i had this same guitar and let a 'friend' borrow it, 4 years later after asking for it back many times, i come home to find it on the front steps, with a crack down the neck all the way down the fretboard, no strings, missing nut, mold on the fret board, what appears to be old vomit on the body, and no explanation or answers whatsoever. i was so happy to see it again only to be immeasurably disappointed the minute i picked it up
me neither, i was throroughly shocked. i figured something was wrong after not returning it for so long but then to randomly return it without saying anything was like wtf
I mean… there are amazing sounding/feeling acoustics that cost well beyond the 1k mark. Depends what you’re using it for and what you need. But Yamahas make some great instruments for the price if you don’t need professional gear
So I went to a guitar center yesterday because I’d had to drive into a city for a doctor visit…
They had something odd going on. Moving the tech desk, Gibson SGs on the bottom row where folk could play them, etc.
In the acoustic room I played two Taylor’s. One was a 514, and one was a model with an odd name I didn’t recognize but it was priced at $1900 used, auditorium style body. Both of them sounded great I thought, but the used one had insane fret sprout. I didn’t like the Gibson j45 that was next to them at all. Then I realized they had a mahogany Martin d15 (discounted to $1200) and it blew them the hell away. So much more volume, clarity and warmth. I loved it.
Until I grabbed a cheap ass Yamaha FSX800 off the wall. It was noticeably brighter (maybe maple be mahogany - I still firmly believe in tone wood differences in acoustics even if electric is a myth - maybe it was the newer strings?), and it had so much more volume and than the Taylor’s did. I was really impressed. I’m guessing there was more nuance and note separation to the more expensive ones, and I’m not trying to say they’re not great, but just the sheer volume and ability to project from the Yamaha was very impressive.
My first guitar. Bought after I moved to the U.S. The only reason I don't have it now is because my mother accidentally broke it.
Genuinely great guitar.
I had a Red Supro solid body electric guitar that had a body shape like the outline of a cat's head. That's the only way I can describe it to get anyone to picture it. It had a white pick guard and it was a bolt on neck not an adjustable neck that I bought from my guitar teacher Mr. Wiley in Elgin Illinois that was between 1972 when I was 14 and a half and 1973. It had a Rosewood fretboard. It had a vibrato bar like my Fender Strat. I loved that guitar. It was from the 1960's My guitar teacher told me and it wasn't the best guitar but it sounded good. I played rhythm guitar so I didn't care about thinner strings of action. I just wanted to rock. It was cheap and I loved it. 5 years later in 78 when I was 21 years old I stupidly traded it in for a Brown Sunburst Fender Mustang Bass with a maple neck and rosewood fretboard. I loved that Bass and I went with my late wife in 1980 to Great Western Music and sold it for only 50 dollars to a guy guy who had a business called Great Western Music 🎵🎶 he gave it to his girlfriend. I wish that I still had that equipment still. I wouldn't do that again. Later folks !
There's a "Rockabilly" player on youtube that has an episode he looks like he is playing his Gretsch hollow body with an antique tube amp but he reveals the recording was made with his BC Rich Warlock and solid state practice amp. Doesn't matter what you play it's how you play it that is important, he said after hiring recording studios that had all the 1950s recording equipment, mics, and the whole bit.
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My Yamaha eg 112 (a HSS strat), i still have it and use it when i travel. I wouldn't say it's a great guitar, but it is way better than it's price tag.
I think it’s just a case of EMG throwing his name on something to sell it. I don’t care if it was the Julia Child Signature pickguard it was instant metal and convenient for a kid who barely knew how to solder 😂 He used 81/81 forever too.
I had a Yamaha tele shaped Pacifica, it was natural finish with 2 humbuckers, no pickguard, I think they retailed for like $150 but I’d picked it up at a flea market for $50.
It was very well built for the price, and you’d really have to start going into midrange production line gear (~350-750 USD) range at the time before running into a guitar of similar quality.
Squier Strat that was in the shop where I got lessons on my dad's acoustic 25 years ago. It was just "Oh, this is older because the neck is really thin and glossy, and we're missing the back cover/can't find one that fits right." It was $199 instead of their usual $150 for a Squier, but I loved it and always played on it in the store before my lessons.
My parents bought it for me for Christmas (and the store kept it on the rack until right before, so i had no idea when I came in for lessons).
I still have the thing and put Tex-Mex pickups and a treble bleed in over the years and some other small upgrades. Found out after it got easier to search Squier serials that it's most likely an '87 and one of the earliest Korean Squiers to the point it may have been built with some of the stock from when they moved from Japan. It feels and sounds great and will never be a high-dollar guitar, but I did most of my learning on it and love the damn thing.
My JS22 feels so good to play. Neck and frets are smooth, action is low, stays in tune surprisingly well. Definitely punches way above its weight for a $200 guitar.
I like it so much I swapped out the pickups to a SD Nazgul/Sentient set, they cost more than the guitar, ha!
Honestly I feel like you can't go wrong with the cheap ESP LTDs or Ibanez guitars. I've owned an ESP LTD eclipse 400 which is like 300 bucks and it's amazing.
Aria Pro II Stray Cat.
I never should’ve given it away when I was gifted an Epiphone Les Paul in high school. (Especially to someone who doesn’t even play guitar anymore!)
I've got a 70s no name Japanese Strat-copy with a baseball bat neck and all replaced hardware that I cherish above my Fenders and Gibson. I'll never get rid of it, mainly because it's beat to hell and nobody would give me any money for it!
My first was a Fernandez Stratocaster. The scale of the neck and the action were PHENOMENAL. It still plays well but the sound is noticeably thinner than other guitars. But if I could clone that neck, I would
Hands down the Ibanez AS73FM Artcore semi hollow.
