Right-handed or Left-handed? Cake or Pie?...

fobster

Hi

I'm thinking of learning the guitar so that I can turn my interest in music into a more active hobby. Anyway my question is when picking up a guitar, playing air guitar etc. I will naturally hold it as if I’m playing left-handed even though I write and do most other things right-handed. Left-handed seems so much more natural.

I was chatting with somebody in a store today and they were saying that it will feel more natural to play l-h to be begin with but that I should really play right-handed from the start, mainly due to the sheer amount of r-h guitars compared to l-h ones etc. and that if I’m right-handed in most other things I’ll just get used to it.

And what if I were to get lessons, should I have a teacher who plays l-h too?

Any advice?

Thanks

Thomas_S_Hunterson

Go right handed. The guitars are cheaper and you've got much better choice.

Voodu Child

My thoughts are you should play right handed, regardless of whether you are right-handed or left-handed.

When you first start learning, both hands are learning new skills. I don't see how it would be any more 'natural' for the strong hand to be picking as opposed to fretting. If anything it makes less sense to have your weak hand fretting. But the main point is that it's much of a muchness either way when you're a complete beginner.

Definitely choice of guitars and price make it a better idea to play as a righty.

Malice

I'm left handed but I play the guitar right-handed. When I picked up a guitar for the first time as a kid I automatically picked it up and played it right-handed without even thinking about it. In my immediate family however my faither plays left handed and my cousin plays left handed but using a right-handed guitar upside down!

To me it seems more natural to have your dominant hand doing all the complicated fretting while the other hand just strums the strings but then that doesn't explain why right-handers play the guitar the way they do

As the OP is right-handed, I would strongly recommend learning to play right-handed. Why go against the grain? As the others have said, the variety of instruments available to you is also far higher when playing "normally". Did the person in the shop tell you why playing left-handed would feel more natural?

fobster

malice wrote:

Did the person in the shop tell you why playing left-handed would feel more natural?

No he just said that if I started off left-handed I would be limiting myself in terms of range and price of guitars that would be suitable for beginners.

I suppose given that I'm right-handed, it's less rigid than my left hand and thus it feels more suitable for fretting.

Malice

fobster wrote:

if I started off left-handed I would be limiting myself in terms of range and price of guitars that would be suitable for beginners.

This is true.

fobster wrote:

I suppose given that I'm right-handed, it's less rigid than my left hand and thus it feels more suitable for fretting.

As voodoo_child mentioned, both of your hands are going to be learning kew skills so feelings of rigidity should apply equally. When I started playing guitar the pressure on my fingertips to hold down strings was what I found the hardest to get used to.

fobster

Would this package be a good starter for a beginner? I can spend up to €350 altogether.

http://waltons.ie/waltonsshop/product_info.php?cPath=227_228&products_id=10133

gubbie

If by any remarkable reason you or a relative might be going to China or anywhere in Asia*, you can get a coloured guitar (like the one Mickey Joe Harte had - I got a blue one) for €5... Just incase you think you might not last at it... But unfortunately I think they only do right handed ones.

Can't you get a right handed one and then restring it the other way around so that it becomes a leftie one?

Good luck

*Going to China just to get one would be silly

feylya

Mickey Joe Hart's guitar was given to him by the Sound Shop in Drogheda because they couldn't sell it. It was made in Donegal afaik.

fobster

So would the Epiphone SG package suit my needs?

What about this package?

And would it be better if I bought in a store rather than online, that way I could get a feel for what shape I prefer etc. Yes/no?

And no I'm not going to China any time soon.

Malice

Once it's within your budget you should be fine with whatever package you choose. For a beginner, the difference between an entry-level guitar and a more expensive one won't be apparent.
I'm not saying it will happen to you but I know quite a few people who took up the guitar, got bored and now have expensive equipment gathering dust so it would make sense to keep the initial outlay down. €350 should be enough to get you started.
For what it's worth, my brother started out on a Squier strat + amp combo a few years ago. I can't remember how much he paid but he was happy enough with it.

