Question for any guitar players(help!)

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U2_Jackie

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I didn't know where else to post this, so I hope it's ok!!

I decided to take up the guitar, both my sister and brother play the acoustic guitar and I always thought it would be so fun to play! I'd love to play the electric guitar, but it looks so hard!! So what's the best way to start off? Get a cheap acoustic guitar and learn chords and all that, then figure out the electric guitar....or just get an electric guitar and start off on that, does it matter??
 
thanks for the reply! im thinking I'll probably do that too
thanks again! :up: :)
 
How does electric look so much harder than acoustic to you? The basics are the same, only difference is that an electric always has 6 steel strings, some acoustics have 3 nylon, and the feel is different. To me electric is so much more comfortable, I suck at playing acoustics.
if you want electric, just get a cheapie at a decent guitar store(don't ever go for a random store action as we have here in supermarkets, that quality you can't trust!).

You can find shitloads of tutorials on the web, or guitarplaying for dummy's is also a good start. :) For U2 stuff, try U2Station.com | U2 News, U2 360° Tour & U2 Tours, U2 Images, U2 Forum, U2 Tablature & More | Since 1997 and go to tablature. You'll have to learn how to read tabs though, but that's worth it as most online guitar stuff is in tabs.
 
Cheap guitar can be a mistake. The action of the string could be too high and thus difficult to play.

This will lead some to give up and think "this is just far to hard to do", when in fact a poorly made guitar will not inspire one to keep up with it.

I am not saying you need a $2000 Les Paul. But might be worth waiting a bit, saving and getting a decent guitar that will sound and play good. A guitar that sounds and plays good will inspire one to keep up with it.

A Taylor Big Baby is a 15/16 size dreadnought. They are in the $450 range. Might find one cheaper on eBay, Craigslist, et al. They are well-made and sound great too.

Electric guitar? Stay away from Fender Squier Strats or Fender Squier Teles. There is the odd 'success' story of a Squier but for the most part they are not very good at all.

The Fender Strats and Telecaster that are MIM (Made in Mexico) are not bad at all. They are cheaper due to the cheaper labor and not necessarily the quality being cheap. Many of the components are the same as their American-made cousins. You can find some of the MIM Strat and Teles in the $350-700 range. One could get a decent MIM Stratocaster for around $400-$600 range.

Long story short, it's like shoes... you might be able to get lots at Pay Less Shoes but the quality is not going to be so good. If you pay less you can often GET less. So waiting an extra month or so to buy something with a bit more quality to it will pay off in the end.

Just my .02
 
Really? I haven't had trouble with our old highschool's Squier strats, nor heard anyone complain about it. Lucky picks?
I've a mexican, and no complaints there. It's a beautiful guitar and really decently priced.
 
Really? I haven't had trouble with our old highschool's Squier strats, nor heard anyone complain about it. Lucky picks?
I've a mexican, and no complaints there. It's a beautiful guitar and really decently priced.

As I said, mostly they are crap. The tuners are not good. The pots are not good. The pickups are not good. Most have bad fretwork.

There are 'diamonds in the rough' but for the most part - garbage.

That $150-$250 would be better served if one saved a bit longer for a MIM or American Fender than a Squier.

Pickup and play a Squier in Guitar Center or whatever guitar store you have. Then play a MIM and then an American Standard. You will see and feel and hear a difference.

Again, no one is saying you have to buy a $1900 Eric Johnson model Stratocaster... but it couldn't hurt, they are great guitars.

Buy Fender Deluxe Player's Stratocaster Electric Guitar | Solid Body Electric Guitars | Musician's Friend
$600 for a Fender Deluxe Players Strat.

Buy Fender Standard Stratocaster Electric Guitar | Solid Body Electric Guitars | Musician's Friend
$500 for a Fender Standard

Squiers are running $150-$350. Why not have a bit of patience and get something that is better built and sounding?
 
Get a used guitar. My used MIM Telecaster was $150 and was in showroom condition, like it had never been played. Craigslist, eBay, both of those are good places to find good used guitars.
 
I'm with Edge O on the MIM Fenders. I played a MIM Black Strat Maple board (like Edge's :hyper:) through an AC15. WOW! I was just blown away. It's a fantastic playing and sounding guitar that was set up perfectly once I grabbed it from the shelf. I compared that to a MIA one and there was not too much difference. They are good guitars for their price. I'd rather have a MIM than a Squier. (I need the strat badly!:drool:)

Anyway we're here to discuss what's easy to play. I think electric is easier to play. I started out on electric and I know someone who started out on acoustic and quit because it was too hard and their fingers got too sore (which with time they would have gotten used to it). Go with what's best for you. If you find electric easier then get one, if it's acoustic get one.
 
i had a squire strat for around 6-7 years (up until i pulled a pete townshend on it last year :lol:) and never had any problems with it.

electric is "easier" than acoustic to play cause an acoustic you have to fret the notes perfectly to make them sound good, as well as using proper picking to achieve certain volumes. electric has the pickups do all of that for you.
 
I say go super cheap. Then if you like playing, save save save until you can afford the best of the best. If you don't, you didn't waste a lot of money.
 
