We always knew something like this was a realistic possibility, but we had high hopes that it'd never really come to fruition. Today, what little hope we had left in humanity has been thoroughly crushed, as the introduction of a guitar controller that costs far more than many
actual guitars has occurred. In an effort to
truly milk the sector for all it's worth,
Mad Catz has begun to ship the sunburst-colored Rock Band Wireless Wooden Fender Stratocaster, which is a 1:1 replica of the iconic axe that is constructed from genuine Stratocaster wooden blanks. Heck, even the tuning keys and bridge are built from genuine
Fender metal parts and fittings. There's also a wireless module designed to function with Microsoft's
Xbox 360, and just so you know you're getting your money's worth, the $299.99 asking price also includes a Fender guitar strap and a headset socket for online play. So, who out there is brazen enough to admit that they're buying one (or two)?
[Via
OhGizmo]
posted Sep 4th 2009 9:01AM
There is no god.
I don't know . . . in some ways, the parts of a RB controller might actually cost as much or more than the parts of a real guitar. When you start throwing in genuine Fender parts (wood blank, bridge, tuning keys, etc.), it makes a little more sense that it would cost more than a real guitar.
Still wouldn't buy it, of course.
Also . . . As a real musician, the existence of this controller does not "disgrace" me.
Playing a gig drunk and falling off stage . . . maybe. Although, I don't remember it.
@smart
a real fender guitar costs much more because strats are handbuilt and actually loved for. not run through an automation process and then slabs of fender parts are wrapped around it.
that's what you pay for.
that and the AMAZING sound.
I don't actually play or teach guitar (see username) so I have no idea how much one costs. I was just taking Murph's word for it:
". . . a guitar controller that costs far more than many actual guitars . . ."
Thanks for setting me straight, V.
I should point out, however, that my tuba does go up to "11."
@Smart
lol
i play drums. I did trombone in 3rd grade but I couldn't get to 7th position haha
but yeah a real strat costs upwards of 1000
and anything you can get for around 300 is a very beginners guitar
so we have here, a $300 "fake" guitar for the top video gamist, or $300 "real" guitar for those who are beginning to learn.
something tells me, many of the best video gamers would fall into the later category
@ V Langs
Gibson Les Paul's are hand made too. And it is a disgrace because i only payed about 250 for a beautiful epiphone les paul.... way better than some gaming guitar, which isnt even a good brand. Mad Catz sucks
Whatever.
I wonder if these companies do any market research before putting in the capital investment to design and manufacture such a product.
I'm not one of those "Play a real guitar don't waste time on video games" guys. I like doing both...but if you like music enough to shell out 300 for a "controller". Then might I suggest taking that money and getting an instrument and some lessons for cheaper?
...just a thought
I guess the economy isn't that bad...
I can't wait for someone to strip it and turn it into a working guitar.
Wouldn't it make more sense to just buy a guitar.
Just saying...
My point was the futility of it all... With a side glance at that actual guitar ruined to work with Rock Band...
ehhhh... /SARCASM tags next time, sorry :p
Wouldn't it be easier/cheaper to do it the other way around, and turn a working guitar into this?
For Christ's sake....
yeah. as of now I'm jumping on the "play a real instrument" bandwagon.
not that GH and RB aren't awesome amazing wicked fun ect
You really wouldn't want to play a guitar that costs less than $300.
http://www.guitarbitz.com/350.htm
Unless you wish for your fingers to lose skin, and gain some hand-muscle atrophy.
For kicks - just checked Sweetwater - the first guitar out of the knock-offs (Squire, Epiphone, Ibanez) is $450 for a Parker.
Not a Fender. Those Chinese versions are crap outta the box. Want a good Fender strat, you're paying for the $1000 American Standard.
$300 is crazy in this economy but it's a complete 1:1 replica, the price tag ain't so bad. Would I but one, hell no. The packaged ones work well enough for my needs. The added size and weight would be nice.
@joe
as the owner of 7 guitars...3 of them are under $300 and play amazingly! i get one of the best full bodied sounds out of my $199 epiphone acoustic and a a bass that holds tune to well i rarely have to tune it comes from a cheap $75 unheard of brand. im not condoning giving up on the real deal (martin, gibson, fender, rickenbacker, etc) but sometimes a cheaper model is worth its weight in gold.
oh and i also play GH...its just too much fun
Who the hell needs to pay over $300 for a guitar? Sure, they may not be as well as keeping tune as the Jackson Kelly KE3 I'm getting, but they play great.
After 10 years of playing, I still feel unworthy sometimes playing on my $450 Epiphone Les Paul. Buying a bad ass, made in america, super expensive guitar won't make you sound any better if you play like crappy.
I remember this kid in high school who had a Mesa-Boogie stack, American Strat, and all the pedals you could ever need. Shit I still can't afford a decade later. I mean this guys fuckin music was terrible, and had no musical creativity. But I guess he sounded good at being shitty.
I still have my beginner guitar that I got for 150. I still play it and it really doesnt sound that bad. But as the above said, buying expensive equipment still won't make you good. I still don't feel worthy of my 7-string Ibanez... still working at it.
