Are cheap guitars like Chinese bikes?

[Robby]

I'm thinking of learning to play electric guitar. The first stage in the process is buying one. I've had a search, and there are lots of threads about learning, and plenty of arguments about starting on acoustic or electric. Doesn't appear to be any advice on buying.

There are plenty of cheap starter packages on ebay and amazon, £100 or less for all the gear. Are they are dire as a lifan, or will they do the job for learning?

[WildGoose]

Learn the ukulele instead, get a lot more for your money in terms of quality. They are more portable and take up less space, so you can have more.

Everyone plays the guitar.

(Of course I may just be jealous that I tried the guitar first and was hopeless, but we don't talk about that)
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[swampy]

I learnt on a cheap guitar 20 odd years ago. Like chinese bikes, they vary in quality from OK to shite.. Have you considered second hand ? (I'd wait until a month or so after cristmas when everyone is elling of their never used presents). My preference would be to spend £100 quid on an acoustic - mildly harder to play intially (but as you're learning you wont notice really), and then you get 100% guitar rather than a shite guitar and a shite amp and a shite cable... I would also invest in a tuner (less tha a tenner), and learn to play by teaching yourself chords and playing along to songs you like.. But be prepared to be disheartened and cack handed for a few months or so before it 'clicks'
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[Villers]

My first guitar was about £160 quid including an amp, it was a westfield strat copy, nothing amazing but did the job. My second guitar was a £80 acoustic, again nothing fancy but I enjoyed it and it taught me well.

The best thing to do would be to go to a music shop, tell them you are a beginner and see what they have. I now have 2 guitars worth over a grand between them, but when I first started out I wouldnt even have known the difference. As long as its not aome 25 quid special with apalling action and made of balsa wood you should be fine!

Good luck
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[MarJay]

I thought the two reasonable budget guitars were the Epiphone Les Paul (Gibson Copy) and the Squier Stratocaster (Fender copy).

My Sister has one of each and they don't sound too bad for a beginner. Her real Gibson does sound better but you have to be an expert to tell the difference. As I understand there is a limit to where you can go with the sound of a cheap guitar, but until you're more experienced it won't make much difference.

I would reccomend avoiding anything that is an unknown make though.
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[Howling TerrorOutOfOffice]

Yep, all shine and no crazy diamond generally, although the odd good one pops out from China.
I'm out of the loop with current cheap guitars but try this.
An ebay purchase of a guitar can be a let down, i'd rather get 1 i've played 1st. Might mean paying shop prices but at least you can plug it in. Check all the knobs and switches work and more importantly does it make you look sexy...
Best to take a guitarist along...
ok its a faff compared to a click n buy, but this could be your guitar for a long time, if you get into it.

Harmony Central has a User Review section where you can get some background on whether its a complete duffer, but even that is flawed compared to actually picking a guitar up and seeing if it feels right. Don't matter if you don't know what you're doing, it may feel too heavy or lopsided or small. (i like SGs but my shoulder doesn't)

Acoustic learning vs Electric learning....You choose...Thats the best option. I like both but know that for me to really let loose at home i either use headphones (amp socket) or wait until nextdoor nip out.

Yamaha
Cort
Squire
Epiphone

Those are the brands where you will get a good learner guitar.


Pat
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[Robby]

Good post Howling Terror, there are some starter packages from those guys at a reasonable price. I live in London, so it shouldn't be hard to find a guitar shop and have a fumble. Then look at some guitars.

[dgo1212]

Cheap un-named guitars are also much harder to play,so useless for learning.Heavy,strings to close together,necks ussually too deep,frets spaced badly,generally sound shit,guaranteed to ruin the experience of learning.The four mentioned above are a good start,my brother has a squire electric and yamaha acoustic and both sound and play very well.As for choosing it's a toughie,electric guitars sound great and are easier to play as there isn't a giant hollow body under your arm and the strings are easier to fret,but setting the amp and tuning can be a real bitch,not to mention the space the amp takes and leads across the floor,and there's the neighbours to consider,and if you stick at it you'll soon find you have pedals and all other kinds of gadgets to buy.Thing I love about the acoustic is I just pick it up and play,no plugging in or setting up,can play it anytime as it isn't that loud and the sound never fails to impress me,bought a capo for a fiver and thats it,no fancy pedals or boxes needed,they can be uncomfortable and awkward to play once your used to electric.Either way you'll end up with both if you stick at it,dare say everyone who has an electric on here also has an acoustic and vice versa

[G]

There's a (out of tune) old cheap Yamaha at mine, is pretty good for what it is.
Might be able to arrange the loan of it, though no one that's borrowed it has actually gone on to properly learn to play the guitar well.
[Edit, seems not, but you're welcome to have a play on it - it also comes with a cheap little amp which can actually be battery powered too.]

[Flip]

(HT gave some good advice).

One word.

Yamaha.

Epiphone, squire are decent guitars, but Yamaha are much better if you're willing to spend £200 ish. A Yamaha is a guitar you could keep for years, upgrade the pick ups etc when you become more experienced. I wouldn't buy a guitar I hadn't played because I like to check the quality. Second hand guitars can be great although a new guitar is lovely. If you can get someone to check it for fret buzz, dead spots (You don't want them) then that's a plus. If you buy second hand make sure the volume & tone pots don't crackle when plugged in.

Avoid floating tremolo systems (Floyd rose etc) because they're a pain to tune and need setting up properly.

Online tuner that could be handy for you

Or borrow G's guitar.

