Underrated and Overrated

[sloop_john_b]

As for this strat/LP thing, I don't think they're overrated. Yes they're annoyingly ubiquitous, but when you find a good one they're undeniably awesome.

+1

I will say that Gretschs are underrated, because I don't think most people realize how versatile they are, especially ones with Filtertrons. They can do the twang thing, but they can totally go into PAF territory as well. And they make great jazzboxes too.

[paologregorio]

I vote with Collin; the only thing I don't know about is the Matsumoto coies, but that's just because I don't know much about them by experience. I've read good things about them though.

I would add a vote to the "conventional wisdom" about old Gretsches being inferior. There actually have been all sorts of old wives tales told about the inferiority of old Gretsches. I think they're awesome! I love the new ones as well of course!

[tennis_nick]

As for this strat/LP thing, I don't think they're overrated. Yes they're annoyingly ubiquitous, but when you find a good one they're undeniably awesome.

+1

I will say that Gretschs are underrated, because I don't think most people realize how versatile they are, especially ones with Filtertrons. They can do the twang thing, but they can totally go into PAF territory as well. And they make great jazzboxes too.

Agreed with the Gretsches, that are fantastic guitars.



I'll disagree with the SG being overrated 1000 times over. In any case, I'd take a SG over a Les Paul, and even consider them to trump Les Pauls in terms of versatility and clarity, especially on the neck pickup, due to it being positioned closer to the bridge than on a Les Paul... However... I'm biased...

wow, this was taken a LONG time ago! lol

[Scastles]

At one time I thought Gretsch was an inferior guitar, until I bought one. They have a sweet, clean sound to them. I'm not real sure of the Baldwin period though. They're likely as underrated as often are Ricks.

[Clint]

Overrated, Taylor acoustics.
Underrated, Gibson Les Paul Deluxe.

[Ric O'Sound]

I think there seems to be a consensus on the overrated guitars. So I'll cut to the chase and concentrate on the underrated ones...

1. Gretsch Duo Jet
Without a doubt the most comfortable guitar I own. I actually own two Jets. An Elliot Easton sig model with Filtertrons (like the one in the photo) and a Silver Jet with Dynas. There's something to be said about "that great Gretsch sound", but my EE Jet can also rock the house if need be. When I got my first Duo Jet, I dumped my Les Paul. Haven't owned one since. If you've never played a Gretsch Jet, you don't know what you're missing.



2. Epiphone Dot
Known as the "poor man's 335" the Epi Dot is a pretty reasonable facsimile thereof and has got to be the best bang for the buck going. Nice fit and finish, pretty solid electronics (as Asian imports go) and a nice 335-ish tone. If you don't want to shell out the cash for the real deal, you really can't go wrong with the Dot.



3. Squier Pro Tone Series
These Korean built Squiers were so good, Fender killed the line after only two years because they were eating into the sales of Fenders. They simply blew away anything Mexican-built, and many felt they were just as good as the US made guitars for less than half of the price. Ash bodies, high quality hardware and pickups, beautiful finishes and appointments...what wasn't to like? I own two Pro Tone guitars (the two pictured below). Although I do own another USA Telecaster, I only have one Strat and this is it. Five other US Strats have come and gone, but not one could touch the Pro Tone in terms of sound and comfort. You can find these on eBay usually for under 400 bucks. If you see one, by all means, grab it!



4. Fender JagStang
A collaboration between Kurt Cobain and Fender brought forth this odd looking, but nonetheless cool design that was a refreshing break from the endless variations on the Strat/Tele theme that we've come to expect from Fender. Surprisingly comfortable for a short-scaler, it also had its own unique sound, which was far enough away from the Strat and Tele to make it worth owning. I used to own one and now regret having gotten rid of it. Definitely worth checking out if you see a used one hanging in the shop.



5. Charvel Surfcaster 12
Back in the late '80s and early '90s, if you wanted jangle but couldn't afford a Rickenbacker, the Japanese-built Charvel Surfcaster was the affordable alternative. A semi-hollow design with a really comfy neck, plenty of jangle, great build quality (as we'd come to expect from the Japanese by then) and a really cool look made this one of the best bargains around. After Akai bought Jackson/Charvel, the semi-hollow Surfcaster was axed from the lineup. These neat guitars command such high prices nowadays, you can pretty much just go out and buy a Rickenbacker straight away. If I had known how much these guitars would be worth today, I wouldn't have sold mine back in 2002. But for me, the Surfcaster 12 was sort of the "gateway drug" to Rickenbackers. The money I got from its sale went toward a new Mapleglo 330/12.



6. Robin Ranger
How does a Robin Ranger sound? Think: Tele Custom on steroids. The Rio Grande pickups can be punchy, twangy or sparkly, and the workmanship of the guitar is nothing short of excellent. With the Ranger, you'll be able to handle pretty much anything from Keef to Waylon...and look good doing it.



BTW, with regard to everyone's slamming on Ovation guitars...I own an mid-90's USA-built Ovation Elite and it's one of the most beautiful sounding acoustics I've ever owned. Dunno, maybe I was just lucky and got a good one.

[Clint]

"2. Epiphone Dot
Known as the "poor man's 335" the Epi Dot is a pretty reasonable facsimile thereof and has got to be the best bang for the buck going. Nice fit and finish, pretty solid electronics (as Asian imports go) and a nice 335-ish tone. If you don't want to shell out the cash for the real deal, you really can't go wrong with the Dot."

