New or used, best option?

[Strumbarmy]

With a budget of £200-300 for an electric (strat or similar style) would it be best to buy new (Thomman Harley Benton or similar) or go for a brand named used model?  I have spoken to some folks who say that the newer stuff is of much higher quality than it used to be??

[ezbass]

With that budget, I’d go used.

[Strumbarmy]

Anyone used the Yamaha Pacifica range?

[Dad3353]

25 minutes ago, Strumbarmy said:

Anyone used the Yamaha Pacifica range?

 

One pf the most popular guitars, world-wide, in its range, and rightly so. Yamaha excel in whatever field they are present; they don't make duff stuff. The Pacifica (there are several variants...) is an excellent guitar, for starting and far beyond. They extend in price from just over £200 to just under £800; all are excellent, and not just 'for their price'. The '112' range' is worth the difference compared to the '012' range, in my opinion.
Buying second-hand can be a good option if one is already experienced in choosing and playing, or if there's a buddy able to offer his/her help. On my part, I'd have no qualms about used gear, but I've been playing for well over half a century, and hope I could spot a lemon by now..! If in doubt, go for new (yes, they are all light years ahead of what was available in the budget range 'back then'...). At worst, it can be returned, if bought online, and would in any case carry a guarantee.
Hope this helps.

 

Douglas

Edited February 4, 2023 by Dad3353

[Strumbarmy]

This 112J in red, reminds me of the "electric" guitar that I had in the 1970's!  It was the first time that I had used a "tremelo" arm and I was gobsmacked by the sound!  "Did I just do that?" (eyes wide open and so was my mouth, drooling!).

[ezbass]

1 hour ago, Strumbarmy said:

Anyone used the Yamaha Pacifica range?

Yep, a 112, it punched way above its price point. It was B stock, so was even more of a bargain. Really good chassis for upgrades if you like to tinker.

[Matt P]

the Pacifica guitars are fantastic (not just for the money)  they can be had very cheap secondhand as well.

 

where in the uk are you? I know of a red Pacifica just like the one you linked to that is surplus to requirements and needing a good home.

 

Matt

 

[bassbiscuits]

Most definitely used. Yes the cheapy budget stuff is way better than it was 20, 30 years ago when I started. 
 

But better quality used stuff for the same money is going to be generally much better. I have two 20+ year old Yamaha basses that cost me £200 and £250 - an absolute steal given the build quality. 
 

I must admit I’ve not played a Harley Benton or similar cheap brands. No reason to think they aren’t good. But I suspect the same money on a well

chosen used guitar could get you a better instrument. 

[Dad3353]

1 hour ago, bassbiscuits said:

...I suspect the same money on a well-chosen used guitar could get you a better instrument. 

 

This is certainly true, with the proviso that one knows what to look for in a guitar, or are willing to 'take a punt'. Second-hand from a reliable source (family, friends, forum members...) can help boost confidence.

Edited February 5, 2023 by Dad3353

[MartinO]

On 04/02/2023 at 15:13, Strumbarmy said:

With a budget of £200-300 for an electric (strat or similar style) would it be best to buy new (Thomman Harley Benton or similar) or go for a brand named used model?  I have spoken to some folks who say that the newer stuff is of much higher quality than it used to be??

Personally I'd go for a used guitar, but from a shop so you can try them out. You will probably get a pretty decent Yamaha or Ibenez for that money, they'll last you longer than a new "cheap" brand. The cheap ones are good for a couple of years, but tend to fade rapidly and loose total value. A used branded guitar will probably resell for £50 less than you'll pay in 2-3 years when you're looking to upgrade.

[Strumbarmy]

In the end, I found this locally:-

 

Played through headphones, it should keep her indoors happy..................... and me too!  Budget?  What budget was that then!

Edited February 7, 2023 by Strumbarmy

[ezbass]

Nice, something a little different from the norm.

[Frank Blank]

12 hours ago, Strumbarmy said:

In the end, I found this locally:-

 

Played through headphones, it should keep her indoors happy..................... and me too!  Budget?  What budget was that then!

 

That's a doozy. One of the first guitarists I played alongside had a Burns, it was likewise a doozy. 

[Matt P]

that's a very good looking guitar, I'm not usually a fan of gold hardware but that looks perfect! such a nice colour combination.

 

Matt

[Dad3353]

Off topic, and just for 'fun', a short anecdote entitled 'The Stupidity of Youth'...

