My wife bought me a Spark last Christmas. It's decent i suppose for what it does, but I haven't really used it much. I don't like using the app on my phone to change and save settings. There are knobs on it, but they are limited in what they can change/control. Also, it has too much bass. I ended up turning the bass all the way down on every model I tried and it is still a bit boomy.

I've seen good reviews for the Yamaha THR10 and THR30 modeling amps, but I haven't played one.

gggmann said:

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My wife bought me a Spark last Christmas. It's decent i suppose for what it does, but I haven't really used it much. I don't like using the app on my phone to change and save settings. There are knobs on it, but they are limited in what they can change/control. Also, it has too much bass. I ended up turning the bass all the way down on every model I tried and it is still a bit boomy.

I've seen good reviews for the Yamaha THR10 and THR30 modeling amps, but I haven't played one.

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I read a comment on a YouTube video to put the Spark up on something where the bottom is more elevated and the bass can't reverberate through a floor or wooden shelf or something else. Not sure if that's true or not but one person claimed it as a solution.

That's weird, because most combo amps are designed to be placed directly on the ground.

DallasTeleAg said:

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That's weird, because most combo amps are designed to be placed directly on the ground.

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It is weird.

But it's tiny for a combo amp. Not like most.

Cynic said:

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maroon barchetta said:

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Thanks!

I'm looking at a Katana (mini or larger), Blackstar (fly or larger), or a Spark.

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I have a Katana 100watt. Looking back I didn't need to go that big, 50 watt would have been plenty. Blackstar is great as well but I've only played them at the store. (Had fun with them)

I've never played a Spark but they look interesting. Almost like a bookshelf speaker which is super convenient.

These new digital amps are loads of fun and perfect for someone learning or who mostly play at home. Plus you get all the basic effects like delay, reverb, overdrive, etc built in them.

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I've had both. The speaker in the 100 sounds much better to me.

Went into GC in the past few days and was looking at used guitars. They had a WVH guitar that has a couple of dings in it but was solid otherwise. The young man helping me said it was a set tremolo, not floating, but is definitely a Floyd Rose.

He also showed me a PRS that someone just returned. They were gifted this PRS for Christmas along with an amp and some other stuff. They didn't any the guitar.

Dang. It was light. It felt great. I plugged it into the Katana 100w and it sounded good. Probably a little more money than I want to spend though.

I had not touched a semi-hollow body before. What's the allure for most players?

https://www.guitarcenter.com/PRS/SE-Custom-22-Semi-Hollow-Quilt-Top-Limited-Run-Electric-Guitar-Black-Gold-Sunburst-1500000343675.gc

Semi hollow bodies provide some great natural resonance to the guitar and round off the tone a bit. Now, if you are one of those weirdos with their head in the sand saying tone wood is a myth and pickups are the only things that matter, then semi-hollow bodies are just meaningless other than being a needlessly fancy way to build a guitar.

I have played semi-hollow guitars that sounded great, and some that didn't really do it for me. I still have my PRS CE semi hollow which I am not impressed with, even after the pickup change. I have played some ES-335's that sounded great, but not played one yet that felt perfect in my hands.

My ES-330 is fully hollow and is one of the best sounding guitars I have ever played. The MHS P-90 pickups along with the hollow body and bigsby all mix to provide such amazing tonal qualities to the guitar.

Also, semi-hollow body guitars also can provide some great feedback, but not uncontrollably so like a fully hollow guitar.

Serious question... I know price is not everything in a guitar, but I find it strange many on here are content in buying several mid-range guitars instead of just pooling those dollars together and saving a bit to buy a truly amazing guitar.

Instead of buying a $900 guitar, why not save up, sell some of your other ones, and find the perfect PRS Core guitar?

DallasTeleAg said:

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Serious question... I know price is not everything in a guitar, but I find it strange many on here are content in buying several mid-range guitars instead of just pooling those dollars together and saving a bit to buy a truly amazing guitar.

Instead of buying a $900 guitar, why not save up, sell some of your other ones, and find the perfect PRS Core guitar?

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Diminishing returns is part of it. I used to have a PRS SE Singlecut, but now own a Custom 22 because I just had to have one. I'm an intermediate player and totally could have just stuck with what I had, but I take pride in having a really nice instrument, and it drives me to play it more. I'm not good enough yet to pick up both and convince someone that the custom is worth 5x more with my playing.

Having a collection can be fun too, and part of the advantage of having different guitars is you can have them setup differently. You might keep one at standard E tuning, but have another one setup much lower with different gauge strings. You may have a mix and match of single coils, humbuckers, or piezos for different tones. Maybe you want a fixed bridge sometimes for easily tuning, or want a floating bridge.

