Chinese vs Indo guitars - which are better.. or less bad?

[ampeq]

I'm the same way. I also know people who can't hold money - one small chunk and they have to spend it.

No going back for me.

Here’s another little toast you may like:

Here’s to blue balls, crabs and lice, I’ve had them all by Jesus Christ. Here’s to women with stinking britches, come drink with me you sons a bitch’s!

 

[Vinsanitizer]

I bought this on eBay for 297$ free shipping from China. Pretty decent for what it is, I replaced the pickups and reset the truss rod and set the intonation (as I would for any “new” guitar). It could still use a new set of tuners but it’s sounds good.

When you strap it on with a thin guitar strap and let go of it, does the neck pull or slide downward at all?

Tell the truth now, don't you lie to the Vinsanitizer™ on the Internet.

 

[EndGame00]

I have a 1st gen. Ibanez Premium (Indonesia).. the most impressive to me was the fret crowning... No sharp edges....

 

[mgee1960]

Had any guitars made in China or Indinesia? What are your experiences with them? Worth bothering with at all?

Seen a few go by that look fine, specs are decent, price is right, but.. it still seems risky. Is it?

I have bought 2 Chinede Gibson guitars from Shop911049250 Store on Aliexpress. both were amazing! Not one imperfection. I did install a Guyker tremelo system on the Explorer & it works great. Also a set of Locking tuners. each guitar was $289.00 to the door. see pics.

 

[Telefan]

I have a Schecter Omen Extreme 6 I have been playing for about 5 years. I have used it on stage with my group. Excellent guitar. HOT pickups and fabulous 24 fret neck. No complaints anywhere.
I, also, have a Fender Custom Telecaster HH I bought about 12 years ago or more and it is an excellent guitar and have used it for, at least, 10 years on stage with my last band.Pearly Gates (stock on this guitar) at Bridge and a SD '59 at the Neck, which I added.
Both have excellent woods, excellent fretwork and good electronics and pickups. Finishes on both are excellent. No flaws, cracks, finish bleeds or stains in the woods.
The Mahogany on the Fender Custom Telecaster is as good as any mahogany on any guitar in my collection: Beautiful tight grain, no flaws, no stains.
BOTH guitars are made in Indonesia. Both have Tusq nuts according to the stickers on the backs.
I have one Strat type guitar from China. A STADIUM brand Strat. I bought it because I wanted to make a hopped up strat and it came with a thin, 12 inch radius neck and was just over $100.
It came with good finish, passable electronics, level frets with ends unfinished and sharp. Nut was plastic. Bridge was junk along with the wiggle bar. Leveled (again) frets and polished them and rounded fret ends and polished. Changed bridge and added brass saddles, locked down the bridge. Tossed the chinese pickups. New pickups are GFS '70s gray bottom HOT pickups. It plays great and kicks butt with a great sound...for a Strat. I am not a Strat fan, but is DO enjoy playing THIS Strat.
Everything else I own, except for a 1967 Lyle ES335 type guitar, which still looks like new (bought in 1967) and plays great, was made in the U.S.

So far, most everything I have seen from Indonesia I like.

 

[gkelm]

I think whichever country, probably depends more on the company, specified specs, QC, etc.

As a kid decades ago, any product made in Japan was considered junk, but they got together eventually, and produce fantastic guitars, as well as cars, motorcycles, electronics, etc.

Seems to me it might’ve been PRS was the first to prove that Korea could put out really great budget guitars.

China can put out some good stuff (e.g., Squier Mascis), and a lot of crap! I’ve yet to play an Indonesian made guitar that impressed me, but I haven’t played many.

 

[DirtySteve]

Except for a LP I would buy MIJ above USA. I wouldn't turn my nose up to MIK.

 

[PowerTube44]

These days, it's not so much about where they're made as it's about the quality control standards of the parent company.

 

[Thevenin]

I recently bought an Epi Firebird 1963 MIC in a cherry finish. I only had to add some oil to the board when it arrived. Great quality out of the box, unlike my Gibson Firebird from 2017. The neck is thicker and I end up playing it more. Love them both though.