I say go super cheap. Then if you like playing, save save save until you can afford the best of the best. If you don't, you didn't waste a lot of money.

I respectfully but completely disagree.

Super cheap is a super mistake.

You will end up with a horrible guitar, that plays like sh*t, sounds like sh*t and will not inspoire you to keep up with learning to play.

I guess everyone has to make that decision for themselves but if you go 'super cheap' you will most likely 'super regret' it.
 
I respectfully but completely disagree.

Super cheap is a super mistake.

You will end up with a horrible guitar, that plays like sh*t, sounds like sh*t and will not inspoire you to keep up with learning to play.

I guess everyone has to make that decision for themselves but if you go 'super cheap' you will most likely 'super regret' it.

I regret not going super cheap to begin with. I wound up having a bunch of low-end decent guitars when I wanted to have a couple of high end guitars. I wound up spending double what I would have.

But hey, if you're rich, buy that mid-level stuff first. Because if you really want to play guitar, you won't want it still in about 5 years. And you'll get maybe half you paid for it in return.

And if you really want to play guitar, whether or not a decent-but-still-low-end-guitar will "inspoire" you to keep going or not sounds lame. Either you'll like playing or you won't. If you spend too much, you may not like playing but guilt yourself into keeping on simply because of how much you spent. Especially when the return will likely be about half of what you paid (or less, in some cases).
 
I agree with Tourist, if you really want to play, you won't get turned off by a cheaper guitar. And it's good to spend less money if you're not sure if you want to play. That way you won't regret it if you end up not liking it.
And I still say Squier is not bad. I don't know what's your problem with them Edge_O but I've heard nobody complain besides you, I even asked around in my circle of guitar playing friends. Most of them started out with a Squier and speak lovingly about it.
 
I agree with Tourist, if you really want to play, you won't get turned off by a cheaper guitar. And it's good to spend less money if you're not sure if you want to play. That way you won't regret it if you end up not liking it.
And I still say Squier is not bad. I don't know what's your problem with them Edge_O but I've heard nobody complain besides you, I even asked around in my circle of guitar playing friends. Most of them started out with a Squier and speak lovingly about it.

One of my friends who was sponsored by Orange and Gibson and could get their products dirt cheap plays Squiers exclusively live because he can beat them up because they're cheap and reliable. He had the pickups replaced from stock. He's a gear snob who plays Squier. So I see no problem with having a Squier as a starter guitar if a guy who makes his living playing in bands plays them live. :shrug:
 
It's next to impossible to get shitty guitar these days. The pickups might be crap, but you can get new pickups that'll sound great for very cheap.
 
It's next to impossible to get shitty guitar these days. The pickups might be crap, but you can get new pickups that'll sound great for very cheap.

I respectfully disagree. There are plenty of guitars that are not so good. There are plenty that have more than pickup issues.

Most Squiers (and many other low cost brands) need more than pickup replacements. The tuners are bad. The guitars don't stay in tune very well. The necks are not always so straight. The fretwork isn't properly finished. Frets can be sharp and in some cases not properly seated in the neck.

This doesn't mean one has to spend over $1K to get a decent guitar. But there are a lot of crap guitars out there. And many of them do have the Fender Squier decal on them.
 
I don't know, I've played tons of cheap new guitars in Guitar Centers, ones that I've never been interested in owning, but I've yet to play one with a warped neck or even problematic neck. For $200 you can buy a perfectly servicable bolt-neck guitar that you could then put new pickups in for an additional total of about $70.

To clarify: I'm sure there are some shitty guitars out there. I'm not sure anymore how linked that is to a price range, like it used to be. Basically, I think if you're spending $200-$300 on a guitar, 9 out of 10 of them are going to have no significant issues, although the pickups may or may not be lifeless or dull. And that is something that can also easily and cheaply be remedied.

I have not played an Xaviere yet, but I've heard nothing but praise for them and their GFS pickups. If I was looking to buy my first electric guitar, I'd almost certainly buy one of them:

http://store.guitarfetish.com/xaviereguitars.html
 
I finally checked back in on this thread!
Thanks so much everyone for your input, its really appreciated! :wave::up:
I ended up just starting with my sisters acoustic, it was my brothers, which was originally my uncle's and they all learned on it. I've decided to save up my $ to buy a new guitar while I learn the basic chords on my sisters acoustic guitar.starting up was tough because of the blisters on my fingers that formed lol but now my chords are beginning to sound like chords. :)
thanks again for all this information:applaud:
 
I finally checked back in on this thread!
Thanks so much everyone for your input, its really appreciated! :wave::up:
I ended up just starting with my sisters acoustic, it was my brothers, which was originally my uncle's and they all learned on it. I've decided to save up my $ to buy a new guitar while I learn the basic chords on my sisters acoustic guitar.starting up was tough because of the blisters on my fingers that formed lol but now my chords are beginning to sound like chords. :)
thanks again for all this information:applaud:

That's great news!:applaud: The beginning is tough but once you get used to it you start to see yourself improve dramatically and you can never practice too much!:lol: Keep going at it.:wave:
 
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