I'm currently playing with my first and only guitar... a horrible metal guitar that I bought hastily before I knew anything about guitars.

I've heard that Telecasters and Stratocasters are the best for playing funk guitar to get that clean, precise sound. Can anyone recommend a reliable and reasonably priced model?

Also, what gauge strings should you use?
[Edited 7/30/07 11:48am]

MattyJam said:

i recently purchased a fender mexican 50s stratocaster in baby blue,
its a great looker, i have since done a little work to it i got a refret as i prefert chunker frets, and i put tex mex pickups in it (stevie ray vaughn style, but i may put a strat size humbucker in the bridge )

Im required to play various styles so im not strickly a funk only guitarist, but id say any mexican strats should see you well and not break the bank, i just prefer the 50s one for the shape of the neck and the look of the guitars,
hope this helps you some how!

and oh yeah! i use 11 gauge strings as it gives me a chunker sound, and it gives a lot more pop in the lower strings which i think sounds good for funk!
[Edited 7/30/07 18:46pm]

Just my opinion, but single coils produce the best funk rhythm guitar tones. The 2 and 4 switch positions on a Strat are instant Funk.

stim said:

What gauge?

What i would do is roam the streets for pawn shops and try to find ytourself a strat or tele for 50 bucks.
no more than that...
than customize the shit out of it...
Add 2 single coil Jb 2 and and 1 seymoure duncan vintage,
For strings use Martins electric, i use 9's, gives me a nice flinty sound for funk
and then you can switch easy to solo mode...

If you want it tos ound like a monster?
add a Humbucker on teh bridge...
I added a Vai Humbucker to my cheap Satin mexi strat...
2 vintage duncan pick ups.
And that bitch howls!
And the funk tones have a little bit of bite to it.
I mean cott dayum...
its the main axe i wield, whenever i do gigs i always get compliments from musicians about the tone

but yah go cheap bro...
And just customize it...
hey it's what prince did... lol

MattyJam said:

Oops, sorry. I use 9s.

I agree with EmbattledWarrior about customizing a cheapie guitar - it can yield good results and give you a unique instrument. I have an SX ash Tele that I stuck some GFS pickups in. Also changed the nut and bridge saddles for Graphtech ones. Love the thing. Dirt cheap guitar and pickups but it sounds aaalright to me.
Depends if you want to spend your time brushing up your playing technique or getting busy with some wiring schematics and a soldering iron

stim said:

True, but, sadly, they are a cliche now.

Instead, go for the Sly Stone funk recipe. Bridge pickup, single coil. The twangier the better.

But different TYPES of funk guitar go for different pickups. Lower down the neck with chords (think "Controversy") go for the neck. For single note funk (Ohio Players or Sly Stone) go for more bridge. Basically, the older you want your funk to sound, the closer to the bridge you go. 80s funk is both pickups on a Tele or Semi-hollowbody, or yes the out of phase (2 and 4) on a Strat.

Unfortunately, as soon as word got out that the 2 and 4 pickup selections made instant funk, that sound dominated the cheez 80s dance market.

If I do two tracks of guitars for the funk, I'll do one with fat chunky chords and then one with single lines. (http://www.myspace.com/funkmusician check the first song - the guitar that follows the bass line is the bridge, the chunky chords are both pickups on my semi hollowbody).

beauhall said:

listen to Beau
My funk skills vastly improved with Beau's great advice...
BTW Beau whats up with the podcast's?

I'm thinking about going to video casts since I'm constantly describing the shapes of the chords and stuff. I just gotta figure out how to do that. Oh yeah and find the time.

beauhall said:

Hmm, cheezy 80s dance, eh? If I'm in the right mood, I love me a bit of Shakatak.

Seriously though, thanks for the pointers. I'm gonna have to experiment with these.

I really appreciated the first podcast too, btw. Howzabout sticking some video tutorials up on YouTube?

Ummm.... Can you explain that again in laymens terms???

Fiona01 said:

neck pickup: bass/boomy/fat guitar sound.
bridge pickup: thin/twangy/shrill sound.

However, run it through your bridge pickup and then add compression and pump the bass, and you've got something closer to Prince's Controversy/1999 funky guitar tone (altho I think he mostly used the middle position on the telecaster which is the Official Tone Of Funk Guitar(tm))

What do you want me to explain more of? My referencing different eras of funk, or what do I mean by lower down the neck, or what?

beauhall said:

I love that Controversy/1999 style of funk guitar playing and have long tried to create that sound myself.

Would you recommend a telecaster or a stratocaster for that kind of sound?

How do I go about getting that "neck" sound? Is it to do with my amp or my guitar?
[Edited 8/6/07 2:44am]

Fiona01 said:

DEFINITELY a telecaster. "neck" sound is the neck pickup. If there's more than one pickup on your guitar, the one closest to the neck is the neck pickup, the one farthest away is the bridge pickup, because it's closest to the bridge.

American Tele, med gauge "Blue Steel" strings (this is completley subjective though)