Tokai ALS48 - A good guitar?

Hi,

I've already got a Telecaster and a Casino, so want to get something a bit rockier. Money is pretty tight at the moment, so thought I'd just go with an entry-level Les Paul which will tide me over until I can upgrade.

In my price-range, it's pretty much between Epiphone and Tokai.

Now that the ALS48 is made in China is it still a much savier purchase than following the hoardes and just going for the obvious branding of Epiphone?

I don't really want to have to change the pickups, so the guitar I buy will be the guitar I'm using.

Cheers for any advice.

I have a completley stock (NA) North American LS48 GoldTop and I love it !! The one i own is a Korean made one. I also own an Epiphone Black Beauty and the Epiphone is pretty decent also. The only thing with either one is due to the "mass production" factor . Hand chosing the right one is key.
Otherwise both decent guitars for the cash . I also own a Gibson LP Standard and i find myself reaching for my Tokai more often for playing everyday.
The LS48 is really good from a playability perspective. I am sure the Chineese ones are just fine also.

How much do you want to spend.? I would avoid the Epiphone {piece of crap} and probably side step the chinese ones as well, because you can get a Japanese model second hand for not much money and they are a much better guitar. Let us know how much you want tospend and we'll start looking at models... :wink:

Mick

Thanks for your replies so far.

The fact that the entry model is now made in China did make me wonder if maybe the quality of them has dropped a bit since all the glowing reviews the guitar got on Harmony Central.

The Chinese ALS-48 I was thinking of buying is ?255 brand new on ebay.

If it makes sense to spend a bit more to get a lot a more guitar, then my budget is flexible, though I'm really cautious buying second hand guitars because my last purchse (my Casino) had to be stripped down, and the electronics have just gone on it again - this is pretty much the reason I'm in the market for a new guitar.

I'm pretty ignorant when it comes to Tokai (or any guitar really) so any advice is really, really appreciated - thanks again,

James.

Hate to deliberately 'bump' a thread, but I really would appreciate any advice before i part with my money.

Thanks again to anyone who can help.

Another forum member is buying this one it is an ls 60 from 1985, made in Japan, for just a little less that the als48.....i know which one i would buy. Here's the thread.
http://www.tokaiforum.com/viewtopic.php?p=75678#75678

Mick

As the other guys say there are three things (in my view) which should push you down a certain road.

1) Absolute cap on spends
2) Preferred Neck Profiles and quality of build
3) Do i mind second hand?

1 - if you've only got ?249 to spend on a guitar and that's it - they are great. They are built to that price point and are fine.

OR you can scout around for a second hand japanese one...also very cool.

If you really have the ability to go to around ?499 you can get a new Japanese model which will frankly blow the Chinese ones away - it IS twice the cash...twice as nice etc etc.

2 - The Japanese ones are made to vintage specifications, the Chinese guitars have skinnier "modern" profile necks...the Japanese ones are generally modelled around a 59 profile, so quite a bit chunkier than Chinese. If you love a really skinny neck then chinese is good for that, if you want all the retro features you should be looking at Japanese to satisfy this.

3 - If you are in to second hand/vintage/old gear then it opens up a range of possibilities for around ?300. As some of the guys here have said, there are some absolute crackers if you keep your ear to the floor.

If you really don't like the second hand vibe then you need to decide where you're at with a new one.

It's hard to talk about LS48s without comparing them to their big brothers....which are worth every penny...new or old (if looked after). For the true tokai experience you need to go Japanese.

Where are you based? UK? Might be worth trying Chinese versus Japanese in the flesh.

Good luck with your search - you're in the right place for info.

within the budget you have stated I think you may be able to get a "pre-loved" Jap LP. You won't get a Tokai but have a look around the MIJ sites at Aria Pro IIs and Yamaha Studio Lords and Lord Players. I may be contradicted by more knowledgable posters, but I think you'll find those superior to anything Korean or Chinese within your budget, just beware of some maple bodied Yamahas. As ever, you get what you pay for so try and make your limit ?350 and you should be able to even import a very reasonable MIJ LP.

Thanks a lot - a good deal of quality information for me to digest - will have a hunt around.

voyager - I'm near Liverpool, are there any shops in town you'd recommend?

Cheers,

James.

Casino said:

voyager - I'm near Liverpool, are there any shops in town you'd recommend?

Click to expand...

As far as I am aware James, your only local(ish) option for quality pre owned instruments is Frailers in Runcorn old town. This is a quality establishment and you will find many more Martin acoustics than Tokai electrics. This isn't to say that there aren't quality guitar shops in Liverpool, the guys at Curly and Micro are great but they don't stock quality pre owned to my knowledge.

There's a great looking Aria pro II tobacco sunburst les paul on ebay. there's also a black one. i know its not Tokai but if your budget is tight I think it would be better than a chinese one.

Casino said:

I don't really want to have to change the pickups, so the guitar I buy will be the guitar I'm using.

Cheers for any advice.

Click to expand...

As some of you guys have recommended already some other brands ... I'll chime in to say that you shouldn't forget considering also the Edwards LPs ...
Could fit your budget, if a 'real' Tokai is too steep for you ... :wink:
Roger

Buy cheap buy twice!!

If you have a tele and a Casino, you have some pretty decent guitars already, I would guess a Chinese Tokai would sit on it's stand and not get played because it's not as good as the guitars you have already. You would then sell it for ?120 and be out-of-pocket without a Les Paul.

I know it's hard to wait when you want something straight away, but my advice would be to save a little longer and get a Japanese Tokai, either used or new. A new Japanese Tokai starts from about ?500, and you will have a top quality guitar that is more than good enough to gig professionally with, and then the casino will get left on the stand :wink:

If you just have to have something to fill that Les Paul void right now you could do worse than this item from a respected seller.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=320283925602&ssPageName=ADME:B:SS:GB:1123

Otherwise as John A says, if you can save up as long again as you have thus far, you'll be far more satisfied come the result.