Thanks Kevin. I subbed a couple of days ago. I am a 74 year old newbie. Playing an acoustic for several months. Looking at purchasing a fender player plus Nashville in December. Hope I live long enough to play passably. Best of luck on your podcast.
Good for you! Please let us know how you’re progressing. I’m 66 and recently purchased a cheap Strat and a little Vox amp. Yep, I’m a huge Brian May fan but figure I’ll take Keef Richard’s job when he retires. Yes, I know he’ll never retire and I won’t live long enough to get that proficient but a girl can dream. Oh, my el cheapo Strat is wood grained not pink.
00:01 Best guitar is the one that makes you play more 01:38 Invest in a guitar that feels friendly and fun to play 03:19 Consider resale value when buying a guitar. 04:49 Differences in buying acoustic vs electric guitars and cost comparison 06:28 Consider your learning style when choosing between acoustic and electric guitar. 08:01 Consider Squire and PRS guitars for good value and quality 09:43 Consider higher budget for custom or vintage guitars for significant quality difference 11:31 Invest in solid wood guitars for better sound quality and consider American-made guitars for good playability. 13:14 Maximize your guitar purchase 14:58 Tips for a better guitar purchase
Some additional thoughts: - resale value can depend heavily on brand. If it's well known, it's generally easier to sell and potentially get a higher price. - cost of an amp/silent practice; if you already own a computer, you can get a basic audio interface and use free (or cheap) plugins and get some great sounds. As an added bonus you can record to track progress and play with headphones.
One thing I disagree with is the jump from under 500 to 1500. So many great guitars in the 600-1000 category. Epiphone les Paul’s best bang for buck. Mexican strats/telecasters Squire classic vibe, 40th anniversary, Sterling cutless If you spend between 600-1000 on a guitar you will get an instrument that can last you for decades. Used market is great too, if you are new stick to your box stores used market. They have warranty and money back returns. Also, a big thing to consider is a professional setup. Get one after a month or two , they will adjust the guitar to your liking or give you advice on what you need. It’s the best 80 bucks you can spend on a luthier to setup your guitar.
I'm a proud owner of two Epiphone Les Paul Standards. One is a 1993 Korean made Cherry Burst, the same guitar used by Noel Gallagher to record the album Definitely Maybe. It was $380 from Craigslist. I'm planning to mod it with Seymour Duncan pickups (Saturday Night Specials) and American wiring. I'm not planning to sell either of my guitars and I like dog eared Epiphones. These two guitars through the right amp with loads of practice are perfect.
@@scottbrower9052how hard is it to do? I’m a noob too but i don’t want to fuck up an expensive guitar because i didn’t pay the extra. Any advice is appreciated
You brought up a good point about old school thinking that you should learn on an acoustic vs. Electric, if the instrument doesn't fit your style you're not going to play as often. I will say that having an acoustic is more on the fly mobile.. but it needs to be a decent one. I've played a few that were junkie and couldn't be set up, if you find a good one at a good price and is nice it's worth having. Electric guitars on the other hand in my opinion are just plain fun because they cover all genre of music, it's the amp that gives its voice and they can be dialed in for what ever sound you want. I started out on a late 60's harmony acoustic, the action was so high and the neck so twisted that I literally practiced till my fingers bled, I acquired great callouses but it certainly didn't make me better I didn't improve until I got my first Electric, it wasn't worth much but it was alot better than the harmony. This is a great video thanks for sharing it..two thumbs up 👍 👍
It still surprises me how new this channel is, you have the presence and production quality of a much larger one. Definetly agree about the importance of getting one that inspires you, I was close to getting a player plus nashville but ended up choosing an Epiphone es-335 because even though its half the price I was just more drawn to it, it arrived a couple of days ago and I couldn't be happier with it.
You were right when you said it's not that useful to get a teacher early on because I've been doing the JustinGuitar course while having a teacher at the same time, and on my own, I am learning a lot more than with my teacher. The good thing is I have someone to give me feedback, but it is not as useful as if I was more advanced. My teacher basically told me to learn the basic chords (A, Am, C, D, Dm, E, Em, G) and he was really surprised when he saw me do them flawlessly just 1 week after and being able to do a few songs. I already have a guitar, but it's a used red jackson guitar with a blocked floyd rose tremolo, the whammy bar wasn't even on it when I bought it. It's great for learning but not so good for wanting to play a specific genre, it does the highs really well, but not really the mids and lows, according to my teacher.
I totally agree with picking a guitar you WANT to play that has the sound you identify with. That's why I got my Taylor DLX BLK it's gorgeous, but has the most interesting and compelling sound I've ever heard.
I bought my Taylor 110ce for 799, and traded it in 12 years later towards my new one for $780 (new ones now go for $1199 CAD). So.... yes inflation. But I also played it for over 10 years.
Man I absolutely love your videos.They are really good quality and very helpful.Your videos help me so much with guitar and you deserve a million subs.If not more!
First time started playing 10 years back but didnt keep playing. Came back buying a squier classic vibe 50s, and judging from my past and bad experiences 10 years back and now, your suggestions are fantastic.
Started in Jan 2023 on an Epi Pro 1 acoustic. I practice/play every day. This Feb 2024 I purchased a Martin D10e. The action on the Martin was too high for me came from the factory and with 13’s. I had the action lowered and I moved to 11’s. This guitar is simply superb to play and sounds amazing. The Epi is my travel guitar (already done 4 trips) and the Martin is for at home. There is a big price difference but also a big difference in sound and playability. I’ve got friends that are pro players and I can see the justification for what they spend on their gear but for me, what I have is more than good enough. 👍
Il be 25 this saturday. I know nothing about guitars. Absolutely love the advice. I think I’m going to start with the acoustic. I really hope I’m making a good decision. I’ve always wanted to learn and plan on learning during my free time.
Excellent advice, being an older newbie guitar player, starting with a low end inexpensive electric and having a year under my belt i wish i had seen this video before i started…
Heck yes! This is the THIRD “what to know before buying a guitar” type video and this is so much more helpful than the vague sponsored carp out there! Thank you! 🎼
I live in Colorado which is really dry. A case allows for controlling humidity. If you want to keep your guitar in good condition you need to keep it in a decent humidity range.
