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I'm probably going to gig the Vintage V6 on Thursday night so I'll make sure we do a few Shads numbers and see how it compares with the real Strats'. I restrung it with a set of Ernie's 9/46 and it sounds excellent and compares with my' real ones' .

Well I did play the very modestly priced Vintage V6 guitar and it was no surprise that it performed as good as my Fender guitars costing twenty times it's cost. These can be found all over the globe for between £50 to £500 depending on where you look and they are quality instruments and when 'set up' correctly sound identical to the Fenders' and similar. I wish this was the case sixty years ago when we started, there has never been a better time to buy a guitar for new players.

I've sold a lot of guitars and surplus gear over the past few months and i'm excusing myself for buying another Vintage V6 in Firenza Red that was going for very little money. It appears to be an earlier model than the black one I found, as it doesn't have a series name like 'Icon' or Re-Issued, it just says Vintage, not even V6. However, it has all the usual Wilkinson hardware which is excellent and again, it sounds terrific just like my USA Strats do. I've re-shaped the headstock but left the logo intact and I will use it as my main guitar rather than risk damage to my Fenders', which after reading the Vintage story by John Hornby Skewes, is why they exist. Anybody in any doubt who may be considering buying one, I guarantee they do the business and as I mentioned, I'll put a demo video together and stick it on YouTube to show these instruments do re-create our music accurately.

Slightly at a tangent here, but have you tried any of the Vintage Joe Doe line? I'm continuously tempted by one or the other, but I can't afford all of them!

JJMMWG DuPree wrote:Slightly at a tangent here, but have you tried any of the Vintage Joe Doe line? I'm continuously tempted by one or the other, but I can't afford all of them!

No

JJMMWG DuPree wrote:Slightly at a tangent here, but have you tried any of the Vintage Joe Doe line? I'm continuously tempted by one or the other, but I can't afford all of them!

I have the Black T style thin line from the Vintage Joe Doe collection...

I would only ever buy Vintage brand guitars from Richards Guitars in Stratford on Avon. They guarantee that any guitar bought from them will play perfectly... My chosen guitar had to be ordered from JHS. Every guitar sold by Richard goes through the workshop... mine was so bad, they rejected it and sent it back. Its replacement, said to have been specially selected, was also in poor shape. Richard contacted the M.D. at JHS who sent me an apology for the delay.

It took the workshop more than a day to correct its faults, but once it arrived it played superbly...

As I'm somewhat quirky with my guitars now I recently bought the Vintage ICON V6 Thomas Blug Signature Guitar ~ Distressed Vintage White after selling a couple of guitars at Richetone. It was on offer for £389 new. Couldn't believe the feel and value for money.....very impressive. What a kicker after all those years of Strat purchases chasing the sound and feeling insecure about dinging the Custom shop ones. If this one gets donged who gives a monkey's...not me. Big thanks for the heads up on Vintage Guitars from Dave Robinson.

I'm pleased that it isn't only me who has been impressed with their Vintage experiences. For a long time I have respected their Gibson copies as well as their acoustic guitars. I came cross the Gordon Giltrap guitar and after playing it sold my Martin D28 as it became pointless. As beautifully made the Martins' are, the Vintage played and sounded a lot better, acoustically and using the same Fishman system used by Martin. That's what matters to me rather than the bragging rights associated with Martin.
When I finally succumbed to the Vintage Telecasters and Strats, I was blown away with the quality of build, playability and sound and I use my Vintage Strat and the Telecaster a great deal, then when I have a week or so on the Fenders' I can say hand on heart that I notice no difference in quality at all. I love every one of them and to me they are working tools that help me entertain people and earn money. If, what I find and tell people about , saves them a few quid, then that's a result to me.
Incidentally, I'm currently using my Vox MV50 AC with the dedicated 1 x 12 cabinet and it sounds exactly like my Vox AC30/4 with the EF86 tube, I'm loving it. Whether with the TVS3 or Strymon Volante or the Zoom G5n, the Shads sound is to die for. The same amp sounds just as good with the smaller 1 x 8" cabinet. because I have those as well and was really impressed.
If I was a bedroom player, I would be happy with a Vintage V6 Stratocaster, Vox MV50 AC amp and 1 x 8 cabinet and any echo I could get my hands on, as it's the guitar and amp that give the core sound, the echo just makes it better.
What I'm trying to get across is, that in these hard times you can still achieve that magic sound at a fraction of the cost of what you would expect to pay.

I recently sold a lot of Gibson, Fender, Burns and even my Gretsch White Falcon and a few others too that were no so easy for me to play anymore due to my hands becoming very sensitive to certain neck profiles. I also bought a few replacements too and very recently a 1997 USA Fender Standard Stratocaster that suits my current 'feel' and I love playing it. Today I got my two Vintage V6 Strats out of their cases and discovered that they match the Fender in every way. The point of my story - I'm forever finding out that I have spent money that I didn't need to, it seems I have to keep proving to myself that these budget priced guitars do the job equally as good as the expensive USA ones.
I know, I have a serious dose of G A S.