Buying a guitar (1 Viewer)

[David Ely]

I can give yet another recommendation for Seagull. Seagull is on of many daughter companies of Godin. Anyone that has played a Godin guitar can tell you they are unbelievable instruments.

I recently started playing guitar again and purchased a Godin LG Hmb electric guitar, selling off a Peavey Predator electric and an Oscar Schmidt OG-3B acoustic. I couldn't be happier with it! I'm currently saving up for a Godin A6 semi-acoustic.

http://www.godinguitars.com/godina6a12p.htm

 

[Zen Butler]

Jamie, I will also vote for acoustic. My reason has nothing to do with transition for as they are two different instruments. (I mean, Al Dimeola doesn't automatically make a Jimi Hendrix or EVH)

The acoustic is a bit more portable and sociable as you learn new songs and such. My first five years of playing, I was nowhere without my acoustic. Playing along with movies, commercials, songbooks etc. This is not to say electric is any less personal, it just requires some set-up. Where the acoustic is always at hand. My first acoustic was made by the Suzuki Violin Co., found it for $125 with 2 strings on it. Kneck was straight as hell though. Now it is priveledged with a cult following. I agree with Randy though, check around everywhere. You never know what treasures are out there.

 

[JamieD]

Well, I was in another store today, and they carry the Seagull, as well as Yamaha. So I'll be making another trip later .. probably today.. to try them out.

As shallow as this is going to sound.. I'd really like to be able to get a black guitar. Obviously if the seagull blows me away, then that isn't going to happen, which is too bad.

As I said, the odessey continues. *L*

 

[Kirk Gunn]

Another decent acoustic for around 250.00 is the Takamine G-Series. I've got a GS-330S that sounds very good for the price (though I'm no expert).

 

[James~P]

you owe yourself to check out the forums at




www.harmony-central.com



excellent resource, and a very nice community. things can get out of hand with trolls on the "Guitar Jam" and "Open Jam" forums (open jam is unmodded)

however, the Amp forum, Electric Guitars, and Acoustic Guitars forums are unmatched.


insanely fast forums too.

 

[James~P]

oh and let me say this:



my vote goes for electric to learn on.


i know friends who started the other way around, and i can absolutly smoke them. really it depends on the player, but i'd still vote in for electric.


afterall, if you start on acoustic with the mindset of "once i have this down i'm going to forget it and play alectric" you could have had another 2 years of training on electric. electric allows you to progress faster, and you WILL be profeccient with chops on an acoustic too!


what was your budget? i can suggest a good guitar for you.

 

[Tim Hoover]

Today I just heard some interesting news on Seagull from my buddy. It appears that they have been experiencing some severe QC problems on their new instruments. My friend told me that, in the past few weeks, three Seagull guitars have been sent back for warranty work. It seems that they have switched to a new type of glue and it is not holding very well. 2 of the 3 guitars were sent back due to the bridge coming off. Just an FYI...

BTW David, is that an American Predator you're selling, with the maple fingerboard? I'd LOVE to have another one of those

 

[JamieD]

My budget was rather low. Now I'm thinking around 500 Canadian. Which is still probably rather low to most folks. The stores around here that carry "better" guitars all have Lifetime Warranties, luckily. That's interesting news about the Seagull guitars though.

I'll be sure to ask the salesperson about that.

I'm not looking to "forget" the acoustic either. I'd hope to become relatively decent at both, over time. Just trying to figure which one to start with.

I also need to see what types of financing options are available at each store. I'd sooner spend a bit more, and be making payments a bit longer, if that's an option.

 

[David Ely]

BTW David, is that an American Predator you're selling, with the maple fingerboard? I'd LOVE to have another one of those

Sorry, it was sold a few months back. It was an American model with the maple fingerboard. I enjoyed playing it, but the Godin is so much nicer

 

[Jeff Ulmer]

Well, I'll weigh in here, since I do have a bit of experience with guitars. For learning, you want an instrument that will inspire you to play it, whatever that may be.

While the Seagulls are okay, I'd probably recommend a Simon & Patrick in the budget line. Most of these guitars come from the same factory and are just branded differently. For financing, I doubt you'll beat Long & McQuade.

 

[Kirk Gunn]

Cool review on my Tak:

http://www.harmony-central.com/Guita...S-330S-01.html

 

[Chris Knox]

A large part of learning to play the guitar is strength conditioning. In other words, while you are learning to play you are also building the strength and dexterity in your fingers and hands. This is one of the most important aspects of learning to play the guitar well. By playing the electric first you are conditioning your hands in much the same way a body builder is conditioning his muscles for a show; he's not working out for power, but he is working out for the show (read: getting him through his set of songs proficiently). By learning on an acoustic, you are conditioning yourself for a wider variety of playing styles and you are building power and speed in your hands that will be harder to build later on. You want stamina, strength, speed in chord progressions and not to mention the aoustic amplifies your mistakes (not consumed by the sound of distortion) making you a more proficient guitar player faster.