My first guitar was a Epiphone Les Paul tobacco burst. I cut my fingers on that guitar (literally). Now I literally just bought a Fender Vintera II '60s Stratocaster and wow! I’ve only been playing for over a year but it was an amazing choice!
That’s a great choice! I’be had better luck with Fender/Squire than I’ve had with Gibson and Epiphone, interesting to see that it’s not just me. Thanks for watching and great choice on the guitar
Nothing against this video or the intent. You are doing a great job. "Built in America makes these guitars play very good" is where I have a disconnect . Quality control is global and not restricted to what is made in America!
I appreciate the respectful comment! Let me see if I can re-connect your disconnect: first of all, you’re right that quality control is not restricted to America. I should have clarified the reason that being built in America is a sign of quality. The big five guitar manufacturers (Fender, Gibson, Martin, Taylor, and PRS) are all American companies, so they invest the most money into training luthiers that are based in America, they also put the most money into the materials that go into the (already more expensive) made in USA guitars. This is something you see across the music world and across all of manufacturing as a whole. Marshall is a British company so for Marshall a sign of quality is the made in UK tag. Even if we look outside of music this is true. It is generally considered that for Toyotas, made in Japan is a sign of quality. For Leica cameras, made in Germany is a sign of quality. It just so happens that the biggest and most mainstream guitar manufacturers are based in America, so for them, “made in USA” is a sign of quality. And foreign built guitars could be just as good or even better than the made in USA guitars, it’s just that the manufacturers don’t generally put the same money into them that they put into the USA guitars. I don’t mean to disparage the manufacturing of any country (as someone who has a degree in manufacturing, I absolutely respect the great manufacturing traditions of a number of countries that aren’t America), I only mean to point out that being manufactured in the home country is generally a sign of quality, and for these guitar brands the home country is America. Thanks for the comment and I hope I was able to clarify my position on this!
i really wanna see ur channel grow, you put so much effort into ur videos and u actually help (unlike some other big guitar TH-camrs like BERNYTH), i think you should focus also on videos that more people would be interesting in watching because your content quality is top but i dont think everyone watches these kinds of videos when they play guitar, at least i personally dont but i still wanna see ur channel grow because you've got so much potential to be one of the best with how genuine you are and how good your content is, my idea is maybe videos that the guitar community struggles more with, like scales, techniques, picking speed, working with a metronome, transcribing
The classical guitar iam training on is my fathers 30 year old guitar I thought about buying a new electric guitar with money that iam collecting but then i thought it out and realised that the peice iam playing is important to my father and i cant just stop playing that guitar just becuase i want a fancy tananna type guitar so now iam learning classical music and i discovered that i love this peice that i have so much more than i thought
Thanks for the perpective and knowledge. This is extremely helpful. Also, I miss the days when we could wash dishes for a summer in order to obtain our dream instrument. :) Your videos are great.
If you're just starting out and don't have much money spare I've had a yamaha f310 for the past 5 or so years they go for about 120 brand new and 50 used and they definitely punch up would definitely recommend to any beginner
Yesterday, I researched for hours everything I could about electric guitars and what I came to realize is that for someone who has the money, a 500$ guitar is a good starting point, and buying a 150$ guitar will usually give you lots of problems in the beginning that might make you want to play less often and the tone might be really bad for the songs you want to play. For rock music, a Stratocaster or a Les Paul will usually be best. The Strat is better for higher distortion rock while the Les Paul does the clean sound way better in my opinion. The telecaster is the most versatile but is not really a good choice if you're not interested in country music since it is its main purpose. The only country musician I like is Johnny Cash and he always used an acoustic so that's not a good reason to buy a telecaster. As for soloing, shredding and metal, an Ibanez will be best, so for a beginner starting out with rhythm guitar, it's not the best choice but for the beginner starting out with soloing, skipping the rhythm stuff, Steve Vai style, it is the best choice. Jackson guitars are another decent option and they do produce a lot of sound. When I bought my first guitar in 2016, the employee didn't know any of this so after I told him I like rock music and that I had a small budget, he recommended me a jackson dinky JS11 even though I told him my favorite genre is rock, and metal is like the very last (one I listen to on occasion) and it was a used guitar but he neglected to tell me that the previous owner blocked the tremolo and that the whammy bar was missing and since I had only bought it for Rocksmith at the time and eventually stopped playing for many years, I never realized that my guitar is low quality and worth maybe like 100 USD. So now I am looking into buying a Epiphone Les Paul for like 500-700 CAD, maybe something on sale if I can find it but definitely new. I prefer the Les Paul than the Strat because of its nicer clean tone, and the lack of a tremolo bridge which makes it easier to tune than a Strat. After that, I will buy an acoustic guitar, I just haven't done my research on that yet. As for my 3rd guitar, it will probably be an Ibanez.
I’m glad you’ve done your own research. Just as a friendly piece of advice, try to play at PRS McCarty 594 SE before you pull the trigger on that Epiphone Les Paul. It’s the PRS version of a Les Paul and I think you might like it a little more. But get whatever inspires you! Good luck!
@@kevinnickens A PRS SE McCarty 594 is 1279 CAD, that is way too expensive for my budget, like I said earlier, I am mainly looking at guitars which will cost me around 500 CAD. That is mainly because I am going back to college and moving into my own apartment, and although I have a couple thousand dollars saved up, it's not nearly enough for me to spend over 1000$ on a guitar, especially since I plan to get an acoustic eventually and possibly an Ibanez. After college, I'll definitely upgrade though. For now, I just want something that plays well and isn't some cheap 100$ thing made for a genre I'll rarely play (like the one I have now). However, there was a time just a few years ago where my financial situation was so good, I could have afforded it easily, maybe even a 2000$ guitar, because I lived with my parents and had saved up a lot of money over the years, but then I made some big purchases, and now I have to be more careful.
Ahh! Looks like pricing is a little different here in the US, and I didn’t realize you were talking about CAD instead of USD. Good luck finding the right guitar!
