Help finding guitar..

[Alma Del Diablo]

I want to learn how to play a guitar.
So i've been looking around the shops at guitars etc.

i dont really know what kind of things i'm looking for.

There was a beginers deal thing at one of the places i went to (shop, not off the internet..)
with that, i would get;

Behringer Amp (10-15 watt.. cant remember..)
Behringer Electric Guitar (not sure if they're guitars are any good..)
Strap
Picks
Gigbag

all that for $250 (Australian)

would that be any good?
if not, or even if so... what would you recommend me get?

(and i have looked at the other thread dedicated to guitars.. but it didnt help me too much..)

EDIT:
2 more deals i found..

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Ashton-Electr...QQcmdZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ELECTRIC-GUIT...QQcmdZViewItem

[Dark One]

If I where u it is better for a beginer to start with a acoustic guitars. If u start with an Electric Guitar it makes u sloppy. See a acoustic guitars make u play the notes clear. then u well play the Electric Guitar so much better. Try www.guitarseek.com/getcat.php3?catid=95 - 31k us the first one thats says #1 guitar source well later.

[Alma Del Diablo]

i've already got an acoustic.. it aint very good.. but i guess it'll do.. i'll be getting the strings changed on that, and i'll be practising on that as well.
and yeah, i'll check out that site! thanks!


Also.. for if anyone recommends somehting... (i know it doesnt really matter how the guitar looks, but how it sounds.. but..) i would prefer something black.. with a nice looking shape..
although, it doesnt worry me a great deal..

cheers!

EDIT: just noticed.. i havent said how much i'm willing to pay! ;p
i'm not exactly the richest kid around.. so i'm looking for something.. probably about $300 (australian) or less..

[Daddy]

In my opinion, going for the old adage 'get an acoustic first' is really subjective. I started with an electric guitar simply because the sound appealed to me much more than acoustic playing did. Acoustic guitar playing appeals to me now, but only because it grew over time.

Hence, I recommend that you get a guitar that sounds good to you. With that said, there are a few rules I ALWAYS run by when I look at guitars and amps.

As a general rule, I stay right away from 'beginners' packs. If you aren't already familiar with playing guitar (i.e. have a decent mute technique), you will more than likely grow frustrated with having string-noise constantly pop up while you're playing electric. Play your electric unplugged more often than plugged, as this allows you to grow more accustomed to the dynamics of the guitar and save some frustration.

Thats not to say that getting an electric is an overall bad idea..There are plenty of other benefits.

1. Before you go into the store - look at the guitars you wish you buy and find your price-range.
2. Have a riff ready to play on the guitar, and play it across every guitar you try. That way you can compare the sound of each guitar more effectively.
3. NEVER ALLOW THE STORE ASSISTANT TO PLUG YOU INTO AN AMP YOU WOULD NEVER USE. Many assistants have a habit of this - it makes the guitar sound better than it really does. Play through the amp you have.
4. Pick a guitar that has decent specifications for your budgets. Looks are meaningless and only a side-benefit.
5. Find out what wood the guitar is made of and familiarize yourself with the differences between each kind.
6. Play the guitar unplugged in the store. This allows you to listen to how the guitar sounds acoustically. Good acoustic tone usually equals a good plugged-in tone.
7. Check the neck - are there fret buzzes in places? ask whether or not the guitar comes set-up.
8. Ask about the store's return policy.
9. Ask whether or not the guitar comes with a case. For more expensive guitars, coming away with lots of freebies becomes more likely.
10.

Wait a minute. I already covered this in the guitar FAQ.

go read the new Beginner section.

EDIT: $250 AUD gets you **** all. Get yourself a decent instrument. I had an absolutely shit amplifier for a very long time before I could afford a good amp..but I had a very playable guitar for a quite long time.

[Alma Del Diablo]

yeah, i looked at it before ;p

so.. i dont know any riff's, cos i dont play yet! and i'll probably be getting one off the net anyways.. and yeah, so the rest of that probably wont be much help to me either! ;p

umm
do you know anything about Greg Bennett's guitars?

i was looking at an interceptor II before.. (on the net..)
http://www.samickguitar.com/ic10.html

cept it has 2 single coil and 1 humbucker pickup's instead..

any info would be greatly appritiated! (i dont think i spelt htat right..XD )

[Daddy]

Personally, I haven't heard a lot about Greg Bennet guitars. Pro Audio stock quite a few of them I believe. If you were to get a guitar such as that, I'd switch out those Duncan Designed pick ups as soon as possible.

