Best cheap electric guitars for 2014
My definition of cheap concerning an electric guitar is under $300, and that's in US dollars. When you go over $300, there's not much left to spend on other things (like amps and effects among other things) if you are on a tight budget.
Before starting this, two things:
First, Fender brands pretty much own the sub-$300 price point, namely with their Squier and Jackson brands. Why? Largest selection. There are a ridiculous amount of sub-$300 guitars if you stick to those two.
Second, I don't know what's going to happen later in 2014. Every guitar I list here should continue to have an under-$300 price, but the prices may go up slightly in the later half of this year.
Okay, on to the guitars.
I've seen this guitar listed as low as $249. Obviously, this is meant to be a "metal" guitar as this is Jackson's take on an Explorer shape. However, as far as metal axes go, this is one of the best budget 24-fret neck guitars. It has the look and style of what a metal guitar should be, keeps it basic with no vibrato system and should stay in tune well.
Squier Vintage Modified Telecaster Custom
This guitar has a ridiculous amount of good hardware for under $300. Separate volume/tone controls for each pickup and a 3-way toggle on top, much like an SG. The knobs are the "witch hat" Fender amp style, and I know from experience that those have a good, solid feel to them.
What's not said about this guitar anywhere is for that all intents and purposes, this is a Squier version of a Pawn Shop Telecaster. The from-the-factory mods done to this guitar are pretty much exactly what guys with Telecasters would have done back in the day in the 1970s.
On top of all that, the guitar just looks cool. This is one of the very few cheap axes that impresses both musicians and non-musicians at the same time.
"Gee, I wish Squier made something that was exactly like an American Standard Stratocaster..."
The Squier Deluxe Stratocaster is very, very close to an American Standard. In fact, if it were any closer it would be an American Standard, spec-wise.
You never see Squier Deluxe Strats in guitar stores because the moment they're in stock, they sell out quickly. Why? Because it has nearly every appointment that an American Standard Stratocaster does. Players that know what the Deluxe has purposely seek these out because they know it's really close to American Standard specs.
This guitar should be $400. But it's under $300.
Squier Vintage Modified Jaguar and Squier Vintage Modified Jazzmaster
No, these two guitars are not the same. Not at all. The Jag is a short 24-inch scale with skinny pickups controlled by on/off toggle switches on the bottom. The Jazz is a standard 25.5-inch scale with large pickups controlled by a 3-way toggle on the bottom.
Whichever you decide to go with, Squier brought back two of the coolest electric guitars ever made at an under-$300 price point - which never happened before Squier did it.
Jazzes and Jags are love-'em-or-hate-'em guitars. I love 'em. Some hate 'em, and that's fine because it takes a certain kind of player to appreciate one. The point is that Squier makes them and they can be bought real cheap, and that's great.
Epiphone Nighthawk Custom Reissue
This is a guitar where a lot of players get turned off by the oddball pickup styling. Technically, this guitar is an HSH configuration. Slanted full humbucker in the rear, single-coil in the middle, mini-humbucker in the front. And yes the rear humbucker has coil tap via a push/pull knob.
Epiphone has tried, several times, to get people to like this guitar. They've bounced around with price points, and at the moment it's under $300, although you may find it for slightly high at $335-ish or so. Still, that's cheap.
If you want a Gibson style guitar is that not a Les Paul nor an SG and has features neither of them have, the Nighthawk is a good buy.
The Nighthawk is, once again, being phased out. It was originally released in '93, then retired. It was brought back in its current form as a reissue, and now it's about to be retired again. If you want one, get it now because the value of it will most likely go up sharply the moment it isn't available in major retailers anymore.
The LP-100 is your basic Les Paul guitar that's not missing anything. It has a full control set, which means separate volume/tone controls for each pickup and a 3-way toggle on top. It also has a pick guard. If you're thinking, "Yeah, so?", there are many Les Paul guitars that don't include the guard - even on Gibson models. The LP-100 does have it as every Les Paul should whether you elect to use it or not.
I specifically recommend getting this guitar in black (which Epiphone calls ebony) as shown above, because the sunburst versions of the LP-100 aren't that good and tend to make the guitar appear a bit toy-like. Being there is no body binding and cheaper dot inlays instead of trapezoid, the solid black color just works much better whether seen up close or from a distance.
The best part about the LP-100 is that it fits almost any music style. Rock, metal, country, blues, jazz, etc.
