Customer Kudos
"zZounds has EXCELLENT pricing and payment plans that make any instrument affordable. Not to mention, their customer service department is really efficient, friendly & helpful."
April 11, 2026
All-Star Gear: Electric Guitars
zZounds customers weigh in on their favorite gear
Few instruments say so much about their owners than the electric guitar. The body style, pickups, finish and features all combine into an instrument that expresses what the guitarist is all about. That's probably why so many owners are so passionate about their favorites.
We've compiled this All-Star list of some of our customers' top-rated electric guitars, and included real quotes from happy owners to illuminate what they love most. Shop our list to see if yours made the cut, or find your next model from our selection!
See more All-Star Gear Guides »
We've compiled this All-Star list of some of our customers' top-rated electric guitars, and included real quotes from happy owners to illuminate what they love most. Shop our list to see if yours made the cut, or find your next model from our selection!
ESP LTD EC-1000 Deluxe Series
Our Customers Say...
"The neck is a thing of beauty. It's thin, and the smooth finish of the matte black paint job allows your hand to slide up and down the neck effortlessly. The ebony fretboard is wonderful...It plays effortlessly."
- Alex in Dothan, FL
"Lovely guitar with powerful and robust sweet sound. The sleek, smooth, and light body makes an easy playability that pleases your ears and fingers."
- Fernando in San Carlos, CA
"The EC-1000 is fantastic. The fit and finish are top notch. The extra-jumbo frets make playing so much fun."
- Jonathan in Bristol, TN
Own it for $1,099.00 or 18 payments of $61.05!
"The neck is a thing of beauty. It's thin, and the smooth finish of the matte black paint job allows your hand to slide up and down the neck effortlessly. The ebony fretboard is wonderful...It plays effortlessly."
- Alex in Dothan, FL
"Lovely guitar with powerful and robust sweet sound. The sleek, smooth, and light body makes an easy playability that pleases your ears and fingers."
- Fernando in San Carlos, CA
"The EC-1000 is fantastic. The fit and finish are top notch. The extra-jumbo frets make playing so much fun."
- Jonathan in Bristol, TN
Own it for $1,099.00 or 18 payments of $61.05!
Gibson SG Standard '61
Our Customers Say...
"Cosmetically the guitar is flawless and the sound is glorious. It plays like a dream. It just takes you along for the ride. Ted McCarty’s masterpiece!"
- James in Frankfort, KY
"Plays like a dream, super fast/comfortable neck, fantastic sounding pickups! Really nice case also."
- Doc in St. Louis, MO
"Great guitar. Excellent Setup! Haven't had an SG in over 25 years and am extremely happy with this purchase."
- T in Minneapolis, MN
Own it for $1,999.00 or 18 payments of $111.05!
"Cosmetically the guitar is flawless and the sound is glorious. It plays like a dream. It just takes you along for the ride. Ted McCarty’s masterpiece!"
- James in Frankfort, KY
"Plays like a dream, super fast/comfortable neck, fantastic sounding pickups! Really nice case also."
- Doc in St. Louis, MO
"Great guitar. Excellent Setup! Haven't had an SG in over 25 years and am extremely happy with this purchase."
- T in Minneapolis, MN
Own it for $1,999.00 or 18 payments of $111.05!
Epiphone Inspired by Gibson Firebird
Our Customers Say...
"Within 5 minutes this became my favorite guitar! Beautiful fit and finish, and perfect setup right out of the box. I don't have to do a thing to it. The CTS pots work perfectly, and the pickups are the real deal."
- Donny in Longmont, CO
"I find myself using this guitar every day and have not bothered playing anything else since my purchase. And the setup on this firebird, it was perfect right out of the box, no need to adjust anything."
- Cynthia in Albion, MI
"The tone and sound from this guitar is just awesome. Select which pickup you desire to get a great sound from and it will exceed any expectation you ever had."
- A Happy Owner
Own it for $799.00 or 12 payments of $66.58!
"Within 5 minutes this became my favorite guitar! Beautiful fit and finish, and perfect setup right out of the box. I don't have to do a thing to it. The CTS pots work perfectly, and the pickups are the real deal."
- Donny in Longmont, CO
"I find myself using this guitar every day and have not bothered playing anything else since my purchase. And the setup on this firebird, it was perfect right out of the box, no need to adjust anything."
- Cynthia in Albion, MI
"The tone and sound from this guitar is just awesome. Select which pickup you desire to get a great sound from and it will exceed any expectation you ever had."
- A Happy Owner
Own it for $799.00 or 12 payments of $66.58!
Ibanez RG652AHM Prestige
Our Customers Say...