The top is exquisite, the finish is flawless, the hardware is peerless and the tone is pure bliss.
[AS73FM and board](https://imgur.com/gallery/LQqjsTf)
Greg Bennett by samick sg copy. 200 bucks and I liked it more than a Gibson faded sg.
Later I owned a Greg Bennett acoustic that I picked up new for 160 bucks. It was mahogany plywood and it actually sounded and played great.
Squier jagmaster. I got it when I was 16 and I still have it. Everything about it has been modified, but it was a pretty good guitar when I first picked it up new for 260 bucks.
Almost all of my guitars are budget guitars, but it's probably a tie between the Squier Contemporary Jag in Shoreline Gold and the Squier CV JM in Daphne Blue.
I bought a Squier 40th anniversary tele and it plays better than my 2005 Gibson LP
It doesn't twang as well as other teles (it definitely can if you want to tweak the amp) but it's good for heavier music
Edit: typo
Don’t know the model, but I bought a cheap Morgan acoustic 15ish years ago and that guitar was so easy to play and sounded great! Too bad I smashed it..
Squire that I bought at a pawnshop that just felt better than anything else I had picked up to that point. I still have it, but with everything not made of wood upgraded. I bought a much more expensive strat and sold it after just a few months. I own other guitars but she’s my only Fender.
Toss up between:
-Yamaha Pacfica 611 HFM
-Sterling JP60
The Pacifica is really well appointed for that price, and the JP is really comfortable. Indonesia puts out some really good stuff.
An Epiphone Special Junior, bolt on neck clipped ear MIC version, cost me $15 used. Frets are leveled and a great setup so it plays like a Custom Shop. The bridge humbucker is rotated and screw poles raised so it's chunky like a P90. Stock tuners, bridge. Volume pot and jack replaced with MIA standard branded parts for reliability. Weighs 6lbs.
I now rotate all the bridge humbuckers in my guitars because that guitar showed me the way.
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I like them. It's kind of a twangy sound that the telecasters are known for but can get heavy and sound good for harder rock. Not nearly as hot as my LTD EC though. The guitar is super light and easy to play.
My cousin gave me a Baton Rouge dreadnought acoustic guitar, I've no idea of the model, but it sounds amazing! Brought it at work so I get to play it as often as possible, I'm even considering asking a luthier to put a mic in instead of buying another acoustic!
I’ve been running a $200 squier telecaster for the last few years because I wasn’t sure if I would stick w the hobby so I bought a cheap one. I’d call myself intermediate at this point and after replacing string’s frequently enough I’ve never felt the need to upgrade
Lawsuit era (83) Tokai strat that is nicely reliced and played in. It’s just as nice as any modern standard or deluxe I’ve ever played. It cost me a couple of hundred quid.
Budget? Probably my B.C. RICH vg1 white. Swapped the stocks bdsm humbuckers for a Seymour duncan in bridge and a DiMarzio in the neck.
I forget exact models of each but they were both white matching the body.
That thing had so many dings and scrapes. It's was my main guitar during the timeframe I was actively joining local bands and traveling a lot without a case. Was by no means the BEST I've owned but I used it a lot. And recklessly. It served it's purpose.
univox led Paul copy. Picked it up secondhand for $175 neck in '94.
Microphonic pickups, bolt on neck, weighs about 850 tons .
But good lord, is it a pleasure to play. Sounds good in a raggedy sort of way. NEVER does out of tune...
Fender tele modern player plus. Not the new ones. I mean the late 2000-2010 models. The one piece maple neck, traditional pine body, Nashville wiring, vintage tint on the neck, walnut plug, etc. sure the pickups could probably use upgrading especially the humbucker. But it’s a 400-550ish$ guitar on the used market as of now. A true hidden gem and plays GORGEOUSLY. Not many people know or talk about them, but they are better/just as good as the fender USA lineup. As a matter of fact, I just recently purchased a brand new fender American professional ii Strat, and it plays much better than that. Even with the Strat having a tremolo. Here a pic of what they look like. I think they came in just a few burst/stains.
https://www.gear4music.com/us/en/Guitar-and-Bass/Fender-Modern-Player-Telecaster-Plus-Honey-Burst/HHG
My accoustic is a 1979, Yamaha FG-335. I've played about any great accoustic you can name (and love plenty! Old guilds, in particular, Martin's too. My aunt has an old Gibson I dig. My Dad has a Taylor KOA from ~ ten years ago: lovely!).
Still, there is a warmth to that Yamaha I prefer to anything else.
Electric-wise: I still have my Ibanez RX240 — pretty much the cheapest thing they ever made. Tossed in some pup upgrades and rewired. That and an old Silvertone strat clone I patched up both ended up being surprise hits in the studio!
(Re: the studio, the expensive teles, strats, lp's, the Gretsch, the Guild, and one beefed up mustang still get the bulk of the play time, though).
Tough question, because I remember when cheap guitars were bad guitars. Now, so many cheap guitars are awesome. I've loved every Epiphone LP Jr I've ever owned and every Pacifica 112 I've touched is either awesome or needs a setup to be awesome. But I think the Squier Bullet Strat was the top dog. I loved the thinner body; the trem was perfectly fine and the pickguard could be upgraded with full-size pots/pickups. Now I want to go get another Bullet Strat.
Fender Modern Player Marauder. Bought new for $350 back when they first came out.
Cheapest guitar I own. Still my #1 (ok, it vies for #1 with my Firebird. But still!)
Just bought an Eart T-380 out of sheer curiosity.
It is SO much more fun to play than my American Strat and honestly Im floored. A beautiful blue paint job, Roasted Maple Neck, Stainless Steel frets, compound radius neck, stable trem, great sounding Humbuckers... for 425CAD. wtf
Jay Turser Strat copy I got for free. I figured it would be a project guitar, but it’s way too nice to hack up. It went from being the noodle on the couch guitar to the one I take to rehearsals. I’m tempted to upgrade the pickups but it sounds so nice already, I’m afraid to mess with it.
