Colors Matter?

[maxtuna26]

Hey guys, I know everyone has their own tastes in choosing colors, but do you guys judge guitar according to colors? I, sometimes, think about stuff like...

"Hey, that guitar is white! It looks too metal to play jazz!"

or

"I want a guitar that suits my bluesy style, so it shouldn't be black"

or even

"Metal guitars should not be in natural finish or have a sunburst"



Do you guys do that too? I know the colors doesn't make the guitar sound more jazzier, bluesy, metal or country, but :dontknow: it kinda affects the way I look at/play the guitar!

That said, could you guys name the color that you feel, is the most (if there is one) "versatile" color on a guitar? :laugh:

 

[cwhenke]

I sort of do it. Singlecut guitars, to me, should be more subdued...no crazy quilts...ambers, browns, naturals, and darker colors (maroon, emerald, midnight blue). Doublecuts can be as crazy as they want...bright blues, eriza greens, orange, purple...quilts and flames.

 

[László]

"I want a guitar that suits my bluesy style, so it shouldn't be black"

"Metal guitars should not be in natural finish or have a sunburst"

"Hey, that guitar is white! It looks too metal to play jazz!"

John McLaughlin's Strat:

 

[sergiodeblanc]

Just so long as they aren't blue.

 

[yankeebulldog]

Just so long as they aren't green.

Fixed that for ya!

 

[László]

Just so long as they ARE PRS.

Fixed for both of ya.

 

[jfine]

I have preferences, but I generally don't let them get in the way of acquiring a nice guitar just because it's not my favorite color. All other things being equal, I tend to like figured maple tops with colored stains--green, purple, blue, but I also like more traditional bursts too. Some (well, most) of the old Fender custom colors are cool--I especially like white or white-blonde with a tortoiseshell pickguard--and Burgundy Mist. I'm not crazy about black guitars--they show every fingerprint--but I used to have a black Strat with a white pickguard and a maple neck, and liked it fine. If I'm ordering a new guitar and have a choice of finishes, I get a little more picky--I'm hoping to get a PRS Brent Mason model later this year, and of the available colors, my favorite is natural Korina, followed by Whitewash, then Cherry Red. Maple neck preferrably, but if I come across a nice one with a rosewood board, I won't turn it down...

 

[jfb]

Red guitars are quite nice.

 

[maxtuna26]

I have preferences, but I generally don't let them get in the way of acquiring a nice guitar just because it's not my favorite color. All other things being equal, I tend to like figured maple tops with colored stains--green, purple, blue, but I also like more traditional bursts too. Some (well, most) of the old Fender custom colors are cool--I especially like white or white-blonde with a tortoiseshell pickguard--and Burgundy Mist. I'm not crazy about black guitars--they show every fingerprint--but I used to have a black Strat with a white pickguard and a maple neck, and liked it fine. If I'm ordering a new guitar and have a choice of finishes, I get a little more picky--I'm hoping to get a PRS Brent Mason model later this year, and of the available colors, my favorite is natural Korina, followed by Whitewash, then Cherry Red. Maple neck preferrably, but if I come across a nice one with a rosewood board, I won't turn it down...

Yeah I try not to let them get in my way too, but sometimes, my mood just influences me, I can't seem to like one color long enough, same goes for my taste in music. :dontknow:

 

[maxtuna26]

Red guitars are quite nice.

i couldn't agree more :laugh:

 

[maxtuna26]

John McLaughlin's Strat:

i know it's judgemental to do so but :dontknow: it somehow just feels weird, sometimes. But gosh, how could i forget about BB King?! Thanks for reminding me Hetfield's guitar definitely looks cool, though I don't really understand why is the Al Di Meola up there :X

I'm feeling the same thing again. I had my eyes on the SE Mahoney, I like it a lot and was planning to get one later this year, but there's this stupid bug in my mind tugging at me saying, baby blue is somewhat anti-rock/metal. That said, i do know that lots of other guitarists that play light blue guitars will disagree with me :/

 

[László]

I don't really understand why is the Al Di Meola up there

Because it doesn't look like a typical jazz guitar.

Nor would one necessarily expect to see a Mesa Mark V in that scenario.

It's just interesting to me that some of the really great players don't care at all about the usual expectations.

 

[László]

"Metal guitars should not be in natural finish or have a sunburst"

 

[RichardJ]

My first 'proper' guitar was white, a '76 Fender Bronco, so after that quite a few were white. Since then I haven't really been bothered, if I like what the guitar does it's colour doesn't matter so much. Of course when I have the $$ there will definitely be something flamed with birds, hopefully in a charcoal burst!

 

[Blackbird]

I agree completely with your previous list of pictures, but this one is very far reaching. Kiss is one of my favorite rock bands, but none of they're music can even come close to the metal genre. Of course, metal is subjective, especially by age demographic.

Regarding the OP's last question, I think black may be the most versatile color for varying styles.

 

[veinbuster]

There was a time I thought a blue guitar was just silly, but it sounds godo and adding a little grass stain makes it awesome.

 

[sergiodeblanc]

A lot of this isn't our fault, we are conditioned to think some colors are for certain guitars, and certain guitars are for certain musical genres.

Ever notice that if a guitar is meant to sound "Fender-y" the manufacturer paints it with a tri-tone burst? Same goes for a sunburst and "Gibsonesque" guitars.... PRS does it too.

 

[jfb]

Pink guitars sound best for most applications.

 

[László]

I agree completely with your previous list of pictures, but this one is very far reaching. Kiss is one of my favorite rock bands, but none of they're music can even come close to the metal genre. Of course, metal is subjective, especially by age demographic.

It's funny, the whole term "heavy metal bands" started with Led Zeppelin in 1969. Led = Lead, thus a heavy metal. Zep isn't considered that now.

When Kiss came out, they were considered sort of a glam metal band aping Zep's style. In fact, the reason for the sunburst LP thing was to be like Page.

Only middle school kids took them seriously at first. How things change.

 

[tiboy]

Only middle school kids took them seriously at first. How things change.

Things didn't change. All of we middle schoolers are now middle agers- like Kiss themselves.