Gigging your expensive guitars

[bennyboysvuk]

How do people feel about gigging £3k plus guitars? Do you do it and ignore the risks (theft/damage[buckle rash]) or do you gig a guitar that's half the price and keep the valuable one for home enjoyment?

Does a gigged guitar tell more of a story than a guitar case queen?

[Tom_C76]

I'm not lucky enough to have a £3k guitar, but I gig three that each cost between £1k and £2k, plus an acoustic that was over £1k once the pickup was fitted.

At the end of the day they're tools and were designed to be gigged. My LP has major buckle rash and a couple of chips, my Strat is quite scratched due to excessive picking. I think it give them character.

As an aside, I'm not sure I'd ever want a new off-the-shelf guitar that cost that much, if I was spending north of £2k I'd be going to a luthier to get exactly what I wanted. Then I would definitely gig it. A top of the range Gibson reissue I'm not so sure would ever come out of the case.

[davepoth]

If you're worried about buckle rash on a guitar IMO you need to sell it since it's too valuable (to you) - what's the point of owning it if you're scared to play it properly?

My "expensive" guitar (only around £1k but it was nearly 1/4 of my student loan that year...) got treated in the same way as the Korean beater I'd used previously. It certainly looks like it was somebody's main gigging guitar, and that's the only way I'd have it.

[dojo]

Depends if you see it as a work tool or a bit of furniture?

I'm not a fan of guitar with ornate tops and inlays so its never an issue for me.

What guitar is it out of interest?

The only thing I wouldn't think about gigging would be an old late 50s/60's fender/gibson

[Disastrous]

Never thought about not gigging them. I'm not the type to smash them through an amp at the climax of a song so for me, they're built to be played. All mine have the odd wee dent/scratch here and there but that's life. All part of the story.

[utgjon]

Absolutely!

I'm very fortunate in that I have 3 'expensive' guitars ... they're not investment pieces, and have cost me between £1k - £1.6k, but to many people they'd be considered expensive:

- Gibson Les Paul
- Gibson Custom Shop ES-335
- Fender Telecaster Hotrod 52RI

All three get a thorough thrashing on a regular basis at gigs... The Les Paul in particular looks like it has been through the wars (I'll post a picture when I get home later)...

It's all character! They're all MY guitars, which have been modified/abused/sanded and they suit me down to the ground. They're tools which I use to make music, and believe me, the more string resonance that goes through that wood, the better they get!

Unfortunately, it means that they're never going to be worth anything like what I paid for them... as far as I'm concerned they're 'total loss' in terms of money because I will NEVER sell any of them.

If you're worried about having guitars stolen/damaged, just be careful... Don't leave them unattended, don't leave them on stands in pubs, make sure they're the last thing into the car from home, and first thing back out when you get home.

[bennyboysvuk]

dojo said:

What guitar is it out of interest?

The guitar I'm considering gigging is a Gibson Les Paul Custom 1960 Re-issue. I deafen myself with it at home through a JCM800 and 4x12, but I'm careful not to cause any buckle rash or damage it otherwise.

I think if I take it to a gig, I'll just feel uneasy about leaving it sitting around whilst I'm well away from it. I do so many gigs where I have to leave my guitar for hours either on stage or in an unlocked room and for some reason I feel ok leaving my Gibson SG Standard, but not the Custom.

I have a modified Epi LP too and I'm considering gigging that instead of the Custom. Different sound, different feel, but still chunky like LPs are. I'd doubt the audience would notice the difference.

[utgjon]

bennyboysvuk said:

I'd doubt the audience would notice the difference.

Tonally, no they wouldn't.

My argument around gear is that it's enabling you to perform and play at your best. I could quite happily produce a sound with basic gear live, and the audience probably wouldn't care.

I would notice though, and I wouldn't put on the show that I do without the best tools I have access to. To me, it's all about the feel and the performance of equipment.

Does your average punter hear the difference between my Boogie Mark IV and a Marshall MG100? Probably not...

Do they feel different to play? My god, yes! ... the reaction of the Boogie allows me to get away with things I couldn't on a different amp.

[andy-xr]

utgjon said:

bennyboysvuk said:

I'd doubt the audience would notice the difference.

Tonally, no they wouldn't.