And I really could never get into either guitar games, it just doesnt work for me.
@tiptup300
I'm pretty sure there are other reasons to buy an expensive guitar other than that it keeps in tune. You also have to take into account how it feels in your hands, the sound (ie. what type of wood its made of, what pickups are installed, etc.), the looks, and many other factors. If you are just buying a KE3 because it keeps in tune well, you clearly don't know anything about guitars and I feel sorry that such a nice guitar is going to waste.
Just bought a life-sized real-wood wireless guitar controller by Peak at Big Lots for $60. Originally $180. Just wait a while for this one, too.
It would look great next to a doofus in a Hummer, donchathink?
/cries quietly
Now if they would only release a version with action buttons up on the fretboard so I can throw grenades while rockin out to Halo. :-\
"...a guitar controller that costs far more than many actual guitars..."
Um, I'm sorry, but no. $100-300 is the price of low-end guitars like Squiers or Ibanez's lower end Gios. Any good quality guitar (not that the lower end ones a terrible, just no great) is going to be $400+. A real MIA (made in America) Stratocastor is easily $1000+. So, that statement I is halfway true I suppose.
Just clarifying here, I definitely have no hope for this piece of crap. Mad Catz lost my sales after I bought my first PS2 controller from them a LONG time ago. It broke after only 3 angry throws across the room! My Sony PS2 controllers could handle at least 15. Come on, we're gamers we get angry and throw crap Mad Catz, keep that in mind when you build your products.
It took 3 throws? No offense but you must gamer-rage like a sissy.
I can break a Nintendo controller in one throw.
Well, controllers are kind of like airplanes without wings: they're not meant to fly.
Don't take your anger out on MadCatz.
I'm sure that they used blanks from the Squire strarts, in which case I don't really mind.
3 throws is much better than my record with 3rd party accessories. Most of them broke under normal use (not throwing it) within hours.
MadCatz is made for those that throw like pussies (hence the Catz in their name). I thought this was obvious.
For less than the price of this unit, you could get the real thing and pay for guitar lessons. Time to to take the soul of rock and roll and butcher it in a game controller.
...said it once, said it a thousand times...GH/RB is no more a 'replacement' for playing guitar than Madden is for playing football or Need for Speed is for driving fast cars, and any guitar-playing, GH/RB fan will tell you that. They're completely different forms of entertainment and each has their reasonable price.
Though, come to think of it...
"controller that costs far more than many actual guitars"---gross misrepresentation of "actual guitar" prices aside, the price of one's choice of game console, a widescreen TV and Madden '10 is far more expensive than a football to throw around behind the house. Heck, one's choice of game console, a widescreen TV and the standard GH/RB kit is already as expensive as a MIA Fender Standard Strat. At that point, what's another $300?
get my point?
No kidding, for as much as I've spent on my TV, Surround Sound System, the Gaming Systems themselves, controllers, and games, I might as well just bought a gun and shot someone in the face.
You made my day rocketboy
House of the Dead Overkill has taken the soul out of killing the soulless. Shooting the undead use to mean something. Time to take the soul out of the soulless and put in a crappy light gun game.
/sarcasm
I love rock bands ability to introduce music to the generations but $300 bucks. Spend $400 on a Standard Fender Telecaster and start learning your chords.... A through E and you can really learn how to play most songs on Rock Bands List. Heck learn A, B, E, and D and you can play most AC/DC songs. Come on people buy a real guitar
agreed....I bought a used Ibanez with a small Crate practice amp for $200
Real guitars don't work with Rock Band or Guitar Hero...
I normally can't stand posts about these games that basically boil down to "play real guitar", but regarding this controller, it's right on the money. The guitar controller that comes with RB is kind of shitty, but there's no way I'd pay $300 to replace it. The ION drums at the same price had the added benefit of being basically a low-end electronic drum kit, and with an Alesis drum brain they could be used as such. This has no similar benefit, it's just $300 for a tarted up controller. Spend the money on a steering wheel controller, a SF4 Tournament Edition fight stick, and still have money for beer afterwards. Or load your console's hard drive up with RB or GH DLC. Or go grab the console you don't have, both the PS3 Slim and the 360 Elite are $300. Or put it towards real music gear, if you're into that sort of thing. This just ridiculous.
Oh god.... I can't even help myself, I HAVE to reply to that. I literally have everything you just mentioned. In fact I have two of the Hori EX Pro arcade sticks, with about $80 in mods between them both. I literally have ALL of the RB content, and a KH-202 along with two basses. Please add 'or save your goddamn money and stop buying junk!!!' to the list so I don't preorder this damn thing right now.
Times have changed, eh?
http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/17/live-shots-of-mad-catzs-full-size-rock-band-2-fender-stratocast/
And when did the price go up? Or is this a new guitar that's somehow different from the old one? And where is the PS3 version?
well, i am getting one. the plastic controllers suck. i suppose some can't understand the difference between playing a game and being a musician, but i can. i thought it was supposed to be $199 when it came out though.