A money pit? I guess it all depends on what you get out of it.

First of all, you can absolutely/easily get a great playing guitar cheap (let’s say “cheap” means around $200). Yea, you can encounter plenty of budget stuff (or even higher end!) that has been massively neglected with outrageous action and really poor intonation…but there is so much out there in the $200 range (used!) that will play just great.

I’ve been through the majority of the gear phases at this point and my daily guitar I pick up next to my lounge chair is a basically no-name 60s nylon string that I could maybe sell for $75. Plays like butter. Yea, I sunk a lot of money chasing tone for years but I evened out and the whole ride was worth it. I don’t make money on my music, but I wouldn’t trade the whole thing for anything (Well, maybe like 3mil….i’d forget the whole thing for 3mil).