What guitars would you consider to be the absolute best value for any price range?

[Grindspine]

I'm right with you on the RGD2127. I own the Z variant...whcih do you have? They're not the flashiest model, and they definitely benefit from a pickup upgrade, but solid and great playability (as I've come to expect from Prestiges).

I'm not too familiar with the various PRS lines. Is CE their cheapest (but not cheap!) 'Made in USA' models?

Also the z version with the Edge Zero here! It's also nice that the pup routing is appropriate for Duncans.

The CE line from PRS is the USA-made bolt-on (more of a bolt-in) construction. The carve is a bit less extreme than the core series models, but depending on the specific guitar, ones with great cuts of flame/curly maple can still be found. The cost is lower than core series due to the less intensive body carve and import bridge & tuners. I replaced my tuners with Gotoh SGS510z and the bridge saddles with brass saddles, so it plays on par, if not better, than my core series P24 (Custom 24 piezo's older model name).

 

[Seabeast2000]

 

[Kosthrash]

PRS SE CE 24 Standard Satin review – is this the best value electric guitar in the world right now?

The PRS SE CE 24 Standard Satin comes with specs and a price tag that make it one of the most affordable PRS guitars, but is there a cost?

guitar.com

 

[Bearitone]

My Agile 828 I got in 2018 was the best playing guitar I ever owned and it cost me $600. I feel like a fool for selling it and the buyer got it for basically a steal because of the Lundgren M8s i threw in there.

It just played really nice. The dual truss rods were a trip on those.

Man, I really should just buy another one or a 628.

 

[youngthrasher9]

My Agile 828 I got in 2018 was the best playing guitar I ever owned and it cost me $600. I feel like a fool for selling it and the buyer got it for basically a steal because of the Lundgren M8s i threw in there.

It just played really nice. The dual truss rods were a trip on those.

Man, I really should just buy another one or a 628.

If it was the same one that you used in the depth finder video, that fucker sounded really good too.

 

[Hoss632]

PRS SE stuff. And I think just about anything Schecter has in the 800-1300 range can compete with anything based on my experiences.

 

[JSKrev]

I'll echo Carvin/Kiesel. They're creeping up in price, but were undervalued for a long time. I also had an X-100B reissue that sounded great. Unfortunately, the build quality was lacking.

 

[CleansingCarnage]

As far as new guitars go, the Schecter Sunset Extreme seems like one of the best values specs wise. It's got features previously only seen on guitars over the $1000 mark, like stainless frets, luminlays, multi-ply neck, spoke wheel truss adjustment, etc. It's a lot like a Keith Merrow model with Schecter pickups.

 

[Neon_Knight_]

PRS SE stuff. And I think just about anything Schecter has in the 800-1300 range can compete with anything based on my experiences.

With anything in the 800-1300 price range, or with anything.

 

[sleewell]

big fan of my reverend sensei ra

 

[mpexus]

Ibanez S from early 90's:

Cant be beaten.

 

[gunch]

Nobody has mentioned Agile yet.

They make great mid-level guitars. Above entry-level, below high-end.
Their hardware and fretwork is always very quality. Even people who hate on them admit their fretwork is chef's kiss
The wood is solid, almost always they use Mahogany for the body, maybe with a maple top. Once you realize how "tone wood" is a complete hoax when it comes to solidbody electric guitars, guitars like Agiles start to look much more attractive. Wood matters more for weight and aesthetic than anything else.

I've almost never seen them sell a guitar fo over $1k. Except for the custom one I ordered from them. But they stopped doing customs, so that sucks.

Some of the extended-scale guitars with a headstock get heavy on the headstock end and don't have a nice centered weight. Its not crazy neck-dive, but it's noticeable and gets fatiguing when paying standing up for an extended period of time. This is the main reason I'm considering switching to a headless guitar, which Agile also makes.

