Cheap or Expensive Instruments - Can Cheap Guitars Really Rock and Roll?

Cheap or Expensive Instruments - Can Cheap Guitars Really Rock and Roll? Nowadays, you can buy a pretty good electric guitar from as little as $70 and there are a number of good brands making them. Although most cheap guitars have a very good quality, professional musicians prefer hand-made electric guitars created by professional luthiers. But, most players, specially non-professionals, just need a good, reliable and affordable instrument that make some loud rock and roll. Squier, for example, it s a Fender, so you can rest assured in the trust of such a well established company. Kramer, another company owned by Gibson produces most of its cheap guitars in Korea too. Ibanez are making really awesome guitars nowadays. Most players considered them really non-expensive but also very reliable guitars. Of course some time ago the story was not the same. Traditionally, "cheap guitars" always meant "bad guitars". Poor design, constant loss of tone, low-quality materials. But, fortunately, today they are made fairly well. First, long gone are the days when the Japanese were making bad cheap guitars . Let s take an example: Vantages (a Japanese brand) are considered "cheap guitars" but their 12-string model is built like a tank, solid, tight construction and it plays fantastic. If those affordable guitars sound as good as more expensive ones... I see no problem at all! Second, the reduced tension of the strings (three are tuned down in this tuning) may have made those guitars more playable. Well, for some reason I enjoy buying, playing, and working on these great rock and roll pieces of art. Overall, more expensive guitars are better in the eyes (ears) of the average customer than the cheaper ones, but deep searching the net for great and unexpensive guitars is more than a hobby, it s a wonderful way of keeping my mind healthy. Although I could always swap the bridge out, but then the overall price goes up... I know. Not having money was the driving force behind buying cheap guitars and making them work. So it pays to sometimes get one of these low-budget instruments and do hardware upgrades yourself. Don t be scared. In general most of them have good fretboards and wood to wood fitting. Additionally, Azerrad, an American author, journalist and musician, writes that early in their career, Sonic Youth "could only afford cheap guitars, and they sounded like... cheap guitars!". Kurt Cobain had some cheaper guitars he used too. But, in my opinion, the talent always overcomes the budget. The great thing about these instruments nowadays is that they are actually playable, and we can make really good sound on them! I am a professional medicine doctor, the face I use to pay my bills. And I m an amateur but passioned guitar player. Fortunately I don t have to pay my bills with my guitar skills :) And finally, I have a small website about... Cheap and Hot Guitars! (Nope, It is NOT about medicine at all!) Check out: www.hotguitars.org