I want to learn the guitar

Question

so i am planning to learn how to play the guitar...what are some basic things i need to know before starting? i know how to read music and everything..but i just want to know what brands of guitars are good and stuff...and do you now any good guitars for cheap?

Answer 1

Resist the urge to buy a guitar from a CD store or from a department store - go to a music store that sells instruments, i.e. a "guitar store."  Play on a few different ones in your price range - guitars start around $250 and go straight-up in price from there.  If you're looking at an electric, a Fender Squire with a small Fender amp will get you going just fine.  If you're wanting an acoustic, try and find a Seagull, a Simon & Patrick, or a similar Canadian model; those are very good guitars for the money.  Taylor Babys and Big Babys are also very good acoustics for starting out.  For women and young people, it's very important to find a guitar that physically feels right for you; you don't want something real heavy and bulky or that's going to be hard to press-down the strings.  So definitely keep that in mind for whatever you're shopping for.

Different kinds of wood have different tonal qualities, but you don't need to worry about that at this point.  The guitars I've just mentioned will have spruce tops on the acoustics, and the electrics are made from... well, whatever Fender makes their entry-level electric guitars from. lol

Other than that, to get started learning...pick up just a cheap instructional book on beginning guitar, something by Mel Bay or a similar book.  Don't spend too much on instructional materials, because there are tons of them - but all the "beginner" stuff is pretty straight-forward and basic to each one.  You would be well-served to seek out a qualified guitar teacher, if not right away then within the first several weeks of your playing.  Finally, don't try to learn to play guitar completely on your own; seek out other musician friends and people that you can "play" with.  That's the best way to progress.  Since it sounds like you know music, you're ahead of the game already.

Answer 2

If it helps, i got brought an Encore starter pack when i began learning guitar, and as soon as id strung it up with some trusted Ernie balls (strings), it was alright to learn on. Surprisingly, i played a gig with it a year on.

Some Really good but often Expensive guitars are:

Gibson

Fender

Ibanez

Answer 3

Ibanez

Taylor

Fender

I keep hearing that Takamine has acoustic guitars at a good price. If you're looking for an electric guitar, go with Fender. They're known for their stratocasters, but they're not cheap.

Just know that if you want to learn correctly and progress and learn fast, get private one-on-one lessons. Music stores offer them (majority do).

Answer 4

Good, cheap, guitars. Well, you can't go wrong with a Squire Stratocaster, which is made by Fender,so its an excellent guitar, but its from the more affordable line. If you can find a used one or something, you could probably get it for about $200.00.

Answer 5

I got my acoustic guitar for only $130. That's not too bad. Just look in music stores and CD stores.

And don't get the metal strings yet, if you are learning get the plastic-y ones. Lol

Have fun!

Answer 6

NO!

You want to play bass:)

Answer 7

If you know how to read music, then you're pretty set. The hardest part is getting started...

Choose your guitar. Do you want acoustic or electric? If acoustic, you don't need amps, cords, effects, etc... It's just you and your guitar. If you're more into rock n roll then electric will be your thing. You'll need amps, cords, and all that other good stuff.

As for some decent starter guitars, I would NOT recommend anything by Rogue or Squier, despite the popularity. Go to your local music shop or Guitar Center and just look around.

If you want acoustic, Takamine makes a good one called Jasmine. Guitar Center has their own brand called Mitchell. Yamaha makes decent acoustics as well. Ibanez does not. Fender's higher end acoustics are good. I would recommend spending at most $200 for a starter acoustic.

If electric, you have a plethora of choices. I would recommend the Fender Mexican made Stratocaster (not the American one, because that one is over $1000). It is a very good all-around guitar that can play many different styles and easy to play. New is around $350-$400, used you can find for much cheaper. The neck shape is comfortable and it doesn't have a ton of c**p on it to fool around with. If you want something a bit more crunchy and rock/metal, then look at the Ibanez or Schecter electrics. They are sometimes cheaper too, for $300 or less. A cheap amp by Fender, Marshall, Peavey, or Crate for less than $120 will be more than sufficient for starting out.

The differences in the type of wood are more noticeable in acoustic guitars than electrics but the differences are very slight and generally, people don't really worry about it too much. It has to do with the density of the wood, which affects how the sound carries and resonates.

The main thing I tell everyone who wants to learn is to try to play anything that you hear, whether its just a small scale, a 3 octave arpeggio, or a tremelo. Just play and practice!

Hope this helped!

Answer 8

Good luck Im doing this too.

http://www.youtube.com/user/MaddieLouxx

Taylor is good. x