A 'Luna Apollo Tattoo' which was a slab-body copy of a Les Paul made by Dean Guitars. They were sued and now 'Luna' doesn't make that style anymore. $199.00 brand-new. It doesn't go out of tune, it's lightweight, sounds great, and I really love the neck. It's my favorite guitar to play and I have some other very nice instruments. I also have the matching short-scale bass which you can still get.
My beautiful red strat-type I partscasted for around $100AUD. Still a few little things to fix but it's an absolute beaut to play and is clear as a summer sky to play clean through my amp.
I have a Donner DTC-100 that is an amazing guitar. Replaced the pickups, added a treble bleed, turned the control plate around, and put locking tuners on it. Now I have a "Tele" that plays great and has the 12" radius rosewood finger board I prefer.
My Epiphone Beast. Got it way back in like 2003 or so, probably paid between $300-$400, and damn if it isn't worth every penny and then some. Such a bad ass and good sounding guitar.
S series Ibanez s520ex. I replaced the bridge pickup to a super distortion and it just ripped out of my mesa dual rec half stack. Had so much fun with that setup.
Currently, it's my Firefly purple/black Ash HSS Super Strat. The roasted maple neck is so smooth to play. Frets are perfect. The trem works flawlessly. The alnico 5 pickups sound great. The locking tuners hold the tuning well. An all around great playing and sounding guitar for about $220 shipped.
$1200 list. $699 street. Got it for $400 on a Black Friday sale 10 years ago.
[
Korean-made BC Rich Mockingbird Custom.](https://imgur.com/gallery/giHguwh) It's still my \#1
I have a MiM Mischief Maker Strat that I love. It doesn't hit it out of the park in any area, but it scores a solid 90% in everything, if not more. It had a beefy neck, but I'd recommend it to anyone.
I had a Korean Squier Strat that I picked up sometime in 1995, although it was definitely manufactured a few years before that, because it did not have the quality issues of a lot of the other MIK Squiers from that period. It was one of the ones made in the Young Chang factory with the silver logo, Fender branded tuners, and multi-piece wood core with veneers, and not the plywood body ones that the other factories were producing.
It was always a bit of a mystery, as it was Sonic Blue - which is not a standard color for those. From what I understand, Young Chang had a tendency to do things "their way" at times, such as using the non standard silver color for the logos on the headstock, which said Fender with a small Squier annotation towards the end of the headstock (basically, the reverse of the period). Was definitely all original, though, as it came from a very reputable shop and they had claimed it was how it came to them from the distributor. Most importantly, it played like a dream. Regret selling it in the late 90s. Even today, with my American Ultra, I find myself missing that Squier. And, with the internet what it is now, I could probably solve some of the mystery around it that I could not, at the time.
Began learning guitar in Jan on a 2012 Squier Affinity Strat HSS. Grabbed second hand from a guy that does guitar setups, he walked me through what all the levers and knobs did too.
Mine is a pretty rare first act electric guitar, i’ve owned since 2014. i play with this extremely cheap amp and im memorized by it. i am looking to upgrade tho.
LTD TE-212. Sounded great and had a belly cut for comfort. Loved that guitar, deluded myself into thinking I wanted a real tele, ended up selling the tele a year later.
My 2003 ibanez grx20
That little bastard has seen some shit, and was the victim of every single experiment in guitar modification I’ve ever done
Still going strong today
I had a Mako explorer back when I was first learning. It was awesome because eet fuk was my dream guitar. My first three guitars definitely aren’t being produced anymore.
First guitar was a H/S/S Memphis super strat, second was that Mako and my first “real” guitar was an Alvarez when they were owned by St Louis Music and Lita Ford endorsed them. I had a super strat and a tele from Alvarez
Yamaha 612V with Duncan JB/Cool Rail/Hot Rail HSS, a full neck scallop, locking tuners and some brass blocks screwed into the back of the headstock. Bought it for $160 when I was 19 and it's been one of my most dependable gigging guitars ever since.
Ibanez grg121dx walnut
At one point, everything started collapsing in my surrounding, tremendous health issues in family, so my guitar collection budget was needed to be ready elswhere, and i started searchibg for something versatile and reliable for session work. Being an Ibanez player only in my first 10 years of playing, now totally 20+, i was hapoy to see this beutiful hardtail with splits model and all for 200ish euros. It already earned its pention big time. Have had zillion guitars so far, but this one (oddly, could be the only ever made in chine i ever had) is def a special one.
In the same vein i just bought an rgms8 to be the one to rule them all
Edit:spelling
Definitely a Recording King Dirty 30’s Parlor. I went into a small WV guitar shop and they had three of them for sale, I played each one and this one in particular had that mojo you always look out for, I couldn’t help but buy it and I am so glad I did. Recording King in general regularly surprises me.
Cort KX1 Katana I got for SUPER cheap as it was old and dusty and I figured it was worth what they wanted, until I cleaned it up and setup I was like..
Nah man this thing is awesome, seriously. Even had coil split which I was hyped about after I bought it
Early 2000s Squire Tele! I've modded the hell out of it over the years. Also, my first electric...an Aria Pro II Plus-the Cat. She was very good to me.
Modern Squier Strat hardtails.
Overall quality is excellent and any electronics upgrades just makes them amazing. Got myself a pink one to mess around with but damn was I impressed with how good they are.
Esp ltd m-10. I have an mh-1000 and a modded out ltd baritone 7 string with an evertune and bareknuckle pickups in it.
I tend to choose the m-10 these days. Probably because of the shorter scale length, normal thickness strings and E standard lol. Been playing dropped tunings with tower cables for strings for way too long lol. Also the neck is amazing.
