Guitar w/trem recommendation

[SUBnet192]

My son's been playing for 4 years now, 3 with a PRS Tremonti SE, that he really loves. He's interested in learning tremolo techniques and his guitar doesn't have one. I'm looking for a decent guitar in the 500-750$ price range that would fit the bill. While we're at it, if you can recommend something fairly different from the PRS tone wise, he'd be happy to experiment with it.

 

Thanks for your suggestions, as I'm pretty much clueless as to where to start. Fixed bridge? Floyd Rose? Ibanez? ESP? S-S-H? Dual humbuckers? Too many choices!

 

If anyone's in the mood to see him play He's going to be 12 this month.

 

http://www.youtube.com/animeka

 

Marc

[Mister Zero]

How about a nice Fender Strat? Lots of options in that price range. I would suggest the Jimmie Vaughan signature, which has the American Vintage hardware, overwound Tex-Mex pickups, and a soft V neck.

[Dann-O]

I am not sure what your son is going for tone wise. I i have been thinking of getting a Fender Jazzmaster or Jaguar for some surf sounds. Stratocasters as mentioned above are always a good choice. for a modern and different sound try a Steinberger.

 

What is he going for as far as a trem goes. Does he want to do subtle things or over top dive bombs. for subtle things a fender or bigsby tremelo works great but if you want to go over the top on it you need a floyd rose or steinberger setup.

[SUBnet192]

I am not sure what your son is going for tone wise. I i have been thinking of getting a Fender Jazzmaster or Jaguar for some surf sounds. Stratocasters as mentioned above are always a good choice. for a modern and different sound try a Steinberger. What is he going for as far as a trem goes. Does he want to do subtle things or over top dive bombs. for subtle things a fender or bigsby tremelo works great but if you want to go over the top on it you need a floyd rose or steinberger setup.

 

I had a Squier strat (my first guitar) and we both didn't care much for them... Volume know was in the way You can see his hanging on the wall in the video, it was signed by Collective Soul...

 

He listens to Iron Maiden, Dream Theater, Pink Floyd, Joe Satriani, etc... Tone wise, he just wants something different that the PRS.

 

Thanks,

 

Marc

[eroom]

Ibanez RG1570 Can't go wrong.

[Dann-O]

Hmm a strat with a nicer trem like the Wilkinson. Look for a strat with it or a different make of guitar with it. these stay in tune a bit better than the vintage trems and are not the hassle of a floyd rose style trem which from my experience is not worth it unless you are a very heavy trem user.

 

The last trem guitar I had that I liked was a strat plus. Strats seem to be the majority of the guitars out there with trems or copies of them. this is a nice example of a strat. http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Fender-Lite-Ash-Stratocaster-Electric-Guitar-with-Tremolo?sku=511337

Or a carvin bolt. My advice is go to a store and try out a few different ones. try some cheapies too there are some diamonds in the rough out there.

 

There were times whe I saw a guitar on paper and thought that is great like recently with a Firebird and then tried it and well I did not like it.

[SUBnet192]

Ibanez RG1570 Can't go wrong.

 

This looks like something that could be interesting. I've added that one to my list of candidates

 

Thanks!

 

Marc

[SUBnet192]

 

Hmm a strat with a nicer trem like the Wilkinson. Look for a strat with it or a different make of guitar with it. these stay in tune a bit better than the vintage trems and are not the hassle of a floyd rose style trem which from my experience is not worth it unless you are a very heavy trem user. The last trem guitar I had that I liked was a strat plus. Strats seem to be the majority of the guitars out there with trems or copies of them. this is a nice example of a strat. http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Fender-Lite-Ash-Stratocaster-Electric-Guitar-with-Tremolo?sku=511337 Or a carvin bolt. My advice is go to a store and try out a few different ones. try some cheapies too there are some diamonds in the rough out there. There were times whe I saw a guitar on paper and thought that is great like recently with a Firebird and then tried it and well I did not like it.

 

 

We really have no love for the strat unfortunately... Thanks for the suggestion!

 

Marc

[angry again2]

The Ibanez models are great and he might like the wizard neck profile on them because of his smaller hands. The Schecter hellraiser has a great trem also. Check these out although they are a little out of the price range you listed. From left to right, Ibanez RG2610Z, RGR1570, RG2550Z and Schecter C-1 hellraiser fr

[SUBnet192]

 

The Ibanez models are great and he might like the wizard neck profile on them because of his smaller hands. The Schecter hellraiser has a great trem also. Check these out although they are a little out of the price range you listed. From left to right, Ibanez RG2610Z, RGR1570, RG2550Z and Schecter C-1 hellraiser fr

 

 

Thanks for the suggestions. I looked at the 1570 today and it's a nice axe... I'll have my son check it out this weekend. It's a bit heavy though...

