Guitar Prices !
mattdingle
Posts: 180
Anyone tell me why some are more expensive than others ? Is it sound or wood ?
Why would you pay thousands for Gibson etc ?
Why would you pay thousands for Gibson etc ?
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wood selection
degree of time and care spent on fit and finish
quality of components
labour rates (location of manufacture)
brand premiums
The wood is a def a factor.
DO THE EVOLUTION - a 20th Anniversary Tribute Celebration
of PEARL JAM - WORLD CAFE LIVE PHILLY JUNE 19th 7pm
"Well, you tell him that I don't talk to suckas."
the ones made of compressed sawdust though, yeah, those are kindling but also serve a purpose (young'uns starting out, hell, anyone starting out and not sure they want to spent $$$ on something that may not take as a pursuit). granted, a cheap guitar, if playability is so bad, can hurt more than it helps....
I love the "thousands for Gibson's statement". Because I'm in the same boat. Even Gibson's VOS series I guestion if it's really worth going with that, or getting a Grosh or some other smaller shop instead.
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gibsons are great guitars to buy used.
That I completely agree with. I always swore I'd never give them any of my money. Especially after hearing stories about them and what they did to local mom and pop guitar stores. Than I gave in for the DC a couple months ago.
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Please go on about that. You are the second person to say "I
ll never give Gibson my money" that I heard this week. I'd like to hear more about that story
DO THE EVOLUTION - a 20th Anniversary Tribute Celebration
of PEARL JAM - WORLD CAFE LIVE PHILLY JUNE 19th 7pm
gibsons are great guitars to buy used.[/quote]
That I completely agree with. I always swore I'd never give them any of my money. Especially after hearing stories about them and what they did to local mom and pop guitar stores. Than I gave in for the DC a couple months ago.[/quote]
Please go on about that. You are the second person to say "I
ll never give Gibson my money" that I heard this week. I'd like to hear more about that story[/quote]
I live in Toledo, Ohio. We had an amazing non box store music store. They were a dealer for Fender, Gibson, Marshall, Orange, Peavey, Dr Z, Martin, Taylor, Art and Lunthrie etc.....More less you think of it they were a dealer for it for the most part. They survived strong competition from Mars Music back in the day (remember Mars?). Then Guitar Center came to town in place of Mars. This is all besides the point.
They were a dealer of Gibson for at least 15 or so years that I remember probably way way more. The owner told me that when it was time to renew their agreement with Gibson that Gibson said you need to have a certain amount of dollars of our product for sale (I don't remember the number). And the owner said "No problem". Well Gibson instantly came back and raise that dollar amount. And the owner again said "No problem". Well apparently they continued to raise this amount to he finally realized this was never going to come to an agreement.
I heard the same story from a smaller privately owned store. He said that 4 or 5 years earlier Gibson did the same thing to them.
Unfortunately now my favorite store finally shut it's doors. He more less said he was just done with dealing with the business. Now I either go to a small local shop that really doesn't have that great of a selection or I can go to the freaking nightmare that is Guitar Center, which never has anything worth while to check out. But I try to avoid Guitar Center and the big online stores as much as possible.
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i have heard this same story a few times as well. gibson basically made small stores carry so much product in stock that there was so much overhead tied up in stocking gibsons that it runs the little guy out of business. most of the small shops around me catered to the lower to mid priced gear so stocking gibsons was a bad move for them business wise, because a 13 year old kid just starting our was not going to be buying anything from gibson, so it did not make business sense to continue to stock it. then that business loses business from guys like me who like and enjoy spending money on the expensive stuff. so it is a lose lose for the small stores. i have heard this same story about marshall as well, but gibson is by far the most cutthroat when it comes to contracts.
"Well, you tell him that I don't talk to suckas."
I have the same story so I won't bother telling it. Place carried Gibson for the longest time, stopped for a few years and then brought them back, then I noticed the Gibby's were all being weeded out. They sold a 59 reissue that cost about $7k and a ton of LP Classics in the short time they were there, which tells me they could sell a crap load of them. I think they wanted them to stock $30k worth.
I would think Gibson could make more money at smaller stores. GC hardly ever moves any of the high end stuff. I go into them about 4 or 5x a year and it's always been pretty much the same stuff hangin on the walls as far as PRS and Gibson goes. I'd be hard pressed to spend $2k+ on a guitar from there. All the little guitar brats pullin those sweet things down. I personally would rather buy one that's only been touched by people seriously considering a purchase.
Never heard of Marshall pulling those shenanigans. Dunno why they would even care. Every guitar store I've ever been in has had pretty well the same stuff.....a few MGs(or whatever their junk beginner models are called at any given time), a 100w half stack of their current "flagship" model or whatever their really pimpin at the time, maybe a leftover jcm2000 or 2.
It was extremely difficult for me to give in and buy that scratch and dent DC a little while back. But I figured with the amount the took off the guitar, they weren't getting as great of a profit as they would off a regular priced guitar. I still have my days where I resent the purchase.
I've heard nothing bad about any other manufacture.
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I don't know just a whole lot about guitars, other than how to play them. But I do know that of the 3 guitars I have the most reliable is the Squier Stratocaster I bought when I was 15 back in 1995 for $100. And it sounds great too. It's never had to go to the shop for anything except for neck adjustments and standard maintenance stuff, while my Fender Strat and Gibson SG have had various electrical problems and other BS, on top of needing to be adjusted more often. I don't know why, but that little Squier is a brick shithouse. Over the years I have treated it like the cheap guitar it was, and it just keeps on rockin'.
Well, I agree and disagree.
There is no reason why any guitar in the world should cost $15,000 unless that also includes a surgical brain re-programming so you can instantly play like Jimi Hendrix.
That said, while Taylors are expensive guitars, there is a simple reason for that. They make damn fine guitars!
Are they worth $1,200-2,000? Probably not, but you're not going to find too many other equivalents other than Martins, and some Gibson that match the quality...which is why those Martins and Gibsons also cost the same price.
I always make the comparison to good food or a fine bottle of wine. Why spend hundreds of dollars to go to a really nice restaurant, when you can spend $25 at Applebees? It's because the food is far superior, and it was created with the best ingredients by a chef who has trained his entire life to be an expert in the trade. Sure you can surpress your hunger at Applebees, but the food is terrible.
I certainly consider myself a "foodie". I like the best of the best and I'm happy to pay for it. That's just like expensive guitars. My most expensive guitar is probably $450 and while it does the job, it in no way compares to those Martins and Taylors out there.
While I'd LOVE to have a sweet ass Taylor or Martin, playing guitar isn't a big part of my life. It's a fun distraction. If i was into it more, I'm certain my passion for it would grow and I'd want the best.