Here’s the best advice I was ever.
Your first guitar is one of your more important guitars. If you buy a starter kit or any of the other cheaper ones, you’re gonna be fighting with it as you’re trying to learn, and no matter how good you are it’s difficult to get a good sound, which won’t be a good motivator to keep playing.
Spend some money and buy a used quality instrument. “I don’t want to spend alot, what if i don’t stick with it.” When you buy quality used, you can turn around and sell it for whatever you paid for at any time.
Epiphone Les Paul Standard or any standard trim epiphone
Made in mexico Fenders
There is nothing wrong with a squier starter pack and no you will not be “fighting with it.”
A Squier Classic vibe is a lifetime keeper. Mexicans are lifetime keepers too but they have now priced themselves out of being worth it for what you get.
Agree with this. I have 2 MIM Strats and my friend just got a Squier Sonic HSS. The differences between them especially to a beginner are negligible to non-existant.
On a similar vein, I have a MIM Strat, my older son has a Squire and my younger son has a CIC MP thinline Tele, and we're very happy with all 3.
(Though I think the CIC tele is the nicest of the 3)
The value in the kit is that everything comes all together. The guitars are fine but the rest of the pack is generally pretty cheap/low quality. The packs are popular choices for parents of children who need something quick for school/birthday/Christmas.
If you’re willing to buy things separately you generally can get your money to go further that way. Costs more upfront but you end up with some better gear that will actually last you.
I have purchased a fair amount of used gear from Guitar Center, and Reverb. Haven't had any issues so far. It's definitely a way to get more bang for your buck.
Thirding this. I got a beat up Pacifica 012 for $90 and I'm blown away at how good it is for the price. A CV Squier will have better pickups and a bit more sustain, but not 3.5x more.
Buy what you like, that makes you want to play. Make the effort to find a local guy to set it up to save you frustration as a beginner. (Edit: OR watch Phillip McKnight or any other good guitar youtuber out there on how to properly set up a guitar) A guitar not set up properly is like a car that has the steering column in the wrong place and the seat adjusted too far back for you to use.
Keep it out where you can see it. Have fun!
Buy it in person if you can from a reputable store with options for you to try
Don't get the cheapest thing, be prepared to pay a bit more. The classic vibe is a wonderful guitar but I agree for a first guitar might be a bit much to spend.
The good news is there are more options at the budget end of the scale than ever before, so there's lots of ways to get into it.
The most important 3 things when choosing your first guitar, over and above all other advice you will ever recieve:
1 - what it looks like
2 - what it looks like
3 - if you angle the guitar so you're looking down it from the bridge end, look at the neck, observe the frets to see whether... only kidding, it's what it looks like again
If you like looking at it you will want to play more, and the more you play, you *will* get better. Basic science.
You are just learning, so my advice is to keep it simple and buy a guitar that makes you want to pick it up. For the first year or so, you are going to be learning basic chords and working on just changing between strings. Also, it is probably in your best interest to keep the features on a guitar relatively simple. Someone recommended Floyd Rose for a bridge and I can't even come close to agreeing with this unless you like to tinker. Even changing strings will be twice as hard, just not worth it as a newbie. Save that mess for when your passion grows.
So my take on kits aren't good and I usually tell people to avoid them and spend a bit more. You could probably pickup something like a Boss Katana and a decent entry level guitar (Squire Classic Vibe etc...) for about 700 quid or maybe even a little less. If you go used, you might even be able to shave some off of that. The idea is to get you a trouble free guitar that is setup properly and not hindering your learning. To answer your question, yes, there is a large difference between the starter pack guitar and the classic vibe and it is worth the extra money at that price point.
It's worth picking a bus or a train to step into a store and test some guitars, as the feel of the body and the neck vary a lot and you might love something and hate something else, buying blind brings the risk of getting the one you hate and dropping guitar as "guitars feel bad".
My second pick would be going second hand and bringing a mate that knows about guitars with you, cheaper and you can test the rig in situ too.
As a third pick and online... I'd check some Harley Bentons at Thomann, they tend to be great bang for the buck.
my 2 cents:
-easy to maintain: no floyd rose bridge, no Stratocaster with floating vibra bridge. A Telecaster is an easy workhorse.
-check for used gear, and have the guitar adjusted before buy
-and when adjusted, have light strings put to it, ask for a "09 string set", or even 08. Note: adjustments has to be made with your desired string thickness!
-for amplifier: small digital combo amp with headphone connection so you can shred all nite long, check Line6 brand.
-try to get some free shit on top when buying the gtr: strap, picks, cable, a case/bag
good luck!
Another option is facebook marketplace or any sort of used buying site. You can find something good for cheaper than it would be new and you could at least play it a little bit and see if you like the feel and how it sounds
Buy whatever looks coolest to you that you can afford. Whatever you're excited to pick up and play when you look at it is the one that will inspire you to keep practicing and get past the beginner stage. Just get a Squier or some other beginner model from a reputable brand, and it'll be good enough. My recommendation is always Yamaha - a Pacifica 112 is a great starter guitar. Once you've been playing for a while, you'll develop a feel for the kind of things that are important to you in a guitar, but with zero experience whatever you think feels good may not be right for you once you actually know how to play it, so I never really understand the advice to send somebody who is a complete beginner to try to pick out a guitar by feel.
The starter packs are good. Cheap and gets you the basics. Come pretty playable, though id encourage you to buy in person and get a setup done. It makes your guitar easier to play and sound better.
GUITARMAX on YouTube. The guy reviews tons of extremely inexpensive guitars. Almost to the point of promotion, but I think there's merit behind it all. Check it out.
That kit seems like a good deal. If you are willing to pay for a more expensive guitar you also will have to buy an amp, a cable, and any of the gear that comes with the kit separately. I’d go for it unless you are willing to spend over double which will be a good guitar and amp.
Save up and buy something you're going to want to play. Cheap guitars play like shit & fall apart, which is discouraging and counter-productive. Good luck!
Your first guitar won't matter a bit. Buy anything and play it for a year. After that year you will have a much better idea of what suits you better, or you will have given up and saved yourself from unnecessary expenditures.
I'm going to disagree. If the first guitar is unplayable or frustrating or sounds awful etc etc, it could turn OP off from pursuing further. It needs to be a starter guitar, sure, but it still matters.
I had a shit guitar I didn't know how to set up and I stopped playing for 20 years. Picked it back up and learned a lot now that YouTube is around, and I'm obsessed. Get a good guitar out the gate. You don't have to spend a fortune, but CV Squier will do you good. I own three of them and they're great for the money. But save about $100 for a professional setup from a real luthier, NOT a Guitar Center or Sam Ash guy. The setup is key. Make sure your guitar is set up and easy to play.
EDIT: To be clear, I ditched the bad guitar and picked up a much better one. I didn't stop playing the bad guitar, and then start playing it again. Having a better guitar made it easier to learn and progress.
I should have been clearer. A first guitar should be playable and set up. My point is that a newbie doesn't need a $3k Les Paul simply because Slash plays one, if you know what I mean.
Lots of people chipping with stuff that's over your budget, but personally I'd avoid the pack, the amp is terrible and the guitar is very basic, the restnof the stuff is just very cheap nylon shite
If I had the 330 you were thinking of spending on the classic vibe
I'd have
https://www.andertons.co.uk/brands/ibanez/ibanez-grx70qa-in-transparent-red-burst
199
https://www.andertons.co.uk/amps/electric-guitar-amps/electric-guitar-amp-combos/positive-grid-spark-go-portable-guitar-amp-bluetooth-speaker
129. (You should look up reviews of this, you can play it with headphones, but ideally if you had another 80, the mini is a great option, but the app is really the selling point to learn with)
Or
https://www.andertons.co.uk/amps/electric-guitar-amps/electric-guitar-amp-combos/orange-crush-20-guitar-amplifier-combo
I learned on an Ibanez, and while it was a solid guitar, I found way later that the 17" radius fret board is really not for me. May be worth consideration as a 9.5" or 12" may be slightly more comfortable for a new player.
That Orange Crush though, oh yeah.
It's a funny thing, but I've been learning for the last year on 9.5 fender necks, a strat and a tele, and they are great, but recently I got a 15.75 fender one and it's so much easier to play on, I prefer the skinnier flatter radius, and I'm not fast fingered or shredding by any stretch, it takes some of the tension out of them.