While this isn't the lowest-priced electric, it is the lowest-priced on this list (under $200!)
Last year, Squier did something small that really made a difference with this guitar, looks-wise. The headstock logo was changed. Instead of the plain black Squier logo, that was changed to a gold logo with black outline. You wouldn't think this makes much of a difference, but believe me, it does. Looks a lot nicer.
The Affinity Tele has been a good player for a few years now. I have played one personally. The neck feels amazing on it, the pickups are "spanky" and good and the construction overall is solid.
What will probably amaze you about Affinity Teles more than anything else is how good the tuners are. You simply don't expect smooth tuners on a guitar that sells for under 200 bucks, but this Tele has 'em. A standard thing most guys who buy cheap guitars do is junk the tuners first for a better set. Not necessary on the Affinity Tele.
As for the rest of the guitar, it's typical Telecaster simplicity. The only main drawback is that it's a top-loader. No string-through-body here, and that matters to some people. However, given the price it sells for, one really can't complain about that.
In case you're wondering, yes, maple fretboard versions are available, but they don't come in the cooler body colors like Lake Placid Blue or Gun Metal Grey. The Brown Sunburst one linked above is my personal favorite because yeah, the thing just looks good and works with the rosewood board well.
You really can't go wrong with a Squier Affinity Telecaster. Looks good, plays good, sounds good, it's stupidly easy to set up and play, and anyone can play it whether you just started playing last week or have been playing for 20 years or more.
Oh, and the best part: Cheap. Dirt cheap.
2014 is a good year to go cheap with the guitar and put your money towards other stuff instead
A lot of players concentrate way too much on the guitar itself and forget that you need an amp and some effects too. With the cash you save on the guitar, you can then buy a better amp.
Let's say for the moment you decided to get the Affinity Telecaster noted above. What would be the best amp for that? Fender Mustang II V2. Why? It's almost the same price as the guitar (slightly higher) and has a bunch of cool effects in it like reverb, delay, amp modeling, pitch shifting and so on. It also has USB for computer connectivity.
The Affinity Tele + Mustang II amp is a damned fine combo. Arguably, is the most bang-for-your-buck combo that exists which has the most usable stuff that's fun to use. The only way to go cheaper would be to get the Mustang I amp instead - but bear in mind that's practice-amp-only territory. The Mustang II has enough grunt for band practice and small gigs while the Mustang I doesn't.
Ibanez RC365H Roadcore = Cool
The Roadcore Series from Ibanez is a back-to-basics guitar that, amazingly, doesn't look like anything else out there right now. And that's not an easy thing to do, especially when it comes to mass-produced electric guitars.
Generally speaking, most electric guitars either look like Strats, Les Pauls, Explorers or Flying Vs. Any electric guitar that goes outside of those standard shapes is usually something really wacky. An example of wacky is any Schecter Synyster Gates model. Those are some seriously wacky guitars. Wacky shape, wacky fret inlays with skulls and batwings (yes, really), a headstock shape that doesn't match the body shape at all... it's just wacky.
This is not to say Ibanez doesn't have stupid guitars of their own, like the JEM with that "monkey grip" hole in the body.
However, sometimes something comes along that's really good where it's new, but not wacky nor stupid. Ibanez Roadcore is it.
The Ibanez RC365H in Light Violin Sunburst is nice. Yes, it is a semi-hollow body as the f-hole seen on it suggests. It's a true hardtail with no vibrato and borrows from Fender designs, but not so much that you'd mistake this for a Fender.
I can only see two things with this design that some players may not like. One is a potential design flaw and the other a visual thing.
First is the position of the pickup selector switch. While the volume knob position is perfect as it's nowhere near the rear pickup (a common complaint of Strat owners), the pickup selector is in a spot where someone who picks with long strokes may hit that switch accidentally.
Second, and this is a nitpick but I noticed it, the truss rod hole isn't colored black, and that looks cheap. On sub-$400 guitars I expect this as a cost-cutter maneuver, but not on something like the Roadcore.
The scale of the neck is 25.5-inch, which is Fender standard. However, the mild offset shape of the body means the higher frets are within easier access for most players; it should be an excellent guitar for playing sitting or standing.
The radius is, interestingly, slightly rounder than Fender modern spec at 9.45-inch (Fender modern is 9.5-inch).
According to Ibanez, the guitar is meant to "feel vintage" and most likely sound vintage. Frets are medium jumbo, both pickups have alnico magnets in them, the hardware is chrome, fretboard is traditional rosewood.
