Fixing To Buy Guitar, Need Help Quick!

Hi all!

I am fixing to buy my first guitar and I really desire one that has a sound like the band Sum 41. I know the Dave guy uses a PRS McCarty (and from what I have seen he does alot of the main playing for them) so my question is what guitar would have a similiar sound to that and would cost me $200-$400? I know for my price range its asking alot but there must be something that sounds like a PRS McCarty in my price range =)! If you guys could recommend one to me that sounds like a PRS McCarty I would appreciate it. Also, what would be a good amp to get? I have been wanting to learn guitar for a long time and hearing this band all the time makes me what to learn even worse, and I like their sound and style alot!Thanks in advance all!

-Erik

Here's what you're probably best off doing:

Since you're just starting out, there's a good chance you'll quit. Even if you don't, you'll almost certainly reach a point where you decide that you want to sound like yourself and not Sum 41. Also there's the comfort factor: I love Incubus and Dirk Lance's bass tone, I also love Norwood Fisher from Fishbone. Both of them play Warwick basses. I've hated every single Warwick I've ever picked up and played. Great tone, but I loath the way the strings are spaced, the setups, and the feel of the neck.

Anyway, back to the topic at hand...
You're probably best off going to a guitar shop, walking over to the used rack and trying various guitars. You'll probably want one with humbuckers for the kind of sound you're looking for, but try as many as possible. Find one you like the feel of and sounds good to you. Buy an amp along the same lines. If you buy both at the same shop at the same time, they'll probably cut you a deal.

Best of luck.

An Epiphone Les Paul is the nearest.

Get an Ibanez amp theyre usually cheap.

Thanks for the replies! Well I really do want to learn and I have listened to Sum 41 songs countless times and I just love the way their guitars sound (the other guy plays a Gibson Marauder). So an Ephiphone Les Paul will sound the closest to a PRS Paul McCarty? Also which do I get I have seen many Les Paul and they range from Les Paul Studios to Custom To Standard, which should I get? I have been down to the local guitar shop and even though I dont know how to play I tried some out. I really like the sound Sum 41 has and im certain thats the sound im looking for =). Also, I have seen some Essex Less Paul Copies are these at all good or should I stay away and try to find an Ephiphone Les Paul? Thanks again guys I appreciate it!

-Erik

The basic PRS is very similar in sound and look to the Gibson Les Paul. Epiphone is Gibson budget range. I dont know price ranges but I recommend the Black Beauty.

I know how it is, once we decide on wanting to play guitar, we have the perfect image in our mind, based on what our heros play. I know it's great when we think that we've got it all figured out before we even make it to the guitar shop, but there are a few things you have to realize. 1. What works for others ont necessarily work for you, and 2 it's important to shop around before coming to that final conclusion.


If you're just starting out with the guitar, it's best to check out the guitars in thew 200-300 price range, because you don't know how far your desire will take you. Hoewever, it's always good to be optimistic.

Raskolnikov: Also there's the comfort factor:

Yes, and that's very important. Although it's important to find the perfect sound, something that we constantly search for (as musicians) it's also very important to find comfort. There are so many different guitar necks, and the weight of your guitar is also important, (especially if you're a skinny guy like me.) Personally, I prefer The Fender Stratocaster, and other instruments that are modeled after it. However, if you truly have the desire to play, than you wont mind searching around a bit before you make that final decision.


-Joseph

I was checking the Fender Stratocaster at the shop here but all I did was plug it in and strum since I dont know how to play so im not sure how it really sounds when you can acutally play it. Does anyone have any sound files of a Epiphone Les Paul or a Fender Stratocaster playing? Also does anyone know what kind of guitar the Blink 182 guitarist plays? Trying to get an idea of the range of sounds between the guitars. Thanks again all!

-Erik

Here you go Blink 182 guitarist Tom Delonge

-Joseph

I know the fender website has sound files of all of its guitars playing little bits. Go there. http://www.fender.com

When I saw Blink 182, Tom was playing a Les Paul. He's pretty new to the Fender camp so far as I can tell.

Seriously though, how your guitar sounds depends on many many factors. Tone is the result of a very complex system. Your body, neck, bridge, saddles, strings, pickups, amp, effects, nut, fingers and so many other minute things come into play. You may want to look into a Dean- I think their Del Sol is probably very close in spirit and construction to a PRS, yet is fairly inexpensive. Though I haven't liked the feel of every Dean I've played, I have liked the quality, and my Dean fretless has held up very admirably so far.

If your looking for a good amp i would recommend a hughes & kettner Metroverb. It is 50 watts and has a 12 inch speaker. It is the best sounding amp iv played through in that price range. I think it is about $350

http://www.hughes-and-kettner.com/startseite/start.htm

Chech it out

What is the difference between Tom Delonge's Fender Stratocaster and a Standard Stratocaster, the reason I ask is I noticed his doesnt have any tune and pickup knobs only a volume knob and my question is if I bought this guitar would I not be able to play alot of other songs because I couldnt tune it? How big is the difference between it and a Standard and can I make a Standrad Stratocaster sound like it if I want to? Also I read somewhere on here that you can make a Standard Stratocaster sound like a Les Paul if you want to, can anyone give me some details on that? Thanks everyone!

