starting

[The Who]

Im looking into playing the Guitar, can anyone tell me what i should do to learn it easily? and what kind of guitar i should look at? i need help, i apreciate it a TON.

[Ego]

Hi,

It might sound corny but I put some students on the big Mel Bey modern method book and it seems to work and you'll learn to read music.

Another great set of books is the Howard Roberts Praxis System, 3 vol. but very difficult to find.

You might find a local guy to give you some lessons. Start with the major scale and how to harmonize it...learn about intervals and basic chords.

all the best
ie

http://kronosonic.com

[Doxidan2112]

Musicians Friend has Fender/Strat Squires for less than $100.00 and they sound great. You can get a small practice amp for less than $100.00 brand new. Then perhpas you might want to get one distortion pedal.


The way I started playing guitar was to buy one of those books that shows a picture of the hand on the fretboard playing a chord.

A-C-D-E-F-G (I don't use B very often)
Am
Em

Start with those 8 chords and learn how to get some mastery over them. This is the way I started out. Some people start out simply learning individual notes and they never really get a grip on chords.

[PonyOne]

Originally posted by Doxidan2112
Musicians Friend has Fender/Strat Squires for less than $100.00 and they sound great. You can get a small practice amp for less than $100.00 brand new. Then perhpas you might want to get one distortion pedal.

No no no no no... do not get a Squier Strat... if you're gonna get a sub-$200 guitar, the Kramer Focus @ http://www.musicyo.com is the only guitar to think of. As far as amps go, that's a biggie too... my money is on the $120 Vox Pathfinder, which I learned on, but honestly you're better off taking like $200 and going to a shop, then bugging the clerks for help.

Your method and skill is that makes up the bulk of your sounding good, obviously... a horrible musican can't make a $2500 Les Paul sound good. But a guitar that has barely any definition from string to string and sounds horrible, will make you think that you're horrible as you try to learn... no help at all.

My 2c

[The Who]

thanks. But that Focus guitar is only like $70, i want a guitar i can learn with, and then play with, instead of having to buy a better setup, i did that with paintballing and snowboarding. But u know about a billion time more than i do about guitar, but can i trust such a acheap guitar?

[Axl_Rose]

WOW! I think how I started was a great way. I ignored theory and just learned how to read tab (takes minutes), then I just started learning small simple pieces my favourite bands played. Start enjoying the music first! If you play it that way you dont really have to learn theory... because... if you learn how your favourite guitarists plays then you are inadvertantly learning scales and tricks that youd otherwise be boringly reading in a book!
My advice is to find a guitar hero!

[The Who]

I would have to say Pete Townshend would be my hero. I went to my local guitar store, and he showed me the Cort Guitar. it was $199 but i forget the name of it. Anyone know it? he also showed me The Peaveys and another one that was really nice, but too expensive.

[The Who]

by he i mean the Guitar Guy, not pete townshend

[PonyOne]

No, trust me dude... you can trust the Kramer more than you can trust a Squier. I've played them before, and they really, seriously, feel closer to a Mexican or Japanese Fender than they do a Squier. They're well made, sound nice and feel great.

If you're looking mor eat the $200 range, that's how much I paid for my Kramer Baretta. I thought it was going to be something to tinker with, that I'd use as a Frankenstein and replace all the parts etc. but it's turned into my main axe. It feels and sounds more like a $1000 Jackson than you'd think it would. They also have the Pacer and Striker models, bith of which are cheaper than the Baretta, and are extremely well-made, great sounding guitars. Whatever you get from them, you won't have to chuck when you get better.

[Devin11]

I tried learning from a book but it was boring and my friend told me about guitar tabs there easy to read and ive learned alot of things from them.

[concrete chaos]

Im a new guitarist virtually, i got to playing round a year ago, and i started on an acoustic, if u want to be a serious guitarist/musician...learn the proper sound of ur instrument....get an acoustic this is how i started that way i know the proper sound, plus i get my fingers warmed up for when i buy the electric ...which i did and i do agree with buying good equippment then having to re buy all ur set up and learn the guitar. I mean a good amp like a guitar u cn use even when ur good. each guitar has a diffrent feel anyway and like, if u just starting out its hard to get that perfect sound.

i dont believe in tablature, i think its important to learn theory i dont want to sound like my guitar hero. that i think is the problem with a lot of bands that start out they wanna sound like this band cus theyre good but wheres the creativity, sure looking up to great musicians is cool but always remember that they already exost and its time for a new sound...just think u can take the best of any music u hear and say but it needs this and that.

but practicing other ppl's songs is a must i would say cus u know how it sounds already so that way u know if ur playing it correctly or not.

sorry for the long post...

[Pantallica1]

Personally, I think it's great to try to learn how to play like your idol. That's how creativity stems. If you learn how to play like a certain someone, you can then take their techniques and apply your own dimensions to them. Copying bad, reinventing good.

Everyone has influences, that's why they pick up the guitar in the first place.

[Josh Redstone]

I think reading music is important, but there's no reason to bore yourself with it if you dont want to. Why play guitar if its not fun, right?
Anyway, if you looking into learning chords and licks but think reading music is boring, try Belwin's 21st Century Rock Shop books. Thats one of the books I learned from. Its a three book series and you learn a lot. The sight reading is easy because all the licks are just transposed into other keys and used in examples throughout the book. Its more of an incentive to go furthur, ya know?

[ezmoney]

lol ego stole exactly what i was thinking about heheh. anyways it's best to learn the acoustic then once you you know what you are doing procced to the electric learn the basics like quarter notes half notes etc then play them in scales to improve your speed it's best not to look at the strings while your playing, but for a novice person it's ok. and learn the basic chords while learning the notes on each fret.

[Metalic Dude]

When I first started I took squire too, she is great for starters. I got it for 2 years but started just half year ago to play metal...I bought now Gibson epiphone les paul...
But I want to buy later Gibson SG standard.
I recommand you to buy the Squier pack with the amp and all the other stuff...
BTW you know wich amp should I buy for my band? We practice alot and I need a good amp...how many watts should buy? and wich one do you all have?

[Josh Redstone]

15 watts is loud enough for rehearsals with a band, but if your going live and not running through a PA, I'd go bigger, like a 50 watt or up.

[Metalic Dude]

Errrrr PA? (I dunno what is that :)

anyway...15 watt is not loud enough dude...it makes those f***ed up noises! this sucks dude....

[Josh Redstone]

A PA is a big amplification system. You've got a sound board, which you plug your mics into, then your power amp, which amplefies the signal for the speakers, and then the actual speakers, which make the noise.
Anywhoo, I use a 15 and its loud enough, so if you want to avoid spending extra money, tell everyone else (especially your drummer, drums are very loud) to play quieter, if that still doesn't work, a 30 watt amp should work fine, but if you wanna play live without a PA, go with a 50 or higher.

[Metalic Dude]

Thanks dude, We're a metal band and it would be stupid if I would ask my drummer to play quiet....so....I will go on 60 watts!!!!

[Josh Redstone]

Cool.