Well, I just bought my first cheap guitar last week, and I think I may already see what some of you on various boards meant when you said that buying a cheap guitar would prove to be a bad decision as they are often harder to play and frustrate many a new guitar player into giving up.
Well, I don't want to give up. But I have large and long fingers. The strings on my guitar (Kona KP-1) are packed in kinda tight, and I am having loads of trouble fretting them cleanly. Would some of the better guitars provide me with a little more room up on the fretboard, or is that not something that changes from one model to the next? I know I need to keep practicing and that will help, but is there an advantage to some of the better guitars?
If so, which models will give me a little more wiggle room? Are the Seagulls a good example of one that will play easier?
Thanks in advance.
Seagull M6 Gloss
There's no correllation (sp?) between price and neck width, they're just style preferences.
Of course, work on it for a while before you totally decide it's the guitar. I have large hands, and the guitar I did a large chunk of my beginner's learning on was a strat (which have notoriously thin nut widths). At first I found it very difficult to play anything cleanly, always muting the strings immediately below the ones I was fretting. Soon however, improvement of technique caught up and in no way is a strat too skinny for me to play cleanly on.
I eventually went on to own Ibanez's and now a Les Paul, and while they do have wider fretboards which allow me to stretch out, I don't consider it critical to my playing.
Do something you love and you'll never work a day in your life...
Thanks for the reply, UC. You are probably right about this. However, you are a terrible enabler. :lol:
By the way, what models of Ibanez guitar did you get that enabled you to stretch out a bit more? And why is comfort not critical to your playing?
Seagull M6 Gloss
If you're used to the Strat, then it's not uncomfortable. Just slimmer.
I had the exact same problem. I started out with a Squier and felt the strings were way too close for me, so I switched to an Epiphone Les Paul, and enjoy playing much more now. I would like to get a Fender Telecaster someday, so I agree that after playing more it shouldn't be an issue. I was just getting so frustrated that it was making me not play very much.
Hi, .....my two sense
If you think your guitar is junk, dump it. I say that because if you think that, you will be starting with a negative attiduted when you pick it up.
If you suspect it just might be you instead, ask an experienced friend to play it for you. He/she will know right away.
My first guitar was junk. I bought it at a pawn shop and It wouldn't stay in tune. It didn't even have a truss rod. I went on to a low end yamaha, and while I plan to upgrade soon, it has served me well. There lots of decent inexpensive guitars to start with. If I was doing it over, I would buy an S6. (nut width 1 4/5)
Most beginners fret quiet badly. I would say it took me about 6 months to be able to fret the common open chords cleanly.
That being said you can get a guitar with a greater nut width. The larger the nut width the more distance between strings. The common widths that I have seen are 1 11/16, 1 3/4, 1 7/8 inches.
My current guitar is 1 11/16 but I am only looking at ones with 1 3/4 now.
You could drop down to your local shop and try some out. I don't think you will even need the specs, you will know when your playing with a larger nut width.
Good luck
Cheers,
Max
If you only got your guitar a week ago then I would guess part of the problems may just be part of the learning curve. The action should be low if your learning, the strings should be close to the fretboard, if there not it can be easily adjusted, have it checked out, it's very easy to lower the saddle, or inexpensive to have it done. Nut widths will vary I believe my yamaha has 1 11/16, this is sort of a standard I believe, 1 3/4 is a little wider, I fingerpicked a guitar with a 1 3/4 neck and I liked the extra room between the strings. Since your just learning give things a little time, in a couple months I bet you'll be doing much better getting your chords to sound clean........ Do go ahead and have the action checked out
Best of luck
If you have big fingers and your guitar has a 1 11/16" nut width, you will have a realy tough time (as a beginner) fretting some chords cleanly. The main chords that will give you a hard time will be A major and D major open chords. If you have the financial means, I highly recommed buying a Seagull S6. It's a great entry level guitar (around $350) that sounds great and has a 1.8" nut width. It will make a world of difference on your learning curve. Find yourself a dealer that has one of these guitars and you will see what I mean!
Thanks for the reply, UC. You are probably right about this. However, you are a terrible enabler. :lol:
By the way, what models of Ibanez guitar did you get that enabled you to stretch out a bit more? And why is comfort not critical to your playing?
Yeah, I tend to do that... :oops:
My guitars were from the RG line, which is typically fitted with their Wizard or Wizard II neck profile (can't recall which at the moment). Either way, they're both fairly wide necks, which led to me having more room to throw down my big hands, hence the stretching out and not feeling so squished.
About comfort being important, it's not as though I was putting my hands in contortions to get it right, it was just a little more squished than I like. Like wearing a size 10 shoe when you should wear an 11, you know, the size 10 isn't going to make me walk weird or make my feet hurt, it's just not as comfy as it could be.
Do something you love and you'll never work a day in your life...
