Musicians: Need beginner e-guitar advice

[Saurdaukar]

I need a new hobby so Im going to put some of my strings exposure to use and pick up the electric geeeeeetar.

Thus far, in my e-travels, the Yamaha PAC112J seems to have the best reviews for 'overall beginner' guitar.

Thoughts?  Disagreements?  I can most likely get away with this thing and an amp for under $350 or so, which is attractive to me... dont need to be spending $1K+ on a Fender or something...

[Toad]

My kid has an "in" at Musician's Friend here in KC. He goes down to the returns department and picks up some impressive stuff on the cheap. He's gotten two for himself so far that are ~$600-800 for ~$500. Yeah, there's a scratch or three but nothing that really affects playability or sound.

He'll be home for the 4th and he's going looking. If you like, he can look for you.

Generally, you get what you pay for; the hardware on the more expensive ones is better and easier to keep in tune.

[Cougar68]

If you're looking for a cheaper Strat style guitar, I'd highly recommend Aria.  I picked up one of these http://www.ariausa.com/series/stg003/stg003.html and loved it.  The body is of great quality, pickups are decent, and the neck is one of the better cheap guitars that I've played.  I've since butchered it up with a Fender neck and electrics, but it played like a dream right off the shelf.  

 

[Nash]

The worst advice ever is "Get something cheap first, and figure out if you actually like doing it. If you do, then get something better."

It's the same no matter what the hobby is. If you get something cheap it will be more frustrating, less rewarding, and you're gonna give it up before really knowing if you actually like doing it.

Jump in with both feet - always.

[FiLtH]

Get something nice...it makes all the difference. Shoeboxes with fishin line dont cut it.

[DiabloTX]

Originally posted by Nash
The worst advice ever is "Get something cheap first, and figure out if you actually like doing it. If you do, then get something better."

It's the same no matter what the hobby is. If you get something cheap it will be more frustrating, less rewarding, and you're gonna give it up before really knowing if you actually like doing it.

Jump in with both feet - always.

That's becuase the word "cheap" is wrong.  You want something inexpensive and with the quality of inexpensive guitars these days you can't go wrong.  Have someone you know who plays guitar pick one out for you.  Stay with acoustics until you feel you are ready to get an electric and even then practice practice practice on an acoustic.  If you can pull it off on an acoustic you can rip on an electric.  I have 10 guitars right now.  2 of them are acoustics.

[6GunUSMC]

young musicians are notorious for selling their gear cheap, hold off buying from a music store and check local trade papers and look for bargains there. do NOT invest a lot of money on a guitar until you attain some proficiency with it.   i was a working musician for nearly 20 years and i have seen people that only had a passing or impulsive interest sink vulgar amounts of money in equipment.  My best advice if you are a new player is to buy an acoustic, typically they will require a tad more strength to play, but this will help you later and you will not need an amplifier.  The clarity will also help you develop an ear for tone... hope this helps

[Masherbrum]

Alvarez Acoustic.  The strings lay close to the neck.

Karaya

[kevykev56]

Ovation are decent sounding guitars, can be had fairly cheap, Necks are smooth as butter.

Personally I play an older Washburn acoustic, very good sound, not cheap, but also not Alvarez.

[Rolex]

I agree with DiabloTX and 6GunsUSMC about acoustic first. You never stop playing an acoustic and you need the basics first. Acoustic and electric are really two different animals, but both are about tone - clean fingering with one and learning how to mute strings with the other.

Yamaha is good stuff for the money. It will come down to what feels good in you hands.

Here is an mp3 with an acoustic/electric mix. I use a Yamaha acoustic and bass plus a Yamaha effects box (DGStomp) with the electrics - A Strat and a Tele. (It's not quite finished yet, but it's getting there. A sample of what one person can do with a Mac and Garage Band Software)

[RightF00T]

Just be sure to find something with an acceptable amount of action in the strings.    I made the mistake of buying a cheap acoustic off E-bay, and it turns out the action is somewhere in the area of 2 miles high with the strings staying in tune for maybe 3 sessions.  

The high action makes it hard to finger chords properly, and the tuning is just a nightmare when trying to play various songs.

So in short, make sure you actually get a feel for the guitar you're buying, paying close attention to the rudiments and how easy they are carried out on that particular guitar.

[Saurdaukar]

Thanks all.

The school of thought Im running off of it that Im going to gravitate towards electric anyway and one of my buddies, who does a local cover band thing just told me to skip the accoustic unless I want to be a "purist."

He also stated that its, byenlarge, easier to learn electric than acoustic.

So... two schools of thought... hmm... anyway - thanks again.  

[Manedew]

Learn to play an acoustic

Get big callouses and strong fingers .... or you'll play like a hack, like most do

[Cougar68]

I'd recommend starting with an electric.  There's a huge difference in playability between a cheaper acoustic and a higher quality one.  Cheap acoustics can be a pain to fret and frustrate the heck out of ya.  A cheaper electric is going to be easier to play.  IMO unless you plan on spending a lot of time around a campfire, you're better off learning on electric.

[Masherbrum]

Rule #7