did something that i’ve not done for a long time today. guitar shopping.
before you start pouncing, RR and the neon, it was for a mate. yup, an excuse to do a lil’ trip up city road and paternoster row. i won’t go for an eBay purchase if i was a first time buyer (eBay is great for second hand guitars, a reason why you don’t get to see much choice in the music shop when it comes to second hand stuff). in my opinion, you need to have a feel for the guitar. the playability and the sound are the most important prerequisites. looks and brand come second (yeah, jeer all you want). this is true especially if one is a beginner. if the guitar feels easy to play and it sounds great, even the most benak of students may still have a glimmer of hope yet when it comes to improving one’s playing. the snag is, such guitars come in the dearer price bracket.
the guitar in question today was an acoustic. we finally narrowed the choice down to a takamine G series and a fender, both of which were dreadnought electro-acoustics. one a little over the budget and one was way cheap. the thing was they looked, and more importantly, sounded pretty much alike. the easiest route would be to take the cheaper one. well, it wasn’t that simple.
- the takamine G series is korean, whilst the fender was made in china. in my books, the quality based on the factory site is pretty much this: india/indonesia/china (nope), north america (yup). korea, japan and mexico (in ascending order) are somewhere in between. don’t make a face. just see the price tags, man!
- the takamine had a solid top, although we weren’t told of which wood. for the same price there was this handmade (canadian) satin cedar-topped simon & patrick, but we both agreed it sounded a little light (it did sound fuller if it was played with a stronger attack on the strings). the chinese fender was most likely to have a laminated top (read: plywood).
- aesthetically, the takamine was way nicer. a ring of abalone around the soundhole, mother of pearl dot inlays etc. however, both takamine and fender had this annoyingly yellowish sheen due to the lacquer. satin surfaces are much better (baby taylor and simon & patrick to name two).
- the takamine’s preamp unit had a built-in tuner (oooOOOooo), whilst the fender had the most rudimentary fishman preamp. also, the input jack was in the preamp. like, what??!!!.
despite the negative remarks i made about the fender, both guitars sounded pretty much alike. merely re-emphasising here.
which one would you go for?
i know which one i’d bring back, and besides, the deed is done and there is one happy owner of a guitar strumming away in his room tonight.
TAKA!!!
am i bias?
YES!
🙂
bro
do u think a benak like me can learn play the guitar alone ? and if so what kind of beginner guitars would u recommend ?
alvarez!
hey! aku terasalah part “benak” tu. hehehe… i’ll choose the takamine too. sheesh! i need to change my guitar strings.
moe: it depends what you mean by ‘alone’. some people can pick up the guitar pretty easily (learn some chords from a book and figure out the songs from listening to songs). so, it’s a little difficult to generalise. the kind of guitar for a beginner? well, i think the first thing on one’s mind would be how much one would be willing to splash out. and within that budget, get the best in terms of playablity and sound, both of which are subjective!
a beginner also should start on an acoustic. not a hard and fast rule, but i suppose one should learn to walk before one runs.
good luck!
RR: ko tau tak who the friend is? 😉
hint: ko kenal dia.
seems like i know who is the happily-strumming-takamine owner… 😉
How much was the Taka?
Taylor rules!
£350.
i want a taylor, too. so which model do you own/are you thinking of getting?
I have a cheap ol’ Yamaha.
It sounds great, though. The B string sings true and clear. 🙂
I’ve always wanted a Taylor. My bro has a beautiful Taylor so my fixation with Taylors is all down to him.
No specific model in mind. Like you said, gotta like the feel and the sound more than anything else. Haven’t visited an axe shop in ages.
I started with a solid Hofner. Now I have an acoustic Yamaha (indon).
Martin, yo. We’ve had this debate over Martin vs Taylor!!! Why bother having it again?
But that said, acoustics are way harder to fall in love with than electrics. To find ‘the one’ is almost impossible. And most of the time, they’re already someone else’s ‘wife/woman’.
A bit like real life, innit? 😉
well said, boyo!
pok ku: what happened to the hofner?
kudz: i think i know who the new owner af a Taka! jgn hangat2 taik ayam oi… hehehehe!
neon: my friend’s selling his Martin D28 for RM7k… used for 2 years. lemme know if u’re interested…
kudz: found an Alhambra 1G for RM800 in eBay Malaysia, worth buying or not? opinion pls… cheers!
🙂
If I had RM 7K, I’d get a proper US 57, two tone sunburst, maple fretboard. Just like tricksy’s.
And then I’ma name her ‘Brownie II’
*melts into sappy lovejoy puddle*
I think you shud start a new series for your non-blogging, YET OUTSTANDINGLY SUPPORTIVE, mates who would love to share their love of their lives with others, since we’re talking about axes.
Just to keep the ‘Careful with that axe, Eugene’ series going, nahmsayin’?
(I’d definitely get the ‘get your own’ comment nih!)
in all seriousness, you two can be guest writers. if you still want me to write, well email me some details and a photo of eleanor, LP goldtop etc. whilst i can look up the specs on the ‘net, it’s pointless unless i have the owner’s take on the axe.
serious ni.
or you can start your own blog. 😆
i think i have in file, pretty good pics of: eleanor, brownie, the 72 tele custom, cocaine, and the LP gold top.
RR, gtr kau tak bnyk pasal bukan zaman digicam 😆
so, that’s a start. now email me your stories, then…
YAY!
