Hi everyone!
I just bought my first guitar 3 days ago (as a gift for my birthday)... been waiting for this moment for years now but I finally have it! So... since I don't have the money (or the time) to attend to lessons I started surfing the net... and guess what? I came across this site and I started reading through the articles. I found them to be very interesting and well explained and from there... here I am!
First let me tell you a bit about me... I'm a metal fan since I was 10 (or 11 maybe? anyways not such a big difference... I'm 20 now). My favorite bands are: Children of Bodom, Metallica, In Flames, Dragonforce, Eluveitie and... well that should be enough (those are pretty much the ones I like most over all the others which are great also). By telling you this you probably figured out that I got myself an electric guitar. This is a Squier Bullet Stratocaster HSS with Tremolo and I also got an amp so that I can use it and that is a Fender Frontman 15G. I know it's not much but it should be more then enough to get me started (I think?). I've seen a lot of people on the net that were criticising the Bullet Strat saying that it sounded like crap so I did a bit of research and came up with some vids where it sounded awesome (or at least for my ear)... also the guy at the music shop tuned it for me and tested it with the same amp that I bought and it sounded very nice there also. So I'd like your opinion on this cause you're the experienced and I'm the newbie ( :) ) .
As I was saying, I got it 3 days ago and I think I already put over 25h in it but not much came out. I already have put 3 hours in it today and it's just 11:44 AM and I started to read an article on here and things are beginning to tie up a bit (the biggest issue I'm facing right now is switching chords... sounds familiar? :) ) but with practice I'm starting to get it right slowly. At this instant I'm having a break cause my fingers kind of hurt so I have the time to write this. I also know why I came out with pretty much nothing in the first 20h I spent with the guitar and that is because (like everyone who get's their first guitar) I wanted to learn something easy and cool so I kind of did and that's a (very) short part of the intro's for Nothing Else Matters, One and Fade To Black.
So I hope that will be enough to introduce myself on here.
Oh one more thing, right now I'm looking for some easy 2 chords songs so I can practice on switching chords... so any suggestions on this matter?
Thanks and I'm glad to be here... I'm sure I'll learn a lot from this site! :note1: :note2: :note2: :note1: :note1: :note2:
Hi, nice to see you joining the ranks of guitardom.
So your a metal player huh? You will find that you will play so much more than metal through your guitar journey. I started primarily to play punk. But over the years i have started blues, classic rock and roll, nice mellow rock and even some metal. As your ear develops so will your taste in what you like to play. Technically hard songs will appeal to you, no matter what the genre, and some extremely simple songs that have been well put together too. Anywhoos, enjoy the guitar, and stick at it! Its not easy, but its rewarding!
David Watts
Takamine G-Series - £229
Fender STD American Telecaster (Cola Red) - £849
Vox 15watt AMP (Valve pre amp) - £129
Acoustic/Electric Rhythm and Lead (Occasionally) Southport Elim Youth Band
Former Aftershock 24/7 Rhythm Guitarist (Band split)
Welcome aboard, and congrats on your new guitar! Happy birthday! 8) 8)
"The only way I know that guarantees no mistakes is not to play and that's simply not an option". David Hodge
Hey, thanks for the warm welcome guys! Yea, I have to admit that I also like a few other songs ... like jazz or blues. Anyway I'm working on playing my first song already... it's an easy one (HIM - Please Don't Let It Go) but still seems hard for me right now... been practising for 2 days on it now but still can't tie up more then 2 chords! But anyways I'm getting there :D slowly but certain.
So... any tips on this matter?
The best advice I can give is to practice, practice, practice! :wink:
"The only way I know that guarantees no mistakes is not to play and that's simply not an option". David Hodge
Yea... I did now I can tie up all the chords from the song but I need to work on switching them fast enough so the song feels fluent :D :note1: :note2: :note1:
The best advice I can give is to practice, practice, practice! :wink:
++1
best advice available
David Watts
Takamine G-Series - £229
Fender STD American Telecaster (Cola Red) - £849
Vox 15watt AMP (Valve pre amp) - £129
Acoustic/Electric Rhythm and Lead (Occasionally) Southport Elim Youth Band
Former Aftershock 24/7 Rhythm Guitarist (Band split)
Hey guys :) it's been a month since I got the guitar and I can play the song I was practising on (HIM - Please Don't Let It Go)... with mistakes of course... I can keep the rythm of the song and all but sometimes I screw up on the chords (I mute other strings). Other then that... I guess it's ok given the fact that I have no teacher ... all I learned was from videos and things on the net. I also bought some new picks (thicker... I started with some .50mm... now I bought some .73mm and .88mm and the difference seems to be enormous!) oh and... of course... I got myself a tuner :D Yeah... it's a Boss TU-80 (Tuner & Metronome... here's a link about it http://www.bosscorp.co.jp/products/en/TU-80/ ) Seemed strange to me but I actually figured that the guitar was out of tone... it didn't sound like it used to ... so I got myself this tuner and I tuned it... some strings were waaay out of tone... but now it's in the right tone hehe :D Other then that... I need to get a strap :)
So... how y'all been?
Hi Allu - I wasn't here when you joined, I mean as in "out of town".
Glad to you see you working on guitar and looking forward to some fun.
