The Ten Best Cheap Electric Guitars

1. The Ten Best Cheap Electric Guitars There was a time not long ago that if someone were looking at a list of the Ten Best Cheap Electric Guitars in 2018, it would no doubt be a beginner looking for their first electric guitar. As you'll see, there are some guitars on our list that experienced, professional guitarist would be happy to own. Chinese Electric Guitars Have Changed the Market Well, there are a couple of things changed over the past five or ten years. Import guitars, particularly those coming from China, Indonesia, or South Korea used to be really poor quality instruments a decade ago. However, they were really cheap, so beginners would buy them just so they didn't have to plunk down hundreds of dollars just to find out if they really had the drive and determination to learn how to play guitar. Today, the quality of the majority of the electric guitars coming out of these countries is really, really good. In some cases, the build quality, tone, and playability is so close to what you'd get from an American made guitar, it is tough to rationalize spending the extra money for the American made guitar. So, the other thing that is beginning to change is the American consumer. Many have wised up and realized that it is almost insane to pay thousands of dollars for American made guitars when they can purchase wonderful imported electric guitars that are equivalent to their U.S. counterparts for a few hundred dollars. Because of that, this list isn't just for beginners anymore. It's for anyone who wants to get a great deal on a good guitar without breaking the bank.

2. Fortunately, you have several choices when it comes to buying an import guitar. First off, it's important to realize that you can still buy an American brand name guitar when buying an import guitar. In truth, most major guitar manufacturers, companies like Fender, Epiphone, and Gretsh, import the majority of their guitars from China. They either own or manage the manage the factories in the East, so they are able to maintain very stringent quality control practices. There are also several U.S, based distributors that sell import guitars. Most noteworthy among these are Rondo Music, Monoprice, and Guitar Fetish. They all sell great guitars really cheap. Also worth mentioning is Thomann Music. They are based out of Germany and they are the largest seller of musical instruments in Europe. They sell their own line of electric guitars under the Harley Benton brand. These guitars are made in Indonesia and the quality level is spectacular. You can also buy direct from China through companies like DH Gate, Bad Cat Instruments and AliExpress. AliExpress is one of the largest online retailers in the world, and like Amazon, you can read buyer reviews prior to making a purchase. What is a Cheap Electric Guitar? So, what constitutes a "Cheap Electric Guitar"? Is it less than $500, $400, $300, or $200? Well, we all have a particular price point that is going to be our ceiling. Since it is going to be different for everyone, we are purposely going to include guitars in all these price brackets. The other issue is the fact that we all have different tastes in music. Some of us are into rock, others into heavy metal, still other into jazz, and on and on. That being the case, you're going to find a variety of very different guitars on our list. But every guitar we've selected provides tremendous value for what you have to spend for the guitar. So no matter what your budget or musical taste, you'll find a great guitar here that will provide you with years of playing pleasure. A great place to start our list is with three great guitars from Squire. As most of you probably know, Squire is a sister company to Fender. Why three guitars from Squire? Well, they deserve to be here and they give us a couple different price points. Staying with mainstream manufacturers, we'll also show you a couple models from ESP, Ibanez, Epiphone, Gretsch, and Washburn. We also have guitars from Harley Benton, Monoprice, and Rondo Music. Ten Best Electric Guitars Under $500 Squier Classic Vibe Stratocaster '50s Electric Guitar Squier Classic Vibe Telecaster '50s Electric Guitar Harley Benton SC-450Plus VB Vintage Series Monoprice Indio Retro Classic Electric Guitar Sunburst Ibanez Artcore Series AS53 Semi-Hollow Electric Guitar Flat Tobacco Oscar Schmidt OE20 Squire Affinity Stratocaster Gretsch G2420 Streamliner $400 $400 $200 $100 $300 $200 $200 $450