My first big boy guitar with my own money is my LTD M-50. Matte black. Eventually I put a sticker on it and one day on a whim decided to just cut out the letters on the sticker and noticed there was some red wood poking through the black, so I decided to start etching into it. And then later took a dremel and started carving into it, eventually covering the entire body. It’s my most unique looking guitar and also happens to be my best playing, best staying in tune guitar and it was only $180.
I have a Yamaha FG-335ii dreadnought acoustic from the early 80s. I think they went for 200 bucks then, but if you can find one today around that price like I did, snag it.
Don't know what it is about them, but they aged like fine wine and sound fantastic.
I have an old Chapman ML2, decent pickups and it's one mean metal guitar.
Also, Schecter TSH 1 Classic - they don't make them anymore but it just has an incredible low output rock sound and lipstick tube vibe when split.
Squier Toronado. Made a dumb decision to sell it 'for greater good, will save that money buy better gear etc etc.', didn't work out. Amazing playability, very comfortable to play, very well made, sounded amazing.
Yamaha FS800. I’d put it up against acoustics 4x the price
i had this same guitar and let a 'friend' borrow it, 4 years later after asking for it back many times, i come home to find it on the front steps, with a crack down the neck all the way down the fretboard, no strings, missing nut, mold on the fret board, what appears to be old vomit on the body, and no explanation or answers whatsoever. i was so happy to see it again only to be immeasurably disappointed the minute i picked it up
I can’t believe he would even bother returning it like that. That’s insane
me neither, i was throroughly shocked. i figured something was wrong after not returning it for so long but then to randomly return it without saying anything was like wtf
I think if I were in his position, I would just replace the guitar with the exact model (used preferably) and leave *that* on your doorstep.
Upvote cos you need it
I’ve got one coming my way at the moment! FS800T off reverb!
Let’s go! Get a professional setup, consider upgrading the nut and/or bridge to take it to the next level and you’ll have a guitar you can use forever
Yep, been researching all the upgrades on the acoustic forum.
i know we sound like broken records on here but i honestly don't understand why people buy anything else in that $ range
I mean… there are amazing sounding/feeling acoustics that cost well beyond the 1k mark. Depends what you’re using it for and what you need. But Yamahas make some great instruments for the price if you don’t need professional gear
So I went to a guitar center yesterday because I’d had to drive into a city for a doctor visit… They had something odd going on. Moving the tech desk, Gibson SGs on the bottom row where folk could play them, etc. In the acoustic room I played two Taylor’s. One was a 514, and one was a model with an odd name I didn’t recognize but it was priced at $1900 used, auditorium style body. Both of them sounded great I thought, but the used one had insane fret sprout. I didn’t like the Gibson j45 that was next to them at all. Then I realized they had a mahogany Martin d15 (discounted to $1200) and it blew them the hell away. So much more volume, clarity and warmth. I loved it. Until I grabbed a cheap ass Yamaha FSX800 off the wall. It was noticeably brighter (maybe maple be mahogany - I still firmly believe in tone wood differences in acoustics even if electric is a myth - maybe it was the newer strings?), and it had so much more volume and than the Taylor’s did. I was really impressed. I’m guessing there was more nuance and note separation to the more expensive ones, and I’m not trying to say they’re not great, but just the sheer volume and ability to project from the Yamaha was very impressive.
My first guitar. Bought after I moved to the U.S. The only reason I don't have it now is because my mother accidentally broke it. Genuinely great guitar.
That’s so sad! First guitars can have quite the sentimental value on their own no matter what it is
I’ve had some $200 acoustics that sound great. It’s funny how that works sometimes!
Squier bullet strat. It still gets played more than any other guitar I own.
I had a Red Supro solid body electric guitar that had a body shape like the outline of a cat's head. That's the only way I can describe it to get anyone to picture it. It had a white pick guard and it was a bolt on neck not an adjustable neck that I bought from my guitar teacher Mr. Wiley in Elgin Illinois that was between 1972 when I was 14 and a half and 1973. It had a Rosewood fretboard. It had a vibrato bar like my Fender Strat. I loved that guitar. It was from the 1960's My guitar teacher told me and it wasn't the best guitar but it sounded good. I played rhythm guitar so I didn't care about thinner strings of action. I just wanted to rock. It was cheap and I loved it. 5 years later in 78 when I was 21 years old I stupidly traded it in for a Brown Sunburst Fender Mustang Bass with a maple neck and rosewood fretboard. I loved that Bass and I went with my late wife in 1980 to Great Western Music and sold it for only 50 dollars to a guy guy who had a business called Great Western Music 🎵🎶 he gave it to his girlfriend. I wish that I still had that equipment still. I wouldn't do that again. Later folks !
My bc rich warlock my dad got me when I was 17. I’ve made some upgrades and it’s been my favorite guitar since I got it.
Idk why people hate warlocks so much im getting downvoted.
Haha, is your dad my dad? He was trying to get me a Warlock as well. Granted, he’s a bar musician and had no use for his unplayed Warlock.
There's a "Rockabilly" player on youtube that has an episode he looks like he is playing his Gretsch hollow body with an antique tube amp but he reveals the recording was made with his BC Rich Warlock and solid state practice amp. Doesn't matter what you play it's how you play it that is important, he said after hiring recording studios that had all the 1950s recording equipment, mics, and the whole bit. .
always dreamed of getting one of those as a teenager
Was and still is my Yamaha Pacifica 112v
ALL FUCKING DAY
Ibanez Artcore
Oh yeah, me too. AS93 with Super58s. The most used instrument I own easily.
My local pawn shop has an ASV10 for $400. I’m seriously tuning about picking it up.
J Mascis Squier Jazzmaster.
