A new guitar - why?

[jabak]

For a long time I've have considered buying a new electric guitar. I'm the happy owner of an old Hamer Slammer Series, a fairly new Ibanez Iron Label, an electric acoustic and a 5 string bass guitar. All the guitars are 6 string guitars. The thing is I'm having second thoughts. Do I absolutely need a new guitar? No not really. Would it be nice to add another one to my growing collection. Yes! Should it be another 6 string or should I take the plunge and get a 7 string. I'm not even sure about that.

 

So how about you guys. Why did you buy your second guitar and beyond?

 

 

 

[duncann]

I currently have only two Ibanez guitars, an American Master MA2 and a JEM7V, and an Ibanez SR1205E bass. I only ever use and play the jem and the bass. I thought about buying another guitar about a year ago but never did because I realized the answer to the question of, why or why not? For me, it boiled down to being perfectly content with the jem. Also didn't really want to maintain another guitar. And I'm not really a fan of more stuff. I like less, efficient, and streamlined stuff better. Lol. Finances would have been stretched thin as well. It was money better allocated elsewhere.

 

But if you like collecting guitars, and it doesn't hurt you (or maybe others) in any way, I would say go for a seven string, since you don't already have one. Never know what kind of enhanced musicality it might inspire in you.

 

[pianoguyy]

There is no reason to have a 7 string guitar... unless you intend on playing a 7 string guitar. 

I will never play "chugga chugga" metal. Nor will I ever play classical music (real classical, not classical written for guitar). Therefore, do I need a 7, 8, or 9 string? Of course not. 

Nor do you want to throw off your technique. 

 

 

As to the buying guitar part.... 

I currently have an unknown number of guitars. I mean, my accountant does have a list, complete with purchase date and price. But without checking the list, I have no idea. And now that I am running to the same locations all the time instead of touring all over, I actually have x-amount stashed in certain spots instead of having them all in one or two locations and taking them with me as I travel. Now I just fly to "point X", and I have a house, car, clothes, and gear already there waiting for me. 

 

Guitars are like women. The more, the merrier. 

You can never have too many at one time and there is no crime in having one for a little bit and then getting rid of it. 

 

 

[jabak]

I'm not necessarily a big fan of more stuff either. To be honest I never use the Hamer guitar. It's just that it was my first 'quality guitar' and when I think of it

maybe I'm being sentimental about it.  Ultimately want I want is to have guitars that I use regularly.

So maybe the Hamer got to go in order to make room for a better guitar that I will actually use. The JEM7V is a way better guitar than my two guitars combined. So the reason for for me thinking about getting a new guitar could be boiled down to me not being happy with what I already got. Maybe I should think of quality rather than quantity.

 

Regarding the dilemma about 6 or 7 seven my main motivation for buying a seven string is alternative tuning and drop tuning. I never play stuff that requires alt. or drop tuning but I wonder if it has to do with me being short of a guitar to dedicate to that stuff. 

Btw: I'm considering buying a solar guitar like this: https://www.solar-guitars.com/produit/sample-product/a1-6et-white-matte/ or https://www.solar-guitars.com/produit/sample-product/electric-guitar-a1-7-et/
 

[pianoguyy]

You do not want a guitar with a tremolo if you are planning alternate tunings - with an emphasis on the "S" in tunings, meaning multiple. To do it properly requires way too much work getting the springs and truss to even out. 

But, again, the same applies to what I said earlier --- you don't want to mess up your technique. So, unless you are serious about playing 7 strings or alternate tunings, don't.  

 

Since this is the L6 fansite, have you given any thought to buying a Variax? 

They can give you all sorts of tunings and pickup configurations, all with the push of a button. 

[jabak]

1 hour ago, pianoguyy said:

You do not want a guitar with a tremolo if you are planning alternate tunings - with an emphasis on the "S" in tunings, meaning multiple. To do it properly requires way too much work getting the springs and truss to even out. 

