How Many Guitars Do I Actually Need???
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- Опубліковано 28 чер 2021
- This is a video I have been wanting to make for quite some time and was largely inspired by Five Watt World's video asking this question. Keith recently did a stream on the topic and let us in on some ideologies that inspire him to try and answer this question for himself. I wanted to take a swing at answering the question for myself and talk through my thought process on deciding what gear I need to be able to enjoy music the way I want to.
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I really enjoyed your take on this Eric! The exercise keep bringing me back to three electrics and three acoustics. But that’s just me…and you’ll have to wait for the video to find out which ones. :)
I look forward to it!
Always good to hear from you on other pages! I’m down to three electrics and two acoustics. But I’m saving up for one more. I cut it down from fourteen altogether. 😊
I have done a lot of research on this, and I think the optimal number is 16.
This is exactly the kind of channel I was looking for! So many UA-camrs have a crazy amount of gear and they say you need all of it, so thank you for keeping it real!
I really enjoyed the vid. Is something that I really thinking about lately. Thanks for the tip on the drop pedal.
Really great points here! Really digging the Digitech Drop pedal idea as an alternative to many guitars with different tunings, I'll have to find one and test it. Cool video!
This is a great video and deserves far more recognition.
Thanks Matt, really appreciate it. Commenting really helps to spread it to more people as well as liking it and subscribing. Appreciate you checking it out! All the best.
Just discovered your channel. And love your message here. I'm working on paring WAY down on my gear, pulling myself out of a bad GAS situation. 😂
Interesting topic for sure. I think you're absolutely right about different people in different situations needing different numbers of guitars. I think as long as you are enjoying each guitar you have and playing them regularly, you don't have too many.
I wouldn't want to have more than that though because having them take up space and require maintenance does negatively impact you and probably makes you play your better/more favored guitars less.
With that said, I have one acoustic, a bass, and four electrics. I feel really different on each of the guitars when I play them and they all inspire me to play a bit differently. I have sold a total of 4 guitars in my playing till this point and I don't regret any of them.
Awesome video dude! I'm with you on the acoustics. 3 is a nice balance. I keep my D28 in standard, my Slope Shoulder Eastman a half step down and an Eastman E6D a whole step down (got a video on that guitar coming next week) 🤘🏻😎 Love the collection! You hit the nail on the head with the electric essentials.
Cool that’s a great collection
If you are into the spectrum of blues/ Jazz/ Hard rock styles, you would need 4:
1. Telecaster or Stratocaster depending on your style
2. Humbucker SG/ Les Paul or Flying V
3. Metal guitar: Ibanez / Charvel/ Jackson/ ESP etc
4. Acoustic Guitar with a pickup
Another really great video man! Maybe as anyone who has a passion I tend to want more when it comes to related equipment. Currently I own 11 electrics. I have a Tele on order but upgraded - so I sold the old one. I still definitely want a Gretsch someday… If I‘m thinking about it, I sure own 6 ones with Humbuckers, but to me they still sound that much different, that I couldn’t part from one yet. I’d love if one day that mindset sinks in and I can - but I‘m not there yet. Having a young daughter my place for storing them is also limited, so it would definitely be nice to reach that point soon. At least Amp wise I‘m happy and don’t want more in that department right now 😄
Nice! I feel you when it comes to them all being different both in feeling and sound but I've found with a little EQ or some other kind of processing or even just different playing technique you can get those other sounds or at least get close. It's different for everybody I think. Who knows maybe down the road I'll desire more too.
Thanks for this , I am just a hobbyist and I like to upgrade affordable used guitars but I seem to have too many already. I actually got a LP junior that’s tuned down a half step because I had never heard of drop pedals. So that’s a great idea instead of buying guitars for different tunings. Thanks again
I stand by the Digitech Drop pedal. Made recordings with it dropping up to 3 full octaves and still maintaining good sound (with some eq tweaking). I think the technology also applies to the different types of guitars and pickups - I could never let myself have more than one electric tuned in identical tunings, compared to other guitars, due to the fact that there are extremely flexible and adaptive guitar pickups these days (check fishman fluence, for example). You can go from strat to LP to something modern in a flick of a switch. Add the insane modeler possibilities on top of that. So in my case it mostly comes down to tunings, as digitech still has some limitations (I play everything from standard to double drop D). Own three electrics, feels like one or even two too many, as my 7-string strandberg can just do it all.
