Beginning all over again - Electric queries

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motoadv
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Beginning all over again - Electric queries

Post by motoadv »

Hi,

Its been about 10 years since I played my last electric and that was a custom made guitar back then. Now 10 years later the itch has risen up again and I did manage to lay my hands on a decently cheap acoustic, to figure out if it would be worth the investment on an electric guitar.

I am on a rather tight budget of $200 - $250 max and was looking up the possible options available in that range. But since I am new to this country and brands available here, I thought this would be a good place to get some answers.

Brands I have seen in that range
1) Squier by Fender - I know this is the low range guitars from the house of Fender and my first thoughts are "Go for it", but what is the large difference between the Squiers and Fenders even though they are heaven and earth apart on prices?

2) Artist Guitars - Have seen quite a few of these on Trade Me and a few music shops in the city and wondering if they are worth the buzz. I have been told that these are great economy type guitars that sound great as well. Any advice on this brand and their electrics?

3) Aria Guitars - Again have only heard about this brand, though their website looks good and the guitars look great as well, any advice on considering this brand's electrics?

Any other options I have left behind in my hunt for that electric in my price bracket? Is that even a practical price bracket to have?

Look forward to opinions and answers
Nakul Patel
- Johnny Be Goode - A riff I would love to play someday -

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Re: Beginning all over again - Electric queries

Post by JHorner »

Squier Standard is decent and can be had in that price range used on trademe
Aria make some good stuff but I don't know which models are the good ones
Artist I wouldn't even consider

$200 is realistic. I got a Squier Tele Standard for that a while ago. Some dents in the body but nothing affecting playability.

The large difference is in the quality of all the parts and the cost of labour where they are assembled.

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Re: Beginning all over again - Electric queries

Post by Jay »

Yamaha pacifica. Quality budget guitars. So what is your budget for an Amplifier then?
When faced with quality, I recognise it every time.

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Re: Beginning all over again - Electric queries

Post by Slowy »

What these fellas said. And Welcome!
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Re: Beginning all over again - Electric queries

Post by Vince »

JHorner wrote:The large difference is in the quality of all the parts and the cost of labour where they are assembled.
The beauty of electrics is that, if you don't care about losing money on resale, then all the parts are easily changed and upgraded.

Throw in a well-executed setup and you can have (or upgrade to) a pretty good guitar for not a lot of money.
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Re: Beginning all over again - Electric queries

Post by motoadv »

JHorner wrote:Squier Standard is decent and can be had in that price range used on trademe
I am leaning more towards Squier, found some Telecasters for decent prices on trade me.
jvpp wrote:Yamaha pacifica. Quality budget guitars. So what is your budget for an Amplifier then?
I was looking at some package deals, saw a few on trade me for the Squier California series. Right now will even look at 2nd hand amps since the playing is purely for me at the moment.
Slowy wrote:What these fellas said. And Welcome!
Thanks
Vince wrote:Throw in a well-executed setup and you can have (or upgrade to) a pretty good guitar for not a lot of money.
Yeah, resale on these are always about taking a hit, unless you hold a vintage piece of a certain kind. I don't mind the drop in retail one bit, since I do plan on holding onto it for quite a while.

So what read from all this, Squier's - not bad, Aria - decent. But as I said I am leaning towards the Squiers.
- Johnny Be Goode - A riff I would love to play someday -

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Re: Beginning all over again - Electric queries

Post by Lyle »

motoadv wrote:I am leaning more towards Squier, found some Telecasters for decent prices on trade me.
If it helps here's the different ranges of Squier models, from "worst" (Bullet) to "best" (Classic Vibe)

Bullet
California
Affinity
Standard
Deluxe
Vintage modified
Classic vibe

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Re: Beginning all over again - Electric queries

Post by motoadv »

Lyle wrote:
motoadv wrote:I am leaning more towards Squier, found some Telecasters for decent prices on trade me.
If it helps here's the different ranges of Squier models, from "worst" (Bullet) to "best" (Classic Vibe)

Bullet
California
Affinity
Standard
Deluxe
Vintage modified
Classic vibe
Damn cool, that does help deciding on what not to buy. :)
- Johnny Be Goode - A riff I would love to play someday -

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Re: Beginning all over again - Electric queries

Post by stratkiwi »

Lyle wrote:
motoadv wrote:I am leaning more towards Squier, found some Telecasters for decent prices on trade me.
If it helps here's the different ranges of Squier models, from "worst" (Bullet) to "best" (Classic Vibe)

Bullet
California
Affinity
Standard
Deluxe
Vintage modified
Classic vibe
You forgot the mexican made squires from the early to mid 90's

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