Semi-hollow electric guitars?

TxdoHawk

This is technically a repost, I asked this in the SE++ guitar thread this morning and didn't get a reply, so I thought I'd try here, since that is mostly a discussion thread. Apologies in advance to the mods if that isn't cool.

Is there any particular reason why I wouldn't want to get a hollow-body or semi-hollow guitar? I haven't been able to Google a whole lot of information on their major differences from solid-body guitars, just really generic stuff from questionable forum posts like "they're not good for shredding" that tells me absolutely nothing.

I guess I should probably support this question with my guitar needs.

- I just started playing earlier this summer, a friend of mine gave me his beat-up Squier Strat for free. It's really in terrible shape though, so I need a new guitar.

- I enjoy a large variety of music, and would prefer a guitar that isn't too limiting tone-wise. Obviously at this stage of my playing I am tone-deaf and probably wouldn't notice any inadequacies, but at this point I want to drop money on a guitar that will grow with me.

- I'm not explicitly considering a semi-hollow electric, I'm just trying to keep my options for a guitar open, since my budget has gotten pretty crimped as of late. It seems they are much less popular than solid-body guitars (and therefore easier to catch a deal on).

tl;dr - What are the pros and cons of semi-hollow electrics? Would buying one for my only guitar be a bad idea, with my wide taste in music, or are the differences mostly cosmetic/weight?

badpoet

Generally, they have a nicer clean tone. They're great guitars for jazzy type stuff but less great for metal.

TxdoHawk

badpoet wrote: »

Generally, they have a nicer clean tone. They're great guitars for jazzy type stuff but less great for metal.

Thanks for the response. How bad are we talking about when we say "less great for metal"? I know this is a difficult thing to quantify, since what's good enough for one person isn't even close to close enough for someone else. Obviously no guitar can do it all, I just want to cover a reasonable spectrum with one guitar for a year or two, and I'm sure by then I'll be ready to buy something else to cover the gaps.

Pheezer

Any guitar is fine for metal if you've got a good overdrive pedal. It also depends on the genre of metal you're talking about. Early bands like Black Sabbath and Deep Purple had really deep, blues inflected styles that will sound just fine through a crunchy distortion pedal and a hollow body electric. Speed metal? Not so much, the sound there tends towards the twangier, but there's no one saying that you can't be an innovator.

Honestly if you want a guitar that will restrict your tonal possibilities the least, I'd be tempted to suggest a Fender Stratocaster. Or a Sqier Strat if you want to save some cash. A Gibson Les Paul is another instrument with a really wide range of possibilities attached to it.

As far as catching a deal on a semi-hollow electric, I think you're mistaken there. The fact that they're less popular makes them a niche item, and means that stores will carry fewer of them and mark them up higher because they tend to sit in inventory longer, and inventory costs money to keep.

Honestly, I think you probably want to go with a Strat.

wasted pixels

Metal guitarists almost universally use solidbody guitars paired with the high-output humbuckers. Aside from the tonality difference that is inherent to semi-hollow guitars, most semi-hollows are equipped with lower-output PAF style humbuckers. That's the biggest difference.

If you really want versatility, I would suggest a Fender Fat Strat. Good cleans in the 1 and 2 position, enough chunk to get by in the 5. A decent Stratocaster will grow with you, too; you can swap in lace sensors in the neck and middle positions, upgrade the bridge humbucker, and you come away with a pretty decent guitar. Not something I would play, really, but it sounds like what you're looking for.

Bob The Monkey

I've gotta say Dr.D, the Les Paul may be a brilliant instrument, but a "really wide range of possibilities" are not something you'll get from one. If you want a guitar that will do everything, get one of the American strats with fancy switching. A good strat can do anything.

Semi-acoustics don't all share a single kind of tone, so they shouldn't be spoken about as if they do: a Gibson ES will have a round, smooth sound comparable to a Les Paul, whereas a Rickenbacker will be far more glassy and jangly: comparable to a Telecaster, although obviously not identical. Generally, they won't be appropriate for metal, for a few reasons:

1) Semi-acoustics tend to have low output pickups, whereas metal guitarists often favour high output pickups (although they're certainly not a necessity).
2) One of the reasons for this is that semi-acoustics resonate more, and so can create some pretty hellish feedback with high output pickups.
3) Metal levels of gain applied to a semi-acoustic will probably lead to levels of feedback that could, for example, deafen the population of Luxembourg.

People tend to have preconceived ideas about what people should play with semi-acoustics, moreso than with other instruments (Gibson ESs tend to be associated with early blues and jazz, while Rickenbackers are associated with fifties and sixties jangly pop). But don't let that prevent you from doing whatever you want with them, they're often beautiful and flexible instruments.

thunderhorse

who ever said that semi hollows are not good for shredding has no idea what they are talking about. I have shredded on a semi hollow and Paul Gilbert uses them quite a bit.