Buying Your first guitar is something you will never forget for either good reasons or bad, probably a mix of both. But the important thing is that it is a starting point. The aim of this guide is to try and make it a good starting point. One you will remember fondly and perhaps even keep.
Mine was a 3/4 sized, nylon strung classical Landola. My parents bought it for me when I was 12 after much pleading and they agreed on the condition that I took classical lessons. Those were delivered by the son of one dad’s friends – a classical guitarist and lute player. He helped choose the guitar.
I knew nothing about guitars except that I wanted to be a guitar hero (not a classical player) but needs must. That first guitar and those lessons – even though both were ditched as soon as my paper round bankrolled an electric guitar – gave me a good foundation for which I’m thankful.
I’m going to assume that you are a little older than I was and in the position to buy your own first guitar. The advice I’ll give you is based on decades of experience and hindsight and is how I would approach buying my first guitar if I was doing it now.
First of all I’ll side with the great Keith Richards and recommend that it should be an acoustic guitar. Even if, like the young me, you are itching to shred the fretboard like Steve Vai and blow the doors off with a stack of Marshall amps. First things first.
An acoustic guitar is ready to make music right our of the box. Unlike an electric guitar It needs no cables, amplifiers or pedals. You don’t need to spend years finding “your sound” it sounds like it sounds. Generally an acoustic will be slightly harder to play than an electric for reasons we will come to. When you transition to the electric though everything you have learned will be easier to play.
Let’s get to the practical stuff.
Buying Your First Guitar – Budget
May as well start with this as it is a factor in most peoples guitar choices. Whether you have an unlimited budget or a tiny one all of the points below are still super relevant. Big name brands like Gibson, Taylor, Martin and Takamine have reputations for great quality, sound and playability. If you can afford one the chances are you’ll have a keeper. On the other hand some big names like Ibanez and Yamaha make seriously great budget/beginner guitars as do a lot of the lesser known brands. So whether your pockets are deep or shallow pay attention to the following points when you are making your choice.
Many a great song has been born on a cheap guitar …
Learning to play guitar does involve a little discomfort I’m sorry to say. You are making your hands and fingers do things they’ve never done – like pressing wires against wood and bending in unfamiliar ways. Picking a first guitar that makes all this as easy as possible is ultra importante!
Size matters.
Acoustic guitars are available in a variety of sizes. There are different body sizes, different lengths of fretboard and different shapes. You want one that you can play comfortably when sitting down or while standing with a strap. This is always going to be a compromise with the bigger Jumbo or dreadnought sized guitars so a narrow bodied parlour or 3/4 size might be a good option.
Style you play.
You probably have some idea of the style of music you want to play so factor this into the decision too. If it’s classical or flamenco for example then nylon strung is the norm. These also tend to have wider flatter fretboards than folk, blues or rock oriented models.
If you aim to do a lot of finger picking or single note, lead style playing you might want to look at guitars with single or double cutaway bodies. Those give your fretting hand more access to the higher frets than the traditional shape.
Pickups
Acoustic guitars are also available with electric pickups (electro acoustics) so they can be plugged into an amplifier, P.A. system or recording interface. This means you can avoid the problems associated with playing an acoustic guitar through a microphone in live situations. It also lets you add effects to your sound.
Since, as a beginner you probably wont be looking at playing live just yet, this may not be something you need. Bear in mind also that they cost a little more. On the other hand, even if you don’t need the electrics for a while they are there when you do. It’s nice to have options that you can grow into.
If you do decide to opt for an electro acoustic there are two basic types of pickup: The Piezzo style contact pickup and the magnetic type used on electric guitars. The former is more common on shop bought guitars. They tend to produce a brittler, harsher sound than the guitar itself so often have an eq control fitted to the guitar body to compensate. Avoid any that don’t.
Are looks important to you
These days acoustic guitars are to be found in a wild variety of colours and designs. If how it looks is something that is important to you bear that in mind too.
Playability
The main factors that make an acoustic guitar easier or harder to play are the action and string tension. Action refers to the height of the strings from the fretboard. Tension refers to how tight they are – how hard they are to push against the neck of the guitar or bend across it when tuned.
The gauge or thickness of the strings fitted play a part in this. It’s pretty essential that you get this right as adjusting either on an acoustic guitar is a job for the professionals. You want an an action low enough to make fretting notes and chords as painless as possible but not so low that the strings buzz anywhere.
This is a lot remember when you wander into a guitar shop in search of your first guitar. Usually you’ll find the staff helpful when you explain what you are looking for. If you know a guitarist ask them to come with you to help you choose. Remember though, it’s you who will be living with that choice not them. Take your time.
Used or New
This is probably related mainly to budget but acoustic guitars like all wooden instruments can definitely mature like wine as they age.
A few points to look for in used guitars
Dents, scratches and cracks. Up to you how much superficial damage (patina) you can live with but avoid anything that looks too serious. Pay particular attention to where the neck joins the body.
Neck Straightness. Sight along the neck of the guitar for body to headstock as if you were aiming a rifle. The frets should be even and parallel to each other all the way. If it looks like the neck has a twist in it walk away. A slight upward or downward curve can sometimes be adjusted but this is not a job for the beginner. If it’s too obvious and affects the playing, avoid. Again, take an experienced guitarist with you if possible.
N.B I recently bought an acoustic guitar on Ebay to use for a particular tuning set up. I could tell from the images provided that it was “honest” and ticked all the right boxes. It was. If you don’t have a guitarist friend buying used or new online is a great idea. You can ask the seller questions about action, etc and check the pictures they post. You are also usually covered by some sort of guarantee. There are bargains to be had.