 

My very first guitar was a steel-strung Russian horror of a classical guitar; wide, flat fingerboard, high action... A real cheese-wire trap for unwary fingers. A visit to the 'shop' (really just the front room of their house...), Mrs Nicholls, Hampton Hill had a sort of 'junk-yard' of guitars, basses, amps piles up all around. I was an apprentice, on apprentice wages, but on one visit there, I found a splendid guitar that it seemed I could afford : a Hofner Thin President, florentine cutaway. I broke the bank and bought it, with its case; I don't remember the sum, but it must have been less than £50, which would have been a fortune to me at the time.
All well and good; I now had a guitar that was actually playable (albeit in need of an amp, but that would come later...). With the Russian guitar, I had bought the Mickey Baker Jazz Guitar method (excellent, by the way; highly recommended, and still available at a very low cost...). I could now practice the chords in there without risking losing a finger or two. Happy daze. In fact, I played the Hofner at my very first gig with the Martin Spicer Band, at a pub in Hounslow, playing the bass part on just the lower four strings.
Now for the sad part... I have a younger brother (in fact I have several; we're a large family...) who, despite being a hard 'lefty', had acquired a Hofner Verithin, on which he became rapidly highly proficient. Not wishing to go down the Mickey Baker rabbit hole, he just played along to whatever he fancied, and made stuff up with a unique picking and fingering style, in my opinion thanks to his 'lefty' 'handicap'. With the music we were listening to, and the direction that the Band was heading, I thought it better to have a guitar lending itself more to a 'lead' role than the Hofner. In a music shop somewhere (no idea where...), I came across a Burns Bison which the shopkeeper was willing to exchange for my Hofner. The deal was done, and I refinished the Bison in bright Canary Yellow over its original colour of Dull Green. Ignorance..? Here's one tell-tale sign, at least : I strung it with a '7' gauge set, so as to be able to 'bend' like the masters on the radio. Don't try this at home; trust me when I tell you that '7' gauge strings are as useful on an electric guitar as cobwebs. They will not stay in tune, they break like buggery and have no 'feel' to them whatever. As cherry on the cake, I turned out to be a less-than-competent lead guitarist in any case. My musical career switched to higher grounds when this became evident, even to me, and I turned to drums (handy, as that was what the Band lacked, too...). I used the Burns for another deal, to get a lowly set of disparate drums (Edgeware, Beverly, Ajax and whatever...) and Life took on a new meaning.
Why the Stupidity..? I have been on the look-out since for a Hofner Thin President, florentine cutaway. They are quite (or even very...) rare, and, although I now have several excellent Hofners, guitars and bass, that President was a Cracker, a Doozy, a Gem that I didn't recognise at the time, and let slip away. What little style of play I now have on guitar is so far from the Burns Bison ethic, and so aligned to the 'jazz box' stuff, but the guitar that should have stayed with me is now elsewhere. If only I could wind back the tape, borrow a DeLorean, visit myself, just for a few minutes to explain to myself what a mistake I was making... Alas, no, I can't (well, not until I finish building my Time Machine and clear any flies from the room...). If anyone reading this tale of woe comes across a tobacco-burst Hofner Thin President, florentine cutaway, I'd like to know. Thanks in advance. Here's a picture of one, as illustration, and a turn of the knife in the wound...

[Strumbarmy]

Sounds like you should have sang this, all those years ago!

 

 

[Quilly]

Ive just received the Harley Benton TE-52 in the post. I’m a bassist really that just wanted a decentish tele style guitar for messing around with at home. I’ve had loans of Mex teles before and I have to say the HB tele is every bit as good and is ridiculously cheap. A bit on the heavy side and fret could do with a little polishing but it’s an excellent guitar otherwise, not just good for the money , just genuinely good anyway.

[Crusoe]

12 hours ago, Quilly said:

Ive just received the Harley Benton TE-52 in the post. I’m a bassist really that just wanted a decentish tele style guitar for messing around with at home. I’ve had loans of Mex teles before and I have to say the HB tele is every bit as good and is ridiculously cheap. A bit on the heavy side and fret could do with a little polishing but it’s an excellent guitar otherwise, not just good for the money , just genuinely good anyway.

I have a TE-20. I'm still very much a beginner, but as far as I'm concerned, it's a really good wee guitar. It stays in tune pretty well and sounds fine. I'm sure better pickups would make it sound better and more expensive tuners would feel better to use, but it works as is.

[Soledad]

No question at all. Used. But you need to know a bit about what to look for. 

You can think of the used market as a library. Once you have the entry £ to join said library, provided you buy reasonably well you'll sell that one on at nil or very little loss, hence funding the next one.

My view is lease cost, I mean a MIM Strat might be say £450 (mint, used). Say I sell it a year later for £400 (a bargain I'd argue). It's cost me a quid a week.

From my experience (with basses too) I'm astonished how many mint quality guitars and basses are around. Hardly played, almost always 'set up by a luthier' and almost always needing basic set-up - truss-rod in particular. Why are most owners shit-scared of truss rods??

My key points are: learn and know enough to buy the right one, and instead of concerning yourself with the purchase price, think about the ownership cost. If you buy well you should not lose much at all if/when you decide to move on. And the true cost is the loss, if any at all.

[Strumbarmy]

Bought myself a Burns.  Thanks to all for help.

[Kitt]

I'd be looking at used Squier, Yamaha and Ibanez models with a £200-300 budget. 

[Graham50]

Looks like you’ve bought yourself a tribute to the Shadows (after they abandoned Strats).