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  #1  
Old 11-15-2022, 04:17 AM
Cri75! Cri75! is offline
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Default If I will buy an electric, which do you suggest?

Hi there,
I have 5 acoustic, 2 classical, and 3 steel strings.
I also have a Yamaha silent slg200n but it is 2-3 years I am tempted to buy a steel string electric one.
I am mainly interested in playing jazz or classical, folk manly fingerpicking and absolutely with clean tones (no overdrive etc..)
I thought a 335 style would be the right one, but I am also attracted to the telecaster style. I like that the 335 has the jack in on the front of the panel and not on the side... generally I keep the side on my leg...similar to the classical posture.
I am thinking about an entry-level one, like Squier, Epiphone, etc... may be even a secondhand one...
It is only curiosity, I do not know if I will like it or if I play it a lot, so I do not want to spend much...it is also true that I also do not want to buy a crap one.

...any suggestion or opinion will be appreciated.
Thanks in advance.
Bye

P.S. I cannot stand the 60-cycle hum noise, so I suppose that the only option it is with humbuckers, even if from what I can say fro youtube videos, I like a lot also the p90.
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Old 11-15-2022, 05:57 AM
JackC1 JackC1 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Cri75! View Post
It is only curiosity, I do not know if I will like it or if I play it a lot, so I do not want to spend much...
A lot of the tone in a normal electric guitar comes from the amp so you must figure in that cost (2 main types: tube, solid state, digital modeler).

If you like your silent guitar (which is a modeler), you might be ok with the Variax, which is a modeler like your silent guitar and can save you on the amp cost.
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Old 11-15-2022, 07:12 AM
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A Classic Vibe Tele might fit the bill. Better yet, a used made-in-china Classic vibe (pre 2017 I think) would be a great choice.

Finding one with hum buckers is a little harder but they were made with that set up.

I have a 2010 Classic Vibe 60s Strat and I am very impressed with the workmanship, playability, and sound.
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Old 11-15-2022, 07:14 AM
Cri75! Cri75! is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JackC1 View Post
A lot of the tone in a normal electric guitar comes from the amp so you must figure in that cost (2 main types: tube, solid state, digital modeler).

If you like your silent guitar (which is a modeler), you might be ok with the Variax, which is a modeler like your silent guitar and can save you on the amp cost.
Hi, Luckily, I already have a couple of amplifiers: a Roland mobile cube and a ZT lunchbox.
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Old 11-15-2022, 07:17 AM
Cri75! Cri75! is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mbroady View Post
A Classic Vibe Tele might fit the bill. Better yet, a used made-in-china Classic vibe (pre 2017 I think) would be a great choice.

Finding one with hum buckers is a little harder but they were made with that set up.

I have a 2010 Classic Vibe 60s Strat and I am very impressed with the workmanship, playability, and sound.
Thanks, Probably you are right the tele is the right choice In my case.
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Old 11-15-2022, 07:25 AM
Harmony123 Harmony123 is offline
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You could try a Harley Benton - they are inexpensive and very good value for the money:

https://harleybenton.com
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Old 11-15-2022, 08:06 AM
rmp rmp is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Cri75! View Post
Thanks, Probably you are right the tele is the right choice In my case.
you can find telecasters with humbuckers, the more traditional setups will have single coils.


since you mentioned you don't like the "hum", you could get a noise suppressor. That will kill any unwanted hums
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Old 11-15-2022, 08:36 AM
Steve DeRosa Steve DeRosa is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Cri75! View Post
...I am mainly interested in playing jazz or classical, folk manly fingerpicking and absolutely with clean tones (no overdrive etc..)...I do not want to spend much...it is also true that I also do not want to buy a crap one...any suggestion or opinion will be appreciated...

P.S. I cannot stand 60-cycle hum noise, so I suppose that the only option it is with humbuckers, even if from what I can say fro YouTube videos, I also like the P-90 a lot...
You might want to consider a full-size hollowbody electric, not only the quintessential jazz guitar but very similar in size and feel to your steel-string acoustics - something like this, which just happens to be available in both humbucker and P-90 versions:



https://godinguitars.com/product/5th...b-cognac-burst
https://godinguitars.com/product/5th...i-cognac-burst

Not exactly super-cheap, but speaking as the owner of the P-90 version an excellent value that feels/sounds/plays like a more expensive guitar - Tony Bennett's guitarist was using one for several years on the road, and I'd tend to think that both he and Tony know a little something about good tone...
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Old 11-15-2022, 09:16 AM
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As always, the best advice is to get out to the store and play some guitars.

