I must ask the question that's plagued poor guitarists since the beginning of time..
"What's the difference between a Squier, and a Fender? And what about Epiphones?"
(For those of you who don't know, this is a callback to my original "Fender or Gibson" post. This post goes more into comparing Squier to Fender, and Epiphone to Gibson, instead of going into which brand you should choose. For that, the aforementioned Fender or Gibson post should help you.)
Today, I want to bring up the two cheaper alternatives to Fender, and Gibson: Squier and Epiphone.
Squier is a sub-company owned by Fender, which produces cheaper versions of the (Pretty darn expensive!) Fender electric guitars and basses. Now, you might ask: "What sets apart a $1,000 American Fender Stratocaster from a $150 Squier Stratocaster?"
Well, I'll tell you... Not a whole lot. They tones are slightly, (JUST BARELY!) different, and they both play extremely butter-smooth. So, then, you might ask: "Is that barely noticeable difference in tone REALLY worth the 850 dollar difference?" Well, no, but that's not all that's changed.
With the Squier Stratocasters, they use cheaper metal for the bridge, which ends up giving you a bit less sustain, and a different nut and set of tuning keys, both of which, of lower quality than the standard Fender ones, giving you a bit less tuning stability... But none of these differences are very noticeable either. On the Fender guitars, they use a finish on the back of the neck that allows your hand to glide extremely smoothly across it, and a slightly more thin, less smooth one on a Squier, but even that's debatable wether that's bad or not. Some people don't even like the finish on Fender necks! Fender guitars also come professionally set-up, but that's not really worth an extra 850 dollars, is it?
Most of what you're paying for in a Fender (Or even a Gibson) is just brand-name. The same reason you pay $2.50 more for Oreos than those Walmart store-brand ones (That taste practically the same!)
The case is very similar, but not the same with Epiphone guitars. Epiphone is a separate company from Gibson, unlike Squier with Fender. They produce "Gibson-Like Replicas" at a cheaper price. And, that description pretty much fits. They make guitars almost exactly like Gibson, at a cheaper price. Many of them even boast improvements on or changes to the original design-- Such as including a killswitch on some guitars, and making custom pickups for others.
Well, I hope I was helpful on explaining the difference, and remember, just because you can get cheaper versions of those guitars doesn't mean it's not worth saving up for an authentic American Fender or Gibson-- They both guarantee a wonderfully made, wonderful-sounding guitar, and both brands definitely'll give you a lot of bragging rights...
See y'all in the next post!