Question:
I played quite a few guitars yesterday, and the only Gibson-like guitar that really grabbed me was a Goth Flying V. It felt great and it sounded great. But I need something I can play sitting down as well as standing up, and the V kept trying to leap off my leg and hang by the neck until dead. Would a strap help? I did find an SG I liked, but it was more than I wanted to pay. I was really hoping to find an Epi or used Gibson Firebird. BUt I don't think there's a Firebird for sale anywhere in Austin. The only Les Paul type guitar I relaly liked was an Austin (made in St. Louis, where else?). It felt great. And the tone was OK, but there was less high end than almost any guitar I have ever played. However, this was through a random, used Fender Pro in the music store. Nothing sounded that great through it, but it was what was available. I might have to take my amp with me and try again. Anyway, I was wondering whether anyone here is familiar with Austin guitars. How do they sound to you? How do they hold up?
Answer:
I've heard of the Austin brand, but I don't know why. I'd definitely look into both Hamer guitars. Although the USA built Hamers will still cost a fair of money. Shouldn't be as bad as Gibson prices, and you won't see as many duds as with Gibson. Hamer is still turning out good guitars. The USA built ones say USA on the headstock. I'd definitely encourage you to look into Gibson alternatives instead of guitars by the actual company because Gibson is very intent (as is Fender) on shutting down the small dealers, and only allowing large major chains that move a lot of their guitars to be dealers. These guys insist that dealers buy an insanely large amount of guitars from them every year. So unless you're near a Guitar Center (which I refuse to enter) you're never going to find a good selection of Gibsons to weed out the duds. You'll only see used trade ins.
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