Why I would not buy an extremely high end boutique made guitar

[telemnemonics]

well then, case closed

if I were single, won the lottery, and had six months left to live, I'd buy everyone here a really nice $4,000 tele

you all deserve nice things, even if you don't

Awwww thanks!
But I am OK really, no rush to die!
Plus my neighbors cat is my consolation prize.

 

[teleman1]

What gear? All gear is over priced - especially 1958 -1960 Les Pauls - which are priced far beyond there functionality as a guitar.

Well now your talking far more than $5000. I'd be totally out of that game.

 

[Recce]

Ugh.

Just to be clear, I love love love my old Guild D-35. It's my ace boon buddy, and it ain't goin' nowhere.

But I was in my guit whisperer's shop Monday. He always has a few of his creations on the rack to try. They're always great.

But omigosh. This time he had a little OM. I don't especially even like OMs, but it was there, so I tried it.

My perfect guitar. The neck shape: heaven. The action: like playing a Tele (touch topic). The look: undercluttered, bling-free, prettier than Miss McGillicuddy. The playability: effortless. The sound: the most expressive, responsive sound I've ever gotten out of a guitar in 54 years of playing.

Won't let it haunt me. But damn.

So you bought it, correct? Sometimes guitars pick you.

 

[Toto'sDad]

And he was absolutely correct- from his perspective
There's nothing wrong with having indulgences and there's also nothing wrong with knowing those indulgences are not for you

It is my personal view that if you can't be perfectly content playing a Squier through a Mustang while eating a fastfood sandwich and washing it down with a macrobrew- you have elevated your tastes above the conventional consensus common good- and you're missing out

there is a school of philosophy known as stoicism- and one of the basic tenants within that is "have no preference"- i find great wisdom in that

(except you know, when it comes to important things, like pizza)

Don't you start with that silly stuff about how to cut it up in squares!

 

[colchar]

I could afford a used boutique guitar above $4000. I would definitely have to try it first and ponder. But unless it was a Gibson or Fender custom shop where I might expect to get appreciation or get close to the money I got out of the guitar, I would be reticent. I tried a new Ronin a few years back and it made me break out into a cold sweat, it was freaking awesome. But I see them not selling at their above $4000-$5000 price and that would make me nervous.

have tried OK Danocasters and stellar ones, but they ask $4000 + these days and I would have to try it and feel confident I could get my $ from it. You can put a Warmouth together that challenges a Danocaster. You can't get your money out of the Warmouth, but at the same time, the investment is a lot less.

I saw someone misuse the word disposable income in a post the other day as, they have extra cash laying around. WRONG definition. Disposable income is you have enough money and more coming all the time where if you take a hit on price or it is destroyed or stolen, no big woop. I do not have disposable income, but I can afford an expensive guitar, but I want to know my investment could be retrieved or appreciated, not taking a 50% hit on a plus $4000 guitar.

It bugs me to no end how audio equipment turns south so fast to the point no one wants it anymore after a couple of years, even if you buy used. I thank the man upstairs everyday for audiophiles who take the hit when they get the next best thing. I have received great deals that still have utility in the past. Discuss!

Why go into a purchase already worrying about what you can get for it later? When I buy a high end guitar I do so with the intention of keeping it forever.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

So you bought it, correct? Sometimes guitars pick you.

With me it's the other way around. I pick guitars. Been a guit picker for years!

Life is full of temptations. Some are in the budget.

 

[ruger9]

I found this interesting (I didn't write it)

What’s the value of a expensive guitar that may not be your main instrument?
Let me answer that with another question: how much value is in a guitar that sounds good but teaches you nothing?
A great guitar should take you someplace new. It should fight you a little bit and keep you on the hook. You can’t get away with what you’ve always gotten away with. It should start making you ask questions, “…is it me?” “Who plays these?” “What do I do with it?” Now you’re into the good stuff. You’ll start listening to musicians you never would have found. You’ll start trying things you never would have tried. Pretty soon what you’ve learned will make you play all your guitars differently. What’s the value in that?

 

[PCollen]

I could afford a used boutique guitar above $4000. I would definitely have to try it first and ponder. But unless it was a Gibson or Fender custom shop where I might expect to get appreciation or get close to the money I got out of the guitar, I would be reticent. I tried a new Ronin a few years back and it made me break out into a cold sweat, it was freaking awesome. But I see them not selling at their above $4000-$5000 price and that would make me nervous.

have tried OK Danocasters and stellar ones, but they ask $4000 + these days and I would have to try it and feel confident I could get my $ from it. You can put a Warmouth together that challenges a Danocaster. You can't get your money out of the Warmouth, but at the same time, the investment is a lot less.

