A Guitar Rig under $1000

Line 6 PodXT
Pedalboard

Putting together a guitar rig with a $1,000 to spend gives plenty of wiggle room for building a variety of sounds, enhancing performance possibilities, and mimicking the tones of your favourite players. It's still a very minimal amount to spend comparatively to gigging players in the local or international scene.  A typical experienced or pro player can have $5,000 to $100,000 tied up in guitars, amps, pedals and accessories, but you can still more than meet your needs for a $1,000. It's a good place to start.

Gibson les Paul Studio

American
Fender Strat

If I, personally, had only $1,000 in my budget for a guitar rig and knowing what I know as long time player and the basic needs I have for the gigs I play, I would gravitate towards getting either a used American-Made Fender Stratocaster or a used Gibson Les Paul Studio for around $800 and add to it a used Line 6 Pod at approximately $125 and a planet waves cable at $40 and a Levi strap at $30.

Line 6 PodXT 

Most of my budget would go into the guitar portion of the rig            and the Line 6 Pod is a versatile multi-amp/multi-effect unit that will cover just   about any style and plug straight into a PA or another amp. Having a good, tonally rich professional guitar is definitely the most important part of any rig. If I have a great guitar, I can feel confident plugging into a tonne of different qualities of amps and pedals and achieving a good tone.

Whatever direction your shopping takes you try to keep the quality of components high and the quantity of parts to a minimum. Remember the guitar is the most important part, and the rest of your rig can start small and grow over time.

Putting Together a Guitar Rig under $500

Sometimes the budget we have to spend on an electric guitar rig is limited. We might be a beginner just trying things out or maybe we have auditioned for a band, made it in as a guitarist, and need a rig to do the job well. A rig refers to the whole package of equipment we use as guitarists. It's the combination of guitars, pedals, cables, amps and any other accessories we might need for the role we play in a band. This blog will concentrate of keeping the overall price tag under $500.

Note: Stay away from the guitar/amp bundles in one box and from buying at Costco.


Setup #1 - Store bought

Yamaha Pacifica guitar - $290
Line 6 Spider 4 amp - $150
Guitar strap and cable - $15 - $20

Setup #2 - Store bought

Fender Squire guitar - $200
Fender Mustang 2 amp - $250
Guitar strap and cable - $15 - $20


Setup #3 - Store bought

Epiphone Les Paul Special 2 - $230
Vox VT20 Plus - $230
Guitar strap and cable - $15 - $20


Mix and match from the lists above and compare by plugging in and making some noise at your local music store.

If your inclined to buy used gear off Craiglist you can usually get everything you need for about half the price of new guitar gear. You also might be able add some pedals or effects to your rig if you save money by buying used equipment. Try to enlist the help of another more experienced guitar shopper and have some patience until the right piece of gear appears at the right price.