Best Electric for Acoustic player?

[Dwills94]

i have always thought gibsons (sg or les paul it doesnt matter) played the most like my acoustics.

[JohnZ]

Originally Posted by Gypsyblue

I'm a Tele player...but I wouldn't suggest a Tele for a first or second electric guitar for most players. I think they are the most difficult of all guitars to get a nice sound out of. When I was a beginning player back in the 60's I'd pick up a 60's Tele and just hear nothing that I liked coming out of my amp. So steely and harsh sounding! I really had to develop some technique before I was man enough to handle a Tele and shape a warm round tone with my hands.

Here's mine: an original 1954. I keep the original bridge and pickups in the tweed case. I have the original white pickguard too, but I like the look of a black bakelite pickguard more. After trying Bill Kirchen's old Tele with Bardens I had to have a set for myself, so I have Joe Barden pickups and a Joe Barden bridge on mine. I'm a big Danny Gatton fan.

Is that an old Super? Man, those old Fender amps have an amazing sound...perfect for that Tele.

[bigsnaketex]

I also agree with the Gibson SG.

I have an SG Special that is amazing. I can leave it untouched for weeks at a time and pick it up and it will still be in tune!!

If you want cheap, get you a Godin SD. It's a great starter electric.

It looks like a marriage between a Tele and a Strat. They are very good guitars, made in Canada but don't cost much at all (and consequently have NO RESALE VALUE!).

If you want classic - get a Tele. There is nothing like the sound. I would suggest not getting the humbuckers on the Tele because to me, that's not the "classic" sound.

The Strat is the most versatile on the market. You can get more sounds than you'll know what to do with. That's why I don't play mine because it does too much and I can't decide which switch to flip!!

I play the SG the mostest.

Good luck with whatever you choose - but remember, one can NOT have too many guitars (unless the wife says so!)

[Pnewsom]

You might consider an archtop guitar. Depending on the model, they can be more electric or more acoustic.
Slimline guitars like the Gibson ES135/175/330/335 line bridge the electric/acoustic world together very nicely.

They also get very nice tones with a lot of texture at low volumes through smaller amps.

[ke2]

I've played a lot more electric than acoustic. If you want to be able to rock out, in addition to play more mellow stuff, I'd go for a Stratocaster. Then get a single coil sized humbucker for the bridge position. Take down the tone control, and you have a well rounded neck tone. Full tilt on the bridge humbucker, and you can do most rock music as well, plus blues. It's in my view the most versatile electric guitar with a little modification. You can also get Strats with a humbucker. And of course endless variations on the model. Suhr, Tyler, MIM Strat, Squier.. It's really the budget that sets the limit. The guitar won't limit you with the right setup


edit:
You can even wire the humbucker splittable and parallell with a 3-way switch. The Seymour Duncan Hot Rails in parallell sounds really great for raunchy "rock" tones.

[fullsmile]

All I have to say is thanks for all of the input. For some stupid reason I thought it would be easier to choose an electric than an acoustic. Guess I was wrong and I am going to have to put in some serious playing time. Hopefully I can avoid GAS while I am doing it.

[anton]

After years playing acoustic I have been thinking about getting an electric just for some variety and different recorded tones. This thread has provided some good information, thanks all.

[mikealpine]

One other thought is the Epiphone Ultra 3; it's a chambered Les Paul style and has an acoustic pickup as well. You can blend, split, and do other funky things.

[harmonics101]

Wow, this thread came back at an opportune time

I was asking about a Gibson Les Paul Standard 2012 model.

Well, guess what.

I think this model is good for those rhythm guitarists, with the clean through and the extra gain signal available by the push pull pot knobs (love saying that)



I just ordered one so I can tell you how I like it when it comes in.

I am very much an acoustic guitar person.

Last electric I got was 35 years ago when I was 15 years old.

Yeah, should be fun getting back and dabble in a little electric

Harmonics101

[Live4Guitars]

Yeah, 335 family for sure. I tell all my students the same and it always works out well. In fact, Ibanez actually has a line that is under $250 and I am telling you, they are awesome!

[leeasam]

Just played the guitar I will be buying next. PRS P22. AMAZING guitar and probably the most versatile I have ever played. 5 way switching on the humbuckers and a LR BAGGS designed piezo bridge. ALL of which you cna run humbuckers only- mix of HBs amd piezo or just piezo. I was not worried about electric tone so I tired it though a Genz Benz 150LT acoustic amp. WOW! great acoustic tone. AND this is a SOLID BODY! makes any Taylor T5 I have played sound like crap. Also you can not do with a T5 what you can do with this. play BOTH acoustic and electric together. Has two cable outputs so a person does not need a A-B-Y box to feed both electric amp and PA at same time.

When I was playing it I fooled a few people who thought I had an acoustic running though the amp until they walked into room and saw me with the electric P22.
Here was the one I played. Love the Black Gold wrap around finish

[ridethatbike]

Heritage 535 if you want a full size semihollow. If you want a more LP type sound, a Heritage Prospect or Gibson 339 are great as well.
Strats are fun, I had a Road Worn 50's style that had a great neck, and a great strat sound. Tele's are fun too. If you want either style of those, G&L makes great guitars in this genre.

Heritage and G&L are both premium builders that do stuff better (imho) than how Fender/Gibson have "evolved". They have great pricing as well, especially in the used market. GL, and play lots of guitars before you make up your mind.

As for amps, a Fender Blues Jr III gets 80% of the tone you could want (outside of super-high gain) for a reasonable price.

[Yamartin]

Although I love the tone of a Gibson ES-335, and it's a beautiful instrument (1970 Walnut finish), I just can't get comfortable with the one I have (borrowed). I find it heavy and bulky. The original owner didn't care for it much either, much preferring his old L-5. Might try the ES-339, which is a little smaller than the 335, and should be more comfortable. Or, take a look at the Loar, which I think is a copy of the L-5.

[pitner]

I am an acoustic player first and an electric player second. My best sounding electric that feels like an acoustic to me is my Charvel Surfcaster in sea foam green with lip stick tube pickups and no tremelo. They are out of production but can be had used for $1,600 or so. My second electric in this mind set would be my American Standard Hard Tail Stratocaster which are availble new for $1,000 or so. Play tons of guitars to help with the final choice.

[Billm2067]

Most guitar players who play acoustic quite a bit become very interested in the tone of their guitars and develop a good ear. The sparkle and bloom of a good guitar is something that you look for in any guitar. There are not alot of electric guitars that have that kind of tone. For me I find the tone that I like from strat's and tele's. Single coil pickups just have a more acoustic sparkle to them. Tele's can be hard to get great tone from and require some technique....but they are great guitars. A really good strat almost has a hollow body tone (I swear the springs give it some of that quality). The PRS referenced earlier shares alot of these traits as it has a tremolo and has coil taps to create single coil pickup settings. I also find the 22 fret necks on fender (and PRS custom 22's) guitars seems easier for me to get around on.