I only have a couple midrange guitars but I would say the advantage is variety. If you buy midrange you can have a Strat style, Tele style, and Les Paul style instead of just one really nice guitar.

The quality on these instruments aren't bad either.

But I do hope to one day purchase something high end. Just can't justify that expense in my current status of life.

I guess it depends what you are looking for. Many mid-range guitars are just fine, play great, and sound great. Also, not all expensive guitars are great. I have played many Custom Shop strats and Teles I didn't like. My Dave's Guitar Shop Limited thin skin Strat plays better than any of the custom shop ones I played at the store.

I guess I just like things to be a certain quality. For example, if I am playing a LP style guitar, I want it to have a true flamed maple top, not a veneer. I like to have the body as a single slap of mahogany, not 2 or 3. I want a nice binding around the neck, rounded edges, well polished and rounded frets, and a very dark rosewood.

Can a guitar without all of that be a good instrument? Sure. Also, a Toyota can get you from point A to point B fantastically and will last you a long time... but sometimes I want a Lexus.

You fancy.

Some Junkie Cosmonaut said:

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You fancy.

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Everyone has something they spend their money on!

My wardrobe and shoe "collection" is hella cheap. I don't really spend a lot of money going out and drinking. That leaves many dollars for nice guitars!

Haha no judgements! I will never blame someone for getting a nice/expensive guitar. If anyone understands that it's definitely this thread.

PRS is announcing an SE version of their Silver Sky John Mayer model. Can't say I really got the need for the core version, but it sure seems like there are a ton of people buying them. Depending on price point I'd bet this one sells like crazy.

What is a "core version"?

Moon White looks like banana pudding yellow

Wish the dragon fruit color was more maroon

What's the price point on those out of curiosity? I know what the original version runs.

I didn't know PRS was making a strat style guitar. I'm not sure how I feel about these, but curious how different (if at all) they sound from a normal strat.

They started making them when Mayer switched over from Fender to PRS I believe.

maroon barchetta said:

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What is a "core version"?

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Core is their higher end American made models so everything but the CEs and the S2 line.

I think they missed on the colors as well, but who knows. Different strokes for different folks I guess.

I don't think they're announcing that until the 11th. I'd guess in the $700-$800 range, but I could see cheaper. Who knows though. Seems like there's a lot of people that have wanted them to do this that couldn't afford the American model.

Quincey P. Morris said:

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I don't think they're announcing that until the 11th. I'd guess in the $700-$800 range, but I could see cheaper. Who knows though. Seems like there's a lot of people that have wanted them to do this that couldn't afford the American model.

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These will supposedly be higher end than an SE and a CE?

Not these no. They already had the core version of the Silver Sky. That retails in the $2500 range. These will be a foreign made SE version.

Why?

Would be interested to see a true comparison between these and Mexican strats. When it comes to bang for your buck, I don't think it gets much better than a good Mexican strat. I mean... I still would rather a used American Standard/Professional.

If I want a Strat style guitar, I'm buying a Fender. But then again, I'm a weird purist.

Some Junkie Cosmonaut said:

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DallasTeleAg said:

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If I want a Strat style guitar, I'm buying a Fender. But then again, I'm a weird purist.

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I just can't get over the PRS headstock on a strat body.

Drives me nuts.

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Same. Also my issue with an Epiphone headstock on LP bodies.

Yeah, I'm not sure what the purpose there is. There's a very slight difference in body shape, but that's about it. I'm not sure I get the allure, but obviously it's there. What was really dumb was the whole deal where they released some of the American version in color shifting paint and they were going for $4k+ just because of that.

This applies to almost any male hobby.

Am I the only one that finds it annoying when online sellers play with the color settings on their photos? I like bright colors. A lot. So it gets annoying to have to figure out if someone messed with settings to make a guitar look better than it actually does. Luckily most of them it's pretty obvious to see.

Quincey P. Morris said:

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Am I the only one that finds it annoying when online sellers play with the color settings on their photos? I like bright colors. A lot. So it gets annoying to have to figure out if someone messed with settings to make a guitar look better than it actually does. Luckily most of them it's pretty obvious to see.

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That's only one of the reasons why buying online is such a gamble. It's also why I won't even buy one unless it is such a great deal, I know I can perhaps sell it for more than I bought it for.

I tried out a couple of Fender Player Strats today at GC, thru a 25w Fender Mustang amp. I mostly wanted to see how the guitar played and felt. Too much noise in there to really hear it well.

I told them they need a loaner program, or something like a test drive you do for cars. Away from the store.

Amazingly they did not send me home with a Strat and the Katana I was also eyeing.

This is why I like smaller shops.

DallasTeleAg said:

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This is why I like smaller shops.

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I would too if I had more options or the smaller shop had more than just Yamaha Pacifica models.

Guess I need to make a road trip.