Totally agree with all of that. I put a simple Boss GE-7 EQ on my board a while back and it's become my most used pedal to shape the sound of my guitars to where I want them.
The point around maintenance is key and customising the off the rack guitars you own. The more you play/ try different instruments the more you learn about your style and what works for you. For example I don’t like jumbo frets and prefer narrow tall. I prefer 12 inch radius as opposed the Ibanez super flat 17 inch radius. I grew only playing RGs.
I’ve got two guitars. A ‘61 Gibson Les Paul Special and a 2021 National Tricone acoustic resonator. The Gibson can do anything from rock, funk, jazz, fusion and country all with ease-P90’s with 50s wiring has long been my preference for versatility. The Tricone can do old times blues, bluegrass, jazz, folk, Americana, etc and sounds monstrous through a distorted tube amp with its Krivo slimline humbucker. I play slide with both. Have thought about getting a tele, but honestly I’m pretty content with what I have in my arsenal 🤷♂️
You made absolute sense ! My thoughts exactly. I’m guilty of too much gear. Trouble is you spend all your time fiddling and not practicing like we should eh. So I try not to fiddle more than necessary 😆
Regards
Andy
Definite vote for a Nashville/High strung dedicated guitar! For me, I use it on electric more than acoustic, but maybe just because it's less noise when the kids are asleep, which is when I do most of my playing and recording. On the topic of being sentimental, I still have the first guitar that I ever owned. With a new neck it became the guitar that I string Nashville. I don't use it a ton, but I'll never get rid of it, so it was a great use for the body.
That's a fantastic use for that kind of guitar! I've got a video on Nashville tuning in the cue for sometime in the next 6 weeks or so. I finally got one of my acoustics set up for it full time and it's such a great tool.
@@minimalistmusician The Nashville variant that I use is the Pink Floyd Hey You tuning, where the low E is actually two octaves higher, making it the same tuning as the other E. It also means that there are no wound string. The A becomes the lowest pitch.
Great video. I just wished to see more of the guitars. Very good points though. I agree that we only need a few certain styles. Now if I was a multi millionaire I’d definitely have a huge room full. My current number of guitars is 7 plus the kids have a couple of guitars suitable for them like mini Strats and classical guitars.
My list goes like this:
Acoustics. Saehan black cutaway, takamine black cutaway (dads guitar), Yamaha CG111S, Maton SRS60C.
Electric. Fender Strat, telecaster deluxe, SG and a 335
Currently around 20 and I need more! Okay realistically, a strat, a tele, a gibson sound and a p90 are probably it but i just love having more... Theres just something about the unique inspiration each guitar can bring and how it makes me play slightly differently...i have to look into those drop down pedals though
I agree that they all have a special thing for sure and that can certainly lead to having many haha.
Instead of asking "how many guitars?" an alternative could be "how many tones?". It could be 3 given that a wide range of tones can be obtained from a single coil, a P-90 and a humbucker.
That's a great way to think about it and sort of how I got to what I need too. Gretsch, Gibson, Tele, Strat are the tones I want. Even though the strat and tele are similar I find that they are different enough tojustify having one of each ;)
I'm not quite there yet. I play in different standard tunings E, Eb, D, C#, C, & B/Bb & I use electrics mostly. I have 1 acoustic in E standard & every guitar can easily go to a drop tuning. I'll tune to open G & open D, & a few alternate tunings so I haven't figured out what I'll play the most often since I have a total of 8 guitars including my acoustic. 4 of my guitars hold sentimental value. My first guitar ( a bolt on Les Paul knock off), my acoustic, an Epiphone Explorer, & a thinline telecaster. I don't own a baritone but I like the sound. I have 2 of my electrics tuned to E standard, 2 to Eb, 1 in D standard, & 1 in DADGad. I did have one tuned to C standard for about 9 months and realized I needed a guitar with longer scale length for that tuning or anything below D standard. I make a point of picking different shapes/colours/pickups/& styles of guitars. I haven't experienced enough yet to know what I truly like even though I use every guitar over the course of 4 days.
Sorry, 7 guitars & only 1 of them is acoustic
I have a Suhr Classic HSS, Gibson Les Paul Traditional and an Axe Fx 2.
More than happy. I decided to sell everything else because my family's needs are more important than my own.
