Buying new guitars versus buying used: general pros and cons

[Doctor Morbius]

If I never buy another new guitar, I'd be perfectly happy with that.

Same here. Too many good values to be had in the used market, especially for the kind of guitars that are of interest to me.

[Carbohydrates]

I buy new, used, whatever. If I like it and am willing to pay the price they're asking to own it, it's mine! Crazy, huh?

 

Source of Guitars:

- Pawn shop (used): 1

- Guitar Center (new): 3

- Guitar Center (used): 1

- Mom 'n Pop (new): 1

- Ebay (used): 3

 

If I can afford it, I like buying new so I can get the EXACT options I'm looking for. I have no problem doing a special order.

[dewees]

 

One "pro" for a used guitar is that if the guitar is a year old or older then it has settled somewhat and stabilized. Seasoned you might say. This is good because any problem the guitar may have is usually revealed.

 

 

 

 

Definitely! And more so with acoustics than electrics. I bought a fine Guild D 25 (long ago) new. After a year the neck needed to be replaced. But the determination under the warranty was that it just needed to be reset. I vowed never to buy a new acoustic guitar again. A warranty doesn't mean much if the manufacturer isn't going to stand behind it.

[dewees]

I buy used because the depreciation on new gear is so steep that I'd wind up taking a bath every time I sell something. Buying used, I get to try out a lot of gear without losing any money. I can try it out, see what I like, even develop new preferences.

 

I read about the EBMM Axis Sport, got one, and have been enjoying it for several years now. I would never have even taken a chance on it if I'd had to pay $1500 knowing that if I didn't like it I would lose in excess of $600 to sell it.

 

And pickups are another thing! Man, I have auditioned - and resold - around 30 pickups! Every single one of them was purchased used, worked fine when I got it, and worked fine when I sold it.

[Roy Brooks]

Used. Most of my guitars are forty or fifty years old.

[fretmonster]

Of fourteen guitars in my collection, only three were purchased new. Of the others, most were "as new" and a fair shake better than the condition of the average fare at GC for just a fraction of their original cost. Six of them are discontinued American makes including a couple of vintage offerings (60s and 80s) without the vintage price tag (Harmony H19 and Peavey T15). Besides being better bargains, if you are savvy enough to identify trouble areas in used guitars, I think they sound more resonant and alive than most of the newer fare (American made included).

 

This link reinforces the better wood theory:

http://www.parkerguitars.com/code/about/about_factory_wood.asp

"The textbook perfect woods mentioned in guitar making books have long since gone the way of the dinosaurs. There will be knots, water stains, cracks, splinters and shakes." (Talking about the lumber now available for guitar building.)

[bluelegacy]

I really don't see any pros to buying new. Used guitars have 'settled down' and warping/twisting/wood problems they're going to have happens early on. Guitars are pretty damn simple and I don't see the warranty being useful for anything but what I just mentioned. Used guitars all the way. They're usually much cheaper and may even have cool mods- locking tuners, better electronics/pickups. The only new guitar I've bought recently was my Schecter but that because it was priced like a used guitar.

[ElectricFactory]

I also LOVE used guitars, in fact the more 'used' the better. Mind, I don't mean thrashed, but rather 'used' as in with playing time on them. I never met a guitar that didn't benefit from being played alot. I never heard a guitar that didn't sound better AFTER it was ' played in' than before.

In fact- anyone wanna sell me their 'used' strat, tele, flat top, archtop ? I'M BUYIN' !!!

[bonzo2]

Used all the way. I think I had 2 New Purchases and have either sold or traded both.

[orourke]

 

I try to buy used. Most of the time a used guitar has had some time to adjust to their environment. They'll show what they are supposed to be almost immediately.

 

 

My thoughts exactly. I'd rather have the benefit of someone else field testing a guitar for a few years, if it has any issues they will become apparent.

 

Also, you can usually get a much better deal on a used Fender or Gibson etc. (unless it's a desirable vintage model).

[O'Rourke]

With used Carvins you can't just look at a certain model number and know what materials were used and what electronics came from the factory because there are a ton of options. My SC90 is either unusually patterened and dark grained mahogany or really straight grained Koa, and a couple of people have even guessed walnut. It also had an "option 50" phase switch. Without the original build sheet you just don't know.

 

This can be a pro opr a con. Pro because you can score a guitar with a ton of options worth way above the original list price, and con because you can't tell what you're buying all the time, especially with an opaque finish.

[juri]

People who buy used need to know something about the guitar they're buying. Unless it's a cheap guitar that they want to turn into a partsocaster. Even on a new guitar you need to do some checks.

In the end the guitar you buy should be a guitar you love. I read in a book somewhere, I think it was something Zappa said. He said, you don't pick a guitar a guitar picks you.

On the other hand people who don't want to spend a lot of money on a guitar are way better off buying used. They'll get a lot more bang for the buck.

I don't have a lot of experience buying guitars to be honest but I personally am very skeptical about buying one online, especially if you have never played the instrument before. I think in that case you're buying it for the looks and not necessarily because you look the feel or the sound.

[dewees]

 

....I don't have a lot of experience buying guitars to be honest but I personally am very skeptical about buying one online, especially if you have never played the instrument before. I think in that case you're buying it for the looks and not necessarily because you look the feel or the sound.

 

 

I certainly understand this concern. I have bought one or two guitars online that were disappointing. But most of the time I ask a lot of questions and buy or pass based on the answers to them. I helps that I'm not expecting to get a guitar in new condition for the price of a used one. And it does help that I'm generally buying higher end guitars.

[golias]

I'm a total Craigslist whore. Sure, lots of people who want $200 for their crappy Epi LP Special 2, but plenty of angry ex-girlfriends selling classic axes for less than half of their value.

 

Also, many of my transactions don't even involve cash. Lots of people enjoy trading.

[EDS1275]

I really don't like to buy anything used and that includes cars as well. Even our last two houses were new. As for guitars, I'm not concerned with their depreciation, I'm not selling any of them. I really don't like anybody else playing my guitar and by the same token I'm not at all interested in playing others guitars. To me used guitar are just other folks' guitars. I'm simply not interested.

 

I am with ya on underware and condoms ...but homes and guitars think ya have a phobia

[dcindc]

I can fix anything, so I prefer to buy used. Actually I prefer to buy broken, but those are harder to find.

 

I buy SX guitars new cause they are so friggin cheap. And most people who would be selling one used, would not have respected it.

 

Price does not equal Value.

[Burgess]

I am with ya on underware and condoms ...but homes and guitars think ya have a phobia

Not a phobia, a preference. I'll let you in on a little secret. New homes in my neck of the woods cost less.

 

Homeowners that sell generally want to make a little money on the sale. Home builders also want to make profit but they sell at a higher volume and can afford to spread their profit out over many homes. Homeowners want the new buyer to pay for every little home improvement they made while living there plus whatever the rising market may bring to the table. At least I know I did on any home I sold. Not only did I make the new buyer pay for everything plus my profit I also left them with a home that has all the problems an 8 year old home may have. You know the little nit picky stuff you just didn't feel like bothering with for the last few years, the stuff you were going to get around to that a home inspector will never (and didn't) see.

 

As for guitars, I have a good job. I prefer new guitars. I can afford new guitars. I buy new guitars. I have lots of 'em.

[steve_man]

I would prefer to buy new...simply because I know it has not been mistreated...

 

but I've bought used before...