"I couldn't put the thing down. Made in Japan, beautiful finish, awesome neck, awesome pups, beautiful binding, extremely stable tremolo, tuners on the trem are tight and accurate."
- Tim in Valparaiso, IN
"I am blown away by every aspect of this beautiful instrument. The feel, tone, tuning stability, and looks are all perfect. An Original Floyd is awesome but the Original Edge is perfect in every way."
- Jeff in East Wenatchee, WA
"I have a pretty decent guitar collection and this Japanese-made Ibanez is at the top of my collection. The playability of this guitar is just silly good. The neck is so smooth and every fret edge has been meticulously sanded by a superb luthier. The finish just boggles the mind, so beautiful, so expertly crafted, the guitar just pops big time.
- Rodney in Kempner, TX
Own it for $1,799.99 or 18 payments of $100.00!
"I couldn't put the thing down. Made in Japan, beautiful finish, awesome neck, awesome pups, beautiful binding, extremely stable tremolo, tuners on the trem are tight and accurate."
- Tim in Valparaiso, IN
"I am blown away by every aspect of this beautiful instrument. The feel, tone, tuning stability, and looks are all perfect. An Original Floyd is awesome but the Original Edge is perfect in every way."
- Jeff in East Wenatchee, WA
"I have a pretty decent guitar collection and this Japanese-made Ibanez is at the top of my collection. The playability of this guitar is just silly good. The neck is so smooth and every fret edge has been meticulously sanded by a superb luthier. The finish just boggles the mind, so beautiful, so expertly crafted, the guitar just pops big time.
- Rodney in Kempner, TX
Own it for $1,799.99 or 18 payments of $100.00!
Squier Classic Vibe '50s Telecaster
Our Customers Say...
"Tuning keys stay in tune VERY well and the pickups sound amazing in my opinion. Also the fretwork on my guitar is absolutely astonishing for the price."
- Mark in Murfreesboro, TN
"It feels great in my hands and is gorgeous to my eyes. The neck is smooth and the fretwork is very good."
- Stephen in Santa Fe, NM
"Awesome is the best definition. The sound from these alnicos rates up there if not better than some of my custom shop pickups."
- Johnny in Oak Grove, LA
Own it for $499.99 or 6 payments of $83.33!
"Tuning keys stay in tune VERY well and the pickups sound amazing in my opinion. Also the fretwork on my guitar is absolutely astonishing for the price."
- Mark in Murfreesboro, TN
"It feels great in my hands and is gorgeous to my eyes. The neck is smooth and the fretwork is very good."
- Stephen in Santa Fe, NM
"Awesome is the best definition. The sound from these alnicos rates up there if not better than some of my custom shop pickups."
- Johnny in Oak Grove, LA
Own it for $499.99 or 6 payments of $83.33!
PRS Paul Reed Smith CE24
Our Customers Say...
"Great guitar. It sounds great, it's the easiest guitar to play that I've personally played. There's a lot of sustain on tap and the versatility of THE ACTUALLY USEFUL COIL SPLIT gives you a lot of tonal viability. Feels great, sounds great, looks great."
- Zachary in Baton Rouge, LA
"Balanced; fretboard is butter, access to the frets 12-21 a dream. Sound can be adjusted to be any guitar and any sound. Way to go PRS."
- Douglas in Terre Haute, IN
"The maple neck is sweet, very fast! The pickups work well, clean or dirty. So far she has stayed in tune. The finish is beautiful!"
- James in Johnson City, TN
Own it for $2,699.00 or 18 payments of $149.94!
"Great guitar. It sounds great, it's the easiest guitar to play that I've personally played. There's a lot of sustain on tap and the versatility of THE ACTUALLY USEFUL COIL SPLIT gives you a lot of tonal viability. Feels great, sounds great, looks great."
- Zachary in Baton Rouge, LA
"Balanced; fretboard is butter, access to the frets 12-21 a dream. Sound can be adjusted to be any guitar and any sound. Way to go PRS."
- Douglas in Terre Haute, IN
"The maple neck is sweet, very fast! The pickups work well, clean or dirty. So far she has stayed in tune. The finish is beautiful!"
- James in Johnson City, TN
Own it for $2,699.00 or 18 payments of $149.94!
Guild Surfliner Deluxe
Our Customers Say...
"I can not believe what you get in this guitar at the price point. Especially the freaking pickups man. This guitar punches WELL above its weight class and is a joy to play."
- A Happy Owner
"The offset body is very light and highly resonant. The floating tremolo is very smooth and responsive. The neck is amazing; beautiful rosewood fretboard with real MOP block inlays [and] I was pleasantly surprised by the locking tuners."
