Let's talk about the BEST (and WORST) Guitars of 2023...

[@agufish]

1 Shot Energy x Matt Heafy Voice Drops actually saved my butt giving me the strength to push through this 38-minute epic! Visit 1shotenergy.com/?ref=agufish and use code AGUFISH for a special 30% off! ➤ More details on all the Best Guitar Gear of 2023! » Sweetwater sweetwater.sjv.io/LX16GM » Thomann bit.ly/3H2a8U0

[@creepsussy]

@agufish can you make a video on warmoth guitars

[@ZazaManJacky]

Im with the guy above me, you should do a custom warmoth build this year! It’ll be a nice change of pace.

[@PinHead-1337]

gibson needs to make an rd again

[@themostswood4709]

I just want an Epiphone Lee Malia RD

[@STORMBREAKER_250]

Make a proper RD with the Moog electronics and 25.5 scale length!

[@Tcflohr]

They definitely need the original scale length. No point in another mahogany guitar with the same scale length and just a different shape.

[@WolvesofHades]

@@STORMBREAKER_250unfortunately the moog electronics were quite useless imo (had them removed from my RD, like most RD owners did at some point) but the shape is so killer, and they play really nice, both the guitars and basses :) they’re definetly way too underrated & deserve a proper reissue

[@ChiefSpartan1]

The best you are going to get is a Hagstrom ghost signature

[@styrenebuilds6851]

I don't think the Epiphone Greeny was made to appeal to a bunch of little kids who can't afford a $1500 guitar . I think it was geared toward more middle aged guys who have known about Greeny for the past 40 years and could give care less about Kirk .

[@martyshwaartz971]

it probably sold better than people think too

[@VicLabs]

Middle age guys grew up with Kirk Hammett. You’re thinking of the elderly.

[@Augrills]

I think it’s targeted at an English audience. English people like Epiphones a lot. Like semi-hollow bodies and Coronets. It’s a lot more common in pop music, the brand. Think of how popular Green Day is in America - that’s how popular the Libertines are in England, and they play Epiphone. Peter Greene is also a much more popular musician in England, and most people prefer his version of Fleetwood Mac in that country cause it was more of an English thing, not so Americanized. The electric guitar is very popular in that market still and Greeny is something that appeals to both boomers and millennials in that country where it might just appeal to boomers in America.

[@xboxgamerz777]

The Epiphone “Kirk Hammett Signature” greeny? I’m a huge Peter Green fanboy, but I don’t think they would’ve sold half as many as they did if Kirk didn’t buy it in the last few years, plus with that whole Stranger Things resurgence of Metallica, everybody’s drooling over Kirks pentatonic boxes and wah these days… I just think it’s a bit of a shame the reissues are being shoved down our throats

[@bassyey]

But those middle-aged to boomer would be against shitty Epiphones because it's made by Asians.

[@ZazaManJacky]

I love when agufish fills us all up with the biggest bust ☺️

[@marcoalexanderwinthermikke9132]

Dude... Why am i sweating all of a sudden?!

[@xamislimelight8965]

The pfp takes this comment to the next level.

[@VEV-cu6no]

Huh?

[@toshiba_g]

oh okay

[@petermoss208]

Really love your custom shop ESP 🙏. you deserve to have a special guitar that fits your taste and isn’t just a random custom/boutique luthier but an actual custom shop commission from one of the legacy brands. whether it’s D’Angelico or Washburn or Ibanez. I think people underestimate how special they are because they cost so much. but it’s special when people who have super secure jobs and resources behind them get to make special guitars. i’m trying to hunt down some masterbuilt pieces that were made recently and the people who bought them. they almost become paintings themselves, figuratively not literally. mine are more for my personal collection rather than assets, that’s one thing people have to realize, they don’t go up in value like vintage guitars do. enjoy and don’t ever sell it. and thanks for saying what you always do about Japanese guitars. people don’t realize, the quality is on par with American made, all era. the only thing that’s sub par are the electronics, but all modern electronics are subpar to vintage american pickups, regardless of country. EVEN Yamaha and Ibanez have their import guitars made outside of Japan, that should tell you something…

[@Barry101er]

I love that you mention Heritage!

