"Now that we're married you're gonna stop buying guitars, right?" "You're beginning to sound like my ex-wife" "I didn't know you were married before" "I wasn't"
Here's an example: My wife and I recently traveled to Chicago by car from our home in New Orleans to help our daughter move to town. She (the daughter) lived pretty close to Chicago Music Exchange, which my wife has has heard me (and you guys) speak of many times. I suggested going in "just to look around." She sat in the lobby while I wandered around the showroom in awe. I eventually noticed a cool little Danelectro Longhorn bass, which is something I'd been interested in for a while. It cost about $550, inc. gig bag, and I would normally inform her if I were making a purchase like that, even though I know she really wouldn't argue. BUT-I went back to the lobby and showed her the guitar, with the following disclaimer: "When are we ever going to be here again? I may never have this chance, AND I want you to be ok with it before I put down the credit card." Worked like a charm. She felt so guilty that she had made me feel as though I had to ask her about something that small. She almost had tears in her eyes as she answered, "Of course, what a beautiful guitar, I want you to have it." I played the Longhorn in my last 2 gigs at home in New Orleans.
I’m waiting for a inheritance that I’ll be getting sometime this year. Since I’ll be buying her something with it too, getting my dream guitar shouldn’t be a problem.
@@Kcapgar Under the end of a rainbow with the rocking horse sh*t & hens teeth mate finding such a diamond is tougher than $2 steak. I found one 22yrs ago.❣ 🦘Didjabringyabongalong Station, Central QLD, Australia.🎸
It’s easy for me. All I have to do is mention something about getting a banjo and my wife’s response is always “ buy whatever you want just don’t bring a damn banjo in this house.” 😂😂
I often said, "when I reti,I want to learn the banjo" I am 66 now and have bought 3 cigar box guitars, a couple of ukes and 2 or 3 6 string acoustics. I will probably buy a Tele next even though I don't need it...maybe a banjo but probably a Dobro
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I kept showing my wife pictures of a guitar I wanted. Their shop would post videos as they were finishing guitars. Total eye candy. For months I never told her how much one of those cost, she'd ask and I'd side step it. I floated the idea of getting it for my 40th birthday and when she asked how much I told her 24... to which she said "24 thousand?", and I said no, 24 hundred... can you believe a guitar like that only costs 24 hundred? She immediately said "fine, just order it already". I think the persistence worked as well as giving her that initial sticker shock by just saying 24, lol.
My wife and I tell each other about our larger purchases. I usually don't bring up pedals (depending on prices) but I always discuss guitar and amp purchases. This also helps me not make thoughtless stupid purchases - my stupid purchases are well thought out now.
Let’s put it this way, I’ve put an order in for a Master Built Fender Custom Shop with your fine guitar emporium, and that’s come to more than the deposit I paid for my house. Thankfully I’ve got two and a half years to save! That said, I’m single and live alone, so I can spend all my disposable income on guitars without much worry. Either way, my view is that if it’s my money, and it’s wasn’t to the detriment of myself or anyone else, then I can do with it what I will.
My wife of 28 years passed away in January 2022 from COVID but, truth be told, she was the one that encouraged me to buy a beat up 1954 J-50 in 1991 for $495 (when we didn't have two cents) from a pawn shop. In 2006 she insisted I buy a Taylor that cost $1100 (we were better off but that was a big expense for a single income household) but for the most part I was the cheap one. Since she's been gone, I've bought 3 inexpensive acoustics and several (6?) scratch+dent / parts-caster electrics totalling about~$2300 (nine guitars!). As far as what my wife would think about this? Well, she'd smile, nod her head at me and then she'd tell me "No reason to buy them if you're not playing or writing or recording with them". I was a very, very lucky man.
@@klee_of_c8082 Thanks for the thought. Knowing her, she's probably laughing at me. "How many guitars do you have? How many arms did you say you have?"