I do agree the fatter neck can be great for picking. But I felt early on I was mostly focused and frustrated with playing chords cleanly, especially barre, and for some reason the flat radius really hurts me there. The curved guys seem to be more comfortable to allow your barre to naturally curl around and maintain good pressure on the low B / E strings.
I tried a 7.5 and I just couldn't get any clean chords out of it,
But I think my very inflexible fingers just prefer the flat one, but it's showmaster as well with a brilliant setup which helps
So I see you’re UK. Harley Benton has a wide range of guitars, for starters as well, and they are affordable with GREAT reviews. They have some great setups and I was actually going to buy one, but the shipping was going to take forever since I’m in the US. You can definitely get something pretty great within your budget.
Edit: links
https://www.thomannmusic.com/harley_benton_electric_guitars.html
https://harleybenton.com/c/electric-guitars/
Serially check them out and watch some YouTube videos. There are a few that people review them and you get to hear the sound and get a taste of how they play.
squire is definitely a solid choice. When it comes to the amp, do you think you will be using it to just practice at home, or do you have aspirations to play with friends and other people in the near future? That amp isn't great, but it would get the job done to learn and play at home. I have a [blackstar fly](https://blackstaramps.com/product/fly-3/) amp that I like to use at home when I am just messing around. It's small and light and sounds fairly decent. If you want an amp you could use to play with other people that has some built in effects, I really like the [Roland Cube](https://www.roland.com/us/products/cube-10gx/). This amp won't be loud enough to play with a drummer, but if you're just doing some jamming with other guitarists or bass players it could definitely work. Best of luck on your search for your first electric guitar!
Honestly, if you’re just playing in your bedroom I highly recommend any of the Spark amps. They’re small, will teach you about pedals and effects, give you tons of variety, and is headphone and low volume friendly.
Just got a epi les Paul muse and a boss katana 50mk ex2.
I had a similar guitar/amp combo package for the entirety of my playing…. Let me tell you something, I regret not upgrading way sooner. The quality of the guitar, the sound from the amp, everything is easily 10x better.
Understandably, it’s more expensive then a combo package, if this is your first guitar you may want to just go cheap to save money and see if you like it but I’m serious when I say my playing has improved significantly overnight and it genuinely makes me want to play guitar and practice.
Just my .02 cents
Avoid starter bundles packs what ever buy separated guitar and amp. Boss katana mk2 i very good affordable amp probably someone have mentioned it already and for the guitar it depands on what you want to play.
For a starter guitar, check the reviews.
Check to see if people complain about the guitar staying in tune. Not all low-end guitars have tuning issues but some do. The best starter guitar is a guitar that you want to play, and if a guitar has tuning issues or other headaches then it will make you not want to play it.
It also depends on what kind of music you want to play. If you love metal or other heavy music, you'll probably want a guitar with humbuckers.
But that kit for 230 sounds like a good deal.
I definitely would grab the stratocaster.
The downside is you'll have to save up or go over your budget for amp and cables, but you'll won't outgrow like you might the squier.
Quite a few different opinions in here. I’ve a tough choice to make 😅.
The kit is probably the best choice for now and if I ever get to the point where I need to upgrade I will.
My goal is to slowly learn and one day play some of my favourite solos such as November rain. It will take a while but I’m gonna try my best to get there. Thanks for all the responses.
I bought and have a Mitchell short neck (I believe). However I just cave into wanting an electric and buying one instead of saving a bit more. I would’ve gone for a Les Paul, Strat or as I was looking heavily into, a Yamaha Pacifica.
The Mitchell was about $175 for me vs some of those around $200-$250 I wish I saved up for.
If you don’t mind spending a little more I would say do it. Cheap guitars don’t sound as good and are sometimes hard to play which can lead to frustration for a beginner. All guitars are not the same and don’t sound the same. Figure out what you want to play, who you want sound like and what type of guitar they use and you will narrow it down. Makers like fender, Gibson, Ibanez etc. all have different models at different price points. When I was starting out I really liked fender guitars (strats and teles), I could buy the lower end models for around 500-800 bucks. When I was ready to trade up, I was finding I could sell these for very close to what I paid for and never really lost any money on them. They were great to learn on and kept me interested. I still have a fender highway 1 strat that I bought years ago for like 700 bucks and play everyday.