[@ericventimiglia6482]

When watching your videos, my fiance and I try to guess the minute mark as to when you will say "WE MOVE ". today I won.

[@IDGAF_PLUS]

Have a happy new year and thanks for all the fantastic content! Can't wait to see what's next!

[@brandonlam1477]

I took a shot every time you said honorable mention. I am now in fact deceased. 😂

[@TVsBen]

love the hair man

[@agufish]

I am so done with 2023, man lol

[@denverrandy7143]

​@@agufishThat list is Legit!!! Gorgeous guitars my friend. Happy new year.Have a blessed year brother.👍

[@frankenstein4106]

The SE McCarty 594 is a damn great guitar for the money!

[@aquatichighs]

Prs is for mommy’s boys.

[@morlun838]

​@@aquatichighs mugs in pfps are for empty headed mugs

[@nicopoppe4838]

For the same money you could get a gibson tribute with better wood and hardware...

[@anthonydavella8350]

@nicopoppe4838 the nut on both are probably terrible

[@nicopoppe4838]

@anthonydavella8350 I tested both on a shop in a road trip in Holland, 1100 euros for a 3 piece meranti body it's a scam... a SG for 1200 had 1 piece mahogany body... the prs se it's just as good as a modded harley benton with better hardware in my opinion.

[@whyuyellinginmyear3476]

Can things get any better in 2024? Happy New Year!

[@Prototyp23]

signature... now next year... any narrower estimates?

[@denverrandy7143]

Yea,that splatter ESP is freaking beautiful.!!!

[@DBSG1976]

I love your gear rack!

[@spidgeb3292]

I like the ESP purple, but the gold splatter is wood-inducing

[@RubyRoks]

12:34 Mentioned it in the dedicated video, but that's not VGA, that's 9 pin D-Sub which is usually used for Pre-USB Serial devices

[@marcoalexanderwinthermikke9132]

When you say "hopefully next year" does that mean next december or sometime at the start of the new year? 😊 My student is drooling on your new Harley Benton Signatures Sandblasted and cant wait to order one. 😊🎸 Happy New Years from Denmark 🇩🇰🎆🎇

[@Superjet113]

The Engl Special Founders Edition head is so sick. Love my Ironball! Nice review Hunter, Thank you!

[@magicman12b]

Just bought a D’Angelico Bedford and it’s an amazing guitar. People should not dismiss this brand, they are surprisingly well made, good electronics and at a great price point. D’Angelico uses a modern “C’” shape neck with a 14 inch radius and it’s surprisingly smooth and easy to play.

[@Notbrianmiller]

Hopefully BC Rich will come up on your channel soon. I’d love to hear what you think of them.

[@Broccoli_Highkicks]

It'll just be some form of "I don't like pointy guitars". Imo, new BC Riches are too expensive, and too tacky and gaudy with the excessive abalone binding on many models. A BC Rich oughta look like it could gut a mf, not like a reject from the Liberace collection 🙄

[@simonp9471]

​@@Broccoli_Highkicks I agree that the new ones are kinda gaudy. Very lucky I found a Chuck Stealth Tribute earlier this year. That's the only BC Rich I'll ever want or need. It exclusively lives in D standard for Death covers 😎

[@zax3]

I just recently got Mark Holcombs 2023 SE PRS and I’m getting used to the 20 inch radius. It’s not to bad after getting kinda used to it. It’s a hell of a guitar for the price.

[@patriknessboLemoran]

Honorable mention! MESSENGERS by James Hetfield

[@michaelr.4878]

Without being able to personally try out each of the guitars on the 'Best Of' list, without a doubt, i would chose the Heritage. I base that on not only the looks and specs, but you know what to expect. Nothing beats a good LP. If I was to design what i consider to be a perfect guitar, I would put together a weight relieved LP with no neck binding and a headstock that had the tuner holes placed in the PRS 3×3 style. It would still have the Gibson headstock and angle..but i.d put the tuners where PRS put them on their guitars for the pretty much straight string pull.

