The "This guitar makes me a better player" thread ;-)

[Jimi75]

Hey folks,

I bet everyone of us has experienced the following situation. You get to a point where you feel like not improving with your playing. You start thinking what could be the reason and soon you find out that it is another guitar that you need ;-) A "better" or "different" one. You plan on making a clear cut and become a better player on guitar x or y. After more than two decades of playing the guitar, I came across this situation two times - no big secret. I would like to underline that of course not every buy is out of the above mentioned motivation/reason!

When I look back I can track two guitars and one amp that really opened the door to better playing. To me it were the following:

1. ESP Custom Shop Mirage
This was my 3rd guitar and man, coming from a cheapo chinese Strat copy to a Custom Shop guitar was unbelievable. Playability and tone inspired me. The feel of that instrument was perfect and it suited my style very well...the style I played at that time.

2. Jimmie Vaughan Strat
It was the first Strat I bought back in 1997 I think. I was seriously getting into playing SRV and Jimi stuff. Still the ESP was my only guitar, my number 1, but it didn't offer the sounds and the feel for the music I was diving into. Soon the Jimmie Vaughan Sig became my new number 1. I highly doubt I would have hung in there with the ESP only.

3. Line6 Flextone I amp. I was buying pedals and multieffects regularly. Put them in front of my Marshall transistor amp, but I was never satisfied. I was a poor boy, really, had to work day and nightime jobs to afford a new amp, but still I had not enough for a real tube amp. I then checked the Flextone and it was love at first sight. This thing gave me all sounds I would ever need and I could jump from Blues to Country to Metal within seconds. Now there were no more sound boundaries. Guitar playing became three times the fun it already was and together with my new Strat I was ready to hit the road for the Blues :-)

How 'bout you guys? What was your ticket to better playing? :AOK

[Lev]

I'd have to say my US deluxe HSS Strat. I bought it new in 2006 and it brought my love for playing the guitar to a new level. It opened up sounds that were previously out of reach (think Mayer, SRV, Andy Summers, Knopfler) but also excelled at harder rock tones that I had been more interested in up to that point. I read a lot of stuff about HSS strats not being 'real' strats but I just don't buy it. This guitar can give any traditional strat tone and in a flick of a switch give you convincing AC/DC or Metal tones.

The neck just fits my hand perfectly and I feel really at home playing this guitar, it's like an extension of my hands and I feel in tune with what it can do. I never feel limited in any way by the instrument and as such allows my brain to concentrate on being creative.

A couple of cosmetic issues that I have with it - at times I HATE the Gold scratch plate. I've tried changing it but nothing else works because the black paint also contains gold sparkle. The poly finish also means that it'll never get my 'stamp' on it. I've done quite a few gigs with this and it has a few knocks and dings but the paintwork is bullet proof. I'd kinda like it to show the wear and tear as it's 'my' wear and tear and not shop bought relicing.

Overall though this guitar will be with me until they put me in a box. It is part of me!


http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/ff250/plevins/Gear.jpg

[deeaa]

Well, I can't say, unless I count the very first proper axe way in the 80's - a Charvel 3 - that any guitar felt like a huge improvement on my playing and inspired it a lot. Instead, I feel when I got rid of my Fender type amps and went Marshall-style, that opened up entirely new an inspiring issues.

Before that I played with heavy-gauge sets, mainly rhythm, lots of semi-clean stuff, but after I geared towards the Marshall bite I suddenly turned to slinkier strings and started playing lead bits and overall got inspired by guitar once again - and I was very near to quit it, actually didn't even own a single amp for almost two years in between and kept selling off my gear one by one as unnecessary.

[Tig]

Starting out, most of us didn't have the money to spend on anything nice, or didn't want to invest much not knowing if we would stick with it. Cheap gear really was cheap and difficult to play. It likely sounded like crap, too.

When you upgraded, it was easier to play the better guitar, adjust action and tone controls, and the electronics and pickups helped achieve tones once dreamed of. Most importantly, you played more often with the better gear because you didn't have to fight it like the cheaper stuff, and as we know, playing more and playing on a regular basis makes us a better guitarist.

My first electric was a Les Paul copy in '83 that was typically cheap, wouldn't stay in tune, and hard to play. I replaced it with a basic yet decent quality Ibanez pointy guitar, and the world of music was suddenly easier to reach.

