Looking to buy a guitar, need some help :)

[CaptainPanda]

Hello. I never played a guitar in my life, so i don't want to buy anything expensive. I was looking through e-shops, but I really have no idea why ones are so expensive others fairly cheap. I could get this one http://www.musiclass.eu/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=1557[1] without having to save up a lot of money, but I'm not sure if it has everything I need to get started. Maybe someone has something to suggest too? (Pretty sure I made a lot mistakes while writing this so sorry english is not my native language )

 

[80's_Metal]

Re: Looking to buy a guitar, need some help

get whatever guitar you think looks great!
That way you'll be more inclined to pick it up and you'll get a lot better.

 

[Aceman]

Re: Looking to buy a guitar, need some help

WHy a classical? DO you want to play electric? Then get an electric.

The "start on an acoustic" thing is BS.

 

[kramersteen]

Re: Looking to buy a guitar, need some help

If you're going to start on an electric you will need a bit of coin for a semi decent amp. Those learner 15watt amps are useless and wont really encourage you to play.

If you can get a old ibanez and a peavey bandit that would be ideal.

 

[Oinkus]

Re: Looking to buy a guitar, need some help

Nothing wrong with starting on an acoustic it requires nothing additional to play. The whole bit about it makes your fingers strong and tough etc. is a bunch of hooey to sell acoustic guitars I do believe.

 

[The Guitar]

Re: Looking to buy a guitar, need some help

We can throw guitar brands at you, but you'll have to pick one up and try it. If possible, borrow a guitar, electric or acoustic and YouTube some beginner's lessons. Learn some chords and get a feel for it. Then go to the local shop and strum around.

 

[kramersteen]

Re: Looking to buy a guitar, need some help

We can throw guitar brands at you, but you'll have to pick one up and try it. If possible, borrow a guitar, electric or acoustic and YouTube some beginner's lessons. Learn some chords and get a feel for it. Then go to the local shop and strum around.

**** the chords, he should learn the crazy train riff.

 

[DankStar]

Re: Looking to buy a guitar, need some help

Classicals are awesome for writing riffs on and transposing them to electric. The strings are so rubbery. I'd like to pick one up again, I've been without for too long. Great come recording time too.

My go-to budget brands for guitar are yamaha and ibanez. As a rule I usually don't drop beneath about $150 on a new axe. That'll weed out a lot of junk. From there I check some reviews, fine tune the selection a bit.

Bam - first thing that popped up on the google machine. 80 reviews, right at $150 (but you're paying a bit for the other stuff too).

http://www.amazon.com/Yamaha-C40-GigMaker-Classical-Acoustic/dp/B000W75PTC

Now I want it, haha (minus the extras)

 

[The Guitar]

Re: Looking to buy a guitar, need some help

**** the chords, he should learn the crazy train riff.

He'll pick up on that when he learns Fm! :9:

 

[Boogie Bill]

Re: Looking to buy a guitar, need some help

If you buy a low to medium budget guitar, you will want to set aside some additional money to have a professional setup. A setup entails adjusting the bridge, the nut and other parts of the guitar so that it will play easily, and in tune.

Best wishes.

Bill

 

[daan]

Re: Looking to buy a guitar, need some help

Basically, go try EVERY SINGLE GUITAR you can get your hands on! I also got the "You have to start on acoustic" and all it did was make me less interested in playing. Mostly because it was the 70's and starter guitars were total crap, especially compared to what is out there today. If you want an electric, get an electric! Get what YOU want, because if you actually WANT to play what you have, it's more likely you'll actually pick it up and play it (and therefor get better) If you don't like what you have, or just don't want to play it, that defeats the purpose of having it in the first place... Trying out lots of guitars (assuming you have shops that will let you, or friends with guitars they'll let you try) will show you what you do and don't like (neck shape, body style/shape/weight) As far as bolt-on neck electric guitars, 99% of everything on them can be changed/upgraded/switched around, so if you get one, and eventually realize you don't like something about it, you'll be able to change it. A poster above mentioned amps-there's as many different amps as guitars, so just having one that will make sound is fine to start with, you can always get something better later.
If you want a Strat-style guitar, one of THESE
http://www.fender.com/squier/series/packs/se-special-with-squier-sp-10-amp-black-120v/ the price on here is "List price" but it would be cheaper almost anywhere, and even less if you can find a used one) THis setup would pretty much do whatever you need to start out with, and you'll be able to upgrade anything on it later if you feel the need. THe "SE" Squiers are full-depth bodies ("normal" Strats are 1.75" or 44.5mm, LOTS of low-end or starter guitars are thinnner-1.5" or 38mm so parts like bridges won't interchange) Plus many cheaper guitars are plywood or very cheap types of wood, and the SE guitars are solid wood (I have one, I'm fairly sure it's poplar with a more figured wood veneer over it)
Also like the poster above said, having a "Set-up" done on your new guitar is really important- if everything on your guitar is out of adjustment, it won't stay in tune, be harder to play and just not be as fun to use than if it's properly set-up.

