Beginner Guitar and Amp

[Pejorative Miscreant]

Hey all

My 9 year old son has been taking guitar lessons for about 18 months.  He's progressed a decent amount and learned basic measures and notes.  Currently, his latest teacher has introduced him to Tab and he can pretty much pick up songs and play.  Currently playing songs like Back in Black, Eye of the Tiger, Maroon 5 Uma Thurman, etc....  He is doing this currently with an 3/4 size acoustic guitar.  He is motivated and I want to make sure he maintains interest and hopefully mixes in learning how to read music better along with Tab.  

With all that said I want to step into a beginner guitar and amp.  I do t want to break the bank but I don't want to buy garbage that is hard to play and easily goes out of tune/sounds like crap.  Any ideas about approach particularly with brands or what to look for.

Saw a similar topic a few weeks ago but it dealt with a higher end guitars and guys with much more experience.    Sorry for the long winded explanation but wanted to provide context. Any advice would be appreciated. 

[Bronn]

I don't know where you are located but my dad runs a music shop in NC. PM me if you are interested.

I don't know that he has what you are looking for on site, but he could likely get it relatively fast if he doesn't. He also could give you any further advice you're looking for, and that's free.

Me personally, I don't play at all anymore really. All I have left is an old ESP LTD M50 with no amp. I play it through a Line 6 POD and various other pedals, a small mixer, and headphones. That is as basic of a setup as you can get, and it offers the option of adding an amp or hooking up to other amplification methods down the line.

[Jase]

I have an ibanex GAX70 and a 15w ibanez amp that I might be willing to part with for about $200.  They've been good to me, but I have been neglecting them ever since I had kids.

[TANTRIC-NINJA]

Amp wise get a line 6 Spider Jam amp. It has all the effects built in..and drum beats with bass....and it records. 

All in one. Saves a ton of money on pedals and such.

399 new but google it..saw it for 199 used! 

 

 

[t96]

Just my opinion as a life long musician who has played with many greats... Consider getting him off of tab. Get him learning and hearing the notes and understanding why they're being played where. It'll help him in the long run. Not a guitarist so i can't comment on inexpensive starter gear since most of the guitar players I play with play things like a ES-335, L-5, L-7, etc but the gear really doesn't matter. It's not what you play it's how you play it.

[PhillyB]

wait is this setup for him to upgrade from a 3/4 size? or for you because you're inspired by his play? hard to tell from the OP

what is he interested in playing long-term? can't really do survivor tunes on an acoustic, not properly anyway. if he's generally into acoustic stuff but wants a little bite you could look into getting an acoustic-electric like an ovation, which is gonna run you about $250. great quality, shellback, versatile.

i would personally recommend finding a good electric guitar and hooking it up to an amp that's going to allow really bright, warm tones that can basically play acoustic-style songs on a clean or slightly hot sound setting. orange amps are really nice, but they're slightly darker even though the tone is crystal and beautiful. maybe go with a small vox amp.

as for the guitar, i'm gonna wreck jase's sale and tell you to stay away from ibanez, solely because they're ugly as fug. that's a personal opinion obviously but ibanez churns out metal-looking guitars that wannabe rockers buy. they are generic and the basic bitch equivalent of a flock of sparrows tattoo on the collarbone. stay away. get something with a classic body; can't go wrong with fender or gibson. they're expensive, but thankfully there are knock-off brands licensed to use the same exact body style. so you could get, say, an epiphone version of a gibson (i ran with one for years) or a squire version of a fender and you'd do just fine.

i used to have an epiphone dot. it's a hollowbody electric with very warm, very bright tones and was amazingly versatile. i didn't have an acoustic simulator pedal, but i was able to play everything from really soft, clean tones and the range of songs accompanying that sound and jam into a simulated 90s stack with edgy, hard rock tones with the stomp of a footpedal. i think it ran me $350 and is about the best quality you'll get for the money, and only a step or two below top-notch gig-quality instruments. you can always install premier pickups in it too if you want a boost in quality without dropping $3000 on a gibson.

 getting something like that will spare you the cost of having to buy two guitars, or being limited style-wise by something that's set up so specifically as to exclude anything but a narrow scope of songs.

good luck!

[Pejorative Miscreant]

8 hours ago, thomas96 said:

Just my opinion as a life long musician who has played with many greats... Consider getting him off of tab. Get him learning and hearing the notes and understanding why they're being played where. It'll help him in the long run. Not a guitarist so i can't comment on inexpensive starter gear since most of the guitar players I play with play things like a ES-335, L-5, L-7, etc but the gear really doesn't matter. It's not what you play it's how you play it.

