Great Guitars...That Suck to Own

#1 really resonates. I had a 2020 Troublemaker in black. It was perfect. I couldn’t stand seeing dust on it, let alone scratch or ding it. After two long years of cleaning it every time I played it, I sold it. What a relief.

If you've played long enough you should know how to adjust the truss rod, set pickup & string height, and set the intonation. It's not that difficult to learn how to do these things. Learning these skills will not only save you money, but will also give you a closer connection to your instruments.

When I was growing up, nothing looked cooler than Bob Mould slamming away on his Ibanez Rocket Roll Flying V and screaming into that microphone. 🙌

I couldn’t agree more! My guitars are made to be played or they wouldn’t be my guitars. I own a Martin 1990 OMC-28 Guitar of the month that was a gift from my wife on our 10th Anniversary. Yes, I actually picked out the guitar as my wife is not a guitar player, she is just married to one. I spent hours playing various Martin Guitars (I’ve always wanted to own a Martin since I sold Martin’s when I was in my 20’s and managed a music store. I’m now 73 years old but in 1990;I was 40 years old and married for ten years when my wife asked me what I wanted for a gift on our tenth anniversary. I didn’t think that I could never afford one in the past or even now that I was forty years old (on our anniversary in 1990) or that I was still going to be the one who was actually “robbing Peter to pay Paul” so that my wife and I will need to sacrifice something like a nice vacation I promised her when we couldn’t afford a honeymoon, I blurted out the one inarguable thing that I promised myself when I was in my twenties I would own one day - a Martin Guitar. When I blurted this out expecting to be reminded that we really couldn’t afford one (although I gave her the diamonds ring that she wanted when I couldn’t afford an engagement ring) we left for the local Guitar Center in Hollywood California and I spent the next four or five hours playing every Martin guitar in the store. I’m not a profeional guitarist, but I’ve been playing guitar since I was eight years old. I knew the moment I found “my guitar” among a wide selection of Martins from D-18’s to D-45s, I wasn’t interested in the embellishment’s, I fell in love with the sound and how it fit in my arms. I fell in love with a 1990 Martin OMC-28 “Guitar of the Month. “. I’m a finger stylist and this Orchestra Model (OM) series 28 sounded so sweet, the neck was perfect for playing blues to rag to folk. It was a cutaway series 28 with a small body clear tone that I simply fell in love with but still had to spend hours convincing myself that I was going to buy this Martin and take it home with us. I probably wouldn’t see my wife until some time the next day or two when I came up for air and some nutrients and put it back in it’s hard shell case that I kept opening to check and aee if there was really a Martin OMC-28 in the cas and it wasn’t just a dream. I’m nearly 74 years old and Mari and I have been married nearly 44 years, we met nearly 50 years ago and underneath the bed we shared for nearly fifty years is the same Martin hard shell case with the same Martin OMC-28 guitar. I’ll venture a guess that there are probable fewer than the 89 1990 OMC-28 Guitar oh the Month instruments left in this world and I still own the same one that my wife gave me on our tenth anniversary. Unfortunately, she lost her diamond ring a few years after we bought it and although I offered to buy her another, it doesn’t replace the intentions of the original ring I gave her on out tenth anniversary. In six years we will be married for fifty years and I will never regret one day of all those years, I only wish that time would slow down a bit.

I have owned and gigged with a number of collectable, vintage Martin acoustic guitars. My old, tired hands have fallen in love with a pair of new, Squire Mustang electrics under $200 each. They feel right and sound great off the back of a hay wagon, in someone's greasy, old machine shed or at someones back yard BBQ. Ya just wipe the BBQ sauce off, and you're back in business. They're made for playing in "the mud and the blood and the beer".

The discussion points of “negatively impacting the guitar’s value” reminds me of the phrase “knowing the cost of everything and the value of nothing.” The “value” of something as a measure of what someone else would pay for it is irrelevant if you’re enjoying it for its intrinsic value- that you’re enjoying the experience of playing it. That when you look at it in the case or on the stand, you’re reminded of the good times you’ve had playing it.

I enjoy setting up my strat, tweaking and fine-tuning it for an afternoon every few months. Great vid

Dad left me his 1948 Gibson J-45 and his 1968 Jazzmaster accompanied with his Fender Deluxe Reverb amp. All original. I couldn't be happier.

