Can anyome recommend a good G&L?

[Jonderdonk]

Anyone have a favorite G&L Strat? How do they compare to Fenders?

 

[Dean_E]

No such thing as a bad G&L. Just remember the MFD pickups utilize ceramic magnets, which will not give you the vintage Fender tone that so many expect. There are models that have alnico pickups. You will have to go to their website and study up. Over all most people think American G&L's rival Fenders Custom shop, which I won't argue against.

http://www.glguitars.com/instruments/USA/guitars/index.asp


Dean

 

[Larry Mal]

Well, there's no G&L "Strat". There's two models I can think of that certainly look like Strats, the Legacy and the S500. The S500 looks to be a Strat in all ways but has the proprietary pickups that you see above, and the Legacy has pickups that are voiced more like Stratocaster pickups.

But they still aren't the same, exactly, as Fender's are. "Stratocaster pickup" is a pretty broad term, though, but bear in mind that if you are expecting the pickups to be the same as they are on a Strat then they aren't.

Most G&Ls that you'll find have a 12" radius, some older ones used 7.25". None that I'm aware of use the modern Fender 9.5".

G&L guitars also have their own bridge, and their bridges are wonderful. The only guitar maker whose stock bridges I never feel I need to address. In general the hardware on G&Ls is fantastic.

But the intangible is the build quality and the playability. Put very simply, G&L guitars are wonderful. The fit of them is exact and the just feel great in the hands. You'll probably read things as this thread progresses like G&L guitars are custom shop quality at standard prices, and that's really a pretty accurate way to put it. They aren't a big company, and they seem to focus on making each guitar as good as it can be. They aren't just slamming out guitars over there.

I'm told that at least back in the day, the necks and bodies were mated, they were designed to be together from step one. And I don't know if they still do that or not, but that's how they feel.

I would not be able to say too many good things about G&L guitars. They are wonderful. I own three of them, two basses and a Legacy. One of the basses I've owned for over twenty years, and the other I traded the Fender equivalent of in order to get into the G&L (my opinion is that G&L takes the bass very seriously and make the best in the world, or close to it).

The Legacy I got in a trade. I had an old Fender Twin I needed to sell for the money, and wasn't able to move it locally. Shipping that seemed a nightmare, so I traded it for the Legacy. I was only going to flip the Legacy, I needed the money.

It took me about five minutes before I realized what a great guitar I had on my hands, and that I'd be a complete idiot to let it go ever. And so I didn't... I did something else for money. You know, when a great guitar comes along, you find a way to get it or keep it.

And I have never owned a Stratocaster, basically. I'm not really into the model a whole lot. But this G&L just called to me.

Most of my guitar collection is Fenders and Gibsons, but if I was starting over, more would be G&L. I very much recommend that you get your hands on some and try them out, they are fantastic guitars.

 

[rampix]

My G&L F100 reissue is my hands down favorite electric. After trying, and owning, many brands and types, this is THE ONE. I played it for 2 hours this morning into headphones before anybody else got up. I'm amazed at the sound, playability, fit and finish...I just can't imagine what could make it better!

 

[DogEarDave]

The Comanche is another G&L strat-style guitar. It has their Z-coil pickups.

In my experience, G&Ls are pretty sweet guitars. Not really sure why I sold my S-500. It was my favorite for a while.

 

[ieso]

Oh, Geez, I've written a lot on this topic

http://gtroblq.blogspot.com/2011/08/fender-or-g.html

I'd go with a Comanche or 500 for flex but I own a lot of G/L and they're all good

 

[ieso]

Here's something I wrote up on the Comanche a while back

http://gtroblq.blogspot.com/2011/04/g-comanche-encyclopedia-of-single-coil.html

 

[Triton76]

I have an S500 Tribute and it a solid value. People say get a MIM Strat, change the pickups, and you're good. The Tributes come with the same pickups and the USA's. I like the bridge better than a MIM Strat too. The MFD single coils sound awesome thru a fuzz pedal if that's your thing. My S500 has a volume, bass, treble and 7 way switching. Not sure about the Legacy

 

[VaughnC]

IMO, G&L's are different animals than classic Fender's. Many G&L's have passed through my hands...but none stayed. I've rejected many Fender's too...but some stayed. Whatever! Only you have your ears & hands...believe in what they tell you over opinions you read on the internet.