Going from a solid state amp to a touch sensitive tube amp forced improved finger and pick technique.

[Spudman]

My first good quality guitar was a Stratocaster back in 1976. I bought it new that year at Marguerite's Music in Moorhead Minnesota 500 miles from my home. They are the largest independent dealer in the midwest and when I walked in, fresh off the farm, I nearly fell over when I saw walls and walls of guitars. I knew though that I would be able to find a good guitar there so I tried many. The Strat went home with me and was my faithful companion for many years. Although I was earning a living with it and becoming very creative, it wan't until I had my Ibanez Artist stolen while on the road that a change in playing came about for me. I traded an acoustic for a brand new Ibanez Musician so that I had a backup guitar. That guitar was easier to play than anything I'd ever experienced. I could move more fluidly and nuances were better pronounced on that guitar. It was an eye opener.

I eventually sold that and have in the past 20 years gone through more than 50 guitars only to come full circle with another Ibanez but even more so with a Musicman Luke. I had an OLP Luke copy and was astounded how it sounded in recordings and how well it played. The neck fit my hand perfectly. I figured that if the OLP was this good then the real deal must be incredible. I was right. A very well made guitar indeed. Recently I was watching some gig videos and when footage came up where I was playing that guitar there was a noticeable improvement in tone and phrasing and fluidity. Noticeable. The only issue I have is that it's an expensive guitar and I worry about it when I'm playing the local honky tonks. Still, it definitely upped the game for me playing wise.

As I mentioned earlier another Ibanez has rekindled creativity and technique variation. That guitar is the ART300. It has active electronics and it is just a ballsy guitar. There is something about it that really lights me up. It's easy to play, has a wide variety of sounds, is light and looks cool. That guitar has definitely gotten me to play with more aggression and more heavy, and that is something I haven't done before. In essence it took me out of my box.

I too had an amph leave a big impression on me. It wasn't mine but was one I used at an open mic years ago. It was a Fender Bassman reissue. That amp made it so easy to play with any degree of subtlety, finesse, or whatever more so than any amph I've ever used. It seemed to just suck my notes and thoughts right out of the guitar without almost any effort on my part. It made playing easy and very toneful. It was incredibly musical sounding, yet too big and too loud for me on a regular basis. I've not found the feeling that amph gave me since then, but I'll keep looking.

[progrmr]

I've had two that seemed to fit me just perfectly and I sold them both off...stupid...ugh.

1) Epiphone Les Paul Custom - I can't tell you exactly what it was about this guitar, but it was just freakin' perfect. Ebony fretboard might have been part of it but I swore I'd never sell it off. And then I did. I must have another one.

2) MIM Fender FSR Ash Strat - again, this thing fit me perfectly. I loved playing it. Again I sold it when I thought I'd only play bass.

Both of these guitars were special. It was rare that I'd have 2 guitars at the same time that fit so well. I think I have six guitars now and while they're all great guitars none of them have that "special" vibe about it. The Agile Harm is pretty close (EDIT: and the new Epi Korina Explorer), but then again they are all pretty close - not there.

[mapka]

The object that propelled me was a new set of pups and the right strings! I always loved my Telecaster. Loved the feel of the guitar and the neck but was never happy with the pups. Not much volume or tone in those stock pups. Switched in a set of Wilde Bill Keystones and it changed the whole guitar. Now it sounds like the Telecaster in my head! :) Added a four position switch and some 9's and it is everything I want. Some songs do require an LP sound and sadly the Telecaster does not do them well. I always liked to play but now with the tones this guitar can produce, I find myself trying to be more precise and trying different things.

[marnold]

I don't think any guitar truly makes you a better player. It's just a matter of finding what you like. When you start off, you know who you want to play like but that's about it. Do I like humbuckers or single coils or P90s? Do I like/need a tremolo and if so, must it float? Do I prefer Gibson or Fender scale? Do I prefer thin, shredder-type necks or big ol' baseball bats? Glossy or satin finish on the neck? Passive or active? What body wood or fretboard wood? More Strat-shaped or more Les Paul-shaped (or something else)? Flat fretboards or vintage or something in between? Big ol' frets or itty bitty ones? Etc., etc., etc. There are some things that everybody needs: pots that work, electronics that don't crackle, tuners that actually keep it in tune. Beyond that it is so terribly subjective that it takes a newbie years to find out what they really like. Unfortunately, most of us have to learn the hard way. It took me ten years to get around to my DK2M. I finally know what I like. I'm probably a better player now just because I'm freed from thinking "This guitar would be better if . . ."