These days space is a bit of an issue so for me to induct a guitar into the gear collection 2 have to make room for it. It keeps me upgrading instead of making lateral moves that don’t really do too much. When Jason Isbell bought the Red Eye Burst he did odd jobs and session work, played private birthday parties as a solo act, whatever it took but he made sure all the other bills got paid and nobody on his team had to do without because the boss needed a burst that year. My most major gear purchase this year I treated that way, I bought guitars and flipped them, I did setups and repairs, I built up money from playing gigs as a sideman, took the pile of money and doubled it every chance I got until I could go in and get the violin I wanted more than any other piece of gear I wanted in my life. If you’re THAT passionate about something… You can make the money happen. You just have to be that inspired.
So… My first wife wasn’t a fan of me bringing anything in the door. My second wife got used to me bringing stuff in the door and knew that when I did I got a great deal and even if I kept it around for 90 days I’d still toss it up online and make solid profits. Maybe one in ten I would keep around for myself. Gear wasn’t the reason we split up it was something entirely unrelated to music. 3rd times a charm. This girl sees stuff and goes “that looks like a REALLY good deal!” I’m keeping her 😂❤
@Burr Anderson yeah… Got married young, recession hit while I was still trying to get a footing in the world. She left for a lot of good reasons, but she left just as things were getting stable. Second wife suffered brain damage from a medical episode that turned her into a pathological liar who tried to destroy me, my reputation and my business.
I am a weekend warrior… For a decade, I played twice weekly cover shows in a Chengdu, China tourist bar. I ALWAYS gave my pay,(minus 🍺of course), to my wife, immediately when I got home. This made her so happy! So, when we retired, and moved to Phoenix, she was totally supportive of my purchase of a $3,200 RainSong jumbo. Give your gig money, or at least a good portion of it to your wife, upon arriving home… She will then understand that you are doing this for her, making future purchases much easier.
Wife put a max limit on the number of guitars several years ago. But as long as the number on display stays the same, I just hope she doesn't notice the cases adding up. I'll pull a new one out after several months and when she asks if it's a new guitar, I can "honestly" say, "Oh, I've had that for a while." I will say my wife bought me a Gretsch 6120 for my 50th birthday. God love her!
I love you guys. You crack me up and I look forward to seeing a new video pop up in my feed from you every day/week. Thank God I’m on the other side of the world or I’d be broke and in sooooooo much trouble w the Mrs. 😂
Excellent topic! I have finally hit the mark where I have the bucket list gear I have wanted since starting in 1966. My wife plays keys and bass, and she has an amazing collection of high-end basses. She is set now as well, but when she was just starting, she had that fever to buy, and she never said a word about spending the money on gear! One thing that made it really easy for years was the MUSICIAN'S FRIEND & SWEETWATER no finance charge cards. Those 48-month purchases with no interest made a decision very easy. We are an average income family, but I would always send extra each month, but not having a 20% interest charge was great! Neither of those shops offer regular guitars and amps with the 24- or 48-month payments and they are usually only 6 months, which could be a chunk of money. I paid those cards off and had the limit lowered so there is no temptation to go crazy!! Wives can be funny. One time it could be "you don't need that $100 pedal" and the next time it was "Let's get you a Taylor today". I'll never understand my wife, but for now, I am set on gear!
Wife and I have been through enough financial hardship and now we have built a pretty strong trust in each other not to go bankrupt on personal spending. With that said, there's technically no limit as long as I can show a good financing plan. I'm starting to plan for a milestone birthday purchase of a custom shop Fender, and I'm pretty confident all she cares about is my payment plan. Otherwise we support each other's hobbies.
"But Sweetheart, it's like a finely crafted piece of furniture that plays beautiful music, like an heirloom piece to pass down to the kids, like an insurance policy that when I pass that you can sell for a good price". 👍 She went with me and got the Baby Taylor for $99. Fair winds and following seas to all.
I did call and ask what my allowance was as I was sitting at Casino picking up one custom shop strat I had ordered while holding a double esquire Tele custom shop I wanted to also take home. Wife laughed and said your money go for it.
if you get married DO NOT commingle your bank accounts... this works best if your wife is a financial partner... split major expenses down the middle and buy whatever you want without asking or apologizing...
