Guitars

[The L J Monk]

Thinking of upgrading my air guitar to something a bit more tangible.

Any recommendations for starting out?

[wilts rover]

Brian May makes his own - why not have a go at that?

[Glyn_Wigley]

Have you ever played a real guitar at all?

[The L J Monk]

Not really. Will this count against me?

[Filo]

Brian May makes his own - why not have a go at that?

The red special is what it`s called with 24 frets, you can get replica`s of it

Talking of replica`s don`t go for the Frankenstrat replica, Eddie Van Halen was always adding switches that did nothing to try and throw manufacturers off the scent of building an exact replica

[dknward2]

Wife has been playing for years she says ashton inexpensive and have a good tone for starting out

[Glyn_Wigley]

No, not at all, but if you're serious about learning to play one and you've never tried before, I'd recommend a simple acoustic folk guitar to start with. You can practice anywhere (ie where other people can't hear you!) without needing to be plugged in, you can find out whether you've got any aptitude at all without spending silly money on an electric one, and most importantly of all it's the best way to thicken the skin on the fingertips of the fret hand - which more than anything else determines whether someone is going to persevere with the guitar or not. Only regular practice (at least half an hour a day I'd recommend) will thicken the skin enough to stop your fingers from hurting when you play...

[Filo]

Personally, I prefer the Sound of the Gibson to a Strat especially when the late great Gary Moore was playing it

[The L J Monk]

A friend of mine was given 6 guitar lessons - via GroupOn or something - with a Swedish fella called Jens. It worked out at £25 for each half hour. Unfortunately, the Swede always turned up 10 minutes late, and would then spend 10 minutes apologising and chatting about his day.
He would then show my mate how well he could play guitar for 5 minutes, before explaining to him for a few minutes that he should practice some chords at home before the next lesson. He would then finish 2 minutes early as he was late for his next lesson.

I think I'll self teach.

[MachoMadness]

Acoustics are generally cheaper and a better bet for starting out as Glyn says. If you want to get straight into electric guitars then you can't go wrong with a Stratocaster. I've always thought Gretsch were the best make but they're eye-wateringly expensive, so it all depends how much you're willing to splash out as with everything. But generally, I'd go for the cheapest one to minimise the risk.

Or you could just go the Seastick Steve route and nail a few strings to a few bits of wood.

[jonnydog]

Going slightly off on another tangent, has anyone got or played that Rocksmith game for consoles/pc's?

I wondered whether it was any good at teaching a total beginner how to play?
(Obviously not to Hendrix level, but certainly more than the basics?)

[ravenrover]

I did a little bit of roadying at our local venue when Andy Fairweather Lowe played, what a nice bloke he is and a hell of a guitar player,  he let me hold an acoustic guitar that belonged to Eric Clapton, he had borrowed it and never given it back. Not a big deal to a lot of people but it meant something to me, my guitar is just a cheap acoustic but good enough for me to strum a few chords on.
I actually learnt to play at a night school class when I lived in Pontefract.

[keyser_soze]

I started on a steel string acoustic, and nearly quit when I couldn't make chords ring out without  my fingers bleeding.

When I upgraded to a Squier strat I was amazed how relatively easy it was to play, but the callouses I'd built up stood me in good stead. I then switched to bass a few years after to play in a band with some lads from work. I play a Fender Precision bass and also have an Epiphone Les Paul, plus the old Hohner acoustic I started on.


Not sure what I'm saying really, I guess if you've got staying power then start on the acoustic for a decent grounding and to be able to play anything, if you're a bit of a limp wristed pansy with lots of money to spend (and a detached house) go for the electric.

Not sure I'd recommend a Nylon string acoustic, never really got on with them.

[colfromdonny]

If you want to teach yourself try this bloke
http://www.justinguitar.com/

[ponte_ricky]

Ive always loved telecasters. Beautiful to look at and beautiful tone

[Nudga]

My missus bought me a cheapy acoustic guitar the other year but I just couldn't get my left hand to do the business ( a bit like when i broke my right hand and I couldn't choke my chicken properly). I did manage to make a bit of music which was quite enjoyable but the frustration took over and I just packed in.