I've got an Epiphone Les Paul; Plus Top Pro version from about 10 years ago. It was pretty much half price, but only if I got the wine red colour. I thought it looked awesome and it plays great.
Love the advice. I’m just starting to learn but bought a $1,200 guitar years ago. I’m glad I bought something in that range because I had an older cheaper acoustic and struggle to enjoy playing it.
I have a 1991 Strat-Plus-Deluxe and a 1986 ES-335 and I never take them out of the house. I have 6 Harley Bentons that I play all of the time. If I ding one of those I don't get crazy about it. All 6 totaled together conservatively cost less than half of the Strat and a third of the 335. I love my HBs. *I would never buy a guitar with the "Affinity" badge.
My Experience : I go to the store for an expensive Guitar I really want. Then I shied away from the really expensive Guitars, second guessing the prices. Well I set myself up for failure, because the Guitar I really wanted to buy I thought too much. I repeated that pattern for many times, over many years. Then I found the secret. Go for that $5,000 Martin you'll never regret it. (Or whatever you want). If you shy away making the big expense, you will regret it. Now you have a Guitar you really didn't want, and you repeat the pattern. Pull the trigger on the one you want. You'll never have to buy another. (Ideally, 1 Electric, (Gibson) and One Acoustic. (Martin) = Your done for life. You will be scared at the price, but for many years, you will enjoy it.
Question for you- I’ve been learning on acoustic but am finally just starting to develop good consistent habits, knowledge, and skills I was wondering is there any milestone that you’d reccomend for learning acoustic before switching to electric?
I impatiently bought a Squier that was originally $340 but sold as a used / demo model for a significantly lower price. By the time I bought cable, strap, tuner, metronome, headphone adapter, strings, winder / cutter, cleaning supplies, and fortunately, a borrowed amp, (but I still need fret guards and a wider strap for better comfort) -- I wished I'd spent more on the guitar and less on everything else. Now I want the no-brainer features that are excluded in the lower price range, like a better nut and locking tuners (maybe better pick-ups). These are excluded (even though nuts are cheap) so that buyers will want to upgrade their guitars and ultimately spend more upgrading the cheaper guitar, especially considering labour fees, than if they'd paid a few hundred more in the first place. I went in ready to buy instead of ready to ask questions and assess if I was getting good information, or sales pitches. Maybe step one was be patient. I will add that I made a good choice coming here for my beginner lessons!
What would you recommend I do if I like the look of electric guitars but like the sound of an acoustic guitar better? (don't really like the classic look of an acoustic. I also would rather play pop, alternative/indie music, etc - something I can sing to. It seems like a lot of electric guitar covers I watch are accompanied by drums/bass, and there's not as much singing but that's just my observation)
I’m starting to watch this after I bought a Castilla on Facebook Marketplace for $90 and hoping im not an idiot 😂 it’s been fun and worked so far I guess! 🤷♂️
Just about to pick my first ever guitar tomorrow, Squire classic vibe 60's strat, I have put alot of research into this and for bang for buck I am convinced Im onto a winner, I chose this guitar as i feel from a bseline level its pretty decent, and instead of selling and upgrading to fender i plan to just change pickups and tuners and all that instead =D not chasing the brand "fender" as much as i want it on the headstock haha
This is amazing. Still don’t know why I watched it though, since I just got a new guitar… You mentioned in another video that you play in payed gigs. Do you have any tips on how to get those? I’ve gotten a couple, but nothing consistent. Thanks in advance
There’s a lot that goes into it and in the future I plan on making a full video on this topic but the short answer is that you’ve got to send a LOT of emails. The other thing is you’ve got to get good videos of you playing live. If a venue can see that you’re decent and the crowd is engaged, then they’re more likely to respond to your emails. It only takes one or two venues to book you regularly for you to stay busy
kevin, thank you for your help. been playing for 1.5 years, and slowly improving. if money was no object, i would "move up" to a taylor 414ce. but it always is. so what about the value of the yamaha AC3R / A3R or even the 5 series? half the price of the taylors, and my ears tell me they sound superb. same question for the yam FG3 OR FG5 dreads. or should i just save up for a taylor, either a 314ce or 414ce , and maybe used? thanks dale
Thanks for the post. I’ve been learning/playing bass for about a year and I’m considering dipping my toe in the guitar world. Any advice other than what you already posted?
If you get an expensive acoustic guitar, you need to keep it in a good hard case so you can maintain an adequate stable level of humidity, especially in the winter when indoor humidity levels plummet. If you let your guitar dry out or stay too wet, you can ruin it. Also, a case will protect it from falls, vacuum cleaners, angry girlfriends, beer bottles….
Fender month at my local shop. 0% financing for 12 months... so I had to go ahead and get a white aerodyne MIJ Strat. Heck yes. I already had an EOB strat, and a Lamboo Telecaster, so don't tell my wife! Lol.
Hi Kevin, Geat video as usual! I would like to know your opinion about classical guitars, there are some opinions about the befits (in terms of beginner friendly) about learn guitar on classicals. Thanks!
Great question! Guitar manufacturers usually train the best luthiers (guitar builders) in their home country, and they’re usually looking to save on labor cost when they outsource to a foreign country. Almost all the major guitar manufacturers are American, so they train the best luthiers in America. This isn’t to say that a guitar built in Mexico, Indonesia, etc. can’t be great, it’s just that the manufacturers usually put the most effort into making the American stuff really good. This goes for other companies home countries as well. Marshall (amp company) is based in the UK, so a sign of quality for them is being made in UK. Thanks for watching and for the question!
There should be left handed versions of most of the guitars I mentioned. You will probably have to order them, because guitar stores won’t have much stock. Also, and I’m sure you’ve heard this from other guitar teachers but it’s worth at least trying to learn right handed guitar even as a left handed person. Honestly, it’s not gonna be easy to start for left hand or right hand, and you can just play so many more guitars if you can play right handed
I have been playing guitar for 2 months I often get asked which kind of music I like on the guitar but I don't know what is jazz or pop or rock music can you please explain?
