[jaki54321]

Hello... I am new here... I am a metal guitarist(still learning), an I am no where near the best. I am going to give you all as many details as I can to be able to explain what I like and know... Sorry if it is too long...

I currently own a Dean Dime Black bolt ML guitar. I have been playing it as my budget guitar for a while now(over a few years) and I need something new... something with a heavier tone and better cleans... I play alot of Death Metal, black, etc. So far here is what I have researched and know:

I love guitars with rosewood fretboards. I don't mind ebony but I prefer rosewood more. Most metal guitars I have seen either have rosewood or ebony with a mahogany body and maple top. I love EMG pickups because they give off the tone I am looking for, especially with tube amps. I use DR strings, usually dimebag but I am now changing to DDT. So that is what i know... I have been researching for a long long time on guitars for me to buy. I have gone to my local guitar stores constantly trying out different guitars... I like ESP, Schecter, and BC rich guitars.
So far I have enjoyed the Schecter Hellraiser C-1 FR more then any other guitar I have played... I love its coil tap versatility because it gives off very nice fat clean tones, and when its humbucker mode, its an amazing guitar for metal... What bothers me is the thicker neck but after spending like 4-5 hours in a guitar store playing it(Yes that is how much I loved it) It grew on me an I played perfectly.
I like ESP guitars because they have Thinner necks, are a bit more lightweight, and sound very nice. What I dont like is the fact that alot of them do not have an original floyd rose like the Schecter does... they have the '1000' series, which I do not understand too much. I used it an it didnt seem as sturdy an durable as the schecters original floyd. They also do not have the coil tap ability that I enjoy soo much. I tried the ESP LTD MH-1000, H-1000, M-1000, and a Horizon series(Red one with EMG's)
I like BC rick guitars because they have a good variety of shapes that are also comfortable to play even when sitting. They are nice looking, have EMG's, sound great, and original floyd. What I don't like is, of course, the amazing versatility of the Schecter, and I wished it had a rosewood. I played the NJ Deluxe Warbeast, and I liked it for its looks and brutal sound. The schecter sounded a little more darker to my ears however.
I played all these guitars through a Line 6, then Through a Crate Tube amp(Cant remember name, if i had a pic i would recognize it), a Krankenstein, and a Mesa Triple Rectifier. All GREAT guitars, but so far I loved the schecter the most. The only problem is the thick fretboard, which I am afraid of not getting used to...

What do you all think? Do you all have any suggestions? I will be getting this guitar in the next week or so... I dont care much for the way it looks, i just prefer it to be black and comfy. Shapes dont matter much to me. My budget is about 900-1000 dollars, but i prefer about 900.

Thank you all!

 

[eleven59]

If you love the Schecter, buy the Schecter :yesway: You mentioned that you were able to adjust after playing it at the store, so that should continue to be true.

Those are all excellent options, and when set up right, will all play and sound great, you really can't go wrong with any of those if you find one you like the sound and feel of. They'll all be plenty reliable and solid.

 

[Stateless]

If it was me, I'd get the Schecter. I wouldn't really worry about being able to adjust to the neck. You can adjust to just about anything given a little time (well as long as it's not badly designed and unergonomic. :lol

 

[Naren]

The Schecter Hellraiser sounds like the way to go. Its neck might be a little thicker than what you normally like, but it's a great guitar and matches a lot of your likes: EMGs, rosewood fretboard, original floyd rose, mahogany body, and it looks kickass too. Personally I prefer Ibanezes, primarily because of how thin the necks are and how incredibly easy to play they are, but the other guitarist in my band plays a Hellraiser and a BC Rich Warlock and I think they both sound and play great. :yesway:

At least, that's my :2cents:

 

[jaki54321]

If you love the Schecter, buy the Schecter :yesway: You mentioned that you were able to adjust after playing it at the store, so that should continue to be true.

Those are all excellent options, and when set up right, will all play and sound great, you really can't go wrong with any of those if you find one you like the sound and feel of. They'll all be plenty reliable and solid.

I do have a pretty crappy amp however... A line 6 spider 3 75w. Its great an amazing but compared to tubes, this thing is a paperweight. The schecter even sounded good through it despite the fact that it is digital.

I found a GREAT deal on a Schecter hellraiser C-1 FR on Musicians friend for $899.99 with free shipping and a Free copy of Amplitube Metal. So I think the Schecter is the way to go. Thank you all for everything and ALL your help!

 

[eleven59]

No problem, stick around the forum, it's good people, good times and good advice all around.

