guitar back.   Now Lonestars from that era command $1k+ in okay condition.    So now I'm in the process of building a copy using the same specs (Pearly Gates/Tex Mex singles, 9.5" radius board with med jumbo frets, 2-point trem, etc.) hoping to recapture that feel/sound.  If I get it set up anywhere near what that old Lonestar was like, I'll be happy...

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