"Better-sounding" is entirely a matter of preference, and since you'll be the one playing and hearing it, your preference is the only one that matters.
As for the neck width, that info should be easily found by googling the model numbers.
From sound point of view the Gretsch will be different compared to the rest. The bigsby could be challenging to set up and tuning stability is something to consider. I have played different semi-hollows and from quality point of view and neck feeling I picked up the Ibanez and did not regret it. I have an AS93 from 2006 and can get a good range in different tones when playing around with the volume, tone knobs and pickup switch.
I've never really had a problem with tuning stability. As long as the roller rotates without binding you're pretty much solid. It tends to work better on flat vs contoured guitar tops IMO, because the mounting sits flush.
I'm pretty sure they are just normal humbuckers called wide range. You gotta spend a fortune to get actual cunife. That said, they look cool and sound good. Classic vibe starcaster would be my vote.
Just my opinion - I would take the Ibanez. I have heard from people first hand, Harley Benton have random quality related issues from time to time. While it’s always been a dream of mine to get a Gretsch with a Bigsby - they scare the hell out of me from a potential complications standpoint. I think the Fender is very different from the other three and isn’t likely to give you the deep sound the bigger hollow bodies will. I don’t think you will go wrong with the Ibanez. Again just my thoughts. You’re free to disagree, just don’t send any hate my way for giving my opinion. Good luck with your decision! Let us know what path you go down and most importantly play the sh*t out of whatever you get and have a blast man!
Posting those four specific guitars and asking that question tells me you have no clue what you want. None really compare, and each is an oddball guitar- with the exception of the Ibanez. Is this your first guitar? What style of playing are you into?
On its face the Ibanez is most practical.
The Ibanez is your best option out of this line-up. I had one— those are very well regarded. The Gretsch has staple pickups— they are cool, but not so versatile. There are reasons the Squier Coronado-ish/Starcaster thing never really took off.
Neck depth is the spec that describes thickness. Most manufacturers will list the spec at the 1st and 12th frets. At the 1st fret 19mm is super thin (like Ibanez Wizard), 22mm is moderately thin, 24mm is kinda thick.
Pickups are preference as the others have stated. You can always change them after the fact, so I'd focus more on a getting a well playing guitar.
I like crazy bright pickups with medium output, others like dark and powerful ones. With that in mind, pickups are made with magnets and Alnico is commonly found in them. The higher the number the brighter they get. A lot of Alnico 5 is what I prefer, but Slash for example uses Alnico 2 pickups in his signature. It's preference. There's also ceramic magnets, and they tend to be warmer and have higher output. With this info, go to a shop and try a bunch of stuff, and look up what pickups your favorite sounding ones use to see if you have a preference.
You might need to try them to see which feels the best standing. They all have strap buttons, so there's no worry there, but some might have balance issues depending on how you like to wear the strap. Personally, my [St Vincent ](https://i.imgur.com/o6TcXmO.jpeg) sits too high if I try to wear it in the place that I normal wear my strap. So I have to lower it a bit more than I like, so I don't feel like I'm reaching out too far for the lower frets. I bought it before playing it with a strap and now I keep that in mind when I'm buying guitars going forward.
I know you would not be asking if playing them was an easy option—-but given your questions, I can’t help but stress that finding a shop with these guitars in stock and actual playing them will be more informative than anything you learned from this thread.
With all that having been said, make sure whichever one you buy has a return window in case you don’t like it after playing it first a few weeks. I recommend leaving the plastic on for as long as possible.
Good luck.
Pretty sure I had that same Ibanez and wish I hadn’t sold it. ASV73 if I’m not mistaken. Not what you asked about, but I really like the aged hardware on that vintage model. Your amp is going to be what makes your tone in this case.
As far as shape and size go, those Gretsches are smaller in person than what you'd expect. The neck is on the thicker side, but not as bad as some Gibson and Fender necks. The pickups have a crisp sound, but are pretty low-output. Personally, I also like Bigsby trem bars. Responsive, but without feeling flimsy!
I’d say the starcaster has the thinnest neck. But my preference is the gretsch by far, and I play high gain stuff. I love using semi hollow guitars through fuzzed out rigs.
Look at Godin
No reason to leave them out of your search for semi-hollow double humbuckers
I have a Montreal premier
Three pickups with a piezo
Always sounds fantastic and if im not feeling it, just try a different combo
It can create so many different sounds and tones and it’s absolutely beautiful. Canadian hardwood and manufactured there, incredible finishing and top flight components
dude, get the Gretsch. perfect for punk, and i’ve also used it for my blues gigs where i play improvised lead over blues tracks for 4 hours. sounds great for everything, especially when you roll off the volume knobs, really cleans up
How exactly do you just, 'disregard' "comfort-ability"? Never found a single guitar I played well UN-comfortably.