I'm just recently getting back into playing guitar and have been on the look out for an acoustic. Sadly, my finances are not good for this kind of thing so I will be going cheap. I've been eyeballing the Yamaha FG820. I feel like that's the one for me. But even as cheap as it is, I still have to save up for it. If you happen to know anything about that particular model I'd love to hear your opinions on it.
Too late... So i had an accoustic for years and now i bought an electric guitar, keyboard, djambe, flute, alien looking drum thingy, harmonica and kalimba :D
If you mean semi hollows like the Gibson es-335 then I love those. I think they’re super cool and fun to play. If you mean acoustic guitars like the Fender Acoustasonic series, I don’t love them, but they’re surprisingly good, and maybe if it was into different kinds of music then I would like them more. If it were me for my money, I probably wouldn’t bat an eye at selling some guitars to get one quality guitar of higher quality
You should learn on whats easiest, I used a shit cheap acoustic with the highest action when I started and it was the worst thing, I just couldn't get into learning guitar, untill I got my cheap electric guitar. Now I can actually play something, for hours instead of the 10, 20 minutes I used to with the acoustic
Comment #69 here. I am here after I bought a new to me guitar to start out on.. a Paul Reed Smith SE custom 24. So I'm glad to see you like that model. SE stands for Super Edition. 😂
i know im a year late but why do we look for american made guitars? i live in canada so i have zero attachemnt to the made in america name, is it usually better quality or better tones are the materials sturdier at all just wondering i hear people say they are looking for an american made guitar and judt curious on it
It’s usually better quality. Most of the big guitar brands are based in the US, so they usually put a lot of money into the workmanship and materials of a domestic built guitar.
Hi, I just started learning like a week ago, I have a 200$ Ibanez acoustic guitar, should I buy something more expensive or can I learn on the one i have, it sounds good and I like it but, as I said, it's my first week and I never played anything before.
Yeah man, I would go for the Line 6 Spider V 20 MkII. It's $150 and It's a modeling amp, which means that it'll have a lot of different amp sounds in it. None of them will blow your socks off, but it's enough to try and see what you like, so you can invest in a better amp down the road if you want. It was my first amp and if I was a beginner today it's what I would get.
For that money, you're better off visiting a guitar/music store and try out their Yamaha guitars. Yamaha's entry level acoustics costs about that much and they're well-built.
Thank you for an excellent presentation. American made guitars are grossly overrated. They were the s**t 40 years ago, but the customer is paying a premium for the headstock decal in this day and, and age. American greed, and underpaid factory workers apathy low wages have taken American guitars out of the game. The big 2 have their laurels to rest on, but their years are numbered. When us 60 pluses die off, so w😅they. Thank you Indonesia. For making my guitar dreams come true.
I bought my kids a cheap guitar from a supermarket the other day and thought you know what, I’ll get myself one as I’d like to start trying to learn. It was only £80 and after watching this it makes me want to throw it in the bin.
Although there is some solid advice in here, this video seems like a bunch of name drops. It doesn't seem to have any actual advice regarding the specifics of what to look for that defines a guitar as good or bad, high-quality or low quality, sound, feel, playability, action, etc.in all fairness, this is a very large world to walk into and cover in a 15 minute video. Still, I would have liked to have seen more defining characteristics.
Thanks Kevin. I subbed a couple of days ago. I am a 74 year old newbie. Playing an acoustic for several months. Looking at purchasing a fender player plus Nashville in December. Hope I live long enough to play passably. Best of luck on your podcast.
Good for you! Please let us know how you’re progressing. I’m 66 and recently purchased a cheap Strat and a little Vox amp. Yep, I’m a huge Brian May fan but figure I’ll take Keef Richard’s job when he retires. Yes, I know he’ll never retire and I won’t live long enough to get that proficient but a girl can dream. Oh, my el cheapo Strat is wood grained not pink.
You absolutely will live long enough! Get to work now!! ❤
That's great, man. Play your heart out
This is so inspiring thanks for sharing!
aim for 120 - that gives you another 45 years, should be enough... 😉
00:01 Best guitar is the one that makes you play more
01:38 Invest in a guitar that feels friendly and fun to play
03:19 Consider resale value when buying a guitar.
04:49 Differences in buying acoustic vs electric guitars and cost comparison
06:28 Consider your learning style when choosing between acoustic and electric guitar.
08:01 Consider Squire and PRS guitars for good value and quality
09:43 Consider higher budget for custom or vintage guitars for significant quality difference
11:31 Invest in solid wood guitars for better sound quality and consider American-made guitars for good playability.
13:14 Maximize your guitar purchase
14:58 Tips for a better guitar purchase
Some additional thoughts:
- resale value can depend heavily on brand. If it's well known, it's generally easier to sell and potentially get a higher price.
- cost of an amp/silent practice; if you already own a computer, you can get a basic audio interface and use free (or cheap) plugins and get some great sounds. As an added bonus you can record to track progress and play with headphones.
and these little plugin amp emulator units which are apparently amazing these days. (I'm still for amps thouugh, coz they're cool)
One thing I disagree with is the jump from under 500 to 1500.
So many great guitars in the 600-1000 category.
Epiphone les Paul’s best bang for buck.
Mexican strats/telecasters
Squire classic vibe, 40th anniversary,
Sterling cutless
If you spend between 600-1000 on a guitar you will get an instrument that can last you for decades.
Used market is great too, if you are new stick to your box stores used market. They have warranty and money back returns.
Also, a big thing to consider is a professional setup. Get one after a month or two , they will adjust the guitar to your liking or give you advice on what you need. It’s the best 80 bucks you can spend on a luthier to setup your guitar.
Epiphone Les Paul Modern is crazy good value
Or......watch a few TH-cam videos, purchase cheap and readily available basic tools, and do your own setups. That's what I did as a complete noob.
I'm a proud owner of two Epiphone Les Paul Standards. One is a 1993 Korean made Cherry Burst, the same guitar used by Noel Gallagher to record the album Definitely Maybe. It was $380 from Craigslist. I'm planning to mod it with Seymour Duncan pickups (Saturday Night Specials) and American wiring. I'm not planning to sell either of my guitars and I like dog eared Epiphones. These two guitars through the right amp with loads of practice are perfect.