 

Marc

[GCDEF]

I'd stay away from Fenders. The longer scale would be tough for smaller hands.

[maltomario]

Jackson DK series. polar opposites in tone from the PRS. Well within you budget, or under even - both of mine I purchased (DK2M and DK2) were $600 and $283 new, respectively. quality hardware, excellent neck, great pickups. tremolo is actually very good despite what you read here. the new jackson JT580LP's are high quality units.

 

DK2

 

DK2M (swapped body)

[Dewysoss]

Find an old Schecter Banshee with a Wilkinson

 

[panther_king]

I'd go with something HH configured for pickups myself. I just can't really stand having a pickup RIGHT where I tend to play, like so many guitars do. I'll only really settle with it on strats. I played a Tom Anderson with a humbucker in bridge, and 2 mini-humbuckers in the middle and neck position. Sounded good, but I just wasn't comfy scraping my pick on the p/u of a 2,000 dollar guitar every attack.

 

I'd look into ESP/LTD, Ibanez, Schecter, and Jackson. I'd suggest the MH series ESP, Ibanez S or RG series, Schecter C1, and Jackson DInky or Soloist bodies. Though, most Schecters don't have the tremolo system you'd be looking for. Strat style, some with carved tops, but pretty different tonally from the PRS. Should be able to get a alder/ash type body, and dual humbuckers with a floyd rose. It'll certainly "pop" alot more than the tremonti's Les Paul style mahongany.

 

Also, maybe look into something with a coil-tapping humbucker, so some good ol' single coil tones too. While you're looking and playing guitars, pull up on the knobs just in case

[angry again2]

This Michael Kelly seems like a great guitar for the price. Original floyd rose trem, emg pups, grover tuners. The price is well within your budget too.

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Michael-Kelly-Hex-Deluxe-Electric-Guitar?sku=515961

[physicshammer]

maybe a g&l - they can go from strat sounds to elsewhere.. the comanche is a hotter, more brittle one to my ears... but check tuning stability on the trems, my legacy doesn't have very good stability at all... or maybe something like a used carvin or schecter custom?

[satannica]

I second a Jackson DK2! Great guitars for the money and come with great pickups off the bat! Just get it setup properly if you do get it.

 

Alternatively, Ibanez are OK but their tremolos drive me to drink due to their frank {censored}eness!

[rummy]

+1 for the 1570. Very easy to play, and it sounds solid. Especially for the type of music your son's playing.

 

My old 1570

 

[jjanggibson]

Jackson DK series. polar opposites in tone from the PRS. Well within you budget, or under even - both of mine I purchased (DK2M and DK2) were $600 and $283 new, respectively. quality hardware, excellent neck, great pickups. tremolo is actually very good despite what you read here. the new jackson JT580LP's are high quality units. DK2 DK2M (swapped body)

 

These get my vote. My DK2m can outshred anythin in the world! (Cept maybe Ibanez prestige series)

[The Rossness]

As far as trems go you have to decide if you want a floating trem or a non-floating trem. A floating trem will give him the option of diving down and pulling up. They are harder to replace strings on, and if you break a string while playing, the guitar will go out of tune.

 

With a non-floating trem you can dive bomb only. If you beak a string, your guitar will not go out of tune.

 

Some guitars such as a "parker fly" or a "peavey HP Special" have a system where you can set up the bridge for floating, non-floating, or fixed.

 

if you chose the peavey, which is a little north of your price range, your son would have the option of of choosing which bridge setting he liked most, and he could change it at will. The guitar has dual coil tapped humbuckers and a birdseye maple neck.

This guitar also has a higher resale value than his prs and if decided to sell it would net him more money. I would check ebay and gbase for the best prices. I've seen some sold for $900.

 

If he wants a cool body style I would look at an ESP LTD Alexi-600 or LTD DJ-600 of Dean ML Dime-o-flame. They all have floating trems and cost about $700.

 

You could get him an old kramer or charvel if you wanted a non-floating trem. They cost between $200- $800. Their resale value should only go up. Also, Your son might like a peavey wolfgang exp. It cost about 600 bucks, has a non floating trem and is an excellent choice.

[brentrocks]

HOW ABOUT A ERNIE BALL AXIS?

[The Rossness]

 

HOW ABOUT A ERNIE BALL AXIS?

 

 

Most EBMM axis guitars are going to be way over his limit. You might be thinking of the sport, or supersport. They would fall withing his price range, but they have no trem.

 

If his son likes players like satriani and wants to emulate their style. he will need a trem he can go crazy on. I think real floyds or great licensed versions are the way to go.

 

I would not recomend the Jackson DK2M. I picked on up brand new for 300 bucks once and returned it the next day because the trem would not stay in tune. I was not doing crazy dives with it either.

 

Your son might also like the an Ibanez JS1000.