(I know it's a rushed post but I'm on tea & coffee duties

[GhostRider]

Bought my first Squire strat for like £160 some 12 years ago, still use it to this day for drop D tuning and it does the job nicely. In my personal opinion I'd say steer away from those "starter packs" that provide an amp with it, because 9.9 times out of 10 the amp will be a bag of shit and the sound you get out of them is awful - my missus brother not long ago started out and got one of those and I went round to show him some moves and it put me off playing it sounded that bad, whilst the guitar itself was pretty damn good.

Even if it's just a small Marshall amp, at least you'll get good sound quality, even though for the first few months you won't really notice it. I kinda agree with playing a guitar to see if it "fits" so to speak, but it's kinda hard when you can;t play bceause you're just gonna stick there strumming strings and not knowing really what you're supposed be looking for, and you can take a guitarist friend, but then you're going to select what they like, which might turn out to be completely different from your preference once you get a feel for it.

What genre of music are you thinking of learning in general?

GhostRider
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[UnknownStuntm...]

For a ton, I'd go to a secondhand shop and aim to walk out with a fiver. A Yamaha is a good bet, they all play exactly the same - they might sound a little different, but meh, 1st guitar and all.

Don't buy a cheap chinese POS, it'll be hard to play and you'll give up straight away.

IMHO if you're serious about learning guitar, get a £50 nylon strung classical guitar and spend the other £50 on five guitar lessons (one a month?). Then, for you second guitar, you'll have some chops to play on your prospective purchase.

[Howling TerrorOutOfOffice]

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Hmm.

Its a gamble in the beginning...splash out and find out later its an ornament. Or get something and wish in 6mnths time you'd gone for an Original Standard.
When you're in the guitar shop try A-B comparison a USA Strat vs a Strat copy. You'll be surprised how similar they can sound, even unplugged.... yet feel different. I get 2 guitar stands in the shop with a pukka guitar in 1 and copycats in the other and whittle them down. Sometimes i've bought the pukka and sometimes the copycat pips it.

BTW a Gibson Les Paul Standard is the Superbike of Guitars. If you get one before me i will find you


Pat
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[Azonicben]

I went to local guitar shop, had a chat with a mate ive known for years and settled for one of these he rated them highly for a beginner whos unsure whether he/she is gonna carry it through or give up a few months down the line.
Glad i bought the cheaper one as tbh, i hit a brick wall with learning to play, so its now an ornament. Until next time i decide to learn to play. Gonna get some proper lessons i think

Seems well made, he chucked in spare strings, case and a teach yourself guitar book so for the £70 i payed i cant complain.
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[P.addy]

if u want a guitar to learn on, as a package "ltd" do some good ones.
also +1 for Yamaha, mainly the Pacifica 112.

[Robby]

As many opinions as in a thread about picking the right oil here.

I'm not particular about which style I want to play, I want to learn how to play one at all first. Lots of classic rock, because it's memorable and by the sound of the thread some of it is very easy. New stuff, middle aged stuff too. Maybe some metal. I like anything with plenty of minor notes, unfortunately too many bands try to make their tunes sound happy.

It seems that a Yamaha is the one to go for, with an amp from a manufacturer that I've heard of. For now though, it looks like Mr G is my new best friend, I'll come up and say howdy and steal your guitar.

[P.addy]

you are welcome to come borrow some guitar/amp kit from me, follwing my bike accident today it looks like im in a cast for 6 weeks

[garth]

I've an Epiphone Les Paul, I bought it 2nd hand in good nick for not alot about 4 years ago. It's a nice guitar, I'd take one hands down over a Squire etc.

Just got a Tanglewood acoustic for christmas. It sounds so pretty.
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[P.addy]

ive got too many guitars to count lol.
Ive used everything from the super cheap end ones up to the £4000 range.
Pretty much custom stuff thats built for you lasts forever, but ive had a starter guitar for about 7 years now, its got dents, scratches etc, but after playing and tinkering ive found it to be quite good!

Chinese guitars arent so bad, All my older LTDs are chinese, the EC400, SC207 and M-100.
They play exceptionally well for chinese items, then ive got some Korean stuff, Schecter Hellraiser C1 and a Burny Les Paul.

Then the jap stuff, Ibanez RG570EX, RG2550 Prestige.

After that its mainly american and custom stuff, but it gets more expensive, £1000 and upwards. I only have 2 of these, mainly because with my amp, they sound fantastic....or atleast thats what the guiy in the shop said

Hope you like the guitar you are picking up, remember 7 strings > 6 strings

[neatbik]

I learnt years ago with a cheapy chinese thing, it was fine to start with, but i soon got frustrated with it.

In my opinion you cant go wrong with -
Epiphone
Ibanez
Yamaha
Fender Mex stuff.

Over the years ive owned shitloads of guitars, the best i ever had was a Gibson Les Paul standard - that coupled with my Marshall valve amp could create a tone that would reach up to heaven and kick angels in the tits...

Unfortunately i had to sell them when my son was born, prams/cots/etc etc were higher on the list.

Just remembered that Vintage guitars are worth a look too
https://www.jhs.co.uk/vintageelectric.html

[Bendy]

[Robby]

Well children, thanks to Mr Paddy I have the loan of a shiny black guitar with too many string for a few weeks. Getting assorted things set up on the puter, then I can start swearing.

[P.addy]

hope you enjoy it
there isnt too many strings, just 1 more than you expected!
Let me know how you get on with it

[Robby]

My fingers hurt. Small strings are sharp, and close together. My things must be thicker than I thought.

My working my way through on of the online tutorials, althought I'm going to find a way of getting the stuff off guitar masterclass without pay $30/month.