Jump to content

Menu

First Guitar


Recommended Posts

You don't want the cheapest one out there. You want one with nice geared tuning pegs that will hold a tune. Also, an adjustable neck.

 

He should put his hands on it and feel it out. Look for one that is slimmer in body, a big folk guitar is hard to get your arms around if you are a smaller person/child/youth. Strum and listen - some people prefer high and bright tones, others lower and more mellow.

 

I would look for one with lower action, ie, the strings are not too high off the neck; that makes it easier for the new player to press the strings firmly to the wood.

 

If you are taking classical lessons you want nylon strings. If not, light bronze strings are a good alternative for a beginner.

 

I wouldn't worry about what sort of wood for a beginner - if he sticks with it he will later choose a finer model with specific details he likes. Around here Ibanez and Mitchell have been good starter brands in the $150-$225 range. ETA - I think Fender also makes some good lower end models.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

How big is he, and how much do you want to spend? I would probably recommend a 3/4 scale for a 9 year old, but if he can comfortably hold a full size guitar I would go full size. 3/4 guitars are great for kids (and I have one I use when we travel or I'm too lazy to get a big guitar out) but they tend to have intonation problems. That means that they can be a little more work to keep in tune, and the tuning might not be consistent all the way up the neck (not going to bother the average 9 year old, though).

 

Musician's Friend is a reputable online company, and you can at least use their reviews and and their prices as a reference point. Here are there 3/4 guitars The Yamaha would probably be a good choice ($129). I have a Baby Taylor because it had a much nicer tone than the cheap ones.

 

I agree with pp that I wouldn't (and haven't) get a nylon string guitar for one of my kids unless they were pursuing classical. At some point they will want to switch so they might as well build up good callouses right from the start. And it's really not that bad!

 

If you go with a full size guitar, I would say to get a thin body and a cut-away. That makes it feel smaller even though it is a full size guitar. Something like Ibanez But if you can find one that is acoustic without the electronics it would probably be cheaper.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

They have very, very good starter guitars for $100 at music stores or online. My ds bought himself an Epiphone for $99 and it is a quality instrument.

 

An acoustic Fender kit is also good. Technology has really come far. 20 years ago instruments of this quality would cost several hundred.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

How big is he, and how much do you want to spend? I would probably recommend a 3/4 scale for a 9 year old, but if he can comfortably hold a full size guitar I would go full size. 3/4 guitars are great for kids (and I have one I use when we travel or I'm too lazy to get a big guitar out) but they tend to have intonation problems. That means that they can be a little more work to keep in tune, and the tuning might not be consistent all the way up the neck (not going to bother the average 9 year old, though).

 

Musician's Friend is a reputable online company, and you can at least use their reviews and and their prices as a reference point. Here are there 3/4 guitars The Yamaha would probably be a good choice ($129). I have a Baby Taylor because it had a much nicer tone than the cheap ones.

 

I agree with pp that I wouldn't (and haven't) get a nylon string guitar for one of my kids unless they were pursuing classical. At some point they will want to switch so they might as well build up good callouses right from the start. And it's really not that bad!

 

If you go with a full size guitar, I would say to get a thin body and a cut-away. That makes it feel smaller even though it is a full size guitar. Something like Ibanez But if you can find one that is acoustic without the electronics it would probably be cheaper.

 

I agree with the Musician's Friend recommendation. A few years back, they were recommended here by someone and we bought the Rogue Honduran Dreadnought (sp?) for $99.99. I don't see it in 3/4 size, but I've been very happy with the quality of the guitar we bought. It looks and sounds beautiful. My mom who's played guitar for many, many years with her one guitar, tried mine and bought the same one from Musician's Friend.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I couldn't even tell you what brand my daughter has, and she's had it for over a year lol. My husband went on Craig's List and bought her a used, half-size, acoustic guitar. Used because we didn't want to spend a lot of money on something we weren't sure she'd maintain an interest in, half-size because we thought it would be easier for her to handle at her age, acoustic because that was my preference over electric. If she sticks with it another year (it's been a year this month) and is still interested, we'll get her a full-size as she'll be almost 13 by then, and save the half-size one for my son in the event he decides he wants lessons at some point, too.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

×
×
  • Create New...