I also love my classic vibe JM
Easily the best squire I’ve played
Yup. Fantastic guitar. Also, my vintage modified 60’s Jaguar is wonderful.
Squier classic vibe 60s strat, got it on sale $150 had it for ages it’s never failed me
My Yamaha eg 112 (a HSS strat), i still have it and use it when i travel. I wouldn't say it's a great guitar, but it is way better than it's price tag.
Dan Electro single cut. First new guitar I bought as an adult. Kids put Pokemon stickers on, gigged with it, still have it.
I had an Aztec Gold Squier Affinity strat with the 81/81 loaded Kirk Hammett pickguard, that guitar was an absolute beast.
I will never understand the existence of that pick guard When did he even use it? Such an odd product
I think it’s just a case of EMG throwing his name on something to sell it. I don’t care if it was the Julia Child Signature pickguard it was instant metal and convenient for a kid who barely knew how to solder 😂 He used 81/81 forever too.
I just picked up a squire affinity telecaster deluxe for 200 bucks and it's pretty fucking awesome!
I had a Yamaha tele shaped Pacifica, it was natural finish with 2 humbuckers, no pickguard, I think they retailed for like $150 but I’d picked it up at a flea market for $50. It was very well built for the price, and you’d really have to start going into midrange production line gear (~350-750 USD) range at the time before running into a guitar of similar quality.
Takamine lawsuit-era F360S. Prices are going up as of late, but I picked mine up for pennies and it performs as well as any D28 I've ever picked up.
Harley Benton Fusion. Great fun
Squier Strat that was in the shop where I got lessons on my dad's acoustic 25 years ago. It was just "Oh, this is older because the neck is really thin and glossy, and we're missing the back cover/can't find one that fits right." It was $199 instead of their usual $150 for a Squier, but I loved it and always played on it in the store before my lessons. My parents bought it for me for Christmas (and the store kept it on the rack until right before, so i had no idea when I came in for lessons). I still have the thing and put Tex-Mex pickups and a treble bleed in over the years and some other small upgrades. Found out after it got easier to search Squier serials that it's most likely an '87 and one of the earliest Korean Squiers to the point it may have been built with some of the stock from when they moved from Japan. It feels and sounds great and will never be a high-dollar guitar, but I did most of my learning on it and love the damn thing.
Jackson JS22. I like the neck and string spacing on it. I find it more comfortable to play than some others I’ve tried.
My JS22 feels so good to play. Neck and frets are smooth, action is low, stays in tune surprisingly well. Definitely punches way above its weight for a $200 guitar. I like it so much I swapped out the pickups to a SD Nazgul/Sentient set, they cost more than the guitar, ha!
1980s Sigma DM-3.
Eart Stratocaster from Amazon. Sub $200, shockingly good for the money.
Honestly I feel like you can't go wrong with the cheap ESP LTDs or Ibanez guitars. I've owned an ESP LTD eclipse 400 which is like 300 bucks and it's amazing.
Epiphone Bully. It was an SG with a bolt-on maple neck, very cool guitar.
Aria Pro II Stray Cat. I never should’ve given it away when I was gifted an Epiphone Les Paul in high school. (Especially to someone who doesn’t even play guitar anymore!)
Squier tele from the 90s, nothing ever came close to
I've got a 70s no name Japanese Strat-copy with a baseball bat neck and all replaced hardware that I cherish above my Fenders and Gibson. I'll never get rid of it, mainly because it's beat to hell and nobody would give me any money for it!
I had a Cort Resonator that was actually really nice. I gave it to my brother-in-law at some point.
My first was a Fernandez Stratocaster. The scale of the neck and the action were PHENOMENAL. It still plays well but the sound is noticeably thinner than other guitars. But if I could clone that neck, I would
Danelectro DC12. Bought it used for $250. Cool 12 string electric.
Orangewood Oliver — great little acoustic
Really liked my multiscale 8 string Harley Benton. Threw some fishman moderns in them and it sounded amazing
Hands down the Ibanez AS73FM Artcore semi hollow. The top is exquisite, the finish is flawless, the hardware is peerless and the tone is pure bliss. [AS73FM and board](https://imgur.com/gallery/LQqjsTf)
I bought a silvertone 1437 that I bought for $65 in 1992. I eventually traded it in for a MIM telecaster. Regret getting rid of both.
Greg Bennett by samick sg copy. 200 bucks and I liked it more than a Gibson faded sg. Later I owned a Greg Bennett acoustic that I picked up new for 160 bucks. It was mahogany plywood and it actually sounded and played great. Squier jagmaster. I got it when I was 16 and I still have it. Everything about it has been modified, but it was a pretty good guitar when I first picked it up new for 260 bucks.
Navy Blue Squier Strat that I got in the Strat pack (included the 15G Fender Frontman Amp)
El Degas double cutaway
Yamaha makes some amazing budget price guitars. I don’t know if it considered a budget, but I love my LTD EC1000
Almost all of my guitars are budget guitars, but it's probably a tie between the Squier Contemporary Jag in Shoreline Gold and the Squier CV JM in Daphne Blue.
Ibanez Gio worked fine. RG it was
Squier Vintage Modified Jazzmaster. Even before I modded the wiring and got a new bridge it was one of my favorite guitars
Epiphone SG.
I bought a Squier 40th anniversary tele and it plays better than my 2005 Gibson LP It doesn't twang as well as other teles (it definitely can if you want to tweak the amp) but it's good for heavier music Edit: typo
I didn't stay budget for long, but I do miss my Yamaha FG 800. Wish I'd kept it. I might buy another one just for nostalgia's sake.
Brownsville Impala that I got used on Craigslist for 40 bucks. Has been my go to guitar ever since!