The Squier Bullet is all right, I bought one for my nephew, and thought it was better than the more expensive Affinity's in the store. There is no set rule. You obviously get what pleases you, and the set ups and quality control are so broad and variable, or from very bad to very good. It's always nice to get one where the frets aren't sharp and sticking out the sides. :lol:
Keep it at the proper humidity and temperature and you should be okay. Hey, it's cool that you got a tuner! 8)
My mind is drawing a blank on 2 and 3 chord songs right now, they're all old American Cowboy songs, like John Dooley or Streets of Laredo, anything from the 1800's, through the 1920's to 1950's and you may not know them. I learned on them, then Rock 'n roll and Folk, then popular 1970's Covers. Play what you like, and what you can. Keep learning. Good luck. :D
Like a bird on the wire,
like a drunk in a midnight choir
I have tried in my way to be free.
Hey! Welcome to the forum. That Bullet will do you just fine for starting out. If you like metal then you must like the H in the HSS. Sounds like you're on your way with the playing. Keep up the good work and you will be playing like a pro before you know it.
"Work hard, rock hard, eat hard, sleep hard,
grow big, wear glasses if you need 'em."
-- The Webb Wilder Credo --
Hey all :) Yesterday I got myself the tab for HIM - Gone With The Sin cause I love the solo and I started playing it... also I recorded... who wants to hear? :)
Hey, what's up good people? :D hope ya'll been well. Can't say much... I started focusing on songs with distorsion (dunno how to say it but u know.... mainly songs with power chords and stuff like that) lately I've been trying to learn some solo parts let's say... things like the solo for Gone With The Sin by HIM (I learned it some time ago but I have perfected it), a part of the solo from Master of Puppets (the slower part that is distorted... also has 1 fast part that I cannot do right now... just too fast for me), the intro from For The Heart I Once Had by Nightwish (sounds very cool), the solo from The Funeral of Hearts by HIM (it's easy but sounds cool), hmmm let's see what else ohh yea, the intro from The Older I Get by Skillet (I'm doing it because it makes me use my pinkie which I'm having a hard time using) and a part of Canon Rock (it's been the most challenging until now but with practice I can do it very well). I'm having lots of fun and I really enjoy it... too bad I don't have too much time to spend with my guitar :cry: .
Now... I need a bit of advice from you guys. I started practising palm muting... (at the time I first tried it seemed impossible for me but I kept trying and trying and I finally got it to the point where it sounds good) I had to remove my tremolo bar because it was staying in the way at first but now I think I could put it back though I'm not able to use within a song just now... I'm still a newb :oops: . One thing I noticed and it makes a big difference as I'm used to move my whole wrist when I'm struming notes, when I palm mute I can't use the whole wrist and I have to move just the fingers with which I'm holding the pick. That makes my hand get tired very fast... I think that the way I'm holding the guitar and playing it makes the hand get tired but I'll be sure if that's the case when I get my strap next week. I need to hold it tight there to palm mute otherwise I'm moving it so it's not relaxed probably that's why it gets tired fast so I could use some advice on this matter.
The second thing would be the bends... I love bending the strings but there is a slight problem with my bending... when I bend it like a whole step (or note... idk the right way to say it) or even less then that, when I go back to the note that I started with, the other strings ring out and it's loud... basically it is like I'm almost picking the strings and sometimes my fingers get under other strings (but that's my bad). This does not happen all the time but it does most of the times... sure there are times when the bends come out very nice without the other strings ringing but well... I could use some advice on this matter also.
In other news... last thing I tried out: improvising on a song. Basically I took a song which I like and doesn't really have a guitar track and I started playing throughout the song and I enjoy it a lot... I think this will help me improve a lot! (the song is The Fray - How To Save A Life). I think that (hopefully) I'm learning fast... or it just seems to be that way... either way that makes me wanna practice more and get better and better! I think this could be because of the fact that when I have free time I can spend even 8-10 h/day with my guitar and still not get tired of it.
That's all! Long post I know... I wanted to post sooner I just didn't have the time.
Oh one more thing, could anyone recommend some easy power chord songs? Basically songs that are mainly power chords, without any complex solo or anything like that :).
Thanks!
Hi guys!
What's up?
My acoustic guitar came saturday and I'm so happy with it :D it took a bit until I managed to tune it but it's great! Now I can go out with it! It's a lot different then the electric guitar, I played one song and my fingers were hurting like never before! Also another difference is that I can't really see the strings/frets as I do when using the electric so I need to get used to that.
Last time I was saying about palm muting. The more I practice the harder my hand get's tired and now I also got my strap (actually I got 2 of them :)) 1 is for the acoustic... it came with it) there is one small problem about the strap I use with the electric. It's too long! I am using it at the lowest length it goes and it's still too loose. Basically what I'm saying is that the fretboard is too low and I'm having trouble reaching for the 1st 2-3 frets on the lower strings. I have no problem with palm muting when using the strap, that's a good thing! :D Any suggestions? I keep the neck angled upwards but that doesn't make much of a difference... I might also try with the strap from the acoustic because it's a lot shorter but I wouldn't like to do that... cause I like this one, that's why I bought it :) (I could however if it seems better with the other strap, I could ask my mom to shorten this one so that I can use it). My fingers are short I guess that's the reason for which I need to hold the guitar higher in order to reach the frets comfortably, otherwise it's very unconfortable to play on the first frets on the lower strings. I've seen a lot of guitarist hold their guitar very low (here is an example, the guitarist from H.I.M. Linde Lindström http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvUMbxilzkE and i'm holding the guitar a lot higher then that!) so i'm open to suggestions :)
In other news... well I got myself a gigbag for my electric and another pick holder. :D
Thanx for the advice! :)
News: I've learned yesterday the first solo from Knocking on heaven's door by Guns 'N Roses... my fingers still hurt from all those bends and I haven't touched the guitar more then 15 minutes today. :D
