If you’re someone who loves and cares about the tone of your electric guitar, you’re probably willing to drop some dough for it. For that reason, we put together a list of eight of the best high-end guitars (like, $3,000 and up).

This goes out to all the face melters, shredders, and metalheads.

Best Electric Guitars Above $3,000

Ernie Ball Music Man BFR JP6 Signature Koa

If you want heavy electric guitar tones, John Petrucci’s BFR 6 is a great choice for you. But if you want a nice acoustic guitar-like sound, you can get that too.

The maple neck has perfect alignment, thanks to an adjustable truss rod and 5-bolt mounting. That DiMarzio LiquiFire neck and the Crunch Lab bridge humbuckers allow this guitar to have full lows and punchy highs. One toggle on the body lets you choose to use the magnetic pickups, the Piezo acoustic pickup, or both at once.

It’s hard to go wrong with the Ernie Ball name.

Specifications and features:

  • Schaller M6-IND locking tuners with pearl buttons
  • Controls: 500kohm volume and tone – .022 F tone capacitor
  • Three pickup selections: piezo, magnetic, or both
  • DiMarzio LiquiFire neck pickup
  • DiMarzio Crunch Lab bridge pickup
  • Strings: 10p-13p-17p-26w-36w-46w (RPS Slinkys #2240)
  • Weight: 8 lbs, 7 oz (3.83 kg)
  • Scale Length: 25-1/2″ (64.8 cm)
  • Frets: 24 – high profile, wide

Fender Custom Shop Limited Edition Heavy Relic El Diablo Stratocaster

This guitar looks it could kick your butt, and its sound will do just that. It’s got a raw tone that’s super powerful — it will definitely cut through whatever mix it’s a part of.

And with the double cutaway, solid body, and a paint job that makes it look like it just got in a bar fight, this guitar is a killer.

Specifications and features:

  • Solid body with a double cutaway
  • Scale length: 25.5 in.
  • Standard truss rod
  • Jumbo fret size, 21 frets
  • Nut width: 1.687 in. (42.8 mm)
  • Passive pickups
  • Controls: Master volume, tone 1, tone 2
  • 5-way pickup switch
  • Vintage-style Kluson tuners

Gibson Memphis ES-335 Premiere Figured

When Gibson made a modern version of the ES-335 from the 1960s, it’s more about what they removed. The stopped using synthetic glue to attached the neck and used hide glue instead. They got rid of the tubing that went around the truss rod.

When you plug in the Gibson Memphis ES-335 Premiere Figured, you can choose your tone as easily as switching the song in your headphones. Thanks to the humbucker pickups and the semi hollowbody, you can get guitar tones fit for country, jazz, blues, and rock.

Specifications and features:

  • Semi-hollowbody design with cutaway
  • 3-ply maple/poplar/maple top and back
  • Historic truss rod
  • Adirondack spruce bracing
  • Hide-glued mahogany neck, rosewood fingerboard
  • Unpotted MHS humbuckers (Alnico III neck, Alnico II bridge)
  • 550K audio taper pots
  • Grover tuners
  • ABR bridge and lightweight stopbar

Gibson Les Paul Standard 2018

The Gibson Les Paul Standard plays fast and exact because of the Plek processing. What the heck is Plek processing, you ask? Well, it’s really only used for the best and most expensive guitars. This process levels all the frets, making the whole fretboard the most playable you’ll find.

Plus, this Les Paul is considerably lighter than other Les Pauls. With the Standard 2018, they used a design that’s not as heavy but still retains the resonance you’d expect. This is big, especially if you’re a performing musician. Your back and shoulder will thank you.

Specifications and features:

  • Designed to be lighter than the typical Les paul
  • Compound-radius fretboard
  • Two push-pull volume controls: single-coil and humbucking operation
  • Push-pull neck tone
  • Push-pull bridge tone control
  • Grover kidney-button tuners
  • Plek processing for precision playability

Gretsch G6120T-55GE Vintage Select 1955 Chet Atkins

Maple is known to be one of the brightest woods for guitars, which is why Gretsch used it for their G6120T-55GE Vintage Select 1955 Chet Atkins.

Thanks to the TV Jones single-coil pickups, you can get that coveted ‘50s-to-’60s-style Gretsch guitar tone. But that’s not the only tone you can coax out of this instrument. With a volume for each pickup, you’re able to cook up a warm and brilliant tone. And then the master tone control allows you to hone in on your tone even more.

Specifications and features:

  • Chet Atkins Hollowbody design
  • Maple top, body, and neck
  • 22 frets
  • Scale Length: 24.6″
  • Nut Width: 1.6875″
  • Nut Material: Bone
  • Grover Sta-Tite Gold tuners
  • TV Jones T’Armond single-coil pickups
  • Two pickup volume knobs, master volume, master tone, and a 3-way toggle pickup
  • Strings: Nickel-plated Steel (.011-.049)

Patrick James Eggle Macon

The UK-made double-cutaway Patrick James Eggle Macon electric guitar is for those who know what they’re doing.

Not only does it look good because of the Chambered mahogany body with a carved redwood top, but it also sounds great because of the two Bare Knuckle Mule humbuckers. Furthermore, the three-way toggle pickup switch, master tone and volume allow you to fine-tune your tone.

Specifications and features:

  • Hardware Aged Waverly tuners
  • Aged ABM tune-o-matic bridge and trapeze tailpiece
  • Scale Length: 628mm (24.75 inches)
  • String Spacing: 35mm at nut, 52mm at bridge

PRS McCarty 594

Because of Ted McCarty, we now have some very legendary electric guitar designs, and the PRS McCarty 594 is one example of that.

When you plug in this solidbody guitar and play the first chord, you’ll hear its rich and vintage tone. You can then customize the sound with the tone knobs, and the asymmetrical Pattern Vintage profile of the neck makes it thicker and fills your grasp perfectly.

Some owners of this guitar say that, because of the low output pickups, the sound can cut out if the volume isn’t cranked. But maybe you’re dying to crank the volume to 11.

Specifications and features:

  • Solid body, double-cut design
  • Mahogany body and neck
  • Flamed Maple top
  • Rosewood fingerboard
  • Asymmetrical Pattern Vintage neck shape
  • 22 frets
  • Scale Length: 24.594″
  • Nut Width: 1.6875″
  • Nut Material: PRS Synthetic/bronze powder blend
  • Bridge/Tailpiece: PRS 2-piece stoptail
  • PRS Phase III Locking tuners
  • Neck Pickup: 58/15 LT Humbucker
  • Bridge Pickup: 58/15 LT Humbucker
  • Two volume knobs, two tone knobs, three-way toggle pickup switch

Strandberg Boden Metal 7-String Black Pearl

Who says we have to stick with six-string guitars? The Strandberg Boden Metal 7-String Black Pearl is perfect for metalheads but can also work in other genres.

Because it’s made with Basswood, it offers a lot of midrange tone, and the Maple top delivers a fast attack and beautiful highs. And you’ll be able to dance your fingers swiftly across the Maple neck and Ebony fretboard.

Specifications and features:

  • Solid body, double-cutaway
  • Basswood body
  • Roasted maple neck with carbon fiber
  • Ebony fretboard
  • Scale length: 26.25 in. – 25.5 in.
  • Dual-action truss rod
  • 24 frets
  • Nut width: 1.94 in. (49.3 mm)
  • Fluence Modern humbucker alnico passive bridge pickup
  • Master volume, master tone, three-way pickup switch