I would if I was playing it though. There's a different vibe to playing live vs studio, unless it's super rare and fragile I'd take it out and play it

[utgjon]

andy-xr said:

utgjon said:

bennyboysvuk said:

I'd doubt the audience would notice the difference.

Tonally, no they wouldn't.

I would if I was playing it though. There's a different vibe to playing live vs studio, unless it's super rare and fragile I'd take it out and play it

Yep - that's what I was alluding to

[davidd]

Make sure it is insured and get it to the gig. As long as you ae careful with it you should be ok (if you are using a stand buy a good one!).

No point having them if they are not getting used.

D

[Billsnemesis]

davidd said:

No point having them if they are not getting used.

D

Exactly. I am fortunate enough to have a Fylde Alchemist made to my order with some rather special wood and even I daren't think about what it would cost to replace it (look on the website at the standard prices!!!) but above all else it is a musical instrument and the only purpose in having it is to make music. It has even appeared on YouTube.

[bennyboysvuk]

Gaz. said:

davepoth said:

If you're worried about buckle rash on a guitar IMO you need to sell it since it's too valuable (to you) - what's the point of owning it if you're scared to play it properly?

My "expensive" guitar (only around £1k but it was nearly 1/4 of my student loan that year...) got treated in the same way as the Korean beater I'd used previously. It certainly looks like it was somebody's main gigging guitar, and that's the only way I'd have it.

I don't see the problem with wanting to keep your instrument in good condition, including the absence of buckle rash.

Nice to see a differing opinion here too. Thanks Gaz.

But sod it, I'm too tempted. I'm going to go for it. Here's a pic, just for the fun of it:

[utgjon]

That is a glorious looking instrument....

Glad that you've made the decision to gig it!

[C2james]

a guitar is designed to be played, i own a collectors choice les paul and play it at a jam night and nobody knows what the fk it is and only maybe one person cares. haha

[Disastrous]

doogz said:

C2james said:

a guitar is designed to be played, i own a collectors choice les paul and play it at a jam night and nobody knows what the fk it is and only maybe one person cares. haha

A car is designed to be driven, but I wouldn't leave my Veyron in the train station car park for the day.

I actually would. Or at least, I wouldn't as it would be ad to get out of a Veyron and into a train but I'd leave outside my hotel in Kitzbuhel or whatever.

I'm quite non-precious about my stuff though. I like things to be built hard and used hard and get artfully bashed up and whatnot.

[Disastrous]

doogz said:

Disastrous said:

I actually would. Or at least, I wouldn't as it would be ad to get out of a Veyron and into a train but I'd leave outside my hotel in Kitzbuhel or whatever.

I'm quite non-precious about my stuff though. I like things to be built hard and used hard and get artfully bashed up and whatnot.

I guess what I meant was that it would depend on the venue.

If I was playing the albert hall, yeah, I’d take my nice one.

If I was playing in some stty little pub in Glasgow, where my gear was left in the back with 3 other band’s kit, I probably wouldn’t take my best one. I’m a firm believer in using things for their intended purpose, and I’ll let just about anyone that knows one end of a guitar from the other play any of mine, whereas some guitarists I know are really funny about letting anyone else touch their ‘babies’ in case anything should happen to them.

But I’ve played enough crap venues, and my bit marshall has enough dents and marks on it to know that accidents will happen, but some people just don’t give a fk.

Ha - I regularly play stty little pubs in Glasgow with my Gretsch/SG but I've honestly never had anything other than self-inflicetd damage in probably about 15 years go gigging.

I'm not saying one should or shouldn't though - I have a huge bee in my bonnet about 'collectors' keeping beautiful guitars in glass cases but aside from that, as long as they're being played then who cares?

I guess if I was a multimillionaire and had enough guitars that I could gig 'cheap' good ones I'd leave my 'studio' guitars at home.

[Disastrous]

fking hell doogz, that's outrageous!

I'd go mental if someone did that to my kit!! We lent some young guys our back line the other weekend and I invited them to a 'pre match drink' where I gently reminded them they weren't in Green Day and any amp bashing would be followed by a swift bottling. They were dead nice though, and looked after it all, but my gigging amp is an AC15 so I get nervous...

13th note is worse than a veggie bar - it's vegan! Haven't set foot in the place since my wild rock and roll days but you've brought back memories of a night on the piss with the big bloke from 'Junior Senior' (remember that "d-d-don't stop the beat" tune about a decade ago??)...good times!