Rookie questions on guitars

Certif1ed wrote: maidenrulez wrote: MikeEnRegalia wrote: ^ you can't separate these issues. A beginner may start with practicing basic chords like E, Am or D, but even then it's vital that all the tones ring out correctly. Well he first needs to get some strenght in his fingers BEFORE he can be expected to flawlessy change between chords at a decent rate. Forexample Barré grips need's some strenght in your fingers before you can sucsessfully expect each tone ring out without getting muted. ...and what better way to develop strength in your fingers than with a horrible old acoustic with dodgy action

He he well if you like to practice bends and generally try out some solos electrical guitars are better suited than nylon guitars....but it all depends on what style you want to settle on...

maidenrulez wrote: MikeEnRegalia wrote: ^ you can't separate these issues. A beginner may start with practicing basic chords like E, Am or D, but even then it's vital that all the tones ring out correctly. Well he first needs to get some strenght in his fingers BEFORE he can be expected to flawlessy change between chords at a decent rate. Forexample Barré grips need's some strenght in your fingers before you can sucsessfully expect each tone ring out without getting muted.

...and what better way to develop strength in your fingers than with a horrible old acoustic with dodgy action

maidenrulez wrote: MikeEnRegalia wrote: ^ you can't separate these issues. A beginner may start with practicing basic chords like E, Am or D, but even then it's vital that all the tones ring out correctly. Well he first needs to get some strenght in his fingers BEFORE he can be expected to flawlessy change between chords at a decent rate. Forexample Barré grips need's some strenght in your fingers before you can sucsessfully expect each tone ring out without getting muted.

Which one of those chords did you not understand? I am talking about playing these chords and may slowly switching back and forth between two of them.

^ If you practice using headphones, you'll hear subtle errors much better. Like for example notes not ringing out correctly, or open strings not being properly muted etc.

maidenrulez wrote: Certif1ed wrote: There are two major advantages that I can think of for learning on an acoustic; 1) Acoustic guitars tend to be cheaper. Well but they are not very handy afterwards. Afterwards? After what? I still have my first acoustic guitar nearly 30 years on - and I still use it. 2) Electric guitars make it easier to play and hide mistakes - get it right on an acoustic, and when you play it on an electric it'll be even better. That is hardly a valid statement? If you are using lots of distortion then yes perhaps, but i rarely use distortion at all. What has distortion got to do with it? Acoustic guitars aren't distorted (unless they're really crap!). Also cheap acoustic nylon guitars are pretty much the crap as alot of techniques used on electric guitar is not very usable for playing on a nylon, also you dont have the fret array that an electric has and a standard cheap acoustic stop at the 12'th fret or something while an electric has a broader range...

Like I say, acoustic guitars are harder to play, therefore learning on one then transferring your skills will help you become a better electric player.

You can use ANY technique on an acoustic guitar that you can use on an electric guitar - you could  even get one with an extended range if you really needed the extra few semitones. Standard acoustics do not stop at the 12th fret - you're thinking of the toy ones.

MikeEnRegalia wrote: ^ for the Variax + GuitarPort all you need is a computer (connected via USB). For the acoustic models you also need the A/B switch, whose output can be connected directly to your HiFi system. BTW: you can also practice using headphones, which is also a great plus. normally you can't practice even acoustic guitar during nighttime without waking the neighbours - no problem with the Variax.

Yep and also for practicing you rarely need to plug the guitar in at all...

MikeEnRegalia wrote: maidenrulez wrote: Btw i checked the Line 6 Variax 700 (The only one i found) A bit expansive for a beginners guitar at 12 000kr The Variax 300 is the beginner's model: http://www.thomann.de/thoiw2_artikel-177504.html The dollar is not as cheap  as a few months ago ... back then I also saw it below €400. I'm not saying that it's cheap ... but it's much cheaper than three different guitars, and much more fun than any ONE really cheap beginner's guitar.

Hmm yeah well i cant find it acutally...i found the 600 that was pretty cheap...around $600 but i agree that the variax guitars are great guitars and VERY versitaile...but still i prefer a yamaha package deal as it includes all the equipment ya need

Btw i checked the Line 6 Variax 700 (The only one i found)

A bit expansive for a beginners guitar at 12 000kr

My recommendation:

Buy the cheapest Line6 Variax there is + the Line6 GuitarPort. If you have a computer, that is.

This combination offers you the best of both worlds - acoustic and electric. You can try out all the important electric guitar sounds - Les Paul, Fender Stratocaster, Telecaster, Jazz guitar, Acoustic Guitars, 12 String Guitars, Banjo/Sitar/Experimental sounds, all with one guitar (the Variax). And the GuitarPort offers many different Amp models - Marshall, Soldano, Vox, Fender, with lots of cabinets (2x12, 4x12, 4x10, etc.) and effects.

I sound like a Line6 employee, don't I? I can only say that I'm not. I'm currently using a Vox amp instead of my old Line6 one, but for a beginner I would absolutely recommend the GuitarPort.

The Variax should be priced around $300, and the GuitarPort should be available for less than $200. If you subscribe to the only service you get lots of lessons and backing tracks too ... they also have a 30 part beginner's guide. But I would also recommend taking lessons at least for half a year, to make sure that your basic technique is correct.