Beginner guitar & amp for under $400?

[BadgerDave]

A friend has asked me to recommend an electric guitar and amp for her 10 year old son who has been taking guitar lessons for less than a year. He has stuck with the lessons and shown real interest, so she wants to upgrade his crappy plywood acoustic and get him something nice for his birthday on May 1.

Parameters are:

$400 budget

fixed bridge only - no tremolo

Most of the $400 should go towards the guitar - he can upgrade the amp later, for now he just needs something to plug into for (slight) amplification.

The guitar should not only be easy to play (I'll do a set-up), it should also look good - the kid should be able to impress his friends with a "cool" guitar. I know, looks aren't important, but try to remember when you were 10.

"Gibson-style" is preferred over "Fender-style"

Used is fine, but the guitar should be in near mint condition.

Any recommendations? Anyone have something suitable for sale? Hamer Import perhaps?

[Guest Buck Dharma]

PRS SE used and a used Alamo or Silvertone tube amp! If he is into heavy sounds get a Peavey amp.

[BCR Greg]

Lots of the new Import Hamers kick ass at bottom feeder bucks. Call me, Dave.

[pesocaster]

I think these can be had rather inexpensively

http://www.hamerguitars.com/?fa=detail&mid=900&sid=185

and a Roland Microcube

[MCChris]

and a Roland Microcube

Exactly what I was gonna say.

[silentman]

not to threadjack here, but I played a microcube for the first time last friday. I could not believe how nice the clean sound was with a bit of chorua and verb! The gain tones were much better than you would expect with a small speaker. All they need to do is make it footwichable and I'd own one.

[Jeff R]

Another vote for a Microcube for the amp half of the question.

[Gabe]

and a Roland Microcube

Exactly what I was gonna say.

And so was I.

Gabe

[Craig]

Another Microcube vote. It's awesome and loud enough for home practice and parent annoyance, but can be almost silent too.

Guitars at that price range - just go out and try some, there is too much variation in manufacturing, so you have to weed the good from the bad.

[guitfiddler]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...mMakeTrack=true

or

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...7311512157&rd=1

[thecajunboy]

I've got a DeArmond S73 with OHSC that I can let go for $165 plus shipping. The guitar is an SG style with set neck construction. MIK, mahogany body and neck with rosewood board. Mother of plastic block inlays, gold hardware. Pickups are the US made goldtone models. Color is trans green. Condition is damned near mint. Only flaw is a scratch on the back of the neck, not through the color.

Not mine, but just like it. More pics here.

http://uhearme.com/markselectricguitars.html

[Turdus]

What?????? Nobody has recommended this?

http://catalog.hsn.com/prod-12678/m/m00002...691/1911691.htm

[SouthernShred]

I have a friend that is a Washburn and Cort dealer and he is particular interested in serving beginners. I've played everything he has in stock and these two are particularly cool for beginners and play great too:

Cort Zenox

Washburn WI-14

If you're interested, I can put you in touch with him.

[Moose]

I thought the kid wanted to impress his friends. He'll be the talk of the school with this:

http://www.carverdoug.com/wang.html

[JohnnyB]

I thought the kid wanted to impress his friends. He'll be the talk of the school with this:

http://www.carverdoug.com/wang.html

At the link he says, "I made a new body out of Cherry wood, added some maple for a new headstock, made a new pickguard"

Man, that took balls!

[JohnnyB]

OK, I concede a couple of points:

• He prefers Gibson style to Fender style
  
• Hamer imports, Corts, some Washburns and Tokais offer good value
  

BUT

If you want that absolute balls-out best guitar for this amount of money, find a lightly used or on-sale G&L Tribute of any style. They are worlds ahead of anything else at this price range for tone woods, hardware, pickups, and fit'n'finish.

They are absolutely incredible. The pickups are actual USA-made G&L pickups. And the very practical and effective Leo Fender-designed hardware is the same as on the USA G&L hardware except that it is cast in Asia rather than the USA, and I can testify that there is a lot of good metal-casting going on in Asia these days.

Here's a G&L Tribute ASAT Classic with a BIN of $399:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...7310125847&rd=1

The G&L ASAT Classic is far more versatile than a regular Tele. It'll do the Tele stuff, but the pickups have more output and a fatter sound. The little neck pickup on this model actually makes for a very sweet jazz pickup, and with a little boost, kills on the blues.