Do you like guitar I paid for was about two grand. I wanted up trying to be smart and following the market trends, buying guitars and trading up but if it came down to a few things right now, this is what it would be one where it’s built to the quality of the build three, which supersedes all the others tone and comfortability , but I just an Echo Park from you guys. And it is one of the most amazing guitars I’ve ever played and I’ve played all types of high-end boutique builders and the three Kings, PRS fender Gibson.
After my dad passed and I got all his affairs handled and split everything down the middle with my brother I convinced my wife to let me pull the trigger on a Gibson R7 darkback with light aging from the Murphy Lab. It actually hurt me quite a bit to know I just paid all that money just for another guitar...until I received it and plugged it in. It is by far the finest Les Paul I have ever played in my life and I catch myself just opening the case once per day just to look at it. It's not weight relieved, yet it only weighs 8.5 lbs which is ridiculously light so I know that Murphy definitely gets their pick of the litter in the wood department over even the regular custom shop. Now my main issue now is that the Murphy R7 cost so damned much. My wife has pretty much locked the door on any new guitar purchases since then, and I totally understand. Hell I could've gotten a 50's Standard, 60's Standard, and a Les Paul Junior for the price of this one guitar. I totally get that in order to get something new that I may want (like an Explorer, Flying V, or Strat) I'll need to sell one of my other Gibson guitars or a couple of others that would cover the cost of the new one. Pretty much all of my guitars except my '67 Hummingbird and the Murphy R7 have a price, so even if I had to sell all but those two I'd have a ridiculously amazing vintage acoustic and the bad ass R7 goldtop. However, knowing me, after selling ALL of the other 10 guitars, I'd use the money to buy a damned new '58 Korina V with the black pick guard for $10k lol!
After years of hint dropping and nagging my wife finally let me buy a Custom Shop Strat. She said no more guitars for 2 years. Recently passed 2 years and I mentioned adding a telecaster to the collection.. that didn’t go down as well as I thought it would in my head
The better question is why dig a financial hole and cause marital problems for a thing you don't need? We all have those expensive dream guitars but some selling and saving can make anything happen without the guilt and trouble at home. Then it can be fully paid for and enjoyed.
Man if this doesn’t bring up stuff! First wife fought me over a $500 Dano. Still have it and honestly does a great job! (The guitar) Second wife : she’s my love and loves music! Bought a NOVO custom and waited a year (to the date) for it. I wouldn’t have this GEM if it wasn’t for her. We saved and saved and now I have the best guitar I’ve ever owned. My wife encourages me to play!!!!
Just ended a 3-year relationship. But the good part? I bought more guitars in the last couple of years than in my life, and she loved every one of them. Hope to meet someone like that again.
This is awesome. This should be retitled “Strategies to convince your significant other that new piece of gear has actually been there the whole time…”
I bought an $800 American Strat once without asking. I still feel bad about it. I would have been mad if she spent that much without taking to me first. That was almost 15 years ago. I’ve asked her before every guitar, even $350 ones. She’s never said “no”, though. Communication is always good. How much you can spend without communicating just depends on how a couple sets their finances up.
We're both musicians. We've been through all of the begging and trickery and financial dumpster fires at one time or another. With three kids (two teens) and all of the accompanying obligations, we realized long ago: if we don't budget like grownups, we're screwed, and if we don't prioritize music highly enough we will hate our lives. So no shenanigans. We maintain a standing budget for gear. We review it annually. We make adjustments, projections, etc. It might sound very adult and very boring -- it very is -- but it's a lot less heartburn and we can almost always do what we want.
...and believe it or not, my wife was looking at FB Marketplace this morning and pointed out a Gretsch. I told her I have a semi-hollow,but I could use a Telecaster...