3.  ESP LTD V-50 Electric Guitar  Epiphone SG Special $300 $180 So as you can see, the list has guitars at price points. Affordable means something different to different people. What this list does provide of different styles of guitars at different prices. Look, we don't think this list is by any means perfect or comprehensive. We just did our best to provide you with 10 good guitars to get you started on your search. So let's take just a brief look at them individually. Squier Classic Vibe Stratocaster '50s Electric Guitar At $400, this isn't going to be affordable for everyone. However, this Squire Stratocaster guitar is on the list because of the high praise it's received. You'll find hundreds of reviews that proclaim this to be one of the finest guitars you can buy at any price. If you can afford to spend $400 on a guitar, this is a can't miss choice. Squier Classic Vibe Telecaster '50s Electric Guitar If you are more into the country style twang rather than the absolute clean tones of a Strat, this Classic Vibe Tele may be the perfect electric guitar for you. Like it's Strat counterpart, this Classic Vibe Telecaster is rated five stars by almost everyone who has taken the time to write a review. This is a wonderful guitar that you'll be happy to own for years to come. Harley Benton SC-450Plus VB Vintage Series This is a Les Paul style guitar from Thomann Music in Germany. Again, the majority of reviews are off the charts. Besides being a fantastic instrument, it's cheap, even with the shipping from Germany thrown in. Take a moment and get on YouTube and watch some reviews. You'll end up a believer. Monoprice Indio Retro Classic Electric Guitar Sunburst This is an import Tele style guitar that's offered by Monoprice. If you are a beginner, this is really a sweet deal. At $100 shipped, you won't find too many decent guitars at this price point. Monoprice is very service oriented, so if you have an issue with anything you buy from them, they are there to help. The other great thing about this guitar is that has been specifically designed to accommodate upgrades. So down the road is you want to upgrade the pickups, tuners, pots, etc., it's going to be easy to do. Ibanez Artcore Series AS53 Electric Guitar Flat Tobacco If $300 is within your price range, this is a great option, especially if you like those smooth jazz tones. This is a really beautiful guitar from Ibanez that is finished in natural wood tones. Reviewers are astonished at the craftsmanship, playability, and lush tones of this guitar. At $300, this is an outstanding investment that you will enjoy for years to come.

4. Washburn Oscar Schmidt OE20 Washburn has been making guitars for decades. The OE20 is a Les Paul style guitar that they import for the American market. This is one of those guitars that gets surprising reviews. Check out YouTube and you'll see what owners have to say. Likewise, if you are little bit mechanically inclined, with very little effort and expense you can turn this really good electric guitar into a great electric guitar. Squire Affinity Stratocaster At $200, the Affinity Strat is a very nice guitar for someone just starting out. No, it's not as fine an instrument as a Squire Classic Vibe, but it is very playable and the tone is very good. I know, I own one. This is the kind of guitar that's perfect for a beginner because it doesn't cost too much, yet it is easy to play. You won't get discouraged playing this Affinity. If it turns out you stick with it, later on you can move on to something better and not have a lot of money tied up in this guitar. Gretsch G2420 Streamliner At $450 this is the most expensive guitar on our list. However, it's here for a reason and we know not everyone will be able to afford this Gretsch Streamliner. The reasons this guitar is on the list is value. This guitar easily compares to guitars in the $1,000 to $3,000 range. It's simply a heck of a lot of guitar for the money. It is stunningly beautiful, it sounds fantastic, and it plays like butter. If you can afford this guitar, give it a serious look. ESP LTD V-50 Electric Guitar Want to shred on a budget. Here you go, the ESP LTD V-50. For $300 you can have a very high quality shred machine. The reviews on this guitar are pretty much unanimous. It's affordable, playable, durable, and fun. At this price point, there isn't anything close in this style guitar. Epiphone SG Special The SG Special may be last on our list, but it certainly should be one of the first guitars you consider, especially if you are just starting out. It's been around forever and it's a great guitar for rockin'. At $180 it is a real bargain that delivers a ton of value. For the money, it's a quality built guitar that's a blast to play. You'll find learing to be a fun process with this great Epiphone guitar.

5. A Final Word So we hope we have helped you on your way to finding a really great deal on the perfect electric guitar. There are great bargains out there and the more time you spend looking and checking out reviews, the better off you'll be. If you want to visit this website, you can learn all about different brands and models of electric guitars. So good luck and we hope you love your new guitar.