Top 5 Best Metal Guitar – Reviews & Buyer’s Guide
Do you think about the best metal guitar? If you are, then you probably know right now that choosing a good electric guitar for this genre is not a walk in the park. Contrary to popular belief, the metal genre is pretty intricate.
You cannot play songs or pieces that are under this category just because you have a strong amp and distortion pedal.
Although these accessories are essential, the main arsenal for the metal genre will always be your guitar. Of course, this statement is also true to other types of musical genre as well. Choosing the right guitar will always make the cut.
In this article, we will show you some of the best metal guitars that are available on the market today. We will also give you a detailed buying guide on how to choose an ideal electric guitar for metal. So what are we waiting for? Read on!
5 Of The Best Metal Guitars 2021
Image | Product Name | Score | |
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In the realm of metal, ESP is a guaranteed kingdom. It is a guitar brand that already produced myriads of electric guitars for different genres.
However, most of their guitars excel at metal. Their ESP LTD EC-256 has a classic look and sleek appeal. It has components that certify its capacity to bring every metal sound that you want!
The price and performance of the ESP LTD EC-256 are in harmony. It doesn't cost too much, but its quality is indeed reverberating.
As we mentioned, it doesn't have an appearance of a medieval weapon. But it should not fool you. The sound it can produce is bright and thick, which are perfect for shredding sounds!
The origin of the EC-256 is the ESP Eclipse. However, this one, together with the EC-1000, is both expensive. If you have the capacity to buy them, then go.
But if not, EC-256 is the right choice for you. This particular guitar is the little brother of those expensive ESP metal guitars. It can still offer you a look of perks, even if you have a budget limit.
Pros:
- Body and other components are made of mahogany
- Resonance is full and highly distinct
- Easy to tune and has a stable performance
- The next best thing to Les Paul guitars
- Amazing aesthetics
Cons:
- Limited features compared to the EC-1000 and ESP Eclipse
- Needs a little adjustment to regulate the action of the strings
Any metal guitarist would recommend the Gibson Les Paul as an ideal guitar for this sophisticated genre. From its appearance, you can tell already that it is for conquering the world of metal.
It has a simple aesthetics, but it has the performance of a beast. There is a standard model for this guitar, but the Les Paul is always the top choice. Aside from the quality, it is budget friendly, too.
This guitar has an excellent construction. It has a mahogany body, which is an ideal tonewood for metal guitars.
It can provide rich and deep sound, which can complement detuned pieces correctly. The cap and neck are all mahogany, too. With all these parts play together, this guitar can shatter your hearing.
The Gibson Les Paul also comes with the 498T and 490R pickups. Both of these are way hotter than those of BurstBucker Pros.
Once again, these pickups are ideal for the metal genre. It has a stop-bar, which means that you can always tune this instrument with stability!
Pros:
- Sound is resonating and powerful
- Quality design and construction
- Pickups improves the overall performance of the guitar
- Budget-friendly option
- Ideal for professional usage
Cons:
- It has an entry price, but beginners would take time to learn this
- Other Gibson Les Paul variants have better aesthetics than this one.
The Schecter Omen 6 is a certified all-time favorite of many metal players. Its price is not as high as those high-end guitars and not as low as those entry-point products. You can say that this guitar is for the middle market. However, this one is certainly is worth your attention.
The Schecter Omen 6 doesn't particularly stand out when it comes to design. Its appearance is somehow bland and typical. Because of that, many people mistook it for an ordinary electric guitar.
But you should not come to the same conclusion as this one can produce nasty shreds and shocking resonance. Its tone are so thick that it can easily indulge anyone.
With its body and bolt-on neck made from mahogany, you can guarantee that buying this one is never a waste of money. Moreover, its Tune-O-Matic bridge and fretboard are made from far superior materials.
Pros:
- Top quality tuners and hardware
- Uses the highly coveted Schecter Diamond pickups
- The tonewood is mahogany
- Loud shreds and long sustains
- Body contours allow you to play it comfortably
Cons:
- Appearance is apparently not for metal
- A little muddy if you set your amp to high gains
One of the greatest metal guitarists of all time is Darrell Abbott. Even after he died, the legacy that he left still resonates in the entire community. You can see his influence on the shapes and styles of the guitars today.
Among this is the Dean Razorback. Among all the guitars here, only this one has the design that you can use for self-defense!
This one has neck and body made from mahogany. They optimize the overall sound that this guitar produces. Moreover, its 24-fret fingerboard is rosewood, so everything about the Razorback is quality.
It possesses hardware that is far superior compared to ordinary electric guitars. In fact, this is among the few guitars that are solely built for metal alone.
