Black, white, pink, blue, orange, yellow, brown, you name it. Only skin deep and as long as it isn’t a Strat with one of those stoopid massive headstocks I’m in. Unless it’s Antigua lol.
It's a combination of things that make a guitar appealing for me. First attraction for me is looks. If I don't like the look I will never make friends with it, no matter how it feels, plays or sounds. There are many colours/schemes I just don't like. For example, I love blues and reds but can't stand black or any bursts. Looks and personality are both important to me
Color is definitely important to me to the point that I probably wouldn't even try a guitar that I didn't like the looks of. I don't buy many new instruments though, so the color is more up to chance than choice. When I was looking for my first strat, I knew that it absolutely had to be either blonde or natural with a maple board. It's funny how one's tastes change over time. I used to think that black with rosewood was the ugliest combination, but now I see it as the definition of utilitarian cool. Paint type also matters a whole lot! I don't think I'd every buy a 2 tone burst in poly, but a closet clean nitro...
Found this car in an Industry Building in Switzerland: Shell pink Desoto. Fender guitars have the cool colors of the 50s dreams on wheels.
Colour is very important to me. I will not buy a high-end axe unless it checks all the boxes including colour. Same thong with cars. However, my fave is natural wood finish.
My initial thought was that I don't care about color, except that I don't want too many of the same color. I already have a black one and an Oly white and a Surf green--I don't need another guitar in any of those colors. In fact I have passed up a few pretty good deals because "I already have one." Then I looked around my collection and realized the overwhelming majority have a transparent finish. I like to be able to see woodgrain. Natural, trans red, red burst, yellow burst, tobacco burst. Some are 3tsb, some are 2tsb. Turns out "wood" is my favorite finish. I guess that's important after all.
Thinking about it, the color it is may be an easy deterrent but a tertiary attraction. Simply put, fugly puts me off. That said, I've owned a hot pink Strat, but just could not look directly at the rays of a teal paisley that made my eyes seem to vomit.
I used to be "any colour as long as it's black" but I'm past it now. A lot of the standard Fender colours are really not my cup of tea though - and as I tend to buy cheaper guitars and hot rod them - and not being a believer that wood makes the slightest difference to the amplified sound of a solid body guitar - I'd always buy a guitar in a colour I can live with. That said... I did buy a Sea Foam green Fender Japan Jag with matching headstock last week. Really wanted candy apple red though but this was half the price. Going custom body for a Marauder build though and that WILL be CAR.
I wouldn't get a guitar I thought was ugly even if it was a good player, but there aren't many colors that would disqualify a guitar altogether. If anything, I'm probably more likely to buy a guitar if it comes in an interesting and unusual color.
+1 There are about 10,000,000 guitars for sale at any one time. No need to compromise on anything if you are just patient.
With so many guitars being bought on line the color is so much more important than it used to be. It wasn't that long ago when it was standard practice to go into a shop and play several of the same guitar. Of course you'd start with your favorite finish, but back then a person would often go in after a Sunburst Strat and walk out with Olympic White or another color that was in some way a clearly better guitar. It happened all the time.
Looks are number one. If it doesnt look great to my eyes it stays in its case... If it stays in its case its usually forgotten...out of sight out of mind... If its forgotten its like i never had it in the first place.... Basically its like a woman...she can learn to behave inside your 50 shades of grey dungeon but she cant learn to be pretty if she isnt already......
Never cared about color with one exception - naturally aged Shoreline Gold. (My first and forever guitar). I've got an ugly Army Green guitar that gets played to death too. There's also something to be said for Butterscotch Blonde but color is not going to get me to not play a guitar.