@@scottbrower9052how hard is it to do? I’m a noob too but i don’t want to fuck up an expensive guitar because i didn’t pay the extra. Any advice is appreciated
You brought up a good point about old school thinking that you should learn on an acoustic vs. Electric, if the instrument doesn't fit your style you're not going to play as often. I will say that having an acoustic is more on the fly mobile.. but it needs to be a decent one. I've played a few that were junkie and couldn't be set up, if you find a good one at a good price and is nice it's worth having. Electric guitars on the other hand in my opinion are just plain fun because they cover all genre of music, it's the amp that gives its voice and they can be dialed in for what ever sound you want. I started out on a late 60's harmony acoustic, the action was so high and the neck so twisted that I literally practiced till my fingers bled, I acquired great callouses but it certainly didn't make me better I didn't improve until I got my first Electric, it wasn't worth much but it was alot better than the harmony. This is a great video thanks for sharing it..two thumbs up 👍 👍
It still surprises me how new this channel is, you have the presence and production quality of a much larger one. Definetly agree about the importance of getting one that inspires you, I was close to getting a player plus nashville but ended up choosing an Epiphone es-335 because even though its half the price I was just more drawn to it, it arrived a couple of days ago and I couldn't be happier with it.
You were right when you said it's not that useful to get a teacher early on because I've been doing the JustinGuitar course while having a teacher at the same time, and on my own, I am learning a lot more than with my teacher. The good thing is I have someone to give me feedback, but it is not as useful as if I was more advanced. My teacher basically told me to learn the basic chords (A, Am, C, D, Dm, E, Em, G) and he was really surprised when he saw me do them flawlessly just 1 week after and being able to do a few songs.
I already have a guitar, but it's a used red jackson guitar with a blocked floyd rose tremolo, the whammy bar wasn't even on it when I bought it. It's great for learning but not so good for wanting to play a specific genre, it does the highs really well, but not really the mids and lows, according to my teacher.
My first guitar (4 days ago) was a Schecter C-1 Platinum that I got at Guitar Center for $650.
It’s perfect, IMO.
I totally agree with picking a guitar you WANT to play that has the sound you identify with. That's why I got my Taylor DLX BLK it's gorgeous, but has the most interesting and compelling sound I've ever heard.
I bought my Taylor 110ce for 799, and traded it in 12 years later towards my new one for $780 (new ones now go for $1199 CAD). So.... yes inflation. But I also played it for over 10 years.
Man I absolutely love your videos.They are really good quality and very helpful.Your videos help me so much with guitar and you deserve a million subs.If not more!
I always used to buy for sound and specs, but it's the feel that's above everything I have realised after many many years.
First time started playing 10 years back but didnt keep playing. Came back buying a squier classic vibe 50s, and judging from my past and bad experiences 10 years back and now, your suggestions are fantastic.
Started in Jan 2023 on an Epi Pro 1 acoustic. I practice/play every day. This Feb 2024 I purchased a Martin D10e. The action on the Martin was too high for me came from the factory and with 13’s. I had the action lowered and I moved to 11’s. This guitar is simply superb to play and sounds amazing. The Epi is my travel guitar (already done 4 trips) and the Martin is for at home. There is a big price difference but also a big difference in sound and playability. I’ve got friends that are pro players and I can see the justification for what they spend on their gear but for me, what I have is more than good enough. 👍
I can hear the love in your voice when you talk about the Martin standard series!
Il be 25 this saturday. I know nothing about guitars. Absolutely love the advice. I think I’m going to start with the acoustic. I really hope I’m making a good decision. I’ve always wanted to learn and plan on learning during my free time.
Excellent advice, being an older newbie guitar player, starting with a low end inexpensive electric and having a year under my belt i wish i had seen this video before i started…
Heck yes! This is the THIRD “what to know before buying a guitar” type video and this is so much more helpful than the vague sponsored carp out there! Thank you! 🎼
Please keep making these videos man!! You are my go to guitar TH-camr! I appreciate the quality of your information as well as the videos!
I live in Colorado which is really dry. A case allows for controlling humidity. If you want to keep your guitar in good condition you need to keep it in a decent humidity range.
My first guitar was a Epiphone Les Paul tobacco burst. I cut my fingers on that guitar (literally). Now I literally just bought a Fender Vintera II '60s Stratocaster and wow! I’ve only been playing for over a year but it was an amazing choice!
That’s a great choice! I’be had better luck with Fender/Squire than I’ve had with Gibson and Epiphone, interesting to see that it’s not just me. Thanks for watching and great choice on the guitar
Nothing against this video or the intent. You are doing a great job. "Built in America makes these guitars play very good" is where I have a disconnect . Quality control is global and not restricted to what is made in America!
I appreciate the respectful comment! Let me see if I can re-connect your disconnect: first of all, you’re right that quality control is not restricted to America. I should have clarified the reason that being built in America is a sign of quality. The big five guitar manufacturers (Fender, Gibson, Martin, Taylor, and PRS) are all American companies, so they invest the most money into training luthiers that are based in America, they also put the most money into the materials that go into the (already more expensive) made in USA guitars. This is something you see across the music world and across all of manufacturing as a whole. Marshall is a British company so for Marshall a sign of quality is the made in UK tag. Even if we look outside of music this is true. It is generally considered that for Toyotas, made in Japan is a sign of quality. For Leica cameras, made in Germany is a sign of quality. It just so happens that the biggest and most mainstream guitar manufacturers are based in America, so for them, “made in USA” is a sign of quality. And foreign built guitars could be just as good or even better than the made in USA guitars, it’s just that the manufacturers don’t generally put the same money into them that they put into the USA guitars. I don’t mean to disparage the manufacturing of any country (as someone who has a degree in manufacturing, I absolutely respect the great manufacturing traditions of a number of countries that aren’t America), I only mean to point out that being manufactured in the home country is generally a sign of quality, and for these guitar brands the home country is America. Thanks for the comment and I hope I was able to clarify my position on this!
