ClumsyMonkey.net

very much yes.

okay.
i need help.
i have money, finally.
so, i want to buy a guitar. like..soon.
what should i start off with? electric-wise.

Something cheap. There's no particular brand to go with (my first was an "Axtech" ... what the fuck is up with that?). Ask the guitar shoppe folks about a good guitar for a beginner.

There's a couple of reasons for this.

First, there's always a chance (albeit a small one) that you won't like playing, so you don't want to waste a lot of money on something high quality just to collect dust.

Also, having a cheaper guitar will give you something to strive for. Once you're a more solid player, and you're sure you're ready to move on up, then you can jump to a better guitar.

so around $200-$300?
i have about $900 to spend. so.

another thing is that..i'm left handed. left handed guitars are about $50 more expensive. pfft.

I don't know how much that will actually matter, though. Try playing around with some right-handed guitars as well as some leftys. Though I'm right handed, I have always played baseball and hockey left-handed. I think that with these things it's more what your comfortable with. Don't get married to a label of "left handed" - try them both before you choose.

Also, you'll need to buy an amp if you're getting an electric guitar (and cables, and possibly a distortion pedal [so that you don't have to get up and use the amp itself to turn on distortion]). Plus, you don't have to spend all of your money when you're just starting out. You might want to save some for other things, or even for extra stuff for your guitar down the road (strap, more picks, strings, etc...)

i borrowed a guitar from my music class awhile back, and it was definately easier playing left handed. before practicing i always held it left handed but then was like "ah..it's a right handed guitar!" hah. so. yeah. left handed.

would something by fender be good to start with?

i'm rather difficult. i'm so paranoid of..buying something..that'll suck.

Don't worry about it. And don't buy Fender. Between these two most popular guitar heavyweights, Gibson wins by a long shot (although there are much better, though more expensive brands out there). Don't be concerned with getting a name you recognise.

A cheap guitar is a cheap guitar.

However.

A well known name like "Fender" has overpriced low-end guitars. You'll get more for your money from a lesser known brand, when looking at the cheaper models. Though their better guitars are very good, there's no point paying extra to have "Fender" on the head of a beginner guitar.

so if i don't recognize the name, it's a good guitar to start with?

Yes and no. Just dont go buy a guitar from sears.

cause price club is the way to go!

or the bay.

When I was gonna play somone suggested starting out with an acoustic and that Yamaha's were pretty good for beginners.

Yamaha has some excellent gear for begingers

Acoustics are actually harder to learn on. The strings are farther away from the neck, so it takes stronger fingers to hold them down (and, when just starting out, that can be difficult. I started fairly young, and the acoustic was too hard for me).

I definately agree on the Sears comment. Stay away from Sears.

Chanandler Bong wrote:Yamaha has some excellent gear for begingers

Yeah, they might be a good place to start if you're determined to get a name you recognize.

Axtech wrote:Acoustics are actually harder to learn on. The strings are farther away from the neck, so it takes stronger fingers to hold them down (and, when just starting out, that can be difficult. I started fairly young, and the acoustic was too hard for me).

I definately agree on the Sears comment. Stay away from Sears.

But, electric guitars have to use metal strings, which are much harder to hold down than the ones on my acoustic.

Your thinking of a classical guitar. Classical guitars have nylon strings.

Axtech wrote:Acoustics are actually harder to learn on. The strings are farther away from the neck, so it takes stronger fingers to hold them down (and, when just starting out, that can be difficult. I started fairly young, and the acoustic was too hard for me).

I definately agree on the Sears comment. Stay away from Sears.

You tell me this after I've been learning on an acoustic! The best place to get a guitar from would be a music store Dom, someplace like durham music maybe might be a good idea. They can help you out a lot.

NO. sears, yo.

NO Sears!! If you get a guitar from sears I'll break it.