I saw someone misuse the word disposable income in a post the other day as, they have extra cash laying around. WRONG definition. Disposable income is you have enough money and more coming all the time where if you take a hit on price or it is destroyed or stolen, no big woop. I do not have disposable income, but I can afford an expensive guitar, but I want to know my investment could be retrieved or appreciated, not taking a 50% hit on a plus $4000 guitar.

It bugs me to no end how audio equipment turns south so fast to the point no one wants it anymore after a couple of years, even if you buy used. I thank the man upstairs everyday for audiophiles who take the hit when they get the next best thing. I have received great deals that still have utility in the past. Discuss!

Agreed....

 

[Ron R]

The real question is: would you be buying it to play it, or buying it to resell it?
Way back in 1987 when I first got my PRS Custom, I babied it. One, because it was such a beautiful guitar, and two, because it was expensive. So my attitude was "I'll play it for practices, but I'm not going to gig it - it might get dings". Then I realized: I bought it because it was such a joy to play. So why play something I enjoyed less for gigs?

 

[Lonn]

I just bought a high end boutique made guitar, but I got a good price on it. I have the $$$ but could never justify full price.

 

[DannyRoyBGatton]

I could afford a used boutique guitar above $4000. I would definitely have to try it first and ponder. But unless it was a Gibson or Fender custom shop where I might expect to get appreciation or get close to the money I got out of the guitar, I would be reticent. I tried a new Ronin a few years back and it made me break out into a cold sweat, it was freaking awesome. But I see them not selling at their above $4000-$5000 price and that would make me nervous.

have tried OK Danocasters and stellar ones, but they ask $4000 + these days and I would have to try it and feel confident I could get my $ from it. You can put a Warmouth together that challenges a Danocaster. You can't get your money out of the Warmouth, but at the same time, the investment is a lot less.

I saw someone misuse the word disposable income in a post the other day as, they have extra cash laying around. WRONG definition. Disposable income is you have enough money and more coming all the time where if you take a hit on price or it is destroyed or stolen, no big woop. I do not have disposable income, but I can afford an expensive guitar, but I want to know my investment could be retrieved or appreciated, not taking a 50% hit on a plus $4000 guitar.

It bugs me to no end how audio equipment turns south so fast to the point no one wants it anymore after a couple of years, even if you buy used. I thank the man upstairs everyday for audiophiles who take the hit when they get the next best thing. I have received great deals that still have utility in the past. Discuss!

 

[watercaster]

I can’t speak for anyone else, but my tastes change. I played the same Strat for 10 years, then a Les Paul Recording guitar, a Gibson Howard Roberts Fusion III, wound up on a Doc Fisher Tele. My dream guitar 40 years ago wouldn’t be my dream guitar today.

My Dream guitar is the one I don't have yet...

 

[BluesMann]

If these are the things you’re worried about, you shouldn’t buy that kind of guitar.

I can’t afford that kind of guitar, but if I played one and it truly spoke to me, I’d eventually find a way to do it, and never lose a minute’s sleep over possible future Re-sale values.

Life is too short to do anything else.

I’m also pretty much done selling stuff. I *might* outright buy one really nice guitar per year going forward, and just keep them. I might trade in and out of some lower value stuff, cause it’s fun. But something like that I wouldn’t even mess with unless it was a keeper. I no longer care what anything high end will be worth down the road. I just care about how much joy it will bring me til I die. Which hopefully is a long time from now.

And really, at that point I won’t have the ability to care what it sells for. So why worry about it?

I don’t think I could say it any better.

 

[proxy]

Used CS guitars that have no weird quirks seem the safest way to play with and try a guitar that you could get back out of without too much risk.

I would feel comfortable extending that to buying used guitars from the most established boutiques (Dano, Novo, Frank Brothers) because demand seems fairly consistent.

The more I drift into off-the-beaten-path conditions of the instrument, or hype-driven new builders, I find the risk increases exponentially.

If you have the skill to make a partscaster that is objectively comparable to a Danocaster, I imagine the fun of making a vintage replica to that level of detail would be super fun and satisfying. Would choose that every time if I knew how to get a guitar neck to feel that great.

Depending on how quickly you might need to get your money out, I’d personally wait until the market settles a bit more.

All that said, I’ve really enjoyed buying, trying, and selling nice used guitars for about as much as I’ve paid.