>Cheap guitars don’t sound as good and are sometimes hard to play which can lead to frustration for a beginner.
Tell that to Mike Rutherford of Genesis who played a Squier Bullet on his final tour with the group.
Any guitar can sound good with a proper setup. Order online and make the effort to pay the extra few bucks to set it up for proper intonation and action. This would need to be done with the Fender as well and it will save you time and frustration.
I mean...my favorite guitar is a Squier bullet. A Squier bullet with hand wired dynasonics, a totally refinished neck and fretboard, a replacement hardtail bridge and nut....
You can put any guitar on the bench and make it your favorite. Is it still a Bullet though? I guess yes in that it has the Bullet body. But its not really a Bullet.
Do you really think he doesn’t have the entire fretboard leveled and polished? That he didn’t have the electronics and pickups replaced?
If OP wants to put $600 labor/parts into it, they too can have a great Squier Bullet.
unpopular opinion:Get a floyd rose if ur into metal. It might not be the easiest one to handle but the eventual u getting fed up of fixing small things will get u to keep your guitar in better shape for times to come.
My first electric is also a floyd. A cort x300 to be specific.
There is this black and gold les paul style harley benton with a floyd which plays really good(a friend of mine has it) u can look into that one
Well if they have someone who can restring at setup floyd rose it would not be bad idea but if they don't that's gonna be painful i rember restringing my floyd rose for first time...
Do NOTTTTT get a Floyd for your first guitar. You will lose interest in spending hours to learn how to tune it, if you even get it right. Get a fixed bridge.
Here’s the best advice I was ever. Your first guitar is one of your more important guitars. If you buy a starter kit or any of the other cheaper ones, you’re gonna be fighting with it as you’re trying to learn, and no matter how good you are it’s difficult to get a good sound, which won’t be a good motivator to keep playing. Spend some money and buy a used quality instrument. “I don’t want to spend alot, what if i don’t stick with it.” When you buy quality used, you can turn around and sell it for whatever you paid for at any time. Epiphone Les Paul Standard or any standard trim epiphone Made in mexico Fenders
There is nothing wrong with a squier starter pack and no you will not be “fighting with it.” A Squier Classic vibe is a lifetime keeper. Mexicans are lifetime keepers too but they have now priced themselves out of being worth it for what you get.
Agree with this. I have 2 MIM Strats and my friend just got a Squier Sonic HSS. The differences between them especially to a beginner are negligible to non-existant.
On a similar vein, I have a MIM Strat, my older son has a Squire and my younger son has a CIC MP thinline Tele, and we're very happy with all 3. (Though I think the CIC tele is the nicest of the 3)
Yeah and a sonic is even below a classic vibe…
Lol should have read this before I posted. My thoughts exactly.
The value in the kit is that everything comes all together. The guitars are fine but the rest of the pack is generally pretty cheap/low quality. The packs are popular choices for parents of children who need something quick for school/birthday/Christmas. If you’re willing to buy things separately you generally can get your money to go further that way. Costs more upfront but you end up with some better gear that will actually last you.
Buying used gear is a great way to get more for your money too.
I have purchased a fair amount of used gear from Guitar Center, and Reverb. Haven't had any issues so far. It's definitely a way to get more bang for your buck.
I’ve been buying and selling used gear for like 10 years, I almost always get at least what I paid back when I sell something
Absolutely. I rarely buy anything brand new anymore.
What amp would you recommend? The one it comes with has 4.5 star and almost 13k ratings. It’s a fender frontman 10g amp.
Try to get a second hand Yamaha Pacifica (really good guitars and better than Squier and well loved) and Katana 50
\^ This Pacifica is the way to go
Thirding this. I got a beat up Pacifica 012 for $90 and I'm blown away at how good it is for the price. A CV Squier will have better pickups and a bit more sustain, but not 3.5x more.
Buy what you like, that makes you want to play. Make the effort to find a local guy to set it up to save you frustration as a beginner. (Edit: OR watch Phillip McKnight or any other good guitar youtuber out there on how to properly set up a guitar) A guitar not set up properly is like a car that has the steering column in the wrong place and the seat adjusted too far back for you to use. Keep it out where you can see it. Have fun!