If you can spare some money, the Dean Razorback is an excellent choice. As long as you got this arsenal, you can tear any stages down!
Pros:
- The overall appearance is really for metal
- Components are made from quality materials
- The sound is incredibly powerful and punchy
- Have high and long sustains
- Perfect for studio recordings
Cons:
- A little pricey compared to other choices
- Not for amateurs
Many guitarists rant about the excellent quality of the Schecter products. Their guitars are fascinating. Moreover, their price will never break your bank account. When you play this guitar, you will immediately realize that it should cost more than its original value.
However, only a few of Schecter guitars can be considered on this list of the best metal guitars. Specifically, their top candidate is the Hellraiser C-1. It can stand out from the competition because of versatility, performance, and overall sound quality.
This particular guitar features a body made from mahogany. Meanwhile, its 24-fret fingerboard is rosewood. Therefore, you can guarantee that it can create rich resonance.
When it comes to style, this Schecter Hellraiser C-1 is mesmerizing. Its body has an arch design, which makes its comfortable and appealing to any users. The primary intention of the C-1 is to produce the dark tones which are iconic in death and thrash metal.
However, it is quite flexible to some other genres as well. It has an active pickup (EMG81TW and EG89R) which come with a coil tap. With these pickups, the sound that the C-1 can create is virtually limitless.
Pros:
- High-quality hardware
- Classy appeal but has modern tone
- Can create vast selection of sounds
- Powerful and resonating tones
- Ideal for live gigs and performances
Cons:
- Sustains are quite lacking
- The bridge could use a little rework
Best Metal Guitar Buying Guide
As we mentioned earlier, getting the right electric guitar is essential if you want to improve your playing skills in the metal genre. Many think that those guitars have quirky and scary designs are must-haves for this kind of music.
However, most of the decent metal guitars have a bland and generic appearance. You won't discover their real power until you play on them already.
In selecting an electric guitar for the metal genre, you have to pay attention to the construction and not on the appearance. Specifically, you have to take a look at the type of materials used in the neck and body.
These components play a significant role on the quality on resonance, sustain, and the overall tone of the guitar. Moreover, you should not forget that electronics and hardware should be excellent as well.
Back in the days, the best guitars for metal were those that are producing sonic Strat sound. These guitars have ash bodies and maple necks. The sound they generate is usually bright, which are ideal for shredding (the iconic sound of metal).
Despite this, they can also perform well on the mid-range sounds and several variants of British overdrives.
Today, the world of metal went a huge leap already. Most of the metal pros out there typically prefer the combination of high-gain amps and detune guitars. With these two around, you can smash anyone's eardrums by just hitting a single chord.
Technically, the trademark sound of the modern metal is a dark, resonating tone. Therefore, the ideal tonewood that you should choose would be basswood and mahogany.
Meanwhile, you should not also ignore their capacity to send powerful signals to the amp. The construction should be rigid enough so that it can emulate the sustains and rhythmic harmony that your ears are craving.
Choosing The Right Metal Guitar
There are a lot of electric guitars that you can see on the market today. However, you will never know their real quality until you test them.
If you want to improve your skills as a metal guitarist, getting the right weapon is necessary. It doesn't matter what kind of subgenre you want to play. As long as you got the best metal guitar, anything else can be taken care!
Regardless of your preferences, the best way to get the right guitar is research. Get all the necessary information you can. Of course, this should include reviews and testaments from other guitar owners. In this way, you can already gauge the initial quality of a particular unit.
Meanwhile, you should never forget to test the actual guitar you want to own. You can always go to any music stores near you so that you can test some brands. If the product you want to buy is online, you should watch and hear its performance from review videos.
Below is the detailed review of our top picks for the best guitar for metal. They have been among the most excellent electric guitars that we encountered during our stint in the music industry.
They got reputable brand names that you would certainly take into account. Of course, that is just one qualification. The real performance of these guitars will only be unleashed once you start shredding with them!
Conclusion
These are our selection of the best metal guitars. Each of them can produce ear-crushing tones and energetic resonance that are ideal for metal. The sustains they can create are far better compared to the standard electric guitar. Of course, having any of them will improve your playing skills in the metal genre.
Among them, we recommend anyone to go with the ESP LTD EC-256 Black first. So far, this is the best choice that you have for metal guitars, considering its quality, performance, and price.
We are not saying that it is better than those high-end guitar units. Instead, we are saying that it can match them without tearing your pockets away.
Always get these recommended guitars if you want to pursue a shredding career. Who knows? These guitars may even take you on the pro scene!
