Noob Guitar?

I've been wanting to learn to play the guitar for a while and I've been thinking about how to get started. I'm thinking about starting lessons this fall. but, of course, I have no clue about equipment and what i should look for/expect as far as price and quality... All I know is I want electric not acoustic. :scratch: I also have no idea how much I'll like it/ get into it so I don't want to spend an arm and a leg only to have to sell it later. So to the guitar players out there, got any advice for a beginner? should i pick up a walmart guitar? :lol: or swing for the fences? :hawk:

You can get a lesser fender for a decent price. Go to your local dealer and they can usually hook you up with a decent setup for cheap. Get you a little practice amp.

I've been wanting to learn to play the guitar for a while and I've been thinking about how to get started. I'm thinking about starting lessons this fall. but, of course, I have no clue about equipment and what i should look for/expect as far as price and quality... All I know is I want electric not acoustic. :scratch: I also have no idea how much I'll like it/ get into it so I don't want to spend an arm and a leg only to have to sell it later. So to the guitar players out there, got any advice for a beginner? should i pick up a walmart guitar? :lol: or swing for the fences? :hawk: Yeah most of the music shops I go to have decent deals and are very helpful when noob's are looking for beginner gear. also I keep hearing advertisements for guitar center and their no financing until 2050 (exaggeration) so if you have one of those in your area I would really suggest checking them out cause their ad prices are unbeatable. where are you located? If in Maryland i recommend checking out chuck Levins, best music shop Ive ever been to. I bought my electric and acoustic from them as well as my saxophones. btw, side note, if you decide to go online and buy you can try musicians friend. They usually run specials on the Epiphone starter packs (either a LP SPecial II guitar or SG) and fender has a decent little starter pack as well.

My advice would be to lay the money down for the guitar, and go cheap on the amp to begin with. I'm a novice player, and I can say with confidence that action does differ on guitars. Heck, I would even go for a used, high end guitar. Check you local pawn shops and I'll bet you can find a cherry Strat for a low low price. IMO, you can't go wrong with a Fender. Good luck. I don't have the patience to progress past where I've been for the last 25 years, but I hope you do.

My advice would be to lay the money down for the guitar, and go cheap on the amp to begin with. I'm a novice player, and I can say with confidence that action does differ on guitars. Heck, I would even go for a used, high end guitar. Check you local pawn shops and I'll bet you can find a cherry Strat for a low low price. IMO, you can't go wrong with a Fender. Good luck. I don't have the patience to progress past where I've been for the last 25 years, but I hope you do. :withstupi First question is, What is your budget? You can really feel the difference in quality in a well made quitar. You dont need to buy a USA Made neck thru or a Gibson Les Paul but get something well made. Dean, ESP LTD, Jackson, Ibanez, Schecter, or Epiphone. Try to stick with Japanese guitars rather than Korean made. They are much better quality. You can pick up a real nice beginner guitar for $300-$400. Dont buy the chap $100 walmart guitar. You wont play it because 1. the sound sucks, and 2. it feels like a hunk of crap. Avoid EBay for used guitars because most guitars are crap on there or they are fakes. You need to hold the guitar in you hand to know if the neck is straight or cracked. Used is a good way to go, but be careful and have a friend who knows guitars go with you to look at it. :luck:

$300 is do-able, i guess. target price was $200 - $250, but that was including amp and all. how much should i factor in for a good starter amp? do music shops do guitar rentals?

$300 is do-able, i guess. target price was $200 - $250, but that was including amp and all. how much should i factor in for a good starter amp? do music shops do guitar rentals? You could find a decent 15 watt amp for under $200 new. You can find a used one for $100. Dont know of any that rent guitars or amps. Dont forget to facor in instrument cables, strings, picks, and a stand, All of them fairly cheap but they add up.

Before you look into guitars, what type of music do you want to play?

You can get a lesser fender for a decent price. Go to your local dealer and they can usually hook you up with a decent setup for cheap. Get you a little practice amp. :withstupi First question is, What is your budget? You can really feel the difference in quality in a well made quitar. You dont need to buy a USA Made neck thru or a Gibson Les Paul but get something well made. Dean, ESP LTD, Jackson, Ibanez, Schecter, or Epiphone. Try to stick with Japanese guitars rather than Korean made. They are much better quality. You can pick up a real nice beginner guitar for $300-$400. Dont buy the chap $100 walmart guitar. You wont play it because 1. the sound sucks, and 2. it feels like a hunk of crap. Avoid EBay for used guitars because most guitars are crap on there or they are fakes. You need to hold the guitar in you hand to know if the neck is straight or cracked. Used is a good way to go, but be careful and have a friend who knows guitars go with you to look at it. :luck: I agree with these guys. And 6doublefive...I would probly spend a little more money on a better guitar. A nicer ax will make you want to play more than a cheaper one with high action (which is how high the strings sit from teh neck. The closer to the neck the easier to play.) My buddy got a nice Ibanez RG700 (nice ax) with a double locking Floyd Rose (type of bridge) and a 15w combo amp, strap, cable for around 400.

I might be trying to get rid of my Ibanez RG370DX and Fender Princeton 65 amp...

