Solidbodies - hefty or light, which do you prefer?

[andy474x]

Did a little light reading on heavy vs light electrics earlier today, what say we all about heavy or light guitars? When it comes to humbucker guitars, I prefer a nice, heavy axe, they just sound deeper and fuller to me. Maybe it's all in my head. Singlecoils, a little lighter gets my vote, a little more of that spanky sound.

 

[jfb]

Heavier for me. Though I do have an Obeche body guitar that is quite light and I think it sounds wonderful.

 

[strat63]

My lightest is 8 lbs and they go up from there. I have nothing against light guitars but I rarely seem to buy them. I have a CU24 that's around 9 lbs and it sounds heavenly.

 

[CatStrangler]

I'm not sure what is considered the heavy side, but I've never found anything less than 7.5 lbs that really floated my boat. I usually shop for > 7.5 lbs in a stoptail and > 8lbs with a trem, but both < 9.5 lbs.

 

[László]

I like both. Sometimes light guitars are very resonant, and have a woody sound, and sometimes heavier guitars have a lot of power.

As long as a guitar sounds great, I'm into it.

 

[stratcpo]

I try to buy guitars that are less than 8 pounds. The only ones that are over that is a LP that's 10 pounds and 2 ounces and a 60's Strat that is 9 pounds even. I like to keep them light. ENJOY!!!

 

[Rider1260]

I like the solid feel of a heavier guitar but my Mira 245 is super light weight and a tone monster

 

[sergiodeblanc]

I prefer heavy sounding guitars with lights.

 

[alantig]

 

[Egads]

It's gotta be fairly light for me. Definitely under 9 lbs, or I just won't pick it up very often. That said, I'm getting very spoiled with the hollow bodies. 95% of my playing time is on a hollow guitar these days.

 

[jfine]

The older I get, the more I like them on the lighter side. That being said, one of the best-sounding guitars I've ever had was (believe it or not) a '73 Gibson Les Paul Recording that I had from about '77 through '80. Solid mahogany with the pancake laminations, low-impedance pickups, you know the one...weighed about 11 lbs. but through the Music Man 410 amp I had at that time, it sounded like a Tele, or a Les Paul, or almost acoustic, depending on settings. Just about killed my back, though, and the amp was a boat anchor too, at about 75 lbs. I haven't weighed my PRS Brent Mason, but it feels like it's maybe 8 lbs. and the amp I use now is a Quilter MicroPro 200 that weighs about 20 lbs.--my back's a lot happier!

 

[sleary]

I just traded in a Gibson and picked up an ibanez because of the weight. Sound wise, the Gibson was more heavy sounding and the ibanez is more resonant with tons of sustain. Over 8 pounds and I'm not liking the weight on my back or shoulders when playing extended amounts of time. Ok maybe I'm a wimp lol

 

[Tim]

I have found no magic Weight = 'Tone' formula with all the guitars have had.

I think overall balance can be found on a light guitar or a heavy one...... And you can have the opposite to with a guitar feeling unbalanced.

 

[Whitecat]

I have found no magic Weight = 'Tone' formula with all the guitars have had.

I think overall balance can be found on a light guitar or a heavy one...... And you can have the opposite to with a guitar feeling unbalanced.

Agree with this 100%.

It depends on the guitar. A single cut "LP" style guitar can be light as hell but still difficult to play on your lap. So it kind of varies!

 

[thieves&foxes]

I prefer lighter. my P22 is one of the lightest solidbodies i've played. becoming a huge fan of semi-hollow guitars due to weight. my gigs are normally way over an hour.

 

[HANGAR18]

It depends on what I'm in the mood for. I have two Les Paul style guitars which are heavy (10 pounds or more) and I REALLY like them. (PRS Singlecut and a Heritage H157.)
But I also really like my PRS Custom 24, which I would describe as light and thin by comparison.
I wouldn't want my LP style guitars any lighter or thinner and I wouldn't want my Custom 24 any heavier or thicker.

 

[garrettb]

Light = Good. Not for any kind of tonal mojo, but because I'm a light dude and even 8 lbs wears on me during a long practice or gig. 7 is comfy. My SE Soapbar II is 6 lbs and it feels amazing.

 

[jfb]

I have found no magic Weight = 'Tone' formula with all the guitars have had.

I think overall balance can be found on a light guitar or a heavy one...... And you can have the opposite to with a guitar feeling unbalanced.

The king of the tone quests has spoken.

:adore:

 

[geese_com]

I prefer a heavier guitar, but I don't think it makes too much of a difference tone wise.

 

[Sage]

I wouldn't say I prefer particularly light guitars, but I don't care for heavy ones. The weight of a non-chambered singlecut LP style guitar has never ever appealed to me. I grew up playing Strats and got used to the weight and feel of that design. The switch to mahogany humbucking guitars always tripped me up -- that's one of the reasons I was so attracted to the Custom 24; it offers a lot of the same tones of an LP style guitar in a lighter, more ergonomic (not to mention more attractive) package.