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I usually do reviews of multiple products: This Guitar A vs Guitar B. Or here are the top 10 amps.
I’m not doing that anymore.
I’ve found the best amp for about $500.
If you’re a working musician, you can appreciate Peavey Bandit 112 TransTube Amplifier.
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The robot uprising is coming.
Call me crazy.
But it’s going to happen.
I don’t usually talk about stuff like this.
I usually talk about guitar playing tips.
How to practice better.
What kind of guitars to buy.
Fun songs to play.
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So you want to buy a used acoustic guitar? Awesome!
Used instruments are an awesome way to save money on great instruments, or even just start playing guitar on the cheap.
I personally have taken advantage of the used guitar market… Case in point:
If you’re looking for a cheap guitar, you may first want to consider these online options. You can get some pretty decent acoustic guitars for $100 or less. My favorite is probably the Jasmine cutaway.
If you’re willing to do some work – you can probably get an even better deal on a used guitar.
It’s actually not that difficult. Here’s how…
You need to be informed if you’re going to buy a used guitar.
Decide what you want.
Determine your budget and (roughly) what kind of guitar you want purchase. In other words, don’t go in totally blind.
If you’re in the market for a guitar, decide what kind of guitar you want (and how much you’re willing to spend).
Once you have an idea, do some online research (Amazon) or in-person (local music store).
For example: Let’s say you’re looking for a beginner acoustic guitar and you’re not interested in spending more than $150. After a little research you land on something like this Fender FA-100.
Currently, the FA-100 is running about $120. Awesome, it already fits our budget, we could just buy it now.
But we may be able to do a little better.
Time to….
Search Craigslist.
A quick search on my local craigslist for “Fender acoustic” yields a good amount of results. I settle on a Fender GDC 100 SCE.
It looks like this:
They’re listing it as used (with a few nicks/bumps). This guitar also has a pickup installed (so I can plug it in if I want). Their asking price: $150.
Ok… so it’s at the top of my price range (ok).
It has a few nicks/bumps and is used (meh).
It has a pickup installed (nice!).
So should I get it… not yet. First I need to….
Do more research.
I do a google search for “Fender GDC 100 SCE”. I find a few other sellers asking $200 to buy it used online. I find original listing price to be around $299.
If I can get this guitar for $150 or less, I’d be happy.
Next I reach out to the seller and make an offer at $120.
I always ask for a lower price than what is listed (even if they say the price is firm). The worst thing that will happen is that they say no…. what have you got to lose?
It takes a few hours, but I hear back and the seller counters my offer with $140. Find with me.
We’ve settled on a price.
We decide on a time and place to meet.
Since it has a pickup in it I bring a small amp and cable to test out the pickup.
We meet up, I try it out, pickup works, guitar looks ok. The action seems a little high, but I’m pretty sure that this can be easily fixed by taking it to the guitar store and having the tech set it up.
So now I have a new guitar!
Super easy. Low stress.
Heres a recap of what you need to do:
You can walk away any time.
If you have doubts, walk away.
If it’s too expensive, walk away.
There are other guitars out there.
Speaking of other guitars… if you’re in the market for something that is more niche or unique, but if you’re not that knowledgeable, here are somethings you can do:
After you buy a guitar, you probably want to clean it up and change the strings. I usually taken mine to the music store to have a guitar tech set it up.
That’s it. If you have any tips, please share them below!
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Buying a guitar online can be tricky. Unlike a lot of online shopping – guitars are usually something you want to play ahead of time to get a feel for them.
So what do we do?
If you want more details and guidance, keep reading…
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(Note: If you just want the recommendations, scroll to the bottom of the page)
I often get asked: “What is the best way to teach yourself guitar?” or “How can you learn how to play the guitar by yourself?”
They are good questions, but I usually stay away from answering these questions because the answers are so specific depending on each individual’s goals. There are a lot of factors to consider: electric guitar vs. acoustic guitar; what kind of music do you want to learn, how much time can you devote to practice, etc.
Obviously, having a private teacher will give you a leg up on any of the services listed below…. but not everyone has the time or budget for private guitar lessons.
On the other hand, YouTube is an awesome source of free lessons… but there are a lot of gaps, it’s hard to know what is quality, and it can be frustrating and time consuming to search for specific guitar lessons or tutorials (and that’s assuming you actually know what you’re looking for).