This Roadcore is not a "shredder" guitar. Not at all. That's a good thing, because any shredder guitar is junk.
This also means a Roadcore will last a really long time; it's a guitar that will break in nicely over time and not end up in the dumpster in less than 5 years (as most shredder guitars do).
The body is listed as a maple/mahogany combo. That probably means a mahogany body with a thin maple cap.
The neck, however, is definitely maple.
On the back of the guitar are a few nice surprises, and one weird thing. There is body binding, a bolt-on neck, string-through construction, and the oddball here is an accessible control cavity in the rear.
What's the rear control cavity for? I don't know. Ibanez lists the guitar as having passive pickups, meaning not active, meaning no 9-volt battery required.
I even went to the Ibanez web site and downloaded the manual; it didn't say what that cavity is for either.
So... I'm forced to guess. And my guess is that under that plate is easy-access wiring for the output jack, as it's set too far back to have anything to do with the control knobs. Bear in mind I am guessing, so I could be totally wrong.
Aside from that mystery cavity, the guitar is just plain cool. Not overstyled, not understyled, has a really nice combo of retro and modern, and its configuration makes it ridiculously easy to set up and play.
Ibanez RC365H Roadcore is a cool guitar. Fits just about any genre, looks classy, sounds good.
How do I know it sounds good? There are YouTube videos of other Roadcores being played, and yeah, the pickups are definitely voiced right. The only difference with this one is the Telecaster-style single-coil on the front position that adds in the "spank" this guitar so desperately needed. And now it has it.
Great guitar if you were looking for something different that captures a good vintage vibe while still staying modern.
There is only one reason I don't buy Chinese Fender copy guitars
I recently came across a listing for a China Fender copy guitar listed as a "Factory Custom Shop Guitar 61 Heavy Relic Guitar Aged Vintage Guitar Faded 3 Tone Sun Set". Yes, guitar is mentioned three times in a row.
This would be jokingly known as a "Chender" '61 Relic Stratocaster, and I could buy it right now if I wanted. The price? $372.60 without shipping. With shipping, probably around $425 or so.
Even though I'm not in the market for a Strat, I briefly thought about buying one of these. I wouldn't buy the one I saw in the listing because there were a few things glaringly wrong. The rear pick guard plate was solid white and not mint green like the front pick guard color is. The bridge if you looked closely was not mounted correctly, which probably means the guitar will never be able to be intonated properly. The bridge was also "not aged enough" to fit the '61 look. The fret inlays were white and not parchment. And there are a few other things you'll probably be able to detect that aren't correct just by looking at it long enough...
...but the point is that the guitar was over $3,000 less than a Fender Custom Shop version of the real thing. And for some, that alone is worth dealing with the "wrong" things about the Chender.
Why haven't I bought a Chender?
Short answer: Squier.
Long answer:
Were I in the market for a Strat, I wouldn't even bother with the Chender since Squier has Classic Vibe and Vintage Modified series. If I wanted a sunburst Strat with the rosewood fingerboard, I'd go get a Squier Classic Vibe Stratocaster in that finish and wouldn't think twice about it. The price is less and I know the construction of the guitar is better. I also get a warranty and can return it easily if I don't like the guitar for whatever reason.
If I wanted a Fender Strat copy real cheap, I'll tell you exactly what I'd do. I'd buy the Squier I just mentioned above, sand off the finish and logo on the front of the headstock, refinish, buy a Fender repro decal, slap it on and call it a day. And if I wanted that oh-so stupid "relic" look, that's not a difficult thing to do. Some say it is. It isn't.
The only reason anyone buys a Chender is either because it has a Fender logo on it, or like the guitar described above, the headstock is blank so a Fender logo can be slapped on later.
If I were all about the logo, I would have owned at least 3 Chender Strats by now. But I've never owned one, and don't plan to.
There's another reason I don't own any Chenders. I've never seen a Chender version of a Jazzmaster or Jaguar. If you want Strats and Teles, sure, there are Chenders of that which go on for days. But for Jazzes and Jags? Nope.
And even if there were Chender versions of those guitars, I still wouldn't buy them anyway because Squier without question makes the best low-cost versions of those axes.
What other guitar players think doesn't matter
When you buy a Chender, all you're doing is trying to impress other guitar players, and that's stupid. You know the guitar is a fake, but you want other players to think it's real.
