@@6-V-6s Correct. They sound amazing but the playability can be shite on a lot of them. Leo was always making improvements, and I agree with that and prefer modern improvements. Vintage guitars are overrated.
I have a 1962 reissue that I need to adjust the neck on. I’m not too thrilled I’ve never done it before I’m not too excited about doing it. Maybe I’m being lazy idk
Fender says loosen the neck screws and adjust away- ua-cam.com/video/qKtlsps4SqY/v-deo.html Amazingly, the comments on that video go on and on about how wrong Fender is about their own products. On my Fenders, I remove the pick guard and adjust it- even gouged out a little access groove to make it easier. Prob not recommended for vintage, but I’ll bet Leo would approve. Truss rod adjustment is a black hole of misinformation- it’s not rocket science! In my shop, the overwhelming majority of Fender truss rod adjustment fails I see are caused by using the wrong size allen wrench.
I admit that I have things that are a definite no-go for me. Some practical and some aesthetic. For practical, Floyd’s and volume knobs immediately below the bridge pickup. I had to ditch one of the tone pots and move my volume pot down on my Strat. For aesthetic, I don’t like gold hardware or crazy body and headstock shapes and I prefer my guitars to relic naturally. I wouldn’t turn down a guitar that was reliced, but otherwise great, but I would never choose that as an option.
Thanks for the shout-out guys. I am crazy about this channel! My guitar loves are many and my dislikes are few. But you’re right, I do have them. Being an acoustic guy I don’t have much specific to add to the discussion at hand. But I think my hates are pretty universal: Bad playing guitars for beginners (we want more people to start playing and keep playing), guitars that don’t look like guitars (guitars are instruments of romance after all), guitars that sound bad and never get any better(it’s about the music dudes and it should be sweet and always getting sweeter). My loves are the peace and sheer joy that come from playing these wonderful instruments - something we could all use more of these days. Keep the wonderful CG episodes coming! R
I have one guitar that is naturally relied. But it has taken over thirty years. I am nearly 70 I don't think I have another 30 years to relic the next one! Great content guys, have a great holiday!
Actually as a bassist a huge thing I love on basses is a passive/active switch for the EQ. I love having the best of both worlds especially for recording, sometimes being able to throw in a little extra low mid or cranking the bass and treble for slap can make all the difference!
great great list. thanks for putting it together. i just wanted to drop my $.02 about relics. i think the debate is actually a confluence of several issues, and we should break it down a little more thoroughly. there certainly is a lot of merit to the idea that taking an unnecessarily abrasive attitude towards relic instruments is a form of gatekeeping, and the guitar community is not about gatekeeping. if you find a relic guitar, and it feels and looks and sounds great, and you love it, then hey, more power to you! to find a guitar that you "click" with is a magical, valuable thing, anyone who's experienced this can attest to it. no one should be able to take that moment away from you. however there is a line of criticism that has merit as well. i think a lot of people are biased against relic guitars not because of the guitars themselves but because they communicate or reflect an attitude of disrespecting guitar and music by taking "shortcuts", like getting the scars without the battle and proudly showing them off as if you were there. there's nothing respectable about that. everyone who's practiced guitar knows, there are no shortcuts, you have to actually play the shit out of the damn thing to get good. another valid line of criticism against relics is that most of them just don't look very good. a custom instrument put through the relic process by a professional is a rare thing and they don't often pop up on the secondhand market. "mass produced" relic instruments like the road worn series by fender may sound and play like solid guitars, but they all look the same, they even have the same wear pattern. the rest consist of homebrew relics that look really bad and fake, like some kid just took a perfectly nice guitar and defaced it to give it a fake worn look, as if they just got off the road from an international stadium tour. it's the same thing as real skaters not respecting those posers who cant skate but buy 200 dollar black label decks and scrape the shit out of the bottom with a rock to give it a fake grinded out look. this might be the longest comment ive ever left on youtube.
I don’t hate relics, I just don’t get it. I certainly wouldn’t pay a premium for it l, but if I fond a guitar that’s otherwise awesome for a great price, I’d pick it up.
I'll be 66 in another month. I took an interest in the relic-ed look a couple of years ago. I had to decide - should I buy a pre relic-ed guitar? Or should I play the p*** out of one of my current guitars so it would be genuinely relic-ed by the time I turned 84? The decision was pretty easy for me, and some of these controversies start to look pretty silly as your time on this rock dwindles down. I'll let you young guys beat yourselves up about it. I'm just going to enjoy my guitar.
A few things that really grind my gears are black painted headstocks and no binding, not enough reverse headstock options, control knobs too close to the strings, TONE KNOBS, bulky neck heels, 60 cycle hum, 4+ piece body’s, “figured” woods with no figuring, and unfinished necks or gloss necks. Those are just the ones off the top of my head 😅 Great video guys!
I love my EMG active pickups, I feel like a lot of my friends who don't like that guitar say it's because they hear all the ways they were playing poorly that they couldn't hear with their other pickups, but once you can make them do what you want there is a lot of range to do some crazy stuff!
I've got the new fender locking tuners, did not like the looks of them at first, still don't, but have been working at aging them so they don't look so shiny and offputting and they are coming around. Gotta love what you have though, they are tremendous at keeping tune and restringing, so clean and easy!
@@jessieplaysmusic8530 only the PRS-ish ones where they're super colourful, like purple or green or something. If we're talking some flame top 59 les paul action... different story!
@@georgedavidson2024 You’ve never heard it called that? I’ve heard it called that so many times every time I see it I think of pepperoni. I had a pepperoni guard on my ‘62 Strat in shoreline gold and my other one in white blonde. I sold the shoreline one, put a gold metal guard on the white blonde one and just got a Sherwood green 62 reissue a couple days ago on Christmas Eve!
@@prsplayer210 Gibson totally fucked over Tronical for $90 million in that deal. Forced it to market before it was completed and buried the company in debt.
As always, LOVE your content. A) Concur: White Falcon is the only acceptable gold (purely for my taste). B) Dissent: One doesn’t need to troll to hate on relics; they just get shoved down our throats without searching. You guys rule. Happy New Year and be well! 🤘🏻
Pick guards.ever since I got my first Les Paul copy as a kid, I've taken the pick guards off, of everyone until my latest Epiphone and it looks beautiful on there. I always say panties off, now sometimes I leave them on.
Hey guys, Merry Christmas to you and the whole team. I just wanna say how much I appreciate your videos. I've been getting into them since the John Cruz thing and I just love your interaction, the knowledge and your actual interesting opinion pieces. This is a really well produced UA-cam channel in any way. I'm not even a guitar player, but already spent hours here. All the best to you and thanks again for your great work!
Thanks a ton and that really mean a lot! We have a ton of fun making this strange thing happen and we love hearing that you enjoy the oddness that we are here. Best to you and yours this season and hope to hear from you soon!
Wobbly Fender screw in Tremolo arms. Even with the little spring inserted. The pickguard plastic that gets stuck under the volume and tone controls on a new guitar.
I've owned a few guitars over the years, some with active PUs and some with passive PUs. To me they are simply equal. I never thought about one beeing better than the other and still don't. The first time I heard that actives are seemingly sound compressed and cold was 2011 when I took a guitar with actives to a band night at a bar and a random dude from another band told me my tone was bad because of the pickups. Pretty sure the "bad tone" was my dimed HM-2 and he was an idiot. I'm still grumpy about that today.
I like new cars, they’re shiny and beautiful. A relic guitar is like buying the same car but with scratched and faded paint worn through to the metal or primer, torn upholstery and a cracked dash plus paying $5000 more for it.
Strongly agree on Floyd Rose and relicing. Just received a Brad Paisley Esquire (black sparkle). Really sensational guitar but the worn forearm area is just not for me. I had the silver sparkle version earlier as well. Same feeling - wanted to fill it in. The Rose was in a Satriani signature - really nice but the restringing was a major deal...for me anyway. I found the same hassle with a 12 string Rickenbaker. Just a pain. I know some out there are going to say - c'mom man it's not that hard. But I tend toward quick and easy. Really like your discussions - thanks
My guitar is an HSS Strat. I wanted three single coils originally but I just really liked that particular guitar when I played it so I went with that. being able to switch into that humbucker makes it so versatile and the Mark Knopfler position still sounds really good. It turned me.
I wouldn’t dream of doing the petty hate thing, but I’ll admit the right handed version of the Jimi Hendrix Strat just cracks me up. I imagine somebody strapping it on, looking in the mirror, and going, “Oh, yeah!”