Grammar police!! Without is one word! 😂👍 I spent a good bit on a guitar that I have always wanted that is an Ibanez RBM2NT Reb Beach signature and it was worth every penny to fill the void of never owning one. That feeling is tremendous!!
I am a professional guitarist and have a RU-vid channel and play live. I have been playing guitar for 30 years and I definitely need to discuss with my wife about my guitar purchases. But on the up side, she just bought me a new Charvel Pro Mod DK24 2PT HH CM, burgundy mist. 😊
Great topic! Fortunately my wife and I have a great relationship and we don’t need to check with each other before buying stuff. Not so with the starter wife. While married to her I bought a new American Strat on impulse and was worried about what she would say. I decided to hide it in plain site, front and center of all my gear. Several months later she asked if it was a new guitar and I was able to truthfully say with a straight face “No, I’ve had that one for awhile.”
Mines more the amount of guitars more so then the price. Justifying needing another…. it’s why I go higher end when I do get the window of getting another.
All the guitars I’ve bought are “around $200”. Most of the car parts I’ve bought are also “around $200”. The key is to also buy them a gift at the same time that is $200 and everyone is happy 😅
A little over 20 years ago a great old guitar shop in Kansas City was closing for ever. I stopped in the "everything half off "sale and bought a Martin D-18GE for $2000.00. My wife said nothing until this past summer when I wanted the CEO 7 that she took me to get from you guys in August. Now she says "NO MORE " and I can't sneak them in like before. She didn't complain when I paid $7500 for new rain gutters or $5k on new furniture for the living room.
I bought $3000 Adam Jones Gibson, 2022 Rick Beato Gibson, 2022 Ibanez Xiphos 7 string, 5150 1/2 stack Head and Cab, Headrush $1300 Floor Model. About $10k total in the past 6 to 9 months.. I am close to the limit
I am so lucky that my wife has no idea what any guitar cost, or care about my playing, or encourage me by saying I'm getting better. (Even though I am!) In all honesty, you guys are right. Everybody has a different limit they can set on anything they buy. I hear golf clubs get pricey, but I wouldn't know. I just know the metal ones hurt more than the wooden ones. In all honesty, buy what you will play. Cost only matters to those bought it, and quality is something you will regret not "paying up" for in the long run. Dave, at Daves World of Fun Stuff said it best, "You're playing will get better, your guitar wont!" Get something well made that is set up correctly and have at it! My personal limit is in a Gibson Les Paul Standard range.
Get a partscaster…a couple hundred here and there for body, pickups, neck, etc and they’ll never notice! 🤫 Seriously though, I think that $500-1000 range for most folks. That is what a decent guitar costs generally too. But as long as you aren’t getting them every month it shouldn’t be a problem if you can afford it.
When times were better, I didn’t have to justify a new guitar annually ($1000-2500 range), but the current economy has more than eaten those funds in food and gas.. I don’t even think about it. I’m even letting my strings get a little older before changing them now.
We have an agreement in our house... I don't ask about her sewing machines, she doesn't ask about my instruments. We keep our finances separate for just this sort of reason!
Guys... you hit it on the head when you said, "Step 1, what they don't know, can't hurt you." In the 38 years I've been married, my wife has had personal knowledge of me buying 3 guitars. You might think that's a big number, but it ain't. That's because I own 51 guitars. So, that means I've told my wife about 5.88% of all my guitar purchases. Simply put, she knows my guitar collection is growing, but she doesn't hammer me about it because she also knows that I work hard, I pay the bills and I never question her about any frivolous purchase she makes - and she makes a lot of frivolous purchases!!! Additionally, I don't spend any money that could (or should) be used to pay the bills...!!! If you are an average person of average intelligence and you have problems planning a budget to live by, then you got bigger fish to fry.
My wife has never put a limit on anything I buy. I have not tried to buy anything expensive in the last year and a half since I was diagnosed with stage four cancer. So I would have to say I have a great wife who always let me use my judgement.
