Types of Electric Guitar
The many different types of electric guitars mean whether you're a beginner or an expert, a blues musician or a rock god, there's an electric guitar body shape or style to suit you. Add different tuning systems, amps and effects pedals into the mix and you've got an unbeatably versatile instrument.
If you're new to electric guitars or you want to learn more about electric guitar body styles before buying your next six-string, this is the guide for you. I'll run through the main electric guitar shapes, some examples of each, and what genres they are suited for.
Whether you're a Fender fan or a Gibson guru, or you've never heard of either brand, I'll make sure you get the background and basics, along with some of the key differences between different styles and bodies, to clear up some of the mystery surrounding the seemingly infinite shapes and sizes of electric guitar on the market.
Body Shape and Style
Electric guitar body shapes can vary from looking quite similar to acoustic guitars, to the flat-body cut-out style that's been popular for decades, through to some very modern electric guitar body designs that barely resemble a classical guitar at all.
Different body styles can have a direct impact on the sound the guitar produces, from crisp and bright hardbody guitars, to richer, warmer and more acoustic-sounding output from semi-hollow and hollowbody guitars.
Let's take a look through some of the main types of electric guitars and some of the most iconic models for each body type...
Solid-Body Guitars
Solid body guitars are some of the best beginner guitars. They need less workmanship and are often cheaper, perfect if you're buying your first guitar. But don't be fooled - there have been some all-time icons that fall into this category.
Stratocaster
Fender Stratocaster is arguably the most iconic electric guitar ever. Built in 1954 by Leo Fender, the Stratocaster or 'Strat' has a double-cutaway body style, three single-coil pickups, and six inline tuners. Best known as a blues guitar, the Stratocaster is versatile enough to play almost any genre.
The list of famous Strat players goes on and on. Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Hank Marvin and Stevie Ray Vaughan are just a few. Another famous Stratocaster player is Jeff Beck, famous for making good use of the Strat's tremolo bridge to change the pitch of notes.
Telecaster
Before the Strat, there was the Tele. The Fender Telecaster launched in 1951 and is one of the most successful electric guitars of all time. Loved by country music players initially, it's found its way into almost every genre including rock, blues and funk.
The Telecaster has a slightly angled bridge pickup, two single-coil pickups, and a three-way selector switch. Famous players include George Harrison of The Beatles, along with Bruce Springsteen and Jeff Buckley.
Les Paul
If anything can rival the Fender Stratocaster as the most iconic electric guitar, it's the Gibson Les Paul. Named after the jazz guitarist who collaborated with Gibson on the design, it's no surprise that the Les Paul produces smooth jazz chords, but it can also turn its hand to punk, rock and metal too.
By the 1960s, Les Paul guitars were fitted with two humbucker pickups instead of their original single-coil pickups. A solid mahogany body layered with maple and rosewood or ebony fret inlays all add up to a higher purchase price, but choose a Gibson Les Paul and you'll join Slash, Jimmy Page and Peter Frampton among many other owners.
SG
As Les Paul sales declined, the Gibson SG was introduced in 1961 as an updated design. Paul didn't want his name on the newer guitar, so it became simply the Gibson Solid Guitar or 'SG'. Still with a mahogany body, the SG has a double-cutaway body with a slim neck, ideal for faster playing styles and genres like rock and metal.
Gibson have marketed the SG as their bestselling guitar of all time, so it's no surprise that plenty of famous faces have been linked with it over the years, from the Grateful Dead's Jerry Garcia, to AC/DC's Angus Young, to Radiohead's Thom Yorke.
Semi-Hollow Guitars
Semi-hollow guitars look more like traditional acoustic guitars, but they're still at the electric guitar end of that spectrum. They have a slightly thicker body than a solid-body guitar, with f-holes either side of the fretboard to allow acoustic resonance inside the body. However, there's usually a solid block of wood behind the fretboard, so that the hollow interior is divided into two chambers.
The ability to resonate gives semi-hollow guitars a 'fuller' sound that can feel warmer to a lot of people. It also helps to make them more resistant to unwanted feedback, and gives notes more of a sustain effect. Their partial similarity to acoustic guitars can make them a good choice if you've had acoustic guitar lessons in the past and want to switch to electric.
Gibson ES-335
The Gibson ES-335 is one of the most often mentioned models of semi-hollow electric guitars. This has been linked with Eric Clapton, BB King and Dave Grohl, among others. Introduced in 1958, the ES-335 was the first commercial semi-hollow body electric guitar in the world and is still being manufactured at Gibson's facility in Nashville.
Hollow-Body Guitars
Hollow-body guitars look even more like acoustic guitars and are often styled as such, with natural wood finishes. Like semi-hollow guitars, hollow-bodies have a resonating chamber, this time without the solid wood down the middle. They are popular among jazz guitarists for their acoustic-like tone.