If you're a fan of the Epi Dot, you owe it to yourself to hunt down an older Hamer Echotone w/Duncan designed pickups and solid wood top (not ply). Great players and usually cheaper than Epiphones. Plus, the input jack is on the side, nice.

[collin]

I
4. Fender JagStang
A collaboration between Kurt Cobain and Fender brought forth this odd looking, but nonetheless cool design that was a refreshing break from the endless variations on the Strat/Tele theme that we've come to expect from Fender. Surprisingly comfortable for a short-scaler, it also had its own unique sound, which was far enough away from the Strat and Tele to make it worth owning. I used to own one and now regret having gotten rid of it. Definitely worth checking out if you see a used one hanging in the shop.



.

+1 on the Jagstang. I have one in Fiesta red. I think it's one of the most awkward, bad sounding guitars that are just so weird looking that they are cool. I got it as a xmas gift from the girlfriend awhile back, and love. The pickups are horrible, but it really does look like a strange Fender model that they would've issued back in the 60's. Fits so well in with Mustangs/ Jags/JM's etc.

There is the undeniable KC connection, but I think him and Larry Brooks did a great job designing it. Kurt took polaroids of his favorite Mustang and Jaguar, literally cut the pictures out, and glued them together in the shape of the Jagstang. The picture (and prototype #2) is at the Corona Fender museum.
Very cool.

[jingle_jangle]

I don't think it is a "great design job"...I think it's unbelievably awkward and rude, which is its charm.

The original pasteup job done by KC is in his journals. For more info, see this thread:

viewtopic.php?f=46&t=385707&p=494588&hi ... ng#p494588

[chuck_king]

To reduce a number of previous posts to the lowest common denominator: Korean guitars in general are underrated. I've had a number of them from several different factories with various brands on the headstock (Epiphones from three different plants; Schecter; B.C. Rich; Agile), and they were all damn solid guitars that played great (when set up properly) and sounded quite good, too.

I'm not sure if Ricks can be called "underrated" given The Backlog, generally high prices, and the speed with which any interesting and unusual model gets snapped up. For something to be underrated, I'd think it would have to be something where demand is way under what you'd expect given quality etc.

Example: the Guild Pilot bass. A great bass, it was a thousand-dollar bass when it came out and a top-of-the-line, pro-quality instrument (used by many pros including Mike Mills, who is probably beloved of more than a few folks here). And yet you can pick them up for the price of a Mexican Fender now, or less. They look a little 80s, but not that much.

I would say that one branch of the Rick family tree counts as underrated, though, and that is the 650 series. Used Dakotas et al. are regularly one of the least-expensive Rick models available. I picked one up earlier this year just because it was cheap and I thought it looked cool, but after living with it for a while, I have come to realize that the 650D is a GREAT guitar. I don't understand why demand for these is not intense.

For a long time I think American Hamers were underrated, but that might be changing. I haven't paid much attention to that market recently.

As far as overrated, I think new American Gibsons are overrated, in that a lot of people are paying huge premiums for the Gibson and Les Paul names on headstocks. High-end Fenders maybe too, but at least those tend to be more custom shop-type instruments; with Gibson the over-pricing extends to their regular production models. And yet people pay their prices, for reasons I will never understand.

[just_bassics]

This has been a great thread to read, and no one even threatened violence! (Yet!)

There are many overrated guitars, to be sure, but I've got to place my vote for the Danelectro reissues as being the most underrated. Man, I love those things! Talk about classic tone...

[rickosound]

Overrated:
Fender Strats
Ovations
70's Gibsons
Current Gibsons
All Gibson Les Pauls
Superstrat-style guitars
Flying V's and Explorers

Underrated:
Rics!
Gretsches!
Old Harmonys - I'm playing ours right now - a 1971 Rocket we got last year. (Or are these just hard to find, not underrated?)
New Squier Classic Vibe Series Duo-Sonic and Tele - I picked up both of these at our local guitar store recently, I thought, for under $300, they were very good and well worth owning. They even had glossy necks! It was really easy to get a good, James Burton-ish sound of of the Tele, and the short scale on the Duo-Sonic was very comfortable and easy to play.

Matthew

[collin]

Old Harmonys - I'm playing ours right now - a 1971 Rocket we got last year.

You can play guitar and type at the same time? I'm gonna call you guitar master! Impressive.

[Ric O'Sound]

The pickups are horrible, but it really does look like a strange Fender model that they would've issued back in the 60's. Fits so well in with Mustangs/ Jags/JM's etc.

I dunno Collin, I sort of liked the sound of the JagStang pickups. They didn't sound that great distorted, I'll grant you that, but I dug the clean sounds. To me, the guitar didn't have the typical Fender sound you normally associate with Strats or Teles. And the fact that it looked so weirdly different from anything else is what made it so cool to me. I'm toying with the idea of building a replica out of Warmoth parts. I'd use different pickups and choose a really off the wall color for the body. We'll see.

And yes, I agree with the others who say Danelectros are underrated. One of my ex-bandmates had a Longhorn bass that sounded fantastic through his rig. It was hard to believe something constructed that cheaply (and I mean that in a good way) could sound so good.

[cjj]

Old Harmonys - I'm playing ours right now - a 1971 Rocket we got last year.

You can play guitar and type at the same time? I'm gonna call you guitar master! Impressive.

Shoot, that's easy! You just type with your toes...