I have 3 electrics. A squire strat that I use when I don't want to worry about damage or weather. 2006 esp mh1000 deluxe with Seymore Duncan's. Plays wonderfully in both standard and drop d. Finally I have a dangelico Bob weir signature that stays in drop b and drop c with dangelico custom pick ups. I'll never need another guitar. Of course we all have an acoustic.
Great video Eric. I currently have 14 guitars, a collection that I've put together over the last the years or so. I have the usual fare in terms of a lovely LP, a Strat, a Tele, a Junior and a 335... I also have a gorgeous Martin CS HD28V and a classical.
For me, if I were to pare things down I'd keep my PRS DGT because it could easily cover LP and Tele tones; my Custom-Shop Strat; I'd keep my Eastman Junior because it's better than a vintage Gibson; my Yamaha steel-string Silent Guitar and Godin ACS nylon. I'm going to be missing out on some Gretsch sounds but something has to give.
So... five guitars plus my Fender Jazz Bass. My bank account would also be another five-figures healthier.
From a bass player point of view. A solid 4 string and a solid 5 string is all you need IMO.
Optional if you want a fretless but other than that two solid 4 and 5 strings that are very versatile covers everything you may need.
I’ve been paring down to three electrics (Strat, LP, Tele); three acoustics (OM, Flamenco, Resonator); and a P-bass for home recording in a variety of styles, but after watching your video I’m already regretting selling my Gretsch 6122-1962 on Reverb a few days ago, and am actually hoping the buyer will want to return it!
Oh man! So sorry to hear! That's such a nice guitar. Hope it works out for you but maybe it was meant to be.
Thanks for the great video
As a beginner (3 years of practice)
A drop pedal sounds like a cool idea
As I like heavy tones in metal music
And only a single guitar and a small amp
Setup. 🤟
Yeah it's been super great. There are some other awesome options out there. The latest line 6 helix update has a poly capo that does the same thing but unfortunately it eats up dsp so haven't been able to us it on my hx stomp yet other than a quick test.
@@minimalistmusician verý true lots of amazing updates but can only use one or two
@@Lorneplumber hopefully they can be more useful in future updates
Currently reducing my guitar collection down to 8, but realistically I could do 99% of what I do on electric with a HH strat-style guitar, a SSS strat-style guitar, a Les Paul and a Tele. And the Tele and Les Paul are more for UA-cam demo stuff than because I actually choose to play them. In terms of acoustics, I have an acoustic in E, one in D, a 12-string and a classical. I'm OK with that.
i have 10 guitars, seems like a lot, i could probably get rid of 2 but theyre kinda nice so i dont really want to although i rarely played them, i recently sold 3 guitars in quick succession recently, 2 problematic parker flys and a PRS hollowbody 1 which i never bonded with, but then i went and bought a PRS custom 24 to see what all the fuss was about and its my main gigging guitar now, between its weight sustain and how the notes jump off the fretboard it practically plays itself, i think i just tell myself that though to justify the fortune i paid for it
So many guitarists on UA-cam who own loads of guitars tell people who've got one guitar that you don't need many guitars!
I have one. I don't play it. It's been sitting on a stand for a good 5 years or so. The strings are rusted. I don't even know why I haven't sold it. At the same time, I'm the type that does "research" and overanalyzes it to the point of pedantry, and as such, I feel I'm qualified to give my asinine opinion.
You can get away with a SINGLE electric guitar, and not only that, one with only a SINGLE pickup located somewhere between the bridge and middle position, if not the straight-up middle position. Bigsby bridge+roller saddle and nut custom tuned for your string gauge and with tight tolerances will ensure tuning stability and good sustain.
Pair that with a relatively hot wound stacked P90 bucker using a rail-style pole piece and neo magnets, that has both a coil split AND coil tap, a .1uF capacitor on a 1M audio taper tone pot, and a dual-mode 250k/1M linear taper volume pot. Then, also have at least series/parallel switching, if not that, AND phase switching. Lastly, construction should be carbon fiber neck-through for sustain, clarity, and stability with some form of straight pull, but angled headstock to eliminate the need for string trees.
The exact shape of the headstock and body is up to you for style, as is the tonewood of the body and whether you want it solid, chambered, or semi-hollow. The only other thing to cover is strings, and I've decided from 20+ videos that I like the sound of flat wound or half-round the best, with Nickel rounds coming in third if you somehow STILL need more brightness after having 1M pots, a single coil mode, and a carbon fiber main spar. No, the neo mags won't make the highs ice-picky, they actually provide a strong bass response and amazing clarity and sustain to the point that you should underwind neo pickups compared to normal ones as heavymetalATC here on youtube has discovered through experimentation.
