I neglected to mention I have an Agile AL 2000 and am very pleased with it so I can only imagine how nice the 3000's are. I think you are on the right track. :wink:
"Work hard, rock hard, eat hard, sleep hard,
grow big, wear glasses if you need 'em."
-- The Webb Wilder Credo --
I have been playing an Indonesian made Yamaha classical guitar for last 5 years and it only gets better. 8)
Oh yeah, I love Rondo's Agile guitars, too. They're a couple of levels above the Rogues, I think.
"A cheerful heart is good medicine."
Saturnthegiant, are you in a situation where you can easily get to a store or two to take a look? Nothing like lookie-touchie to help the decision process. Oh, and if that Charvel was sweet and it had a pick-guard, a tone knob/pot/cap can be added. Just don't do what I did and forget the knob part. :oops:
I have two Epi LPs. One '05 or '05 MIK and one '08 MIC. Like them both. Got rid of awful MIK Epi SG, about an '06 or so, to get the latter LP. Plenty of folks around here like our E-pi LPs. Both set up very well. One is modded with aftermarket pickups that I already had. Thinking of getting another and putting P-90s at some point.
Not made in USA to my knowledge, but the PRS SE models are very nice and in that $500 - $700 price range. Mine is MIK, IIRC. I'll correct in a moment if not. In other room. If mail order, this would be my first choice. Yet to pick up one that wasn't ready and set up well.
Also the LTD lineup isn't to be ignored. Notes got him one of them. I got a used dble cut that was beat to heck at a bargain basement price and it's a super guitar.
I am also a fan of Ibanez GAX-70 due to the neck width back about 6 or 7 years ago. Plenty of room for newbie fat-fingers. Not an LP and certainly not in that class or style, but they do have a ART series that I think I saw for about 3-bills. I have yet to play one.
I've picked up one of the Agiles mentioned. Felt good. Wrong setting to give it a spin, but fellow playing it made it sound good. The one with the P-90s....now that's something to ponder. :D 'Rico's got him one of them, IIRC. (Jealousy sets in.)
Roy
"I wonder if a composer ever intentionally composed a piece that was physically impossible to play and stuck it away to be found years later after his death, knowing it would forever drive perfectionist musicians crazy." - George Carlin
Hey there.
Well, while I'm pretty much known for liking Fenders and US made guitars around here, I have played my share of Epiphones....
Both acoustic and electric (Solid and Hollowbody).
And I have to say that I am amazed at their quality (Chinese made).
As far as primary tone characteristics and playability go, they seem more than adequate.
Many times, a pup upgrade will have you right where you want to be.
If you're looking for a well built and inexpensive US made guitar in the Gibson family, I would recommend this one:
http://guitars.musiciansfriend.com/product/Gibson-SG-Classic-Electric-Guitar-with-P90-Pickups?sku=517127&src ="3WFRWXX&ZYXSEM=0&CAWELAID=26043478"
A US made Gibson SG Classic w/P90 pups.
I had a 66 SG Special, and I was not very fond of it at all.
I ran into one of these classics at GC not too long ago and HAD to try it out.
I was VERY impressed. It was everything mine should have been and wasn't.
Very resonant.... good quality build all around. Much brighter than mine was. Played like a dream.
*I noticed that some of the reviews complained about the high e string being too close to the edge of the fretboard, but there seems to be a way to string it that remedies that. Something to look for anyway.
You said $700.00 - This will run ya 900-1000.
Good Luck,
Ken
"The man who has begun to live more seriously within
begins to live more simply without"
-Ernest Hemingway
"A genuine individual is an outright nuisance in a factory"
-Orson Welles