[Commodore 64]

The only thing I've figured out thus far is that I hate tremolos and whammy bars. At least I can deck a Fender trem and everything's cool. With a FR trem, you still have that stupid annoying string change crap, as well as having to lock the nut and use those stupid microtuners.

[Tibernius]

For my it's my Schecter Tempest. My first pro-quality guitar, and it just suits my playing style perfectly. It plays much easier than my previous guitars so I've played it more. It stays in tune better, sounds better, and it was the first guitar I got which actually intonated properly. :AOK


The only thing I've figured out thus far is that I hate tremolos and whammy bars. At least I can deck a Fender trem and everything's cool. With a FR trem, you still have that stupid annoying string change crap, as well as having to lock the nut and use those stupid microtuners.

I'm with you on that one, can't stand the things. Being able to do diving/ascending unison bends is about the only thing I've found them good for and that gets old pretty quickly for me. Each to their own though.


I don't think any guitar truly makes you a better player. It's just a matter of finding what you like.
...
Beyond that it is so terribly subjective that it takes a newbie years to find out what they really like. Unfortunately, most of us have to learn the hard way. It took me ten years to get around to my DK2M. I finally know what I like. I'm probably a better player now just because I'm freed from thinking "This guitar would be better if . . ."

I think I've finally got to that point as well now. I've gone through one of everything:

Superstrat (Bridge humbucker, hardtail)
Les Paul copy
Strat copy (x3)
Telecaster copy
PRS copy
Schecter Tempest (Double cutaway LP style)
"Pointy" (Jackson RR style body with 24 frets, ultra thin neck and a Floyd Rose)
Dean Flying V

And I've finally decided on what I'm after: 24+3/4" scale, Set neck or Neck-through, slightly thinner neck than a gibson, Jumbo or Extra Jumbo Frets, 12"-14" radius, 2 humbuckers, tune-o-matic bridge and a double-cut or Flying V body.

I just can't adapt to the 25.5" scale on the others. I can't stand bolt-on necks either, the heel just gets in the way too much when I'm playing. And since I never use the tremolo on any of my guitars that have one I'd rather have something that doesn't have the tuning problems of one.

It's even got to the point where I'm considering selling the other guitars to buy another Tempest or V 'cause I just don't play them, and when I do I'm just thinking "I hate this scale length/I hate this Floyd Rose/I hate not having humbuckers". :(

[Spudman]

For my it's my Schecter Tempest. My first pro-quality guitar, and it just suits my playing style perfectly. It plays much easier than my previous guitars so I've played it more. It stays in tune better, sounds better, and it was the first guitar I got which actually intonated properly. :AOK

I could get by quite nicely on a Tempest myself. That is the one guitar at Guitar Center, last time I went to one, that really inspired me while I was in the store. Played great and had a ton of tonal options. Very nice machine.

[Commodore 64]

My coworker bought a Tempest last year. It's a pretty nice guitar.

And reading Tibernius's post made me remember that I am also developing a preference for frets. I seem to like smaller frets. I don't have the hand control yet, and I seem to squeeze/press pretty hard, and on jumbo frets I tend to pull chords and notes sharp.

Notice this most on my Jackson (huge frets), SX Tele (big frets) and 2008 MiM Tele (whatever is stock, they are bigger than my early 90s MiM strats and tele).

My Ibby Artcore also has nice small, (vintage, I assume) frets. Diggin's those smaller frets more and more.

[marnold]

Hmm, this thread made me want to ask another question (http://www.thefret.net/showthread.php/17840-Favorite-Guitar-Specs).

