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Living in a very rural and remote area I seldom have the chance to go to a Music Store and play a variety of different instruments. Almost never happens. Probably 20 years or more since I went and did something like that. Until last week. Son had his final follow up for reconstructive knee surgery at the University of Michigan. 4 hour drive just to get there, but we had enough time after his appt. to do something fun. So we stopped at a Guitar Center on our way back North and I played upwards of 30 different guitars. It was a Wednesday afternoon and super slow, so I brutalized the poor staff there. 
They were great, though. We were all joking and messing around about the most played and brutalized riffs. I was informed that Master of Puppets has made a stellar comeback and is the most played song in their store. Kids gonna be alright! 
Anyway, I want to do a rundown of the guitars that stood out to me---both for good and ill---and share some thoughts on each of them. I played everything from Resonators and 12-string Acoustics to 8 string Multi-scale Behemoths. Without further ado:
Gretsch White Penguin: Fucking gorgeous! This is the first one to catch both of our eyes. It was nice, but a little plasticy. It was also a guitar that established what would be a recurring theme when it came to $3,000 US and above guitars.
Kenny Wayne Shepard Signature Strat: Don't put binding on a Strat. Ever! I couldn't get past it. Felt the same way about the EJ Sig. The KWS neck was super fat and chunky. Loved it, but the dastardly binding ruined it. For me. :
Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature: Since I own aa few Charvels I was super excited to check this one out. Another chunky-neck lover. Far chunkier than the MIM and MIK Charvels. That said, it was not $3,500 nice. It didn't play as well as any of my Charvels. Granted, mine are setup and dialed in to my liking. This again stuck to the theme of $3,000+ guitars.
Schecter Keith Morrow Signature 7 String: Fun guitar. Kind of a Wizard-esque neck. I can't do super thin. It was a great guitar and fun to play. I just know me and my hands and tastes. That wide 7 string nut width and a thin neck = pain and agony in the long run for this guy. Also.... brought up another issue I had with a lot of the more modern guitars. I do not like a super flat, modern radius.
Used Ernie Ball MusicMan Family Reserve John Petrucci Sig J6: Finally! A Trooch I can get my hands on.
I know there is a lot of love for these, but the wide/flat/thin neck profile is not my bag. Makes me glad I have not dropped the coin on one. I am just more of a Vintage Neck Profile guy. Also, the lacquer on this one made it nearly unplayable. It had the thickest/stickiest back of any neck I touched. The Rosewood they used as the Fretboard was amazing, though. Super grainy and porous. It was like the Take of Two Necks. Front was amazing, and the back was WTF??!! Really. 
Used Gibson SG Standard P90: This one kind of blew me away. Around a grand used. Best feeling and playing electric guitar I put my hands on all day. Resonant and tight. Quite a few of the more expensive had some odd rattle or buzz just strumming them acoustically. Not this one. It still speaks to me. And the P90s killed when it came to dynamics and touch sensitivity. I could leave the volume full up and get a clean tone just lightening up my attack. I think I need it.
Acoustic Room: Humidity controlled. 35%. They needed it in their entire store. Nearly 50% of the electric guitars I touched that were hanging had fret sprout to one degree or another. Even the top-end Made In The USA stuff. Kind of sad, and pathetic.
I played a bunch of Resonators. Fun. They don't really resonate all that well on the wound strings, though. Out of the 4 or 5 I played all of them were super loud and projected on the unwound strings (treble loves metal!), but the lower I played the more masked and lost the tone became. I did get my Chris Whitley on, though. And damn, a couple must have weighed 20lbs!
Wasn't blown away by any of the top dawg acoustic brands. Again, putting my hands on a variety of instruments taught me name doesn't mean shit. Some of the Martins and Taylors were lovely, but the best was a Guild 12 String that sounded G-L-O-R-I-O-U-S!
It was nearly $4,000, as I recall. I was alone in that room for nearly 30 minutes playing that guitar. Some Supertramp, Give A Little Bit, Intro to Feel Like Makin' Love, Wish U Were Here. It was the only super expensive guitar that I felt like was a true step above it's more budget minded and mid-level offshoots.
