Tips on Buying Guitars

To an extent, you get what you pay for with guitars – but only to an extent. An inexpensive guitar can be absolutely fine for a beginner student. A slightly pricier guitar should suit anyone not planning to perform. And even if you plan to perform for money, you don’t need an expensive guitar for it.

Picking a style

The first thing to determine is what kind of music you’ll be playing. For rock, you should get an electric guitar with an amplifier (again, it doesn’t need to be a big or pricey amp). For jazz or blues, a semi-acoustic guitar produces the rich sound those styles of music call for. An acoustic nylon string guitar is good for classical guitar.

Size matters

If you’re not yet fully grown, or you’re a petite adult, there are going to be guitars that are just too big for you. They’ll be heavy, and you’ll be uncomfortable, and you won’t be able to play your best. Be aware of this when choosing a guitar. Some guitars are specifically made in a smaller size for children. If you’re concerned about a child outgrowing a small guitar before you can afford a replacement, consider very inexpensive wooden student guitars to start with: they may not produce the best sound, but they will give a child all she needs to learn the instrument. Later, you can invest in a higher quality guitar.

You may be surprised to hear that electric guitars have smaller necks and lighter strings than acoustic guitars, making electric a better choice for many children. If money is an issue, don’t be afraid to buy used guitars through Craigslist or local garage sales. People sell good guitars all the time, simply because they’ve bought a better one or moved on to another instrument.

You should take enough time to play a guitar before buying it so you know you will be comfortable with it. No matter what quality a guitar is, if it’s too big, long or small, you won’t enjoy playing it.

Wooden guitars and tone

There’s a reason beyond looks that guitars are made out of various types of wood. Speaking generally, the lighter the wood, the brighter the tone the guitar will produce. Darker woods produce tones that are deeper, richer and more rounded. Medium tones such as mahogany give a very even sound. It’s a good idea to try several guitars to get a sense of the tonal differences.

Features

When shopping for a guitar, look for the following features:

Solid top. Some guitars have a laminated top over pieces of wood glued together in layers. A solid top has (usually) two pieces glued side by side. This makes the tone more even, which is important not only to performance but to learning: if the guitar isn’t capable of producing even tones, the musician may find it difficult to isolate what needs improvement in her own performance.
Die-cast tuning gears or machine heads. For more accurate tuning.

Sound

Two identically manufactured guitars will not have precisely the same sound. Test drive (so to speak) the exact guitar you’re going to be buying, if at all possible. Of course, this is not possible when shopping online, but you should be able to test a number of models locally before ordering online. The one you get may not sound exactly the same, but it will be very close.

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