 

1 hour ago, PhillyB said:

wait is this setup for him to upgrade from a 3/4 size? or for you because you're inspired by his play? hard to tell from the OP

what is he interested in playing long-term? can't really do survivor tunes on an acoustic, not properly anyway. if he's generally into acoustic stuff but wants a little bite you could look into getting an acoustic-electric like an ovation, which is gonna run you about $250. great quality, shellback, versatile.

i would personally recommend finding a good electric guitar and hooking it up to an amp that's going to allow really bright, warm tones that can basically play acoustic-style songs on a clean or slightly hot sound setting. orange amps are really nice, but they're slightly darker even though the tone is crystal and beautiful. maybe go with a small vox amp.

as for the guitar, i'm gonna wreck jase's sale and tell you to stay away from ibanez, solely because they're ugly as fug. that's a personal opinion obviously but ibanez churns out metal-looking guitars that wannabe rockers buy. they are generic and the basic bitch equivalent of a flock of sparrows tattoo on the collarbone. stay away. get something with a classic body; can't go wrong with fender or gibson. they're expensive, but thankfully there are knock-off brands licensed to use the same exact body style. so you could get, say, an epiphone version of a gibson (i ran with one for years) or a squire version of a fender and you'd do just fine.

i used to have an epiphone dot. it's a hollowbody electric with very warm, very bright tones and was amazingly versatile. i didn't have an acoustic simulator pedal, but i was able to play everything from really soft, clean tones and the range of songs accompanying that sound and jam into a simulated 90s stack with edgy, hard rock tones with the stomp of a footpedal. i think it ran me $350 and is about the best quality you'll get for the money, and only a step or two below top-notch gig-quality instruments. you can always install premier pickups in it too if you want a boost in quality without dropping $3000 on a gibson.

 getting something like that will spare you the cost of having to buy two guitars, or being limited style-wise by something that's set up so specifically as to exclude anything but a narrow scope of songs.

good luck!

Thanks for the advice.  The new setup is to really keep his interest and it just happens to also be good timing because he's about to outgrow the acoustic.  He is ready for the electric because as Philly stated, Survivor and AC DC don't translate to acoustic all that well.  

 

Thomas is spot on regarding Tab.  I like the Tab because it gives you some quick wins and really keeps a nine year old involved but we are definitely going to focus more on training with notes as I agree that will be better in the long run.  I think his current teacher is doing a good job trying to balance.

Thanks for all the input.

 

[cookinbrak]

Quote

as for the guitar, i'm gonna wreck jase's sale and tell you to stay away from ibanez, solely because they're ugly as fug. that's a personal opinion obviously but ibanez churns out metal-looking guitars that wannabe rockers buy. they are generic and the basic bitch equivalent of a flock of sparrows tattoo on the collarbone. stay away. get something with a classic body; can't go wrong with fender or gibson. they're expensive, but thankfully there are knock-off brands licensed to use the same exact body style. so you could get, say, an epiphone version of a gibson (i ran with one for years) or a squire version of a fender and you'd do just fine.

 

Never buy a guitar based on how it looks. Buy it based on how it sounds. That said, go to a music store and tell them what you want. Not a pawn shop, a music store. Your son can actually try them out there and get a feel for what he wants. A beginners set will cost about 200 bucks.

http://www.guitarcenter.com/Squier/Affinity-Stratocaster-Electric-Guitar-Pack-w-10G-Amplifier.gc

[Jase]

On November 21, 2015 at 7:53:35 PM, PhillyB said:

 

as for the guitar, i'm gonna wreck jase's sale and tell you to stay away from ibanez,

You son of a bitch 

[Pejorative Miscreant]

On November 23, 2015 at 21:04:10, cookinbrak said:

 

Never buy a guitar based on how it looks. Buy it based on how it sounds. That said, go to a music store and tell them what you want. Not a pawn shop, a music store. Your son can actually try them out there and get a feel for what he wants. A beginners set will cost about 200 bucks.

http://www.guitarcenter.com/Squier/Affinity-Stratocaster-Electric-Guitar-Pack-w-10G-Amplifier.gc

I hear you. We've been a couple times and I found the Squier and Epiphone SG. To be in the right price range and still pretty good quality and sound. Thanks for the info.