Totally awesome. Best of luck. Get what you can out of the lessons and check out other stuff like youtube if there are songs you particularly want to learn. If you can practice in front of the TV - just work on chord forms or picking or whatever while the TV is on in the background - that is a great way to get reps in for stuff that might seem boring otherwise, but is a necessary part of the learning process. I practice on an unplugged solidbody while I watch baseball games…
Well, you have great tools to start with - both are typically very well made guitars. Get a couple of easy licks off of youtube for songs you like and practice on the BC Rich in front of the TV. Nothing like playing Sunshine of Your Love on one string for 30 minutes with a ball game on to drown out your mistakes!
Hey, I’m 47. I’ve played the guitar since I was a teenager, though I gave up for about a decade. Two years ago I decided to start playing again, and I think I’m much better now than I was in my 30s. You can do it! Take some lessons, practice hard, and once you get limber enough and know enough songs. its a blast!
But, I was in the same place you were, pretty much. It was playing Guitar Hero that really got me interested in playing the guitar again. Past experiences in my life (learning to ride a bicycle, learning to drive, learning to fence) brought home the fact that I’m a “slow physical learner” (to quote my fencing coach), and, yet, I have been able to learn how to play a guitar. I’m not great at it yet, but it really is starting to sometimes sound like music.
I really do encourage you to give it a try…if I can do it, I’m pretty sure you can.
This was one of the biggest benefits to going to an actual instructor…he teaches me the things I want to play. We don’t do “Mary Had a Little Lamb”…we do rock. I can now play big chunks of “Runnin’ Down a Dream”, and you can actually tell what I’m playing.
I am 43 - but I was only 42 when I learned to play the guitar:)
It took me about two weeks of determination to get past the the Mary had a little lamb stage. Get those first three chords down and suddenly it starts to feel like progress.
Just back from a very pleasant hour at the guitar shop.
He gave me a strat to try first (mexican, lightly used. $550). Wow! It was so easy to play compared to my acoustic. It almost made me cry.
I tried several guitars. If I had to go by tone alone, I would not choose the strat - but it was by far the easiest to play. Color was nasty but I hope I can get over that. I’ll go back with my checkbook after a little research.
Any downsides to getting a slightly used guitar rather than a new one?
Amp choices next. He has a used fender blues jr for $250 which is what my buddy had suggested for me anyway. Opinions on that?
I can’t think of the last guitar I bought new - used is the only way to go unless the specific model you want is one you can only find new. As long as the used one checks out - and buying it at a store means (typically) that they will have gone over it and given it a set up.
Blues Jr. - jeez, buy it. $250 these days for a used one is a good deal. And Blues Jrs. are great amps - along with Peavey Classic 30’s and a few others, they represent true tube-tone for a reasonable price. They have fewer features than digital amps - ones that have dial-up effects built into the amp, etc. - but sound far better. If you are interested in a classic rock sorta tone, you should also get a fuzz box - could be an overdrive like a Tube Screamer or a Bad Monkey, or a true distortion box for a somewhat-harder-edged tone like a ProCo Rat or a Boss SD-1 - and that will pump a bit more signal into the Blues Jr’s preamp and get you a thicker tone. So you can set up the amp to sound good clean and then use the pedal to get it crunchy. Either way, great amp…
Alright, so that’s the amp taken care of! I’ll go get it tonight.
More guitar advice please…
The strat was super easy to play but I liked the tone better on a Hamer (don’t know model) with humbuckers. The Hamer was really cheap - and it felt cheap too - but the tone was really warm and rounded - almost like treacle.
Suggestions for something with humbuckers in the $400-$800 range?
Hmm - Hamers, as a rule, are considered to be very well built. Is this one US built or some sort of overseas export? If it is US, then I would be suprised if it was really shoddy - that doesn’t sound right. The fact that you like the tone - well, that could be a humbucker thing. Hamers typically have an awful resale value, simple because, well, it doesn’t say Gibson on the headstock. Kinda sad, but true. If the guy at the store says it is a really good guitar, ask him about the things you think feel/look cheap on it. Also ask him if you can return it if purchased. If you could buy it and live with it for a bit AND get a guitar-playing friend to check it out, you may find that what you thought was “cheap” may just be a knob or two which you can replace - or the fact that the guitar was built out of light wood, which can be a good thing.
But if you are simply not interested or decide your cheap radar was correct, then yeah, there are other affordable humbucker guitars.
Epiphone Les Pauls - you have to play a few, but a good one can truly rock
PRS SE guitars - made in Korea and typically well put together
Schecter makes a few humbucking models
Ibanez makes a few that are inexpensive and really do the job
Bottom line, there are a number in that price point worth checking out. However, unless you are a true metal head, absolutely AVOID “Floyd Rose” locking whammy bars - i.e., the Van Halen kind that lock the strings at the bridge and at the nut. Talk about a holy pain to change strings and keep in tune - I have no idea how newbies who end up with a guitar like that can stick with it. A normal Strat whammy can be a pain - but far less of one vs. a locking whammy.