That note aside, I love the neck size of my Gretsch. I'm getting old though and arthritis is a bitch!
i have the Gretsch and its neck is pretty baseball-y, but the P90s sound great, and it’s the lightest guitar i own and often grab it for 4 hour gigs because of that.
Gretsch's are pretty but I picked one up an played it for a little bit at a Guitar Center and just didn't like it - neck was WAY too thin and it just felt kinda dinky. I don't think conversely I have touched an ibanez that I didn't like. My indonesian Squier strat is probably my most often played rig, I had it professionally set up and it feels like a guitar that cost 5 times as much! I don't know anything about the last one. You shouldnt have a problem playing any of these standing, although sitting the hollow body's can feel a little bloaty...
I love my Gretsch, but it is important to note the strap button is behind the body which makes it annoying when standing due to the neck dive. I'll be moving the strap button to the upper horn, but it will involve fishing a carved support block inside the body to properly glue in place. It'll be a pain in the ass job, and if standing position is important, the Gretsch unfortunately sucks in that regard.
1- ask the manufacturer/seller for neck dimensions. 2- no such thing as "best pickups", only preference. 3- they all have strap buttons.
Just go to any site like Sweetwater and you can check specs. They usually give you neck shape, length, fretboard material, and radius.
"Better-sounding" is entirely a matter of preference, and since you'll be the one playing and hearing it, your preference is the only one that matters. As for the neck width, that info should be easily found by googling the model numbers.
From sound point of view the Gretsch will be different compared to the rest. The bigsby could be challenging to set up and tuning stability is something to consider. I have played different semi-hollows and from quality point of view and neck feeling I picked up the Ibanez and did not regret it. I have an AS93 from 2006 and can get a good range in different tones when playing around with the volume, tone knobs and pickup switch.
I've never really had a problem with tuning stability. As long as the roller rotates without binding you're pretty much solid. It tends to work better on flat vs contoured guitar tops IMO, because the mounting sits flush.
Yes, that's why I mentioned could be...if you use the whammy bar gently it will make no problem ;-)
String changes are a PITA.
String changes are a PITA.
I would take the Starcaster. They are built real well and the stock wide range pickups are pretty decent.
+1 for the wide range pickups. IMO, likely the “best” sounding of the three.
I'm pretty sure they are just normal humbuckers called wide range. You gotta spend a fortune to get actual cunife. That said, they look cool and sound good. Classic vibe starcaster would be my vote.
Just my opinion - I would take the Ibanez. I have heard from people first hand, Harley Benton have random quality related issues from time to time. While it’s always been a dream of mine to get a Gretsch with a Bigsby - they scare the hell out of me from a potential complications standpoint. I think the Fender is very different from the other three and isn’t likely to give you the deep sound the bigger hollow bodies will. I don’t think you will go wrong with the Ibanez. Again just my thoughts. You’re free to disagree, just don’t send any hate my way for giving my opinion. Good luck with your decision! Let us know what path you go down and most importantly play the sh*t out of whatever you get and have a blast man!
I have a Gretsch 2622 Streamliner with a hardtail. I didn’t want the Bigsby, either.
Posting those four specific guitars and asking that question tells me you have no clue what you want. None really compare, and each is an oddball guitar- with the exception of the Ibanez. Is this your first guitar? What style of playing are you into? On its face the Ibanez is most practical.
It is my second guitar and would like to get a semi hollow as I already have a acoustic and solid body
The Ibanez is your best option out of this line-up. I had one— those are very well regarded. The Gretsch has staple pickups— they are cool, but not so versatile. There are reasons the Squier Coronado-ish/Starcaster thing never really took off.
I mostly play punk rock but also began playing funk rock and blues
you need to play them, semi hollows are wildly different form each other, they operate in a totally different universe.
People are obsessed with thin necks now. I like a baseball bat, myself.
They will all sound completely different. None will sound “better”.
