ok, can someone recommend en electric guitar..keeping in mind that i am a newbie, and don't want to spend an exorbant amount on a starter....thanks. oh...and an amp too?

i looked at the "packs" but just saw too many bad reviews, so though i would buy everything individually.

txladykat said:

Same question. I'm also a newbie. and I want an electric one, 2.

just stay away from squire, and everyone on the site will be happy lol
its really a matter of what type of sound you wanna generate,
but you can't go wrong with a strat...

EmbattledWarrior said:

LOL, well the music i listen to (and would like to play) is the funky style like Prince, but also some rock such as ZZ Top, etc. I thought the same thing about squire...and that is what the guy at guitar center recommended....but wait...which strat? there is a squire strat, fender strat...i assume strat is the style? don't laugh, newbie remember? so when you say strat....which one?
[Edited 10/19/06 19:37pm]

txladykat said:

yah they ALLLLWAYS recommend the squire,
my first guitar was a squire tele, sold it after 6 monthes,
it aint worth it, they're horrible guitars
the cheapest non squire guitars are gonna run a lil over 300 bucks,
but i'll reccomend you one that i have, my second guitar i've ever bought
its a a satin edition fender stratocaster, Its got hypnotiq mellow jazz tones
and when distorted gets really firery, i use it for both funk and rock playing,
its just unbelievably beautiful when set right,

mines looks like this, same color

I instantly fell in love with it, i call it Aurora Blue, or aurora for short

i believe it cost 399, but i bought used so i believed i paid 300 even
ii have 3 guitars now, and that one is still my favorite
i always get compliments on gigs for it

i aint the only one, check the comments out at musicians friend
http://www.musiciansfrien...sku=517908

thanks! i am actually at zsounds now, so will check it out!

Check out the cheaper Ibanez models, both the solid and the hollowbodies are excellent value for the price. I'm not sure about Squier. In the old (Japanese) days, they made great instruments and every now and then they still come up with something cool like the black custom tele for next to nothing. On the other hand, the average Squier strat nowadays is really disappointing.

I don't really agree about the strat. You can use it in many kinds of music, but the single coil strat sound is very different from the humbucker sound you might need if you like to play jazz or heavy rock. I definitely wouldn't invest in a Fender strat until you're sure that this is the sound you want. The same goes for a Les Paul style guitar (the epiphones are fun at a relatively friendly price). A very distinct sound.

Typical strat sounds:
Hendrix
Knopfler
Clapton from the mid 70's onwards
David Gilmour
Stevie Ray Vaughan

Typical Les Paul sounds:
Slash
Jimmy Page
Mick Ronson
Paul Kossoff (Free)
Joe Perry
Zakk Wylde

A "superstrat" model (streamlined strat with humbuckers) or a telecaster can also have very recognizable tones, but in my experience these have more sonic diversity.

Tele players:
Mike Stern
Steve Cropper
Roy Buchanan
Jimmy Page (first Led Zep album, stairway to heaven solo)
Jams Burton
Kerry Donahue
Andy Summers

"Superstrat" players:
Joe Satriani
Steve Vai
Eddie van Halen
you get the picture

Of course my latest love is hollowbody jazz archtop but that's really only an option if you're going for jazz and jazz alone.

EuroCinema said:

I believe gibsons and teles are traditional for jazz tones,
but you can get a jazz tone out of any guitar if you have a proper amp/ amp setting

traditionally strats don't have mellow tones,
but like i said, the one i purchased was exxxxtreeemely different,
has the creamiest clean tone, sounded like Django Reinhardt playing on Gilmour settings, very melancholic, ive played starts before, nothing like that... probably why i fell in love with it

The real problem is economy guitars... well suck
I've played some of the epiphone les paul guitars , the les paul equivalent of a fender squire guitar,
though alot better than a fender squire, its generally not a good guitar and from what i've heard the fretboard deteriorates quickly
and iif you even drop it once, it starts to fall apart.

a decent telecaster is gonna run ya about 500 anything under i wouldn't pay, Tele's are high maintnence guitars

by far the suuper strat is one of the bestt guitars ive played, hoping to own one, its got unbelievable action and sustain, great for two hand tapping, Van Halen style,
ive been trying to find one for years, just not in my price range yet...

bit the bullet, and picked up a fender strat today (same color as above). MZ3 so it is the mexican model made in 2004.

only small amp they had was a squier...i get alot of, i guess distortion, with the amp. any idea why? new to electrics so gotta learn my way around.

txladykat said:

Squier amp huh? what kind/model?
i don't trust anything that squier makes,
so if you can in, my opinion i would return the amp
and try to find a marshal mini amp

when i first started playing an electric i got myself a marshal mirco amp- ms-2
has a pretty crazzy clean tone, and a wicked distortion tone
not as many knobs for tone access as a normal amp, but for practicing , it gets the job done,
Ms-4 the double stack ive heard good things too
or just find a 10 -15 watt amp on ebay, they're pretty well priced on there

but i really don't Trust NETHING squire makes

its a POS squier..LOL. i got it cause it was the only affordable one. taking it back for sure, and gonna hit guitar center and see what they have.

I love when guitars are bought for the first time.

My

I bought a little practice amp for $75. I have a Marshall and it's distortion and clean sound are perfect - for me. Go find your own little $75 practice amp for the sound that's perfect for YOU. Don't pay any more than that and when your in the band, tearing shit up, Do the same thing for the $2,000 amp.