[@kapellekonig6512]

Since you loved the PRS SE so much: Have you ever tried a Fame Forum? Fame is to Music Store Cologne, what Harley Benton is to Thomann. However the Forum Series is PRS rip off, that is handcrafted in Europe by Mayones (boutique custom guitars) exclusively for Music Store Cologne. They have the carve, the thick mahogany bodies, SD Pickups and everything you'd expect from real PRS. They come in at around 1000€. Really interesting stuff!

[@davidfredriksson2279]

I ordered a PRS SC 594 a few days ago, in faded blue as well. Almost can't wait for it to arrive, especially after watching this video!

[@ravnag]

@agufish: how's it going? Long shot but I saw you play the Ibanez prestige rg5121 (burgundy one with Fishman moderns on it) with fender tone master pro. I was thinking of buying that very Ibanez model and wanted to know what you think of that guitar. Browsed through your channel but couldn't find a video review. I currently have the rg5170 prestige that I absolutely love and wanted a similar guitar with a fixed bridge on it. Bought an axion label with a weird name I can't remember cause I had to return it due to many QC issues I found. Parts of the guitar started falling off, literally so I wouldn't trust Ibanez with anything other than the prestige series. Would be great if you could let me know the pros and cons of the rg5121 which I've seen you play in a few videos. Cheers, Rav

[@djcrouton2680]

With the push-pull to go to a set tone state, can you modify that? Like a trim on the inside of the pot or something? If you're using a different signal chain, the tone roll-off characteristics are going to change so that doesn't seem very useful to have. If you can change the set-point of the pull function, then it's a cool idea.

[@richie_b-1234]

Hey Hunter! Regarding the 27 fret fingerboard extension, I saw that as early as 1988 on the Hamer Californian. Also had the hum/single configuration and came in a few different trim levels. Be well!!!

[@rogershore7189]

Washburn had the EC series at about that time too, which came in 26, 29 and 36 fret variants

[@scramblesthedeathdealer]

​@@rogershore7189 The highest 12 frets on the 36 fret are so tiny! I'd love to try one someday.

[@FenderMarko47]

I love that ESP! Crazy cool polarising guitar bro, thanks for the excellent content this year and all the best for the next one sir.

[@jardstenmark5005]

Still waiting for you to try a Hagstrom guitar 😉

[@AtariForeva]

At 5:18 also a LTD MH-327, I'm a proud owner of this axe that was made only for a couple of years. 27 frets, slanted hot rail Seymour Duncan in the neck and custom 5 in bridge positions and a FR Special.

[@shawn3334]

Tried the Mcarty based on your impressions, neck is hella fat for me but other than that it was ok. Really wanted to buy an SE because of the discount, nothing vibed with me unfortunately.

[@thomask9577]

I totally agree. The guitar looked great and sounded great, but I just can’t handle a neck that fat.

[@BelugaTheHutt]

5:27 I'm not 100% certain about this, but I don't think that Jackson was the first to implement extended fretboards with a slanted single-coil in the neck position. I know that Washburn had been doing that for a while at the time Jackson came out with those models. In Washburn's case, they had 29-fret instruments, rather than just the measly 27 frets of Jackson and Ibanez. Similarly, Ibanez also released a slightly reminiscent limited-release 30-fret model around 2010, though it used a bridge and middle position pickup set, rather than a slanted neck pickup. The selector switch would activate a circuit when flipped to the neck position which would make the tone sound more "necky", though I'm not sure exactly how well that actually worked. The Washburn models, in spite of their reasonably innovative feature sets, weren't always of necessarily the highest quality, so I can see why they didn't stay on the market. I owned one for a few years, and I greatly appreciated the additional options, as well as the overall feel of the instrument. However, it had a lot of little details which bothered me and didn't exactly scream QUALITY.

[@drfathertime]

Hey I coined the term Demonic disco! XDDDDDDDD

[@orokusaki7595]

Hunter why do you like single cuts so much? I do too bro..I was 18 in 2004 and Zakk was killing it with BLS and inspired me to become an enthusiast Great content and video as usual. Lmk your LP story please

[@guitarz]

Ok long time subscriber but seriously your content is what I follow. Your year ends are by far the best. Chug on brother

[@buckbreaker5185]

I thought reliced guitars were stupid until i chipped my prestige and immediately lost 15% in value.

[@buckbreaker5185]

@wind016 have fun trying to prove what I damaged vs what came out of the factory LMAO

[@buckbreaker5185]

cope@wind016

[@seusicha]

What is this Black Les Paul-ish guitar behind behind him in the video? Looks like a Harley benton but I cant read the headstock

[@TommyGunzzz]

Anyone else waiting for the PRS Dustin SE someday in the future. We can dream....

[@themirvge]

Biggest BUST ooh… gave me chills

[@zacharysmithingell5460]

Kitty cat hanging with the Hammett monster, I can dig it. Excellent roundup. I watched your stuff a ton this year and am looking forward to what's coming along in 24. Happy New Year, dude!

[@anthonyzanze5946]

We all grew up on Epiphone Les Paul's! Finally the open book head stock! I'm getting one!!!😮😊

[@denverrandy7143]

Mmm gear sausages!!!👍

[@WhoAmIWill]

38:10, this Mark Holcomb has Scarlet Scourge pickups, not alpha omega. That was the one change from his old model other than color.

[@aneeshmenon5885]

Hey dumb question which is the song being played @10:28

[@lukasmotzing5379]

Hey you mentioned the epi gelotte joton💪❤️❤️❤️, give that as a recommend to your epi contact, we need that bottle opener back😂 btw. Good resume👍 have a good start 2024 with you loved ones 🤘

[@ratt669]

Any 7 string? What about the Vola?

[@agufish]

Ahhh somehow I forgot about that and the Victory Super Kraken 🤦‍♂️ Big recommend for both, if you want something super high quality and out of the ordinary.

[@Jeff-v2c]

Forgive my ignorance or if I missed it, but what is the guitar on the stand right behind you to your right in the video?

[@chato_bajo666]

Thoughts on the 2022 epiphone LP classic?

[@cosmocalypse3708]

Can we get a Gear Sausage merch shirt??

[@LewisShieldsUS]

Comb?

[@smeemusic]

Hunter, when we getting that EVH video bro? Did I miss it or is it still in the works??

[@agufish]

Being edited as we speak!

[@smeemusic]

@@agufish awwwwweee shiz yeah!!!!

[@alexh3153]

Hey man, you might not be the best player but neither am I, your are one of my favorite channels and it’s just because I relate to you so much, thanks for the good work this year, wish you lived in New England I’d find you and buy you a beer, and let you check out my Les Paul’s! Keep up the good work

[@GregMerritt-ws8tq]

If anybody's looking to grab a Relish guitar wants to pull the trigger now. Guitars going for a couple grand are now priced at 600/800ish for the fire sale.

[@chadbyford2680]

37:29 man you are one of the most humble guitar players ever.... A lot are arrogant pricks are guitarist lol. Im super ultra nerd 9000 so i get it bro, thanks for the videos! I hope im half the guitarist you are some day.

[@adamplaza3935]

Guitar of the year (at least for me) is my new Schecter Sunset Ghost 👻. Looks🔥 and holy ‚chug chug‘ it plays so great 🥰🥰. Dunno what’s with the 7 string scarlet version. But I totally can recommend the ghost one 🤘🤘

[@rishiraj1205]

Beautiful guitar: PRS 10 top?

[@levig8236]

So do you go out and buy each of the guitars that you highlight playing in your office, or do these companies send them to you to try out and highlight then get sent back? I'm curious how this works when you get to your level of a following on this platform.

[@tomaslopez2940]

Nice compilation. Think you can do a comparison of the Squier Contemporary Stratocaster Special to the Schecter MV-6 when you get them?

[@andrewbecker3700]

For me this year in order, Epiphone Adam Jones LesPaul Custom antique silverburst with Frazetta "The Berserker" custom art. P.R.S. MT15 6L6 loaded 2018 model. P.R.S. SE McCarty .594 singlecut standard in vintage cherry. Harley Benton G212plus Creamback loaded 2x12 cab. MXR Smartgate. And last but not least I'm waiting on a Yamaha Revstar Element in black. It's getting the pickups from the AJ sig. and Gotoh magnum keystone locking tuners from my regular Epi LP custom silverburst. I have a vision for it. I'm calling it the DEATHSTAR!

[@thisguy2973]

I have played so many guitars in my 30 years of playing, and without a doubt, the Custom Core H150 I got last year is easily better than even my Music Man. It’s my favorite guitar out of all my guitars. The tuning stability is unparalleled and the feel in the hand is something special.

[@ibisrox1]

Ive got the 50 anniversary 68 Pre murphy from 2018 with first ebony boards since 2012 andd i agree its amazing and its light aged too

[@LewisCreamer]

Hunter, I've been a fan of yours for around 4 years now and can only ask a simple question; How the fuck were you able to call up Harley Benton and get your own models fitted to your own desired specs? I wish Harley Benton did a custom shop, I can imagine that plus at an affordable price compared to other brands when Harley can offer their own lineup with stainless steel frets, volutes behind the headstock, graph-tech nuts etc. The amount of ideas people could ask for instead of "Second mortgage, all for a Greeny Les Paul". Also personal opinion; it might have lot of history round it, not taking anything away from that...but it is also an overrated model and not worth that amount of coin.

[@Cpmnk]

When ya gonna check out haartwood guitars? As someone who loves modern specs, classic looks and great prices i think they would be great on this channel

[@bradrehn1007]

You may find the electronics of the Weir signature model of that D'Angelico of interest, quite unique.

[@kaekayyy2554]

So the mark holcomb gets a mention in biggest bust... Because it's built to artist's spec, does exactly what it is supposed to do and because you have a skill issue💀?

[@dragunovbushcraft152]

I've been playing for 45 years. I've never liked the sound of PRS guitars. My favorites were my "Frankenstrat", My Epiphone Genesis, My 1991 Jackson Pro Soloist. and my very old Melody maker. What's on my bucket list? I may build my own "Hello Kitty" guitar, and I want a pink paisley Stratocaster with Floyd Rose, or Kahler 700, with a scalloped fretboard. :^)

[@themostswood4709]

The new Holcomb pickups are the Scarlet Scourge set. The Alpha Omega are the old ones.

[@orokusaki7595]

Heafy too. I have 1st gen Epiphone and it’s like coming home when I pick it up. Hard to get into different models bcuz of the tone is so rich with or without electricity

[@kevin_lanthier]

Weird cut / part of the video missing at 34:36?

[@MSNGR415]

Charvels became my all time favorite guitars. Started on gibsons but haven’t really touched them since picking up a couple Charvels.

[@diegomercadoMX]

A bit of unrequested history, back in 2013 Ibanez had a 30 fret monstrosity with an equally monstrous name called "the Ibanez RG550XH Red Sparkle 30-Frets".

[@B_E_C_K]

Some people prefer a 20" radius. Also, do you work for Sweetwater?

[@ScreaminT81]

Great list of great guitars Hunter. That PRS McCarty is stunning, and I agree with your takes on the Greeny and the cost. The Gibson nods are no surprise here 🤣… that aside I love that purple eclipse. Man that’s gorgeous. That arrow from LTD for Kirk is by far the best model they have put out for him this year. Colors are kwirky (pun intended) and the bone breakers are pretty gnarly sounding! Great video, have a great new years and looking forward to your 2024 content

[@joshavery1829]

Your channel definitely opened my eyes to PRS for metal players. I currently have 3 PRS SE models, but plan on many more.

[@DenDenBMX]

Hunter I love ya, and I love epiphone too, but you gotta stop letting them use "inflation" as the scapegoat for blatant price-gouging, their little experiment of jacking their prices up past $1k with no noticable improvements in quality needs to fail, because if it doesn't we're gonna keep getting the same quality of guitars just more and more expensive every year. If epiphone wants to have ltd's 1000 series pricing then they need to have ltd's 1000 series quality, and right now that is definitely not the case. At the end of the day they're a business, they will exploit their fans if their fans let them, and greeny is a blatant example that they're trying to.

