buying an electric guitar abroad

hey guys, ive been guitar searching, reading reviews, things to look out for before buying an electric guitar(this being my first one), this site and a few other forums have been really useful in shortlisting a couple of em. my budget being around Rs.20000 i had finalised the Epiphone LP 100 and Greg Bennett Avion AV3 and i had totally made up my mind about the av3.
what i really wanted was an Epiphone LP Standard or Studio, but they were way out of my budget ( 38k for Std and 27k for the studio, on furtados ) then i thought about my friend being in the US and since he was returning back this jan i thought i can just ask him to get a guitar for me from there, coz i thought that the US Epiphones will be built in the US and so better make than the chinese ones that we get ( later i got to know that all Epiphones are made in China now ) so while goin through some sites, guitarcentre.com, and a few more that i got by googling around. i found a huge price difference, LP Standard was for just 20k and LP Studio 17k (also the LP 100 was just 14k, couldnt find any samick or GB guitars there) there was a 10k price difference for the Studio and 18k for the Standard !
Now that made me totally forget about the lp 100 and the av3 and ive decided on a Epiphone LP Studio Goth or the Epiphone LP Standard Ebony (even the Epiphone Limited Edition 1966 G-400 is for around 17k !).

Now here lies my dilemma, is it wise to buy a guitar without checking how it sounds ? ive played the Lp Std here and its exactly the way i want my guitar to sound, i can check the Studio later, but still its a risk, coz i wouldnt know the guitar i would be getting will have the same quality. But considering such a huge price difference is it worth risking it??

hope you guys can help me out..

 

this is your question and your answer dude
not wise at all
i would never buy a guitar without playing it first
not even playing a different guitar of same model...

 

It is a risk, but if you buy from a reputed dealer, there should not be too much of a problem.
i personally have bought a guitar off musicians friend, and had no issues with it.i have also bought a guitar off e-bay, which even though, it was delivered in perfect condition, i don't recommend, as there is a higher risk.
The question is are you sure you want the specific make of guitar? If you are then I don't think you should have much of a problem, as the only real difference will be how well the guitar is set up.
It would be even better if your friend could go to the store and buy it for you, as he could inspect if there are any scratches, no broken parts, and maybe he can even ask the the salesman to play it for him, just to make sure it sounds okay.

 

yeah, i wouldve said the same thing, but ive asked in a lot of forums about this and i got around 7 - 8 replies saying that they had ordered their guitars and they all were in mint condition, that too epiphone LP guitars ( from sites like nevada.co.uk and thomann.de for europe ). and i couldve ordered it directly to india, but the shipping charges are an additional Rs3500 (in thomann.de).

its good to see that there are people who have actually ordered online ! im pretty much sure i want the Epi LP Studio, and since all the Epi guitars are made in china now, im guessing there wont be much of a difference in the quality. this guy on lespaulforums.com suggested thomann.de which is a very reputable site, apparently, i read a few mixed reviews about it, but mostly the complains were about late delivery (2-3days late), there were no complaints about the product being damaged or anything, and that guy told me that the site has a very good returns policy, which i still have to read and a good contact service and the usual parcel tracking system and sms alerts.
i still have a month and a half to wait for my friend so i can think about it some more.
waise i checked out ebay for guitars, but i dont trust it somehow.
i know that it would be better for my friend to go n check in a store and ask some guy to play for him and all, but he wouldnt know anything about the guitar. and he has a pretty hectic schedule so the thing that hes getting my guitar to india is more than enough for me. so ordering is the best way.
do you know anything about the guitar prices in dubai. coz il be goin to the shopping festival this jan-feb. i checked a site but the prices were same as in india. any idea if the prices drop during the festival ?

 

if you love lp's so much ask your friend to get a les paul made by agile dont remember the model no though it blows away the epiphone there are several vids comparing the two it costs 400$
and all epi's are made in china

 

its agile al 3100

 

Epiphone Les Paul or Agile 3100? - My Les Paul Forums

 

thanks for the link, saw the reviews for agile, theyre pretty good and it seems like a better deal than the Epi. il check some more reviews and decide.
anyways, theres a glitch here in ordering from outside, now from what i know, anything u buy below rs. 25000 and for personal use u dont need to pay any customs duty on it. now what this link CHAPTER 92 : Musical instruments; parts and accessories of such articles, Section - 18 :, Custom Duty, Licensing Regulations, Customs Act, Custom House Licence, Indian Customs Duty (92.07) is saying is that you need to pay 35% of duty on any musical instruments that are electrically amplified.
does anybody know anything about this ? shalim did you have any problems with the VAT or customs duty ?

 

if someone carries the guitar in a softcase and hangs it on thier back they wont be asked to pay any duties i know many people who have done that and agile is not available locally btw your cousin will have to place the order on rondosmusic.com
with a credit card

 

thanks, if thats the case then its great. btw have u ever ordered online ?

 

i havent brought anything from rondos music but i know a guy who brought an agile interceptor pro 727 a 42k guitar and ended paying about 25k as customs because he odered it from india
however i also know a guy who had asked his father to bring a agile septor 828 from u.s his dad odered it from u.s and brought it along with him on his back and paid........drumrolls please....














nothing as customs

 

I bought my Fender from from US. And came out of the airport at Mumbai from the green channel....that too confidently(i was shit scared to get caught)...luckily no one caught me or asked me anything bout it. I was saved...Even if they do u just hav to confidently tell them its ur personal stuff..

Well if u r ordering online i am sure u will end up paying Customs which is approx 37%. But if some friend or relative of urs carries it along as a personal item then it shudnt be an issue at all. But dont forget to remove the price tags..

 

Ohh by the way i carried my Fender in a Hard Fender Case. Because if they dont allow you to take it along with u as a carry on Luggage then u will have to check in the Soft bag and that might damage ur guitar.

"FRAGILE" stickers help a lot. Atleast they wont manhandle ur stuff....

 

hope it works out for me too.. and i guess since the guitar + hard travel case is less than rs25000 it shouldnt technically create any problems at the customs. thanks mate, just hope everything goes well.

 

never ever ever check your guitar as a luggage even with the hardcase you will end up with a broken guitar order it with the softcase ask the person who is bringing it to carry it on his back and place in the avobe his seat also tell him to keep an eye on it just in case...

 

hmmmm.. are you sure, isnt the hard case to protect the guitar while travelling ??

 

nope only an atx case can and atx cases cost a bomb

 

My guitar came out scratchless..Infact even the case came out without any dents or scratches...LOL FRAGILE sticker helped

Moreover its pretty strict out there...So make sure if u r carrying the guitar with u as a carry on luggage then remove all the strings and check in the strings with other luggage

 

i guess 4-5 fragile stickers will help, many ppl have suggested just loosening the strings.. lets see ! 1 1/2 month still to go !

 

Yes loosenin of the strings definitely help coz strings already add tons of tension on the guitar neck and in such situation if the case falls or gets a hard jerk the neck might just crack or snap from the body..

Make sure the following when u check in the guitar in a hard case :-
1) Use proper spunge or air bubble bag(dont know what its called) and cover ur guitar entirely with it...Put in lot of moisture absorbing silicon gel packets inside...

2) Once u lock the hard case with guitar in it try shaking the case and see if there are any gaps or if the guitar is moving inside..if yes then fill in those gaps..so even if the case falls the guitar stays intact....

Also make sure once u get ur guitar home...open it up and clean all the moisture from it...Not just from the body but unscrew the backplate and the front if any and clean up the electronic parts this will prevent the electronic parts from rusting....