UKC

Hi folks, I'm looking to buy an entry level electric guitar for the offspring. He is quite musically inclined, already playing piano to a reasonable standard and has recently expressed an interest in the guitar ( occationally he can be heard murdering a tune on my old acoustic !). I'm looking for something that is a real instrument rather than a piece of tat constructed out of old palletts but at the same time it is s 'first guitar' so dont want to spend a fortune. I am curently considering a Fender Squier Affinity Strat, as it get very good reviews, for what it is, and falls into the sort of price bracket I am looking at, but I would be interested to hear any other recommendations from those with (much) more knowledge than myself !

ta!

In reply to GravitySucks:

What is your budget and what style of music does your son want to play?

In reply to Shani:

Good questions ....

1. About £200 ish

2. I have no idea and i'm not sure he does either Hence no rush to pop out for a 1957 Goldtop

In reply to GravitySucks:
If you haven't got a very knowledgeable pal to help you decide consider just going into a good music shop (if you have one local). You don't say how old your son is so the size of the neck and action can influence his progression. A good shop will let you/him try out all their guitars within your budget and give you sound (oops) advice. They won't give bad advice cause they'll want you coming back. For what it is worth I went into a good shop and spent upwards of three hours trying out all their guitars and had excellent help and advice. coincedently I have the strat but my preferred guitar is my ovation which suits my hand and I like the tone and action
. Wish my dad could have afforded to buy me one when I was nipper who knows......

In reply to GravitySucks:

I bought my daughter an Aria strat like copy when she was about 12. Cost £130 ish ( with amp ) I still use it for the ocassional gig. The quality of even cheaper guitars is so much better that the olden days. Try gear 4 music. Usually have good starter deals.

ps . . . Just about to tart up a 70's Les Paul copy that my Mum bought me last month for a fiver.

In reply to GravitySucks:


Strats are the everyman of electric guitars and are a good place to start. They can cover a variety of guitar sounds from rock to disco, reggae to indie. There are some excellent copies out there and in addition things like effects pedals and amps have improved hugely in the last 20 years, tumbling in price.

PWO's advice to try out some guitars is excellent. The action on fretboards can be a deal breaker, as can the layout of tone and volume pots (as this effects strumming). Tremelos (floating, non-floating) and bridge position also influence comfort.

One thing I would recommend is looking at a second hand guitar for your first guitar. You'll get something a bit more upmarket - more bang for your buck.

If you eye up a few, then list the make, model and price here before buying, if you want. I am sure you'd get some some good responses as to whether it'd be a deal or not.

Good luck.

In reply to GravitySucks:

I get on better with Telecasters because of the shape (more regular) than Strats so this is something to keep in mind. Basically and Fender will come in both varieties so see which suits. The Classic Vibe is a well-specced one to go for. Andertons have some vids worth checking out:

youtube.com/watch?v=VFKNWxR5Qno&

youtube.com/watch?v=8NoYt2LyLcA&

youtube.com/watch?v=xOFTWdcovtw&

In reply to GravitySucks:

https://www.pmtonline.co.uk/yamaha-pacifica-012-electric-guitar-package-bla...

In reply to GravitySucks:

The Yamaha Pacifica has always been a great first electric guitar, especially for blues or any kind of rock (bar super super heavy metal). It gets great reviews across the board. Or, if you think he's be more excited by it, a Squier Strat or Epiphone Les Paul or SG will definitely look the part.

In reply to cmgcmg:

Beat me to it.

In reply to pwo:

+1 to this advice- go to a shop with your son and let him pick one that he likes. Guitars are such a personal thing- even though you can't go wrong with a strat or tele, and you might want to buy online to get the best possible 'value', honestly the best first guitar is the one you fall in love with. My first guitar was a Godin Radiator ( http://www.godinguitars.com/godinradp.htm ) I saw in the window of a shop outside my school when I was 15 and just thought "wow"- it was 199 quid, I played it every day for about 10 years and sold it for 135.

If you want to make sure you're buying something of reasonable quality, compare how it looks and feels in your hands to a mexican strat- the fret finish, the binding, metal work, joints etc. These aren't the best quality but they are a reasonable benchmark- no point in comparing to a PRS custom etc.

In reply to GravitySucks:
I'm going to sound like a real old fart regarding second hand guitars. iF you don't know your way around a second hand guitar treat it with caution. There are many excellent guitars out there. However just like buying a car you need to know what to look for. Many shops have trade in guitars on their shelves and they do represent good value. Again take someone with you who knows their way around a guitar. As an example many years ago with my first guitar ( which I'd bought on my own second hand) I was really struggling with barre chords and just couldn't get on with it. It wasn't until a pal pointed out that it had been over tensioned and the neck was bent slightly causing the action to raise to such an extent that I could have used it to slice an egg.
Let your son try them out and the advice above about the one that feels right for him is good.
Good luck with your purchase.

In reply to GravitySucks:

Agree that, if a competent friend can be roped in to help check out the purchase, a second hand guitar could be a pretty good call. Don't forget to factor an amp of some sort into the equation! It might be worth really scrimping on this - perhaps the £30 Marshall micro amp - because it'll be enough to decide if he wants to keep it up, and not a huge loss when you sell it to buy a better one...

Definitely let his musical taste influence the choice of guitar, and let him spend a fun afternoon in a shop trying them all out - what feels best will, indeed, be best. Might be worth thinking that if he's inclined to heavier rock, something with humbucking pickups (SG, Les Paul) might be more appropriate than something with single coils (strat, tele). And if he has small hands, the slightly shorter scale length of the SG or Les Paul might be easier (also, of the two, the SG will be lighter).

If he does prefer single coil tones, at the budget end I would tend more towards the tele than the strat, just because cheap tremolo units can be really poor at keeping tune - the simpler design of the tele is a bit more robust.

Having said all that, my first guitar was a strat copy, my second a squier strat, and my favourite ever is the '78 strat I still own!

In reply to GravitySucks:


I was listening to an interview with Webb Wilder the other day. He mentioned that, as a kid, he got hold of an acoustic guitar, but pretty soon realized that he wanted an electric. When he asked his father (who didn't play), the reply was: 'Heck - you ain't even learned to play a manual one, yet!'

In reply to Jamie Wakeham:

Many of these Pacificas being recommended (a good call) come with humbuckers at least in the bridge. I'd recommend at least one humbucker somewhere!

In reply to All: Hi all, my apologies for the late response to the wise words, been a little tied up with other stuff ! Thanks for all the useful info, there's quite a lot to consider but there seems to be a number of suitable candidates that would fit the bill so perhaps I should leave the final choice to the lad himself. I have an old Peavey Rage practice amp he can use so dont need to go down the 'bundle' route. Now, if I could just figure out what colour it should be .....

In reply to GravitySucks:

Forget the guitar buy him a banjo

In reply to GravitySucks:

Some really good advice here. I started with a secondhand Aria Strat (and still use it occasionally - although the tuners are a bit worn). Going to a shop will reduce the anxiety and provide a level of support. The secondhand market needs to be treated with caution and I would recommend the intervention of a friend with guitar experience to help in this area. The key thing in my view is to ensure that your offspring likes the instrument and is comfortable playing it; if this is not the case practice will be in short supply!

In reply to GravitySucks:

Picked my son up a Yamaha Pacifica off eBay for £100 in mint condition. He loves it.

He didn't want a Gibson shape or a flying vee

We got a mini amp - an orange crush - eventually he outgrew it for a Marshall with a load of digital effects.

Great starter, and he still plays regularly.