The last thing, and probably the thing I'm least qualified to comment on given how I don't actually PLAY the damn guitar is the tuning. 5 strings tuned in pure 5ths starting from a low C2. On a standard-width neck, nut, and bridge(yes, you'll have to get them/make them custom). If that's too ridiculous, then 6-string D-standard with or without pure 4ths. If you use a hipshot tuner, you can easily get a drop C tuning, and you can also just as easily capo up to E-standard.
And if you want to get even more insane, you can do multi-scale either way but only do it if the fan starts with the nut being vertical. The amount you should fan it should be 1/100 the scale length of the shortest string, PER string. So if your highest pitch string is a 25" scale, each subsequent string should be 0.25" longer, though to be honest, I'm not sure if the amount of fan should increase proportional to scale length, so an 0.25" per string increase regardless of scale might also be just a generally good rule of thumb.
Please feel free to call me an @$$hole and downvote this stupidity at your leisure.
I'm primarily a classical guitarist. Most of the classical guitarists I know own just ONE classical guitar. The ones who own two classical guitars own their very first student-level classical guitar and then eventually upgrade to a higher quality classical guitar when their guitar skills reach intermediate level. I always found it an odd behavior the many guitarists who play electric guitar feel the need to own a small collection of guitars. I understand if the guitarist is a professional musician, but it seems that many collectors of electric guitars (and associated gear) are home hobbyists guitarists.
This is awesome! Sounds like us pop/rock guys could learn something from the classical world.
@@minimalistmusician Maybe it's because electric guitars are available in different colors and can be configured with endless combinations of pickups, string gauges, and has countless accessories (pedals, amps, etc) that a typical electric guitarist tends to grow a small collection.
Not the case with classical guitars where off-the-rack guitar choices are usually limited to "do I want a cedar top or a spruce top?" and the accessories choices are "do I want to use a foot stool or an attached guitar support?"
I own 3 guitars and if I had the funds I'd get 3 more.
I currently own 1 acoustic Fender CD100L, a Ibanez AS73L and a 2017 Gibson SG Standard-T ...left-hand model of course. :)
The three I'd add to my collection: a Taylor T5Z, a custom guitar by Overload their Themis series. The 6th guitar would be a right-hand model for anyone who might come over the play. :)
Great choices!
2. Telecaster for most things and a les paul for everything else. I'm not sure I could go without either one. That said, I only have 4 electric guitars: Telecaster, Stratocaster, Les Paul, Custom 24. It suits me well. If I had to lose one, it would be the strat.
2 basses, 4 guitars, 2 amps, some 21 pedals, and I am just a hobby "musician", so I think I already need to scale down my collection and sell at least a few pedals and maybe 2 guitars, especially as I have 2 Strat copies, one should probably go, and I have 2 quite similar humbucker guitars, I should be able to make do with just one of those.
Well, I think you could make it with an impulse-response pedal and one electric guitar + one acoustic guitar.
If you can do that then all the power to you. That’s awesome
I feel personally attacked by this video’s title.
Haha i respect that!
I own some guitars… that’s all I’m willing to say….
Got a Jazzmaster and found myself playing it almost exclusively. Sold the other five axes and got two more Jazzmasters with different pickups. More than I need but extremely manageable!
You need one HH guitar. Not a PRS, they look so Republican.
They're great guitars. 3 is very manageable.
I have 5 electrics. Would lose the Floyd rose 80's Ibanez because Floyd Roses are a pain, but it was my first good guitar. Seems I'm addicted to collecting Marshalls tho, have 4 of them.
There is a mathematical equation that covers this question.
However many guitars you have plus one.
X+1.
I'm up to 5 guitars. 2 electrics. Strat and L Paul 2 acoustics 6 string 12 string both electric and a bass. And enough amps for all.
Need or enjoy? Very different answers. Some people own guitars to perform, others to play for enjoyment, etc. Me? I enjoy playing, collecting, modding, tinkering, rehabbing neglected ones, gifting some to friends, displaying them like art, looking for "deals," and so on. IMHO, have as many as you can afford that doesn't complicate your life but let go of any you don't love.