 

[Edgecrusher]

Re: Looking to buy a guitar, need some help

I'm glad this place wasnt around when i started playing... Some of this advice would scare the bejeejbus outta me. I get it guys are trying to be careful but now hes got advice yanking him in a hundred different directions...

This needs to be approached from a Keep It Simple Stupid point of view. Almost all of these suggestions are asking him to outlay a pretty big chunk of money. Did you guys really start off like that? Paying for professional set ups and buying bigger amps? Or did you just grab something and go! All this stuff can be learned along the way but trying to jump in with a complete kit when you have no clue what your doing is daunting at best. I know people are trying to help him avoid mistakes but its impossible when he doesnt really know what he wants. The only way that will be figured out is with him trying things out and learning.

I would feel like a complete doosh if i talked someone into a 250 euro guitar and 200 euro amp then had him play 75 euro for a tech to set it up and it comes out that what he really wanted was to play classical guitar.

 

[kilphody]

Re: Looking to buy a guitar, need some help

Go to a real music store. Find what feels most comfortable for you.
Electric guitars open a Pandora box you might not be ready for yet.
And hey, welcome to the forum!
PC

 

[blueman335]

Re: Looking to buy a guitar, need some help

The "start on an acoustic" thing is BS.

+1. The high action and thick strings on acoustics make them a lot harder to play, especially for tender new fingers. Electrics are the place to start, hollow body electrics if you want some unplugged volume.

 

[ehdwuld]

Re: Looking to buy a guitar, need some help

I started on an acoustic

I like the grab and go nature of a box guitar

Not a bunch of pedals and knobs to fiddle with

Just your hands and the notes

If you play a sour note it's not covered up by distortion or some other effect

For beginners I would agree with acoustic first
To hone in on technique first

*(Sent from my durned phone!)*

 

[autologic]

Re: Looking to buy a guitar, need some help

I started on a fender squire strat (red, unfortunately) and an ibanez IBZ10 amp. That was about 10 years ago. I've been through a bunch of guitars since then, but I always regret getting rid of that squire. I played the crap out of it for years. I never regretted getting it instead of something else, even though I don't play a bunch of single coil style music. I still have that P.O.S. amp, and it's my only one right now, unfortunately, but it's outlasted quite a few practice amps. The best cheap humbucker guitar I ever got though was an Epiphone Les Paul Special II, it was $150 with a hard case and an Epiphone 10w amp. If it hadn't been stolen a while back, I'd still be playing that guitar. If you are willing to pay a bit more, my girlfriend just got me an Epiphone G-400 faded for about $300, and I absolutely LOVE this thing. Anyway, I don't know if there was a point to all this rambling, but I hope it helps.

 

[treyhaislip]

Re: Looking to buy a guitar, need some help

I had a student who got one of those Squire beginner packages new...I was shocked at how well it played and sounded. Compared to my first electric guitar (a no name green strat with action like a dobro) it was very nice. I would recommend one of those packages for an electric starter...

 

[blueman335]

Re: Looking to buy a guitar, need some help

- I like the grab and go nature of a box guitar

- For beginners I would agree with acoustic first To hone in on technique first

- 'Grab and go'? Can't people sit still and play a guitar? Are you on the run from bookies or bill collectors?

- 'Technique' is exactly why beginners are better off starting with the easy action and thinner strings of an electric. There's enough to work on, without having to deal with the pain of those thick, tight strings, high actions, and bad intonation (that's not adjustable). Those issues are probably why so many beginners put their acoustics in their closets and never play them again. Try developing 'technique' on the high frets of an acoustic. You want someone to give up on guitar, have them start with an acoustic.

 

[ehdwuld]

Re: Looking to buy a guitar, need some help

- 'Grab and go'? Can't people sit still and play a guitar? Are you on the run from bookies or bill collectors?

- 'Technique' is exactly why beginners are better off starting with the easy action and thinner strings of an electric. There's enough to work on, without having to deal with the pain of those thick, tight strings, high actions, and bad intonation (that's not adjustable). Those issues are probably why so many beginners put their acoustics in their closets and never play them again. Try developing 'technique' on the high frets of an acoustic. You want someone to give up on guitar, have them start with an acoustic.

I like you
I disagree with you
but I like you

again

I started on one of those high action wide neck Classical Yamahas
neck was so wide I couldnt make a "G" chord

they arent like that any more

the $100 starter acoustics, for the most part, have necks like electrics

grab and go
means grab it and play it
no amp to warm up
no cables to plug in
no neighbors calling the cops

come on Blueman
surely you understood that

 

[PizzaMaker]

Re: Looking to buy a guitar, need some help

WHy a classical? DO you want to play electric? Then get an electric.

The "start on an acoustic" thing is BS.

This.

Learn on something that when you look at it, it screams "PLAY ME!" at the top of its voice. Something you look at once and can't get out of your head until you see it again.

Doesn't have to be expensive - it just has to keep you keen.