 

[jaki54321]

No problem, stick around the forum, it's good people, good times and good advice all around.

Do you have any suggestions for other guitars that you think I may like other then the Schecter?

 

[Soopahmahn]

A little higher than you said your budget was, but that's what friends are for:
Buy Jackson SLAT3-7 Soloist Archtop Electric Guitar | Solid Body Electric Guitars | Musician's Friend

EDIT: Also, try browsing here. This should get you thinking:
http://www.drumcityguitarland.com/drumcitygl/stores/1/7-String-Electric-Guitars-C432.aspx

 

[Joey]

I'd sell the spider for 150 bucks, spend only 400-500 out of your 900 budget on a new guitar, then put the remaining 550-650 towards a better amp

 

[Blankplank]

Wirelessly posted (iPhone of fr00t: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_0_2 like Mac OS X; en-gb) AppleWebKit/532.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0.5 Mobile/8A400 Safari/6531.22.7)

I'll stick with what the other guys have said. You said you adjusted to it, and after time, you'll probably completely adjust and feel the same way about it as your Dean neck, and it sounds like you have your heart set on it. However, an awesome guitar is spoiled by a not so awesome amp :lol: if you plan on gigging, maybe grab yourself a 6505+ 112 combo, if you're just playing at home, I've found you can't go wrong with a Blackstar HT-5 with a TS7 in front.

 

[Naren]

A little higher than you said your budget was, but that's what friends are for:
Buy Jackson SLAT3-7 Soloist Archtop Electric Guitar | Solid Body Electric Guitars | Musician's Friend

That swirl green finish looks fucking awesome. :yesway:

 

[Soopahmahn]

That swirl green finish looks fucking awesome. :yesway:

Fuckin' right it does. :hsquid:

If you want some solid price:.performance ratio out of an amp, dude, check out the Line 6/Bogner Spider Valve series (really, not bad at all) and the Peavey Vypyr tube combos. Both are pretty versatile and loud and such.

Recommendations for used Peavey amps are good too. Buy my XXX 2x12 combo

 

[jaki54321]

Wirelessly posted (iPhone of fr00t: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_0_2 like Mac OS X; en-gb) AppleWebKit/532.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0.5 Mobile/8A400 Safari/6531.22.7)

I'll stick with what the other guys have said. You said you adjusted to it, and after time, you'll probably completely adjust and feel the same way about it as your Dean neck, and it sounds like you have your heart set on it. However, an awesome guitar is spoiled by a not so awesome amp :lol: if you plan on gigging, maybe grab yourself a 6505+ 112 combo, if you're just playing at home, I've found you can't go wrong with a Blackstar HT-5 with a TS7 in front.

Well I have ran the hellraiser through a spider 3 and 4 before(spider 3 sounds better to me for some reason.) The hellraiser sounded real nice. But when i ran it through tubes, it was a Torture device(In the Awesome death metal way)! Even though I am drooling over a tube amp, I think I will get the guitar instead and wait on tubes. When I am going to get a tube amp, I wana get a real expensive high end Metal one. My favorite right now is the Engl Powerball 2 or the Fireball 100. Both are incredible! And the hellraiser will be a Cerebral bore(If anyone has played turok for n64, you will understand what tat means). I also have some stompboxes that sound nice(i have a digitech death metal pedal that sounds pretty nice when ran through the spider on clean, not great but nice.) I was before considering a Krank Rev jr Pro Half stack on musicians friend for 799 which is not bad, but I dont know... I prefer to wait for the best tube amp I can get...

Thank you all for everything. Any more suggestions? I love to have ideas... Im still learning guitar(Just began sweeping, which is hard for me...)

 

[Blankplank]

Well I have ran the hellraiser through a spider 3 and 4 before(spider 3 sounds better to me for some reason.) The hellraiser sounded real nice. But when i ran it through tubes, it was a Torture device(In the Awesome death metal way)! Even though I am drooling over a tube amp, I think I will get the guitar instead and wait on tubes. When I am going to get a tube amp, I wana get a real expensive high end Metal one. My favorite right now is the Engl Powerball 2 or the Fireball 100. Both are incredible! And the hellraiser will be a Cerebral bore(If anyone has played turok for n64, you will understand what tat means). I also have some stompboxes that sound nice(i have a digitech death metal pedal that sounds pretty nice when ran through the spider on clean, not great but nice.) I was before considering a Krank Rev jr Pro Half stack on musicians friend for 799 which is not bad, but I dont know... I prefer to wait for the best tube amp I can get...

