Vintage vs. Modern (non-Rics apply here, too)

[JakeK]

When it comes to music, we find different guitars and amps will fit what we're doing, but we all have an "era" (if you will) that we think fit our styles the best.

About three months ago, I jammed with the man who taught me how to play guitar (I hadn't seen him in three years). I brought a Fuzz Face and two '64 style Rics. He said to me, "Man, you like that vintage stuff!", then he told me that modern is the best and it can't get any better.

So, I've been thinking about it today, and I want to know what YOU like. Do you like to be a kid of the '60s and use vintage-style equipment? Do you want to live in "Century City" (Tom Petty reference here) and use modern stuff? Do you like to have the best of both worlds and use both? Does it depend?

I like vintage-style stuff. '65 Blackface Fender amps, '60s-style Vox amps, the Marshall JTM 45, '60s 21-fret Rickenbackers, '62 Stratocaster, '52 and '63 Teles, '59 Gretsch 6120, '62 Gretsch Tennesean, '59 Les Paul, '61 SG, various Danelectros, you name it! If it comes from the '50s or '60s, you'll guarantee I'll use it.

Tell us your answer!

[beatlefreak]

Guess I'm old school. I like most of the vintage guitars and amps, though I'm not crazy about the fifties styling that amp manufacturers use.

[rickendelic]

I put both, modern guitars radius tends to be wider, & frets tend to be bigger which i find to be a plus in comfort. Sound wise, with noisless pick ups, & active pickups,, or this kind of trem block, or that kind of tremolo,or roller nuts, or locking tuners, and all these things that to me seem to get between you and just playing... i wouldn't say i aspire to anything nessasrily "modern", i don't have much use for it. with amps I can appreciate the different functions, & effects built in, but over all I'm good with 1940's technology, as long as I can overdrive it a little

(Take with a grain of salt, I am kind of a gear snob )

I don't need anything on my electric guitar that isn't on my acoustic but the pickups, and the jack.

[kiramdear]

Just depends on what gives me what I need, I guess. I'm just practical, but also a creature of habit.

All my guitars happen to be vintage designs currently, but the "vintage" label isn't what's on my mind - it's just the same stuff I've always played and am used to. But if a modern design offers me a feature I like I'll be glad to have it.

Same goes for amps and effects. I have a mix of old and new in that department. Just depends on what gives me what I'm looking for. I'm a little less habit bound with these because they don't have any emotional appeal for me like guitars do.

[lennon211]

This one totally depends on what I'm doing...kind of like the string choice of flats or rounds. I'll go with something that has more modern pickups and feel for a more modern style. For the classic stuff, I'm definitely going with something that's vintage reissue. I'd love to have actual vintage but I'm very satisfied with reissue. As it goes though, I do gravitate much more toward the older style guitars and equipment.

[jch]

I voted for both.

I haven't played a lot of vintage Rickenbackers ,
but i own 3 old Gretsches, a 1957 6120 ,1957 Country Gent and a 1965 6120.
i've also got a few new Gretsch guitars.

I have to say i really like the sound-tone of the old guitars,
but i like the better made quality of the new product.

[fatcat]

I have modern and vintage instruments, and preferring my old Jazz bass has little to do with it's age;it just fits best.
Next is an old 2030 which is my favourite Ric currently.
I think that design has more to do with preference,than age does.

[jps]

I voted:

[weemac]

It does depend on the application.
just the other day I was trying to find the best overdrive pedal for use in my board and I tried so many different pedals that I have floating around and in the end I stuck with the Ibanez TS-10 I have been using since I starting playing (I still remember buying it) and coming in a close second was a Boss SD-1 (which sounded very similar)
My newer Tube Screamers and other pedals just don't have that "just so" sound
Why do these old pedals sound better than the new or re-issue ones. There is no good reason reason for it. Perhaps it's just as Chris Squire said "Perhaps the sound gets smoother as the components age" this was a reference to the Mastero fuzz pedal he has used for ever.
But.... In the case of a vintage Stratocaster finding one of the classics without laying out something close to $30,000 is next to impossible. In this case the Japan Re-issue is the best you can do.

In the case of instruments such as the Rm1999 the Re-issue is in most cases a far better built instrument than the original ones. The thing is that sometimes its the faults that can give the instrument it's vibe...

Then there is the case of the SG junior.. Apart from the intonation of the earliest ones (there wasn't any) they have not made one as good as the first ones. For example, I have one of the coral pink ones made for the Japan market (my chinese mate calls it the "hello kitty" gibson) The pink guitar plays really well and sounds quite like my old one, but it really looks horrible... (how does gibson manage to get it so wrong so much of the time?)

Then again we can now get some really good retro styled guitars that are well built and well finished (most coming from korea) and they are fine stage and studio instruments.

So to sum it up..... It Depends!

[antipodean]

Design-wise, the vast bulk of the action with electric guitars and tube amps occured in the 50s and 60s, so in a lot of ways, most modern instruments and amps are "vintage" with respect to design. In this sense, vintage rules!

On the other hand, digital technology has brought studio-quality recording and effects within the grasp of the average working musician. As recently as the '90s, you needed have a huge wad of cash to do what a PC and some decent software can do today. Similarly, emulating amps enable you to have a huge variety of tones at your fingertips without needing to haul a truckfull of amps to each gig. In this context, modern rules!

So...it depends upon the context....

[paologregorio]

Where do vintage reissues fit in to this survey?

I like taller, more modern frets, and modern production methods are top notch, but I like the way vintage designs look.

[YukonCor55]

I'm somewhat amused now that I see the 70's era guitars being pushed as vintage. I remember buying my first Strat in 78 (a used 76 model) and having an older guy at the store guy tell me "don't buy any Fenders made after 1968, that's when CBS took over and it's been Junk ever since." Regardless I bought it and I loved it. That same guitar now is going for $3000 + I guess maybe they were'nt junk after all! In my current band I play bass and rhythm guitar. My Favorite gigging instruments...A 75 Fender Mustang and a 76 Fender Mustang Bass. They've got cool vibe, great necks, incredible tone and they fit me well for what I like to do. Kinda funny because I wouldn't have been caught dead with a Mustang back in 78...after all, it was a kid's guitar!!
When it comes to Rics, I'm very partial to the modern ones. The fit and finish is just incredible and in my opinion, the workmanship is as good, if not better, than it's ever been at Ric. I know some folks think CNC is a dirty word but it's pretty hard to argue with the results. My 08 370 is freaking GORGEOUS!

[wmthor]

Where do vintage reissues fit in to this survey?

I like taller, more modern frets, and modern production methods are top notch, but I like the way vintage designs look.

I'm in the same camp as Paul. I like the vintage designs with modern appointments.

[cjj]

I'm definitely a depends guy... uh, wait a minute, I'm gettin' old, but not that old!

The other depends... It depends on what I'm doing. I pretty much use modern amps. Tube amps sound great, but they're expensive, heavy and somewhat fragile. I think my Sansamps, electronic crossovers, and Carvin power amps sound just as good.

For basses, well, I've got a '76 4001 with flats, an '84 4003 with Rotosound Rounds, and a 4004Cjj with nickle rounds tuned BEAD (it might become a 5 string some day). With those, I use what fits the sound I want...

[Clint]

From the original post, I take it your talking about vintage-style equipment, right? Well, I never gave it a whole lot of thought. I just bought and used the guitars and amps that gave me the sound I was looking for and felt good. When I look at my rig, I guess that turns out to be the vintage-style stuff.

I've gone through several Strats, my favorite is a '62 reissue.
A ton of amps have come and gone, my favorites are a Fender Blues Deluxe and a Roland Blues Cube BC-30/210. They're keepers.
My favorite RIC is still my '87 620 (I wouldn't call that vintage) but I have been reaching more and more often for my '01 350V63.