Sounds like fun! How far from NYC are ya??
I'm being tongue & cheek about it really & just taking advantage of the opportunity to fvk with Mr Ferengi (aka cheap-a$$ aka eSGeEsgSGeE). People should buy whatever makes them happy & whatever they are comfortable with! Some players actually aren't comfortable being seen playing cheap guitars. Some people feel something aditionally satisfying when they see such 'n such on the headstock because it it part of who they are & it fits their image & projected ego. I get that too.
In the end it really is up to what the individual likes. What everyone else thinks doesn't really matter. (unless you are somebody that cares about what other people think! Oh no! It's a vicious circle!)
You might have seen my obnoxious (intentionally) signature on another guitar Forum and think I'm a Gibson snob..
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While I have grown to be a Gibson aficionado & have taken to collecting & playing them as a hobby because I genuinely just like them & actually feel something along the lines of a fondness for these guitars, anyone that knows me can tell you I have been very critical of Gibson when they rightly have it coming! But that said, I've come to read the history & appreciate the name Gibson has made for itself over all these years. I liken it to a car guy favoring FORD, Mopar or Chevrolet. It is what it is & it probablyis too late for me! LOL
Fortunately, Gibson has really upped their game, made smart improvements & even corrected some things with their HP line that had kept me from buying certain Gibsons because of how they were made!!! In my mind, if Gibson would only loose the mandatory G-Farce auto-tuners on the HP line & go back to offering tremolo options on several popular models, it would go a long way toward offering a good highly playable guitar to a broader range of guitar player & show the world they have finally pulled Mr Henry J's head from out of his a$$!