But, again, the same applies to what I said earlier --- you don't want to mess up your technique. So, unless you are serious about playing 7 strings or alternate tunings, don't.  

 

Since this is the L6 fansite, have you given any thought to buying a Variax? 

They can give you all sorts of tunings and pickup configurations, all with the push of a button. 

 

I agree regarding the tremolo. My old Hamer is equipped with a tremolo but i never really found it very useful. And messing around with the floyd rose was a nightmare. My next guitar, the Ibanez Iron label, came with a fixed bridge and I've been happy with that. 

How come that a 7 string will mess up my technique? Could you elaborate on that?

 

Variax is a no go for me because of the infamous palm mute issue. I just don't want to take the chance.

[cruisinon2]

41 minutes ago, jbakholt said:

Variax is a no go for me because of the infamous palm mute issue. I just don't want to take the chance.

 

If that's the only thing holding you back, just go buy one. They don't all suffer from that affliction. Owners of ones that do tend to complain about it loudly, and at length...and justifiably so...However, they are not the majority. Forums are ground zero for whining about product issues, and it's VERY easy to come away with a wildly distorted perception of the frequency of any one particular problem.  

 

I palm mute with mine all the time,  with plenty of high gain tones, and no plink. Since they're almost non-existent in brick and mortar retail shops, you'll likely end up buying one online. Grab one from Sweetwater, and you've got 30 days to return it, no questions asked.

 

But you won't need 30 days anyway...you'll know if it sufferers from the dreaded "piezo plink" in the first 10 seconds...but you won't lose a dime on it unless you choose to.

[pianoguyy]

46 minutes ago, jbakholt said:

How come that a 7 string will mess up my technique? Could you elaborate on that?

 

7 string - wider necks or smaller string spacing. Hand positioning, including the wrap-around. Other hand positioning. Depending on what model you get, you could also be looking at a longer scale length or fanned frets.  

 

Alternate tunings - finger positioning. 

 

 

I don't know you or your situation. So, don't get me wrong, I am not trying to discourage you from trying something new. But most people run into situations not being fully informed. 

[cruisinon2]

1 hour ago, jbakholt said:

How come that a 7 string will mess up my technique? Could you elaborate on that?

 

It's just a totally different head...I bought one after 25+ years of staring down at 6 strings, and was immediately lost, lol...felt like my first month of guitar lessons when I was a kid. Particularly with finding 5th and 6th string root barre (sp?) chords. Might seem silly with something so basic, but at a glance, what used to be the A string, is now the E. Your eyes and your fingers are telling you that you're playing  D chord, but your ears are telling you it's an A.... very disorienting initially.

 

Also if you 're a "thumb over the top of the neck" string bender, that's a lot harder to do on a wide neck. 

 

It gets better with practice, but there's definitely an adjustment, especially after decades of 6 strings....

[jabak]

Thank you for all the good advice. 

 

I think I will go for a 6 string of good quality and sell my old Hamer. That will cover me well in most of my playing.

 

To address the drop tunings or alt. tunings I'm still considering what will suit me the best. A variax or a 7 string. Either way my Ibanez will have to go. I think I can get around $450-$500 for my Ibanez and I plan to throw in an extra $200-300 to get the variax or 7 string.

If I decide to go for a variax which one is best for metal within my budget around $700? Just to be clear I live in Europe so prices are quite high on some brands. A JTV-69 LPB are way over my budget as it will set me back $900 while a Variax Standard VW is within my budget at around $650.

[cruisinon2]

3 hours ago, jbakholt said:

If I decide to go for a variax which one is best for metal within my budget around $700? Just to be clear I live in Europe so prices are quite high on some brands. A JTV-69 LPB are way over my budget as it will set me back $900 while a Variax Standard VW is within my budget at around $650.

 

Among the JTV's, there's the 59, 69,69s, the 89 (stop-tail) which I don't think they're making anymore, and the 89F with the Floyd Rose. Of those, the 89F is the "metal machine". The 59 and 69 are basically a LP and Strat, respectively. No idea what an "LPB" is...

