What guitar gear have you bought/are you buying/will you buy?

[pekbro]

A problem for me is that there are many nice guitars by other makers that surely are in the run against
the Fender Ultra Series. Shur, G&L to name just 2. They are at least close to the price of the Ultras,
mostly a little more seemingly. These 3rd party guitars are the ones giving me pause. If I'm going to spend that much anyway. Do I really want a Fender? I dunno...

[resynthesis]

Not sure about your neck of the woods, but in the UK there's not much difference in price between a new Ultra and a second hand Custom Shop. The Ultras are nice guitars (although the pups didn't do it for me) but, personally, I think many of the Custom Shop guitars are a cut above.

I've been aiming to get a Tele for years and I think the main reason I haven't got one is the choice paralysis from having so many outstanding guitars available. Well, that and living in a bit of a backwater which makes trying guitars difficult! First world problems though...

[Uncle E]

Best Fender I’ve ever played was a Suhr.

So much chime, better than any other noiseless pickup I’ve used.

[pekbro]

Not sure about your neck of the woods, but in the UK there's not much difference in price between a new Ultra and a second hand Custom Shop. The Ultras are nice guitars (although the pups didn't do it for me) but, personally, I think many of the Custom Shop guitars are a cut above.

I've been aiming to get a Tele for years and I think the main reason I haven't got one is the choice paralysis from having so many outstanding guitars available. Well, that and living in a bit of a backwater which makes trying guitars difficult! First world problems though...

Not too much in the way of Luthiers here I think, a few, but they only want to make the kinds
of guitars they want to make. I don't think I could afford getting them to make the kind of
guitar I would want them to make. Lot's of options for Ukuleles, if only I wanted one of those.

I know my friend the rockstar has had them assembled here from parts by local techs. That would
probably be my only option, other than trying to make one. That would not be as impossible as
it might seem, I am really quite handy at working with wood when I want to be, though I probably
don't have the time or ambition for that.

The Fender Ultra's are the only guitars I could actually try before buying around here.
*That's not a big deal though, I'm not that good of a guitar player for that to matter overly.

Best Fender I’ve ever played was a Suhr.

So much chime, better than any other noiseless pickup I’ve used.

Right Suhr, that was the name lol. I like the sound of that though, I have been looking at them,
though they are more expensive than the Fenders.

[WatchTheGuitar]

I'm sure when I started looking in guitar shops, early 80's, made in Japan Fenders were vaunted as better made than the Made in USA ones. Is this part of that pre-CBS/CBS period? Must admit I don't really know that much about it as Fenders were never my main objects of guitar desire.

[pekbro]

I had a Japanese Strat, it was nothing special I thought. I wanted the American, but had no money as a teenager. Mostly I wanted the maple neck and finger board as it was rosewood and somethin. I wasn't much of a guitar player back then though.

[Uncle E]

I'm sure when I started looking in guitar shops, early 80's, made in Japan Fenders were vaunted as better made than the Made in USA ones. Is this part of that pre-CBS/CBS period? Must admit I don't really know that much about it as Fenders were never my main objects of guitar desire.

Pre CBS is before 1966. Early 80’s is the Paul Rivera era. I’ve heard that early- to mid-90’s was the best era of Japanese Fenders. John Suhr was Fender’s master builder in the mid 90’s. The 80’s Japanese Strat I owned sounded amazing but played terribly.

[WatchTheGuitar]

I'm sure when I started looking in guitar shops, early 80's, made in Japan Fenders were vaunted as better made than the Made in USA ones. Is this part of that pre-CBS/CBS period? Must admit I don't really know that much about it as Fenders were never my main objects of guitar desire.

Pre CBS is before 1966. Early 80’s is the Paul Rivera era. I’ve heard that early- to mid-90’s was the best era of Japanese Fenders. John Suhr was Fender’s master builder in the mid 90’s. The 80’s Japanese Strat I owned sounded amazing but played terribly.

Ah ok. I have an early 90s Tokai HSS strat that’s half decent, came with a Kahler locking trem system that I could never get on with so I removed it, but it still never had anything like the tuning stability of a hardtail.

[Synthack]

......

[resynthesis]

I'm sure when I started looking in guitar shops, early 80's, made in Japan Fenders were vaunted as better made than the Made in USA ones. Is this part of that pre-CBS/CBS period? Must admit I don't really know that much about it as Fenders were never my main objects of guitar desire.

Pre CBS is before 1966. Early 80’s is the Paul Rivera era. I’ve heard that early- to mid-90’s was the best era of Japanese Fenders. John Suhr was Fender’s master builder in the mid 90’s. The 80’s Japanese Strat I owned sounded amazing but played terribly.

I have an '83 Squier JV that plays and feels great - just doesn't sound it! Truth be told I've never got a Strat to sound the way I want it to. Probably more my lack of ability / technique than the guitars fault. A couple of people have mentioned that I don't hit the strings hard enough so maybe that's key to getting the "tonez" from a Strat. YMMV

[pekbro]

Going to pick up a RG series guitar soon and then start learning to play the damn thing.

https://www.ibanez.com/usa/products/model/rg/

I really want the RGRT421

Nice, I had some Ibanez electrics in the past, I liked them. The current models are a bit too sharp
for me. I might skewer myself somehow.

[pekbro]

I'll probably just get the Ultra Tele, I have the money and kinda need to get rid of it actually. In the end, the local shop has always been the easiest solution for me, since I was a kid, that's not likely to change any time soon.

*Of course there are still a lot of pedals I want, and I do actually have a nice Gibson Les Paul (studio) already. I am getting tired of it lately and would like an alternative. It's also getting pretty old.

[vurt]

and im giving up lusting after a squire f**k you inflation

im sure whatever you end up with (we all go in looking for one, and come away with something entirely different, because "she just called to me!!") you'll have fun

(can he get me a freeby of his sig model? )

[pekbro]

Heh, I didn't ask him about the Sig Model, I'm sure that was just a money thing. Not a lot of folks could afford to buy one he actually setup to his personal specs, no doubt.

[vurt]

yeah the custom shop is a pipe dream for me
not that i can play well enough that i need anything or at least feel i could justify a major outlay.
obviously, if circumstances ever change, i wouldn't rule it out