Which Acoustic Guitar for 2nd Guitar?
Discussion
Hi Guys,
Been learning guitar for approx. 8 months now, and have recently got the hang of barre chords and am making some good progress. I'm still using the cheapo no name £50 guitar I bought from Amazon, and am wondering if it's worth investing in something a little better now? Mine seems to need tuning every week and doesn't sound anywhere near as nice as the guitars on all the instructional vids I've been watching!
I guess my budget would be around £300 max. Would ideally like to spend less if possible though. what do you guys recommend? Is it worth upgrading for that sort of money?
Been learning guitar for approx. 8 months now, and have recently got the hang of barre chords and am making some good progress. I'm still using the cheapo no name £50 guitar I bought from Amazon, and am wondering if it's worth investing in something a little better now? Mine seems to need tuning every week and doesn't sound anywhere near as nice as the guitars on all the instructional vids I've been watching!
I guess my budget would be around £300 max. Would ideally like to spend less if possible though. what do you guys recommend? Is it worth upgrading for that sort of money?
Yamaha FG730 is what I'm getting as an acoustic to complement to the pacifica I brought a couple of christmas's ago to begin on. Sounded good in the shop but my ear isn't good enough to tell the difference between guitars at this level up to about £500. Really just a nice feel and good overall sound. BTW, I tune my guitars every time I pick it up, it's always relatively there but it's good practice to get into, I can almost tell now even when it's only slightly out.
nick s said:
Thanks guys, that Yamaha F370 is showing as £131 on Amazon at the mo. Already discounted. When you say starts at 10:15am. Is it going to come down more then?
As per other recommendations, looks like a Yamaha is the way to go!
Yes - go to the Black Friday deals from their top of the home page, you'll see current deals and upcoming deals. The deal on the guitar will start at 10:15 and there will be limited stock. No idea what the deal will be but you could grab a bargain.As per other recommendations, looks like a Yamaha is the way to go!
Good luck!
You should have a look at what is available second hand in your area. You can get a much better guitar for the same money that way. Buying second hand also means you will know how well it will age, because it already has. Many acoustics can and do distort across the body causing the action to rise. It's a well known problem with difficult to implement solutions. One sure way to avoid it is to buy an older guitar, or a very expensive one.
If possible take someone along with you knowledgeable in guitar to try before you buy (appreciate this won;t work off e-bay etc ...)
Generally, you get what you pay for - with a few makes being the exception - Yamaha as mentioned seem to make good instruments in general - a friend of mine picked up a cracker for £400.
If you can wait a bit longer and save up a bit more, Takamine make some lovely sounding instruments. They also do a budget range (G-series) which get some good reviews.
Probably the most important thing is that it's set up correctly, if the action is too high (distance of strings from fretboard) even the most expensive guitars will be virtually unplayable.
Also, with any guitar, check the intonation, that is, make sure each note for each fret is in tune, for example, the 12th fret on any string should be the same note as the open string (but an octave higher), not slightly sharp or flat. If this is out, the guitar goes out of tune as you move up the fretboard - no good of course.
Generally, you get what you pay for - with a few makes being the exception - Yamaha as mentioned seem to make good instruments in general - a friend of mine picked up a cracker for £400.
If you can wait a bit longer and save up a bit more, Takamine make some lovely sounding instruments. They also do a budget range (G-series) which get some good reviews.
Probably the most important thing is that it's set up correctly, if the action is too high (distance of strings from fretboard) even the most expensive guitars will be virtually unplayable.
Also, with any guitar, check the intonation, that is, make sure each note for each fret is in tune, for example, the 12th fret on any string should be the same note as the open string (but an octave higher), not slightly sharp or flat. If this is out, the guitar goes out of tune as you move up the fretboard - no good of course.
Also, well done you.
Keep going, it's a journey that has no end but each step you take is more interesting than the last & I know calling it a journey makes me sound like a right ponce, but it is true.
Maybe get down the local guitar shop? You have to accept that crossing the threshold of a guitar shop robs you of any musical talent but it's where they're all kept & probably where you'll find one that picks you for an owner.
Keep going, it's a journey that has no end but each step you take is more interesting than the last & I know calling it a journey makes me sound like a right ponce, but it is true.
Maybe get down the local guitar shop? You have to accept that crossing the threshold of a guitar shop robs you of any musical talent but it's where they're all kept & probably where you'll find one that picks you for an owner.
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