-Erik

Tom Delonge's Strat has no tone knobs. All guitars have tuning machines, usually on the headstock. You can tune that guitar any way you want (basicly), where it limits you is you have one pickup and a volume knob- you can't change your sound around very much making the guitar a one trick pony. A standard Strat has three single coil pickups, allowing five pickup combonations. It also has two tone knobs, one for the neck pickup, one for the mid. How you get a standard Strat to sound close to a Les Paul is to select either the neck/mid position or the mid/bridge position and roll off the tone for the mid pickup about half way. This does two things: First, you're using two coils, aproxomating a humbucker sound. Second, you've muddied up the tone a little. You'll never get a Strat to sound totally like a Les Paul because the Les Paul is made out of different woods, has a short scale neck (makes the strings looser), and has a set neck. But you can make a Strat sound a lot closer to a Les Paul than you can make a Les Paul sound like a Strat.

Yeah Tom Delonges has just one pickup and a volume knob making it perect for punk. Its Mexican so its cheap and its around your price range but youd be better off buying a proper one I reckon.

Hey Erik when you get your guitar come ack and tell us about it wont you?

my first guitar was £80 ($116) brand new, Encore, Strat copy, I dont regrett doing it at all, Cos when i first went out to buy a guitar I didn't really know anything about the "sound"... I learnt to play on it, and quickly got an idea of what i want...
I saw Tom using a strat with two humbuckers (on the "first date" vidoe i think)...
My advice is get a cheap guitar, learn to play on it, if you dont like it you dont feel too giulty about giving up... If you like playing, save up as much money as you can over the next few months and get your self a decent guitar and amp...
Second hand guitars some times have some real treasures, but take someone along with you who knows about guitars...

Led: I will be sure to tell ya =), you guys have helped me more than you can imagine!

Now if I could just figure out which one to get. I like the idea of the Tom Delonge because I love punk (i.e. Sum 41 =) ) but I want to be able to play other types of music at times. My twin bro is getting a Tama Rockstar Drumset, two of my friends are getting bass guitars, and my other friend is getting a guitar also , so we are going to try to play songs when we get decent (should be alot of fun!) =). Anyways, can I make a standard Stratocaster sound like a Tom Delonge and still be able to tune the pickup etc? I listened to the standard Stratocaster on Fender's website but it sounds like they are just going through the notes and not playing what the guitar could really do which doesnt give a real good idea fo what it sounds like =). Here are link to the two Sum 41 videos with the guitars that have the sound I really want, In Too Deep: http://www.mtv.com/sitewide/videoplayer/index.jhtml?vid=13993 and Fat Lip: http://www2.islanddefjam.com/av/go.ram?num=1459075886
If you guys could take a look at these videos and listen to the guitars in them and tell me what I could get that would sound like that I would really apprecaite it =). Also does the Stratocaster sound like that or could it be made to sound like that and if so which one (i.e. Standard. American Standard etc..). I really really really want one that sounds like the ones in those videos =)! Thanks again guys and sorry for the long reply hehe.

-Erik

I don't have real player on my computer, so I can't listen, but I can tell you this: I'de stay away from the Tom Delonge Strat because it only has one pickup and no tone control. Basicly what must have happened when he had the guitar made is he said "look, I only use the bridge pickup, and I never use the tone control, so why bother having all the rest of that stuff?"

Which for him is fine. He doesn't do much on guitar. From the sounds of things you want to be a more versital guitarist, so you'll probably want a more versital guitar.

The bottom line is you can get "that sound" out of a wide variety of guitars. Humbuckers (double coil pickups) will help you, but they aren't totally neccessary. You could go for a Fat Strat, or a Double Fat Strat, that Dean I mentioned, even a low end Parker Fly (the $600 model even has a fishman powerbridge so you can get acoustic sounds out of the guitar too), just about any Gibson based guitar (Les Paul, SG, Flying V, etc), or countless other brands. Go to a few shops with a friend who knows guitars, look around, see what grabs your attention.

Also keep in mind that the guitarists you're talking about are playing expensive guitars into expensive amplifiers and nothing in your price range is going to sound the same way.

Real Player can be downloaded here: http://scopes.real.com/real/player/player.html?src=011011realhome_2,011011rpchoice_h2&dc=101510141013

=)
-Erik

I was watching the Fat Lip and In Too Deep videos (I also read a couple days ago that the guys used this guitar) and themain singer is using a Gibson Marauder. How does the Gibson Marauder sound? Is it mostly like a Les Paul? Also, im still trying to figure out if I could get the sound of the guitars in the videos I linked to above out of a Standard Fat Strat. Can anyone look at those videos and tell me what they think. On another note, can anyone verify and see if the guitar the main singer is using in both those videos is a Gibson Marauder? The only thing im worried about is getting a Les Paul or Marauder and not being able to get the higher pitched sounds that the PRS McCarty can make in addition to the Les Paul type sounds it can make. Would I be able to get about the same higher tones out of a Les Paul or a Maruader as the McCarty can get? Thanks again all!

-Erik