Shouldn't I start with electric if its what I want to play?

so if you start with the acoustic then what do you get for your birthday???

i think you should make the deal and the birthday present should be weekly lessons for like six months. if you're still playing in six months then your new present should be an electric.

The reason I gave that I think it's a good idea to start on what you like, is that I have an 11 year old son who plays guitar. At 8yrs old he wanted a guitar for Christmas- ELECTRIC guitar. I found a cheap strat copy with a smaller sized neck, and a cheap practice amp with no effects & he was happy. Played it alot, learned some stuff... now he's 11, owns 3 electric guitars, a used 2x12 amp, and a couple of effects pedals. He doesn't practice hours a day, and sometimes goes a week or more without picking one up, but when he does, he enjoys it & is good. Kids have alot to do with school, homework, sports, (my son is in football & baseball right now), maybe school band, (mine's learning the flute), so practice/playing time might not be what a parent would expect from a "dedicated" guitarist. The way I see it, guitar is supposed to be fun, not work, and nowadays you can get a half way decent electric starter pack for next to nothing, so why not electric? The look on my son's face when he's got the distortion cranked & he's blasting out the power chords to Judas Priest's "You've got another thing coming" or Led Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song" (yep he's into classic rock - that's my Boy! :wink: ), is what it's all about. 8)

Dan

The look on my son's face when he's got the distortion cranked & he's blasting out the power chords to Judas Priest's "You've got another thing coming" or Led Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song" (yep he's into classic rock - that's my Boy! :wink: ), is what it's all about. 8)

That's so cool Dan!! My son is 6 - I've been playing a lot for him and his sister to get them to sleep since they were babies - think it's starting to pay off. his all times favourites are John Wesley Harding (Dylan) and You've got to hide your love away :-) He really wants to play the guitar and he has this beaten up 1/2 accoustic he shares with his sister. We've attached a strap and it is pretty awesome when he takes a stand, legs wide apart and starts strumming wildly :-D He's not so interested in learning anything yet, but I guess it will come. OT really, sorry

More On Topic - I'm the conservative type too (hey we could use a grumpy smiley with a long grey beard?) - basically I think the accoustic guitar is more versatile (that's the word?) - everything you learn you can transfer to an electric later, and you can bring it with you everywhere, etc. The other way around is more troublesome - I guess.

then again - the overriding question should be : what will keep you motivated?

LaRS

You also have to remember that you had an electric a few years ago (I guess dad bought that one too?) and gave up on it, so why would your dad think you are likely to stick with it this time? Perhaps this is his way of making you earn something rather than just be given it?

"Shouldn't I start with electric if its what I want to play?"

yes

sorry but the only logical answer to the antithesis of your short succinct question ,
(should i start with an acoustic if it's not what i want to play?)
would be no

I think the point is being missed here. Dad said he wanted jr. to learn on HIS acoustic before buying an electric. Dad doesn't want ot spend any money on a guitar electric or acoustic until you've shown some dedication to the learning process. I sure as hell wouldn't go out and blow $3-500 bucks on a guitar and amp for my daughter unless she showed me she was going to stick with it

Sorry if I sound like a middle-aged wise guy here, but hey. . . go with your strengths.

Q: Shouldn't I start with electric if its what I want to play?
A: Certainly, if you have the means to purchase it yourself.

Q: Do you want to play guitar, or do you want to play electric guitar?
A: In the beginning, it will sound like two cats caught in a Cuisinart anyway, one is just louder. Almost any type of well setup guitar will allow you to perfect your skills. Your committment level is the key.

Q: Will Mom & Dad shell out the dough for lessons and will you commit to learning to play guitar or are you willing to commit to learning to play songs on the guitar?
A: The answer lies within you, Grasshopper. :wink:

Before I get flamed, my advice to young Grasshopper is to:
a) accept Pop's challenge
b) ask for lessons
c) ask for an electric again after 4 - 6 months of dedicated practice while not COMPLAINING about the acoustic.

I think Pops will cave when he sees young Grasshopper means business this time.

My bet is he's more interested in making sure you stick to it before he actually spends some money on it(money being the key), there's no reason you NEED to start on an acoustic.

But unless you have money to buy it yourself your best bet is to grab the acoustic and go for it, hopefully it won't be long before you get that electric.

<---middle aged wise guy, i also believe you should learn on an acoustic first anyway, reguardless of which you plan to play.
the fact that you already have one is more than enough to make that the right choice.