Thank you all for everything. Any more suggestions? I love to have ideas... Im still learning guitar(Just began sweeping, which is hard for me...)

If you can make do with whatever amp you have now, certainly wait and get something you prefer. I LOVE Engl stuff, and if I'm being honest, I'll probably end up with either of the amps you stated as a 2nd amp at some point after I get my Blackstar. I just missed out on a pretty much brand new Fireball 60w the other week for £600 with the footswitch (they retail for £1k here without the switch) and I wanted to kick myself. Luckily my friend bought it and said I'm first on the list if he gets rid of it If you're playing alot of Death Metal, you really cannot go wrong with Engl at all, just listen to Necrophagist for a starter, especially his lead tone.

Also, Turok 2 FTMFW!

 

[jaki54321]

If you can make do with whatever amp you have now, certainly wait and get something you prefer. I LOVE Engl stuff, and if I'm being honest, I'll probably end up with either of the amps you stated as a 2nd amp at some point after I get my Blackstar. I just missed out on a pretty much brand new Fireball 60w the other week for £600 with the footswitch (they retail for £1k here without the switch) and I wanted to kick myself. Luckily my friend bought it and said I'm first on the list if he gets rid of it If you're playing alot of Death Metal, you really cannot go wrong with Engl at all, just listen to Necrophagist for a starter, especially his lead tone.

Also, Turok 2 FTMFW!

I can make do with the amp and equipment I have now. I have a line 6 Spider 3 75w and a Pod studio UX2. i rarely use the pod studio anymore cuz it kina crapped out on me so I am thinkin bout sellin it but idk. I like it but it doesnt work rite now... I will wait for an amp, ill get an engl sooner or later, because I am thinkin about entering battle of the bands for my school, and I need a powerful amp(well much more powerful then wat I have...). I love the new Engl powerball 2, especially the seperate EQ. I want to get a Digitech Whammy pedal, and a Dunlop power brick for the rest of my pedals(I built an overdrive pedal with an actual 12AU7 preamp tube, and I have a few others). I got a lot planned. Im jus being patient with it because my budget is limited.

And turok 2 is my most favorite FPS game ever

 

[bulletbass man]

Find whatever guitar inspires you to play and grow as a guitarist. For me it was my RG20th and then my 7621 (still my 7621 today). Everytime I pickup either of those guitars I feel far more inspired to play and create then any PRS, Gibson, or guitar of far more value. I really have grown out of favor with basswood to other woods tonally but until I can afford a custom both of those guitars really make me want to play. Get a guitar that makes you inspired to pick up the instrument. Pickups and Amps have a far more effect with tone anyways. Once you learn how to record or can afford a really professional live set up the tone woods become more about response than actual tone anyways.

 

[XDemonknight]

Dude, first of all...you're awesome! The Cerebral Bore comment was spot on.

Second off, if I were in your position, I'd go with the Schecter. Schecters are wicked guitars--they sound great, play very well (unless you deliberately set it up to not play nicely), and look fucking ace. If it's in your budget--and it is--then my advice is that you go for it. It sounds like you really love that guitar.

As to the amps: Engl FTW. All of their amps are killer--my favorites are the Fireball and the Invader, but seriously they don't make a product that I've tried and not loved. They pretty much have an amp for every niche, and are essentially God-level.

 

[jaki54321]

Dude, first of all...you're awesome! The Cerebral Bore comment was spot on.

Second off, if I were in your position, I'd go with the Schecter. Schecters are wicked guitars--they sound great, play very well (unless you deliberately set it up to not play nicely), and look fucking ace. If it's in your budget--and it is--then my advice is that you go for it. It sounds like you really love that guitar.

As to the amps: Engl FTW. All of their amps are killer--my favorites are the Fireball and the Invader, but seriously they don't make a product that I've tried and not loved. They pretty much have an amp for every niche, and are essentially God-level.

Judging by you loving the cerebal bore comment, im thinking that you love turok 2 as well xD And Ok, schecter is definitely the guitar I am going to go with... And later on an Engl fire or powerball. Unfortunately I play horrifically... I cant play solos for the life of me... cant sweep, can barely alternate pick. The only things I can play well are jus standard rhythm licks from metal bands. I love suffocation so I like to play their songs, but the solos are what gets me... I cant play any solos... So im hoping I can learn somehow... cuz i suck completely lol. But anyway, ok schecter it is! Engl will be my amplification! Man i love tubes...

Oh and turok 2 fricken rules! :metal: :james: