Do people actually buy signature guitars and amps?

[Madiac]

I certainly wouldnt be tempted to buy any signature guitar for the fact that they are "signature", but if the guitar is all nice, then i could oversee that its a signature, so signature is really just a "minus" (even bigger turnoff if i dislike the guitarist). Buying something just because your favourite artist uses seems silly to me, but on the other hand, i do think i could consider some kind of Tony Iommi Signature, but big part because i love SGs, his SGs are pretty awesome looking, so, why not?

But then again, i have a nice Gothic Warpig SG made by Feline on its way which fills that spot  :grr: :guitar4: But it kinda depends on the features on it, if it has something really cool or unique i could be interested, like the Fender Yngwie Malmsteen signature that has a scalloped board all over, that would be fun to give a try, but wouldnt buy it just like that, i guess i might aswell get some other scalloped, but you get the point!
Usually sigs are way more expensive aswell, just because they are related to a famous artist  :non:

[Adam.M]

Crawlers and Rebel Yells are awesome...

[Andrew W]

I have a Charvel EVH guitar, the black and yellow striped one.  My reasoning for getting it was partly practical and partly nostalgic.  My practical reasons were I wanted a classic single humbucker super strat with an unfinished neck and I loved the profile of the neck on other EVH guitars I'd tried in shops.  I also wanted a Floyd Rose and have it set up flat against the body of the guitar - no routing out underneath it.  The Charvel fit that bill perfectly.

My nostalgic reason was that the bumblebee Charvel was the first guitar I remember seeing as a child and sticking in my mind as an instrument in its own right and so to have a chance to have something similar was not to be passed up.  I also bought it at a time whe the pound was so massively in our favour that it wasn't an expensive instrument regardless of whose name was or wasn't on the headstock. 

Now obviously I'd never gig the guitar (rather too much to live up to) but for home versions of the Van Halen classics it puts a grin on my face every time I pick it up and that's what I play the guitar for.

[nfe]

Anything with Dimebag or Wylde written on it sells by the bucketload.

Generally, if the player is someone who appears on the front cover of Kerrang with any regularity and their signature stuff is priced in the reach of the youngsters that most often buy that mag, then they'll do well. The Schecter Avenged Sevenfold stuff, for instance.

[bucketshred]

I had an Ibanez PGM just because I thought it looked quirky.

Dunlop Slash wah for the built in boost (pile of shite)

EVH Phaser just cos it was striped and someone else was paying lol

[Simon D]

I have a US PRS Tremonti II, but I would have bought it irrespective of whether or not it had his name on the headstock (trussrod cover to be accurate, which is of course removable). I bought it because it sounded great (to me) and played really well (for me).

I'm also currently looking at getting a Jim Root Tele - again, nothing to do with the name on it - I'm after a mahogany bodied guitar with a quick neck, no frills and 2 humbuckers. If they still made the Flathead Teles, I'd likely be going for one of those.

I will, of course, admit to liking the playing of both the guitarists I've mentioned. However, I love Joe Bonamassa's playing too, but I wouldn't buy one of his sig LPs because there's too much about it that doesn't suit me, and I think (purely personal opinion) that it's a bit pricey.  :)

[headtheball]

I had a US VooDoo Strat, not because of any Hendrix fanboi-ism, but because it was a great snarling beast of a thing. Damn the bloody rent bill that had me sell it, too.

[murraymurray]

ive got a jackson jj1 - scott ian sig. not really a big name compared to dimebag or EVH, so people dont even know its a signature model.
im a big anthrax and SOD fan, but thats not my reason for buying, saw it in a shop used for a steal so picked it up and it was extrememly nice to play. a couple of years later the other guitarist in my band bought one, so now i dont use mine as much live cos we'd look like a couple of eggs playing identical guitars.

[FELINEGUITARS]

I did once - one just like this

[38thBeatle]

If it is decent gear then I wouldn't let someone else's signature on it put me off but I don't go out looking for such stuff.

[ChunkyMunky]

I used to own a Reb Beach and a Paul Gilbert series Ibanez.

I'd love to have had a Koa Reb Beach model. Really nice guitars.

I would've if it didn't have EMGs. Still, trying to find one to test out is a mean feat!

[Alex]

I would get one if it appeals to me.

I really liked the ESP/LTD Alexi Laiho in pink, but the price tag IMO was too high in the shop I saw it.

But I would never buy a JEM or JS or Zakk Wylde sig really, since everybody would kind of expect you to play something from them or at least in the style. Plus, how hard is it to put EMGs into a LesPaul? ;-)

That said I have a George Lynch baritone signature. I actually downloaded George Lynch songs just to know whose guitar I was buying (and ended up buying the Lynchmob Revolution album). There just wasn't any similar guitar anywhere available.

I also have a 5150 (which I don't consider a signature amp, a sig Van Halen amp would always be a Marshall to me), a Dunlop Crybaby from Hell, a George Lynch Morley Wah and an EVH Phaser.

In a way you can't avoid this endorsement cr@p going on today - it's just everywhere. I really want a Zakk Wylde Overdrive and the Slash Wah, haha.

[murraymurray]

Theres definately a few different tiers of sig stuff
theres the cheap kerry king stuff aimed at 14 year old fanboys who cant play, then theres the expensive as stuff like that yngwie strat for 8k, aimed at the 40 year old fan boys who dont play anymore.
but then some stuff is actually pretty good, i would prefer things that arent an obvious signature range, since yeah like a ZW,Dime, EVH or JEM, its a bit too full on, just totally linked to that player, whenever i see horrible metal bands rocking dean ml lightning bolts i feel ashamed for living in the same town as those people.
if it was a great guitar that was a sig model of someone i couldnt stand i probably wouldnt go near it. but have no problem with mine since a lot of people dont know scott ian, or wouldnt ever link his sig guitar to him without actually knowing
and yeah, got a 5150 which i dont consider a signature amp, even though my one has the sig on the front.

[Nolly]

I have an Ibby PGM, mainly because I wanted a fixed bridge RG with a maple board. Other aesthetic bonuses as far as I'm concerned are: the volume knob placement (hate having knobs and switches in the way of my picking hand), the extremely comfortable neck, and the looks.
The fact that I like Paul Gilbert didn't really play any major role in the decision process, but it would have been a much harder purchase to justify to myself if it was the signature model of a player I disliked.

I also considered getting Jim Root tele for a fair while, purely on the basis of the specs. Still think they're very cool guitars actually, though the volume knob placement is a deal-breaker for me..

[Dmoney]

yo!
Id say, when some signature stuff is just about looks and the benefit of it is just to emulate whoever than i dont see that much of a point. ive sold old SG's to guys who play in AC/DC cover bands, but in that situation i guess you're trying to find someone elses tone rather than your own.

I owned a 6505, which technically isnt a sig amp at all! but yeah, enough people use 5150's that you forget its history. the 5150mkIII on the other hand is a bit different.

I use a Dimebag sig Crybaby from hell. simply because it has the LED status lights at the heal, so you can tell when its on, and the Q select, and varible forward and back sweep with variable gain if i want it. super versatile. I do like Pantera but if a wanted a wah that did the same things and i didnt want the CFH logo on the skateboard grip tape or the camo finish id probably struggle.