Seriously though. what type of music do you want to play. Fenders are really nice guitars, but may not fit the style of music you want to play. I myself don't own a fender and probably never will, primarily because I don't like the look of them but they don't serve my purpose. I myself have a prs and a hamer guitar, little more then you want to spend but both really nice. I wouldn't mind owning a schecter, those are really nice as well. Ibanez is good, but they are more of a shredding metal guitar, you could get an epiphone(made by gibson).................................................Basically there are a bunch of guitars out there, buy one that will serve your style of music, any other questions just feel free to ask.

cant go wrong with a fender strat! i have 2 of them. the pick ups kinda suck but its a beginer to intermediate guitar so you'll have plenty of fun. Its the 250 of guitars

there are really two types of guitars, the maple and rosewood. gibsons were usually fat fret rosewood and fenders were usually the thinner raised frets on a maple neck. i prefer the fat frets with rosewood. I used to have a gibson studio, but i just recently purchased a mexican made fender with a rosewood neck and fat frets. also it has a humbucker + 2 singles. i think it was $400. then you have the dual coil pickups vs the singles. i prefer the duals (humbuckers). once you acquire experience, you can decide on pickups and positions. for beginners, use the amp equalizer to adjust the type of sound you want. last but not least, the whamy bar. i dont care for them. nuff said bout dat. now, for strings. some ppl prefer heavy 11's. i prefer 9's. i'm a lightweight and like to break strings. but i also use 10's. ernie balls are my favourite. my recommendation, get a name brand vs a cheapo. you should be able to find deals on brand names for around $200-$300. i like peavy and marshall amps, but if you are strap for cash, VOX is the most bang for bucks. don't forget, cut your nails... http://img3.guitarcenter.com/dbase/pics/products/4/6/1/427461.jpg this is the kind i have, but it's dark blue and whammy bar removed. -a|ex

I've been wanting to learn to play the guitar for a while and I've been thinking about how to get started. I'm thinking about starting lessons this fall. but, of course, I have no clue about equipment and what i should look for/expect as far as price and quality... All I know is I want electric not acoustic. :scratch: I also have no idea how much I'll like it/ get into it so I don't want to spend an arm and a leg only to have to sell it later. So to the guitar players out there, got any advice for a beginner? should i pick up a walmart guitar? :lol: or swing for the fences? :hawk: My friend has one of these. Pretty good guitar too IMO: Silvertone SS11 Revolver Electric Guitar Package (http://www.zzounds.com/item--SVTSS11PAK) Comes with the guitar, amp, gig bag, tuner, strap, cable, pickpack, DVD, and strings.

cant go wrong with a fender strat! i have 2 of them. the pick ups kinda suck but its a beginer to intermediate guitar so you'll have plenty of fun. Its the 250 of guitars :lol: thats exactly what I need My friend has one of these. Pretty good guitar too IMO: Silvertone SS11 Revolver Electric Guitar Package (http://www.zzounds.com/item--SVTSS11PAK) Comes with the guitar, amp, gig bag, tuner, strap, cable, pickpack, DVD, and strings. yep theres a lot of these sort of packages for $200 or less. makes me wonder if its worth it to buy an amp and guitar seperately for > $400 total. its like those home-theater-in-a-box vs. building a custom speaker setup. Seriously though. what type of music do you want to play. I'm more into alternative than heavy metal. there are really two types of guitars, the maple and rosewood. gibsons were usually fat fret rosewood and fenders were usually the thinner raised frets on a maple neck. i prefer the fat frets with rosewood. I used to have a gibson studio, but i just recently purchased a mexican made fender with a rosewood neck and fat frets. also it has a humbucker + 2 singles. i think it was $400. then you have the dual coil pickups vs the singles. i prefer the duals (humbuckers). once you acquire experience, you can decide on pickups and positions. for beginners, use the amp equalizer to adjust the type of sound you want. last but not least, the whamy bar. i dont care for them. nuff said bout dat. now, for strings. some ppl prefer heavy 11's. i prefer 9's. i'm a lightweight and like to break strings. but i also use 10's. ernie balls are my favourite. my recommendation, get a name brand vs a cheapo. you should be able to find deals on brand names for around $200-$300. i like peavy and marshall amps, but if you are strap for cash, VOX is the most bang for bucks. don't forget, cut your nails... -a|ex :thx2: for the advice... I didnt realize it was so complicated :lol: My buddy got a nice Ibanez RG700 (nice ax) with a double locking Floyd Rose (type of bridge) and a 15w combo amp, strap, cable for around 400. I could do 400. I don't mind spending money on this if I do really like it. But at the same time I don't want to buy the hayabusa of guitars just to realize that I don't like it after all. but you've got a point, a nicer guitar means you'll prolly play it more. :thx1: everyone for the help.

Yeah...I think you get the point. You dont want to buy the best guitar...but it wouldn't hurt to spend a couple bucks more for a bit nicer of an ax. The best thing to do, much like motorcycles, is to go to a shop and hold a bunch. Try every manufacturer. Hold the neck...put your hands around it. Each neck will have a different feel. Every one will weigh differently. See what feels right.

Avoid the cheap starter kits. They're priced right and it's nice to have everything bundled together but the quality is so poor it will make it harder for you to learn. Try to get a better used guitar. Don't worry about the quality/price of the amp for now. Invest the money in some lessons. Gibsons like Les Pauls and SG's are great to learn on because of the low action but expensive and heavier. Probably a new or used Strat will be your best bet. There are tons of them on the market so they'll be cheap and the quality is very decent.

it just so happens i give lessons.... :cheers: