'Newbie' seeking guitar advice

I don´t know anything about the quality of Encore guitars, but I would not buy a unowned guitar on the net. I would go to a guitar shop and buy a guitar or guitar package there.
Even if you buy a low-cost guitar in a guitar shop you normally get at least 3-6 month of free service to set up the guitar for good playing.
As I guess that you live in UK, check Tanglewood guitars http://www.tanglewoodguitars.co.uk/products/default.asp?cID=47 .

The Encore guitar you are "looking" for, is very low cost (< £80) to include a Piezo bridge mic with pre-amp. It has laminated (spruce) top wich normaly gives an inferior sound quality compared to a solid (sruce) top.

I would step up in price to an acoustic with solid spuce top and exclude the mic system for the time being. Do you want a steelstringed western type guitar or a classical nylon stringed guitar?

Kalle, thanks very much for your speedy reply, I really appreciate it.

I'll be going for the steelstring, not the nylon.

Like I said I realise I wont be getting the best sound quality from the guitar at that price, I just dont want to buy something which is basically going to stop me learning/playing/enjoying as best I can.

Thanks for the website link as well, had a good look around some of the cheaper options.

I hate being skint!

Cheers,

Ant.

I agree with Kalle, go have a listen to a few without electronics. Try holding a few diferent sizes. Ask someone to play them for you.
And unless you have perfect pitch, buy a chromatic tuner like
http://www.piedog.com/musical_instruments/
guitar/guitar_accessories/tuners/yamaha-yt_250.htm
Pitch pipes aren't much use.

Do you have a noticeboard/forum at the uni? Might be worth posting a 'would like to borrow/possibly buy a guitar' ad, its amazing how many people have 'spare' guitars sat around doing nothing.

I've just lent my £99 acoustic to my sister-in-law, since I stepped up to a nicer guitar I've hardly touched it. You never know, maybe you already know someone like me, you just don't know you know yet, you know?

Good luck with it.

Hey

I was kinda in the same boat as you-not sure what to buy. My advice would be to go to a shop withyour own budget and sit down with a guitar and see how it feels. You also get much better advice and sometimes deals from a shop.

Money helps in terms of quality but i bought a tanglewood acoustic for about £100 and its as good as any acoustics ive played since.

hope this helps. ps welcome to this forum. It really is a useful resource when your beginners like us!!

The only thing I can do is tell you what happened to me. I was interested in getting into the violin. I went around and found a music store in the area that had them and the cheapest one was $200. I talked to the guy and he was it was a nice entry level violin for beginners. I figured at that price it should be alright. I was wrong. I couldn't get the thing to stay in tune. I had to tune it every 5 minutes or so. What a drag that was. I got rid of it and later talked to another music store that carried violins and they told me that the company that made the voilin had fantastic intermediate and professional violins but their entry level violins were complete crap. If I could do it again I would find the instrument(s) that I was interested in and do a lot of research on each one talking to competing stores and looking online seeing reviews about what people think about them. It definetally sucks to make a mistake that costs you money.

dont toudh encore!!!i wouldnt even smash one!!!very prone to fret squeaks,the "factory setup" was far too high and in general it felt horrible!save a bit longer dude,you,your hands,and your playing will benefit from a half decent guitar.i know we all gotta start somewhere,but those encore acoustic suck,elecs are a bit better,but if youre serious,go for a tanglewood or a yamaha!!!

all the best

The Mrs bought me an Encore EA225 from her daughter's catalogue - I'd reccommend it for a beginner, I still have mine - it was nicely set up, very playable, and about £89 if I remember correctly....the £75 is pretty much a bargain for what's basically a similar model, except mine doesn't have a cut-away....and even though I've bought better guitars since, I still play the Encore.....

If you know anyone with a Littlewood's catalogue, have a quick look....paying £4 per week isn't too much to fork out, even on a limited budget....

Good luck!

:D :D :D

Vic

absolutely go with a better quality guitar. if you like the guitar you'll want to play it more. you're better off buying a better quality used guitar than a new poor quality guitar. i'd go used.

antcromb, welcome to guitarnoise.

I noticed you are getting a bunch of different replies here, contradicting one another. That'll make things tougher. Just know: Just because one person says that the guitar is garbage, doesn't mean it definitly is. Every guitar, even of the same model, can have a different quality. Out of the factory, most set ups are not appreciated, you will need to have this done, or have a friend do it.

With that said: I'd suggest going to a store and trying out a few guitars. Cheap doesn't neccesarily mean bad, and bad doesn't neccesarily mean unplayable/hindering. A low quality guitar can still be very useful, you can learn on it, you can play on it, and when you are ready, and sure you are going to stick with it, you can spend the big bucks. Unless the guitar has a hole in it, or has some other major problems, it won't be too bad.

Check out Vic's post, he's apparently happy with his guitar, and the man knows a thing or two. Ok, probably not two. :lol:

Not two , but he certainly knows how to recover from painful things ...eh vic ?

Welcome to GN , antcromb , you will certainly like it here.:wink:

Hey guys, thanks for all the advice, even though a lot of it is conflicting its still good stuff, two sides to every coin etc etc.

I actually took Rich's advice and asked about a little, turns out a relative has an old guitar thats not been played for a few years that I can borrow. Save's me a fair amount of cash now and lets me get a bit further up the 'learning curve' before making my first purchase.

Thanks for the advice guys! much appreciated.

All the best,

Ant.

I actually took Rich's advice and asked about a little, turns out a relative has an old guitar thats not been played for a few years that I can borrow.

excellent idea!!

Nice!

You may want to have a friend set it up for you, put new strings on it, etc. Those things will make a big difference.