What is the difference between a studio electric guitar and a standard electric guitar?

Answer 1

You are likely to be talking about model designations such as Gibson Les Paul Studio vs. Gibson Les Paul Standard.

Those are only names, not guitar breeds that are universally recognized. For example, a Gibson Les Paul Studio usually has fewer cosmetic adornments than a Les Paul Standard -- simpler fretboard inlays, possibly lack of body binding, less refined finishes. The current Les Paul Studios usually come with 490R and 498T humbuckers, while Les Paul Standards usually come with Burstbuckers, which are more expensive and (to my ears) sound better.

However, these specs are not universal. The Gibson Les Paul Studio Mahogany, for example, has no maple cap, but are fitted with Burstbuckers. The Gibson Firebird Studio is almost an entirely different guitar from the standard Firebird V.

The one definitive difference is price. Gibson uses words such as "Special", "Junior", "Classic" and "Studio" to denote less expensive versions of its flagship models like the SG, Les Paul, Flying V and ES-335. Barring vintage Guitars, vintage reissues and custom-shop creations, those models will always be less expensive than their Standard counterparts and, in conjunction, usually have less investment potential.

But if you're looking for sound and feel, a Studio is not necessarily going to be inferior to a Standard. Les Paul Customs are more expensive than Les Paul Standards, for example, but Slash from Guns N' Roses/Velvet Revolver has explicitly stated that Standards sound better to him. I personally prefer an SG Classic (a reissue of the '60s SG Special with P-90 pickups) to an SG Standard.