*picks up a piece paper and a pen*
The Hofner was left at my mom’s place in Merang and subsequently got stolen.
kudo&neon: currently looking/drooling at ’74 3-tone sb. chantekk!
will email u them pics… jez the pics!
i leave the descriptions to u… after all, my guitars are close to u as it is close to me. wouldnt be a big deal to write decent stuff bout them…
Neon, lets get started!
lemme see… shall we start with the ‘eldest’ guitar? hehehe… 🙂
Oi, just cos you have a vintage guitar (which you have NEVER offered your good, GOOD friend a chance to see!) doesn’t mean it is cooler than Eleanor, or Cocaine, or Safrot or Brownie, OK?!!
trickmaster: seen the pics, dude. that’ll increase your ‘SRV-points’ by about 87%. get it. your country bukan murah ke these things? 😛
SAFROT?! ape tu?
🙂
p/s: nanti kau dtg rumah aku, aku kasik laa kau main. eleh…
where’s the pic? where’s the pic? i wanna see… wanna see…
sial lah weih
tgk gambar2 guitar hang buat aku meleleh..
i have still yet to buy my 72 custom tele or the jaguar…..
neon: ..about 3-4 grandola jugak-lah, it’s a seventy-friggin-four mamat, minty-minty, me love you long time
r.r: hidup siamang gagap!
hidup!!!
animals like kangarooooOOO!
sdarian jgk kaa?
adoihs… 🙂
my name is fake: nick/blog hang macam slant on radiohead’s fake plastic trees.
then hang nak either 72 custom, or jaguar.
thomas edward yorke, eh?
i got a *mexican* (don’t give me shit on this, guys! aku tak berduit macam korang) 72 custom. it’s alright. but get yourself the one with the big headstock tu la… baru RADIOHEAD!
tricksy: Am getting my DRII looked at by Nik of CeriaTone one of these days. Fab guy in the email, dude. Thanks for the recommendation.
kudos
imitation is the sincerest form of flattery..:P
AKu plan nak beli MIJ ( Japan) punya 72 tele, still tryingt o sort out the details….
its abt RM2K ( inclusive shipping, not inclusive duties)
fake: Right on, dude. I bought a 3 tone sunburst tele just cos Greenwood has one. Nasib baik aku tak install the cut off switch and pakai lace pickups. Tak sempat nak buat.
Jap Fenders are the best ‘Price vs Performance Fenders’ I’ve owned and played. And 2K is about the right price.
tricksy: $3/4K boleh tahan lagi, mate. Makan Maggi la for a month. Maybe two. Tapi she is timeless. Immaculate. $4K is a snip, compared to the amount of pleasure you’ll experience. [RACUNNNN!!!]
tricksy: original ’57 or Reissue? any other way, memang aku jeles!!!
🙂
p/s: aku beli SRV tu pun coz nak dpt the closest affordable feel of ’59 Strat… 😉
r.r: RI sahaja
Eh i thought Number One tu ’63, ’59 eh?
neon: yeap, MIJ is sweet, I’ve tried it, Riz’s olympic white, jumbo fret, hot tex, yummy midrangey
kuds: Kasi try black beauty nanti? boleh?
tricksy: the last time i checked t’was still ’59 strat. tapi tak tau laa kot ada hypothesis lain. but i can still be wrong… 😉
but i did hear about that ’63 probability tho…
neon, kudo & tricksy: apa itu MIJ? saya budak baru belajar… 🙂 terima kasih!
Number One actually bares the body of a ’59 strat and a ’62 neck…
…Stevie surmised that Leo Fender probably assembled this guitar from left-over 1959 production parts in 1962…
… then Rene Martinez (Stevie’s guitar tech) claims he has found that the pickups are 1959, while both the neck and body are 1961…
…but in Stevie’s mind, the guitar was a factory-cobbled-up 1959, so all discussion ended here!!!
…hihihihihihi… 😉
mij=made in jepun.
the thom yorke tele is a deluxe custom. no reissues, so kena beli vintage!!! currently hot-ish in the states.
alex kapranos of franz ferdinand pun pakai ini… 🙂
what happened to the deluxe reverb?
Eh, it’s got soul, my DRII. I guess it’s just that time of the year, you know? When your bullshit relationship ain’t goin’ pretty much nowhere. And she wants to go to ‘the next stage’. But hell no, you ain’t ready! So you gots to let her down slowly. Tell her, ‘Wait on me, Honey. It ain’t too bad. Give it mo’ time.’
Of course she’ll go all cranky and stuff. Loud crackles and pops everytime youse wanna touch her near her (input) jack. Sometimes I feel like killin’ her softly, nahmsayin’? But I could feel her (electric) current through my fingers when I’m strumming her pain. Cold (solder) joints, some say. But I’ma sort her out good with some sweet, loving.
“Don’t let the sugar run so cold, baby. It’s freezing in here.”
mamat Neon nie terlalu desperate to the extent making out dgn machine… (buat-buat x paham!)
😉
“…welcome my son, welcome… to the machine…”
ur desperation is exactly like ur Milan defenders countering my Chelsea attackers… 🙂
since you are eloquently waxing lyrical about the DRii, why don’t you channel all that emotion in the new guitar articles we’re setting up on this blog!!!!!!!!!!!
😉
Lmsn: Dude, do not start with WE8, man. Don’t even think about starting. You fook-king, Brummie-loving wanker.
HoHoHoHOHOHohOhO… Bila nak lawan lagi? I’ve not indulged in some proper swearing for a while.
thnks bro.
whenever mate… whenever…
…jez bring it on!!!!!!!!!!