Why would anyone NOT want locking tuners. I honestly don’t get people that don’t like them. Why? Uh it’s too easy to restring! Segue to my hatred: remade vintage guitars. Especially when it comes to hardware. The only reason to play a vintage style strat bridge is because you own a $10k guitar. But to buy a custom shop $4k guitar to be made with hardware that we literally engineered to be better is mind blowing to me. Like who wants a start with a three way switch and not a five??? I dunno I find the whole guitar market dangerous with its obsession over vintage specs and gear. Are we even moving forward anymore? And I’m not playing ergonomic guitars I just mean modern appointments on guitars. People literally used to rip klusens off and put grovers on and Gibson makes them still with them. I love the modern vintage stuff where they acknowledge this and put modern hardware or frets on guitars. Especially radius. Vintage radius can suck it.
I really like the feel of 7.25 - 9.5 radii. I have a way easier time chording with my thumb over the neck and feel like 9.5 is just the sweet spot down the neck.
I honestly think that if everyone chose guitars based on how they felt to play and not "vintage specs" or "classic taste", everyone would be playing Strandbergs and Abasi Concepts.
@@robadobflob3405 I have a Strandberg and want an Abasi (they are never in stock). I put locking tuners on my Strat as well as a Sterling Albert Lee which fits me great. I have some guitars because they are iconic but they don't fit me ergonomically as well.
Id like to get a set. But my epis have grovers which i like and my jackson which its the one id like to replace the jackson tuning branded tuning keys cuz they are original to this 20 yr old jackson and tuning key are very sensitive. But they are such small tuning pegs and small headstock idk which locking keys id need to fit my jackson cuz the origanals are tiny im afraid most brands would be to big amd would touch each other when tuning.
Yep. That and the scenario of a used guitar in excellent condition--but since something minot, like the caps or pots aren't original it has a severely diminished value. Same guitar with beaten up finish but original caps is fine. I don't get it.
Relics are for people who see somebody else who actually put the time in or has a vintage guitar and they want to have the same thing instantly, posers. The way to not be a poser is to do the relicing yourself. Don't cheat yourself out of having an even deeper connection with your guitar, create memories with it, don't buy prefabricated memories. They also cost more too, hundreds of dollars for about an hour of work, overpriced crap. I say this because I want you to live a fuller life, not to troll you. Personally, a big no no for me is noiseless single coils. They're still technically phase cancelling humbuckers and cut high end, as well as detail across the spectrum. I play in a room surrounded by electronics and have no issues playing with high gain on actual single coils.
They only come that way because the Strat bridge PU sounds thin and nasal. If they put a Tele bridge PU in the Strat you would have the very best of both guitars. It is such an obvious idea that the only reason it has never happened over all these decades is the marketing boys in the office would shutter. lol
I recently bought a Luke 3 HSS and surprisingly the 2nd position still retains that quacky sound we all like. I’ve tried a few Fender Strats in the past and they couldn’t quite do what the Luke is doing for me personally
@@xF1revolution Thanks for the heads up. I took a look and it is cool. google... The Second Best Guitar on the Planet I Have been designing guitars for others since '76 lol This one is mine.
Strap buttons on the neck heel. On the Dano DC, it's not as bad, but the SG/335 placement is the reason why they tend to try and tip forward. Also, they went to the trouble of improving upper fret access and then ruin it by putting the strap in the way.
A big turn off for me are some of the overly-flamey or overly-quilted tops that you see PRS and Gibson put out sometimes and some of the modern burst/fade combos they're doing now (like a blue to green fade, or a purple and orange fade or whatever else). Give me a relatively plain AA grade top with a classic burst or paint color instead of the striped up, cluttered mess of a AAAA grade flame top any day of the week. Also not a fan of guitars without pickguards for aesthetic reasons as well. Immediate turn on is three pickup guitars and P90 guitars. I mainly play a two-pup LP but if a guitar has three pups on it, it pulls me in immediately. They're just vibey.
@@0000song0000 Yeah, I can see where you're coming from, but to me if I did end up getting a crazy flamed top guitar, I think I would probably go for a non-traditional color like a really deep blue or red. To each their own.
I honestly think the whole attraction of having a AAAA or AAAAA grade top is the wow factor, and if you aren't into gawking at a purple galaxy fade hybrid flame-quilt top beast with a matching headstock and sides, then flashy guitars just aren't appealing to you. Also, I agree with the pickguard one, but that varies from model to model. Id say that LP's can look good with or without one, but a strat or tele just look naked. Guitars like PRS's, Ibanezes, and Strandbergs just look awful with a pickguard.
@@robadobflob3405 Yeah, the flashy stuff is just overstated in my opinion. Not my cup of tea these days, but younger me loved all of that stuff when I first started playing. I guess as i've grown into the instrument, I just prefer the classic aesthetic. I mean a Lamborghini is super nice for sure, but how bout a blue '68 Mustang, ya know what I mean?? Hard to beat such classic, timeless, and elegant looks of a Cherry burst LP. And funnily enough, a Les Paul was exactly the guitar I had in mind when I said I prefer guitars with pickguards lol. I understand why some people take them off of their LPs (the argument often being, "why cover up so much of the wood grain on the top of the guitar?"), but I just personally love the way a cream colored pick guard looks with the other cream accents like the binding and pickup surrounds. It just ties the whole look together in my view. I recently got my first PRS: an American S2 Studio that they did a limited run of in 2018. I opted for the black with tortoise shell pickguard, and I gotta say, that is one sexy combo. If it didn't have that pickguard, it would lose so much of its vibe. It would just be another black double-cutaway guitar. I know you probably don't envision a solid black guitar when you think about PRS, but I think this is very much a case where you might agree that the pickguard makes it look infinitely better than if it didn't have one. So maybe that's one case where you might agree that a pickguard adds to the overall appearance of that particular PRS guitar. Of course strats, teles, and SGs absolutely MUST have the pickguard, no questions asked. Derek Trucks is my favorite guitarist by a long shot, but I have never been a fan of his signature model SGs that come without a pickguard. Last I checked, he usually plays a custom shop '61 reissue most of the time these days, which is definitely my favorite SG look as well.
Guitar turnoffs: HSH/HH Strats or any weird funky configurations of Strats, P90s, Floyd roses, headless or travel guitars. Guitar turn ons: Gold hardware, maple fretboards with wear on them, late 60s/early 70s style Fender headstocks, reverse headstocks, bound fretboards, tortoise shell or gold anodized on the right guitar, ebony or really really dark rosewood fretboards, and Gibson Les Paul custom style headstocks
HSS strat had to grow on me but now dig it (has to be chrome covered humbucker though!) Xotic does a great job. You can keep the Floyd Rose, Bigsby, Kahler, etc. The relics are sweet (Fender Road Worns are my favorites). "Relics" that are clear-coated over the relic don't make sense at all. Not at all🤪 Favorites: Butterscotch Teles, Sonic Blue, Fiesta Red, Sunbursts, P90 anything👌
I agree with your comment " "Relics" that are clear-coated over the relic don't make sense at all. Not at all🤪" I wonder if a reliced guitar is used as a demo and gets some marks from people playing it, is it considered damaged or improved? 😂
Just an aside for those who mentioned Jazzmaster/Jaguar bridges. The new versions on such as my Ultra Jazzmaster are very different from those of years ago. They hold tune much better and it’s much more difficult to screw up the intonation once it’s set. And in addition, the trem covers a considerably wider range; you can nearly dive bomb it. And if you have an older one, the Halon (fixed-type) replacement is super. Also, I agree with all of you who hate the Floyd, Reverse headstocks, and relics.
I don't like headless guitars! Floyd Rose may serve a purpose, just a big pain that I don't want. Also guitars that have 10 different switches, push-pulls, coil splits and combo choices and then your pedal board with 12 pedals that do anything going into a modeling amp to change it back to normal???? Give me a good guitar and a good tube amp and I can have fun!
I can’t stand orange necks on Fenders. Makes them look cheap and nasty 🤢 I like bling on Gibsons (gold hardware, ebony board and block or parallelogram inlays). Oddly, I don’t like block inlays on Fenders! Where do these irrational likes/dislikes come from?
I think it comes from the psychological effect of how things should look like, based upon the way they were built initially and how these images set into our minds (I hope I 'said' it right - English is not my native language). But I'm with you on this. I like block inlays and neck bindings on Gibson guitars, even though I prefer a no nonsense look), but I just can't stand these features on Fender models. As for the orange necks, I suppose you mean some series in the Fender range where they use a hue in the lacquer that's just too orange as an attempt to make it look older and more accurate? I agree Fender overdid it a couple of times. Gibson had a similar thing for a while with an almost fluorescent green color of the block inlays in the necks on certain models.
Definitely some things I used to not like I do now. Most of the stuff on the list would not be deal breakers for me. But a V neck would be a deal killer for me. I'm not picky about news oevrall--and like big chunky necks & slim necks, but I just can't get along with V necks. But I know some people love them--and it's cool that there are so many different options out there.