[@acevn-trulo5917]

I saw the src6ms in the background of the video and I was hopping you where gonna mention it even though not an electric guitar I knew you said you where thinking about something and watching you play it earlier this year made it a bucket list bass for me

[@ad_burner_sc]

Top video dude and spot on with your gear mentions across the board. Everything nailed 🔥🔥🔥

[@angelloretto]

Sad to see that Hunter did not reviewed or even looked over to the Schecter AM-6 and AM-7, the Aaron Marshall Signature, I got the AM-6 and it is amazing, to see Aaron get a signature from Schecter coming from Suhr, Aristides, Mayones and many other high end builders says something about Schecter’s oversea built quality.

[@Tunasub1993]

Thar esp is incredible! I know you arent into pointy guitars but i just got an ltd arrow-1000 deluxe and its INCREDIBLE. You need to check it out. Also theres an editing error around 34:40

[@ZeitlanKozan]

Great video!!!

[@leopaquer]

The silver jubilee is, in my opinion, the best Marshall amp. All the best Marshall tones i ever heard came from this thing. From John Frusciante to Slash or Slayer, this thing is a beast.

[@shanewalton8888]

Did someone forget to tell Harley Benton that Gold is for your 50th anniversary, not the 25th which is silver?

[@T4XE.]

9:33 those are scarlet and scourge set, alpha omega set was in the old holcomb sig.

[@BlackMarketIII]

Iconic Guitars has built a solid reputation and is considered among the top among players in the know.

[@xRaid3n]

Love your vids man, was really loooking forward to this!! And man, I love purple guitars, and ESPECIALLY ESPs, but I don't actually like the look of your custom man, I think it'd look cooler with black hardware instead of chrome IMO

[@joshpointoh]

Epiphone needs to bring back a proper Nighthawk, that guitar could be really popular if it gets in the right hands. In a KZbin world, the original one would have been hugely popular with reviewers and that could have changed its fate

[@TimPlaysRiffs]

Hey Hunter! You don’t know this, but you’re why I love single cuts! Thanks for being awesome!

[@redrocker1055]

Every time I see a blue PRS it reminds me of the Christina Aguilera Rolling Stone cover with her wearing a blue PRS. Then I need to be alone with my thoughts.

[@needsLITHIUM]

Epiphone's cheap Les Paul Special axes are great for mod builds, and if you get a good one - there are more good ones than bad ones - the tuners are of good enough quality where you won't need to swap them. Just pick between full stop tail or wrap around, and between P90 and humbucker, swap out the pickups or wiring to your liking, and chug/shred away.

[@fretr1pper618]

Hey man. I have a really sick 1 off eclipse for trade. Im sure you've already seen it on reverb, but lmk if you want to trade for that custom black beauty!

[@Jerry_Fried]

For the past four years or so, Gibson has deliberately been repositioning Epiphone away from being the “cheap Gibson,” and toward its earlier historical position as a high quality name in itself, so it shouldn’t come as a shock that certain models, with more to follow in the future, I’d wager, have a price commensurate with the quality that the brand is trying to represent. Whether it actually has that quality is a separate question, but the marketing philosophy remains.

[@Austin6611]

Caparison has been doing slanted single coils with 27 frets for years.

[@imyourutube]

Eclipse vs the Valiant Jupiter Mola?

[@kevinstoneburner8775]

I have to be honest with everyone comparing Relish to Parker... i never wanted a Relish but a Parker i did... maybe it's because i liked tantric but i think the design looks so much better

[@sydguitar99]

Tbf, the greeny is probably for older guys who couldn't afford the gibson Greeny so they settled for the Epiphone. Personally I don't think any young musicians have the same sentimental attachment to greeny as older people will so price somewhat makes sense

[@13superdude2]

Love your doggo next to the guitars

[@ScottVanwilzonn]

What happened to the giveaway?

[@Paul_Lenard_Ewing]

Relish had a great idea but for a short time they brought their own clone made of normal woods and no high tech and fixed PUs like 99.9% of all guitars have. It was not just better sounding it totally blew their regular guitar out of the water. The high tech Relish was like a Swiss watch that couldn't keep time.