Conference napalm::guitar

    Epiphone makes a decent low-end jazz guitar called the Emporor for
    about $400-450. Washburn makes one called (I think) a J-6 in the same
    price range. There's a lot of variation in 'feel' which he may or may
    not be able to sense, so it night help to have a more experienced 
    player help him try them out. 
    
    Most jazz players like to play clean, so you don;t need an amp with
    a great distorted tone. Peavey makes some decent-sounding solid state
    amps that have good 'clean' sounds. They run in the $250-350 price
    range. 
    
    - Dave

    A couple of years ago, I almost bought a Washburn J-6 that was mentioned
    in the previous reply.  It seemed like a very nice guitar for the money,
    and I might still buy one someday.  The only reason I didn't buy it at
    the time was that I already had a (semi-)hollow body guitar, and decided
    to get a solid-body Strat clone instead.
    
    Epiphone also makes (made?) a Joe Pass model that I've seen in several
    stores, that also seemed nice.  Ibanez also makes several jazz models,
    but I don't know how much they cost.
    
    Chris

    Thanks for the information.  It helps to have some feed back.
    My nephew is going to consider those.
                                         Hossein Beyzavi

    I have a Washburn J-6, and am really happy with it.  One thing to be
    careful about is the size of the body, though.  Depending on his size,
    it might be a little large for a 14 year old.  The Epiphone Joe Pass
    model is a good bit smaller, if memory serves.
    
    Paul

    A good choice for a Jazz amp would be a small Politone Mini Brute.
    You can usually find these for ~$200. Look for one with a 12"
    speaker in a closed cabinet. These are extremly popular for jazz.
    
    My suggestions for Jazz guitars would echo those already mentioned,
    the Epiphone Emperor or Joe Pass model, as well as guitars from
    Ibanez, Washburn, Yamaha, or Samick.
    
    Mark 

    One other thing to keep in mind (some might say blasphemy). A
    while back I bought an old Harmony HG510 archtop guitar which
    has a solid spruce top, and cutaway. I paid $175 for it. It
    plays great. It doesn't have a pickup but Harmony made the 
    same model with pickups. You could easily add a floating pickup
    to something like this. I'm considering getting a DeArmond for
    mine. Kay also made many Jazz boxes in their day as well. These
    are in the same basic price range as the Harmonys (except for the
    collectable models). 
    
    Mark 
    
    PS: This kid has got good taste in music for his age. My hat is off
    to him. 
    
    

    If this is the kids first musical endeavor, I would suggest buying
    used pieces and keeping the budget below $500. If he's a musical prodigy
    and plans on playing Carnegie soon, I'd suggest something different.
    
    Look through classified ads for some of the afforementioned guitars.
    If a guitar playing friend can be there to play/check the guitars
    so much the better. Should be able to find something reasonably nice for 
    $250-$350. Please stay away from really low-end guitars, because if he
    does stick with it, he will outgrow the guitar quickly. 
    
    If looking for just a basic practice amp, there are many low end pieces
    in music stores for $90-$150 brand new. You might be able to save even
    more cash here if you look for used. Someone in DEC is selling an old
    Gibson amp for ~$75. Not only will the kid get a nice loud amp, but he'll
    build up some nice muscle carrying it around!
    
    I'm partial to the Roland Jazz Chorus amp for a Jazz application. I don't 
    know what they're going for used though.
    
    Larry

    Generally, I'd agree with the advice in .7, but particularly since
    the kid wants to get into jazz, I would like to offer the
    following warnings:
    
       o There are very few new affordable "jazz" (i.e., archtop) guitars on
         the market: the previously mention Epiphone Emperor models &
         the Washburn J6; plus I think Samick has one too.  None of these
         have been around that long, so the chance of finding them on
         the used market is small (unless you find someone who bought
    	 one and decided he/she didn't like it).
    
       o A used Gibson ES-175 (probably the cheapest "real" jazz 
         guitar you could find) will be outside your price range ($800+).
    
    So I doubt you'll find a used jazz guitar in the $250-$350 range.
    On the other hand, depending on the style of jazz he is into,
    a solid body electric might be acceptable (when I was 14, ANY 
    guitar was a thing of beauty).
    
    Still there are some possible finds on the used market:
    
       o As mentioned above, a recently purchased Epiphone or Washburn
         with an owner who decided archtops aren't his/her thing after
         all.
    
       o Ibanez copies of Gibson Archtops (I've seen ES-175, L5 and others)
         from the seventies.  Some of these are pretty decent.  Some of
         these show up under the Starfield name, too (same factory,
         different name plate).
    
       o Harmony and Kay models made in the U.S. (as mentioned in
         .6)
    
    With the Ibanez, and particularly the Harmony/Kay models, make
    sure you have someone knowledgeable check the instrument out.  There
    are an extremely wide range of models and quality levels.
    
    As far as amps, a use Polytone would be great.  I personally prefer
    tubes, but would not necessarily recommend a used tube amp to
    a beginner (if it needs new tubes, it could be quite expensive).
    
    Good luck,
    Jim

    I agree with Jim. There's nothing wrong with playing Jazz on a 
    solid body instrument. Most teenage kids would prefer a solid-body
    over a hollow-body anyways. 
    
    I own several guitars, both solid, and hollow, and the best jazz
    tone, in fact the best tone period, is from my Gibson Firebird V. 
    The neck pickup on that guitar is incredibly sweet sounding, and
    the neck is to die for. 
    
    I also have several instruments that I bought in the $150 - $200
    range that sound surprisingly sweet. One of the nicest ones is a
    Kay hollow-body (like a Gibson ES125T) with one pickup mounted
    near the neck. Great neck, great tone, and only cost me $160.
    
    There's tons of deals out there. The best approach is to find
    someone knowledgeable that can help locate the right guitar.
    Stay away from music stores if you can help it!
    
    Mark