I play a lot of metal (other stuff also), I remember when fr starting becoming popular. Man....I just had to have one. Killer dives and pulls, the lock mech, plus it looked so bad a$$. After saving up, too much money lol, I finally got one. First off, we didn't have the net. Nobody tells you how to use these things. But....after a 2 week crash course, I learned the ins and outs. ......so not worth it. A million things can wrong. It's true that once you get it setup its golden. But if you change a string, make any adjustments, or a monthly maintenance (it needs it)....be prepared for frustration But what I found to be the most disappointing, is that I never really used the extreme dive pull.the whole point of getting it. I knew like 2 songs that actually needed it.i sold it, got 2 guitars for the same price. Now days, I got an hss for rock and blues. My metal axe is a hardtail
@@BOBANDVEG the fr trem has to be a perfect balancing act. But how many mechanical things are perfect? Not too many that i can think of. I play for enjoyment not to get frustrated. I prefer hardtails stringthroughs or vintage strat style(not for divebombing)
I love reversed headstocks on pointy guitars or Jackson’s. I just love the look, and owned a dinky for years so the flipper tuners feel pretty natural to me now. I sold that guitar due to the damn EMGs and Floyd rose. I’d love another with low output buckers and a hard tail
@@aaronperrotta7055 I prefer the tones of a tele bridge pickup to a strat bridge pup, but I must hand it to the strat; I love the strat middle position pup. I could theoretically get a Nashville style tele with a middle strat pup added in, but there is another thing about strats that beat the tele, and that's the comfortability of playing strats. The body contour and angles make it a very comfortable guitar to play for me, especially when compared to a slab of wood like a tele is. All that being said, I have gigged with my tele way more times than I have brought out my strat.
@@STSGuitar16 The ideal guitar has a Tele bridge PU and a Strat PU for the mid and neck. I can't deal with a 25 1/2" neck I prefer a 24 3/4" I am basically a Gibson guy. I decided to design and have my guitar made. google The Second best Guitar on the Planet ....and have a look :-)
I'm not a Strat person either. I started playing on 24.75 scale guitars and was able to adjust to 25 on my PRS, but I'm just never comfortable on a Strat.
Some things aren't for me but can't say I hate anything on a guitar. LOL I love 'em all! That said, I did remove the push pull knob & 4 way switch on my tele & the S1 switch on my Strat...to complicated for my old brain !! LOL And I LOVE a pearloid pickguard on a dark colored Strat.
Well Merry Christmas, and Happy Holidays to ALL! May all your days be music filled! P.S : I have the captions on and when you said "we all play Les Pauls" I guess the A.I. is hearing "we all play Les Balls" Noice.
And here I am with my trusty mid-2000’s PRS Custom 24. Gold hardware (artist package), thin neck (wide-thin), rotary pickup selector, locking tuners, and fretboard inlays...
I just can't do the rotary...I am way too "slow" to remember where the heck I am on it. But I am a convert to the gold...love it now! Gods help me:) Thanks a ton for the share!
EMG pups.... Ive tried liking them, Ive purchased a few guitars with them from the factory forcing me to try them (mid-to-higher end guitars) but I just dont like their sound. I know many many people love them but I just cant do it, I cant.
Mostly people are haters because they're jealous haha! And agreed, sometimes i don't understand why some people just need to crap on other people for having different preferences
I’m not a fan of expensive knock-offs like Xotic or Suhr. All they do is ripoff Fender , they don’t sound as good, and they don’t hold their value as well as a Fender. I once heard the ‘Captain’ at Anderton’s say that you might as well buy a Fender.
Personally, I agree with you on high end Fender style guitars. If it costs more than a Fender why not buy the Fender. What’s your opinion on high end Gibson style guitars such as Collings?
@@charlesbolton8471 Collings makes good guitars. They don't blatantly ripoff Gibson in the same egregious way that Xotic and Suhr ripoff Fender, but I'd rather buy a Gibson. Gibson's QC has greatly improved in the last year, and I believe that a Gibson will better maintain its value than a Collings will.
@@letfreedomring2699 I think you’re right on both counts. Collings aren’t direct copies of Gibsons (at least their electric guitars aren’t). Gibsons (regardless of their quality control) will definitely hold their value better than a Collings.
My first big bass purchase when I was about 18 or 19 came down to an EBMM Stingray or an American Jazz Bass - like you guys, I ultimately passed on the Stingray simply because as a broke kid starting college, I didn't think I could afford to have 9v batteries on hand at all times! I bought the Jazz Bass and always regretted it. Also, as it pertains to signature models - as a young musician that was gigging a lot, there's no way I would've ever purchased a signature guitar or bass. These days, however, I'll buy a signature model it's tastefully done (think the EBMM Valentine), but if the branding is bad I still won't touch them.
@@CasinoGuitars Thank you! After seeing the new colors they unveiled at NAMM, I waited patiently until they hit retail and bought one in Tectonic Blue Sparkle this past spring - I even sprung for some name brand 9 volts! Keep up the good work
@@Mark-hx8sg all right guys. I was being sarcastic. I read some car blogs and that is every article and comment on them about trucks. I own a Ram 3500 so it was meant as sarcasm, sorry it didn't come across that way. didn't mean to start a fight
I love my active emg 81/85 set and my seymour duncan blackout actives. They have a quiter sound but meaner. And as long as u unplug the guitar from the amp or pedalboard after each time playing your battery will last at least a year. It's only when u leave the guitar plugged in do u get battery draining. Otherwise in my 2 guitars with actives ive only had to change a battery in 1 of them once and i bought it used and even the battery thst was in it for who knows how long lasted at least 8 months so the new one will last forever. Just like battery powered pedals u just gotta unplug them to avoid burning through exspensive 9v,s and only buy good name brand 9v,s the few$s more is worth it. I use duracell they last forever
Wow! You hit it out of the park with this one. Never seen so many comments after a video. Did anyone mention veneers on the back? Goofy protruding head stocks that you could break just by looking at them? Photo flame tops?
Split Post Tuners...I believe were actually called Safe-T-Post...you couldn't punch holes in your finger tips since it was inside the tuner...I love them.
The one thing I don’t like is that on high end PRS guitars like a Custom 24, they don’t come with chrome covers on the humbucker pickups. Ive never bought one and I understand the tone purposes of not having them covered, but it seems weird to spend a lot of money on a guitar and have them uncovered-doesn’t look good to me. How about gold hardware on Les Paul Customs? While hanging out at the local guitar shop, I’ve heard some guys say they don’t like sunburst finishes.
Really there is no kind of guitar that I hate. I’m just glad that there are so many different varieties. Super simple guitars are my jam but there are so many players out there who can do so many amazing things with complex rigs. I think the more options there are the better!
I'm with you... I never understood the idea of achieving a subtle "blend" with two volume controls. Once you turn one of the pickups lower than 9, it's essentially off. But on a bass, two volume controls is a beautiful thing. When you slightly roll back one of the pickups, the tone really opens up and blooms.
I recognize that thumbnail image at 6:39 ! 🤔😂👍 I’m not a fan of tremolos (Floyd or otherwise), reverse head stocks, thin necks, gold hardware, and a few other things on this list. But certainly not going to hate on anyone that likes them. To each his/her own and whatever inspires you and makes playing guitar fun!
Just found this channel and I love the chemistry and information you guys provide, but more importantly one guy's beard is as perfect as the other guy's hair is messy! Great content guys!🤘
I like the look of relicked guitars but i like to get that againg from useing the guitar over years and years. Personaly id buy something not relicked and get that patina and age natuarly. It makes the guitar more personal feeling amd looking to me
Yes! And horribly mis-matched as well. Bigsby, EMGs, thick 50s neck, fan-fret, pointy headstock, relic'd pastel blue finish, matte black and neon pink and neon gray plastic parts, relic'd gold hardware, vintage-style non-locking tuners and a scalloped fretboard.
Hated gloss necks until I picked up my epi modern with an asymmetric neck. My HSS is now an SSS so got rid of that. Aesthetically I don’t like traditional/dog ear P90’s but love the sound and have bought a humbucker shape P90 for guitar I’m building. I also think that tuners should be chrome and not some yucky plastic ally looking things.
Well, I have a sticker on the back of my guitar where only I can see it (of a character from a show that means a lot to me). It's a personalization thing. If you're not selling the guitar, why does it matter? However I'm not a fan at putting stickers on the front of a guitar.
I run from fixed bridge guitars! Got to have a fully floating tremolo of some type. I've gotten quite good and fast at full string removal (so I can clean neck and polish frets) and then replacement of strings. Just takes practice like learning to sweep pick.
There is a big difference between buying a Honda civic or a guitar that costs 3 times as much money to have manufactured wear on it. You seem to be missing the point completely ... buying a pair of new jeans for twice the money with manufactured rips in them and standing beside someone whos jeans are ripped from going to work will make you look and feel stupid. Nobody would buy a smashed up Honda civic for 3 times the cost of a regular one. I know you sell guitars so its great either way for you but lets be real.