I own a $300 orangewood guitar and it sounds so good! Owned it for over a year now
I couldn’t live without my two Collings (D2HA & OM1AC-SB). I did have two sell one of the children to buy them but sacrifices must be made for art.
i really wanna see ur channel grow, you put so much effort into ur videos and u actually help (unlike some other big guitar TH-camrs like BERNYTH), i think you should focus also on videos that more people would be interesting in watching because your content quality is top but i dont think everyone watches these kinds of videos when they play guitar, at least i personally dont but i still wanna see ur channel grow because you've got so much potential to be one of the best with how genuine you are and how good your content is, my idea is maybe videos that the guitar community struggles more with, like scales, techniques, picking speed, working with a metronome, transcribing
Nice video, my first guitar is that exact PRS (even the same color) i bought a month ago, im glad i made the right choice
Love that guitar, good choice
Tag yourself. I’m Kevin from the future. 🤨
I can tell because of your raised eyebrow
11:10 True about solid vs laminate, but the 214ce actually has “layered” back and sides, which is basically their version of laminate
True
The classical guitar iam training on is my fathers 30 year old guitar
I thought about buying a new electric guitar with money that iam collecting but then i thought it out and realised that the peice iam playing is important to my father and i cant just stop playing that guitar just becuase i want a fancy tananna type guitar so now iam learning classical music and i discovered that i love this peice that i have so much more than i thought
Thanks for the perpective and knowledge. This is extremely helpful.
Also, I miss the days when we could wash dishes for a summer in order to obtain our dream instrument. :) Your videos are great.
If you're just starting out and don't have much money spare I've had a yamaha f310 for the past 5 or so years they go for about 120 brand new and 50 used and they definitely punch up would definitely recommend to any beginner
Yesterday, I researched for hours everything I could about electric guitars and what I came to realize is that for someone who has the money, a 500$ guitar is a good starting point, and buying a 150$ guitar will usually give you lots of problems in the beginning that might make you want to play less often and the tone might be really bad for the songs you want to play.
For rock music, a Stratocaster or a Les Paul will usually be best. The Strat is better for higher distortion rock while the Les Paul does the clean sound way better in my opinion.
The telecaster is the most versatile but is not really a good choice if you're not interested in country music since it is its main purpose. The only country musician I like is Johnny Cash and he always used an acoustic so that's not a good reason to buy a telecaster.
As for soloing, shredding and metal, an Ibanez will be best, so for a beginner starting out with rhythm guitar, it's not the best choice but for the beginner starting out with soloing, skipping the rhythm stuff, Steve Vai style, it is the best choice.
Jackson guitars are another decent option and they do produce a lot of sound.
When I bought my first guitar in 2016, the employee didn't know any of this so after I told him I like rock music and that I had a small budget, he recommended me a jackson dinky JS11 even though I told him my favorite genre is rock, and metal is like the very last (one I listen to on occasion) and it was a used guitar but he neglected to tell me that the previous owner blocked the tremolo and that the whammy bar was missing and since I had only bought it for Rocksmith at the time and eventually stopped playing for many years, I never realized that my guitar is low quality and worth maybe like 100 USD.
So now I am looking into buying a Epiphone Les Paul for like 500-700 CAD, maybe something on sale if I can find it but definitely new. I prefer the Les Paul than the Strat because of its nicer clean tone, and the lack of a tremolo bridge which makes it easier to tune than a Strat.
After that, I will buy an acoustic guitar, I just haven't done my research on that yet.
As for my 3rd guitar, it will probably be an Ibanez.
I’m glad you’ve done your own research. Just as a friendly piece of advice, try to play at PRS McCarty 594 SE before you pull the trigger on that Epiphone Les Paul. It’s the PRS version of a Les Paul and I think you might like it a little more. But get whatever inspires you! Good luck!
@@kevinnickens A PRS SE McCarty 594 is 1279 CAD, that is way too expensive for my budget, like I said earlier, I am mainly looking at guitars which will cost me around 500 CAD. That is mainly because I am going back to college and moving into my own apartment, and although I have a couple thousand dollars saved up, it's not nearly enough for me to spend over 1000$ on a guitar, especially since I plan to get an acoustic eventually and possibly an Ibanez. After college, I'll definitely upgrade though.
For now, I just want something that plays well and isn't some cheap 100$ thing made for a genre I'll rarely play (like the one I have now).
However, there was a time just a few years ago where my financial situation was so good, I could have afforded it easily, maybe even a 2000$ guitar, because I lived with my parents and had saved up a lot of money over the years, but then I made some big purchases, and now I have to be more careful.
Ahh! Looks like pricing is a little different here in the US, and I didn’t realize you were talking about CAD instead of USD. Good luck finding the right guitar!
I've got an Epiphone Les Paul; Plus Top Pro version from about 10 years ago. It was pretty much half price, but only if I got the wine red colour. I thought it looked awesome and it plays great.
great video as always thanks for your effort, im an intermediate guitar player stuck in the plateau and your videos gave me a boost.
Love the advice. I’m just starting to learn but bought a $1,200 guitar years ago. I’m glad I bought something in that range because I had an older cheaper acoustic and struggle to enjoy playing it.
You just bought a 1,200 dollar guitar to look at? 😭
I have a 1991 Strat-Plus-Deluxe and a 1986 ES-335 and I never take them out of the house. I have 6 Harley Bentons that I play all of the time. If I ding one of those I don't get crazy about it. All 6 totaled together conservatively cost less than half of the Strat and a third of the 335. I love my HBs. *I would never buy a guitar with the "Affinity" badge.
My Experience : I go to the store for an expensive Guitar I really want. Then I shied away from the really expensive Guitars, second guessing the prices. Well I set myself up for failure, because the Guitar I really wanted to buy I thought too much. I repeated that pattern for many times, over many years. Then I found the secret. Go for that $5,000 Martin you'll never regret it. (Or whatever you want).