[Eric]

I don't think any guitar truly makes you a better player. It's just a matter of finding what you like. When you start off, you know who you want to play like but that's about it. Do I like humbuckers or single coils or P90s? Do I like/need a tremolo and if so, must it float? Do I prefer Gibson or Fender scale? Do I prefer thin, shredder-type necks or big ol' baseball bats? Glossy or satin finish on the neck? Passive or active? What body wood or fretboard wood? More Strat-shaped or more Les Paul-shaped (or something else)? Flat fretboards or vintage or something in between? Big ol' frets or itty bitty ones? Etc., etc., etc. There are some things that everybody needs: pots that work, electronics that don't crackle, tuners that actually keep it in tune. Beyond that it is so terribly subjective that it takes a newbie years to find out what they really like. Unfortunately, most of us have to learn the hard way. It took me ten years to get around to my DK2M. I finally know what I like. I'm probably a better player now just because I'm freed from thinking "This guitar would be better if . . ."
I'm not sure if I totally agree with this. If you like a guitar better, you'll play it more, play better, etc. In that way, it does make you a better player, particularly if you've gone from crappy, hard-to-play guitars to a good one. Sure, your skill might be the same and you just sound better on a nicer guitar, but what's your measure of how good of a guitar player someone is? How they sound, right? Or is it the notes they could play if they used high-end equipment?

Anyway...good points about figuring out what you want. I'm still working on finding out my own preferences.

To the point of the original thread, I guess a big turning point for me was when I bought my Agile AL-3100. It really made me love to play it and was sort of my gateway guitar into bigger and better things. It's still my #1 axe.

I haven't had many epiphanies in the world of amps. Maybe most of my revelations in guitars and amps is yet to come...

[MAXIFUNK]

I started out as a Bass player the journey to find the perfect bass for was not easy considering the size of my hands and the style of music I wanted to play.

My 1st real Bass was a Peavey T-40 but soon after getting that I was given a Fender Jazz bass, which Lead to a Music Man, which lead to an Alembic, which led to a BC Rich Bich with built in effects galore, Which led to a Kramer Stick bass.

I still have the T-40 but never play it its more of a collector piece for me my 1st real bass.

I wish I had never sold the the Alembic the best bass I ever played or owned hands down but sold it to fund a move out state.

The BC Rich Bich was a custom shop piece less than 50 where made. More of a WOW factor bass visually but it did have tons of great tones Sold it for 3 grand more than what I paid for it. You might think Great deal NOT they are now worth 10 to 15 grand more than I paid for it and would say it was my 2nd best bass I owned.

The music man bought I because Louis Johnson and Mark Adams played them never really bonded with the neck way to big and chunky for my hands sold for what I paid for it so nothing ventured nothing gained.

The Fender Jazz bass was a gift from my Dad's best friend a white Larry Graham copy. Sounded great but once again never bonded with the neck. since it was a gift I held onto it for a very long time eventually sold it to a collector friend of mine who was the sound dude for the Stones he stills has it and gigs with it back in Chicago.

The Kramer Stick a Steinberger copy was strictly an impulse buy it was on sell 60% off so why not. Honestly not a bad bass at all but it just lacked something sold it to kid in LA in 91 who knows what happen to it after that.

Then in 2007 after about 15 years of not playing music I decided I need to play again to feel whole if you know what I mean.
I try out an Ibanez SR-500 and it was love at 1st thump the neck outside of my Alembic was the best neck for my hands I ever played. Active pickups could do all genres of music. The 1st time I played "Lady Cab Driver" by Prince on that sucker I knew I had to have it. sure I tried other manufactures but none came close.

Not sure if it makes me a better bassist but I do know for certain if your playing an axe you love you'll woodshed more which in turns improves your playing thus you become a better player/musician.

I still have that SR-500 its not going anywhere there are 4 Ibanez SR series basses on my gas list one will be bought this year for sure.
On the list is:

1a. http://www.ibanez.com/BassGuitars/model-SR1200E the wood on this axe and big fat pickups take me away to funk Heaven.
1b. http://bass-guitars.musiciansfriend.com/product/Ibanez-SRT900DX-Electric-Bass-Guitar?sku=H08782 I think this axe is discontinued (no longer on the Ibanez site) so as soon as the price drops I'm all over it. Neck-thru with Active EMG'S droll droll droll.

Both of these Prestige Basses I want badly but only if Mama smiles on me big time!!
Honestly if I buy either of the other 2 these are more "I've always wanted one" type thing nothing I need Honestly but BOY OH BOY DO I WANTED THEM!!! :)
2a. http://www.ibanez.com/BassGuitars/model-SR5000E
2b. http://www.ibanez.com/BassGuitars/model-SR4500E