I hear you Nathan and folks tend to either love or hate the relics. I personally love them for their playability, feel, and tone. The look is next, but I do like the look. Also, I think some cats really love them that I would never think look fake or stupid (Jeff Beck, Keith Richards, Clapton, Tyler Bryant, just to name a few) but that again is just me. And the 93 Civic is actually quite the collectors piece for Honda cats as well. They are just as strange or even more so than us guitar lovers. Sincere thanks for sharing your thoughts and always, best to you and yours out there!
For me, I would say I “hate”: ultra-skinny necks, name inlays on fretboard, staggered tuners, most relics beyond a Journeyman, humbuckers (except SSH), Strat-style vibrato bridges, goofy headstock shapes (Bill Crook’s, for instance), gold hardware (except on a Les Paul Black Beauty and a Mary Kay Strat), signature models (except Julian Lage’s Collings), overly common finishes (candy apple red, black, sunbursts, etc.), matching headstocks, fretboard binding on Fenders, Gibson-scale length, and Taylor guitars (haha). Oh, I went to your website yesterday to buy one of those rad t-shirts, and I did not see them. So, when will they be available?
I built a Warmoth Strat that ticks a lot of the boxes: HSS (the H is single coil sized), tortoiseshell pickguard, no inlay FB, extra mini toggle, Gold hardware (including knobs) locking tuners.
1) Nothing captures the true sound of an acoustic better than a Piezo other than a Transducer &/or microphone pickup but there's something to be said for ease of operation like a passive sound hole pickup. 2) Bigby's are the coolest looking tremolo, period & you can't own a Gretsch without one (I think it's a command or something, lol) 3) Active Pickups are for acoustics ONLY, period :D 4) Neck Size: small is better (that's not what she said), another period, no not that kind of period 😁 5) Are Kidding??? Nothing absolutely Nothing looks better than My RED Fender Strat w/a White Pearloid Pickguard! 6) My first guitar was a Fender Mustang (which I wish I still owned) that had those sliding switch which I hated because they never worked right. (& yes I know I could have replaced them very cheaply but they are still crap!)
I hear that. I know a guy through a local amp shop that makes wooden pickup covers and knobs and ebony just makes a guitar look and feel a little bit more lux
Gold hardwar?!! LP 57 custom, Gretch Nashville 6120. Looks awesome! Also love my Lonestar strat Seymour Duncan pearly gates and the 2 Texas specials with pearloid pickguard! I'll take that over any reissue strat with weak single coils and tons of lacquer on the back of the neck.
That was a good list! So much is preference and style. I like the no haters vibe, "it's about music and love babys!" in my best Jimi voice. My preferences are, no active, more vintage style tuners, no HSS Strat, both relic and non depending on the relic job, kind of boring and more vintage style bridges, not big on signatures but I do love the Fernandez Sustainer in that EOB Strat, gold on a Les Paul Black Beauty or a White Falcon/Penguin. How about nitro vs. poly and maybe radiused vs. non. You guys covered most of the controversial ones I think, fun video and Merry Christmas!
Right on and thank for getting into the spirit. Only a few, usually the extreme anti-relic haters go hard on the "hate" aspect of the things here. It really is preference and honestly wow...we get to play guitar and have fun doing it..what a world we live in! Thanks for sharing Lou:)
fun video and chat -- but fair enough, bigsby, floyd rose, tele 3 saddle bridge, floating tail piece, jazz master bridge, active PUPs, and gold hardware are all NO-GOes for me, but to each their own. neck size is more to do with the size of the player's hand size. 62 strat neck is perfect for me. Merry Christmas!!
I must admit, I have some of these 'automatic' turn-off's if a guitar has some these. I like a guitar to look 'new' when I buy it and 'earn' any wear through use. To me, Relicing is like looking at the beautiful finish on a Ferrari, Lambo etc and thinking it would look better if it had been owned by a Careless driver who raced it every day for 20yrs with dings, scratches and natural road wear on all parts and if that's not enough, like its been rolled too. Dot inlays put me off immediately - it speaks of 'cheap' and I know CNC has made inlays 'easier', I still like the fact that it comes from Craftsmen rather than anyone with a pillar drill and its so easy to find the middle of the fret too. Most other things are a preference rather than major turn offs. There are some things you have to compromise on if you want certain sounds - inc Whammy bar tricks or a proper 'tele' sound or not. I am just glad there is such a wide variety of guitars on the market and enough that you can find the sounds you want that fits your preferred aesthetic.
Personal guitar pet peeves: Floyd Rose Relic Guitars Single Pickup/Single Knob Guitars V or U Shaped Necks Active Pickups Fan Fret Fretboard Gold hardware (I own one because it was the only color in the shop “the wand chooses the wizard” and after the years it’s turned grey/black...not my style but I love the feel and sound of the instrument)
You guys nailed it on this one! The one I would add would be truss rods that you have to remove the neck to adjust.
so a 1963 strat is a no go?
@@6-V-6s Correct. They sound amazing but the playability can be shite on a lot of them. Leo was always making improvements, and I agree with that and prefer modern improvements. Vintage guitars are overrated.
I have a 1962 reissue that I need to adjust the neck on. I’m not too thrilled I’ve never done it before I’m not too excited about doing it. Maybe I’m being lazy idk
Fender says loosen the neck screws and adjust away- ua-cam.com/video/qKtlsps4SqY/v-deo.html
Amazingly, the comments on that video go on and on about how wrong Fender is about their own products.
On my Fenders, I remove the pick guard and adjust it- even gouged out a little access groove to make it easier.
Prob not recommended for vintage, but I’ll bet Leo would approve.
Truss rod adjustment is a black hole of misinformation- it’s not rocket science!
In my shop, the overwhelming majority of Fender truss rod adjustment fails I see are caused by using the wrong size allen wrench.
Really? I'm pretty sure absolutely NOBODY wants a neck they have to physically remove to adjust slightly.
how did stickers not make this list?!
The thing that really bugs me is knobs too close to the bridge pickup. Im not good enough to avoid smacking into them constantly!
me too thats the strat for me.....not a big strat guy gimmie my tele lol
Yeah i hate them.. I even don't like the switch position.. If i play on the neck pickup i always smack it to the bridge position 😁
I admit that I have things that are a definite no-go for me. Some practical and some aesthetic.
For practical, Floyd’s and volume knobs immediately below the bridge pickup. I had to ditch one of the tone pots and move my volume pot down on my Strat.
For aesthetic, I don’t like gold hardware or crazy body and headstock shapes and I prefer my guitars to relic naturally. I wouldn’t turn down a guitar that was reliced, but otherwise great, but I would never choose that as an option.
Try picking over the neck pickup.It works to at least alternately for tonal dynamics.
Couldn’t agree more
Thanks for the shout-out guys. I am crazy about this channel! My guitar loves are many and my dislikes are few. But you’re right, I do have them. Being an acoustic guy I don’t have much specific to add to the discussion at hand. But I think my hates are pretty universal: Bad playing guitars for beginners (we want more people to start playing and keep playing), guitars that don’t look like guitars (guitars are instruments of romance after all), guitars that sound bad and never get any better(it’s about the music dudes and it should be sweet and always getting sweeter). My loves are the peace and sheer joy that come from playing these wonderful instruments - something we could all use more of these days. Keep the wonderful CG episodes coming! R
I have one guitar that is naturally relied. But it has taken over thirty years. I am nearly 70 I don't think I have another 30 years to relic the next one!
Great content guys, have a great holiday!
Actually as a bassist a huge thing I love on basses is a passive/active switch for the EQ. I love having the best of both worlds especially for recording, sometimes being able to throw in a little extra low mid or cranking the bass and treble for slap can make all the difference!
Bassilicious! Bass Players are the most important member of any band. #talentplus
great great list. thanks for putting it together. i just wanted to drop my $.02 about relics. i think the debate is actually a confluence of several issues, and we should break it down a little more thoroughly. there certainly is a lot of merit to the idea that taking an unnecessarily abrasive attitude towards relic instruments is a form of gatekeeping, and the guitar community is not about gatekeeping. if you find a relic guitar, and it feels and looks and sounds great, and you love it, then hey, more power to you! to find a guitar that you "click" with is a magical, valuable thing, anyone who's experienced this can attest to it. no one should be able to take that moment away from you.
however there is a line of criticism that has merit as well. i think a lot of people are biased against relic guitars not because of the guitars themselves but because they communicate or reflect an attitude of disrespecting guitar and music by taking "shortcuts", like getting the scars without the battle and proudly showing them off as if you were there. there's nothing respectable about that. everyone who's practiced guitar knows, there are no shortcuts, you have to actually play the shit out of the damn thing to get good.
another valid line of criticism against relics is that most of them just don't look very good. a custom instrument put through the relic process by a professional is a rare thing and they don't often pop up on the secondhand market. "mass produced" relic instruments like the road worn series by fender may sound and play like solid guitars, but they all look the same, they even have the same wear pattern. the rest consist of homebrew relics that look really bad and fake, like some kid just took a perfectly nice guitar and defaced it to give it a fake worn look, as if they just got off the road from an international stadium tour. it's the same thing as real skaters not respecting those posers who cant skate but buy 200 dollar black label decks and scrape the shit out of the bottom with a rock to give it a fake grinded out look.
this might be the longest comment ive ever left on youtube.