 

But if the only one you can afford is the Standard, it's all a moot point anyway...unless you're gonna look for a used JTV.

 

The Standard is essentially a Yamaha Pacifica with Variax guts... basically a Strat clone and closer to the 69 than any of the others. There's nothing wrong with them, and the modeling is all the same no matter what you buy. As far as  the feel and aesthetics, you'll either like it or you won't... but if you're looking for a "shred-mobile",  it probably won't be your cup of tea.

 

[jabak]

Thanks for clarifying.

 

I think I can live the aesthetics  of a strat. I think they are quite nice looking guitars. I'm more worried about the feeling. But if the guts are the same it won't hurt trying one out I guess. That is if I decide to go down the variax road. It's tempting for sure.

[jabak]

Found a review of the variax standard that was published recently. If the palm mute sound in this review is a rough representation of what you can expect from a variax then the variax is a no go.

 

 

[jabak]

Thanks for all your input. Much appreciated.

I decided to go for a new high quality 6 string guitar to replace my current mid range 6 string. That will be my main axe. Down the road I will add a mid range 7 string guitar to my collection.

[cruisinon2]

On 5/14/2018 at 2:44 AM, jbakholt said:

Found a review of the variax standard that was published recently. If the palm mute sound in this review is a rough representation of what you can expect from a variax then the variax is a no go.

 

 

 

Forget about "rough representations", and forget about some video review from Joe Average, which isn't showing up on this end anyway, so I can't comment on it.

 

But regardless, it's not a good way to gauge ANY piece of gear. The only way to tell if Variax would work for you, is to put one through it's paces, period... just like anything else. Judging it by how someone else uses it is pointless... there's no earthly way to tell if the guy on the other end  knows what he's doing, or what actually went into creating the sounds you heard. 

[bsewart]

I remember totally blown away by the sounds my Guitar teacher made with my own Epihone LP Gold top.. 

I thought it was the best guitar on the planet, never really being around any other players.  That was until a guy started working along side me that could play and basically said Epihone LP was a poor mans Gibson.  I was crushed, and relayed it to my teacher, where he promptly showed me that was Lollypop, and made that Epi sing like no tomorrow!

 

OWW!! that me kicking myself again for selling it!

[seek-and-destroy]

Why am I buying another guitar?

I've always been happy with my Ibanez, I've been using it for 10 years. Of course I tried other guitars, but none that was good enough to change my old one.

Then, a couple of days ago, a friend of mine put in my hands a custom guitar he made by himself. I immediadly fell in love with that instrument, it just felt right for me... that's it, and now I'm going to buy it for no reason, just following my sensations :-)

[bsewart]

and who said you need a reason anyway (apart from the wife of course!)

[jabak]

Actually the other day my wife said to me: playing the guitar is your hobby, you love it. if you wan't a new guitar then just buy one. I tend to agree.

[pianoguyy]

First, I don't know why you have a wife. 

But, more importantly... 

 

Don't fall for that trap. 

If she says it is ok to buy one - question the motives. 

[cruisinon2]

21 hours ago, jbakholt said:

Actually the other day my wife said to me: playing the guitar is your hobby, you love it. if you wan't a new guitar then just buy one. I tend to agree.

 

Translation:

 

"If you come home with a $1K guitar, I'm gonna waltz in with $2K worth of shoes." ;)

[jabak]

23 hours ago, pianoguyy said:

First, I don't know why you have a wife. 

But, more importantly... 

 

Don't fall for that trap. 

If she says it is ok to buy one - question the motives. 

 

No motives at all. When I wanted to get a Helix she said the exact same thing: just go get it. I did. When I wanted to get a pair of studio monitor the story repeated it self. 

The only thing really holding me back is me and my always present doubts.

[jabak]

In the end I got a Solar Guitar 7 string from my wife for my birthday. What a nice surprise. Haven't looked back. It took me a couple of days getting used to the nature of a 7 string but from then on i have not touched the old 6 string Ibanez.