So a lot of students ask me about buying a guitar. Theres a couple of things to have in mind when you walk into a shop.
1.ACCESSORIES – If you’re beginning there’s more than just the guitar you will need. You will need:
- TUNER – typically electronic tuners go for around 20 bucks
- GUITAR PICKS – I recommend selecting various sizes to play with and eventually settle on the most comfortable thickness
- AMPLIFIER – If your planning on an electric guitar you can pick up a small practice amp for under a hundred bucks. You ‘ll also need a cord to connect the amp and guitar.
- There are some beginner “package” deals that include all of this and more from brand names like Fender, Gibson/Epiphone, Ibanez.
2. KNOW YOUR BUDGET
If you are just beginning you maybe don’t want to invest more than $200 bucks until you know you’re going to see some progress. If you’re seeing progress and looking to upgrade then I would suggest spending between 400 and 600 dollars for a decent middle of the road guitar that will no doubt have better components and style.
3. PLAYABILITY
By this I mean how easy do your fingers move over the fretboard? You will want to inspect each potential new guitars’ “action”. “Action” basically refers to the height of the strings or the distance between the fret board and the strings. High action is when the strings are far away from the fretboard and will make playing the guitar very difficult. Low action is when they are close to the fretboard and will require less hand strength to hold down notes and chords making the playability great. However if they are too low it may result in a lot of “buzz” while playing as the vibrating strings will rattle off the frets when playing creating a buzzing sound. Now the “action” or playability can be adjusted by an in-house guitar tech in the event you really love the style of the guitar but it plays like crap, however that will be an extra charge most likely.
4. CHECK THE COMPONENTS
Make sure everything works! This includes all the knobs (volume, and tone), tuning pegs, input jack, the pick ups. Make sure it isn’t scratched up if its a floor model.
- The pick ups are the the devices located on the body of the guitar underneath the strings and are what turns the vibrating strings (when played) into a electronic signal which is transferred to the amplifier. Usually an electric guitar will have at least two of these and with a selector to switch between them (for tone alternatives) located elsewhere on the body (usually near the knobs).
- The knobs are the volume knob and usually at least one tone knob. The volume knob is basically your on/off switch. The tone knobs will give you a bass-ee or trebly sound (usually rotated all the way to the highest treble setting)
- The tuning pegs keep your strings tuned and should turn easily.
- The input jack is where the cord from your amp goes into your guitar and should give you a clean uninterrupted signal and no static.
5. COMFORT
There are a lot of shapes and styles for sale and you want to be sure that it is not too heavy hanging from your neck or that it is not uncomfortable in your lap. You will potentially be spending hours on this instrument practicing to be a great musician so it better not be a pain to play!!!
GOOD LUCK AND HAVE FUN SHOPPING AND DON’T LET THE SALES GUYS WORK YOU OVER!!!