I don’t hate relics, I just don’t get it. I certainly wouldn’t pay a premium for it l, but if I fond a guitar that’s otherwise awesome for a great price, I’d pick it up.
I'll be 66 in another month. I took an interest in the relic-ed look a couple of years ago. I had to decide - should I buy a pre relic-ed guitar? Or should I play the p*** out of one of my current guitars so it would be genuinely relic-ed by the time I turned 84? The decision was pretty easy for me, and some of these controversies start to look pretty silly as your time on this rock dwindles down. I'll let you young guys beat yourselves up about it. I'm just going to enjoy my guitar.
A few things that really grind my gears are black painted headstocks and no binding, not enough reverse headstock options, control knobs too close to the strings, TONE KNOBS, bulky neck heels, 60 cycle hum, 4+ piece body’s, “figured” woods with no figuring, and unfinished necks or gloss necks. Those are just the ones off the top of my head 😅 Great video guys!
I love my EMG active pickups, I feel like a lot of my friends who don't like that guitar say it's because they hear all the ways they were playing poorly that they couldn't hear with their other pickups, but once you can make them do what you want there is a lot of range to do some crazy stuff!
I've got the new fender locking tuners, did not like the looks of them at first, still don't, but have been working at aging them so they don't look so shiny and offputting and they are coming around. Gotta love what you have though, they are tremendous at keeping tune and restringing, so clean and easy!
Turn ons: tortoise guards, metallic/surf colours, fat necks, filtertrons, block inlays
Turn offs: floyd rose, crazy out there inlays, colourful flame tops
You don’t like colorful flame tops?:(
Tortoise guards? You mean pepperoni guards
@@TheTrollMastah Username checks out lmao
@@jessieplaysmusic8530 only the PRS-ish ones where they're super colourful, like purple or green or something. If we're talking some flame top 59 les paul action... different story!
@@georgedavidson2024 You’ve never heard it called that? I’ve heard it called that so many times every time I see it I think of pepperoni. I had a pepperoni guard on my ‘62 Strat in shoreline gold and my other one in white blonde. I sold the shoreline one, put a gold metal guard on the white blonde one and just got a Sherwood green 62 reissue a couple days ago on Christmas Eve!
The one that NO ONE likes. Robot Tuners.
I like them when they work. Sadly, they never do and break all the fucking time.
I like the idea, but not the Gibson implementation
@@prsplayer210 Gibson totally fucked over Tronical for $90 million in that deal.
Forced it to market before it was completed and buried the company in debt.
Roadie has destroyed so many guitars…!!!! Help!!
@@prsplayer210 Very good point.
Things I love on guitars: 1) girls 2) strings 3) paint or lacquer
As always, LOVE your content. A) Concur: White Falcon is the only acceptable gold (purely for my taste).
B) Dissent: One doesn’t need to troll to hate on relics; they just get shoved down our throats without searching.
You guys rule. Happy New Year and be well! 🤘🏻
I don’t want a relic, but I love looking at them, and would never hate on them.
Pick guards.ever since I got my first Les Paul copy as a kid, I've taken the pick guards off, of everyone until my latest Epiphone and it looks beautiful on there. I always say panties off, now sometimes I leave them on.
I used to hate LP gold tops and customs (really, anything with gold hardware). Now I love them. Evolution!
OMG, I have to have a 54 Black Beauty reissue. Gibson and Les really got that “Black Tie” guitar right on the first try.
Pointy headstocks - when I was a kid they were for metal (I was not a metalhead).
Pointy headstock = heavy metal handicap.
Jackson headstock is byoo-tee-full IMO. It will be mine. Oh yes, it will be mine...
Hey guys, Merry Christmas to you and the whole team. I just wanna say how much I appreciate your videos. I've been getting into them since the John Cruz thing and I just love your interaction, the knowledge and your actual interesting opinion pieces. This is a really well produced UA-cam channel in any way. I'm not even a guitar player, but already spent hours here. All the best to you and thanks again for your great work!
Thanks a ton and that really mean a lot! We have a ton of fun making this strange thing happen and we love hearing that you enjoy the oddness that we are here.
Best to you and yours this season and hope to hear from you soon!
The Strat guitar looks so cool ...I just don't understand why other companies don't offer a similar guitar :-)
I just won't buy a relic'd guitar, as I want to be the one who wears them (if I live and play so long) ... agree on an HSS strat! Happy holidays, guys
Wobbly Fender screw in Tremolo arms. Even with the little spring inserted. The pickguard plastic that gets stuck under the volume and tone controls on a new guitar.
I've owned a few guitars over the years, some with active PUs and some with passive PUs. To me they are simply equal. I never thought about one beeing better than the other and still don't. The first time I heard that actives are seemingly sound compressed and cold was 2011 when I took a guitar with actives to a band night at a bar and a random dude from another band told me my tone was bad because of the pickups. Pretty sure the "bad tone" was my dimed HM-2 and he was an idiot. I'm still grumpy about that today.
I like new cars, they’re shiny and beautiful. A relic guitar is like buying the same car but with scratched and faded paint worn through to the metal or primer, torn upholstery and a cracked dash plus paying $5000 more for it.
if you applied everyone of those things to your perfect instrument you would end up playing the triangle
Pimp finishes. PRS wood library 10 tops quilted. I get guitars to play. With you guys on the Floyd and active electronics.
For me I have to have covers on my humbuckers.
I don't have to have covers on humbuckers but i do like them
I don't like the look of HSS Strats, unless the humbucker is covered. Makes a big difference to me.
@@kitano0 absolutely
Unless they’re double whites(like the PAF’s) in a R9!
me too my place is way too dusty tho....thats why lol
Strongly agree on Floyd Rose and relicing. Just received a Brad Paisley Esquire (black sparkle). Really sensational guitar but the worn forearm area is just not for me. I had the silver sparkle version earlier as well. Same feeling - wanted to fill it in. The Rose was in a Satriani signature - really nice but the restringing was a major deal...for me anyway. I found the same hassle with a 12 string Rickenbaker. Just a pain. I know some out there are going to say - c'mom man it's not that hard. But I tend toward quick and easy. Really like your discussions - thanks
I’d love a guitar that’s Truss Rod doesn’t budge when it’s Winter.
Put it outside and it will freeze in place :-)
Car bin fibber!
me to
It's the wood that moves. The rod is there to correct it.
@@jaytee6262 Thank you Mr. Pedantic.
My guitar is an HSS Strat. I wanted three single coils originally but I just really liked that particular guitar when I played it so I went with that. being able to switch into that humbucker makes it so versatile and the Mark Knopfler position still sounds really good. It turned me.
I like how quickly ya moved through. Perfect pacing
I wouldn’t dream of doing the petty hate thing, but I’ll admit the right handed version of the Jimi Hendrix Strat just cracks me up. I imagine somebody strapping it on, looking in the mirror, and going, “Oh, yeah!”
Smiles here:)
That's not "petty hate" whatsoever my friend.
Ya calls its' asyas' sees' its'.
A duck will always be a duck
Why would anyone NOT want locking tuners. I honestly don’t get people that don’t like them. Why? Uh it’s too easy to restring!
Segue to my hatred: remade vintage guitars. Especially when it comes to hardware. The only reason to play a vintage style strat bridge is because you own a $10k guitar. But to buy a custom shop $4k guitar to be made with hardware that we literally engineered to be better is mind blowing to me. Like who wants a start with a three way switch and not a five???
I dunno I find the whole guitar market dangerous with its obsession over vintage specs and gear. Are we even moving forward anymore?
And I’m not playing ergonomic guitars I just mean modern appointments on guitars. People literally used to rip klusens off and put grovers on and Gibson makes them still with them.
I love the modern vintage stuff where they acknowledge this and put modern hardware or frets on guitars. Especially radius. Vintage radius can suck it.
Traditionalists?
I really like the feel of 7.25 - 9.5 radii. I have a way easier time chording with my thumb over the neck and feel like 9.5 is just the sweet spot down the neck.
I honestly think that if everyone chose guitars based on how they felt to play and not "vintage specs" or "classic taste", everyone would be playing Strandbergs and Abasi Concepts.
@@robadobflob3405 I have a Strandberg and want an Abasi (they are never in stock). I put locking tuners on my Strat as well as a Sterling Albert Lee which fits me great. I have some guitars because they are iconic but they don't fit me ergonomically as well.