Oh - and if you see a Fender Telecaster that catches your eye - well, it is hard to go wrong with those. They make “72 Reissues” that are equipped with humbuckers and are fun to play. Teles are just so simple and easy to use that they are always smart to include in your list of guitar options when making choices…
It wasn’t really shoddy - but it seemed to lack something, especially compared to the strat. With the strat I could play a slide and barely feel the frets. On the Hamer it felt like a bumpy ride. It did feel a lot lighter too. Or maybe I am just a snob and the price tag colored my judgment It was definitely harder to play.
Toward the upper end of that you range have quite a range of choices. Just tossing out a few:
PRS SE (I loved the couple I’ve played, very very nice, do try this one!).
Epiphone SG (or a used Gibson one, even better)
Epiphone Les Paul
Epiphone Casino semi-hollow
Jackson DKMG Dinky (a shredder guitar, prob more juiced than you want)
Schecter C-1 (I own a C-1 Classic, and its awesome).
And so much more.
Go here, Musician’s friend is Guitar Center’s online shop. You don’t need to shop there, but it’ll give you a range of choices by price range. That link takes you to the topmost electric guitar page. Note on the lower left you can shop by price range. I plugged in “$500-$750”, and I made that list above by just posting the first ones that had humbucker. The store also shows used prices for lots of models, but these seem a little high to me. Poke around, ask questions here or at your guitar shop.
Also, note that Fender does make some Teles and Strats with humbuckers, so if you like the feel of that strat, you may find one with humbuckers, at least in the bridge position.
BTW, how was the selection a CB Perkins? Lots or little?
They are a tiny, family run store that makes as well as sells guitars. I’ll definitely widen my search a little but there is something very special about shopping at CB Perkins - it’s like stepping into a different age. I bought my son’s guitar there.
I was kinda happy that they had a small selection - less intimidating for a noob like me. I’ll be more confident in a bigger store now.
BTW If there is a finer way to spend a lunch hour than trying out guitars, I don’t know what it is
Lotta things going on here. For one, fret height is really a personal preference. That the Hamer was “bumpier” in and of itself isn’t a quality issue, unless I’m not on the same page as you wrt terminology. I prefer a taller fret myself, and that has been the trend over time in the market overall. Another thing to think about is that if you liked the Hamer in many was but found it harder to play, check to see if maybe the Hamer had heavier gauge strings or perhaps higher action. Try to understand which differences come from things that you can change, and which are inherent to that particular guitar.
A brand to look out for: I am a huuuge fan of G&L guitars and am always surprised that they don’t get more attention. They make a line called “Tribute” that is their instrument of overseas manufacture and I have found them to be quite good, particularly because the QC steps are handled in the US factory. Worth keeping an eye out for at least.
Ditto the G&L recommendation. I know a guy that has an ASAT (Tele-like), and it is one fine instrument. But if you like strats better, follow your nose!
I like your attitude. Shopping for guitars is like Disneyland for grownups if you come at it with the right approach. Now head down to Guitar Center and commandeer a $5000 Les Paul and a 100w Marshall stack, and play open chords that almost knock out the front windows. Nobody will tell you you can’t. Woot! Have fun!
I’ve always wanted to play the guitar. time has passed and something always seems to get in the way. It hasn’t stopped me from appreciating what others can do. Just got done watching American Masters segment on Les Paul. Wow. Just wow.
You know, kevlaw, I was thinking about your reaction to the Strat tone. The Strat has three single-coils, a five way switch, and incomprehensible tone controls, so it’s a weird beast. I’ve played Strats and come away with the same impression that it has a thin, tinny tone that I don’t want. OTOH, there are many people who love Strats, many of them with warm treacly tones, so maybe we’re both doing something wrong. You may want to think about how the tone controls and switching affect the sound, maybe get someone to help you experiment, and try out all the pickup selections and dialing back the tone controls to a proper level. Basically give it another go. I’m told the Strat is well worth the trouble once you adjust a bit.
That said, I own a Tele, thank you very much, but I’d love to spend more time on a Strat and understand it better.
Well, I am now the proud owner of Fender Blues Jr amp which would sound oh, so much better if I had a guitar to plug into it!
I went back to the same store, 3 mins before closing time. They let me in because I was gonna buy something. The dude said “you wanna try it first? Grab a guitar.” and I grabbed the strat I had liked at lunch time. It sounded delicious.
I wanted to say “will you give me a deal if I get the strat too?” but I came over all responsible and decided I should try a few more guitars before shelling out $500 on the first one.
Anyway, the store closed and found another store that had a bigger collection. I tried about 35 guitars (that’s 35 renditions of Wish You Were Here because it’s all I can play) in prices from $200 to $1800 and I didn’t like any of them as much as that first strat in the other store. So I think I am going back to get it tomorrow.
I played several strats and they were all very different. I did figure out the right combination of pickup and tone to make it sound a bit warmer so I think I am gonna be happy with my first choice. The only thing I don’t like about it is the colour - teal
I haven’t played an SG yet so I’d like to give that a go before I decide.
It sounds like you’ve found your muse. I had a similar experience with the Tele in that thread I linked to. I shopped for two more weeks and went back to the first girl I danced with, so it was obviously true love.
Do try an SG, or Epi Paul, or that PRS that WordMan and I recommended if possible. But I can see by the stars in your eyes it may not matter.
Let us know how it all ends up. And congrats on whatever you buy.
