Which budget semi hollow whould you go for?

[adrian_k]

If you had about £500 to spend on something ES-335 like, what would be your choice? I'm not that fussy about looks (I mean you've only got to look at me), but "vintage" pickups would be a must, I'm not after a high output sound. Just want something workmanlike and reliable. There's a huge range in this price bracket. I think the answer will be (as always) go and try a few, but narrowing the search field might help.

?

[Kwackman]

Sire “Larry Carlton” 335 copy.
Epiphone Dot.

[Wonks]

Have sent a PM.

[Stratman57]

Plus one for the Sire Larry Carlton H7. I have the P90 version.

Regards, Simon.

[John Egan]

As a long-time Gretsch player. I'm impressed by their current models. There are quite a few to choose from and all of the ones I've played have sounded authentic.
Regards, John

[Sam Spoons]

Vintage brand guitars seem to punch above their weight and their VSA500 comes in under £500.

https://rguitars.co.uk/collections/vint ... ro-upgrade

[BigRedX]

Vintage brand guitars seem to punch above their weight and their VSA500 comes in under £500.

https://rguitars.co.uk/collections/vint ... ro-upgrade

Some weird and missing combinations though - no Bigsby + P90 and the 12 string is fitted with humbuckers instead of IMO more suitable single coils

[Sam Spoons]

I love P90s but wouldn't give a Bigsby the time of day*, 'orrible pointless things...

*except my good mate and gypsy jazz buddy Vernon Bigsby, obviously

[Wonks]

He sounds like the chap Viz’s Big(sby) Vern was based on.

[Watchmaker]

I love P90s but wouldn't give a Bigsby the time of day*, 'orrible pointless things...

Why blame the tool? Long live the whammy bar!

[Sam Spoons]

But Bigsby's aren't... they are just a lump of ironwork specially designed to make the guitar go out of tune...

It's like saying the Morris Marina wasn't a cr@p car...

[SecretSam]

But Bigsby's aren't... they are just a lump of ironwork specially designed to make the guitar go out of tune...

It's like saying the Morris Marina wasn't a cr@p car...

I learned to drive on one of those. Due to rust, the rear suspension collapsed at one point. The car was about four years old.

[SecretSam]

If you had about £500 to spend on something ES-335 like, what would be your choice? I'm not that fussy about looks (I mean you've only got to look at me), but "vintage" pickups would be a must, I'm not after a high output sound. Just want something workmanlike and reliable. There's a huge range in this price bracket. I think the answer will be (as always) go and try a few, but narrowing the search field might help.

?

If you can stretch to 650, the PRS SE hollow body is a genuinely great guitar. Not just "for the money," it's great in absolute terms. Way. way better than the Epiphone dot, which feels like cardboard in comparison.

[adrian_k]

So where I am at with this - there’s a used Tokai I might have a look at locally and Wonks has thrown me a curved ball with a Hamer. I was already considering the Sire range so that’s my backstop at the moment. For more money I toyed with the idea of an Ibanez.

And given that all of these are made in China, Korea, Indonesia etc there is probably not a lot to choose between them. It’s interesting to read opinions online about the various factories, there may be big differences in build quality between them but at the end of the day it’ll be down the specific instrument on the day vs price.

Thanks for the input

[Drew Stephenson]

I've got an older style PRS semi-hollow that's a far better guitar than I am player and they pop up for reasonable prices secondhand fairly regularly.

EDIT - I take it back, people are asking for more secondhand than I paid new. Much more in some cases. But I bet they're not selling at those prices...

Anyway, as you were!

[Dynamic Mike]

Probably the guitar I most regret parting with was my Aria TA-50 in Wine Red. It wasn't particularly expensive new & they don't sell for big money secondhand. I currently have a limited edition Duesenberg Alliance Series which I'll never part with for sentimental reasons, but in terms of tonality & playabilty I think the Aria was pretty close.

[zenguitar]

+1 for the Aria TA series going back 40+ years.

An awful lot of guitar for very little money. Criminally underrated guitars.

Andy

[adrian_k]

I have a friend with a wine red TA from the late 80s maybe early 90s and I agree, they are really good value workmanlike guitars. Another curve ball, thank you.

[Music Wolf]

I've got an older style PRS semi-hollow that's a far better guitar than I am player and they pop up for reasonable prices secondhand fairly regularly.

EDIT - I take it back, people are asking for more secondhand than I paid new. Much more in some cases. But I bet they're not selling at those prices...

Anyway, as you were!

I have the same model (the one withe Rickenbacker-esque 'slash' f-hole). In fact, it's my second as I foolishly sold my first one and later regretted it. I also have the more expensive S2 semi-hollow (US build / Far Eastern hardware) and I recently aquired the new SE Semi-hollow piezo.

PRS build quality, at all price points, is excellent but their semi-hollows are less hollow than a 335. PRS also make a true hollow-body (I'm on my second, the latest is also a piezo bridge version) which may be closer to a 335.

[Drew Stephenson]

Another +1 for those Aria TAs, a friend bought one back in '94 I think and still uses it regularly.

[tea for two]

Probably the guitar I most regret parting with was my Aria TA-50 in Wine Red.

An Aria TA-50 sold 165 in October auction site. Wish I'd know I'd have put a bid in upto 200.
I had a Harley Benton HB35 semi hollow. Picked it up from cash converters of all places under a ton. Pretty alright.

[Dynamic Mike]

Probably the guitar I most regret parting with was my Aria TA-50 in Wine Red.

An Aria TA-50 sold 165 in October auction site. Wish I'd know I'd have put a bid in upto 200.
I had a Harley Benton HB35 semi hollow. Picked it up from cash converters of all places under a ton. Pretty alright.

https://treeoflifeguitars.co.uk/guitars/TA-CLASSIC-WR
https://treeoflifeguitars.co.uk/guitars/TA-TONIC
For a mere £1,396 extra you can have it made in Japan.

[tea for two]

Probably the guitar I most regret parting with was my Aria TA-50 in Wine Red.

An Aria TA-50 sold 165 in October auction site. Wish I'd know I'd have put a bid in upto 200.
I had a Harley Benton HB35 semi hollow. Picked it up from cash converters of all places under a ton. Pretty alright.

https://treeoflifeguitars.co.uk/guitars/TA-CLASSIC-WR
https://treeoflifeguitars.co.uk/guitars/TA-TONIC
For a mere £1,396 extra you can have it made in Japan.

Om for that price I might as well book a cheap return to Osaka stay a few nights in a Geisha hotel.

[adrian_k]

In the end I bought a Hamer Echotone ES-335 at a very fair price from Mr Wonks. Korean built, not an exact 335 copy (longer scale length, jack socket position), but solidly built, decent pickups (“Duncan designed”), well set up. Wonks replaced the cheap tuners with Schallers. TBH it was an act of charity, there seemed to be about 100 guitars cluttering up the place, it was the least I could do.

[adrian_k]

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