What is the most versatile guitar apart from a strat?

Answer 1

How about a Music Man Steve Morse model? Or an Ibanez Joe Satriani model? Lots of different sounds can be achieved with these two due to the pickup combinations and coil splitting options. Not too expensive either. Satch's even has a Floyd Rose tremolo. Really though, the sound is in your hands so any guitar can be versatile. Even a basic Telecaster. Or a Squier Strat with a humbucker in the bridge. There are only two basic types of pickups available for a guitar anyway. Single or Humbucking. This is where the biggest change in tone will come from. Everything else is subtle. Lots of Guitars feel different too. So make sure you pick one that is comfortable too. Fender = longer scale - a little tighter on the strings than Gibson. PRS falls in between. Some people like the guitar to push back a little. If you don't, just don't buy a Strat or Tele. Try a Gibson, Ibanez, Hamer, Jackson or PRS. What do you consider versatile for your style? What I mean is, what different sounds do you need for your style and personality to come through? Now get to work practicing! Even the most expensive PRS won't make you a better player. Don't fall into the trap! Just play - a lot.

Answer 2

Trying To Find the Most Versatile Guitar?I would think probably a guitar with a Mahogony body, and maple top, to balance out the lows, mids, and highs. The advantages to the mahogony body are that you have as mud when you're trying to get a clean tone. Some woods like alder and bass wood with higher output pick-ups cause this problem. The maple top because, if I'm not mistake, they add more focus on the highs. Mahogony alone I'm not too impressed by, but if your reading this your obviously not me so not everything I say means really anything to you, it's more of an opinion.

I would recommend getting either a set of EMG or Seymour Duncan pick-ups. Most people like to run their mouths about EMG's not getting a good clean tone, which comes back to the fact that you would probably need a mahogany body or something like it for the best clean tone. I've played on the ESP EC-ii VB, which has a EMG 81 bridge pick-up, and the neck is and EMG 60 (for jazz an 89 might work better), and in my opinion the clean tones sounds great! Seymour Duncans sound really good as well but if your into screamo most aren't rediculously high out pick-ups. As far as versatility goes I would recommend that if you got Duncans to get a SH-1 and SH-4 (JB and '59). You might would try putting a single coil for a middle pick-up.

Another thing is that if you get single coils you can't get a very good distorted tone without a really expensive amp. So I would look for a guitar with a coil tap system, which will allow you to turn over to a lighter sounder, more like Hendrix, or Eric Johnson.

Elixer strings are long lasting and sound great with anything I've ever played.

If you want to dial in really specific tones using both pick-ups it may be best that your guitar has 2 tone, and 2 volume knobs.

You lose sustain whenever you get a tremelo bridge over a TOM. Also you're guitar will be really hard to keep in tune with the tremelo, and new strings take forever to put on.

A couple of guitars you may consider.- Gibson USA Les Paul Chad Kroeger Blackwater-$4,099. (Ouch!)

- Schecter Hellraiser C-1 FR-$1,299 (has coil tap)

- Fender Telecaster (don't know much about 'em but I've herd they're versatile)

- PRS guitars I've never played on but their supposed to be versatile.

- ESP EC-ii Distressed-I'm going to guess about $1500.

Answer 3

The best actives are the EMG- 80's for the bridge and either 60 or 89 for the bridge, but the best passives are EMG Hz-h4's