newbee to guitar!

La frog fairy

hi guys as im sure this forum is mostly male

my end of the year resolution is to take up guitar lesson! tired of looking i want to play so i was wondering if anyone could recommend a type of guitar to start with? guessing accoustique although I dont know if i will play left or right? im actually left handed.

I also dont want to spend loads to start with either so any suggestions on what type, how much and where i could find a guitar would be great.

Thank you guys!

**Vai**

Acoustic for sure my friend. U can get them from thomann for next to nothing.

If you're left handed u should play a lefty guitar but I know a few lefties who play right handed purely because most guitars around them are right handed.

I-Shot-Jr

**Vai** wrote: »

Acoustic for sure my friend. U can get them from thomann for next to nothing.

If you're left handed u should play a lefty guitar but I know a few lefties who play right handed purely because most guitars around them are right handed.

Thats exactly what I did, its way handier if you're looking to purchase less common guitars, cheaper as well. I went down the less common road and started playing electric before acoustic. Acoustic is probably better though as it builds up strength in your wrists a lot more than the electric.

Alanstrainor

I'm a lefty who plays righty. Go into a guitar shop and pick up guitars and see which feels most comfortable.

As for what guitar to get, it depends on what you want to play with it. There's no point getting an acoustic if all you want to play is Led Zeppelin and such.

La frog fairy

thanks guys for the suggestions!

well i wanna play all sort of songs! sometime i hear a song and i would be like..i wanna play it!:D

It could be from melodic accoustic to janes addictions, clearly, no intention to raise to dave navarro or nick maybury level!;)

i feel equaly tempted to each side, left and right its very odd so guess you're right, need to just try one on properly and see how i feel, i just dont wanna buy one left and feel i could easily play right...confusion!:rolleyes:

Where is the place you mentioned, thomann, in town? never heard of it

thanks again guys!

Alanstrainor

Thomann is based in Germany! It's an online shop.

Try Xmusic, out near the red cow round about. They have a great selection and are priced similar to thomann

La frog fairy

ok great

ok more questions, what brand do you recommend? any in particular or doesnt matter...

also, probably stupid question but you know how guitar are like an 8 shape and some are a bit "curbed" on the upper part like it got bitten, (sorry for the odd description, cant come up with another way), any reasons for that or doesnt matter either way?

Knifey Spoony

La frog fairy wrote: »

ok great

ok more questions, what brand do you recommend? any in particular or doesnt matter...

also, probably stupid question but you know how guitar are like an 8 shape and some are a bit "curbed" on the upper part like it got bitten, (sorry for the odd description, cant come up with another way), any reasons for that or doesnt matter either way?

It really doesn't matter what brand if you are a beginner, jsut go into a music shop and try out a load of different acoustics, see what one sounds best or is most comfortable to you.

Also, that upper "bitten" part is so that you can reach the upper frets on the guitar. This shape isn't really necessary to have on an acoustic unless you wish to play solo's that require access to those fret, but without this shape the guitar can still be played perfectly for a beginner.

artvandulet

The ones that have a 'cutaway', what you describe as 'bitten' is to make it easier to play up higher. It usually indicates (for acoustics) that the guitar has a pickup and so can be plugged into an amplifier too.
If you are going into town, try Perfect Pitch on Exchequer street or Goodwins on Capel st. Otherwise Xmusic by the Red Cow.

PS, Im a leftie who plays right handed too. I highly recommend this way.
Both hands do a lot of work as it is so it really isnt an issue. When you first hold a guitar, it only feels marginally more awkward at the start, holding it the wrong way, but this goes away quickly.
In the long run it'll be easier for buying guitars and also for when you are at a party or whatever, and a guitar is getting passed around, you can join in with a tune, rather than being stuck because you didnt bring your lefty guitar.

La frog fairy

many thx,

great advice, i will go around this week and see what i can try.

For the leftie, yes you are probably right, as both hands do a lot it probably wont matter, although, as you play, usually which hand requires the most lets say coordination?:rolleyes: the one holding the "stick with fingers" or the one on the lager part of the guitar?

Sorry for my analogy of the "musician/instruments language"..but this is new to me!

im clearly far away from home gigs thats for sure!

IVRZ

You have to coordinate both hands so it really doesnt matter. The advice is good, see which feels more comfortable to you and righties have advantages if you can go with that. WHichever way you go will become natural to you.