Now you have the guitar, ask questions and practice txladykat. Oh yeah, find a way to record yourself and come back here to show us what your doing.

Slave2daGroove said:

great point!

its essential to record yourself playing, and keep some kind of catalogue,
so you now whether your improving or not. Cause essentially, we're always gonna think we suck lol, , their s atheory that it takes about 7 years for a guitarist to stop sucking lol
ive been playing for whats gonna be two years now, and i SUUUUUCK lol
but i know im improving cause i hear the way i play in old songs, and cringe,
but i see how my style has gotten alot better.
this is important since your teaching yourself, cause you dont have a teacher telling you how you've advanced...

thanks guys! i really appreciate yalls tips and support. I have a tascam multi-track recorder...when the time is right, i will start recording. right now, i am doing get to get my fingers on the strings and frets without hitting the adjacent string! LOl.

Question: is it really important to learn the scales, etc? or just start memorizing chords?

txladykat said:

since your a beginner, stick with chords,
one of my biggest mistakes is that i jumped right into lead guitar
sure im a pretty good soloist, but my rhythm guitar sucks,
which as ive found out, is more important than lead,
so for now stick with chords and developing your sense of rhythm
im developing my sense of rhythm now, that im delving into funk music,
but iitts even harder for me, cause i skipped right the chord basics and went straight into lead

learn your chords now, you'll be rewarded in the long run i assure you

thanks warrior! i will keep practing my chords. what about the scales? important to learn?

txladykat said:

People have different thoughts on scales but eventually you should learn some basics. Chords and scales are closely related so it's not like you'll be wasting your time learning chords.

txladykat said:

LEARN YOUR SCALES!!!



Learn them both from the beginning - the sooner you start, the sooner you nail them. They feed into each other, and you'll begin to pick out relationships between chords and scales. The best lead players pull chords into their solos, the best rhythm players work lead into their riffs. It's all related

EmbattledWarrior said:

Learn all of it eventually, but start off with what you need to play some entry-level songs you like. This is not the time to practice the Lydian Dominant scale in all 12 keys.

what about a fender stratocaster, is that one good? newbie 2.

that is what i got (the mexican one though). just a step below the american fender strat from what i understand. you can definately tell a difference. the guy at the music store pulled out the ever so popular squier (insert sarcasm here), and played, then the mexican, then the american. you can definately tell a difference as you go up. However, the mexican strat sounded really nice and was in the budget, so mexican fender strat it was

look just like the satin one above (same color), although i dont believe this one is a satin, but looks very much the same.

theodore said:

Yes, although if you're a beginner it's probably best not to buy a top end one. Strats are very playable guitars, and pretty simple to maintain.

txladykat said:

Good choice - I've got a Mexican strat, and it's my favourite guitar. I picked it through a long process of elimination, working through all of the strats in my budget in the store, and settled for the one I have even though it's in my least favourite guitar colour (red ), as it was such a peachy instrument.

I don't know why people rag on Squier so much, every Squier guitar I've played has been fine for what they are, and the only big gripe is that the setup on many of them is poor, but that's nothing that half an hour with a few allen keys can't fix.

Rowdy said:

same thing here. went through what they had. the mexican strat was in my budget, not to mention it was the EXACT color I wanted too! The squier was the package deal, so the one he played for me came out of the box, and i am sure a pretty bad setup. but i really ended up with nice perks, just like the package would have been. they threw in the extras for me at no charge (strap, small amp, etc.). bonus is they will set it up if i bring it back this weekend, they dont do that on the squier.

Right now im turning the guitar u see above into a semi fat strat
just scheduled it with my tech
hes gonna install a stevie vai evolution humbucker, and two classic stack duncan pickup
pickups,
mexis ive heard are good customizing guitars,
because it doesn't hurt u as much, as when you customize an extremely expensive guitar

the reason for the sudden change is, i feel the need for more sustain, and i wan't to do some shredding, without having to buy a les paul,
just dont have the funds now

Rowdy said:

I know a guy who has a Squier strat from circa '87 and it's an amazing instrument. Same goes for Japanese Hohners and Hondo's from that era. Back then, they were unpopular, now they're cult classics. However, I doubt this will happen to the current Squire collection. Although I do feel that their teles are generally better than their strats, somehow. Strange.

EmbattledWarrior said:

Wow, I know that feeling, waiting for your guitar to be modded. It's pretty much like waiting for a tattooing appointment! "I'm so excited! OMG, why on earth am I doing this?! O boy, I can't wait!"

About Les Pauls: I've played one for years, but I found it a pain that no matter what you freakin' do to it, it sounds exactly like a Les Paul. Yeah it's a great sound & everything but it weirded me out to strike a note and hear Gary Moore!

I'm really surprised that nobody pointed out that, on the funky jams, PRINCE USES A TELECASTER. And rarely plays a STRAT. Billy Gibbons plays LES PAULS.

So a Strat, if you're trying to get Prince and ZZ Top is not the best suggestion. But hey I'm a day late and a dollar short in this conversation.

Strats are the most popular, (I love mine) but if you were looking for funk, there is no other guitar except the Fender Telecaster.

well heck, those are two of my favs too, Prince and ZZ Top, LOL.

Oh well, maybe the next one will be a tele....