The SG and the Guild 12 string were far and above my fave instruments of the day. If I had an extra $4K that 12 string it would be mine. It was THAT good.
Overall, it was a very enjoyable and super enlightening experience. It highlighted to me that the leap from mid-level to top of the line is often very marginal at best. It is not like it used to be. You can even enjoy great guitars at the budget level. I do believe that there are special instruments at every level and price point. Only one of the top of the line, premium guitars blew my mind---and that was the Guild. I played a bunch. A few I didn't even mention like the $9,000 triple P90 Gibson Custom Shop ES-335. Totally laughable! No one is paying for playability at that price. All about the status and looks. #notsorry
I left with a Used Subwoofer for our jam/rehearsal space. A new set of Vic Firth Fire Grain, dipped sticks, and a totally new perspective on what I like, and how what I already own is the result of a few decades of experience. We all have different needs and hands. Nothing replaces getting our hands on a wide variety of instruments and sitting down with them to see how they feel IN OUR HANDS---not some YT GearKnobSnob's hands.
Even my comments are the result of my own personal preferences. And I am not running from them to appease or please anyone else. I suggest we all do likewise. Love what you play, and play what you love! No apologies needed!
Various Other Observations: They had more E-Kits in the Drum Room than Acoustic Kits.
I really dug some of the Workstations and Keys they had. I have a few Synths and Workstations---with an Akai MPC 61 being my big dog. I played a Yamaha ModX8+ that had fully weighted Keys and was bonkers! That machine sounded amazing and felt great to play. A sleeper was an used Roland Juno D. My Son was playing it and I was walking around, and had to ask where those sounds were coming from. Spaceship noises are fun!
They had nearly ZERO used Tube Amps. I was told they are seeing a bit of a Boom in the Used Tube Amp Market.
I played a lot of the guitars through a Used Suhr Badger 30 with a Mojotone Cab. Fun rig. Tried a Friedman Smallbox Combo for fun.... because you know.... I sort of.... well, feel the same way about Friedmans as I did before I entered the Store. Had to check and make sure, though. :lol For me, Friedmans are not different enough from Marshalls to be something else, and not Marshall enough for me to replace a Marshall. Sorry, Dave. You still rock! 
They were great, though. We were all joking and messing around about the most played and brutalized riffs. I was informed that Master of Puppets has made a stellar comeback and is the most played song in their store. Kids gonna be alright! Anyway, I want to do a rundown of the guitars that stood out to me---both for good and ill---and share some thoughts on each of them. I played everything from Resonators and 12-string Acoustics to 8 string Multi-scale Behemoths. Without further ado:
Gretsch White Penguin: Fucking gorgeous! This is the first one to catch both of our eyes. It was nice, but a little plasticy. It was also a guitar that established what would be a recurring theme when it came to $3,000 US and above guitars.
Kenny Wayne Shepard Signature Strat: Don't put binding on a Strat. Ever! I couldn't get past it. Felt the same way about the EJ Sig. The KWS neck was super fat and chunky. Loved it, but the dastardly binding ruined it. For me. :
Charvel Guthrie Govan USA Signature: Since I own aa few Charvels I was super excited to check this one out. Another chunky-neck lover. Far chunkier than the MIM and MIK Charvels. That said, it was not $3,500 nice. It didn't play as well as any of my Charvels. Granted, mine are setup and dialed in to my liking. This again stuck to the theme of $3,000+ guitars.
Schecter Keith Morrow Signature 7 String: Fun guitar. Kind of a Wizard-esque neck. I can't do super thin. It was a great guitar and fun to play. I just know me and my hands and tastes. That wide 7 string nut width and a thin neck = pain and agony in the long run for this guy. Also.... brought up another issue I had with a lot of the more modern guitars. I do not like a super flat, modern radius.
Used Ernie Ball MusicMan Family Reserve John Petrucci Sig J6: Finally! A Trooch I can get my hands on.