I can hide purchases easily. I run a profitable cash side business, so it helps. I can usually get away with a $5k purchase or so every couple months, with some occasional smaller ones in between. If i had a wife that might protest a large purchase, id use the in store financing when they do 0% interest. It doesn't reflect on credit reports, and often you're allowed to send payments vs automatic monthly withdrawl. Also, the old "yeah I traded one of mine, and even had them kick on $___." Then take them out for dinner.
I work in Land Development, and I've done a lot of work with Target. They open all year round. But they want to open NO LATER than October. (they will open in February, june, etc).
Before the accident my wife was cool with my purchases. Matter of Fact she bought my first, and only, Les Paul behind my back. I have snuck a few into the house. My favorite Brick and Mortar writes a very reasonable fictitious bill of sale that I leave in the case. But honesty is really the best policy, esp when your memory is like mine. Which brings me around to my next purchase. I'm a huge Tom Petty fan and I'm looking for a great Gibson acoustic. A Dove or a Hummingbird will suffice, but I will have to get her approval before blowing the 401K.
A few other tricks for your edification. The "critical-mass-effect" - Just have so many pieces it's hard for somebody to keep track of... Or another winner is "I wanted to get you to get a semi-nude picture taken with this one cuz it's so pretty - like you..." 35 guitars, 11 amps, not sure how many pedals, and counting. Baxter has me thinking about an Osh-Kosh-Bgosh finish on my next build. The knobs would be those copper strap buttons. That might be kinda cool...
I am a Lefty so every guitar I have purchased I am pretty much stuck with. Resale of Lefty gear comes at a loss. I look at my collection and honestly I don't think I could part with a single one anyway. My son lives in Nashville now and the wife and I plan to go visit from Winston Salem NC and I absolutely intend to hit every guitar store there. I will grab one that I just have to buy and the ride home (8-9 hrs) will be one QUIET ride, as will the following 2 weeks. But I think I can handle that! 🤣🤣🤣
My first wife had a firm rule: I had to sell or trade my current guitar to get a new one. I let her take that rule with her when we parted. I hope it served her well in life. Currently, I'm gonna guess the boundary would be $3000. If I found something I wanted for $3000-ish (or more) I would gladly flip a few of the two dozen guitars I currently own to offset it and that would help greatly. If the price was much more than $3000 I probably wouldn't want to pay that myself so the discussion would be moot.
Baxter needs to go car shopping on a live broadcast. Go on a quest for a 10k drive-able used car and see it such an animal actually exists. Then Johnathan can take him truck shopping and film the meltdown! Do it! We all want to watch!
Years ago my wife and I were on a camping trip outside of Chattanooga, and there was a day when it rained for 13 hours straight, and there was no way we could spend that many hours inside of our tent. We decided to go into town, and wound up in this area where there was a Guitar Center literally down the sidewalk from a craft store that my wife wanted to visit. We decided to divide and conquer and get a break from the rain for a while, so I went into guitar center, just to look around, and as soon as I walked in the door there was a new 20th anniversary PRS custom 24 that might as well had rays of light coming from behind it. As soon as I saw that guitar, I knew I had to at least play it, and I already wanted to take it home. I played it and fell in love with it instantly, and then I spent the next 45 minutes trying to figure out how in the world I was going to tell my wife that I just spent over $3,000.00 on an impulse buy. When we met up at the car, she immediately saw this look on my face, and I had to confess what I just done. There is definitely a discussion there about the purchase, and she wound up being ok about it in the big picture, but that conversation was not a fun one for a bit.
My wife usually doesn’t say much, she even bought me my $3.8K PRS SC594 semi hollow and picked the color. My most expensive is my $4800 one off Special 22 semi hollow 10 top with Brazilian rosewood board. I traded my 2008 McRosie artist and cash for it. She has been cool about it cuz it keeps me home and she enjoys the music.
I might discuss the cost at $1500, but it isn't an "ask". My wife convinces me to buy gear when I'm questioning the cost. She was even okay with me getting a $15k Languedoc (which I never got bc he never responded). However, I'm smart with money and carry no credit card debt. I also am the bread winner. Don't go into debt to buy gear unless there's a good reason (you regularly gig) and solid payment plan!