Regarding the comment about stringing the right-handed guitar backwards, you can do it but you may run into issues with the intonation of the neck, the distance between string and fret board may need to be adjusted and the nut may need to be filed so that the low E string will fit where the high E string used to be. Note that I've never done this, I just asked someone about it

Malice

One thing I forgot to add was that you may find yourself preferring one style of guitar over another and there may be certain features that you favour. For example, in my case I love the feel of a strat neck and I also prefer having all the tuning pegs on one side of the headstock. Added to that, I've never really liked any of the Gibson style guitars that I've played. Some have been too heavy, most have a bridge that I don't like the feel of and many of them have those rectangular fret markers that get me easily confused. That's not to say that I think they're bad guitars or anything like that, just that they're not for me!

fobster

Yeah I'm gonna go with a right-handed one that much I know.

Ideally I would get this guitar. Can't make out the name on it but it is a thing of beauty.


But as you say I'll have to look for what feels right design-wise etc.

Malice

fobster wrote:

Yeah I'm gonna go with a right-handed one that much I know.
Ideally I would get this guitar. Can't make out the name on it but it is a thing of beauty.

That is a very nice looking guitar. I don't recognise it. Where did you come across the image?

fobster

In the GAS thread

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=53587328&postcount=100

Karl Hungus

Hmm... Cake or pie? That depends on the kind. If it were cheesecake or banoffee pie, I don't know if I could decide.

fobster

Not sure but these ESP guitars look pretty similar to the above guitar, it's probably a custom version or something.

http://www.espguitars.com/guitars_viper.html

Particularly the second model in a black finish.

Niall0

Thats an esp viper you might get a ltd viper cheap.

It wasn't me!

That's an Edwards take on an ESP Viper methinks.

fobster

Yeah I just checked, you're spot on.



Hmm...I wants it.

It wasn't me!

Shouldn't be too badly priced, Edwards tend to be good.

kawaii

Make sure it feels and sounds good though. These things far exceed appearance in importance.

-=al=-

well a lil late on the whole matter, but i play left handed and im right handed and i wouldnt change it for anything, it feels so much beter and natural this way, o i say go with what feels best


when iw as starting off i was told the same stuff, but it just felt downright wrong for me to play right handed, so i play left and its aok

Malice

-=al=- wrote:

i play left handed and im right handed

Now that is unusual! Are you sure you're not a latent leftie? Do you you write or paint with your left hand?

-=al=-

I don't think i am! but nah id write and paint with my right hand or id even play tennis, golf or baseball right handed etc...


I play pool, darts and bowling left handed, of if i was to throw somethin, but if i was to punch my right hand would be the way to go


Ive no idea how it works, im kinda both footed at football, prob a lil beter with the left, So ive no idea whats goin on, but i still feel strongly that you should play naturally to whatever way works best for playing guitar or instruments regardless, the choices for lefties are always getin better, and i really think that i picked up things a lot easier playing lefthanded than i would have playing right handed, i picked up things very quick and easier than most of my friends who picked up instruments at the same time. From even simple chord things to different techniques

imagine if Jimi played right handed :eek: the travesty!

but yeah my 2 cents i guess!

fobster

Yeah with regards sports and throwing stuff etc. I'm right-handed all the way.

I've been trying out right-handed guitars over the past few days and it actually feels grand tbh. So yeah going right-handed.

Saw this package in music-maker for €189.

http://www.squierguitars.com/products/search.php?partno=0301605006

It's a fairly good deal considering I saw a similar package in another shop for €300 and the only difference was its amp had a reverb control.

-=al=-

yamaha erg is a beter choice


and if it feels ok right handed then got for it

roy harper

I had the same question, left handed with to right handed guitars in my house! its been a year and iv been playing right handed! I found myself slower to pick up chords but alternative picking came natural and i find finger picking fairly easy! I think there are benefits to playing backwards!

-=al=-

i tihnk there is too, i picked up stuff so fast even after a few months compared to normal right handed right handed guitar players


maybe its me, maybe its the way i play either way a lot of stuff came easy for me


jus had my first solo instrumental act solo gig if u didnt go u suck.... i I'LL KILL YOU only one person stoped to talk to me afterwards... but he was a nice guy

i ended up being called the alan mc hendrix experience

fasty

I'm a leftie but I play right handed, it meant I got the hang of fretting chords quite quickly but picking was a weak spot until I put in a load of practice.