The most important thing ive found is to make sure the "action" (that is the distance the strings are from the fretboard) is comfortable for you. If the strings are too high you will suffer trying to push them down, and not want to play.
Most new guitars have the action high and its up to the player to adjust (or have it adjusted). Get somone who knows, or the shop where you buy it, to make the action low for you, it will be much easier to play, especially at the start which is the hardest bit

Gp pn and enjoy it!

I mean Go on and enjoy it!

kingofpain

Wishing you best of guitar luck, hopefully your initiative will turn out rewarding

You're welcome to contact for a free guitar lesson anywhere in Dublin, after which you can decide if my teaching is worth paying for.

I'll be happy to help you along, have played for 20 years.

slavetothegrind

kingofpain wrote: »

Wishing you best of guitar luck, hopefully your initiative will turn out rewarding

You're welcome to contact for a free guitar lesson anywhere in Dublin, after which you can decide if my teaching is worth paying for.

I'll be happy to help you along, have played for 20 years.

like your style!

OP best of luck, do get lessons to start with you will come on a lot quicker and enjoy it more.

kingofpain

slavetothegrind wrote: »

like your style!

like your user name!

We should form a duo just to be able to go public as "slavetothegrind & kingofpain". Beats Belle & Sebastian, Simon & Garfunkel, etc., any day.

-=al=-

**Vai** wrote: »

Acoustic for sure my friend. U can get them from thomann for next to nothing.

If you're left handed u should play a lefty guitar but I know a few lefties who play right handed purely because most guitars around them are right handed.

im the opposite funny enough, im right handed but chose to play left since it just feels right and it was the right thing to do!

like i always say, play whichever way feels natural and isntinctive, theres lots of choices of guitars nowadays anyways

La frog fairy

thanks so much for all the advice, its golden to me and you guys are awesome!

IVRZ thanks for the tip on the cords not being too far from the arm of the guitar, no idea this could be adjusted!:rolleyes: I have tried a friend's guitar once at a party and tried not to be the dumb blonde in the room, which inevitably did happended, because I found it really hard to press on the cords at all! my fingers seemed to be mini person's fingers on it so then i gave up trying to learn/ play.

Until now!!!:p watch out, i wanna play Jane says by janes addiction and change by the deftones...yep i know, my target is up high!:D

Anyway, im gonna go shopping this week and look around for what feels best, left or right and will see!:cool:

Delighted as well that we have made a bromance connection here for kingofpain and slavetothegrind,:p will be looking out for a gig from you two!:D

**Vai**

That would be the weirdest gig ever, a Police/Skid Row covers band

tinofapples

-=al=- wrote: »

im the opposite funny enough, im right handed but chose to play left since it just feels right and it was the right thing to do!

like i always say, play whichever way feels natural and isntinctive, theres lots of choices of guitars nowadays anyways

Well from watching some of your youtubes it hasn't effected your ability to play !!

-=al=-

8)

the thing is though, i dont think i'd be half as proficient or progressed as quick if i played righty, it just doesnt feel right, and doesnt work well... id compare it to forcing a footballer to use his bad foot, or a tennis player to swing with the weaker hand

i think its important to play whichever way feels best or comfortable initially regardless of the guitars you can play

slavetothegrind

**Vai** wrote: »

That would be the weirdest gig ever, a Police/Skid Row covers band

i like the police as much as anyone but would probably play in dropped D through a cranked mesa;)

and then if anyone stayed long enough for that to end run through Du hast to liven things up a bit and get the audience going before the obligatory seb bach special:p

......and that my freinds is why i,m not in a band....:(

IVRZ

La frog fairy wrote: »

thanks so much for all the advice, its golden to me and you guys are awesome!

IVRZ thanks for the tip on the cords not being too far from the arm of the guitar, no idea this could be adjusted!:rolleyes: I have tried a friend's guitar once at a party and tried not to be the dumb blonde in the room, which inevitably did happended, because I found it really hard to press on the cords at all! my fingers seemed to be mini person's fingers on it so then i gave up trying to learn/ play.

Until now!!!:p watch out, i wanna play Jane says by janes addiction and change by the deftones...yep i know, my target is up high!:D

Anyway, im gonna go shopping this week and look around for what feels best, left or right and will see!:cool:

Delighted as well that we have made a bromance connection here for kingofpain and slavetothegrind,:p will be looking out for a gig from you two!:D

You're so welcome, hope you find a good one:):):) If you see one you like ask the crew in the shop if they can lower the action for you, as low as possible for starters.