We, as players, should all learn to wear the hat of guitar tech as well. Being able to set up your own guitar is not only convenient, its ultimately liberating. There isn't really that much to it. It can all be very easily learned and once you know how, it adds a whole new dimension to your enjoyment of the hobby we all love so much. If you think it feels good to find a guitar with that something special, you should try finding one that has the potential, and make it something special. Rescuing a forgotten, mistreated guitar and giving it a new life is an indescribable feeling! If you want to REALLY LOVE a guitar, rescue one. It will love you back!

My thoughts on dings - the first one usually hurts, but soon comes the realisation , this came about because you regularly get it out the case and play it. It's the sign the guitars a keeper, a badge of honour. There is surprisingly great satisfaction in seeing the guitar relicing naturally over time. Over time guitars improve with age but they have to be played and sometimes take the knocks and scrapes from transporting from one place to another and/or the bedroom wall.

Used to own a 1977 Explorer from the first run of reissues. This guitar immediately came to mind when the "cool on stage" category was mentioned haha. I was lucky enough to find a buyer that got to do guitar tech for The Edge when the 360 Tour came to town. I was a kid in the bleachers for that show so it kind of came around full circle. He happened to know a ton of sources for vintage and knows everyone I know who is in that market so I'm lucky enough to have a trustworthy source. He even lent us a few vintage Fender guitars and amps while trying out the Explorer that I'd otherwise would never gotten to try. Was a fun summer! I feel even more fortunate to have that opportunity after seeing this.

Great episode and everything you said makes complete sense. I just want to say that your editing skills are great. Your visuals and auditory combination are spot on. I use to record and edit books on tape and worked on at least 100 or more books and when you get the timing and pauses right as well as to know the levels of the sound in the background and when to bring them up to the right level for the setting is so monumental, and you have that down in spades! It brings your guitar passion to the professional level that we so appreciate. Thank you and I proud to be part of the Five Watt World.

I bought an 2022 Epiphone Firebird last April, and it’s become my #1. At a gig in February, I tripped coming down a short flight of stairs. I landed with the case edge-on, and that prevented me from face planting on the floor. The case kept the guitar in perfect condition. That said, I toted my Ric to recent rehearsal, and yeah, I had forgotten how massive the Firebird case is. 😅

Speaking about waiting on videos,… Still Waiting on the Short History of G&L 🙁

In 1977 I saved every nickel and dime I had to buy a Gibson J-55 arch back acoustic. It was way too expensive for me, but it was the only guitar I owned, so I had to play it. Everywhere and very time I played guitar and sang, that is the guitar in my hand and held against my heart. It is beat up as hell. But every nick and rub is a memory. A good memory. Playing guitar has been the best part of my life since I was 12 and this guitar has been there for almost every part. Would it be worth more to you with fewer nicks? Maybe. But it would be worth far less to my life and that is why I started playing in the first place. Thanks for the video and reminding me of what is important about owning and playing fine guitars.

Great takes Keith. I love to gig out with my guitars and consider all the dings little birthmarks. They are unique and I love to play them as much as they beg to be played. They become part of you and you them. It's symbiotic and I love it. Keep the great videos coming.

I always enjoy the calm and measured way you approach any subject. My collection is up to two acoustic, one electro'coustic, and two electric guitars. Prices ranged from $45 to $425, all are used, and all of them get played. Thanks for creating our Five Watt World, it's a great place to be 😁

Great list and right on the nose on all. I'm a tech and builder and have some limitations of what I want to own too. Keep in mind that all guitars eventually become Vintage. My main Tele I bought new in 1993, so she an I have become vintage together, and while I at one time "retired" her from live use, I have since decided that due to her age and "pedigree" that she deserves to be played as much as possible and when she does finally die, it will be whilst being played, and not covered in dust, sitting safely on a stand in my office.

Thanks for this video! I've felt surrounded by a world just saturated with obsession over purchasing and owning, but my favourite part of any piece of gear is the bond you get to form with it. I'm not the best player, and I like guitars that are inexpensive and feel like they align with my ethos of originality over virtuosity. Of course, whatever works for other people is fine, but I just don't have the type of mind or lifestyle for endless practice to where I'd feel that I needed a "precision instrument" so much as a guitar or amp that feels like that old flannel or your favourite pair of sneakers - it's just there for you, meeting you where you're at, and you get to take care of each other. Thanks for being a voice of moderation in a world that often feels like it's at the beck and call of product catalogue refreshes and convention cycles.

Cool... thank Keith for adding my Photo at the end... so cool to be part of your gig... regards from Prague... keep on Rocking! 👍👍😉😉😎😎🎸🎸🤟🤟🙌🙌😃😃