If you’re searching for some of the best and most affordable guitars for surf and indie rock, don’t worry – you’ve come to the right place! In today’s article, I’m going to highlight some of the coolest models available on the market right now.
Finding the right guitar for surf and indie rock is not that easy. There’s just so many different types of guitars out there! But the truth is that the vast majority of today’s surf guitarists play on Jazzmasters and Jaguars.
That’s why I decided to create a list of five best guitars for surf and indie rock. Feel free to check it out below and scroll down to the next section if you want to read more about each of these models.
Hopefully, this guide will help you find your next dream guitar for surf and indie rock!
5 Best Guitars For Surf & Indie Rock – List
| Fender Player Jazzmaster | See on Amazon | See on Thomann |
| Fender Vintera ’60s Jaguar | See on Amazon | See on Thomann |
| Squier Classic Vibe ’60s Jazzmaster | See on Amazon | See on Thomann |
| Fender American Professional II Stratocaster | See on Amazon | See on Thomann |
| Squier Affinity Starcaster | See on Amazon | See on Thomann |
1. Fender Player Jazzmaster
Fender Player Jazzmaster is one of the best mid-level guitars suitable for all surf rock guitarists. It can be efficiently used by both amateur players who practice at home and more intermediate guitarists who often play gigs.
This Mexican-made Jazzmaster an alder body and a comfortable C-shaped maple neck with a smooth Pau Ferro fingerboard. It also has a pair of two Player Series Alnico humbuckers, which offer a really powerful and versatile tone. Of course, there’s also a functional floating vibrato tailpiece.
This is not a cheap guitar, but at the same time it offers a really high quality. It’s a classic option that never disappoints. That’s why it’s so popular among the indie and surf rock guitar players!
Overall, this is a fantastic instrument. I highly encourage you to check out the official sound demo of that guitar below!
2. Fender Vintera ’60s Jaguar
Fender Vintera ’60s Jaguar is an another excellent offset guitar suitable for the most demanding guitarists. Just like the previous model, it comes from Fender’s factory in Mexico.
The Vintera Jaguar looks and sounds absolutely fantastic. There’s something really cool about that Ocean Turquoise color with the matching headstock! The guitar has an alder body and a comfortable Mid-60’s C-shaped maple neck which feels great.
It is also worth mentioning that Fender equipped this model with a pair of two ’60s single-coil Jaguar pickups, which offer a lot of versatility when it comes to tone. This kind of guitar sound will be perfect for surf rock music.
I have no hesitation in recommending this Jaguar to all musicians who are searching for a high quality guitar for indie or surf rock. Honestly, it’s really tough not to fall in love with that beautiful thing!
Here’s the sound demo.
3. Squier Classic Vibe ’60s Jazzmaster
Squier Classic Vibe ’60s Jazzmaster is a perfect option for guitarists who want to get a Jazzmaster but they can’t afford getting a Fender. This particular model is much cheaper, but at the same time it offers a really high quality.
I personally own that guitar and I can totally confirm that it’s worth the money. It has its own disadvantages (such as the poor original setup), but once you adjust it for your own style of playing, it becomes a killer guitar.
The Classic Vibe ’60s Jazzmaster features a lightweight poplar body and a comfortable C-shaped maple neck with a laurel fingerboard. On top of that, the guitar has a pair of Fender-Alnico single-coil pickups, which also sound really good.
Of course, there’s also a floating tremolo tailpiece which is a massive advantage for all indie and surf rock players.
Here’s the video review that I uploaded on my YouTube channel – feel free to check it out below.
4. Fender American Professional II Stratocaster
Fender American Professional II Stratocaster is one of the best and most versatile guitars available on the market right now. It’s a high-end model, so it’s designed mainly for intermediate and professional guitarists.
What makes it so special? Well, this guitar features a truly remarkable quality. In the end, it’s entirely made in the USA! As a result, it doesn’t have any of the flaws that occur in Mexican and Indonesian-made Fender and Squier guitars.