Okay, I definitely HAVE to reply to this one, considering I started in almost the same boat (except my dad has a classical). At the age of about 13, I started to want to learn the guitar. At first, I didn't really care about whether I had an acoustic or a classical or an electric because I just wanted to play! Unfortunately, I didn't have the chance to use my dad's (it was back in Canada and we had moved to Hungary) and my parents refused to buy me a guitar, as they believed that it was just a phase I was going through. I lost two years waiting, until finally, our stuff got shipped from Canada and the guitar came with it. Finally, I had a guitar! However, suddenly, a 30 year-old classical guitar just wasn't enough. I wanted an electric. However, my parents didn't want to let me buy one because:

a) Too expensive with "all the amps and stuff".
That wasn't a very valid excuse though because it was MY money and I would only need 1 amp, not 2 hundred.

b) Too much noise.
I told them I'd get headphones. (Okay, they really didn't like when I found that solution :lol: )

c) There's not enough place in the apartment.
Ah come on, how much space can an electric guitar + amp take?!! Can't be much worse than the classical.

They proceeded to come up with yet another excuse but I won't bother saying it because it won't apply to you at all, most likely. Anyway, moral of the story is: if it's not your money, you can't do much about it and even if it is, you might not be able to do much about it either. Your dad wants to make sure you stick with it. But maybe that's not it! You should definitely try asking him why he doesn't want to buy one. He'll probably give you a bunch of excuses. Find a solution to them. If it's really only because he's afraid you won't stick with it, as others have suggested, take up the acoustic, learn the basics (you'll need to learn them with the electric anyway) and show him that you mean business. He'll probably come around once he sees you're not going to give up so easily this time. Besides, learning on the acoustic will really strengthen your fingers and so playing the electric might actually be easier afterwards.

Oh and by the way, I still don't have that electric I want/wanted. :D However, as soon as we move away from here, my parents will let me get one. I've been practicing for almost a year though, on the classical. So take up that acoustic and start playing! :wink:

You should definitely try asking him why he doesn't want to buy one. He'll probably give you a bunch of excuses. Find a solution to them. If it's really only because he's afraid you won't stick with it, as others have suggested, take up the acoustic, learn the basics (you'll need to learn them with the electric anyway) and show him that you mean business. He'll probably come around once he sees you're not going to give up so easily this time. Besides, learning on the acoustic will really strengthen your fingers and so playing the electric might actually be easier afterwards.

I believe dad's reasoning is quite sound....and is not an excuse at all. Having a teenage son myself, I would want to be sure he was serious about learning the instrument before I shelled out hard earned cash for something that may end up in the closest.

Start dad's accoustic and stick with it....show him your serious, and before your know it you will have that electric you wanted in the first place.

Another argument is that once you do learn some things on the accoustic, you'll be able to walk into the guitar store and be able to play & try different guitars. It just might make your first electric purchase a more informed one.

You should definitely try asking him why he doesn't want to buy one. He'll probably give you a bunch of excuses. Find a solution to them. If it's really only because he's afraid you won't stick with it, as others have suggested, take up the acoustic, learn the basics (you'll need to learn them with the electric anyway) and show him that you mean business. He'll probably come around once he sees you're not going to give up so easily this time. Besides, learning on the acoustic will really strengthen your fingers and so playing the electric might actually be easier afterwards.

I believe dad's reasoning is quite sound....and is not an excuse at all. Having a teenage son myself, I would want to be sure he was serious about learning the instrument before I shelled out hard earned cash for something that may end up in the closest.

Start dad's accoustic and stick with it....show him your serious, and before your know it you will have that electric you wanted in the first place.

Of course, that's agreed. However, there are some starter kits that don't cost all THAT much. It's not much worse than buying a 90$ video game. Sure, it's more expensive but isn't it more worthwhile in the end, even if it ends up in the closet? And in the worst case scenario, if the kid DOES give up and stop playing, the guitar can always be sold and some of the money retrieved.

There are lots of stuff you can't do on the acoustic that you can do on the electric and I personally think it's fair to give the kid a chance at something that they want to play. Otherwise, the kid WILL probably give up, if they can't play what they want to play and then, the parent will be proud to say "I thought so" when, it's majorly their fault that the kid gave up.

However, maybe I think this way because I'm one of those "kids", hm. :roll:

Another argument is that once you do learn some things on the accoustic, you'll be able to walk into the guitar store and be able to play & try different guitars. It just might make your first electric purchase a more informed one.

An excellent point!

I started on an electric, cause that's what I wanted to play at the time, but about 6 months ago I picked up an acoustic (GAS happens to us all :P), and now I play that much more than my electric. So my point is basically, if you can, start with the electric (since that's what you want), but don't knock the acoustic (not even for the styles you mention, a song meant for electric played in an acoustic style can sound AWESOME).