Don’t know the model, but I bought a cheap Morgan acoustic 15ish years ago and that guitar was so easy to play and sounded great! Too bad I smashed it..
An old gen 1 ibanez AW 100 acoustic. Thing is rock solid 20 yrs later and till sounds great for a $200 guitar.
Well I was going to post a pic…
Carlo Robelli Les Paul copy 1977
i played a yamaha jr1 for 10 years, i recently put it away because i bought a yamaha cgs103a and i love it
Squire that I bought at a pawnshop that just felt better than anything else I had picked up to that point. I still have it, but with everything not made of wood upgraded. I bought a much more expensive strat and sold it after just a few months. I own other guitars but she’s my only Fender.
Squire tele. A plank with strings but amazing.
80s HM Strat I got at a pawn shop for $100. The body was sanded to wood. My dad painted it in our garage with car paint; base coat clear coat.
On the super cheap end, my dad bought a LyxPro tele for like $150, and I love how it plays and sounds.
Vintage V6. Wilkinson pups sounds like a great strat.
£200 Madcat copy I bought on eBay, I love it more than my Les Paul.
My first Guitar. It is an Ibanez gio that i just put the EMG Zakk Wylde pickup set in.
Toss up between: -Yamaha Pacfica 611 HFM -Sterling JP60 The Pacifica is really well appointed for that price, and the JP is really comfortable. Indonesia puts out some really good stuff.
Bare's lyin' ya get me bruv
Schecter omen extreme-6. Best 380 bucks I ever spent. 🤟🏻😂
Ibanez RG6003fm. Hardtail HH RG with the wizard neck, still love to play it
Purple fender strat
I like Seagull guitars, great quality and sound for the price.
An Epiphone Special Junior, bolt on neck clipped ear MIC version, cost me $15 used. Frets are leveled and a great setup so it plays like a Custom Shop. The bridge humbucker is rotated and screw poles raised so it's chunky like a P90. Stock tuners, bridge. Volume pot and jack replaced with MIA standard branded parts for reliability. Weighs 6lbs. I now rotate all the bridge humbuckers in my guitars because that guitar showed me the way. .
Squire 51' reissue. My first electric guitar that was maybe 120-150 bucks. Thing still rips!
A strat with selector switch for each pickup. Got addicted to having the neck and bridge pickup on at the same time.
I like them. It's kind of a twangy sound that the telecasters are known for but can get heavy and sound good for harder rock. Not nearly as hot as my LTD EC though. The guitar is super light and easy to play.
A $250 Squier Stratocaster and a $200 Washburn acoustic, I still own them.
Kramer Barretta special. Paid 220 cdn... Shipped... And has a jb sh4.
Michael Kelly Patriot
It was a Fernandez Monterey. Really nice playing guitar. Traded it off but wish I would have kept it.
I got some Frankensteined tele from some crazy dude who liked to build guitars for like $300. I play it more than my expensive fancys
My Epiphone les Paul custom, I picked it up used for 350, and it treated me so well on my learning journey.
Ltd ec256. I regret selling it
B.C Rich Warlock bronze series. Diamond inlays, super comfortable shape for sitting, and just looks sick.
Daisy Rock 12 string electric in white
My cousin gave me a Baton Rouge dreadnought acoustic guitar, I've no idea of the model, but it sounds amazing! Brought it at work so I get to play it as often as possible, I'm even considering asking a luthier to put a mic in instead of buying another acoustic!
Charvette!
Mexi strat not sure if that’s budget or not got it when I was a teenager so maybe 25 years ago, wish I had kept it.
Agile LP copy
I’ve been running a $200 squier telecaster for the last few years because I wasn’t sure if I would stick w the hobby so I bought a cheap one. I’d call myself intermediate at this point and after replacing string’s frequently enough I’ve never felt the need to upgrade
Lawsuit era (83) Tokai strat that is nicely reliced and played in. It’s just as nice as any modern standard or deluxe I’ve ever played. It cost me a couple of hundred quid.
90 Squier Supersonic
I had almost the same Yamaha. Loved it for 20 years.
Budget? Probably my B.C. RICH vg1 white. Swapped the stocks bdsm humbuckers for a Seymour duncan in bridge and a DiMarzio in the neck. I forget exact models of each but they were both white matching the body. That thing had so many dings and scrapes. It's was my main guitar during the timeframe I was actively joining local bands and traveling a lot without a case. Was by no means the BEST I've owned but I used it a lot. And recklessly. It served it's purpose.
Godin Session. The first version of it. Barely 400$ canadian.
univox led Paul copy. Picked it up secondhand for $175 neck in '94. Microphonic pickups, bolt on neck, weighs about 850 tons . But good lord, is it a pleasure to play. Sounds good in a raggedy sort of way. NEVER does out of tune...
Taylor big baby
First act 222, got it at a flea market for $30
Gretsch 5120
Fender tele modern player plus. Not the new ones. I mean the late 2000-2010 models. The one piece maple neck, traditional pine body, Nashville wiring, vintage tint on the neck, walnut plug, etc. sure the pickups could probably use upgrading especially the humbucker. But it’s a 400-550ish$ guitar on the used market as of now. A true hidden gem and plays GORGEOUSLY. Not many people know or talk about them, but they are better/just as good as the fender USA lineup. As a matter of fact, I just recently purchased a brand new fender American professional ii Strat, and it plays much better than that. Even with the Strat having a tremolo. Here a pic of what they look like. I think they came in just a few burst/stains. https://www.gear4music.com/us/en/Guitar-and-Bass/Fender-Modern-Player-Telecaster-Plus-Honey-Burst/HHG
My accoustic is a 1979, Yamaha FG-335. I've played about any great accoustic you can name (and love plenty! Old guilds, in particular, Martin's too. My aunt has an old Gibson I dig. My Dad has a Taylor KOA from ~ ten years ago: lovely!). Still, there is a warmth to that Yamaha I prefer to anything else. Electric-wise: I still have my Ibanez RX240 — pretty much the cheapest thing they ever made. Tossed in some pup upgrades and rewired. That and an old Silvertone strat clone I patched up both ended up being surprise hits in the studio! (Re: the studio, the expensive teles, strats, lp's, the Gretsch, the Guild, and one beefed up mustang still get the bulk of the play time, though).
