My first guitar choice... what do y'all think?

Yes. it looks like it would be a good choice. And yes that guitar is capable of playing all the different styles of music. Being you can't try it out before you purchase it you may want to do a little searching with Google on guitar setups. That way your more familiar with that aspect of guitars and just incase you need to fine tune it. This it something every guitarist should be familiar with.

After you get it don't forget to check out all the lessons offered here on the Home page. May many happy hours of practicing reward you.

Joe

Nick0512

That looks like a nice starter kit. Strat style guitars are very versatile, you can play just about any style with them.

Here is another good starter kit. The old saying goes, "you get what you pay for", but with Behringer I believe you get a little more than you pay for. I own several pieces of Behringer gear and have always been very impressed with the great quality vs. low cost.

Behringer V-Tone II Guitar Pack

Nick, I think its a fine choice, but I'd highly recommend that you find a music store that has that particular guitar in stock and sit down with it and take a few minutes.

I don't know if you live somewhere close to a larger metro area, but most larger cities should have a music store large enough to carry that particular brand and model (or close to).

If you can find it, sit down with it, say hello, hold it, feel it.. (don't molest it though J/K), feel the neck, see how it fits you. And YES, believe it or not, certain guitars fit certain people better than others. And its Important to SIT DOWN! Most of us beginners probably won't play a whole lot standing up right away.

My experience is this, My first purchase was one of the LTD Vipers (like a Gibson SG... sorta) even though I love those guitars, it just didn't "FIT" me right. I saw it on the rack, I briefly sat down with it and bought it. I didn't give it enough time to even consider a right 'fit'. Anyway it felt like a long reach to the first fret. Thankfully I got it from a local shop and they let me return it in the first week. Well I ended up making an exchange with something that better fit me, my body style, my arm length etc.

The whole "FIT" aspect didn't even occur to me until I experienced it first hand. Since then I've bought 3 other guitars and I try to spend a little time with it before I make the purchase, I won't just go into the store and buy something right away, I usually sleep on it and go back a few times before I finally buy something. One of the perils of buying online is you can't necessarily do that.

Anyhoo Good luck and have fun. Learning Guitar is a lot of fun. Just be patient with yourself.

Yeah... even if you cant play yet, just hold it and see how the neck feels and if it feels right. Happy buying! :)

P.S.: if you go to a music store, DONT BUY ANYTHING ON FIRST IMPULSE!! This is very important, belive me, if there's a different guitar pack that you like at the store, go home and research it and then buy it.

$.02

Thanks for the replies everyone. :D
I don't know if I should go with the Ibanez pack (see first post) or the Behringer V-Tone II pack that Wes Inman suggested... :( They both look good to me but which do you guys think would be better?

hi

go with the ibanez package.

you have a tuner + DVD to teach you how to play guitar.

a tuner is a must for every guitarist !!!.

If i was buying I'd go with the Ibanez package.

itziks

don't be fooled by the 10 vs 15 watt amps you get.

10 watt is more then enogh for practicing. sometime 10 can be better and louder then 15 or 20 watt amp.

After you'll attach to it a multi-effect - you'll be running to lower the volume...

as i said earlier go with the Ibanez.

itziks

I just bought an iBanez GSA60 and love it. So I'm gonna suggest the ibanez pack.

I'm gonna go to the music store and try some guitars out on Thursday. But in the mean time, what about this Squier? http://www.musiciansfriend.com/srs7/fg=61/g=guitar/search/detail/base_pid/510629/
Would that be a good beginner guitar? I see it has 21 frets, is that bad?

I would go with the Ibanez, it looks pretty good for a beginner and all of the bonus material that comes with it should help to get you introduced to playing the guitar. Once you get to grips with the basics you may want to start looking for a teacher, so pick up your yellow pages and start talking to others that you know who play guitar and see who is reccommended!
I want to play music like Sweet Home Alabama by Lynyrd Skynyrd and Layla by Eric Clapton.
I just have one point to make, please remember that you aren't going to be able to start playing these things straight away, it is going to take some time for you to build up your ability before you tackle these songs!

Good luck, and most of all...enjoy yourself!

The whole "FIT" aspect didn't even occur to me until I experienced it first hand. Since then I've bought 3 other guitars and I try to spend a little time with it before I make the purchase, I won't just go into the store and buy something right away, I usually sleep on it and go back a few times before I finally buy something. One of the perils of buying online is you can't necessarily do that.

I didn't understand fitting with a guitar untill I sat down with the first electric I ever played, a MIM Tele. I still have my accoustic that I received as a gift and I like to play it but when I got on that Tele it was an absolute JOY. It just seemed to melt into my lap like it wasn't there and my hands flew over the neck and strings with ease. I played it for twenty minutes through a blues JR before I had to leave.

It was a very zen-like experience. Bah, I'll probably start GAS'ing for one now.

And to the original poster: If you do get down to the shop look at other packs or maybe even induvidual guitars too. You might find something there that feels even better than that Ibanez.