The American Professional II Stratocaster has an alder body and a very comfortable maple neck with the Deep-C profile. This unusual neck profile significantly improves the overall comfortability of playin on that guitar.
It is also worth mentioning that Fender equipped this model with V-Mod II single-coil pickups which sound absolutely amazing. Whether you’re into surf rock, indie, blues or country – this guitar won’t disappoint you.
Overall, this is not a cheap guitar, but at the same time it’s definitely worth it. If you’re searching for a guitar from the highest shelf, you should definitely consider adding this Strat to your collection of gear.
Here’s the sound demo.
5. Squier Affinity Starcaster
Squier Affinity Starcaster is an another excellent and affordable option for guitarists who like indie, alternative and surf rock. This guitar is different than all previous models mentioned on today’s list – it’s a semi-hollow body guitar.
The guitar features an all-maple laminate body and a comfortable maple neck with a maple fingerboard. It’s available in a few different color versions, so if you don’t like the Candy Apple Red color visible above, there are also Black, 3-Color Sunburst and Olympic White models.
It is also worth mentioning that Squier equipped this model with a pair of two really good humbuckers. These pickups are perfect for both cleaner and more distorted tones, so as you can imagine, they’re great for surf and indie rock! Undoubtedly, a lot of surf guitarists will appreciate the quality of that Starcaster.
What’s important, Squier also manufactures a bit better version of that guitar – the Squier Classic Vibe Starcaster. It’s a bit more expensive than the Affinity one and it’s slightly different, but it’s definitely worth checking out as well.
Here’s the sound demo of the Squier Affinity Starcaster – feel free to check it out below.
Which guitar would I choose?
There’s a lot of great guitars out there, although in my opinion the Jazzmasters and Jaguars are the best for indie and surf rock.
These guitars are very common among the guitar players who like to play that kind of music. Whether it’s the cool offset aesthetic or the high versatility of these instruments, they’re definitely suitable for these genres.
Personally, I would choose the Fender Vintera Jaguar – it’s a killer guitar! And it looks absolutely beautiful as well. Nevertheless, the cheaper alternatives by Squier will also be a good choice – especially for beginners.
I’m sure that no matter which specific model you decide to choose, if you stick to Fender or Squier, you won’t be disappointed.
FAQ
How to get the indie rock tone?
Finding the perfect indie rock tone is a challenging task. This is a really broad genre of music, so it all comes down to your own personal preferences. Nevertheless, most of indie rock guitarists use various reverb, chorus, vibrato, tremolo and delay pedals.
If you want to find out more about the indie rock tones, check out the video below. It will give you a brief understanding on what you can do in order to create your favorite indie tone.
How to get the surf rock guitar tone?
Getting a surf rock guitar tone is not that difficult – it can be easily achieved at home. Most importantly, you need the spring reverb – either in your amp or in an external guitar pedal. On top of that, surf rock music features a lot of palm muting, so you need to spend some time to practice that technique.
If you want to find out more about achieving the perfect surf rock tone, make sure to check out the video below. It explains everything very thoroughly.
What makes a song surf rock?
Surf rock songs usually feature simple and melodic riffs, catchy lyrics and a lot of reverb. This kind of music gives you a really chilled beach vibe.
Is Telecaster good for surf music?
It’s possible to efficiently play surf rock on a Telecaster. Nevertheless, the classic Tele twang is not that common in this genre. That’s why a lot surf guitarists prefer offset guitars and Strats over the Teles.
Summary
As you can see, there are a lot of affordable guitars that are great for playing surf rock music. I’m sure that if you decide to stick to one of the guitars mentioned above, you will be really satisfied with your choice!
Do you like surf rock music? Which guitar do you think is best for that genre? Leave a comment down below and let me know what you think, I’m really interested to hear your thoughts!
Thanks for checking out today’s guide, hopefully it was helpful. If you enjoyed this article and you’re still searching for more gear recommendations, you may also like:
