The 90/50 Rule for buying gear

[Seamus OReally]

When I was still plying my trade and writing about it for EQ and Keyboard magazines, I devised the 90/50 Rule as a way to get the sounds you want without blowing your budget.

Step one: identify the holy grail, the thing you’d buy if money was no object.

Step two: search for a piece that produces 90% of the grail’s performance for 50% of the price or less. There is almost always an inexpensive equivalent that fits this rule.

Step three: buy the cheap one. Unless there is no equivalent. In which case, bite the bullet and cry once over the grail.

What great gear do you have that fits the rule?

 

[dmatthews]

Not sure if it fits but...

Used Kemper head and remote.
Used PRS 594 Artist singlecut semihollow
Used PRS 594 soapbar

This combo kills it for me...

 

[rolandson]

ES175.
It was half the price of an L5 and brought me what I wanted.

I guess every JJ tube I've purchased fits that metric as well. They do exactly what I want them to do while easily exceeding the 90 percent in average performance when compared to NOS equivalent at a fraction of the NOS price.

And dare I mention the partscasters that I've lovingly shaped and assembled? The 90/50 rule doesn't account for the cheaper option that out performs the grail...

 

[C-Grin]

I would say that that is pretty much every one of my guitars save for 1, which was a gift and all my amps which I bought used and at discounted prices save for 1 which was also a gift.

 

[Sapient]

None - I buy the grail as it's being called with no considerations. Often it's not cheap but not so much that it can't be done.

I think most here with, say, with a Gibson or a few fit into this also.

 

[Seamus OReally]

None - I buy the grail as it's being called with no considerations. Often it's not cheap but not so much that it can't be done.

I think most here with, say, with a Gibson or a few fit into this also.

Well, it’s only money.

 

[Thatbastarddon]

I don’t know how I feel about rules, but I suppose that the one being discussed here would be similar to the reasoning behind these three.

Good enough to get the job done.

 

[gball]

Every one of my Les Pauls meets or exceeds the rule. One of them though happens to be a personal grail, and it lived up to the dream.

 

[67plexi]

Never had any luck with budget gear. have hit the jackpot a few times first look at the blue book buy low sell high
issue is I'm a hoarder it didn't help my friend Reese owned a music store and my friend Cal backed him up I got most items at dealer cost
you never know 2008 I cleaned up dime on the dollar money talks Covid hit thought it would be a repeat of 2008 I was wrong

 

[Sapient]

I don’t know how I feel about rules, but I suppose that the one being discussed here would be similar to the reasoning behind these three.
View attachment 100958
Good enough to get the job done.

Lots of restraining rules there. Lol.

not.

As long as it's still Gibson I think one is still kinda going all-out. JMO.

 

[Mad_Hater]

I'd definitely say that's a great general rule that applies to a lot of gear purchases. Actually it pretty much applies to 90% of most people's gear if you really break it down. The holy grail gear is almost always gonna be something either really high end boutique or vintage costing often 5-10x newer equivalent offerings... Some of my examples:

Nord Electro 2 keyboard (bought used for less than 1/3 the price of new models. You could even argue it delivers 75% the tone of the actual vintage keyboards like B3 it's emulating)

Ibanez TS808 RI (about half the price of a real vintage one and probably at least 90% the same sound. Only the most discerning purist could likely tell the difference)

 

[Sapient]

Well, it’s only money.

It's not that. Lol. It's just that I think MOST can afford a $2K to $2.5K Lester here once in a while.

If you're talking "grail" as in $12K I think that would be different to most of us.

 

[Mad_Hater]

Every one of my Les Pauls meets or exceeds the rule. One of them though happens to be a personal grail, and it lived up to the dream.

Which one hehe?

 

[Thatbastarddon]

Lots of restraining rules there. Lol.

not.

As long as it's still Gibson I think one is still kinda going all-out. JMO.

Well…they were all less than half the price of what I would have liked…pretty much.
It was the “faded vs standard” thing. If you look from that perspective, they are bargain basement Gibsons. All cost me half, or less, what a shiny one would’ve. Two were “husks”, and I dressed them as desired. All three hold up when performing live, and recording.
Missing binding too, but two of the three have ebony boards…so…
They are, what they are…tools….just like me.
I’ve got a couple of shiny ones too.

 

[Mouse]

For virtually every guitar I've owned I've made some sort of compromise due to price. Thus, I sort of followed that rule. My last guitar purchase was my "holy grail". I won't say I'll never look for cheaper alternatives but at this point in life I'm buying fewer guitars and buying what I want.

 

[Jethro Rocker]

None - I buy the grail as it's being called with no considerations. Often it's not cheap but not so much that it can't be done.

I think most here with, say, with a Gibson or a few fit into this also.

Same boat. You live once. I will not let what I really want slip through over a few bucks here n there.
It does depend on one's budget. The majority of my recent guitars were purchased new unless it is something I cannot get new like a 50 year old LP Deluxe.

 

[Don O]

I don’t think I could define a holy grail. I know if I like a guitar I’ll buy it. Most of mine are used so I let the other guy take the depreciation hit.

 

[gball]

Which one hehe?

1979 Les Paul Custom Silverburst

 

[Sapient]

Same boat. You live once. I will not let what I really want slip through over a few bucks here n there.
It does depend on one's budget. The majority of my recent guitars were purchased new unless it is something I cannot get new like a 50 year old LP Deluxe.

Indeed. I buy by the 'thro Rocker Rule. :dood:

 

[SG John]

I think that I made out well with these few, although almost everything I ever bought was more or less on the cheep. Mainly because I rarely buy anything new, and even when I would pay close to market price, I would wait until I found "the one", and not just buy the first particular version of that model to satisfy my wants.