Id like to get a set. But my epis have grovers which i like and my jackson which its the one id like to replace the jackson tuning branded tuning keys cuz they are original to this 20 yr old jackson and tuning key are very sensitive. But they are such small tuning pegs and small headstock idk which locking keys id need to fit my jackson cuz the origanals are tiny im afraid most brands would be to big amd would touch each other when tuning.
Despised and HATED relic’s until I played a custom shop tele custom with a journeyman relic. LOVED it and it played and sounded beautifully.
Relic is the only thing I completely have no concept of even approaching understanding. Makes no sense
Yep. That and the scenario of a used guitar in excellent condition--but since something minot, like the caps or pots aren't original it has a severely diminished value. Same guitar with beaten up finish but original caps is fine. I don't get it.
@@jamesfetherston1190 If you buy a relic'ed guitar and play it for a lot of years, does it start looking like a new one?
@@rickclogston5205 ? Not to me.
Relics are for people who see somebody else who actually put the time in or has a vintage guitar and they want to have the same thing instantly, posers. The way to not be a poser is to do the relicing yourself. Don't cheat yourself out of having an even deeper connection with your guitar, create memories with it, don't buy prefabricated memories. They also cost more too, hundreds of dollars for about an hour of work, overpriced crap. I say this because I want you to live a fuller life, not to troll you.
Personally, a big no no for me is noiseless single coils. They're still technically phase cancelling humbuckers and cut high end, as well as detail across the spectrum. I play in a room surrounded by electronics and have no issues playing with high gain on actual single coils.
Yes!!! HSS on a strat is an absolute no-no for me. I couldn’t give you a reason why, but I absolutely loathe that configuration.
To me a Stratocaster will always be three single coils. I don't want a humbucker to interfere with that spanky sound.
They only come that way because the Strat bridge PU sounds thin and nasal. If they put a Tele bridge PU in the Strat you would have the very best of both guitars. It is such an obvious idea that the only reason it has never happened over all these decades is the marketing boys in the office would shutter. lol
I recently bought a Luke 3 HSS and surprisingly the 2nd position still retains that quacky sound we all like. I’ve tried a few Fender Strats in the past and they couldn’t quite do what the Luke is doing for me personally
Paul, check out Mario Martin honcho
@@xF1revolution Thanks for the heads up. I took a look and it is cool. google... The Second Best Guitar on the Planet I Have been designing guitars for others since '76 lol This one is mine.
Strap buttons on the neck heel.
On the Dano DC, it's not as bad, but the SG/335 placement is the reason why they tend to try and tip forward. Also, they went to the trouble of improving upper fret access and then ruin it by putting the strap in the way.
A big turn off for me are some of the overly-flamey or overly-quilted tops that you see PRS and Gibson put out sometimes and some of the modern burst/fade combos they're doing now (like a blue to green fade, or a purple and orange fade or whatever else). Give me a relatively plain AA grade top with a classic burst or paint color instead of the striped up, cluttered mess of a AAAA grade flame top any day of the week. Also not a fan of guitars without pickguards for aesthetic reasons as well.
Immediate turn on is three pickup guitars and P90 guitars. I mainly play a two-pup LP but if a guitar has three pups on it, it pulls me in immediately. They're just vibey.
You are a purist and I can dig that thoroughly! Good shares there STS and thank you sincerely.
I "like" them on "Classic" looking bursts... Hate it on oversaturated blue/green/purple colors :P
@@0000song0000 Yeah, I can see where you're coming from, but to me if I did end up getting a crazy flamed top guitar, I think I would probably go for a non-traditional color like a really deep blue or red. To each their own.
I honestly think the whole attraction of having a AAAA or AAAAA grade top is the wow factor, and if you aren't into gawking at a purple galaxy fade hybrid flame-quilt top beast with a matching headstock and sides, then flashy guitars just aren't appealing to you. Also, I agree with the pickguard one, but that varies from model to model. Id say that LP's can look good with or without one, but a strat or tele just look naked. Guitars like PRS's, Ibanezes, and Strandbergs just look awful with a pickguard.
@@robadobflob3405 Yeah, the flashy stuff is just overstated in my opinion. Not my cup of tea these days, but younger me loved all of that stuff when I first started playing. I guess as i've grown into the instrument, I just prefer the classic aesthetic. I mean a Lamborghini is super nice for sure, but how bout a blue '68 Mustang, ya know what I mean?? Hard to beat such classic, timeless, and elegant looks of a Cherry burst LP.
And funnily enough, a Les Paul was exactly the guitar I had in mind when I said I prefer guitars with pickguards lol. I understand why some people take them off of their LPs (the argument often being, "why cover up so much of the wood grain on the top of the guitar?"), but I just personally love the way a cream colored pick guard looks with the other cream accents like the binding and pickup surrounds. It just ties the whole look together in my view.
I recently got my first PRS: an American S2 Studio that they did a limited run of in 2018. I opted for the black with tortoise shell pickguard, and I gotta say, that is one sexy combo. If it didn't have that pickguard, it would lose so much of its vibe. It would just be another black double-cutaway guitar. I know you probably don't envision a solid black guitar when you think about PRS, but I think this is very much a case where you might agree that the pickguard makes it look infinitely better than if it didn't have one. So maybe that's one case where you might agree that a pickguard adds to the overall appearance of that particular PRS guitar.
Of course strats, teles, and SGs absolutely MUST have the pickguard, no questions asked. Derek Trucks is my favorite guitarist by a long shot, but I have never been a fan of his signature model SGs that come without a pickguard. Last I checked, he usually plays a custom shop '61 reissue most of the time these days, which is definitely my favorite SG look as well.
Guitar turnoffs: HSH/HH Strats or any weird funky configurations of Strats, P90s, Floyd roses, headless or travel guitars.
Guitar turn ons: Gold hardware, maple fretboards with wear on them, late 60s/early 70s style Fender headstocks, reverse headstocks, bound fretboards, tortoise shell or gold anodized on the right guitar, ebony or really really dark rosewood fretboards, and Gibson Les Paul custom style headstocks
Great shares there and thanks a ton Nico! I do like those P90s though...:)
HSS strat had to grow on me but now dig it (has to be chrome covered humbucker though!) Xotic does a great job. You can keep the Floyd Rose, Bigsby, Kahler, etc. The relics are sweet (Fender Road Worns are my favorites). "Relics" that are clear-coated over the relic don't make sense at all. Not at all🤪
Favorites: Butterscotch Teles, Sonic Blue, Fiesta Red, Sunbursts, P90 anything👌
I'm the same for HSS strats. Covered = cool and classy, uncovered = cheesy 1980s
I like the HSS strats that have eg: a white pickguard with a zebra H, and 2 black singles, so it looks like a 'proper' Strat at first glance.
I agree with your comment " "Relics" that are clear-coated over the relic don't make sense at all. Not at all🤪"
I wonder if a reliced guitar is used as a demo and gets some marks from people playing it, is it considered damaged or improved? 😂
Just an aside for those who mentioned Jazzmaster/Jaguar bridges. The new versions on such as my Ultra Jazzmaster are very different from those of years ago. They hold tune much better and it’s much more difficult to screw up the intonation once it’s set. And in addition, the trem covers a considerably wider range; you can nearly dive bomb it. And if you have an older one, the Halon (fixed-type) replacement is super.
Also, I agree with all of you who hate the Floyd, Reverse headstocks, and relics.
I don't like headless guitars! Floyd Rose may serve a purpose, just a big pain that I don't want. Also guitars that have 10 different switches, push-pulls, coil splits and combo choices and then your pedal board with 12 pedals that do anything going into a modeling amp to change it back to normal???? Give me a good guitar and a good tube amp and I can have fun!
I have the American strat pro 2 with the Bridge humbucker. I love it! It’s the most versatile guitar I have!
I can’t stand orange necks on Fenders. Makes them look cheap and nasty 🤢 I like bling on Gibsons (gold hardware, ebony board and block or parallelogram inlays). Oddly, I don’t like block inlays on Fenders! Where do these irrational likes/dislikes come from?
just curious i repect your complaint by orange do you mean maple necks or ?
I think it comes from the psychological effect of how things should look like, based upon the way they were built initially and how these images set into our minds (I hope I 'said' it right - English is not my native language).
But I'm with you on this. I like block inlays and neck bindings on Gibson guitars, even though I prefer a no nonsense look), but I just can't stand these features on Fender models.
As for the orange necks, I suppose you mean some series in the Fender range where they use a hue in the lacquer that's just too orange as an attempt to make it look older and more accurate? I agree Fender overdid it a couple of times.
Gibson had a similar thing for a while with an almost fluorescent green color of the block inlays in the necks on certain models.
Definitely some things I used to not like I do now.
Most of the stuff on the list would not be deal breakers for me.
But a V neck would be a deal killer for me.
