I've been playing for 20 years and have always been "pretty good". But the SE Custom 24 I picked up last year has really elevated my playing. I'm flying all over the fretboard, playing stuff I've only dreamed of, and writing music like crazy because the instrument is no longer in my way.
The flip side is that I'm super annoyed by other guitars that don't have all of these features: 24 frets, amazing upper fret access, small & smooth frets, fretboard binding for no fret sprout, a neck that I can play for hours sitting/standing/thumb over/thumb on back/side thumb, give me tons of useable SC and HB sounds instantly, melts into my body, holds tune like a monster, and sounds great doing everything is so hard to justify owning/pursuing/playing.
Case in point. I've been on a Telecaster/maple fretboard kick lately. Playing them, shopping for them, researching them. I've played probably 20 and brought home two in the last 8 months because I love the mystique and the history and want to get to know one really well. But dang, they are not comfortable. Upper fret access sucks. The neck heel is clunky. The body is rigid. Playing position feels unnatural. The bridges either don't intonate well, or the saddles move all over the place, or they are so high-mass that they compromise the guitar's spanky twang. There's just so many compromises, and I've been so spoiled by my last year of playing the SE Custom 24 that I'm having a hard time viewing them as more than an academic study.
Ugh. Thanks, Paul.