Cutting your teeth on an electric guitar will make you good at playing the electric guitar. When someone throws an acoustic at you, you are likely to have trouble for a bit and your hands will fatigue in a short amount of time. It's sort of like taking a body builder who has a well-chisled rack on him and putting him to work on a shrimp boat for a full day. He's not going to stand a chance next to those beefy boys who have that raw power.

Sure, either way will get you the results you want eventually, you are just better off building the strength in your hands first rather than struggling later.

YMMV

Oh, and I am in HEAVEN with my NV100! I have never heard a better guitar for live playing.

The B-Band® under-saddle tape microphone produces the widest dynamic range at high gain with no feedback. It is combined with a custom B-Band® pre-amp for depth and evenness of tone. Handcrafted in Washburn's USA Custom Shop, it features a Roman-style headstock with pearl logo, 2 graphite neck rods for stability and sustain, Schaller engraved tuners, a 2-bolt neck joint with Uni-lock pitch adjustment, one-piece mahogany 'unibody" construction, AAA Sitka spruce top, and a 25-1/2" scale with complete fingerboard access. Superb detailing includes a quarter-sawn spruce fan brace pattern, premium striped ebony fingerboard and bass-balanced bridge, and the Buzz Feiten Tuning System for exceptional intonation. Includes hardshell case.

Features:

Handcrafted in Washburn's USA Custom Shop
B-Band® under-saddle mic produces wide dynamic range at high gain with no feedback
Custom B-Band® pre-amp for depth and evenness of tone
Roman-style headstock with pearl logo
2 graphite neck rods for stability and sustain
Schaller engraved tuners
2-bolt neck joint with Uni-lock pitch adjustment
One-piece mahogany 'unibody" construction
AAA Sitka spruce top
25-1/2" scale with complete fingerboard access
Quarter-sawn spruce fan brace pattern
Premium striped ebony fingerboard and bass-balanced bridge
Buzz Feiten Tuning System for exceptional intonation
Includes hardshell case

 

[JamieD]

Right now I'm thinking either a Seagull S6 or Takamine G240. I'll check it out this week.. and see what develops..

 

[Carlo_M]

It's sort of like taking a body builder who has a well-chisled rack on him and putting him to work on a shrimp boat for a full day. He's not going to stand a chance next to those beefy boys who have that raw power.

Chris, so you didn't hear about the deleted shrimp boat scene in the upcoming Pumping Iron DVD?

Seriously, that was a great analogy you drew, and I wholeheartedly agree.

Learning on an electric, you will *probably* get better faster, but on an electric. But playing on an acoustic will make you a better guitar player overall (regardless of electric/acoustic) in the long run.

It's like learning on a manual (acoustic) and automatic (electric) transmission.

 

[JamieD]

It's like learning on a manual (acoustic) and automatic (electric) transmission.

Heh.. don't put it that way, I don't like Manual Transmissions. *L*

 

[JamieD]

Well, just another update, along with another guitar. Turns out only one place in town allows monthly payments for the length of time I'd need them, everywhere else is "No interest, no payments for six months".. Which is not enough time for me to save that kind of money, really. However, one store said they could stretch it to 9 sorta, on a Washburn D10S. So it's back to the first store where I saw the Seagull, to try and get their Very Best price. Geez.

 

[teapot2001]

Could someone tell me what an acoustic electric guitar is?

~T

 

[Alf S]

I just got a basic Lyon Washburn "electric acoustic" guitar for Xmas just to dink around on and I believe the electric part is the fact that mine has a battery operated string tuner built into it.

 

[Mike Brogan]

Could someone tell me what an acoustic electric guitar is?

It's just an acoustic with a pickup built in so you can plug into an amplifier. The guitar itself is the same, the pickup is basically a microphone that connects to an amp. You can buy external pickups for acoustics as well or you can just mic them but an acoustic/electric is setup ready to plug and play, which is convenient though not always the best solution (especially in recording).

 

[Jeff Ulmer]

The guitar itself is the same

Some would argue that the cavities in the sides used to allow the electronics to be mounted would interfere with the resonant acoustic properties of the guitar, but to what degree is debatable. "Acoustic electric" is generally referring to acoustic guitars with pickups of some kind, and as Mike says, this is convenient for performers, though not always the best in terms of sound quality.