I know there is a lot of love for these, but the wide/flat/thin neck profile is not my bag. Makes me glad I have not dropped the coin on one. I am just more of a Vintage Neck Profile guy. Also, the lacquer on this one made it nearly unplayable. It had the thickest/stickiest back of any neck I touched. The Rosewood they used as the Fretboard was amazing, though. Super grainy and porous. It was like the Take of Two Necks. Front was amazing, and the back was WTF??!! Really.
Used Gibson SG Standard P90: This one kind of blew me away. Around a grand used. Best feeling and playing electric guitar I put my hands on all day. Resonant and tight. Quite a few of the more expensive had some odd rattle or buzz just strumming them acoustically. Not this one. It still speaks to me. And the P90s killed when it came to dynamics and touch sensitivity. I could leave the volume full up and get a clean tone just lightening up my attack. I think I need it.
Acoustic Room: Humidity controlled. 35%. They needed it in their entire store. Nearly 50% of the electric guitars I touched that were hanging had fret sprout to one degree or another. Even the top-end Made In The USA stuff. Kind of sad, and pathetic.
I played a bunch of Resonators. Fun. They don't really resonate all that well on the wound strings, though. Out of the 4 or 5 I played all of them were super loud and projected on the unwound strings (treble loves metal!), but the lower I played the more masked and lost the tone became. I did get my Chris Whitley on, though. And damn, a couple must have weighed 20lbs!
Wasn't blown away by any of the top dawg acoustic brands. Again, putting my hands on a variety of instruments taught me name doesn't mean shit. Some of the Martins and Taylors were lovely, but the best was a Guild 12 String that sounded G-L-O-R-I-O-U-S!
It was nearly $4,000, as I recall. I was alone in that room for nearly 30 minutes playing that guitar. Some Supertramp, Give A Little Bit, Intro to Feel Like Makin' Love, Wish U Were Here. It was the only super expensive guitar that I felt like was a true step above it's more budget minded and mid-level offshoots.
The SG and the Guild 12 string were far and above my fave instruments of the day. If I had an extra $4K that 12 string it would be mine. It was THAT good.
Overall, it was a very enjoyable and super enlightening experience. It highlighted to me that the leap from mid-level to top of the line is often very marginal at best. It is not like it used to be. You can even enjoy great guitars at the budget level. I do believe that there are special instruments at every level and price point. Only one of the top of the line, premium guitars blew my mind---and that was the Guild. I played a bunch. A few I didn't even mention like the $9,000 triple P90 Gibson Custom Shop ES-335. Totally laughable! No one is paying for playability at that price. All about the status and looks. #notsorry
I left with a Used Subwoofer for our jam/rehearsal space. A new set of Vic Firth Fire Grain, dipped sticks, and a totally new perspective on what I like, and how what I already own is the result of a few decades of experience. We all have different needs and hands. Nothing replaces getting our hands on a wide variety of instruments and sitting down with them to see how they feel IN OUR HANDS---not some YT GearKnobSnob's hands.
Even my comments are the result of my own personal preferences. And I am not running from them to appease or please anyone else. I suggest we all do likewise. Love what you play, and play what you love! No apologies needed!
Various Other Observations: They had more E-Kits in the Drum Room than Acoustic Kits.
I really dug some of the Workstations and Keys they had. I have a few Synths and Workstations---with an Akai MPC 61 being my big dog. I played a Yamaha ModX8+ that had fully weighted Keys and was bonkers! That machine sounded amazing and felt great to play. A sleeper was an used Roland Juno D. My Son was playing it and I was walking around, and had to ask where those sounds were coming from. Spaceship noises are fun!They had nearly ZERO used Tube Amps. I was told they are seeing a bit of a Boom in the Used Tube Amp Market.
I played a lot of the guitars through a Used Suhr Badger 30 with a Mojotone Cab. Fun rig. Tried a Friedman Smallbox Combo for fun.... because you know.... I sort of.... well, feel the same way about Friedmans as I did before I entered the Store. Had to check and make sure, though. :lol For me, Friedmans are not different enough from Marshalls to be something else, and not Marshall enough for me to replace a Marshall. Sorry, Dave. You still rock! 
