scottb Posted April 8, 2014 Report Share Posted April 8, 2014 I know, I might as well ask about oil or tires.I woke up Sunday thinking it would be time for me to learn how to play electric guitar.The only musical experience I have is listening to the radio.I have about a $400 - $450 budget. Now that summer is here, not sure I would stick with it to practice until winter, but figured I would just get one and start somewhere.No plans to be in band or anything, just for personal development.I like the 80's "hair bands", and hard stuff like Tool and Pantera. Really like to try to learn the beginning of Guns and Roses, Sweet child of Mine I went to Guitar Center to see the difference in brands, style and prices.I really like the feel of the Fender Stratocaster, The American strat is out of the budget. A used mexico strat is about $299. They also had the Fender Squire line, a few different types in a kit with an amp, cables and the other stuff you need to get started. Is the Squire line decent to just out on? I figure for $300 for everything " all in one" is a good place to start. Thoughts? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rawlins87 Posted April 8, 2014 Report Share Posted April 8, 2014 If its your first start cheap. Most people have instruments just collecting dust. Any reason to not get an acoustic? That would eliminate the amplifier expense, and portable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gixxus Christ! Posted April 8, 2014 Report Share Posted April 8, 2014 Squire is ok...usually made in Korea I think. I would start on a cheap yamaha acoustic. You can get them from $100 and up, they have pretty good tone and stay in tune well as long as you don't beat on them. For learning fundamentals there us no advantage to an electric and as mentioned previously it adds significant cost. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scottb Posted April 8, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 8, 2014 No reason for not getting an acoustic, just did not look at them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rawlins87 Posted April 9, 2014 Report Share Posted April 9, 2014 Alvarez or Martin for acoustic. Look into craigslist or music go round. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rawlins87 Posted April 9, 2014 Report Share Posted April 9, 2014 Many good brands those are just my preference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zx3vfr Posted April 9, 2014 Report Share Posted April 9, 2014 (edited) No no, don't start cheap you will get discouraged or will be upgrading within a year. I play and highly recommend Schecter C1 plus if you must buy new and should be able to be had for $550-$600For the same you should be able to get an american strat or telecaster from a pawn shop.You don't need a fancy amp, I've been using the same fender super reverb or something like that for the past 10 years and it's been a work horse. Edited April 9, 2014 by zx3vfr Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scottb Posted April 9, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 9, 2014 IP, I dont want to go too cheap = crap and hate it, but just need to start some where.If I stay with it, I am sure I would upgrade.I will check out Sam Ash on Mayfield and back to Guitar center. At least guitars take up less space then motorcycles..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anden Posted April 9, 2014 Report Share Posted April 9, 2014 Pawn shops and Craig's list. Try everything out you can. Find what feels good in your hands. Always wanted a PRS then I got a hold of one and hated it. Now I love my Ibanez but hate the tremlo.Oh yeah floating, Floyd Rose, locking tremlo, or whatever they are calling it. Skip it for your first guitar. Just a pain in the ass to tune properly. And for a new guy staying in tune helps a lot more. Rocksmith is loads of fun. And you do learn stuff from it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magley64 Posted April 9, 2014 Report Share Posted April 9, 2014 Squire is head and shoulders better than epiphone. For a beginner guitar, you can get into a squire bullet pretty cheap. Humbuckler pickup is nice, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smccrory Posted April 9, 2014 Report Share Posted April 9, 2014 Do NOT go cheap - worst thing a new guitarist can do. And don't buy anything you haven't handled. Bring someone experienced too, if you can. I can speak highly for G&L Tribute electric guitars for what it's worth. You see them on CL periodically and if they're not abused, they are a fantastic value for the money. Korea makes good stuff. (This from an owner of an American Custom Shop Fender Stratocaster) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smccrory Posted April 9, 2014 Report Share Posted April 9, 2014 500-600 is what I call "starting cheap". I think he'll be alright in that price range for a first guitar. I completely agree. To some, cheap is $100-200 and that's just way too low unless you're robbing a motivated private seller. Even a $350-450 G&L is an excellent starter or even 2nd guitar. A Mexican Strat can be found in that range sometimes too. I loved my '72 reissue mex strat tele. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helmutt Posted April 9, 2014 Report Share Posted April 9, 2014 I learned on a friends Fender Squire way back, but bought my first guitar a few weeks later. I started on a used mid 80's Ibanez RG series and have had almost a dozen of them in the past 20+ years. Love the thin/fast Wizard necks, but they will spoil you. I have owned USA custom Jackson, USA Fender, BC Rich, and I haven't enjoyed any of them as much as a decent midgrade RG's. Just a good fit for me, but I learned on them and bias my opinion accordingly Acoustics are great to learn on, but I grow bored after a while and NEED distortion in my ears. Electric gives you both worlds with a cheap, yet decent amp pkg. Wife got me a Crate GFX15 years ago, does a lot for what it is - good clean little amp for $100. Most starter kits give you crap and dont save you much. Like these guys are saying, dont go too cheap.....but dont blow a grand to get started either. Moderately used midgrade equip will fit your budget and still be enough to satisfy you for quite a while without janky instrument issues. Pawn shops can have good stuff for junk money if you know what to look for, so a $450 budget could yield the best of both worlds