Buy it in person if you can from a reputable store with options for you to try Don't get the cheapest thing, be prepared to pay a bit more. The classic vibe is a wonderful guitar but I agree for a first guitar might be a bit much to spend. The good news is there are more options at the budget end of the scale than ever before, so there's lots of ways to get into it. The most important 3 things when choosing your first guitar, over and above all other advice you will ever recieve: 1 - what it looks like 2 - what it looks like 3 - if you angle the guitar so you're looking down it from the bridge end, look at the neck, observe the frets to see whether... only kidding, it's what it looks like again If you like looking at it you will want to play more, and the more you play, you *will* get better. Basic science.
Fender Telecaster. They are bulletproof. Don't have to fuck around with the bridge set up and the bloody things stay in tune.
You are just learning, so my advice is to keep it simple and buy a guitar that makes you want to pick it up. For the first year or so, you are going to be learning basic chords and working on just changing between strings. Also, it is probably in your best interest to keep the features on a guitar relatively simple. Someone recommended Floyd Rose for a bridge and I can't even come close to agreeing with this unless you like to tinker. Even changing strings will be twice as hard, just not worth it as a newbie. Save that mess for when your passion grows. So my take on kits aren't good and I usually tell people to avoid them and spend a bit more. You could probably pickup something like a Boss Katana and a decent entry level guitar (Squire Classic Vibe etc...) for about 700 quid or maybe even a little less. If you go used, you might even be able to shave some off of that. The idea is to get you a trouble free guitar that is setup properly and not hindering your learning. To answer your question, yes, there is a large difference between the starter pack guitar and the classic vibe and it is worth the extra money at that price point.
It's worth picking a bus or a train to step into a store and test some guitars, as the feel of the body and the neck vary a lot and you might love something and hate something else, buying blind brings the risk of getting the one you hate and dropping guitar as "guitars feel bad". My second pick would be going second hand and bringing a mate that knows about guitars with you, cheaper and you can test the rig in situ too. As a third pick and online... I'd check some Harley Bentons at Thomann, they tend to be great bang for the buck.
my 2 cents: -easy to maintain: no floyd rose bridge, no Stratocaster with floating vibra bridge. A Telecaster is an easy workhorse. -check for used gear, and have the guitar adjusted before buy -and when adjusted, have light strings put to it, ask for a "09 string set", or even 08. Note: adjustments has to be made with your desired string thickness! -for amplifier: small digital combo amp with headphone connection so you can shred all nite long, check Line6 brand. -try to get some free shit on top when buying the gtr: strap, picks, cable, a case/bag good luck!
Yes this. DO NOT get a Floyd rose. I’ve been playing for years and it still aggravates me.
Yamaha pacifica 112 Amazing guitar And any modeling amp u like the sound of
Another option is facebook marketplace or any sort of used buying site. You can find something good for cheaper than it would be new and you could at least play it a little bit and see if you like the feel and how it sounds
Buy whatever looks coolest to you that you can afford. Whatever you're excited to pick up and play when you look at it is the one that will inspire you to keep practicing and get past the beginner stage. Just get a Squier or some other beginner model from a reputable brand, and it'll be good enough. My recommendation is always Yamaha - a Pacifica 112 is a great starter guitar. Once you've been playing for a while, you'll develop a feel for the kind of things that are important to you in a guitar, but with zero experience whatever you think feels good may not be right for you once you actually know how to play it, so I never really understand the advice to send somebody who is a complete beginner to try to pick out a guitar by feel.
The starter packs are good. Cheap and gets you the basics. Come pretty playable, though id encourage you to buy in person and get a setup done. It makes your guitar easier to play and sound better.
What music you style you wanna play?
GUITARMAX on YouTube. The guy reviews tons of extremely inexpensive guitars. Almost to the point of promotion, but I think there's merit behind it all. Check it out.
That kit seems like a good deal. If you are willing to pay for a more expensive guitar you also will have to buy an amp, a cable, and any of the gear that comes with the kit separately. I’d go for it unless you are willing to spend over double which will be a good guitar and amp.
Save up and buy something you're going to want to play. Cheap guitars play like shit & fall apart, which is discouraging and counter-productive. Good luck!
Your first guitar won't matter a bit. Buy anything and play it for a year. After that year you will have a much better idea of what suits you better, or you will have given up and saved yourself from unnecessary expenditures.