 

[Flowboy]

I feel like I'm cheating on my old 330.. but there's a a New Rose in town.
I got an immaculate Harley Benton Tele, £140 same as new. Can't remember model no. - TE 62 / deluxe? - But it's red (faintly metallic), white binding. Caramel' Maple neck (skunk stripe) "Rosewood" fretboard (dark stained laurel) no idea what the body is made from but fairly heavy, giving good sustain. Prev owner had upgraded bridge to (Wilkinson?) & fitted locking tuners. It plays & sounds great to my ears, although I don't have much for comparison. It's a very long time since I played my old band mate's MIA fender Tele but it seems as least as good as that was & I'd forgotten what great workhorse guitars they can be.
TBH it's my go-to guitar at the moment. Feels good in the hands, balances nicely, great action, frets are very well finished, decent intonation (helped by better bridge), Roswell p.u's. Basically I cannot fault it. It's incredible value for money.
Obv, Thomann have good quality control. It's all economics; low wage economies. Materials costs. We cannot compete in EU, US since living costs are so high & wages generally follow. The same guitar might be several £100s more if made here, I would think.
I tried it first, Obv. Not sure I would have risked Ali express or eBay etc. Could have had a piece of rubbish in the post. But it seems several on here have had good results with direct from Asian maker deals so...

 

[Deftone]

Good factories and bad factories in all countries and QC can change at any time.

 

[Vinsanitizer]

I'll be fair for a moment, just to show you that I'm a compassionate man, and that it's not always dollars and cents, see.

The red one is my 2019 Ibanez flametop, Indonesian. It's an excellent guitar in many ways, and I'm rather proud of it.

However, the identical blue one on the right was a total turd right out of the box, so it went back.

I also had a used Prestige model similar to these, and it too, was ass.

Ibanez Indonesia is hit and miss. I got lucky with the red one. Ibanez guitars are still copies of the original Fender Stratocaster, and if you want a GOOD Ibanez, you really should get a Japan model.

 

[TheLoudness!!]

Hard to beat a Japanese made guitar. Especially if it's FGN...(Fujigen).

 

[AlvisX]

Mostly , the guitars are only as good as the setup, no matter where they're made. Unfortunately , that falls upon YOU, the consumer, most of the time. Nothin like cheap guitars , to sharpen your setup skills

 

[Wildeman]

I feel like I'm cheating on my old 330.. but there's a a New Rose in town.
I got an immaculate Harley Benton Tele, £140 same as new. Can't remember model no. - TE 62 / deluxe? - But it's red (faintly metallic), white binding. Caramel' Maple neck (skunk stripe) "Rosewood" fretboard (dark stained laurel) no idea what the body is made from but fairly heavy, giving good sustain. Prev owner had upgraded bridge to (Wilkinson?) & fitted locking tuners. It plays & sounds great to my ears, although I don't have much for comparison. It's a very long time since I played my old band mate's MIA fender Tele but it seems as least as good as that was & I'd forgotten what great workhorse guitars they can be.
TBH it's my go-to guitar at the moment. Feels good in the hands, balances nicely, great action, frets are very well finished, decent intonation (helped by better bridge), Roswell p.u's. Basically I cannot fault it. It's incredible value for money.
Obv, Thomann have good quality control. It's all economics; low wage economies. Materials costs. We cannot compete in EU, US since living costs are so high & wages generally follow. The same guitar might be several £100s more if made here, I would think.
I tried it first, Obv. Not sure I would have risked Ali express or eBay etc. Could have had a piece of rubbish in the post. But it seems several on here have had good results with direct from Asian maker deals so...

I had one of those Harley Benton Teles, real good guitar, gave it to my friend and he plays the crap outta it.

 

[Oldpunk]

Ive worked on guitars for a living now for a long time and can attest without a doubt that indo production guitars are far far superior to Chyna. Only Eastman and top of the line Epis are the only things that comes from that place that arent garbage for the most part.

 

[PaulHikeS2]

I have an Indonesian-made Squier Mustang. The bang for the buck is nothing short of amazing. Neck was dead straight out of the box when I got it and remains so. Fret work is stunning for the price point. I don't recall it even needing a setup out of the box.

Avoid supporting communist China whenever and wherever possible.

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I have the same guitar - it's a great guitar and in my main rotation with guitars costing 8x more. Swapped out the pups for some Bare Knuckles as the Mustang pups sound thin - by design I know, but not my preference.

I've had better luck with Indonesian build quality than Chinese, but my J Mascis Jazzmaster is Chinese and it's great.

 

[Spooky88]

When you strap it on with a thin guitar strap and let go of it, does the neck pull or slide downward at all?

Tell the truth now, don't you lie to the Vinsanitizer™ on the Internet.

No, pretty well balanced TBH. I have a star body parts guitar I built and this probably beats it in balance.

 

[qautomat]

https://jetguitars.com/ (Made in China) these guitars very nice, check YT for reviews
here my JS-400 example

also i have Carvin and Schecter, Jet make me forget about Fender

 

[marcos69]

I just purchased a Sire ES335 Larry Carlton Signature. They have their own factory in Indonesia. This is a spectacular guitar. The fit and finish is among the best I've seen of all brands.