Or if he'd prefer a Strat style, there is this on eBay with a current bid of $281 with 9 hrs to go:

Check it out at http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...7310631671&rd=1

Here's an S-500 with a BIN of $365: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...7311180072&rd=1

Want a semihollow? For a BIN of $450 (and it's easily worth it) you can get this:

at http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...7310267890&rd=1

I mean, LOOK at these things! http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...bayphotohosting

[Brooks]

i played a pals microcube; i thought the clean sounds were very good, esp w/ verb or delay.

BUT, i gotta say i think the mini speaker sucks, it farts out a little w/ the neck pup,

and i didn't care for the high gain sounds.

i'd recommend a tech21 trademark 10 instead. no fx except verb, but very convincing fender/marshall/recto tones, and the speaker can hang alot better than the microcube IMFO. i've rehearsed w/ a drummer w/ mine, try that w/ a microcube! they can be had used for under $200.

my $.02

oh, and ya gotta get an import hamer! 'cmon!

but avoid "slammer by hamer".

[guitfiddler]

This would be perfect for the kid... IMHO

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...item=7308078606

Also, I have dealt with Mikes... he is A-OK, and you can negotiate wiith him. $25. to $30. shipping, even from Canada, and no duty charges.

I would have been ecstatic at 10yrs. old, if someone had handed that to me ("bolt-on" or not, I didn't understand the diff. until I was almost 18 yrs. old, anyway,) with a small (i.e.)Fender amp. I had to do with a red & black sunburst 35.00 Harmony Stella acoustic (with a sound-hole pickup,) until I was 13. Then I got my first 36.00 Japanese electric solid body ( don't remember the name) with (WOW) 3 pickups, 3 rocker switches and at least 3 knobs to fiddle with, AND .... a tremolo arm!

[straightblues]

That DeArmond SG looks like a deal. The Hamer Imports are good as long as you avoid the Slammer series. Also, the ones Made in Korea are reportedly better than the new stuff they are bringing in from China. There are still lots of New Old Stock one around, check on Ebay.

I am surprised nobody has mentioned it yet, one of the best deals in guitars today are the Agiles from Rondo Music. Their Les Paul copies are very good. The 2500 series sells for $199 to $229. (I have a couple of them and they are very good instruments which I gig with. Not quite the quality of USA Hamer but definately serious instruments and not toys.) www.rondomusic.net

[straightblues]

Forgot to leave amp recommendations. Whatever you do, get an amp with a headphone jack. That way nobody has to hear him playing. Most of the new small solid state amps have these jacks. I would jump on Ebay, there are a ton of them for less than a $100. These small solid state jobs usually overdrive well and have reverb as well.

That Roland Blues Cube is a nice amp but maybe a little too much money for right now. I know a few blues players that gig with them. If you can fit it in the budget, go for it they are really good amps.

I went through this exercise a few months ago with a friends child and he ended up with an Agile Les Paul and a used Fender Frontline 15 amp. Total with case and shipping was just less than $400. BTW, these amps aren't going to win any tone awards but they are nice enough for a 10 year old starting out.

[BadgerDave]

Thanks for all of the suggestions. I'll run 'em by the kid's mom for her input on the critical issues - you know, color, body style, etc.

Looks like $400 will buy a nice setup. Much better than the crappy Lyle solidbody and Gibson solid state amp I had way back when.

[MCChris]

The Schecter stuff's good too, especially this one:

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/srs7/g=home...ase_pid/518183/

[Brewmaster]

Talk to Elduave about a G&L Tribute ASAT. The Tribute Legacy is even less expensive. I have one that I bought for my business that my 15 year old neighbor uses

for his lessons when he comes over. The Tribute series has the USA pickups, the same as used on their USA models.

It's a great little Strat for the money, better than the Fender MIM Strat I own IMHO.

Add a Microcube and you have a happy kid.

[JohnnyB]

Talk to Elduave about a G&L Tribute ASAT.  The Tribute Legacy is even less expensive. I have one that I bought for my business that my 15 year old neighbor uses

for his lessons when he comes over.  The Tribute series has the USA pickups, the same as used on their USA models.

... Add a Microcube and you have a happy kid.   

To my mind, nothing comes close to G&L Tribute's price/performance ratio. The S-500 might be a great way to go -- Strat-like, but with more powerful pickups and all 7 pickup combinations in the switching. This one went on eBay yesterday for $315:

Or at the simple end of the spectrum, an ASAT. I loooooove ASATs of all varieties, but especially the Classic Semihollows. And the regular ASAT with big pickups is a rock machine -- It's like the balls of a P-90 Special with the snarl and cut of a very fat Tele.

Talk to Elduave!

[MCChris]

Parameters are:

fixed bridge only - no tremolo

"Gibson-style" is preferred over "Fender-style"

So ... parameters be damned, then? LOL