I'm not picky about news oevrall--and like big chunky necks & slim necks, but I just can't get along with V necks.
But I know some people love them--and it's cool that there are so many different options out there.
Floyd rose is the biggest no go for me
I play a lot of metal (other stuff also), I remember when fr starting becoming popular. Man....I just had to have one. Killer dives and pulls, the lock mech, plus it looked so bad a$$. After saving up, too much money lol, I finally got one.
First off, we didn't have the net. Nobody tells you how to use these things. But....after a 2 week crash course, I learned the ins and outs. ......so not worth it. A million things can wrong. It's true that once you get it setup its golden. But if you change a string, make any adjustments, or a monthly maintenance (it needs it)....be prepared for frustration
But what I found to be the most disappointing, is that I never really used the extreme dive pull.the whole point of getting it. I knew like 2 songs that actually needed it.i sold it, got 2 guitars for the same price.
Now days, I got an hss for rock and blues. My metal axe is a hardtail
@@BOBANDVEG the fr trem has to be a perfect balancing act. But how many mechanical things are perfect? Not too many that i can think of. I play for enjoyment not to get frustrated. I prefer hardtails stringthroughs or vintage strat style(not for divebombing)
I love reversed headstocks on pointy guitars or Jackson’s. I just love the look, and owned a dinky for years so the flipper tuners feel pretty natural to me now. I sold that guitar due to the damn EMGs and Floyd rose. I’d love another with low output buckers and a hard tail
I must be the only guitarist who doesn’t like the look and feel of a strat. Turn ons are chrome covers on humbuckers and p90s.
You're not alone - I will never own a strat. They just don't look right to me. Also my dad loved the Shadows, which was deeply uncool.
@@mrzurkon6013 They don't look right on me either. The bodies too long. Plus, I love Teles so.
@@aaronperrotta7055 I prefer the tones of a tele bridge pickup to a strat bridge pup, but I must hand it to the strat; I love the strat middle position pup. I could theoretically get a Nashville style tele with a middle strat pup added in, but there is another thing about strats that beat the tele, and that's the comfortability of playing strats. The body contour and angles make it a very comfortable guitar to play for me, especially when compared to a slab of wood like a tele is. All that being said, I have gigged with my tele way more times than I have brought out my strat.
@@STSGuitar16 The ideal guitar has a Tele bridge PU and a Strat PU for the mid and neck. I can't deal with a 25 1/2" neck I prefer a 24 3/4" I am basically a Gibson guy. I decided to design and have my guitar made. google The Second best Guitar on the Planet ....and have a look :-)
I'm not a Strat person either. I started playing on 24.75 scale guitars and was able to adjust to 25 on my PRS, but I'm just never comfortable on a Strat.
Some things aren't for me but can't say I hate anything on a guitar. LOL I love 'em all! That said, I did remove the push pull knob & 4 way switch on my tele & the S1 switch on my Strat...to complicated for my old brain !! LOL And I LOVE a pearloid pickguard on a dark colored Strat.
Well Merry Christmas, and Happy Holidays to ALL! May all your days be music filled!
P.S : I have the captions on and when you said "we all play Les Pauls" I guess the A.I. is hearing "we all play Les Balls" Noice.
And here I am with my trusty mid-2000’s PRS Custom 24. Gold hardware (artist package), thin neck (wide-thin), rotary pickup selector, locking tuners, and fretboard inlays...
I just can't do the rotary...I am way too "slow" to remember where the heck I am on it. But I am a convert to the gold...love it now! Gods help me:) Thanks a ton for the share!
EMG pups.... Ive tried liking them, Ive purchased a few guitars with them from the factory forcing me to try them (mid-to-higher end guitars) but I just dont like their sound. I know many many people love them but I just cant do it, I cant.
The reason you don't like them is they sound like sh@t!
Mostly people are haters because they're jealous haha! And agreed, sometimes i don't understand why some people just need to crap on other people for having different preferences
Is it allowed ???
@@Paul_Lenard_Ewing everyone has the choice to do whatever they want, but not everything is beneficial
7,8,9 strings?
Bigsbys are amazing. I got one on my Les Paul Custom Black Beauty. Love it
I don’t play electric guitars without Bigsbys
Got a B3 on my Hofner Verithin a B5 on my Texas special Highway One Tele and a B7 on my Les Paul Junior Special.
Upside down headstock. Just can’t do it
Gold hardware except White Falcons... definitely with you on that one....
I’m not a fan of expensive knock-offs like Xotic or Suhr. All they do is ripoff Fender , they don’t sound as good, and they don’t hold their value as well as a Fender. I once heard the ‘Captain’ at Anderton’s say that you might as well buy a Fender.
Personally, I agree with you on high end Fender style guitars. If it costs more than a Fender why not buy the Fender.
What’s your opinion on high end Gibson style guitars such as Collings?
@@charlesbolton8471 Collings makes good guitars. They don't blatantly ripoff Gibson in the same egregious way that Xotic and Suhr ripoff Fender, but I'd rather buy a Gibson. Gibson's QC has greatly improved in the last year, and I believe that a Gibson will better maintain its value than a Collings will.
@@letfreedomring2699
I think you’re right on both counts.
Collings aren’t direct copies of Gibsons (at least their electric guitars aren’t).
Gibsons (regardless of their quality control) will definitely hold their value better than a Collings.
My first big bass purchase when I was about 18 or 19 came down to an EBMM Stingray or an American Jazz Bass - like you guys, I ultimately passed on the Stingray simply because as a broke kid starting college, I didn't think I could afford to have 9v batteries on hand at all times! I bought the Jazz Bass and always regretted it. Also, as it pertains to signature models - as a young musician that was gigging a lot, there's no way I would've ever purchased a signature guitar or bass. These days, however, I'll buy a signature model it's tastefully done (think the EBMM Valentine), but if the branding is bad I still won't touch them.
Great points there! Sorry you missed on the StingRay though:( They are still out there...go grab one now!
@@CasinoGuitars Thank you! After seeing the new colors they unveiled at NAMM, I waited patiently until they hit retail and bought one in Tectonic Blue Sparkle this past spring - I even sprung for some name brand 9 volts! Keep up the good work
Honda Civic guy. I hate big trucks. Why does anyone need that much vehicle? They never carry anything?
So while the Nazi's show up in big trucks you'll be in a Honda Civic.
Nobody ever carries anything in their big truck? Why do they even make them?
@@Mark-hx8sg all right guys. I was being sarcastic. I read some car blogs and that is every article and comment on them about trucks. I own a Ram 3500 so it was meant as sarcasm, sorry it didn't come across that way. didn't mean to start a fight
i love vintage styled strats - i hate taking the neck off to adjust the truss rod and the lack of the 22nd fret.
Push pull pots or S1 switching.... Any type of circuit board....
Why though? If you don't want to use the push-pulls or s-1, you can just choose to not use them. They don't get in the way like mini-switches
I love my active emg 81/85 set and my seymour duncan blackout actives. They have a quiter sound but meaner. And as long as u unplug the guitar from the amp or pedalboard after each time playing your battery will last at least a year. It's only when u leave the guitar plugged in do u get battery draining. Otherwise in my 2 guitars with actives ive only had to change a battery in 1 of them once and i bought it used and even the battery thst was in it for who knows how long lasted at least 8 months so the new one will last forever. Just like battery powered pedals u just gotta unplug them to avoid burning through exspensive 9v,s and only buy good name brand 9v,s the few$s more is worth it. I use duracell they last forever
dont like the antique klussen style. Ive either changed em out for locking chrome or painted them black on a couple
Wow! You hit it out of the park with this one. Never seen so many comments after a video. Did anyone mention veneers on the back? Goofy protruding head stocks that you could break just by looking at them? Photo flame tops?
The hair, whoa 😳!
Split Post Tuners...I believe were actually called Safe-T-Post...you couldn't punch holes in your finger tips since it was inside the tuner...I love them.
Great one there and agree! It has saved so many bleeding fingers in our world:)!
Looks like Robert Smith's hairstylist, has gained a new patron. 😁
Both Robert and I don't need hairstylists...we use the Vacuum lawnmower combo suck-o-matic!
@@CasinoGuitars you have a great sense of humor brother! Cheers!
The one thing I don’t like is that on high end PRS guitars like a Custom 24, they don’t come with chrome covers on the humbucker pickups. Ive never bought one and I understand the tone purposes of not having them covered, but it seems weird to spend a lot of money on a guitar and have them uncovered-doesn’t look good to me.
How about gold hardware on Les Paul Customs?
While hanging out at the local guitar shop, I’ve heard some guys say they don’t like sunburst finishes.
tree of life inlays, or similar. way too busy. ha i was typing this when you got to this one
love my jag. all it's glorious switches and it's amazing rocking bridge
Floyd Rose bridges for turn-offs, P90's and fretboard binding for immediate turn-on's 🤘
your right......