To make things harder, even just Googling something like: “beginner guitar lessons” is incredibly overwhelming. You have ads for guitar-related services, random youtube videos, and a few guitar-related websites… it’s hard to tell what’s good and what’s just spammy crap.
So without any kind of teacher, this is how to teach yourself guitar…
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Whenever I give beginner guitar lessons I usually let the student decide what we’re going to learn. It’s usually more fun when they pick their own songs.
However, sometimes they struggle to come up with a song to learn, or they’ll ask me “what’s the best beginner guitar song” or “what is an easy song to learn on the guitar.”
I don’t really like answering these questions because most often: The song you know (and like) is the best song to learn.
But I understand that it can be tough to chose and (in all honesty) some songs just don’t translate that well to guitar… especially for beginners.
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If you or your kids are planning on taking any sort of private music lessons, you should probably consider the following before you make any sort of commitment.
Here are a few things that I’d suggest considering before selecting a music teacher….
Question: How do I Play the Melody of a Song on the Guitar?
I know a bit about scale pattern, music theory and strumming, but when I try to play melody of a familiar song. It takes me hours or a day to find the correct notes through trial and error. One of my friends listens to a song for the first time and play…What should I need to improve?
I’m really impressed that you’re pursuing this… most guitar students aren’t this committed.
Bad news: This is hard to do.
Good news: Here’s a way to make it easier…
Here’s what to do…
Just one. Make it a simple song that you know REALLY well (Happy Birthday, Jingle Bells, the Star Wars theme song).
I know that you’re really excited.
I know that you don’t really want to learn the melody to Jingle Bells.
I also know that if you’re struggling… you need to start with something simple.
Just try plucking out a simple melody. Don’t read music. Don’t use tab. Just your guitar and your ear.
You should be able to easily identify it.
You should be able to hum it in your sleep.
You should NOT be able to play it yet… just know the sound.
There is no use in attempting to play a song that your don’t really know (at least not in these early attempts).
Find the root note of the song OR find the first note of the song. This is the first tricky part.
You need to match the the note/pitch.
This is where a lot of guitarists struggle (especially if you have no experience or musical background). I’ve found the best way (for me and my students) is to sing along with the first note of the song and try to match that pitch/note on your guitar. Be patient and don’t rush.
Once you’ve found the first note (i.e. your starting point), turn off the song. Don’t try to learn/play while the song runs at the same time… it’ll just mess you up. Instead, start plucking it out by memory (remember tip #2… you gotta have this thing memorized). Be patient. Every so often turn the song on and compare your work with the recorded song.
Use deliberate practice. I’ve written A LOT about deliberate practice here. Basically, if you want to get better, you need to practice properly. This is where most amateur/bedroom guitarists get it wrong. Practice with specific intent. It should be painful (for your brain) and focused.
Repeat. After you’ve mastered your song. Pick another. And then another. The best part about this process is that it gets easier. It’s a skill that you develop and that comes naturally. It doesn’t have to take years or thousands of hours… but it does take time and it does take work.
(Jake Posko does Online Guitar Lessons and Coaching as well as in-home lessons in the Annapolis, Maryland area including: Annapolis, Edgewater, Severna Park, Pasadena, Crownsville, Arnold and Kent Island, inquire about lessons by e-mailing him at jake@jakeposko.com).
(photo credit: Ray Che)
(This question was originally posted on Quora)
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Am I too old to play the guitar?
Should adults even bother to learn to play the guitar?
About half of my students are adults, and the majority of the subscribers to my email list and participants in my online guitar courses are adults.
None of them are too old to play the guitar. And I’m extremely happy they decided to pick up the guitar and start to learn (even as a grown up).
That doesn’t mean that there aren’t a special set of challenges that adults face.
There are tons of reasons why it can be difficult to learn the guitar, but for adults, two reasons stand out:
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A while back, I was having trouble trying to sound better while playing the guitar – I had extra trouble trying to make my acoustic guitar sound better . I felt like I knew the basics on the guitar. But still, it seemed like my guitar playing sounded amateurish. Beginner guitar players sounded better than I did even though I knew more than them and I had been playing longer. Their playing just sounded better.
I knew something was off – but wasn’t quite sure what it was…..
Until I discovered something that immediately made me sound ten times better.
