What does a $49 guitar really sound like?

[Southern ILL]

Here is your $49 worth for free:http://www.driveway.com/m1xq3Fqzan (http://www.driveway.com/m1xq3Fqzan)


And here is picture.NO flim-flam....this guitar recorded with the cheapy MF Nady mic and stand package and kids playing in the mix.....

I had to change strings....shim the nut....and run a bastard file up and down the neck on each side.I did clean the nut slots and lube but was needed. Oiled the fretboard.....I tried meduim guage strings and it overdrove the top too much for me.

http://i68.photobucket.com/albums/i32/jsh1970/Picture120.jpg

[theRocco]

My Gretsch was perfect right out of the box, no adjustments needed. Sounded like an old Lightnin' Hopkins blues box, very cool voice. The action was a tad high but I like em like that for that style.

But mine cost like $99.

[Southern ILL]

Overstock.com still had them yesterday shipped to your door in 3 days for $49.Good Deal and cool box!!

[Lawn Jockey]

One of Ed Gerhard's last albums ("House Of Guitars") was recorded......every track.......with pawn shop guitars.

You know what? It still sounds like Ed Gerhard. Amazing.

[EunosFD]

I've had mine for a few months now (go it from MF on a SDotD deal for $49) and I love it too. I have the green Way Out West one. It won't be mistaken for an all-solid guitar, but it's an absolute blast to play and has that unique cheap ply guitar sound going on which is great in it's own right. Def well more than worth the asking price.

[IIIBOOMERIII]

damn it, I bought one, see what you made me do.

Overstock has them for 42.99 and free shipping.

I hope the action is HIGH out of the box, I want to use it for slide.

[re-animator]

too damn cool.


those cheap guitars have a definite unmistakeable charm to them. as do the background kids conversations :)

[guitarshaman]

damn it, I bought one, see what you made me do.

Overstock has them for 42.99 and free shipping.

I hope the action is HIGH out of the box, I want to use it for slide.


Yep, me too!!! $45.99 shipped from overstock.com for the Sundown Serenade one, cool!

[jpfeiff]

Damn I'm having a hard time not buying both of those Gretsches on Overstock. My wife will KILL though, if another guitar shows up at the door. Maybe ship them to my work address??? Our living room is adorned with old cowboy wall hangers and I've always thought about adding these Gretsches to the collection...

[RL in Fla]

Damn I'm having a hard time not buying both of those Gretsches on Overstock. My wife will KILL though, if another guitar shows up at the door. Maybe ship them to my work address??? Our living room is adorned with old cowboy wall hangers and I've always thought about adding these Gretsches to the collection...


Ship it to work , leave it there a couple-3 weeks , and tell her (pick somebody) gave you a $49 Xmas gift . :cool:

[IIIBOOMERIII]

Got my "The Show Down" and that is a cool little guitar. The stock strings are a little to light, when you bring it upto pitch the strings feel very loose. But man when you tune it in the fandago tuning, that little guy is fun to play. My only real complaint is the action is a little to low on the treble side for slide. Other than that, it is a fun little axe, kind of has a dobro tone to it.

I think I am going to have buy the "Sundown Serenade". Comon there are other open tunings I play in! :)

[IIIBOOMERIII]

Holy Snot I went to overstock and they blew them out shipped $28.49!!!!!
They are all SOLD OUT!!!!!

[Southern ILL]

Cool gits for sure....Heck-for $49 it was a easy pick for me.....I had to shim the nut on the one in the pic and soundclip.

[Glenn D.]

Holy Snot I went to overstock and they blew them out shipped $28.49!!!!!
They are all SOLD OUT!!!!!


And I got two of them, one for me, one for six year old. :AOK

Glenn D.

[IIIBOOMERIII]

Man at $28.49 I wanted to buy four and give them as gifts to guys I jam with.

Glenn D. did you get them at $28.49?

[Dotneck]

I got one for 25.50 as well...should be ehre in a couple days.

Large Fun!

[guitarshaman]

Got mine today... Very cool little guitar for $45 shipped! I'm happy with it right out of the box, a few mods and it'll be golden!

[IIIBOOMERIII]

Are these available anywhere? I really want the Sweethearts guitar.

[Southern ILL]

bump

[tedm]

got one here, but still in box for possible gift. Can anyone comment on the size? I want to give it to my son who has a nice full size already, but if the scale (not body size) will be easier on his fingers for scales, it might be worth setting up and all.

But the specs 24" vs his 24.5" sort of indicate the spacing between frets is going to be about the same, with the "3/4" thing more of a body size decrease?

[Southern ILL]

Fret spacing pretty close to the same....but easy vibrato with the looser feel of the string tension.I like them....setup is a must on any guitar you would by for a kid or yourself.Your gonna have fret buzz for sure on anything with the string height set low......more so on the shorter scale.

Come on man.....this is a cool box.....if its ok for dad to have a few different guitars in the arsenal ....why not the son?:dude

[kojdogg]

agh-- couldn't resist. Still readily available at $50 shipped on ebay...

[tedm]

This is good info.

I think I'll keep my son on the full size since it's pretty well setup, but a tad large, he can't stretch his fingers over 4 frets, so has to move his hand to use pinky on 4th fret and back to first finger on first fret, but sounds like would be similar with the Gretsch.

I guess the main thing is if he likes the looks of the thing.

Fret spacing pretty close to the same....but easy vibrato with the looser feel of the string tension.I like them....setup is a must on any guitar you would by for a kid or yourself.Your gonna have fret buzz for sure on anything with the string height set low......more so on the shorter scale.

Come on man.....this is a cool box.....if its ok for dad to have a few different guitars in the arsenal ....why not the son?:dude

[franksguitar]

Can anyone here admit to actually buying an Estasban guitar on QVC?

[tedm]

I did end up buying a no-name 3/4 size (30") on Overstock. Will let you know if it has a name on it when it arrives!

[walterw]

Can anyone here admit to actually buying an Estasban guitar on QVC?
god i hope not.

i've had the pleasure of working on a few of those things, and they're the worst!

as the humor website Rockandrollconfidential (http://www.rockandrollconfidential.com/news/index.php) put it in an "onion"-style fake news story about Esteban,

The scandal intensified when the Recording Academy revealed that claims that “Esteban” had won “several Grammys” were false.


These charges come on the heels of last month’s statement from the Musical Instrument Manufacturers Association that the “Esteban” guitar could not, in fact, be classified as an actual guitar due to the fact that it is constructed out of reclaimed materials such as discarded telephone directories and medical waste.

[crosse79]

I have an el cheapo guitar that sounds just as good as any guitars many many times the price.

[Mr Fretless]

I guy I used to live with had this battered old nylon string acoustic that was covered in stickers. It had been on beaches, travelled around and generally been 'worn in'. He used it for gigs and I recorded some demos with it. You would find it hard to sell for more than £20 looking at it but it sounded great!

[tedm]

turned out to have a crack below the headstock behind the 1st - 3rd frets, but tuning a few steps down, it is fine.

I think the limitations of some of the cheap guitars can give you creative influence to try different musical options - for example this one frets out on the lighter strings, so I gravitated towards the heavier strings that boom and vibrate well.

I guy I used to live with had this battered old nylon string acoustic that was covered in stickers. It had been on beaches, travelled around and generally been 'worn in'. He used it for gigs and I recorded some demos with it. You would find it hard to sell for more than £20 looking at it but it sounded great!