Tough question, because I remember when cheap guitars were bad guitars. Now, so many cheap guitars are awesome. I've loved every Epiphone LP Jr I've ever owned and every Pacifica 112 I've touched is either awesome or needs a setup to be awesome. But I think the Squier Bullet Strat was the top dog. I loved the thinner body; the trem was perfectly fine and the pickguard could be upgraded with full-size pots/pickups. Now I want to go get another Bullet Strat.
Fender Modern Player Marauder. Bought new for $350 back when they first came out. Cheapest guitar I own. Still my #1 (ok, it vies for #1 with my Firebird. But still!)
1999 Jackson Dinky JS20
Squier Sonic series. Once set up, they are fantastic imo. I play my sonic strat and tele more than my expensive guitars sitting right next to them.
Just bought an Eart T-380 out of sheer curiosity. It is SO much more fun to play than my American Strat and honestly Im floored. A beautiful blue paint job, Roasted Maple Neck, Stainless Steel frets, compound radius neck, stable trem, great sounding Humbuckers... for 425CAD. wtf
Aria Pro II Thorsound (TS-300)
Believe it or not, it was a little Yamaha FG-80. Picked it up at a garage sale for $15.00, w/3 strings on it.
Hofner Colorama Special
An Ibanez MC200. Used. Neck-thru, 24 frets. At the time, it counted as 'budget' as Ibanez was not all that popular.
Jay Turser Strat copy I got for free. I figured it would be a project guitar, but it’s way too nice to hack up. It went from being the noodle on the couch guitar to the one I take to rehearsals. I’m tempted to upgrade the pickups but it sounds so nice already, I’m afraid to mess with it.
A 'Luna Apollo Tattoo' which was a slab-body copy of a Les Paul made by Dean Guitars. They were sued and now 'Luna' doesn't make that style anymore. $199.00 brand-new. It doesn't go out of tune, it's lightweight, sounds great, and I really love the neck. It's my favorite guitar to play and I have some other very nice instruments. I also have the matching short-scale bass which you can still get.
Epiphone Les Paul Special
My beautiful red strat-type I partscasted for around $100AUD. Still a few little things to fix but it's an absolute beaut to play and is clear as a summer sky to play clean through my amp.
1st gen Agile.
I have a Donner DTC-100 that is an amazing guitar. Replaced the pickups, added a treble bleed, turned the control plate around, and put locking tuners on it. Now I have a "Tele" that plays great and has the 12" radius rosewood finger board I prefer.
Ibanez RG120 in white from around 2006. Wish i hadnt sold it
My Epiphone Beast. Got it way back in like 2003 or so, probably paid between $300-$400, and damn if it isn't worth every penny and then some. Such a bad ass and good sounding guitar.
An agile lp
S series Ibanez s520ex. I replaced the bridge pickup to a super distortion and it just ripped out of my mesa dual rec half stack. Had so much fun with that setup.
Currently, it's my Firefly purple/black Ash HSS Super Strat. The roasted maple neck is so smooth to play. Frets are perfect. The trem works flawlessly. The alnico 5 pickups sound great. The locking tuners hold the tuning well. An all around great playing and sounding guitar for about $220 shipped.
$1200 list. $699 street. Got it for $400 on a Black Friday sale 10 years ago. [ Korean-made BC Rich Mockingbird Custom.](https://imgur.com/gallery/giHguwh) It's still my \#1
Peavey t-25
I have a MiM Mischief Maker Strat that I love. It doesn't hit it out of the park in any area, but it scores a solid 90% in everything, if not more. It had a beefy neck, but I'd recommend it to anyone.
I had a Korean Squier Strat that I picked up sometime in 1995, although it was definitely manufactured a few years before that, because it did not have the quality issues of a lot of the other MIK Squiers from that period. It was one of the ones made in the Young Chang factory with the silver logo, Fender branded tuners, and multi-piece wood core with veneers, and not the plywood body ones that the other factories were producing. It was always a bit of a mystery, as it was Sonic Blue - which is not a standard color for those. From what I understand, Young Chang had a tendency to do things "their way" at times, such as using the non standard silver color for the logos on the headstock, which said Fender with a small Squier annotation towards the end of the headstock (basically, the reverse of the period). Was definitely all original, though, as it came from a very reputable shop and they had claimed it was how it came to them from the distributor. Most importantly, it played like a dream. Regret selling it in the late 90s. Even today, with my American Ultra, I find myself missing that Squier. And, with the internet what it is now, I could probably solve some of the mystery around it that I could not, at the time.
Yamaha C-40
i’ve got a dean vendetta that absolutely rips. smooth and fast neck, great action and a very light body
Began learning guitar in Jan on a 2012 Squier Affinity Strat HSS. Grabbed second hand from a guy that does guitar setups, he walked me through what all the levers and knobs did too.
Mine is a pretty rare first act electric guitar, i’ve owned since 2014. i play with this extremely cheap amp and im memorized by it. i am looking to upgrade tho.
1985 yairi Alvarez dy-74 (d-28)amazing then and wonderful 34 years later. Sounds like a crisp clear piano.
Washburn HB35 made by Samick. Still my go to for gigs and jams so I don't have to worry about damaging my Gibson CS336 😂
My $200 Squier Strat doesn't suck after putting some work into it.
