O/T: What Guitar? HELP!

[Catharsis70]

So my 13 year old wants a Guitar and amp for Xmas.... being 13 and female her mind is subject to drastic change without prior notice. My budget for this gift is modest as I dont want to invest much until I know if she is gonna stick with it or not. I have seen kits made by some of the big brands labeled "beginner" and priced between $200 and $300. What would some of you with experience suggest? Thanks a big bunch in advance.

 

[dailyvault]

Personally... I'd start her out first with an acoustic. She can bring it anywhere and play it so people could hear it, and if she doesn't stick with it, the expense may not be that great.

My oldest daughter (10) is getting a guitar made by the bargain division of Gibson that we bought at Bed, Bath and Beyond for $80. No shit - and it's not a bad little guitar, either. Maybe a little tinny for some ears, but I thought it had a nice folk sound to it.

If she absolutely has to have an electric - well, I'm dating myself here, but I'd say pick up something along the lines of a Series 10 (I had their Strat copy that I bought for $99 many many moons ago) and a base-line amp like Crate (do they still make the G-60? G-30?). Some of the Epiphones I've seen, but not had the pleasure to play, also look nice, though that may be a little more than you wanted to spend.

 

[Social Distortion]

The best guitar for a beginner is a Squier Strat. Trust me. It's so cheap it's not even funny, and basicly it's just as good a guitar as a Fender. Well of course it's not the same, but Squier is no joke, they're absolutely the best cheap guitars around.

If you need humbuckers, go with an Epiphone.

 

[sufferer]

Everyone's got good points here, but just remember...you can learn guitar on any-priced axe. It doesn't have to sound good or be top quality to learn chords. If she sticks with it and starts to get good then you can always upgrade. My first bass was a piece of garbage that I would never even think of playing with live now but I learned the instrument all the same, now I play a Schecter diamond series and an Ampeg rig that blows people's heads off! If that was my very first gear and I lost interest, what a waste of money that would have been. But I rock now, so everything worked out. Hope she sticks with it!

 

[Whiplash402]

The best guitar for a beginner is a Squier Strat. Trust me. It's so cheap it's not even funny, and basicly it's just as good a guitar as a Fender. Well of course it's not the same, but Squier is no joke, they're absolutely the best cheap guitars around.

If you need humbuckers, go with an Epiphone.

i agree my first guitar was a squir strat and those are perfect for beginners

 

[stevesaks]

there's lots of cheap models. for beginners...under 200..that are decent...remember,,,I good guitar player can make a shitty guitar sound great..just as an inexperienced guitar player can play on a Jackson guitar and sound like shit..

don't spend over 200....around 150-200..tops....Scott Ian has a intoductory guitar from Lyon last year I believe that was 199.99 at not too bad, I saw it in a Sam Goody store and looked at it...It's made rather nicely..Not sure if it's still available..but , that would be a killer 1st guitar...under 200.. My 1st guitar was a acoustic...2nd was a shitty Harmony Les paul copy..with a warped neck..lol....3rd..I graduated to Ibanez...roadstar...the strat one....

Now I'm happy with my charvel strat....

 

[Catharsis70]

Thanks dor all the replies.... I have some looking to do.

 

[thraxx]

Remember this..

http://www.ultimatemetal.com/forum/anthrax/200198-yo-wu.html?highlight=lyon+guitar#post3893054

 

[whitey131]

Don't do an acustic first. Picking cleanly is best learned on an electric. Plus the action of an acustic is higher. Squire strat is a pretty solid choice. I think ESP/ltd, jackson, ibanez, and washburn/lyon all make beginner models.

 

[karrokid]

Don't do an acustic first. Picking cleanly is best learned on an electric. Plus the action of an acustic is higher. Squire strat is a pretty solid choice. I think ESP/ltd, jackson, ibanez, and washburn/lyon all make beginner models.

depends on the kid. i play a lot of coffee houses and they all have open mic nights one day during the week filled with young kids just learning music and writing songs, all hanging out (which is a lot better than the places i hung out after i got into music). in that senario an electric is pretty useless. i agree that an electric is easier to learn on though most people end up owning both sooner or later.

what kind of music does she listen to ? that might make your choice easier

 

[whitey131]

depends on the kid. i play a lot of coffee houses and they all have open mic nights one day during the week filled with young kids just learning music and writing songs, all hanging out (which is a lot better than the places i hung out after i got into music). in that senario an electric is pretty useless. i agree that an electric is easier to learn on though most people end up owning both sooner or later.

what kind of music does she listen to ? that might make your choice easier

It's not really a matter of easier. On a an electric if your picking is inconsistent it's more noticable than on an acoustic.

There used to be a coffe house near here like that. It's cool to see younger kids building skills like that.

 

[karrokid]

On a an electric if your picking is inconsistent it's more noticable than on an acoustic.

it depends on what kind of music your doing. a lot of my material is heavily into finger picking or a combination of picking and strumming but, i rarley use a pick when i play . if i was to be sloppily picking though it would stand out like a sore thumb since i'm the only one on stage.

what i mean is the action being lower and being able to use a lighter gauge of strings on an electric i think would give a beginer an edge with an electric. it did for me anyways. add some distortion and a loud volume and your ready to make some noise and have some fun

let's get on the road to rock

 

[AstroCreeper]

I was in the same position last year with my niece. Someone turned me onto a site called musiciansfriend.com. The stuff seems kind of cheesy, but you're right, you never know if they'll stick with it.
I can't recall which package I bought, but it was very reasonable and included a guitar, amp and a case for under $300.
Good luck with it. My niece got bored with it after a few months, so of course her little boyfriend (who I can't stand, the little bastard) plays in a band. Go figure, right?

 

[thraxx]

Get a Beater Guitar and a Big Muff...... thats all you need.....
My First guitar was a Kent guitar
and a

 

[Jockthrax]

Check out Lindo guitars on Ebay.... They do a great little copy of Scott Ians Washburn for about $100... I bought one for my little cousin and it's a pretty decent put together piece of axage, great tone low price. Ideal starter guitar

 

[Willz]

I'd recommend a PEAVY generation EXP, they do a fantastic guitar. It looks like a tele but has a humbucker and two single coils, fantastic neck, great range of sounds and it looks great too! I bought one and I'm well impressed with it- there were three variants and I picked up the cheapest one.

Squires are also great, i'd probably be tempted to go for a tele rather than a strat though. And if you can avoid whammy bars as they can make the guitar a pain to tune which is the last thing you want to spend all your time on when you're learning