Video summary

PROs Guess The Cost Of Guitars Blindfolded

Main summary

Key takeaways

Product Review

Product reviewed

The video isn’t reviewing a single product. It blindfold-tests three different professional/electric guitars (plus one clearly budget “kids” guitar) to see whether the players can identify cheap vs expensive purely by feel and sound.

Key points

Overall premise / test method

  • The host blindfolds participants to test whether they can tell cheap guitars vs expensive guitars based on:
    • how the guitars feel to play
    • how they sound
  • Repeated idea: the real indicator of quality is playability + tone, not brand or price.

Guitar breakdown

Guitar #1 (Les Paul / PRS-ish feel) — “Bluesman Vintage” (~$3,000)

Main features / what they noticed (blind)

  • Identified a cutaway and a “Telecaster-style / Telly” feel at first, but the overall impression turned into a Les Paul-like guess.
  • Noted rolled fret edges and generally good playability.
  • Finish described as very smooth/flat/satin-like (almost not “glossy”).

Pros

  • “Feels incredible to play”
  • “Well-made cheap guitar” vibe; strong attention to detail
  • “Really, really nice” and even “nicer to look at”

Cons

  • They were nervous to quote pricing accurately (uncertainty in identity), but no direct playability flaws were stated.

Price / rating

  • Early guesses: about $300, then $750–$800
  • Final identification: Bluesman Vintage, around ~$3,000
  • Verdict by feel: punching above its weight class

Guitar #2 (Gibson/Les Paul-style; heavy) — guessed up to ~$4,000

Main features / what they noticed (blind)

  • Described as “Gibson-ish”:
    • Gibson-like headstock shape (debated if it’s truly Gibson)
    • humbuckers
    • stop tail; bridge type described with an “ABR1 bigger vibe” mention
    • four knobs
  • Tone trick mentioned (Les Paul-style balancing):
    • dialing neck/middle/volume to hit a “fatter bridge pickup tone”
  • Later callout: could include mini humbuckers; guesses included Les Paul Deluxe / early ’70s style.
  • Participant ultimately guessed Harley Benton Les Paul, expecting “$300 range.”

Pros

  • Plays “nice”
  • Great pickup tone when set correctly
  • “Punching above its weight class” again (very good feel despite a low guess)
  • “Heavy” noted, but not treated as a complaint

Cons

  • Uncertainty about exact identity:
    • debated whether it was a true Gibson vs an “inspired by Gibson” version

Price / rating

  • One guess: ~$1,800
  • Another: “north of $5 grand” (later corrected)
  • Final identification: worth ~$4,000
    • “That’s crazy. It’s actually worth $4,000.”

Guitar #3 (Kids guitar; very low-end) — ~ $200

Main features / what they noticed (blind)

  • Immediately reads as budget:
    • very unfinished fret ends and neck shape feels unfinished
    • one pickup and one knob
    • no pickup selector (single pickup only)
  • Strong concern about tuning/intonation:
    • if construction/intonation is poor, it won’t stay in tune up the neck

Pros

  • None; explicitly disliked.

Cons

  • “I don’t really like this guitar”
  • “This is kind of terrible”
  • “Playability does not feel very good”
  • Poor construction cues: fret ends, neck finish, basic controls

Price / rating

  • Guesses: $100–$400
    • specific: “$150”, “$400 or something”, “150 300 bucks”
  • Final identification: kids guitar company, “around $200”

User experience takeaway

  • Participants expected it probably wouldn’t be a long-term commitment:
    • “a good like I’m not sure my kid’s going to stick with it.”

Guitar #4 (PRS 40th anniversary; very premium) — guessed up to ~$3,500–$4,000 but is ~$7,000

Main features / what they noticed (blind)

  • Hang tag / recognition toward PRS.
  • Described as:
    • hollow body / semihollow
    • three humbuckers
    • coil splitting (switching from humbucker to “single coil” behavior)
    • “nice cutting humbucker”
  • Overall: felt good; “tone’s pretty solid.”

Pros

  • Feels good
  • Tone is solid
  • A key theme: “fool me on price point”—good build and sound can hide premium pricing

Cons

  • They expected it might cost more than imagined, but no direct flaws were noted.

Price / rating

  • Guesses: $1,200 up to $3,500–$4,000
  • Final identification: PRS 40th anniversary, around ~$7,000

Guitar #5 (Strat-style) — identified as 2000 American Fender Strat Standard (~$1,000)

Main features / what they noticed (blind)

  • Strat-style body and Fender-like headstock:
    • “real Fender head stock”
    • “big head Strat” late 60s/early 70s vibe mentioned, but they also said it doesn’t feel old
  • Positive feel cues:
    • rolled fret edges
    • doesn’t feel unfinished
    • described as well made
  • Sound: “sounds okay” (not glowing—just acceptable)

Pros

  • Good playability and “gig-capable” feel
  • Concern about gigability was mostly redirected to the “kids guitar”

Cons

  • Sound was judged less impressive than the feel
  • Slight uncertainty:
    • “Might be a custom shop Strat… Is that what I was feeling?”
  • Tone impression: not “amazing,” more like “okay”

Price / rating

  • Guesses ranged widely: $600–$700, $800, and up to $1,500–$2,500
  • Final identification: 2000 American Fender Strat Standard, right around $1,000

Comparisons made

Participants repeatedly compared the guitars’ feel to familiar models:

  • Les Paul / PRS / Telecaster-style
  • Gibson-like headstock/humbuckers
  • Fender Strat headstock/body cues

A repeated theme: premium look/feel can be misleading—the “cheap” feel sometimes matched $3k–$4k–$7k guitars, while the “cheap” feel correctly matched the kids guitar.

Concise verdict / recommendation (based on the video)

  • Best takeaway: You generally can’t reliably judge price by blind feel alone—some “well-made cheap-feeling” guitars can be $3,000–$7,000.
  • However: playability red flags (unfinished neck/fret ends, poor intonation) reliably signal true budget quality (the ~$200 kids guitar).
  • Overall recommendation: Prioritize hand feel (frets/neck finish) and tone/intonation over brand labels or price expectations—especially when trying to spot value.

Speaker/participant viewpoints (as reflected in subtitles)

  1. Host / main participant

    • Sets up the test and emphasizes feel/sound as quality indicators.

  2. Participant A (early on)

    • Experienced with very low- and high-end guitars; focuses on inspiration and playability.
    • Impressed by rolled fret edges and play feel on the “cheap-feeling” guitar (~$3k identified).

  3. Participant B (PRS/solid tone section)

    • Strong identification toward PRS.
    • Notices coil splitting and rates tone as solid.

  4. Participant C (Strat section)

    • Focuses on rolled fret edges, “unfinished vs finished” feel, and Fender headstock cues.

  5. General group consensus themes

    • “Roll the tape” callouts for incorrect guesses
    • Uncertainty about model identity from touch alone (headstock/construction cues can mislead)

Original video