epiphone guitar aj 100
Entry Level Acustic Guitars?
I am looking to buy an entry level guitar, I have seen an Epiphine AJ 100 or an Epiphone Dr 100 (but I have read reviews that they are terrible quality and sound). Any expert opinions on them. I have also heard Washburn and Tanglewood make good entry level acustic. What would be an ideal entry level guitar? Obviosuly being a beginner I don’t want to spend more than £130. Can anyone help.
£130 is a lot of money but it will not go far when looking for a good guitar. There are plenty in that price bracket that are perfectly OK and will be great to learn on but there is a lot of rubbish too. Please do not be disappointed if you spend all that money now only to find you have outgrown the instrument as your playing has developed. That would actually be a good sign.
My advice is to virtually ignore the name of the guitar and to just get your hands on as many as you can – ideally with someone who knows a bit about guitars. There are some makes, readily available in town centre shops, I wouldn’t touch because they are so bad … but I won’t name them because I don’t want to belittle something that a reader might well have struggled to buy. Even the best names in guitar making produce some real turkeys at the budget end of the market. I have never been disappointed by Yamaha acoustics *at the price* but you really need to get your hands on a guitar before buying it.
You are NOT looking for something flashy. You are looking a comfortable feel and, if possible, a full tone. When I say ‘comfortable feel’ I am mostly talking about the neck of the guitar. Does your hand fit round it comfortably? Are the ends of the frets finished properly (not sharp)? Is there a narrow gap between the strings and the neck (slightly wider towards the guitar body) or does the gap get much wider away from the machine heads (tuning knobs)? If the gap is too wide or becomes too wide (referred to as a HIGH ACTION), it will be much harder to play, will hurt your fingers more and can seriously delay your learning.
Look along the side of the guitar, along the neck. I should be straight. If it isn’t, it’s junk.
The best sounding guitars are made with expensive woods that put them outside your price range but you can get a reasonable sound from the sort of guitar you are looking for. You are listening for a full, ringing tone when you pluck the strings. If the sound is a bit ‘dead’, it can be that the strings are old (new strings sound brighter) or, more likely, it is that the construction or materials of the guitar are not the best.
If you try a couple of guitars that are well beyond your price range, it will give you an idea of the sound and feel you are looking for. Dealers will not mind provided you ask first and treat the instrument with respect. If they do mind, shop somewhere else … which is what happened when I bought my latest guitar for £2000.
If you can make it to London, I recommend browsing in the guitar shops in Denmark Street and nearby (nearest tube Tottenham Court Road), though I know there are excellent guitar shops all over the country.
I wish you success in finding your instrument and a huge amount of pleasure from learning to play.
(Beatles) Yesterday guitar lesson w/ tab link
0 Responses
Stay in touch with the conversation, subscribe to the RSS feed for comments on this post.