Electric guitars

[58 Relic]

Firstly thanks for such a welcoming place to visit . I have question that I need some advice with . I have been playing the guitar for the last 51 years and like most guitarists have a collection of a few electric guitars . Here's the problem or situation , I have fell in love with the acoustic guitar over the last six or so years and now find myself playing fingerstyle acoustic 100%. ( quite a mile away from the country and blues clubs of the 80s and 90s ) . Fast forward to today I do not gig really anymore I just play during our worship at church most weeks or an acoustic gig once or twice a year , I have a nice Gibson J45 that is a keeper and other acoustics , but I look at the electrics sitting not being used and I'm thinking do I sell them ( ok I'll keep one ) for a nice J200 or Humminbird ? it seems a shame to see guitars not being used . Anybody else in or been this situation. Thanks for the advice .

[BluesKing777]

Sell them and get something you can fingerpick NOW like the Bird.

 

I have some to go as well - just haven't been mentally ready for the onslaught - last time I sold one, the phone rang at 3am or whenever. Not eBayin', so will probably sell on consignment at a shop. A couple of acoustics are getting nervous too!

 

Will hopefully be converted to something nice and more relevant.

 

 

BluesKing777.

[OldCowboy]

I've been playing for 55+ years, so we likely share some generational tendencies. Apart from that, I've always been primarily an acoustic player with minor electric guitar flirtations years back. The current crop of J200s and Hummingbirds is pretty amazing, and I doubt you'd be disappointed in either (or both, since they're not the same instrument) if that's the direction you choose. Your electric guitar collection might/might not command some serious $, depending on what you have, etc.. Many reputable stores (Gruhn, Elderly, and the like) can provide reliable appraisals and also trade-in values that could be helpful. Selling privately gets you more money - and takes more time. That's a personal judgment call we all have to make if we're thinning the herd or accumulating cash for a new purchase. I like to trade, but that's just me. Consignment is another option that has positive and negative aspects. One excellent thing about the forum is the variety of available viewpoints, so chances are good for lots of advice coming your way!

[MissouriPicker]

My last electric went to my son-in-law and he plays it less that I did, which was once on a blue moon. I hardly ever touched it. Just have never had a connection to them. Don't think I've owned more that 3-4 of them, and none of them ever got much use. I've been jacking-around with acoustics for over 50-years and I'm determined to one day learn how to play them. I have this dream about how good all my Gibsons would sound if I could really play them. If I had any electrics now, they'd be sold and the money used for another acoustic. Why? Because I like acoustics. But, there are a bunch of people on the other side of this forum who live and die for their Les Pauls, etc. It's all good and for me acoustics are the best. I find a real personal attachment to my acoustics. They're like an extension of me.

[62burst]

 

Will hopefully be converted to something nice and more relevant.

 

 

BluesKing777.

 

Insightful. Coming from a blues king, that means something. What, I don't know.

 

 

 

 

 

This thread could've just as easily been entitled "Acoustic Guitars- do they pretty much do it for you?" A lot of love being shown in the preceding posts on the side of the acoustic guitar in general. For the "should they stay, or should they go?" question, it seems to be a personal decision weighing the ever-changing scale of

 

• 
   
  
• 1): what are the odds of the electric(s) being used in the next year? Two years? 3? . . .

• 
   
  
• 2): would the $ received for the elec's really be a factor in offsetting the next acoustic. ?
  

[J-1854Me]

It's all up to you, in the end.

 

I've been playing a few years less than you, and have played more acoustic than electric, although I have both. I've also been playing in worship bands, for more than twenty years, and mostly acoustic.

 

But here's my twist: in the last 5-6 years of playing in the worship bands, it's been 95% electric playing, and hardly any acoustic stuff. So I'm glad I have some electrics, and have even bought one or two more, to "add to the arsenal".

 

I usually play an ES-347 (a dolled-up 335) or a Rick 360/12, when I play.

 

Keep the electrics, would be my suggestion.