The answer is simple $0. Been married 22 years and my wife knows that I cherish and take care of my guitars. With that said I’m comfortably capable of spending $3800 on a guitar as long as I discuss it with her first. Usually the musician in the family is the free spirit. She knows my net worth. Got a love that woman!
in the last 6 months my wife bought me a ibanez js2410 and had it pleked at sweetwater, and a ltd arrow 1000 V and had it pleked. the js came to about $2600 delivered, and the arrow came to about $1600 delivered. so i guess i could get away with around $3000 without getting into to much trouble.
I finally got around to discussing this with my wife. We pretty much concluded that it doesn't matter because I wouldn't be able to convince myself to spend very much. I'd just end up buying another guitar or pedal kit.
I spent 10k on one of the Gibson Korina Explorer reissues because it was one of my “always wanted” guitars…she was cool with it. I sold some stuff to pay for it, but it ain’t going anywhere now.
My wife has been fantastic with it. I have over 30 guitars and she been cool with all of them. We've been married for 40 years, so I figured that's less than one per year. My highest amount was 43, so I purged down to 28, now I'm back to 32. They only thing that is keeping the count at that number is I have no more space in the Music room. She let's me keep one electric, one amp(small one) and one acoustic in the living room. Most of my amps are in the garage. I'm lucky, she's so cool. She says I'm going to get what I want anyway, so........
I just ordered a R8 Murphy Lab with a beautiful flame top……. GF doesn’t know…. Ordered an engagement ring the same day which makes me feel less bad. I think I’ll have to use it as a distraction.
I recently bought a Collings I-30. It did involve a deal with my wife. After talking about wanting a Collings guitar for about 5 years, I had to promise I would stop talking about them. And I mostly have! So everyone was a winner.
“Target is about to have their groundbreaking. I’m going to the shovel-digging ceremony… whatever that’s called” It’s called the… groundbreaking. You’re ceremonially using the shovels to do the first literal breaking of the ground in the construction process. I mean, that’s not to say that plenty of folks haven’t held such ceremonies after some initial dirt work has begun, but still, that’s the tradition. 😅
My first wife gave me grief over any purchase. My second wife is fine with any amount as long as the bills are paid and I don't touch long term savings. Most expensive so far has been 3800.00. ETA I never use credit for any of my fun spending.
I'm not married but even if I was and I could realistically afford it, I'll buy whatever I want. My last ex flipped out when I told her what I paid for my 1961 Junior. She got over it but left eventually. I still have the guitar so it was worth it
I have never had any discussions, let alone permissions (only) on my third marriage. Third’s the charm. Though I limit myself on what should I be buying or not. And that doesn’t depend on the value first. My reach would probably be limited around 5-7k€ though
My strategy is keeping track of what she buys throughout the year. $60 here. $120 there. Pretty much on shoes, clothes etc. I spend bigger money once a year. She spreads hers throughout the year on nonsense and actually probably spends more. And when new guitar or amp time comes around, that card gets played. BUT, just on my own principles, I've never spent more than a grand on any one thing. So I'd never even get close to a divorce level item.
Payment plans have helped a lot for me. I know if you can’t afford two in cash you shouldn’t even buy one, but I’m going to enjoy my first love of music while I’m here.
It wouldn’t cause a divorce l’m just too good in bed. BUT right now l can’t hardly justify a new guitar purchase even though l’m to some degree always picking out some new gear. I know the parts guitars option is not popular here but it’s somewhat therapeutic for me. l’m always kinda customizing or modding. I’ve just had great success at it. You spend money in steps rather than a one time chunk.
Holy Sh!t…..this one was ALL Over the place and entertaining beyond measure! I loved it…punching clowns, Christmas lights, burning Targets with women streaming from the bathrooms and their rompers wrapped around their ankles…oh yeah, and guitars. Thank you!