If you shy away making the big expense, you will regret it. Now you have a Guitar you really didn't want, and you repeat the pattern.
Pull the trigger on the one you want. You'll never have to buy another. (Ideally, 1 Electric, (Gibson) and One Acoustic. (Martin) = Your done for life.
You will be scared at the price, but for many years, you will enjoy it.
Question for you- I’ve been learning on acoustic but am finally just starting to develop good consistent habits, knowledge, and skills
I was wondering is there any milestone that you’d reccomend for learning acoustic before switching to electric?
Not really, just whenever you want to
I love my Gibson Tribute and my Fender Tele MIM. It's all I want, its all I need.
I dont need no upgrade to a Les Paul Standard, or a Fender USA.
8.2k wow! you only had 1k a couple of weeks ago. great job man!
Yamaha's are super underated, I agree that theyre good starters for accoustic
just found your videos and loving them so far. Just some feedback: there should be timestamps on this video so I can jump to your different points!
I impatiently bought a Squier that was originally $340 but sold as a used / demo model for a significantly lower price. By the time I bought cable, strap, tuner, metronome, headphone adapter, strings, winder / cutter, cleaning supplies, and fortunately, a borrowed amp, (but I still need fret guards and a wider strap for better comfort) -- I wished I'd spent more on the guitar and less on everything else. Now I want the no-brainer features that are excluded in the lower price range, like a better nut and locking tuners (maybe better pick-ups). These are excluded (even though nuts are cheap) so that buyers will want to upgrade their guitars and ultimately spend more upgrading the cheaper guitar, especially considering labour fees, than if they'd paid a few hundred more in the first place. I went in ready to buy instead of ready to ask questions and assess if I was getting good information, or sales pitches. Maybe step one was be patient. I will add that I made a good choice coming here for my beginner lessons!
Stal yapping bitch
this is really good advice I'm thinking about starting to play electric guitar as soon as I get the money
What would you recommend I do if I like the look of electric guitars but like the sound of an acoustic guitar better? (don't really like the classic look of an acoustic. I also would rather play pop, alternative/indie music, etc - something I can sing to. It seems like a lot of electric guitar covers I watch are accompanied by drums/bass, and there's not as much singing but that's just my observation)
Check out the Fender Acoustasonic guitars, might be exactly what you’re looking for
@@kevinnickens Ooo yes this looks good!
I’m starting to watch this after I bought a Castilla on Facebook Marketplace for $90 and hoping im not an idiot 😂 it’s been fun and worked so far I guess! 🤷♂️
Just about to pick my first ever guitar tomorrow, Squire classic vibe 60's strat, I have put alot of research into this and for bang for buck I am convinced Im onto a winner, I chose this guitar as i feel from a bseline level its pretty decent, and instead of selling and upgrading to fender i plan to just change pickups and tuners and all that instead =D not chasing the brand "fender" as much as i want it on the headstock haha
Good choice, the classic vibe series is awesome
I really like the albums changing in your screen. how you do that?
This is amazing. Still don’t know why I watched it though, since I just got a new guitar…
You mentioned in another video that you play in payed gigs. Do you have any tips on how to get those? I’ve gotten a couple, but nothing consistent. Thanks in advance
There’s a lot that goes into it and in the future I plan on making a full video on this topic but the short answer is that you’ve got to send a LOT of emails. The other thing is you’ve got to get good videos of you playing live. If a venue can see that you’re decent and the crowd is engaged, then they’re more likely to respond to your emails. It only takes one or two venues to book you regularly for you to stay busy
@@kevinnickens thank you. Not exactly looking forward to the email part, but I’ll definitely get some videos. Thank you again
I always loved your mic, very unique and cool.
kevin, thank you for your help. been playing for 1.5 years, and slowly improving. if money was no object, i would "move up" to a taylor 414ce. but it always is. so what about the value of the yamaha AC3R / A3R or even the 5 series? half the price of the taylors, and my ears tell me they sound superb. same question for the yam FG3 OR FG5 dreads. or should i just save up for a taylor, either a 314ce or 414ce , and maybe used? thanks dale
Thanks for the post.
I’ve been learning/playing bass for about a year and I’m considering dipping my toe in the guitar world. Any advice other than what you already posted?
Not really, have fun and go for it!
Lmao just woke up, picked my guitar up and saw a new vid from you
If you get an expensive acoustic guitar, you need to keep it in a good hard case so you can maintain an adequate stable level of humidity, especially in the winter when indoor humidity levels plummet. If you let your guitar dry out or stay too wet, you can ruin it. Also, a case will protect it from falls, vacuum cleaners, angry girlfriends, beer bottles….
Fender month at my local shop. 0% financing for 12 months... so I had to go ahead and get a white aerodyne MIJ Strat. Heck yes. I already had an EOB strat, and a Lamboo Telecaster, so don't tell my wife! Lol.
Hi Kevin, Geat video as usual! I would like to know your opinion about classical guitars, there are some opinions about the befits (in terms of beginner friendly) about learn guitar on classicals. Thanks!
I just noticed you kind of look like Miles Teller (yes the drummer from Whiplash).
as a non American, how does quality correlate with being made in America?
Great question! Guitar manufacturers usually train the best luthiers (guitar builders) in their home country, and they’re usually looking to save on labor cost when they outsource to a foreign country. Almost all the major guitar manufacturers are American, so they train the best luthiers in America. This isn’t to say that a guitar built in Mexico, Indonesia, etc. can’t be great, it’s just that the manufacturers usually put the most effort into making the American stuff really good. This goes for other companies home countries as well. Marshall (amp company) is based in the UK, so a sign of quality for them is being made in UK. Thanks for watching and for the question!
Can you recommend any left handed guitars? 🙏
There should be left handed versions of most of the guitars I mentioned. You will probably have to order them, because guitar stores won’t have much stock. Also, and I’m sure you’ve heard this from other guitar teachers but it’s worth at least trying to learn right handed guitar even as a left handed person. Honestly, it’s not gonna be easy to start for left hand or right hand, and you can just play so many more guitars if you can play right handed
@@kevinnickens Thank you! 😊 I love your videos btw 🫶
I love guitar Even guitar I have a Drum instrument that's Fun too to Play Drum even Guitar
I have been playing guitar for 2 months I often get asked which kind of music I like on the guitar but I don't know what is jazz or pop or rock music can you please explain?