to where you can get into a decent electric setup AND an acoustic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackFlash Posted April 9, 2014 Report Share Posted April 9, 2014 http://www.samash.com/guitars-amplifiers-and-effects/acoustic-electric-guitars/fender-cd-220ce-all-zebrano-acoustic-electric-guitar-f1504021x MSRP: $699.99 $429.99 Save : $270.00 (39%) More about CD-220CE All ZebranoThe CD-220CE All Zebrano dreadnought acoustic is stunning both visually and sonically thanks to its all-zebrano wood back and sides, which look fantastic and impart wonderfully balanced tone with rich harmonics. Other features include scalloped X bracing and back center stripe mosaic inlay, abalone rosette and tortoiseshell pickguard, mahogany neck with dual-action truss rod, 20-fret rosewood fingerboard with smaller (3 mm) dot inlays, rosewood bridge with compensated saddle, black bridge pins with abalone dots, mother-of-pearl Fender logo headstock inlay, gold hardware and Fishman® Presys™ pickup system with active onboard preamp, tuner, volume and tone controls and low-battery indicator light Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helmutt Posted April 9, 2014 Report Share Posted April 9, 2014 free floating bridges, Floyd Rose, locking tremlo, or whatever they are calling it. Skip it for your first guitar. Just a pain in the ass to tune properly. And for a new guy staying in tune helps a lot more. Rocksmith is loads of fun. And you do learn stuff from it.This is a good point. FIXED BRIDGE for first timers takes guesswork out of setup/tuning. String it, tune it, flog it. Floating trems add mayhem to the method. I have NEVER found a good tremelo that can tolerate heavy use or detuning without quirps. I've not tried RockSmith yet, but it intrigues me since it appears to be a good learning tool with different techniques and songs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anden Posted April 9, 2014 Report Share Posted April 9, 2014 What I like about messing with Rocksmith is it really depends tone. Not hitting the fret they want you to hit. So you can cheat. I don't like that you get punished for knowing the song or playing ahead of what your asked in the game. Pantera's Domination for instance. Starts you very easy for a rhythm based song with a few notes. Another fun tool to learn is Guitar Pro. Plays the tab so you can hear it, play along and or read it. I can put that up on my Loogle drive if anyone wants it. If I can get the disk out of busted laptop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scottb Posted April 9, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 9, 2014 Thank you for all the replies, I will pick something up this weekend, either a Fender squire or a used Fender mex-strat.Thinking of a Line 6 amp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helmutt Posted April 9, 2014 Report Share Posted April 9, 2014 I play a Line6 Spidervalve HD100 amp on a Crate BlackVoodoo cabinet. Awesome sounds, you won't be disappointed with their combo amps Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan_c_F Posted April 9, 2014 Report Share Posted April 9, 2014 I second the Schecter advice. They're light, easy to play, and feature-packed. You should be able to find a few cheap -- my first guitar was a Schecter. Ibanez is also a popular electric brand and they do all right by quality. It's an intensely personal choice, though. What works for me won't necessarily work for you. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helmutt Posted April 9, 2014 Report Share Posted April 9, 2014 I'd wager anyone learning to play guitar will become accustomed to most any instrument they learn on, but once the fundamentals are picked up is when fitment issues may arise. I lucked out learning on the guitar that I did, but I eventually tried other makes and still found the thinner necked guitars were to my liking. Just buy what you'd like and work with it for a while. It's like motorcycling, rarely ever get YOUR perfect bike the first time Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scottb Posted April 10, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 10, 2014 Ok, went to San Ash Music on Mayfield. Whole different "vibe" in this store. So i told the sales guy Looking for first guitar, and I think I want a Fender strat. Because I like the feel of it.He ask about my budget and type of music I like to play. Long story short, I think I will be getting an Ibanez RG32 ($249 ) and a Fender Mustang V2 amp ( on sale for $99 ) The amp has a built in tuner, and 15 effects.Add in a guitar stand, cable, head phones and a guitar bag, plus a hand full of picks for about $400 out the door.I will pick all this up on Friday night. I would have got all this tonight, but I wanted a blue guitar. Sales guy Mike siad he should be able to get on Friday.If not, I will "settle" for a black guitar, Thanks for all the replies. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Triumph Posted April 11, 2014 Report Share Posted April 11, 2014 Good luck on your buy but I'm surprised that nobody mentioned Craigslist. You can find some serious deals on guitars there. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mykill Posted April 11, 2014 Report Share Posted April 11, 2014 (edited) Scope Craigslist. For your budget you can get a nice guitar. Most are very lightly used as well.Look for a PRS se or schecter. Usually find $700ish guitars for half on there.Nm just read thru thread more. Enjoy the guitar. Edited April 11, 2014 by Mykill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReconRat Posted April 11, 2014 Report Share Posted April 11, 2014 Don't over look Epiphone (lesser Gibson brand) either. An Epiphone Les Paul is pretty cheap at the lower end of the price range, and is very highly rated. http://www.guitarcenter.com/Epiphone,Electric-Guitar-Guitar.gc?ipp=25&o=1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scottb Posted April 13, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 13, 2014 Just to follow up, I did get a guitar. I looked at the Fender stratocaster, then the squire line, and the Ibenez RG series. I ended up getting an ESP LTD model M10 with gig bag, Mustang V2 amp, cable, stand and headphones for $400 at Sam Ash in Mayfield.You can pre-order your tickets now for my world tour that will start in 2019. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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