Their house pickups, "Cepheus", are lackluster in my experience. Haven't played the Cepheus pickups since my last purchase of an Agile electric about 8 years ago, so maybe they've improved them since. So if you can set aside an extra $200 or so for a new pair of pickups, the Agiles come to life and IMO are easily in the quality range of a $1200-$1500 guitar. Many of the Agiles come with upgraded pickups built into the price. I see them offer Seymour Duncans or EMG's or Bareknuckles. I got a pair of Bareknuckles in my custom and wasn't impressed; the lead notes lacked body and clean tone sounded generic. So I sold those for a pair of DiMarzios - the Crunch Lab and Liquifire - and my Agile came to life.

One major downside to Agile is that their social media presence is basically non-existent. They do a post like once a year, at most, and it's just a stock photo of a guitar they're selling. This is a huge drawback because a lot of brands will give you a shoutout on their social media if you can put together a decent quality video of you playing their guitar. I've talked to Kurt, the head of Rondo Music who makes Agile Guitars, and he says that even with their practically non-existent social media presence, they will only feature such videos if the guitarist is using a model they are currently selling. Which sucks because a lot of their guitars are no longer being sold. I have 5 Agile guitars, and 4 of them aren't being sold any more. The other one is a 10-string I have no idea what to do with. It is an absolute work of art though and I will never sell it. Speaking of which, if you like crazy hyper-extended range guitars, Agile has got you covered.

So, they are great and I love mine but there are these couple major drawbacks to bear in mind.

Here are their 7 strings:

Rondo Music Electric Guitars

I am that freak that wants Kurt to order some more Intrepid 625s. IM HIM

 

[WillyTheMLGPro]

Gretsch G5260 Baritone, Easily my favourite guitar in my collection followed by my Squier Classic Vibe Bass Vi.
Both of them are way better instruments than I paid for them. Especially the Gretsch.

 

[gunch]

Also G&Ls almost never punch below their weight, USA or Import

 

[Church2224]

Also G&Ls almost never punch below their weight, USA or Import

These and the USA Production Schecters. Great semi customs for the money. My USA Schecters and G and L go toe to toe with any Suhr, anderson, ect. I have played.

Overall best values new are the Ibanez Genesis and Charvel Pro Mod models. Great work horses for the money. Also if you can get the American Series Jacksons for below what they are asking for, they are awesome. I am getting some from my dealer for dirt cheap and they are solid work horses.

Also Korean LTDs, Schecters, and Sully Conspiracy series. FGNs, Vola, Lower end USA Gibson USA made LPs and SGs...

 

[nightsprinter]

Also G&Ls almost never punch below their weight, USA or Import

Speaking of G&L's, their basses such as the L2500 and Kiloton are absolute hammers of doom for metal.

 

[AkiraSpectrum]

There's a lot these days in my mind. Most brands are releasing solid guitars. I think the main factor is 'consistency' and I think PRS SE's are great buy's and seem to be very consistent from what I've seen.

 

[gnoll]

Guitars are so expensive now, I don't know if any are good value?

 

[Drew]

I'll throw RG7620's into the ring as punching high above their price point (when they were available and more common, that is..)

This has a lot to do with the fact that they wwere $1200 guitars, that went on sale for $750, and that were eventually blown out for $400 as the seven string bubble was bursting. That kind of shattered resale value on them for a LONG time, and honestly when the RG1527 was first introduced, it was probably priced well below what a similar spec 1520 should have gone for, in part because Ibanez's competition there wasn't a Jackson or a Carvin, it was secondhand 7620s.

So, yeah, I agree with you... but there are reasons for why they got so cheap.

PRS SE's are worth a nod too, I ended up impulse buying one when I went with a bassist buddy to check a few out because he wanted a second opinion making sure he god a good one. For some reason, the tobacco burst ones, especially...

I'll also throw out the period of time where you could get an American Standard Strat new for $999, that happened to correspond with just a period of Fender producing consistently good guitars.... For whatever reason Fender had an awfully hard time raising prices on American Standards, and there was a time when a RG1570 was $1200 and Fender had tried to get the strat up to $1099 but had backed away and prices were back to $999... And an American-made Gibson, during what was NOT a good period for them, was something like $3k. It made no sense at all, but even if you were't really a Strat guy grabbing one and throwing in humbuckers was still a good value proposition. This was probably 2010s or so.