YAG(Guitar)Thread

[imported_alp]

Just decided to start playing the guitar. I'm pretty good at musical stuff, and the little I've tried so far I think I can pick it up fairly quick. Anyway, I'm looking to pay about £200, which is about $360, but I don't know if the prices are similar. The two for about that price I am looking at are the Yamaha Pacifica 112 and Ibanez GSA60. Anyone have any other suggestions, preferably that I can actually get hold of here in the UK? Also, amps. I am even more confused about these. Do I want a practice amp, a bigger amp or what? What wattage or whatever? Am I right in thinking that for a £200 guitar I probably want to be spending £70-£100 on an amp?

 

[ThePresence]

You may want to go cheaper on a first guitar, see if you like it. If you decide to stay with it, then upgrade. I've seen too many people start off with a bang and stop with a bigger bang. Look at a Squire or Epiphone. Just my advice.

 

[neonerd]

anybody want to reccomend some good/quality starter guides online if you want to teach yourself how to play?

 

[Colt45]

one of those cheap korean(?) strats.. squire i think they call 'em.

 

[OREOSpeedwagon]

Originally posted by: neonerd
anybody want to reccomend some good/quality starter guides online if you want to teach yourself how to play?

start out by learning the chords. powertabs.net has some cool tutorials and you can download the powertab software at www.power-tab.net.

 

[imported_alp]

thought about that, but it seems stupid to buy, then have to upgrade really soon or whatever. to be honest you can't go that much cheaper than that anyway...

i don't really want a strat, it isn't exactly an all round guitar... this is why both those i 'chose' so far are 1 humbucker, 2 single coil...

anyway, can someone tell me about amps?

 

[TechnoKid]

You want an acousitc guitar or an electric guitar?

 

[imported_alp]

electric.

my parents both have more acoustic guitars than they have use for, so i think i could acquire one if i wanted

 

[OREOSpeedwagon]

you can do just about everything with a strat. I love mine, but it's more like what you're looking for though, a Fender HM Strat. It's a lot different than a regular strat, first and most obviously it has 1 humbucker and 2 single coil pickups. there are lots of other things that are different about it, read about it here: http://electricguitar.50megs.com/hm.htm (sh!tty site, and i'm pretty sure they didn't make them in 1987 but you get the basic idea about the guitar). They only made them from 1988-1992, but man I love mine. Don't let the pink color fool you (in fact, make sure you get anything but pink, it's ass ugly imo), it's a beautiful guitar. I picked up mine for $500.

 

[thomsbrain]

search for guitar on this forum and find out.

 

[imported_alp]

well, when you said strat i assumed you meant the three single coil strat

 

[Nutdotnet]

Originally posted by: alp
well, when you said strat i assumed you meant the three single coil strat

Seriously, go buy a G&L Tribute Legacy (preferably with a Humbucker in the bridge). After a proper setup it is the best sub-$500 guitar I've ever played.

 

[imported_alp]

ok, does anyone know of any websites that have a decent selection of uk guitars? i'm going to go have a look in my local music shop at the weekend i think, but to check on some of the stuff you are talking about?

 

[imported_alp]

I'm now even more confused. I might get an Epiphone (Standard) or VIntage V100 Les Paul Style, or a Cort G250 or X6. Maybe a Vintage VRS, or I could even stretch to the Standard Fender Strat or Tele. I'm just not sure what I want, really...

 

[aplefka]

Dude, don't learn electric first. Learn acoustic. First of all, acoustic guitar gets teh femalez0rz. Second, acoustic goes with you wherever you go because all you need is a guitar, not a guitar amp wires outlet etc. Plus you get more respect for the instrument because you're not just playing whatever modern stuff you want.

Just don't be one of those kids who says "Hey I want to play guitar" then you teach yourself and you practice and practice a lot, and then less than a year later you think you're the sh1t and you start turning a cold shoulder towards newer players. You're no fvcking Santana, just remember that.

 

[imported_alp]

wow, you really got the wrong idea, though i can understand why as i know a lot of people who are like that. i already AM learning acoustic, and i definitely don't want to show off with this or anything like that...

 

[aplefka]

Oh I'm not trying to say you're one of those kinds. Fvck, I don't even know how old you are, but you're probably old enough to be past that stage of immaturity. I was just saying learn acoustic first because it's portable and it's a different style. But that's cool, if you're learning it, then go for electric.

I'd say your best bet for your first amp is a small practice amp. I started playing bass on a Crane 12W guitar amp. It was more than enough power because let's face it, all I could play were tabs and I didn't really know how to get a good rhythm and whatnot going.

I'm sure you can find one used in your area for your price range. And if not, ask the parents out for help, or sell something you don't need anymore. Guitar is the best hobby to have, and it's pretty inexpensive.

 

[Sqube]

Originally posted by: OREOSpeedwagon

Originally posted by: neonerd
anybody want to reccomend some good/quality starter guides online if you want to teach yourself how to play?

start out by learning the chords. powertabs.net has some cool tutorials and you can download the powertab software at www.power-tab.net.

I think you should've mentioned that powertabs.net is a completely overwhelming site with nothing pointing you in any particular direction at all.

I'm trying to learn acoustic guitar, and just blew a fuse when I hit that site. Kind of an information overload.

 

[aplefka]

Originally posted by: Sqube

Originally posted by: OREOSpeedwagon

Originally posted by: neonerd
anybody want to reccomend some good/quality starter guides online if you want to teach yourself how to play?

start out by learning the chords. powertabs.net has some cool tutorials and you can download the powertab software at www.power-tab.net.

I think you should've mentioned that powertabs.net is a completely overwhelming site with nothing pointing you in any particular direction at all.

I'm trying to learn acoustic guitar, and just blew a fuse when I hit that site. Kind of an information overload.

Check out MXTabs then, they've got great forums and you can check out lessons and stuff written by members. My first preference when it comes to tabs too.

 

[imported_alp]

ok, i was thinking of a 15watt or a 30watt marshall amp, or maybe a 16w kustom. i have enough money for this stuff. i mean, i could probably go get a £1000 gibson, but it just wouldn't be a justifiable purchase considering how long i've been playing, and wouldn't make me sound any better or anything i wouln't have thought.

EDIT: so what guitar would you recommend?

 

[JulesMaximus]

I'd start out with a Pen and go from there.

 

[imported_alp]

pen?

 

[JulesMaximus]

Originally posted by: alp
pen?

It's a joke. Notice all the pen threads?

 

[imported_alp]

no, but i do now

 

[TheNinja]

If you already know you will stick with it, I agree with you in saying that you should just bypass getting a "starter" guitar like a guitar that is less than $200. If you get a squire strat or other cheapo guitar you'll probably end up upgrading soon or dumping money into the guitar that you'll never get out (for new tuners, electronics, etc). Not to mention that fact that the cheapo guitars don't stay in tune and won't sounds or feel as nice.

Spending $300-$400 opens up new possibilities to get a nice guitar though. I am more of a fan of Ibanez and Epiphone (in fact just picked up a newer Epiphone Les Paul). You can find used stuff on Ebay for ok prices. Other wise a fat strat (Single, Single, Humbucker I believe) wouldn't be a bad choice. It's about personal preference mainly.

For Amps, I absolutely love my Marshall AVT50. New it will run you over $500 but used you can probably snatch one up for $350 shipped. It's a hybrid tube/solid state. Otherwise the AVT20 is supposed to be a nice practice amp too, plenty loud I'm sure and obviously less expensive than the AVT50.

The above is just my opinion and my experiences of course. But we all know how much ninjas love to WAIL!!