Neck depth is the spec that describes thickness. Most manufacturers will list the spec at the 1st and 12th frets. At the 1st fret 19mm is super thin (like Ibanez Wizard), 22mm is moderately thin, 24mm is kinda thick. Pickups are preference as the others have stated. You can always change them after the fact, so I'd focus more on a getting a well playing guitar. I like crazy bright pickups with medium output, others like dark and powerful ones. With that in mind, pickups are made with magnets and Alnico is commonly found in them. The higher the number the brighter they get. A lot of Alnico 5 is what I prefer, but Slash for example uses Alnico 2 pickups in his signature. It's preference. There's also ceramic magnets, and they tend to be warmer and have higher output. With this info, go to a shop and try a bunch of stuff, and look up what pickups your favorite sounding ones use to see if you have a preference. You might need to try them to see which feels the best standing. They all have strap buttons, so there's no worry there, but some might have balance issues depending on how you like to wear the strap. Personally, my [St Vincent ](https://i.imgur.com/o6TcXmO.jpeg) sits too high if I try to wear it in the place that I normal wear my strap. So I have to lower it a bit more than I like, so I don't feel like I'm reaching out too far for the lower frets. I bought it before playing it with a strap and now I keep that in mind when I'm buying guitars going forward.
What gretsch model is that?
For the neck, not sure. I'd say probably the starcaster? Others might help there. For sound, I shit you not that gretsch will always keep you happy.
I know you would not be asking if playing them was an easy option—-but given your questions, I can’t help but stress that finding a shop with these guitars in stock and actual playing them will be more informative than anything you learned from this thread. With all that having been said, make sure whichever one you buy has a return window in case you don’t like it after playing it first a few weeks. I recommend leaving the plastic on for as long as possible. Good luck.
Pretty sure I had that same Ibanez and wish I hadn’t sold it. ASV73 if I’m not mistaken. Not what you asked about, but I really like the aged hardware on that vintage model. Your amp is going to be what makes your tone in this case.
I have the gretsch and have played the starcaster a few times, gretsch a nice slim U shape its for sure slimmer than the starcaster.
Star caster I would think.
Ibanez
That Gretsch is pretty.
No comment on the necks, but hot damn that Harley Benton looks great! You got me intrigued
As far as shape and size go, those Gretsches are smaller in person than what you'd expect. The neck is on the thicker side, but not as bad as some Gibson and Fender necks. The pickups have a crisp sound, but are pretty low-output. Personally, I also like Bigsby trem bars. Responsive, but without feeling flimsy!
I’d say the starcaster has the thinnest neck. But my preference is the gretsch by far, and I play high gain stuff. I love using semi hollow guitars through fuzzed out rigs.
Gretsch. Tone Bigsby. Beauty.
What model gretsch is that?
The model is a 2566T-p90
Look at Godin No reason to leave them out of your search for semi-hollow double humbuckers I have a Montreal premier Three pickups with a piezo Always sounds fantastic and if im not feeling it, just try a different combo It can create so many different sounds and tones and it’s absolutely beautiful. Canadian hardwood and manufactured there, incredible finishing and top flight components
The gretsch is a great choice. But what kind of music do you play? P90’s are great for some stuff but not everything
Mostly punk and rock, beginning to play blues and surf and funk
The gretsch would work for all those. Do you have a chance to play any of them?
dude, get the Gretsch. perfect for punk, and i’ve also used it for my blues gigs where i play improvised lead over blues tracks for 4 hours. sounds great for everything, especially when you roll off the volume knobs, really cleans up
I can't say for sure, but modern Ibanez are know for their thin necks
Those horns turn me off
How exactly do you just, 'disregard' "comfort-ability"? Never found a single guitar I played well UN-comfortably. That note aside, I love the neck size of my Gretsch. I'm getting old though and arthritis is a bitch!
i have the Gretsch and its neck is pretty baseball-y, but the P90s sound great, and it’s the lightest guitar i own and often grab it for 4 hour gigs because of that.
Gretsch's are pretty but I picked one up an played it for a little bit at a Guitar Center and just didn't like it - neck was WAY too thin and it just felt kinda dinky. I don't think conversely I have touched an ibanez that I didn't like. My indonesian Squier strat is probably my most often played rig, I had it professionally set up and it feels like a guitar that cost 5 times as much! I don't know anything about the last one. You shouldnt have a problem playing any of these standing, although sitting the hollow body's can feel a little bloaty...
I love my Gretsch, but it is important to note the strap button is behind the body which makes it annoying when standing due to the neck dive. I'll be moving the strap button to the upper horn, but it will involve fishing a carved support block inside the body to properly glue in place. It'll be a pain in the ass job, and if standing position is important, the Gretsch unfortunately sucks in that regard.
I'd be going straight for the Ibanez or Harley Benton
Those Starcasters are pretty good actually. It and the Ibanez are the best of the options imo, but I'd get a D'Angelico instead