I'm just recently getting back into playing guitar and have been on the look out for an acoustic. Sadly, my finances are not good for this kind of thing so I will be going cheap. I've been eyeballing the Yamaha FG820. I feel like that's the one for me. But even as cheap as it is, I still have to save up for it. If you happen to know anything about that particular model I'd love to hear your opinions on it.
Kevin Nickens, how long have you had your Taylor 214.
What guitar should someone use for rock? Things like rock parade or requiem from guilty gear.
How do you feel about the Squier Classic Vibes 50s Telecaster? I love that style but I feel that it's the only one I can afford.
I totally love that series. Incredible choice
@@kevinnickens Thanks for putting my mind at ease about it! Love your channel, I can't wait for more tutorials. ☺️
Too late... So i had an accoustic for years and now i bought an electric guitar, keyboard, djambe, flute, alien looking drum thingy, harmonica and kalimba :D
I bought the PRS SE, exact same one, before I watched this. 🙂
So what are your thoughts on semi-acoustic guitars? I’ve been wanting one for years. I would even sell all 3 of my guitars just to get a quality one.
If you mean semi hollows like the Gibson es-335 then I love those. I think they’re super cool and fun to play. If you mean acoustic guitars like the Fender Acoustasonic series, I don’t love them, but they’re surprisingly good, and maybe if it was into different kinds of music then I would like them more. If it were me for my money, I probably wouldn’t bat an eye at selling some guitars to get one quality guitar of higher quality
You should learn on whats easiest, I used a shit cheap acoustic with the highest action when I started and it was the worst thing, I just couldn't get into learning guitar, untill I got my cheap electric guitar. Now I can actually play something, for hours instead of the 10, 20 minutes I used to with the acoustic
Great channel man. Glad i subscribed.
I too am glad you subscribed
resell value is everything
Is $800 a good price to spend
Yeah you’ll be able to get a great guitar at that price
@@kevinnickensthanks for the response, it’s for some reason so hard to find simple information like this sometimes
Great advice that I agree with completely!
Comment #69 here. I am here after I bought a new to me guitar to start out on.. a Paul Reed Smith SE custom 24. So I'm glad to see you like that model. SE stands for Super Edition. 😂
i know im a year late but why do we look for american made guitars? i live in canada so i have zero attachemnt to the made in america name, is it usually better quality or better tones are the materials sturdier at all just wondering i hear people say they are looking for an american made guitar and judt curious on it
It’s usually better quality. Most of the big guitar brands are based in the US, so they usually put a lot of money into the workmanship and materials of a domestic built guitar.
@@kevinnickens thank you so much man that really helped a lot and thanks for being really kind
Hi, I just started learning like a week ago, I have a 200$ Ibanez acoustic guitar, should I buy something more expensive or can I learn on the one i have, it sounds good and I like it but, as I said, it's my first week and I never played anything before.
No
PLEASE MAKE A GUITAR THEORY SERIES😁
Are those recommendations on monitor for viewer retention
Man 😂
hey man can you recommend a good beginner affordable amp?
Yeah man, I would go for the Line 6 Spider V 20 MkII. It's $150 and It's a modeling amp, which means that it'll have a lot of different amp sounds in it. None of them will blow your socks off, but it's enough to try and see what you like, so you can invest in a better amp down the road if you want. It was my first amp and if I was a beginner today it's what I would get.
@@kevinnickens thank you so much
No problem my man
Great video as always! 🎉❤😊
brooooooooooo! Great vid. Appreciate the insight!
Is a 120 dollars 6 string acoustic guitar from Amazon going to good or not
For that money, you're better off visiting a guitar/music store and try out their Yamaha guitars. Yamaha's entry level acoustics costs about that much and they're well-built.
He just narrated my life.....
Damn 5 hours too late
Congratulations on the new guitar!
@@kevinnickensthanks I’m so excited !
Thank you for an excellent presentation. American made guitars are grossly overrated. They were the s**t 40 years ago, but the customer is paying a premium for the headstock decal in this day and, and age. American greed, and underpaid factory workers apathy low wages have taken American guitars out of the game. The big 2 have their laurels to rest on, but their years are numbered. When us 60 pluses die off, so w😅they. Thank you Indonesia. For making my guitar dreams come true.
thanks papa kevin
I missed this one, you’re welcome champ
@@kevinnickens love you man, keep doing what youre doing
That was fun and interesting
i understand why musicians never have any money...😂
I do NOT buy a new guitar unless it is a custom made one from a luthier. A decent USED guitar is nearly always a much better deal all around...
I hatebuying guitars really hate it, frustrating and always buyers remorse,.
In europa prs se are 800-900 euro. So....
I think the computer screen is there to help with people’s attention spans, good video btw
I bought my kids a cheap guitar from a supermarket the other day and thought you know what, I’ll get myself one as I’d like to start trying to learn. It was only £80 and after watching this it makes me want to throw it in the bin.
💀 rip
Not very comprehensive. No mention of Ibanez, Jackson, Alvarez, or Washburn.
Although there is some solid advice in here, this video seems like a bunch of name drops. It doesn't seem to have any actual advice regarding the specifics of what to look for that defines a guitar as good or bad, high-quality or low quality, sound, feel, playability, action, etc.in all fairness, this is a very large world to walk into and cover in a 15 minute video. Still, I would have liked to have seen more defining characteristics.
me watching this with 20$ budget
I'm afraid to watch this....because I'm sure I messed things up.
No no do not buy a second hand guitar as a beginner, especially not from a random guy, buy new and pay for setup until you get the hang of it
Buy Indonesian. Value overload. End of post.
I’m sorry but I’m sticking with my guitars. I don’t want to sale something that was gifted to me by my father
okay then why are you watching this video? 😂
Still didn’t answer the question
First🎉
Thanks mom
Your son helped me a lot, thanks