New Guitar

Society

So i am new here and would like to get anyones imput on guitars. I have been playing for a while now and would like to upgrade from my acoustic to either an acoustic-electric or electric, but my problem is that i have a pretty tight budget i can probably spend at max $500. I just wanted to see if anyone had any opinions on different brands of guitars that are in that price range.
Thanks

DiRtyFranK38

ahh look no further. in my opinion, in your price range, you should get a michael kelly. if you love the les paul sound and loads of sustain there is no guitar better for that price. i have a michael kelly myself, but it is none of the ones listed. i have the patriot hot rod. got it for about 550. probobly a bit cheaper now. but anyways, the links below are various michael kelly patriot serious guitars that should all give you that great sound. i actually have played the patriot q and they are fantastic. check em out!

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Michael-Kelly-Patriot-Custom-Electric-Guitar?sku=512296 [i recommend this the most, personally]

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Michael-Kelly-Patriot-Q-Electric-Guitar?sku=512294 [same as above]

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Michael-Kelly-Patriot-Glory-Electric-Guitar?sku=513848

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Michael-Kelly-Patriot-Vintage-Electric-Guitar?sku=512297 [cheapest]

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Michael-Kelly-Patriot-Phoenix-Electric-Guitar?sku=512293

mccreadyisgod

If you have a good acoustic already, you can get a pickup installed and turn it into an acoustic-electric. If that's a route you'd like to go down, we could all recommend a few pickups for you, I'm sure. But if your present acoustic isn't worth the effort, it might be better to get a new guitar altogether.


Now, if you really want to go electric, you'll need an amp as well, unless you already have one laying around, so keep that in mind when you're pricing things out. You could get a small practice amp with a lot of cool effects and gizmos on it, like a Line 6 Spider or a Roland Cube. The other route to take is to get a small tube amplifier, since tube amps are what most guitarists eventually get anyways. The Fender Pro Junior and the Epiphone Valve Junior are two good little tube amps that don't cost much. And despite their small size, they can get good and loud as well.

For an electric guitar, I like to recommend a Fender Strat with an H-S-S pickup configuration. It's not usually a favorite guitar out there, but it is one of the most versatile, and can give you a lot of different sound options in just one guitar. You could get a Valve Junior: http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Epiphone-Valve-Junior-Combo-Amp?sku=480260 and a Standard Strat HSS: http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Fender-Standard-HSS-Stratocaster-Electric-Guitar?sku=516039 for a grand total price of $550.

In the price range you're looking at, you can get a pretty good acoustic-electric guitar. I recommend Seagull, Alvarez, and Takamine in that price range, although you can also find some good Guild, Fender, and Epiphone guitars in this price, too. If you know a body style (dreadnaught, auditorium, orchestra, jumbo, etc) that could help with suggestions.