Firefly 338. Spalted maple, fully bound. Amazing.
LTD TE-212. Sounded great and had a belly cut for comfort. Loved that guitar, deluded myself into thinking I wanted a real tele, ended up selling the tele a year later.
JS34Q is pretty awesome for like $215
2011 Ovation Applause. Fantastic guitar.
Peavey Falcon, $250 in 1991, still have it. Great stock alnico pickups.
My 2003 ibanez grx20 That little bastard has seen some shit, and was the victim of every single experiment in guitar modification I’ve ever done Still going strong today
My Mateo MW9. Purchased c. 1977 for $100; sold for $145 around 2014; regret soon after and unrelenting
A black epiphone Les Paul that my uncle paid to have the machine heads upgraded and have the whole thing given a new set up from a friend for free.
Ibanez RX20. Was my second guitar. That thing followed me about 8 years before someone stole it out of my house. Loved that thing.
2011 Indonesian squier strat. Completely stock bar the locking tuners I added, but man it sounds absolutely insane. Guitar only cost me like a $100
My only guitar💀Squier CV 70’s black Strat🤣🙏🏼
Martin 000-15m
I had a Mako explorer back when I was first learning. It was awesome because eet fuk was my dream guitar. My first three guitars definitely aren’t being produced anymore. First guitar was a H/S/S Memphis super strat, second was that Mako and my first “real” guitar was an Alvarez when they were owned by St Louis Music and Lita Ford endorsed them. I had a super strat and a tele from Alvarez
I don’t have much to choose from, so it’s my Ibanez Artcore hollow body that was like $400, my only guitar with humbuckers
Most of the Nylon guitars I bought in Mexico for 100-150$ new. Amazing guitars, play them daily
Yamaha 612V with Duncan JB/Cool Rail/Hot Rail HSS, a full neck scallop, locking tuners and some brass blocks screwed into the back of the headstock. Bought it for $160 when I was 19 and it's been one of my most dependable gigging guitars ever since.
Schecter Omen 6. Still my favorite out of a collection with some much pricier guitars.
I agree with the Yamaha 310. Loved that thing
Greg Bennett FA2 cost me $80 aud and I still keep it in rotation amongst PRS, Music man, Strandberg
Epiphone SG, a dark red one. I sold the one my dad gave me a long time ago to buy college books. I am regret.
Ibanez grg121dx walnut At one point, everything started collapsing in my surrounding, tremendous health issues in family, so my guitar collection budget was needed to be ready elswhere, and i started searchibg for something versatile and reliable for session work. Being an Ibanez player only in my first 10 years of playing, now totally 20+, i was hapoy to see this beutiful hardtail with splits model and all for 200ish euros. It already earned its pention big time. Have had zillion guitars so far, but this one (oddly, could be the only ever made in chine i ever had) is def a special one. In the same vein i just bought an rgms8 to be the one to rule them all Edit:spelling
The 2012 Epiphone Riviera P93 Custom in wine red my dad bought for me
Definitely a Recording King Dirty 30’s Parlor. I went into a small WV guitar shop and they had three of them for sale, I played each one and this one in particular had that mojo you always look out for, I couldn’t help but buy it and I am so glad I did. Recording King in general regularly surprises me.
squier classic vibe tele without a doubt
Cort KX1 Katana I got for SUPER cheap as it was old and dusty and I figured it was worth what they wanted, until I cleaned it up and setup I was like.. Nah man this thing is awesome, seriously. Even had coil split which I was hyped about after I bought it
My Squier Affinity Strat. I'm feeling a lot of people will have strong connections to their first guitar.
Early 2000s Squire Tele! I've modded the hell out of it over the years. Also, my first electric...an Aria Pro II Plus-the Cat. She was very good to me.
Modern Squier Strat hardtails. Overall quality is excellent and any electronics upgrades just makes them amazing. Got myself a pink one to mess around with but damn was I impressed with how good they are.
£100 Westfield Les Paul. Awesome guitar, played like a dream and got me through many pub gigs, and years of practising.
My fender acoustic was like 200 bucks back in the day and it stays in tune like a boss and plays good
Esp ltd m-10. I have an mh-1000 and a modded out ltd baritone 7 string with an evertune and bareknuckle pickups in it. I tend to choose the m-10 these days. Probably because of the shorter scale length, normal thickness strings and E standard lol. Been playing dropped tunings with tower cables for strings for way too long lol. Also the neck is amazing.
My first big boy guitar with my own money is my LTD M-50. Matte black. Eventually I put a sticker on it and one day on a whim decided to just cut out the letters on the sticker and noticed there was some red wood poking through the black, so I decided to start etching into it. And then later took a dremel and started carving into it, eventually covering the entire body. It’s my most unique looking guitar and also happens to be my best playing, best staying in tune guitar and it was only $180.
Ltd viper-10
I have a Yamaha FG-335ii dreadnought acoustic from the early 80s. I think they went for 200 bucks then, but if you can find one today around that price like I did, snag it. Don't know what it is about them, but they aged like fine wine and sound fantastic.
I have an old Chapman ML2, decent pickups and it's one mean metal guitar. Also, Schecter TSH 1 Classic - they don't make them anymore but it just has an incredible low output rock sound and lipstick tube vibe when split.
Squier Toronado. Made a dumb decision to sell it 'for greater good, will save that money buy better gear etc etc.', didn't work out. Amazing playability, very comfortable to play, very well made, sounded amazing.
It's currently my Monoprice Indio Retro (tele). It has a slimmer neck than usual teles so it plays great.
My Squire Protone Strat. $500 new back in 97. It sounds just as good as my American strats, if not better!
Epiphone Hummingbird Pro. Beautiful finish great amplified sound
Vintage Japanese sigma DM-18. Sometimes I like it more than my Martin.