MusicRadar

UPDATE: We've added two new vintage-vibe electrics - a Höfner Club Solid and a LTD Phoenix 200 - both splicing old-school charm with a generous dollop of modern playability, build quality and an affordable price tag. See them both on the first two slides of this gallery or, if it's your first time here, keep on scrolling for a selection of guitars to suit every player’s taste - all under £500…

We’ve seen kick-ass electrics under £200, the very finest under £300 (plus a cool 17 more) and badass models under £400, so - for those not quite ready to make the jump to £1000 - here’s the last in our series of ‘affordable’ axes: 22 smokin’ electric guitars under £500.

Hand-picked from the pages of Total Guitar, there’s a shape and style to suit every type of guitarist. As you’d expect from forking out the extra £100, the upgrades in materials, pickups and finishes are noticeable and, in our opinion, well worth it. You can even afford a PRS! First up: Höfner Club Solid...

The new Höfner Club Solid is based on the hollowbody Club model John Lennon played in the early days of The Beatles. While Lennon’s guitar would have been super-lightweight, the new Solid version utilises the classic Les Paul style construction of a mahogany body topped with maple, resulting in a much heavier guitar.

If you’ll allow us to get a bit superficial, we have to say that the Höfner Club Solid is a beautiful looking guitar. The inlayed headstock, trapeze tailpiece and those stunning vintage Höfner stripe fingerboard inlays made us gasp when we took the Club out of its box.

Plugging into an amp had the same effect. The bridge mini-humbucker sparkles on clean and shimmers with some overdrive. The neck ’bucker has a clarity that only found its match in the Super Swede’s neck P90. The little Club also showcases an impressive level of sustain that makes blues noodling a joy.

Verdict

The Höfner Club Solid is a cracking piece of eye candy, bursting with tone. If we have one complaint, it’s aimed at the generic slim neck profile. We reckon the Club would be a stone killer if it had a chubbier neck, but some of you may well disagree. Anyway, as it stands, this is one Club we’d definitely be interested in joining - especially given just how affordable the membership fee is.

Pros: Great pickups, serious eye candy.
Cons: We’d like a meatier neck.

Next: LTD Phoenix 200