Should you buy an expensive guitar?

  
"Should I buy a really expensive e-guitar?". The answer is not simple at all. There are certainly quite a few prons and cons in buying a pricey electric guitar. In this short article, we 'll try to discuss the time old question:

 -First of all, we have to realize that no guitar is perfect. Every guitar needs maintenance and maybe a few modifications, even tiny ones, to perform the way we want it every time we grab it and play.
 -Maintaining your guitar, no matter its price tag is a must. Even brand new guitars need some TLC. Older guitars are usually in need of new parts as well. Having your guitar professionally set up and maintained every once in a while is always a good thing. You can also learn how to set up your own guitar or simply how to perform minor adjustments over time. A set up guitar will play/sound better than much more expensive models which are not properly maintained.

 -Then, every guitar's tone and playability is based on its strings. A fresh set of quality strings could perform miracles! It's like fitting your car with a fresh set of quality tires. Few realize that some problems of their guitar are associated with the string set they're using. There are many string makes, types and gauges. Always make sure you choose the right string set for your guitar and tuning.

 -Contrary to popular belief(!?), the electronics of an electric guitar are very important!.... Some say that 99% of the tonal character of a guitar is associated with the type of its tonewoods. That's true for classical guitars and acoustic instruments in general. Every electric guitar is equipped with some kind of electric/electronic pickup-transducer. The unplugged tone of an e-guitar is rarely close to the tone we listen when plugging it to a soundcard/amplifier/mixer console. Fitting a guitar with the pickup set we like best is the way to go. Even a hand-built and very expensive guitar could sound "bad" due to poor pickups/electronics choice.

-Also bear in mind that the pickups are usually connected to electronic parts called "potentiometers", "switches" and "capacitors". The values and quality of these parts are also affecting the tone of your guitar. Not to mention that the amp/pedals/usb card or whatever you're using to amplify and modify the signal of your e-guitar plays another crucial role.

-New, shiny and pricey guitars are our precious possessions and this is exactly why we tend to store them in cases for much longer than we would like to... Some call them "trophy guitars" for that matter. A cheaper guitar could be a good "daily beater" for practice and even live use. This is also true for "relic"-looking guitars.

-One can re-sell a pricey guitar but he/she will have greater money loss. Most used guitars are sold at prices around 20-50% lower than the new ones. 20% of 2000$ is still 400$ off...  Unless of course you are selling a really old, vintage, historic and/or collectible guitar in near/mint condition.

Ok, got it, so what do I have to look out for when buying an expensive guitar?
-Well, first of all, you shouldn't simply look at the price tags or the logo on the headstock. There are many good guitars out there but not all of them are produced by well known companies. Let's face it, you've seen all the "Harley Benton" guitars I am testing in the blog. This is not exactly a guitar company, it's simply the in-house brand of Thomann.de, the largest guitar store in the EU. I've bought quite a few quality guitars from this store, even at rock bottom prices (e.g. around 100-200$).

-Make sure you try various guitar models (not only shapes) as this is the best way to tell if a guitar neck profile suits you. Looking at the guitar specs online is good but rough way to spot your next guitar. You should test drive the guitar you're about to buy. Online purchases lack that feature but you can always search for the same (mass?) production guitar at a local store/studio. Even if you don't like the guitar after your eceive it, e-stores like Thomann offer you a return option. If the guitar is custom-made for you, then you HAVE to test if first hand before paying for it (Duh...)!

-Make sure you buy a genuine guitar! The fake Gibson and Fender guitars from China are taking the web by storm. There are certainly quite a few quality fakes out there, but you shouldn't pay as much as the real thing... Notice that I haven't used the word "replica" but the word "fake". That's because replicating a guitar (especially a historic model) is no easy job and this is why there are some very good quality handmade replicas out there. For example, a modern handmade Gibson '59 replica could cost you thousands and even sound/play better than the originals of that time. Something that's low quality and disguised to look like the original is called "fake". Bear in mind that there are a few quality fakes out there (on aliexpress etc) but nobody should try to sell these  as originals.

-The price of the guitar should be associated with its build quality and features/extras. I've seen brand new US-made guitars with quite a few problems. Don't choose a guitar based strictly on its finish/color. You could potentially end up with a nice looking instrument that's full of playability/tone issues. There are pricey guitars with uneven frets and sharp fret edges on the market. So be careful!

What if I find a guitar that's cheap but still like it very much?
No problem at all! Every part that's sub-standard could be replaced/upgraded later. There are tons of quality guitar pickups, parts and hardware. Many have used ~100$ "Squier Bullet" guitars that have been heavily modified, performing better than much more expensive US strat models...

Note: Many of the images posted on this article are not mine, I just found them on google.com.