Originally Posted by: ROCK ONoh yeah sorry guys. i'm a blues rock kind player. I favour guitars with trems but not the locking type. One of the main issues i have with guitars is the weight (eg. i find les pauls too heavy when gigging). I like guitars like the Ibanez sz720qm mainly because of the tone, versatility and really cool fretboard inlays. hope that gives you a bit more a guideline

Uhm, I really don"t know that much about guitars, but... If you are a blues
rock type of player? For that kind of money, i think you could get a used strat. That would be the thing for you. Get one with a SSH configuration,
so you could get some kick out of it if you play rock. And they are not to heavy, either. Very versatile. Especially if you find one with good pups, like say, tex mex single coils and atomic humbucker. Or something like that.And don"t bother yourself with things like fretboard inlays.
It is the tone that matters. And the advice the other guys gave you about going to the shop and testing a few guitars is excellent.
Hope this helps a bit. ;)
P.S. Final decision is yours and yours alone...If you like something that hasn"t even been mentioned here, really like it, go for it.