 

Fred

[charlie brown]

I can't seem to sell any of my electric's, anymore. I've already weeded out the chaff, so to speak.

But, I understand the problem of falling in love with a particular guitar, and/or style. Maybe(?)

you could keep your absolute "favorite" electric, and sell the rest. Since it sounds like you have

several nice Acoustic 6-strings, how about a nice Taylor, Martin, or Guild Acoustic 12-string! I

have a couple of "bucket list" acoustic's on my wish list. A Martin 000-28, and a Guild F-512 12-string!

 

Whether or not, I'll actually manage to obtain them, is another story. But, it's nice to have dreams,

and goals.

 

Good Luck, with your decision(s).

 

CB

[Lars68]

I guess it sort of depends on how many electrics you have and what they could be worth?

 

I have two electrics, a Telecaster and a Les Paul, and one amp. I rarely play them because most of my playing is at night and I can't wake up the kids. I have been thinking about selling one of the two, but it hurts me to pick one. Also, I plan on one day to do version of my songs with only electric guitar and voice, sort of in the spirit of early Billy Bragg and some of Neil Young's stuff. Don't know if I ever will get around to it, though...

 

Lars

[sparquelito]

I have a hard time letting anything go, when it comes to guitars.

At any one time, I probably own 13 to 15 guitars at a given moment.

 

I must admit, I do tend to collect some random pawn-shop prizes (old junky electric guitars) that I fix up, clean up, set up, restring, and then give away to dear friends, neighbors, and family.

 

But actually selling my main electrics, I don't know.

I find it too painful to consider.

[Boyd]

Have really lost all interest in the electric guitar. Gave one to my son in law a few years ago. The other sits in the closet. At this point, I don't see the need for more guitars of any kind, I can only play one at a time. Would rather devote my efforts to becoming a better player and have more money in the bank instead of more guitars that I don't play. :)

[j45nick]

I have two electrics (both are ES 335 variants). The ES 335-12 is on consignment, and the '59 Historic is getting nervous. I don't play either, so why should I keep them? But....I also have acoustics that I rarely play, so should they go too?

 

For me, guitars are more than musical instruments. I bought each one for a reason that was significant at that time, but may not mean much today. When I forget why I bought them, it will definitely be time to sell. Until then, a guitar will probably go on the chopping block only when another young thing catches my musical fancy, and I need money from one to buy another.

 

For a few years recently, the money wasn't that important, and if I wanted a guitar, I bought it. That was a luxury I never had when I was young. Somehow, I think buying another guitar would mean more if I had to give up something else to buy it, like I did 50 years ago when I bought my old J-45. Had to borrow $50 from my sister to buy it, and I paid it off $10 at a time for six months (the case cost $10). My sister's been gone for years, but that guitar still means the world to me.

[fortyearspickn]

I'm not qualified to answer - so here goes.

I think the question could be broken down into "for someone who no longer gigs except for church - what is the minimum # of guitars needed, and what should the breakdown be between electric and acoustic?"

Not knowing exactly how many electrics you have makes it tough - and suggesting you'd use the $ to buy an H'Bird or SJ200 makes it tougher, on top of not knowing how much you'd get or ve you have extra cash you could use.

To me - if you don't play a guitar at least once a month - you don't "NEED" it. So, it is either an investment, a keepsake, or 'guitar collecting hobby'.

It sounds like you've gradually come to the point where you can't check any of those boxes.

Absolutely keep one electric. I have a banjo I hardly ever play, but keep because the 5 string is a small part of my DNA. But do sell the rest. I'd suggest trying to find a true 'staring artist/student' that you could give a good one to, Then buy an SJ200 and then see where that takes you.

G'Luck.

[zombywoof]

I got rid of all my electrics more than a decade ago. I only kept my two Supro lap steels. But I also continue to use the same Dearmond 210 singe coil soundhole pickups on my acoustics I used in the 1960s. So when plugged in my acoustics are pretty much just hollow body electrics.