On the flip side of that, if you buy a full-priced 100% real American guitar with the thought of, "Yeah. My guitar friends will respect me now!", that also means you're an idiot, because you're attempting to impress other players just like you would be with the Chender. The only difference is that you spent a lot more.
You never, repeat, never buy a guitar to impress other musicians. All that seeking to impress other musicians does is flush your money straight down the toilet, whether you spent a little or a lot.
When you buy a guitar, you buy for you and only you. If you want to get noticed more, put some cheap lights on your guitar. I guarantee people will pay more attention to you compared to the moron with the famous-only-to-guitar-players logo on his guitar's headstock. People don't care about logos on headstocks. But they do like lights that blink because it's entertaining.
Is the American Special Stratocaster the best Strat Fender makes right now?
If I were in the market for an American Stratocaster right now, my choice would be the Fender American Special Stratocaster in Surf Green, for the following reasons:
- 6-screw bridge and not the dopey 2-point.
- Maple neck and fretboard
- Big CBS-style headstock
- Surf green
There are a few things however I don't like about it.
It has jumbo frets. I prefer medium-jumbo.
It has 2 string trees and I greatly prefer just a single tree for the 1 and 2 string, because with a second string tree it's pretty much guaranteed I'll be "kinking" the 3 string, as in the G string; I bend that string a lot.
It's a 22-fret. I prefer 21.
Are these things I could deal with concerning this Strat? Mostly.
I could deal with the 2 string trees and deal with the 22-fret. As for the jumbo-sized frets however, that I'm not sure of.
The last Fender Strat I had came with jumbo frets, and it's part of the reason I got rid of it.
Some players out there really like jumbo frets for the reason you can solo easier on them; that much is true. You might be a player that loves the big fret wire. If so, that's fine.
But for my playing style, they're a buzzy nightmare.
What I don't know is how much of a difference there is between American jumbo frets and non-American jumbo. They might be thicker or thinner or wider or skinner. I'm just not sure.
I've never had the opportunity to try an American Special Stratocaster because they're never around here in Tampa Bay Florida even in the high-traffic guitar stores I go to. If I wanted to try one, I'd have to buy one. Yeah, I'd get the 30-day satisfaction guarantee so I could return the thing if I wanted and get my money back. But the point is that I'd have to plunk down almost a grand just to try it.
I have tried a Fender Standard Stratocaster in Arctic White with maple fretboard, and I was really close to buying it. Really nice 21-fret neck, the 6-screw bridge I like, and smaller medium jumbo frets. Good stuff. But it had a small finish crack at the neck pocket, and I could see a noticeable space where the neck met the body (bad pocket fit), so that was a no-go.
Would I recommend the American Special Stratocaster?
Even though I haven't tried the Special, if you just have to have an American Fender guitar for whatever reason, yes I'd recommend it.
It's the only reasonably (and by that I mean barely reasonably) priced American Fender Strat out there, and the fact it comes in Surf Green is a rare find on any American Fender guitar. That alone makes it a good buy because it will be worth more later.
This particular guitar only comes in 3 colors. Surf Green, 2-Color Sunburst and Candy Apple Red. Surf and Sunburst are the best two. Candy Apple Red on a Strat... eh, not really.
I own a Jazzmaster in Candy Apple Red, and that color works well on that guitar. But I know it doesn't work on a Strat. CAR is a color that has metallic flake in it and makes a Strat look "plasticky". It is not the famous Fiesta Red, nor is it the darker non-metallic Dakota Red as can be seen on the Classic Series '65 Mustang.
If the American Special Strat was offered in Dakota Red, oh yeah, I'd tell you to snap that right up because that color with a maple neck and fretboard is great combo. But unfortunately CAR is the color and not Dakota.
Go with Surf or Sunburst. Both are good. But the Surf is obviously the more eye-catching because you never see it on Strats.
On a final note, the pickups in the Special are the Texas Special set. How do those sound? They'll be ridiculously bright (as in trebly) at first until you play the guitar for a while to break them in, as they do have alnico V magnets. It's nothing you can't handle as long as you know that up front.
Anything over $500 is too much to spend on a guitar for most people
At the time I write this, there are a ton of guitars that are priced exactly at $399.99, which basically means $400. When you add in tax and shipping, that usually means you end up spending anywhere from $424 to $475. Being that Amazon has free shipping on an item this price, US buyers can grab a $399.99 for as little as $424. For dudes outside the US, cost goes up because of shipping but usually stays under the equivalent of $500 USD.