Generally, when deciding on what tone you want your guitar to have, concentrate on your pickups (aside from your amplifier). Then worry about the wood of the guitar body, then the neck, then worry about the bridge (not ALWAYS in that order, though.)

You'll also need to ask yourself whether or not you want a vibrato/tremolo/whammy system. If you're not familiar with what these are, you're best to stay away from them for now.

Luckily, with electric guitars, if the wood is shit, you can try to improve the tone by changing pickups and other things. Remember that.

Also, don't think that because you don't have a riff ready, that none of the other stuff I mentioned will be helpful. I simply mention that you should have some sort of riff ready because it stops you from being labelled a newbie, even if you are.


So...In summary. 1. Research all the specifications of your guitar and what each spec means. If you could be specific on what things confuse you, that would help. Saying that 'any info would be appreciated' doesn't exactly help, since I'm telling you as much as I can think of. 2. Don't be afraid to ask the store assistant questions..If you have a good, helpful guy/girl working with you, things go much more smoothly. 3. Go for the guitar that sounds good to you through the amp you have. 4. do your research into guitar pickups.

[Alma Del Diablo]

lol
alright then!
and yeah, the one i'm looking at already has the duncan pickups taken out, and replaced them with 2 single coil's and a hambucker..
cant remember what type of wood it was..
and it comes with a tremolo.

thanks!

[Vivi]

To make it simple, easy, cheap.

First thing I'd think about is cheap. Why? Simply cuz you may just not get into it. Not everythings for everyone. Another reason, as you get into any instrument.. you learn about other instruments usualy... usualy you get together with other musicians.. Some cases I've seen people try out bass, or drums and just sorta be more natural at that than the guitar.. You're first instrument is always really the learning step into music.

I'd keep the guitar simple. Reason why, because you dont know what all the tools to a guitar are yet. If you're like me at all, you always want to get the best.. But for example.. you may go to the guitar shop and just decide to buy a guitar with a floyd rose on it, go home and play for a while, use that floyd rose (which lifts the bridge so you can make a certain "whammy" sound which I wont get into) so you'll mess around with it, then in two seconds it'll be out of tune.. you'll come back and ask why it goes out of tunes.. and we'll be like.. "umm, ya dont have any locking nuts?" and you'll pretty much have a guitar thats too inteligent for you at such an early stage.

As for the kind of guitar i'd suggest... Ibanez or Epiphones are nice electric guitars for a cheap guitar at least. Alot of Epiphones are modeled off of other guitars (as close as they can get with out being sued...again at least) Mines modeled off a Gibson SG, 4 pick ups, which once you progress you can learn how the simple position of a pick up can change a song..

Ya wanan go with something a bit nicer.. See if you can find a Fender. They have a wide range of guitars, from pretty cheap to a grand or two (us dollars) Easily customizable later on when you start to get your own style..

But the most important thing when buying your first guitar is just to hold, make sure it feels right. Cuz till you get use to the guitar, unless you've been around them your entire life.. you're not going to hear a difference or much of one, if you do you probably wont even be able to know if that guitars sound is something you want. You're gonna start playing, you're gonna get you're own style, you're gonna learn more about guitar parts, what you need... basicly you'll become more picky. At that time, you can go out and buy a nice guitar or cheap guitar, but you'll know what you want... for now, it doesnt really matter. We could tell you to buy this guitar or that guitar.. But no matter what, theres a really good chance that the guitar we suggest may not fit your style. In fact, you can buy two fenders of the exact same type and model and they will sound different. React to certain things differently.. One will go out of tune faster than the other. One will sound more metalish than the other.. So like I said in the end it just doesnt matter... Just remember you're buying an experiment.

Things to take note when you buy it:

1) you're not sure if you'll really get into a guitar.
2) You dont know what kind of music style you'll end up playing. Even if you end up playing the music you listen to, you dont know whats important in a guitar for that style.
3) Keep it simple, the more simple it is the less likely you'll get confused.