Newbie Requesting Guitar Advice

starter guitars are typically low end in both price and quality. they are offered to someone maybe wanna tryit . not to a budding musician. those two guitars, although playable, are simply just ok. the finish end work that makes more expensive guitars 'feel' so nice is not there. they can make cool sounds and are ok to start on. you will outgrow it very fast if you take to guitar playing and want to go further. those starters have no resale value.
buying up even if used is usually a good idea. my guitars will outlive me;they'll be sold. so there can be great guitars out there. you might find a good guitar for a good price. learn about what goes into electric guitars. and then check out as many as you can. play them... even if you arent very good.
the guitar should feel good in your hands. it shouldnt buzz or have loose or missing knobs. dings and chips happen and are cool. plug the guitar in next. that's right. play it unplugged first. does it sustain well?
now plug it in and strum a chord. hold the chord and listen. fiddle with all the knobs and strum that chord.
I have acquired a few guitars over the many years. I have most of them because I love them and play them. in every instance when buying I ended up buying the one better than I wqas a player.
sure made the learning better and possibly easier.

Before you buy be sure to read the 'Squier '51 roll-call' thread in the Guitar Players forum. Seriously 8)
30 some players of varying experience and pretty much nothing but good things to say about a 99 dollar guitar.

Good post on the Squier '51 - a solid choice.

I'm a HUGE fan of buying used guitars. Face it, guitars don't stop working. They are wood, metal, strings, and some magnets. They'll last forever. You can get a VERY playable guitar for $200 - 300. I would definitely look to buy a used guitar to get something of slightly higher quality. For that price range you could probably score a Fender Strat (Mexico) or Tele (Mexico), Epiphone G-400 or a host of other decent guitars. Check out the "I wanna buy a new..." forum on this site for tons of articles.

I highky recommend looking at the Hamer guitars. The ones made in Korea are extremely well made and have great action. They make them in China now, so you'll need to find a used one. Here is a link to one on Ebay.

http://cgi.ebay.com/hamer-w-gigbag_W0QQitemZ190064941220QQihZ009QQcategoryZ33042QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

have a PRS Santana SE which I bought new off ebay for $400. I've seen the exact same guitar used at Guitar Center for $250. It's a made in Korea Paul Reed Smith guitar, sounds great and is indestructible. Keep you're eyes out for a used one.

Thanks for all the great advice. I'm going to look at my local Guitar Center and see what they have in used higher end guitars. I was in there once and it was fairly overwhelming, but now that I know kind of what to look for, it should be better now.

Thanks again and have a great Holiday Season.

KC Newbie

KC, I asked a similar question one month ago. One of the best advices that I received was go to the store and play all guitars that you can! The reviews aren't always completely true, they depend on everyone. I hope my experience can help you.

Merry Christmas and welcome to GN!

KC, I asked a similar question one month ago. One of the best advices that I received was go to the store and play all guitars that you can! The reviews aren't always completely true, they depend on everyone. I hope my experience can help you.

Merry Christmas and welcome to GN!

Right. The best advice is to go and play as many as you can. The longer you play the more you'll learn and know what type of guitar is right for you. Some guitars with longer scale necks may or may not be your thing. Some necks won't fit your hands the way you want. You'll also develop an ear for what YOU want.

For me I've learned this:

TYPE OF GUITAR:
Simply it boils down to one of two choices and its about the pickups. Single Coil or Humbuckers. If you can't or don't play enough yet, have someone play and you listen to the difference in pickup configuration.

The Rest:
Then its about the Feel, the feel of the neck and the body style. FORGET LOOKS. Let your ears and hands be your eyes. You can have two identical guitars side by side, but I guarantee you they won't be "The Same". Once you find a few you like put them aside.

Then have someone play for you or you play those chosen few and listen to them....eyes closed. If you can, play on the amp you'll either buy or already have at home. Don't change amps or the amps settings. Rather put all the amp settings as flat as possible and leave em. Then narrow down the field again. Then "Feel"/play them again. You should be right close to "YOUR" guitar.

That's how I picked out my American Strat and how I will pick my guitars from now on. :) It takes time, a lot of time but in the end its worth it....to me anyway.

Happy Holiday

I also recommend the Squier 51, its a great $99 guitar.

The Squier Double Fat Strat is on sale at Overstock.com for $109. You can get additional discounts if you look for them. Try google. There was a 20% a few days ago and before that I found a 12% discount coupon.

Here's the Link.

http://www.overstock.com/?page=proframe&prod_id=2216354

Id go with a dean. ther sound is guite well-rounded and ther looks are very metel/hard rock looking.

http://www.guitarcenter.com/shop/guitar/navigation/dean-guitar?N=100005+324262+201804&page=2

Heres a very nice one

http://www.guitarcenter.com/shop/product/buy_dean_vx_electric_guitar?full_sku=519861%2e001

One thing about choosing guitars dont just choose one couse you have all the money u need for it at that time. look around and choose one that you could see yourself using. its probably gona be your partner for a while untill u get a new guitar. So think about it and save up if u see one u like fore a little more money then you have.