Acoustic recommends
Beginner looking to buy a nice acoustic guitar with budget around $500. Any suggestions appreciated.
# 1
I was in the same boat a while back. How to buy a good guitar ..on a budget.. and get one that will sound good and is a good value? After researching and shopping around..a lot...I came to the conclusion I didn't need a high-end guitar with a high price tag. I've heard some pretty cheap (inexpensive) guitars sound very good with a good guitarist playing them. So I recommend the Yamaha 700 series. Mine is the fg730, has rosewood back and sides, and sounds awesome. The fret action is low, so it won't be difficult to learn on. I know there are way better guitars, but for the price, it's hard to beat. Just my opinion.
# 2
I second that. I have never met a Yamaha that I didn't think was a sweet guitar for the price.
Lisa McCormick, GT Instructor
Acoustic, Folk, Pop, Blues
Full Catalog of Lisa's Guitar Tricks Tutorials
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Acoustic, Folk, Pop, Blues
Full Catalog of Lisa's Guitar Tricks Tutorials
Find Lisa on Facebook!
# 3
I am in the same boat as JMKeel. Looking for a decent acoustic around £500, but left handed.
Any particular favourites?
Any particular favourites?
# 4
For that price there are a lot of nice guitars out there. Ovation, Yamaha, Epiphone, Fender, Many more…….
There are other things to consider, how big is the body of the guitar, does it fit on my lap or does it feel like it wants to slide down my leg. Does the shape of this neck let my fingers reach all the needed strings to make chords and does my right hand fingers like the spacing of the strings. If I play this guitar for 10 minutes, then try another and go back to the first one, do I still like it better? One of the two can be removed from the I want this guitar list. Grab another one, play for 10 minutes and compare again. This could take an hour or two, but you’re spending $500.00 and you will be playing the new guitar for years. It is worth taking the time.
I just did this myself about a month ago; I wanted an electric acoustic as I have never had one. After trying a couple and saying nope, pretty fast I found one I thought I liked. Tried a couple others still liked the first one. So I played another song or two on it and started not liking little things about it.
So now I’ve tried 6 or 7 guitars and found that the one I thought I liked at first, is not really what I want either. Good thing I’m in a candy store, so I grabbed the next piece of candy and started playing it. It took me 2 hours from the time I walked in, to walk out with a new guitar. I ended up falling for the sound and playability of a guitar that cost just a little over $500.00 and that is after I talked them down $100.00. But I figure I will be able to play it for the rest of my life. So a little more to be happy for the rest of my life was better than to buy something that was a second choice and not be happy.
You may need to try more than one music store. For that kind of money settle for what you want, do not just settle. Trust this... your whole body will know when you found the right one.
There are other things to consider, how big is the body of the guitar, does it fit on my lap or does it feel like it wants to slide down my leg. Does the shape of this neck let my fingers reach all the needed strings to make chords and does my right hand fingers like the spacing of the strings. If I play this guitar for 10 minutes, then try another and go back to the first one, do I still like it better? One of the two can be removed from the I want this guitar list. Grab another one, play for 10 minutes and compare again. This could take an hour or two, but you’re spending $500.00 and you will be playing the new guitar for years. It is worth taking the time.
I just did this myself about a month ago; I wanted an electric acoustic as I have never had one. After trying a couple and saying nope, pretty fast I found one I thought I liked. Tried a couple others still liked the first one. So I played another song or two on it and started not liking little things about it.
So now I’ve tried 6 or 7 guitars and found that the one I thought I liked at first, is not really what I want either. Good thing I’m in a candy store, so I grabbed the next piece of candy and started playing it. It took me 2 hours from the time I walked in, to walk out with a new guitar. I ended up falling for the sound and playability of a guitar that cost just a little over $500.00 and that is after I talked them down $100.00. But I figure I will be able to play it for the rest of my life. So a little more to be happy for the rest of my life was better than to buy something that was a second choice and not be happy.
You may need to try more than one music store. For that kind of money settle for what you want, do not just settle. Trust this... your whole body will know when you found the right one.
# 5