 

[dysorexia]

A good Legacy is beautiful thing

 

[saneff]

I have I think 10 G&Ls right now. A mixture of Legacy, S500, and ASATs. They are all fantastic.

 

[autonomous]

No such thing as a bad G&L. Just remember the MFD pickups utilize ceramic magnets, which will not give you the vintage Fender tone that so many expect. There are models that have alnico pickups. You will have to go to their website and study up. Over all most people think American G&L's rival Fenders Custom shop, which I won't argue against.

http://www.glguitars.com/instruments/USA/guitars/index.asp


Dean

What this dude says. I love my asat classic tribute. Sounds so good clean and distorted. The bridge pup is very powerful without the nasal tone. Now if they made their version of a 335. That would be AWESOME

 

[Boris Bubbanov]

Anyone have a favorite G&L Strat? How do they compare to Fenders?

"S" type I guess, clearly IMO not a "Strat" but I like first of all the USA versions over the foreign ones. Pickup origin is important in cheap guitars but the USA models are way beyond that in terms of what makes them great.

I like the Bi-Cut necked, four bolt versions from the early to mid 2000s.

The Comanche is my favorite but the S-500 is right behind:

2 of the former, 1 of the latter.

 

[ASATlove]

I still wish I hadn't traded my 07 Legacy. Probably the BEST Strat style guitar I have ever owned.......

 

[scelerat]

I bought a mid-'90s Legacy for $700 about a year ago. Absolutely flawless fit and finish, plays like a dream, looks great, sounds great, yadda yadda. Solid, real value I can't recommend more highly.

I have an old SC-3 and F-100 too. I guess I'm a fan. The MFDs are the best single coil pups IMO, and G&Ls in general are built really well and have great, thoughtful features throughout.

For reference I've owned one MIA Strat, on MIA tele, several other MIJ and MIM Fenders, and my Legacy has them all beat in the fit/finish/feel department. How you get along with a guitar is up to you, but I think G&L's quality easily tops Fender's (at least for their production, non-custom guitars).

 

[Duffy]

I like the Tribute S500's better than the Legacy's, but maybe I should re-evaluate that because the Legacy could probably be made into an awesome strat by putting in some great pickups. I like the MFD pickups.

I'm sure an American made one would be nicer to own, in general, but the Tributes's are very nice guitars.

I have been looking at the Tribute Comanche's lately and the noiseless, almost P bass style pickups look and supposedly sound great.

I have one G and L ASAT Classic semi solid tele type guitar and it is very cool with a thick ash top and decent hardware, plus a nice neck very lightly finished with a maple fretboard.

I think the strat types are very nice and an improvement, in many ways, over the Fender Corp. design. I like the separate treble and bass controls and the additional switching options on some models. Fender makes some very nice guitars, however, by comparison, not necessarily better or worse.

I think a decent G and L of any type could make a great guitar for a lot of people, and beyond the reach and expectation of many. One would easily be something to be proud to own.

For a hundred more than a Classic Vibe 50's you could have a Legacy. That may be a hundred well spent in the estimation of many.

Good luck and you might want to check out the Tribute Comanche.
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/guitars/gl-tribute-comanche-electric-guitar

 

[sirbergersworth]

Get a Comanche and get all the fender tones and beyond.
Some will say they cannot get a vintage fender tone out of a Comanche and it has ceramic magnets. Don't believe them. Back off the treble on the PTB and a bit off the bass. You are there.

 

[Boris Bubbanov]

Get a Comanche and get all the fender tones and beyond.
Some will say they cannot get a vintage fender tone out of a Comanche and it has ceramic magnets. Don't believe them. Back off the treble on the PTB and a bit off the bass. You are there.

Sounds like sirbergersworth is a better player than I am.

Here's what I find. The Comanche is a great guitar but of all the things I ask of it, I'm not looking for Vintage Fender Tone from this guitar; I can eke a little out, here and there but my attitude is, I'm not looking for it as though it was another Strat. So many things that it can do that a vintage style Strat can't do, and I focus on all these positives and not the one small negative.

+

Another thing. If you have a really nice amp, the Comanche is at its best. If your amp is real cheap, a Comanche might IMO be a mistake.

 

[rummy]

Love their Strats. The trem is really brilliant, and the pickups they use, they work for the instrument.