Unofficially, $400 is the cutoff limit for what most players are willing to spend on a guitar, because you have to allow for a $100 buffer to keep it under $500.
Fortunately, this does allow you to go into Fender-branded guitar territory. Most Modern Player Series guitars such as the HSH Stratocaster are priced at $399.99.
Yes, the Modern Player series from Fender is China-made. But it is Fender. I did own one of those Strats, and can honestly say that yes, it is a well-made, properly constructed series of guitars.
If you're going to spend over $500 for that American-made guitar, you might as well do it now
American-made guitars are not made any better than ones made in Mexico, Japan, Korea, Indonesia or even China at this point...
...but that doesn't take away the desire to own one.
Many players living in countries outside the USA would do almost anything even to touch a USA-made Fender or Gibson guitar, let alone play one.
And then there's me, a guy living in Tampa Bay Florida, who can waltz into a Guitar Center any day of the week and play US-made Fenders or Gibsons.
While I sometimes bash on American-made Fender and Gibson axes, I am very aware of how accessible US-made guitars are to me, simply because I live here.
On top of that, I live in an area where a lot of the super-good American guitars end up, as Tampa Bay does have several high-traffic guitar shops.
Basically what I'm saying is this: If you live somewhere where you absolutely cannot get to American-made guitars, the non-American stuff is just as good and you are not missing anything. Bear in mind this is coming from a guy who can access those high-cost American guitars any day of the week.
Now I know that no matter what I say here, a bunch of you are going to buy an American-made Fender or Gibson one day. It will happen.
I've gone through that phase where I had to have an American guitar and got one. Been there, done that. Will I ever buy American again? Doubtful. Right now at this point in my guitar playing life, I am all about the non-American guitars because I get more enjoyment out of them.
You will buy an American-made guitar just to do it because it feels like an accomplishment. You will put down a bunch of money (at least $1,200 USD or more) and buy that guitar...
...and then you'll probably never do it again. Not because of lack of build quality or anything like that. It's because you did it once and don't have to do it again, because let's face it, it's expensive.
If you have the money, get your American Strat (I suggest getting one in Jade Pearl Metallic with the maple board) or Gibson USA Les Paul (I suggest Honey Burst, which I think is the best burst Gibson does) or whatever it is from Fender or Gibson that you want.
And yeah, I'm saying Fender or Gibson. Those are the two brands you're willing to put big money into for an electric.
Buy it now, because the price is only going to go up as times goes on. Just buy the stupid thing and get it out of your system.
After you've spent your cash on that American guitar...
...you go back to under-$500 guitars and pretty much stay there.
Staying under $500 on the purchase of a new guitar is not being cheap. It's being smart.
Most guitar players eventually figure out that an American-made guitar is not an upgrade. It's just a more expensive guitar. But that doesn't mean you're not going to buy that American guitar. It's like I said, you will do it. It will happen.
Should you buy a used American guitar?
Not unless you are really, really sure the guitar is OK to buy.
There are two main reasons you shouldn't buy a used American Strat or Les Paul ordinarily.
First, most guys who bought these guitars new originally knew nothing about how to set one up correctly. They also don't know how to maintain a guitar correctly either. As such, they will mess it up. Whoever buys the guitar afterward is going to buy something that is messed up.
Second, it's basically impossible to know whether you're getting a 100% original USA guitar or not when buying used.
Do guys swap out the original pickups and put in cheap pieces of crap? Yes, and often. They do this so they can sell two things instead of one. The guitar is sold, then the pickups are parted out and sold separate for extra cash.
Do guys put American necks on Squier or non-Fender bodies? Yes, and often. And there's no real way to check the authenticity of a guitar body. Everyone pays attention to the neck.
If you're going to buy American, buy brand new. Don't do scratch-and-dent, don't do used. Go new 100% all the way.
Yes, it's expensive. But it's the only guaranteed way to get a USA-made guitar that is 100% USA-made in every way.
You can go used if you want, but just be really careful about it.
If you can't afford the full price of a new USA model, the solution is simple. DON'T BUY IT. Get a Squier or Epiphone instead for cheap now (or the China-made Modern Player Fender I noted above), then save up and get your USA model later.
Or just say screw it, get the lower-end Fender Modern Player, gut the electronics, put in a prewired pick guard with a traditional S/S/S pickup configuration and you've got your "premium" Strat for under 500 bucks. Since it's only the Fender logo that matters anyway, who cares?