PRS SE
PRS Guitars are named after their founder Paul Reed Smith, and the PRS SE is the Student Edition, manufactured in Korea and designed to be more affordable for those just starting to learn electric guitar. This is not one guitar, but a whole range that includes solid-body and bass guitars, with a choice of three SE Hollowbody models.
Pickups
The sound produced by an electric guitar is created by the vibrations of the strings and is transferred to the amplifier thanks to electromagnetic pickups at the bottom of the strings. When the string vibrates inside the magnetic field of the pickup, this induces an electric current, which is passed to the amplifier. It's how the various types of amplifiers are able to produce a sound that is much louder than the resonance of a classical guitar could achieve.
Single coil vs Humbucker
Two of the main types of electric guitar pickups are single coil and humbucker:
Single coil uses a single electromagnet to detect the vibrations, creating a brighter, more 'electric sounding' tone like the twang of country music.
Humbuckers are a double coil pickup with warmer, jazzy tone. They can be used to reduce background noise - literally to 'buck the hum' sometimes produced by single coil pickups.
A third type of guitar pickup is the P90, which offers a middle ground some players prefer for soft rock and blues.
Electric guitar pickups have been at the heart of the battle of the brands since the early days, and the three-pickup setup on the Fender Stratocaster was partly a way to distinguish it from its biggest rival, the two-humbucker Gibson Les Paul.
FAQs
What is the most popular type of electric guitar?
It's fair to say solid-body electric guitars are the most popular, with the Fender Stratocaster, Fender Telecaster, Gibson Les Paul and Gibson SG some of the bestselling models of electric guitar of all time. While different players will argue to the bitter end about which is the absolute best electric guitar ever, the market as a whole shows solid-body guitars are the most successful sellers.
For anyone with experience of acoustic guitars, both semi-hollow and hollowbody guitars are worth considering. Their fatter bodies can feel more familiar, rather than the very slim profile of a solid-body guitar. And thanks to their design, they can help to reduce feedback for beginners, while producing a richer, warmer tone too.
What is the difference between Squier and Fender?
You may see some of your favourite Fender electric guitars sold under the brand name Squier, with a logo that reads "Squier by Fender". So what's going on here - is it a Squier or is it a Fender?
The answer is that it's both. Squier is Fender's budget brand, offering more affordable alternatives to Fender's biggest selling designs. Squier guitars are made using cheaper materials, which means slightly worse performance - reduced frequency ranges, and so on. They're manufactured in the Far East to save on labour costs, but a top-end Squier electric guitar can still give you incredible value for money.
What is the difference between Epiphone and Gibson?
To fully answer this question, we have to go back to the 1930s, when Gibson and Epiphone were fierce rivals in the hollowbody jazz guitar market. In 1957 Gibson bought Epiphone and the brands have been one company ever since.
Some of the Epiphone-branded guitars produced by Gibson in the 1950s-60s are considered classics, but cheaper production in Japan in the 1970s lowered that standard. More recently, Epiphone guitars have improved significantly and are now basically a cheaper version of Gibson guitars. Differences include a poly coating instead of nitrocellulose lacquer, and chrome hardware instead of nickel.
Whereas a Gibson will gradually take on an aged, well-played appearance, Epiphone guitars are more likely to stay looking as new. That might sound like a good thing, but guitar enthusiasts often appreciate the patina of a guitar that's been round the block a few times.
Which is better Stratocaster or Telecaster?
Again, the argument over Stratocaster vs Telecaster can be a very personal thing. For beginners, it's fair to say that the Stratocaster offers some major advantages. Its C-shaped neck is common on electric guitars, compared with the Tele's classical-style U-shaped neck. A slimmer neck is easier to move around, helping beginners to find chords more easily.
If you want options while playing, the Strat arguably comes out on top too. It has dedicated tone knobs for the middle and bridge pickups, compared with the Tele's single tone control. The Telecaster has a three-way switch but, after guitarists started jamming the Strat's switch between positions to increase the guitar's tonal versatility, Fender started fitting it with a five-way switch instead.
Which is better Fender or Gibson?
The debate over Fender vs Gibson and which is better will be waged for generations to come, and obviously there is no definitive answer. Both brands go right back to the origins of electric guitars and between them, have produced the bestselling models of electric guitar ever.
However, there's no reason why you shouldn't have a personal favourite, and many musicians do. Remember too that you might like one style of guitar by Fender and one model of Gibson electric guitar, more than you like any of the others - it's not a case of choosing one brand and never appreciating the other at all.
In terms of sound, some people go for Gibson guitars because they have stronger fundamentals, producing a warmer tonal output. Others prefer Fender guitars because they have stronger overtones, producing a brighter tonal output. Which is better? It really depends on whether you prefer to turn up the bass or the treble on your EQ when listening to music.
Finally, if you're just starting to learn guitar and want to go for a Gibson or a Fender, you might find Fender guitars easier for beginners. Those brighter overtones can make it easier to spot when you haven't quite nailed a note, giving you more information to learn from and helping you to progress faster - with the right amount of practice, of course!
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