- A Happy Owner
"The neck is flawless: comfortable and smooth, so's the rest of the guitar. It's just as good as guitars costing two or three times as much."
- A Happy Owner
Own it for $699.99 or 12 payments of $58.33!
"I can not believe what you get in this guitar at the price point. Especially the freaking pickups man. This guitar punches WELL above its weight class and is a joy to play."
- A Happy Owner
"The offset body is very light and highly resonant. The floating tremolo is very smooth and responsive. The neck is amazing; beautiful rosewood fretboard with real MOP block inlays [and] I was pleasantly surprised by the locking tuners."
- A Happy Owner
"The neck is flawless: comfortable and smooth, so's the rest of the guitar. It's just as good as guitars costing two or three times as much."
- A Happy Owner
Own it for $699.99 or 12 payments of $58.33!
Schecter PT
Our Customers Say...
"Pickups roar, yet have the perfect sound for any style of music. Looks are both beautiful and rocking. They come with 10s. I changed strings to Ernie Ball Pure nickel...just amazing."
- Ernie in Miami, FL
"The maple neck and fingerboard feel great, it is not a super slim 'fast' neck like you may think, it's just like a Telecaster. The Grover 18:1 tuners do their job perfectly as always and the guitar stays in tune great."
- Joe in Bel Air, MD
"The pickups are very expressive and have incredible gain for passives. I was a little skeptical since they didn't have height-adjustable pole pieces but honestly I don't think I'll ever swap these out."
- Matt in Overland, MO
Own it for $799.00 or 12 payments of $66.58!
"Pickups roar, yet have the perfect sound for any style of music. Looks are both beautiful and rocking. They come with 10s. I changed strings to Ernie Ball Pure nickel...just amazing."
- Ernie in Miami, FL
"The maple neck and fingerboard feel great, it is not a super slim 'fast' neck like you may think, it's just like a Telecaster. The Grover 18:1 tuners do their job perfectly as always and the guitar stays in tune great."
- Joe in Bel Air, MD
"The pickups are very expressive and have incredible gain for passives. I was a little skeptical since they didn't have height-adjustable pole pieces but honestly I don't think I'll ever swap these out."
- Matt in Overland, MO
Own it for $799.00 or 12 payments of $66.58!
Jackson JS Series King V JS32T
Our Customers Say...
"The pickups are actually very high output and give you that metal sound and then some. The red finish is killer. Build quality is great."
- John in Alamogordo, NM
"The neck feels and plays wonderfully, no dead spots. It is very resonant. Pinch harmonics jump off this thing. I was thinking I would need to replace the pickups but no. They sound fantastic."
- A Happy Owner
"I am writing this review because I was actually impressed by the sound and quality at this price range. This is the first Jackson that I have bought and I am pleasantly surprised!"
- Evan
Own it for $439.99!
"The pickups are actually very high output and give you that metal sound and then some. The red finish is killer. Build quality is great."
- John in Alamogordo, NM
"The neck feels and plays wonderfully, no dead spots. It is very resonant. Pinch harmonics jump off this thing. I was thinking I would need to replace the pickups but no. They sound fantastic."
- A Happy Owner
"I am writing this review because I was actually impressed by the sound and quality at this price range. This is the first Jackson that I have bought and I am pleasantly surprised!"
- Evan
Own it for $439.99!
Schecter Damien Platinum-7
Our Customers Say...
"This guitar is perfect for metal. The tone is awesome and the neck feels great. The matte black finish looks great and the bat inlays add a very nice touch."
- Patrick in Farwell, TX
"The active pickups sound great. I play my guitar using Logic Pro amp simulator and Tonebridge (I don't have an amp) and the difference between the sound after changing the battery for the pickups was definitely noticeable. The guitar feels solid and the build quality feels great."
- Shane in Moraine, OH
"This guitar is amazing right out of the box and has killer tone -- very articulate. You can hear every note of a chord even under extreme distortion modes."
- A Happy Owner
Own it for $899.00 or 12 payments of $74.92!
"This guitar is perfect for metal. The tone is awesome and the neck feels great. The matte black finish looks great and the bat inlays add a very nice touch."
- Patrick in Farwell, TX
"The active pickups sound great. I play my guitar using Logic Pro amp simulator and Tonebridge (I don't have an amp) and the difference between the sound after changing the battery for the pickups was definitely noticeable. The guitar feels solid and the build quality feels great."
- Shane in Moraine, OH
"This guitar is amazing right out of the box and has killer tone -- very articulate. You can hear every note of a chord even under extreme distortion modes."
- A Happy Owner
Own it for $899.00 or 12 payments of $74.92!