[CAMELEYE]

I've always been an acoustic player who has dabbled in electrics over the years. But like many above, I rarely plug in anymore, so I'm down to one electric, a '51 ES-125 (for when I want to be Mr. Jazz Guy).

I like the idea of keeping one electric ... just because.

[Hall]

This is the "acoustic forum", no? Why not see what the "Lounge" members have to say as well. Maybe it's just a cycle. It always is for me. So I keep all my electrics and usually about this time of year I begin enjoying them once more. No need to hurry into a decision.

[58 Relic]

Thanks so much for the good advice . Lots to think about over the next few months , no rush Many thanks

[bobouz]

I fingerpicked acoustics exclusively for thirty years, until one day through a stroke of luck, I discovered the beauty of figerpicking through the right electric guitar & amp.

 

Think Merle Travis or Chet Atkins, and especially Chet playing his electric with Jerry Reed on acoustic. That's pretty much the tone I crave when fingerpicking an electric. Electrics can be played with an incredibly light touch, which I love, and then there's the tremendous fingerboard access up the neck for making chords I couldn't possibly pull off cleanly on an acoustic, even with a cutaway.

 

Of course, all of this sent me on a electrified tone quest. I now have 14 acoustics & 14 electrics, along with 20 amps. All of which will be fodder for weeding out the best of the best in retirement (which is just three weeks away!).

 

One of my favorite electric set-ups is a Gibson ES-330 with P90s, mated to a '90s USA-made Fender red-knob Super 210 amp. Some of the red-knob solid states from this era also sound very good, such as the Princeton Chorus (for nothing but the cleanest tone, with a hint of reverb).

 

The right electric tone (what your ears uniquely want to hear) can be quite difficult to capture, but when you find it, it can be beautifully intoxicating!

[Murph]

I'm kind of in the same boat. I literally NEVER touch my electrics anymore. Or my amps, except the acoustic amp. I have to force myself to crank the tubes on from time to time to keep the caps charged.

 

For me it's a question of the economy. I know if my day job fails, I can always be gigging in a few days.

 

But NOT WITHOUT GEAR !

[stein]

I think it depends purely on what you want to do.

 

It's worth mentioning, that selling guitars is more often than not a financial loss, in that, it cost more to replace one than what you will get from it. Generally, you have to trade/sell 2 or three guitars to get another of equal value.

 

Having said that, the value is what it means to you. If you want, say, a certain high end acoustic, and life is short, and the only way is to sell to get the cash, then of corse it makes sense.

 

I don't buy the "let others enjoy them", or "they are just being wasted not being played" argument. There are plenty of great guitars out there in the world, and if there isn't, they are being built. Letting those who make them build more benefits the economy, gives others jobs and makes the world a better place.

 

If it IS a matter of hording or wanting a certain guitar to be played/appreciated, hang onto it until you find some kid or poor person who really can't get one, and DONATE.

[kidblast]

I've been playing about as long as you have. I'm currently sitting on 20+ guitars, 4 are steel string acoustics and 1 classical. the rest are either semi-hollows, hollow body, or solid body electrics.

Some of them I've had for 30 years, others as recent as a month ago. I'm still pretty active and am involved in a few projects, so I've no plans that echo where you are.

 

So my only thoughts, and I'm being obvious here, but your recovery of cash to fund something else lies in the market value of what you are trying to sell. Unless you're savy on the market values of these, be conservative with your expectations.

 

If I was in your shoes, you have to ask one critical question... am I selling these just to be rid of them, or are you really intent on moving them to fund something like a J200 (I have recently purchased a 2016 Standard, and it's beyond awesome)

 

if you're selling them just to "clean up" a bit, if it was me, I'd rethink this.. hold on the the thought for a few months, and while that is fermenting, take them out of their cases, and give them a spin.

do something different with them, for example, look up some of the internet sites for backing tracks, play along a bit, so what, if any sort of spark re-energizes your interest.