Relateable
Yes
Agreed
Really there is no kind of guitar that I hate. I’m just glad that there are so many different varieties. Super simple guitars are my jam but there are so many players out there who can do so many amazing things with complex rigs. I think the more options there are the better!
Two volume controls. I end up wiring all my guitars with a single volume.
Wow, that's a clever idea. I haven't actually seen that too often!
I'm with you... I never understood the idea of achieving a subtle "blend" with two volume controls. Once you turn one of the pickups lower than 9, it's essentially off. But on a bass, two volume controls is a beautiful thing. When you slightly roll back one of the pickups, the tone really opens up and blooms.
I recognize that thumbnail image at 6:39 ! 🤔😂👍 I’m not a fan of tremolos (Floyd or otherwise), reverse head stocks, thin necks, gold hardware, and a few other things on this list. But certainly not going to hate on anyone that likes them. To each his/her own and whatever inspires you and makes playing guitar fun!
That's the best comment of this thread thus far...cheers to you!
Missing cover plates are my biggest turn off...
I had to learn guitar on an Ibanez prestige mij with a there version of a floyd. Such a pain in the pass , but once you’re used to it, you love it.
#1 Thing I hate on guitars I want...P$ICE TAG!
Just found this channel and I love the chemistry and information you guys provide, but more importantly one guy's beard is as perfect as the other guy's hair is messy! Great content guys!🤘
Coil splitting humbuckers with push/pull pots
I like the look of relicked guitars but i like to get that againg from useing the guitar over years and years. Personaly id buy something not relicked and get that patina and age natuarly. It makes the guitar more personal feeling amd looking to me
some of us don't have that long to wait...
You guys should mock up a guitar with all of these controversial features
Yes! And horribly mis-matched as well. Bigsby, EMGs, thick 50s neck, fan-fret, pointy headstock, relic'd pastel blue finish, matte black and neon pink and neon gray plastic parts, relic'd gold hardware, vintage-style non-locking tuners and a scalloped fretboard.
Love gold hardware and my sweat seems to do an instant relic job on it too.
Now that is awesome! I love the gold now to...help me please:)
Ugly headstocks (peavey music man etc) any 4+2 type headstock.
PRS is awful looking too.
Hated gloss necks until I picked up my epi modern with an asymmetric neck. My HSS is now an SSS so got rid of that. Aesthetically I don’t like traditional/dog ear P90’s but love the sound and have bought a humbucker shape P90 for guitar I’m building. I also think that tuners should be chrome and not some yucky plastic ally looking things.
Stickers of any kind - yuck. Why do people do that?
Dude, you’re talking my language. Nothing cheapens a guitar like stickers.
Well, I have a sticker on the back of my guitar where only I can see it (of a character from a show that means a lot to me). It's a personalization thing. If you're not selling the guitar, why does it matter? However I'm not a fan at putting stickers on the front of a guitar.
I run from fixed bridge guitars! Got to have a fully floating tremolo of some type. I've gotten quite good and fast at full string removal (so I can clean neck and polish frets) and then replacement of strings. Just takes practice like learning to sweep pick.
But it is easy to sweep pick. Just use a soft paint brush it only takes a second.
There is a big difference between buying a Honda civic or a guitar that costs 3 times as much money to have manufactured wear on it. You seem to be missing the point completely ... buying a pair of new jeans for twice the money with manufactured rips in them and standing beside someone whos jeans are ripped from going to work will make you look and feel stupid. Nobody would buy a smashed up Honda civic for 3 times the cost of a regular one. I know you sell guitars so its great either way for you but lets be real.
I hear you Nathan and folks tend to either love or hate the relics. I personally love them for their playability, feel, and tone. The look is next, but I do like the look. Also, I think some cats really love them that I would never think look fake or stupid (Jeff Beck, Keith Richards, Clapton, Tyler Bryant, just to name a few) but that again is just me.
And the 93 Civic is actually quite the collectors piece for Honda cats as well. They are just as strange or even more so than us guitar lovers.
Sincere thanks for sharing your thoughts and always, best to you and yours out there!
@@CasinoGuitars I hear you too and at the end of the day the important thing is feeling good playing music. Happy Holidays!
For me, I would say I “hate”: ultra-skinny necks, name inlays on fretboard, staggered tuners, most relics beyond a Journeyman, humbuckers (except SSH), Strat-style vibrato bridges, goofy headstock shapes (Bill Crook’s, for instance), gold hardware (except on a Les Paul Black Beauty and a Mary Kay Strat), signature models (except Julian Lage’s Collings), overly common finishes (candy apple red, black, sunbursts, etc.), matching headstocks, fretboard binding on Fenders, Gibson-scale length, and Taylor guitars (haha).
Oh, I went to your website yesterday to buy one of those rad t-shirts, and I did not see them. So, when will they be available?
Buying a reliced guitar is like throwing yourself down a flight of stairs. Just to say you look cool because you're beat up.
I built a Warmoth Strat that ticks a lot of the boxes: HSS (the H is single coil sized), tortoiseshell pickguard, no inlay FB, extra mini toggle, Gold hardware (including knobs) locking tuners.
you guys forgot headless guitars why? i can't stand em.........
That's a big one, the opinions are so split on those
@@abcrx32j i think thay suck .
1) Nothing captures the true sound of an acoustic better than a Piezo other than a Transducer &/or microphone pickup but there's something to be said for ease of operation like a passive sound hole pickup. 2) Bigby's are the coolest looking tremolo, period & you can't own a Gretsch without one (I think it's a command or something, lol) 3) Active Pickups are for acoustics ONLY, period :D 4) Neck Size: small is better (that's not what she said), another period, no not that kind of period 😁 5) Are Kidding??? Nothing absolutely Nothing looks better than My RED Fender Strat w/a White Pearloid Pickguard! 6) My first guitar was a Fender Mustang (which I wish I still owned) that had those sliding switch which I hated because they never worked right. (& yes I know I could have replaced them very cheaply but they are still crap!)
Plastic P90s! They ruin the looks of an otherwise pretty guitar.
I hear that. I know a guy through a local amp shop that makes wooden pickup covers and knobs and ebony just makes a guitar look and feel a little bit more lux
But the sound!
Gold hardwar?!! LP 57 custom, Gretch Nashville 6120. Looks awesome! Also love my Lonestar strat Seymour Duncan pearly gates and the 2 Texas specials with pearloid pickguard! I'll take that over any reissue strat with weak single coils and tons of lacquer on the back of the neck.
That was a good list! So much is preference and style. I like the no haters vibe, "it's about music and love babys!" in my best Jimi voice. My preferences are, no active, more vintage style tuners, no HSS Strat, both relic and non depending on the relic job, kind of boring and more vintage style bridges, not big on signatures but I do love the Fernandez Sustainer in that EOB Strat, gold on a Les Paul Black Beauty or a White Falcon/Penguin. How about nitro vs. poly and maybe radiused vs. non. You guys covered most of the controversial ones I think, fun video and Merry Christmas!
Right on and thank for getting into the spirit. Only a few, usually the extreme anti-relic haters go hard on the "hate" aspect of the things here. It really is preference and honestly wow...we get to play guitar and have fun doing it..what a world we live in! Thanks for sharing Lou:)
@@CasinoGuitars yes I have seen the darkside!
fun video and chat -- but fair enough, bigsby, floyd rose, tele 3 saddle bridge, floating tail piece, jazz master bridge, active PUPs, and gold hardware are all NO-GOes for me, but to each their own. neck size is more to do with the size of the player's hand size. 62 strat neck is perfect for me. Merry Christmas!!
I must admit, I have some of these 'automatic' turn-off's if a guitar has some these.
I like a guitar to look 'new' when I buy it and 'earn' any wear through use. To me, Relicing is like looking at the beautiful finish on a Ferrari, Lambo etc and thinking it would look better if it had been owned by a Careless driver who raced it every day for 20yrs with dings, scratches and natural road wear on all parts and if that's not enough, like its been rolled too.
Dot inlays put me off immediately - it speaks of 'cheap' and I know CNC has made inlays 'easier', I still like the fact that it comes from Craftsmen rather than anyone with a pillar drill and its so easy to find the middle of the fret too.
Most other things are a preference rather than major turn offs. There are some things you have to compromise on if you want certain sounds - inc Whammy bar tricks or a proper 'tele' sound or not. I am just glad there is such a wide variety of guitars on the market and enough that you can find the sounds you want that fits your preferred aesthetic.
Personal guitar pet peeves:
Floyd Rose
Relic Guitars
Single Pickup/Single Knob Guitars
V or U Shaped Necks
Active Pickups
Fan Fret Fretboard
Gold hardware (I own one because it was the only color in the shop “the wand chooses the wizard” and after the years it’s turned grey/black...not my style but I love the feel and sound of the instrument)