That’s a great philosophy! It’s totally different for everybody.
(1) Taylor 912ce and (2) Charvel San Dimas Telecaster Style2
and if I wanna spoil myself with a 3rd one....Gibson 1960 ES-335 :P
Great guitars!!
N + 1
Why not having more than you need?!!
Just my philosophy. Doesn’t work for all
My only advice here is learn to be your own tech. Obviously you might want a specialist if you want a bender installed or som’n.
answer ...between 1 and 1
Nice. I like that answer!
When you sacrifice great gear you sacrifice the magic that inspires great songs.
I can agree with that for sure but I don't think I'm sacrificing anything here. At least for me it's about just having the gear I need to do my job well and I see gear as a tool more than anything. Yes, I can appreciate gear on an aesthetic level too and for the history but I believe the real magic that inspires great songs comes from actually putting in the time and writing a lot of songs.
You could give any joe blow the most amazing collection of gear out there and they might not produce anything good, or anything at all. On the flip side you could give the most driven, hard working and creative person the most minimal setup and they'll still produce great music. I see it all the time.
Obviously those are extreme examples and there is lots of middle ground. My whole thing is just to inspire others to spend more time playing music and less thinking about and buying more gear.
@@minimalistmusician I hear ya. For me I struggle to sit my ass in that chair and write. I'm always upgrading gear so I have the best sound I can afford. Expensive way to procrastinate. One of these days I'll write that hit! Rock on!
@@briancoyne6700 I've been there! I do love gear and 100% appreciate getting the best sound. Aside from playing music that's a whole fun hobby on its own and just learning how to use the gear can be a full time job.
Eh, now that I’m a Dad I just have one guitar and one amp, not like I even have the time for that. Meh….meh.
Start by getting rid of PRS guitars…..
Are we starting by selling the best ones first??
@@minimalistmusician Yes…PRS is best at making the worst guitars so if you have a dumpster handy……
@@nuendo2496 This sounds like a pretty subjective opinion. It's okay to personally not like something that's for sure but objectively speaking they make some of the finest instruments on the market today. If your statement held any validity we'd be hearing a lot more about it and they wouldn't have the first class reputation they do. From first hand experience working in guitar shops in the past and having been able to play all kinds of high end guitars over the years I can attest to the fact that they make wonderful instruments.
@@minimalistmusician Yes….we all have an opinion…I’ve also played dozens of PRS…..ok guitars….Good for the UA-cam kids but otherwise the vast majority of real players wouldn’t go near them.
@nuendo2496 Once again, you're making some bold statements based on subjective opinions. Who are these real players? Would you not consider folks like Carlos Santana, David Grissom, Alex Lifeson and John Mayer real players? Are you insinuating that folks who are making guitar content on youtube aren't real players and are only kids? Are you aware that many of us on youtube are professional musicians first and are looking for another outlet to grow, learn and reach more people? You're entitled to your opinion but this comment section is for constructive conversation which can absolutely include your opinions(positive or negative) as long as they're productive and not just meant slander. Best,
Eric
No offence dude but this is ridiculous. You say you only want one guitar, and then within 15 minutes you've decided you need three acoustics, one is just for drop tunings, even though you then go on to say how great the digital drop pedal is and how it's good enough. And four electrics? No, you don't need a Les Paul and a Gretsch. Have you ever thought about the guitar as your voice? Like, maybe you should have a unique voice that always sounds like you. Look at Brian May, he has a voice. I think the ultimate one guitar man isn't any "minimalist" who over thinks everything, but an 80's metal one. Brad Gillis sold a Les Paul Custom, just to buy a prototype Floyd rose for his main strat. THAT is a one guitar player. There is a video about it, "Brad Gillis shows off his favorite guitar" or something. Yeah, it's fine owning four guitars, or even seven, but don't pretend to be a one-guitar player just for minimalist points.
Who hurt you as a child?
@@minimalistmusician for real this time. Would you rather have a lovely collection of 400 guitars like Joe Bonamassa, or only have one guitar that you have absolutely perfected? It's an honest question, and there's no shame in admitting you would like one of everything. I just think there's an honesty in saying "this guitar is fine, now I just need to improve my playing". A bit of hum is okay, Hendrix never had fanned frets. Randy Rhoads only ever used a bridge pickup, no coil taps, no neck pickup. It was him, not the gear.