ASAT's: What kin ye tell me?

[alex matson]

While sitting on the throne this morning, I randomly selected the Tapeop with that great article about better guitars and keys for the studio...it states that a good ASAT can be had for $700 used. Now, looking on eBay, I'm seeing 'em as low as $400. How might I pick the right one? Is one as good as another? Would you guys buy a guitar sight unseen? It's just that I have got to make every dime count...do these things show up used in music stores much? All I ever seem to find is no-name stuff and Ibanez.

Here ya go. aren't I thoughtful?

[JGriffin]

G&L ASATs are really nice guitars. I wish I owned one.

As with any guitar, best to play it before you buy it. I know what's not always possible, esp. on eBay. $400 for an ASAT is a good price I think, tho I haven't priced 'em out lately.

[alex matson]

There's one for $649 at the moment,
"G&L ASAT w/ bigsby-Tele Thinline style-Warmoth"
offered right here out of Portland. Looks like it's had some spiffin' up.

[AGCurry]

I had one for a while. Bought it on eBay, sold it there too at a profit.

The ONLY reason I sold it is that the neck was just too narrow for my fat bass-player fingers.

It was a beautiful and well-made guitar. It had the larger humbucking pickups (not the little Telecaster-sized single coils). Kind of a P90-ish sound, with no hum.

There are MIA ASATs and, I believe, the "Tribute" model, made in Asia. Never tried a Tribute.

[???????]

I have an 80s model with Leo Fender on the headstock. The one with the fat "soapbar" looking pickups that are mistakenly referred to as P-90s by some (they sound nothing like P-90s).

The damn thing sounds like a GOOD f'in telecaster. I got it for, I think $325 back in '98. I wouldn't let go of the damn thing now. It KILLS.

[kayagum]

I bought a G&L ASAT Special (Tribute series) a few months ago, and I really like it a lot, enough to unload my hardtail Strat.

The Tribute series are built in Korea, but final set up in the U.S. Same pickups.

The pickups are great sounding, and the middle position is wired to be hum cancelling. The hardware and finish is great. I would prefer a chunkier neck, but I can certainly work with this one- similar to American series strats.

Hard to go wrong with this one. Especially for under $500.

http://glguitars.com Go to Instruments, click on Tribute Series.

[spacelabstudio]

I own a USA ASAT Special that I got barely used (like new) for about $650. I feel like I got a wonderful deal. I also recently ordered, sight unseen, one of the new Legacy Tributes. (Tribute series is made in Korea, set up in USA with same pick ups as USA model. Legacy is Leo's updated Strat.) For $400 for a brand new guitar, there is no better deal out there. Both of these are great guitars. I notice no discernable difference in build quality between the USA and Korea models. They're all solid, well made instruments that kill anything else I've tried. (I don't, as a rule, try out guitars that cost more than $1200 or so, for fear that I might end up wanting one. So there might be something 3 times or more as expensive that beats it, but I wouldn't know.)

I keep meaning to write a proper review of the Legacy Tribute. Maybe I'll get around to that soon. Anyway, in my experience, G&Ls are great instruments.

chris

[drumsound]

I've got an ASAT with the thicker p90 looking pick-up that I really love. Possibly my favorite sounding pick-ups.

[stereopathetic_banjo]

I absolutely agree with all the above comments. I had a '99 american strat that i thought was THE guitar. Until i picked up a g&l. I then sold that strat months later and never looked back. I found my asat at a guitar shop for $400, played it acoustically and was amazed at the spankiness- plugged it in and couldn't stop grinning...I then got a legacy strat style g&l and the same deal. Just awesome responsiveness that makes you really want to play the thing, instead of thinking in your mind "well, this thing is XXXX guitar, so i guess it's good..." Anyhow, my asat is my main and most used recording guitar, from deep tele sounds to great overdriven and fuzz tones. This is starting to sound like a catalog review, but seriously- get one!

[E-Rock]

Love my ASAT. Great tele copy. Super solid build.

[pineyb]

I own 5 ASAT guitars....

1. American made ASAT Special semi-hollow
2. American made ASAT Special
3. American made ASAT Classic
4. American made ASAT Bluesboy
5. Korean made ASAT Classic

yeah... I know, but it just happened.

If you go with a new American one, there are several neck profiles to choose from. The Tributes all have a similar neck... not too thin, but not as fat as I like if given a preference.

The Korean one plays and sounds as good as the American ones.. but it has a 3 piece swamp ash body...there are some minor cosmetic and finish issues, and I had to do some nut filing to get the action right. But everyone who picks it up has a smile.... and there is something way cool about a good sub 500 dollar guitar. I have been playing 40 some years. My first guitar was a cheap Tele... and I still think that they should be cheap.

I own several Telecasters as well but it took years to find ones that felt right. The G&L guitars have pretty much said "Let's play some music" right out of the box.

I like 'em all... go to a store and try out the different models/pickup configurations... they can have quite a range of sounds.

You can't really go wrong.

[wardshorsehead]

i play an older g&l asat classic, with the tele style bridge.

i love it, and have no complaints, other than i want to find one cheap and beat to hell to frankenstein with a different pickup combination.

i think that the usa ones are light years ahead of the current crop of usa fenders. they are super solid, stay in tune, and the necks just don't budge. even in wacky weather, mine stays in tune and holds its intonation.

probably the best deal out there on american made, classic styled guitars.

frank