I've been flirting with the idea of an electric for a while and I would just go to GC and play a few and it would hold me over for a while. Then I started getting more serious. Last time I went I played Epi 335 and LP, and Fender and Squire Tele and Strat. The Squire Tele was the heaviest of all by a lot. I liked the Epi 335's the best, and I was surprised that I like the gold finish a lot.

Last week I got an Epi 335 in traditional burst and I'm really liking my choice. It's very well made, with no flaws that I can see. It came very well set up; I just filed the nut slots slightly, lowered the base side string height 1/64, and set the intonation. I also picked up a Fender Champion 20, as a place holder, and I'm finding my way into, what is to me, some good tones.

Right now GC is giving you until the end of January to evaluate and 15% off on non sale items. If you really don't know what you want you can get something and try it for a while the try something else. I don't think you can beat that.

When I was trying amps, I used a 335, a LP, and a SG. Now I want an SG to go with my 335!

Last edited by lowrider; 11-15-2022 at 12:51 PM.
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Old 11-15-2022, 09:48 AM
SCVJ SCVJ is offline
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I have three Harley Benton electrics - copies of a Telecaster, a Les Paul and a Jazzmaster. I'm very satisfied with all three of them. HB offers a very large selection of body types and pickup combinations. HB gets lots of good reviews on forums in general - here, on the Telecaster forum (tdpri.com) and on The Gear Page (thegearpage.net).

Given the low price and high cost-to-value ratio you could try one or more of their models to decide what kind of electric suits you best, then buy a higher-end version of that one if you like. The HB could then easily be sold at very little loss or kept as a backup.

I think HBs are only sold by Thomann, who are located in Germany. The cost of shipping to the US adds quite a bit to the cost for us here. Since you are in Europe the cost may be lower. For US sales the shipping cost if you buy two guitars is not much more than when you buy one. I don't know if that applies to shipping costs in Europe. Dealing with Thomann was very easy and efficient, and the shipping was quick, even though I live in the western US.
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Old 11-15-2022, 10:53 AM
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Don't limit yourself to Fender/Squier or Gibson/Epiphone. There are LOTS of good guitars out there besides those brands. Gretsch, PRS, Ibanez, G&L, Yamaha, Guild, Reverend, etc. all have offerings in all sorts of price ranges. The SE line from PRS is particularly good bang for the buck with amazing quality for the price.

Coming from an acoustic background, you might find the larger body size of the ES-335 a better fit than something like a Telecaster. If so, Gretsch, Ibanez, Guild and lots of others have similar sizes. For example, my Gretsch 5622 is about the same size and is very comfortable to me. Also, I have found the ES-339 size to be a great in-between size. My Epiphone Alley Kat is that size and I like it a lot.

My advice is to go to a guitar store and handle a lot of them. You'll notice a wide variety of not only body shapes, but neck sizes, profiles, thicknesses and materials. If you're like most of us, you'll likely find some that work for you and some that don't.

In terms of form vs. function, function is king and form is secondary. I'll buy an ugly guitar that fits and works for me vs. a pretty guitar that doesn't.
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Old 11-15-2022, 10:56 AM
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I 2nd Steve's recommendation on the Godin, but as has been said before "you will want a Telecaster" - go used MIM
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  #13  
Old 11-15-2022, 10:58 AM
lowrider lowrider is offline
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Lot's of people think they want a Telecaster until they play a few.

I'm one of them.
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Old 11-15-2022, 11:32 AM
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a Telecaster

i have tons of acoustics and only 1 electric and its a Tele

but we all have our our pref and taste
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Old 11-15-2022, 12:23 PM
Glennwillow Glennwillow is offline
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I think an Epi 335 or one of the Godin jazz guitars that Steve showed are your best bets.

My first guitar was a Gibson ES-335. It's still my favorite. I have a Les Paul, a Stratocaster, a Telecaster, a very nice Eastman AR910EC, a Rickenbacker 360 12-string, and still, of all those, my ES-335 still gets the most playing time.

The ES-335 is a good jazz guitar, but can also be used for just about anything else. Chuck Berry used essentially an ES-335 on Johnny B Goode.

For fingerstyle playing and straight up jazz, I play my Eastman AR910 a fair amount. The Godin that Steve listed is going to be very similar.

Certainly, a Telecaster can be used for jazz, but it is quite heavy, and doesn't really have the resonance of a 335 type guitar.

Just my two cents from someone who has a fair number of classic electric guitars.

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