Will Vintage Guitars Be Worthless When Boomers Are Gone?

I just had a conversation about this with my drummer. I asked him if vintage guitars will hold value in the future. He replied "will people even PLAY real GUITARS in the future?" That kinda stung, because my drummer is computer software.

I feel like we are seeing a resurgence guitar playing, but in a way that feels detached from the guitar hero idolization and just more about making music and using guitars as tools. Yeah, vintage gear is super cool and I’m sure any other player would as well. But I think vintage gear is moving towards something like the art dealer market now, where collectors will always pay premiums for historical pieces, but players will buy what they can make music with, vintage or not.

Literally none of us are being payed a livable wage.

14:06 Rick just whacks Rhett's '65 SG with his ring repeatedly 🤣🤣

As a millennial who likes new guitars, stainless steel frets, etc., I have absolutely zero attachment to vintage instruments. YES, I DO think they are really cool to look at and I'm sure they sound and play amazingly, but I put them in the same place of my brain that I put museum items. Sure a guy like Joe Bonamassa can take a vintage guitar on tour, but as an average broke guitarist, I'd be terrified of harming something worth so much money. Great Video!

No amount of appreciation for vintage instruments could ever justify that kind of price, to me. Outside of investment, it just seems insane

I love these type of videos, it's like hanging with you guys! Thank you

Awesome conversation! So glad you guys put this on YT!

I am one of the “Old” guys that work at the Gibson Custom shop. We have amazing luthiers that work their that really know the Gibson vintage guitar. Interesting fact… most are not my age (50) …. Most are in their mid twenties and early thirties. And they love these guitars as much as I do.

I wonder the same thing about cabins too. Like our parents generation bought all these properties and none of us can afford the asking price for them. Eventually it's gotta plummet right?

I could listen to this all day. Please do this again with all four of you!

Jason Isbell had the same experience that Rhett had at Carter’s with Ed King’s “Red Eye” burst. He had to find a way to acquire it and I saw him and Sadler Vaden burn down the Ryman with it a few months ago. Wow, Rhett just made my point while I was typing this. Oh well, never mind. You guys are on it and I enjoy your channels!

Lots of fun Rhett! Thanks for organizing that.

Love how Rick's perspective is different from the other guys because Rick's passion is music while the other guys passion is guitars, he sees them as tools while the rest of the crew gives them somewhat of a magical attribute a hammer can be just a great hammer or a holy hammer if you wanna see it that way.

I am 68 years old. My goto song to play when I am checking out a guitar is the solo from "Whole Lotta Love". Recently I was in a music store and was about to try out a guitar. I just got it plugged in and made sure I had some volume and tone and then about to play "Whole Lotta Love" when a teenage kid about 25 feet away from me started to play on the guitar he was trying out: which was "Whole Lotta Love". I was impressed that we would both -- 50 years apart -- chose the same song. Very cool! I now have hope for future generations...

Love this topic and y'alls conversation...

Gonna need this exact crew to start a podcast ASAP… Rhett already has the remote podcasting formula in place for Dipped In Tone. Think about it… it’d be massive!

How great is it that Rhett's wife filmed this--and did an outstanding job?

Good conversation with excellent points by all.

The hype around vintage electric guitars almost reminds me of the hype around the Stradivarius line of violins and cellos. They're such sought after instruments and were very revolutionary for their time, to the point where many believe them to be objectively superior. They've been thoroughly reverse-engineered and many elements of their construction have been copied by other makers, and they were also some of the first orchestral string instruments that could withstand the tension of wire strings at a time when gut was more common, although most violinists use steel nowadays. There is so much speculation as to what gives them their exact sound, perhaps the varnish, the chemicals used to treat the wood prior to varnishing, or even the wood itself – although many studies disagree on whether or not people think a "Strad" sounds better than a modern violin – and many also dispute the notion that a Strad is louder or better at projecting their sound acoustically. If you want a string instrument that projects really well, invest in carbon fiber. Ultimately, the sound you're looking for is not only highly subjective, but dependent on so many other variables like choice of pickup/mic, venue acoustics, playing technique, and skill, or for electric instruments specifically, the settings and effects you dial in. And whose to say that someone who disagrees with your taste in timbre is a worse listener in any way? Some people like mellow, some like bright, some like midrange or "analytical" (I can't for the life of me figure out why people call it that), etc.