Choosing the perfect guitar without regretting your purchase later on is tough! I can hear the questions running through your head! “What one is right for me? How do I know I’m getting a guitar that is right for my (or my child's) abilities? You’ve got questions like “what should my budget be? How do I pick a good sound? How should it feel in my hand? What will sound good for years to come?
The biggest decision you have to make when choosing a guitar is what type. I think it’s a natural decision to make so don’t fret (pun intended). What style of music do you listen to most? What songs do you have in mind to play? What do you enjoy jamming the most? What do you want your child to get into?
To make this decision there are four main types of guitar you should know about:
Nylon string styled guitars are more suited to classical and spanish guitaring. It’s got a smoother, more woody sound that coins the classical and spanish tone. It might seem easy to learn on with softer strings but don’t be hasty. There is a bigger gap between the strings that is helpful for picking, but the wider neck is harder for bar chords. Again, nylon strings are suited to the classical sound. If you want to play more modern songs, we suggest going with a steel string guitar.
An easy way to tell the difference between nylon and steel stringed guitars is the holes in the head of the guitar means it is a nylon string. If the head is solid, it will generally be a steel string.
Steel string acoustic is the most common guitar available and for good reason. It’s the fireside jam with no amps required. Just you and your rhythm. Many electric guitar based songs have an acoustic version you can learn, but not the other way around.
Want to perform or record some song ideas but don’t have an electric? Simple. Get a semi-acoustic or an acoustic with a pickup. You can always buy a pick up kit for your acoustic guitar but if you buy with one built in it can be cheaper and less fiddly. Either way there’s a solution so not to worry.
Want to rock out? Yeah, you probably already know you want an electric then. They vary in body size and shape but the sound produced is mainly affected by the pickups in the guitar and the quality of the electrics. With soft strings, it’s easier to hold chords and your picking can quickly become shredding. Note that you need an amp (a speaker you plug the guitar into to hear it). While many electric songs have an acoustic version, acoustic songs often don’t translate into the electric world as well.
To sum that up, if you’re a beginner and you want to play songs that your friends like we recommend a steel string acoustic.
Either way you want a guitar that can take your playing to the next level. This will help you determine your budget amongst other things like how much money you spent having a good time in the weekend.
If you’re a beginner don’t necessarily sell out for a budget guitar. There are affordable options that can keep you in love with playing because they sounds and feel alright. If you’re going to practice, you can quickly outgrow your guitar. Save the hassle and buy right the first time.
Never buy from a department store or other large multi-purpose retailer. Why? Often there are great packages that are uber cheap, we know. Reputable guitar brands even sell in large retailers, we know that too. The problem is the handling and care of the product. Guitars, especially cheap ones are subject to warp and change. They may be out in extreme humidity, be roughly handled and roughly put together. When not caring for a guitar in transit and storage it can be damaged and become very hard to play as the action (string height) has been altered.
Choosing a guitar best takes place in-store. If you want to buy online try and see from pictures, reviews, and videos what the guitar is like and consider the recommendations below:
If you can, head into a leading music retailer like MMC. Here there is a range of cared for guitars that you can try out. Once in-store, here’s what you need to know to make a good decision. You ready?
Be honest with the staff. If this is your first guitar, but you don’t want a completely beginner guitar, just say so. The more you chat to the staff about what you’re into, the better they can help you.
Have your budget in mind. To set your budget, I ask you how much are you going to practice? How long do you want your guitar to last? The longer you will practice and if you want first guitar you’ll love forever the more you should consider spending.
Our nylon stringed guitars start at $79 including a carry bag. This is suitable for complete beginners or younger kids to test their interest in music. Anything beyond this and the player will outgrow the quality and sound too quickly.
Moving into dreadnought shaped steel string guitars, we have beginner packages starting at $179 or $2.54 per week.
Our staff pick for a beginner acoustic guitar would be the Ashton Mini Jumbo Steel String Acoustic. It's not really a beginner guitar to tell the truth, but it's got a solid top and packs a hang of a sound for its size.
If you’re a smaller person get a smaller body. It’s more fun to use and the guitar will fit your hands. Like a good pair of shoes, it has to fit! If the guitar is too big (dreadnought or jumbo) then you will struggle to play with the right posture. In turn, this affects how your hand makes the chords and notes.
You can purchase ¾ size guitars but if you're 10+ years old, we suggest you go for the full size. It will save you adjusting later and most kids get used to the bigger size quickly then never look back.
Smaller guitars are less bassy and have a more focused sound (tone).
Bigger bodied guitars have more bass and play louder.
Whatever your requirement, find one you like the sound of. Strum a chord, pick some strings and if you can’t do that cleanly ask the staff too. They may even teach you something new!
While you may be a beginner and not know what sound you like your opinion still counts. Listen to the different sounds, forget guitar snobbery and pick some guitars that you think sounds good. Do you like bright and loud, more bass and softer? Something in the middle?
Don’t go by brand straight away.
Ask to sit with the guitar. How does the neck feel? Can you reach your hand around with minimal effort? Your hand is different to my hand - if you have got smaller hands find a smaller neck.
Look at the action. Action is the distance between the strings and the fretboard. The closer the action, the easier the guitar to play. You can change the action but for now, choosing one in the store that has a closer action will be more comfortable to play.
Fret buzz is when the action is too low. That’s the rattle of the string vibrating on the other frets. Pluck some strings and see if you can hear it. Try and find a healthy middle.
Look down the neck of the guitar - is it twisted? Look warped in any way? Site the guitar from the side, is it flat? Is there a slight raise behind the bridge? If there is this chat to the staff about this.
The type of wood impacts the sound and usually indicates the quality of the guitar. This will show in the price. The sides and back are important but not as crucial to the sound as the top. Ask the shop attendant to try some solid top guitars. The solid timber will actually get better with age so perhaps it's worth investing a little more for quality, solid top tones.
You need a case to protect your guitar when storing (not playing) your new baby or traveling anywhere. Even if you don’t plan to bust out your guitar on holiday or a road trip you still need to store it away safely. Bags come as cheap as 30 bucks and better yet, hard cases start from 99 dollars. It’s a small amount extra to keep your guitar from getting knocked, banged and worst of all bent or warped.
Staying in tune is like having tires on your bike. It’s kinda a must. Get a tuner and tune regularly. Yourself and anyone within hearing distance will thank you.
Last and least of all, you’ve got to like how it looks! I got my first guitar so I could impress girls. If it didn’t look cool, there was no way I was going to buy. If you don’t like the look and feel, you won’t want to pick it up every day.
Getting that ol’ faithful guitar you love comes from practicing, learning and exploring music with it. Ultimately, choose a guitar you are stoked to play.
Get your guitar checked out and set up by a suitably skilled guitar technician. Using the bike example, guitars need maintenance like a bike. A thorough clean, correct intonation, the right strings, the bridge setup etc all make a guitar sound and feel sa-weet.. While a un-maintained bike can often still ride, maintenance makes it look and feel great. Same with a guitar. That TLC will keep you loving your guitar for years to come.
Check out our guitar range here and if you can’t make it in-store flick us a call, hit us up on Facebook or comment below about choosing the perfect beginner guitar.
Photo Source: pasotraspaso