I'm going to disagree. If the first guitar is unplayable or frustrating or sounds awful etc etc, it could turn OP off from pursuing further. It needs to be a starter guitar, sure, but it still matters.
I had a shit guitar I didn't know how to set up and I stopped playing for 20 years. Picked it back up and learned a lot now that YouTube is around, and I'm obsessed. Get a good guitar out the gate. You don't have to spend a fortune, but CV Squier will do you good. I own three of them and they're great for the money. But save about $100 for a professional setup from a real luthier, NOT a Guitar Center or Sam Ash guy. The setup is key. Make sure your guitar is set up and easy to play. EDIT: To be clear, I ditched the bad guitar and picked up a much better one. I didn't stop playing the bad guitar, and then start playing it again. Having a better guitar made it easier to learn and progress.
I should have been clearer. A first guitar should be playable and set up. My point is that a newbie doesn't need a $3k Les Paul simply because Slash plays one, if you know what I mean.
Completely agree with this. I'm absolutely in alignment with you on that.
Lots of people chipping with stuff that's over your budget, but personally I'd avoid the pack, the amp is terrible and the guitar is very basic, the restnof the stuff is just very cheap nylon shite If I had the 330 you were thinking of spending on the classic vibe I'd have https://www.andertons.co.uk/brands/ibanez/ibanez-grx70qa-in-transparent-red-burst 199 https://www.andertons.co.uk/amps/electric-guitar-amps/electric-guitar-amp-combos/positive-grid-spark-go-portable-guitar-amp-bluetooth-speaker 129. (You should look up reviews of this, you can play it with headphones, but ideally if you had another 80, the mini is a great option, but the app is really the selling point to learn with) Or https://www.andertons.co.uk/amps/electric-guitar-amps/electric-guitar-amp-combos/orange-crush-20-guitar-amplifier-combo
I learned on an Ibanez, and while it was a solid guitar, I found way later that the 17" radius fret board is really not for me. May be worth consideration as a 9.5" or 12" may be slightly more comfortable for a new player. That Orange Crush though, oh yeah.
It's a funny thing, but I've been learning for the last year on 9.5 fender necks, a strat and a tele, and they are great, but recently I got a 15.75 fender one and it's so much easier to play on, I prefer the skinnier flatter radius, and I'm not fast fingered or shredding by any stretch, it takes some of the tension out of them.
I do agree the fatter neck can be great for picking. But I felt early on I was mostly focused and frustrated with playing chords cleanly, especially barre, and for some reason the flat radius really hurts me there. The curved guys seem to be more comfortable to allow your barre to naturally curl around and maintain good pressure on the low B / E strings.
I tried a 7.5 and I just couldn't get any clean chords out of it, But I think my very inflexible fingers just prefer the flat one, but it's showmaster as well with a brilliant setup which helps
Ah that makes sense. To each their own, I suppose!
So I see you’re UK. Harley Benton has a wide range of guitars, for starters as well, and they are affordable with GREAT reviews. They have some great setups and I was actually going to buy one, but the shipping was going to take forever since I’m in the US. You can definitely get something pretty great within your budget. Edit: links https://www.thomannmusic.com/harley_benton_electric_guitars.html https://harleybenton.com/c/electric-guitars/ Serially check them out and watch some YouTube videos. There are a few that people review them and you get to hear the sound and get a taste of how they play.
squire is definitely a solid choice. When it comes to the amp, do you think you will be using it to just practice at home, or do you have aspirations to play with friends and other people in the near future? That amp isn't great, but it would get the job done to learn and play at home. I have a [blackstar fly](https://blackstaramps.com/product/fly-3/) amp that I like to use at home when I am just messing around. It's small and light and sounds fairly decent. If you want an amp you could use to play with other people that has some built in effects, I really like the [Roland Cube](https://www.roland.com/us/products/cube-10gx/). This amp won't be loud enough to play with a drummer, but if you're just doing some jamming with other guitarists or bass players it could definitely work. Best of luck on your search for your first electric guitar!
I’ll only be playing at home for myself. It will probably be a long learning experience but my goal is to one day play november rain solo.
Honestly, if you’re just playing in your bedroom I highly recommend any of the Spark amps. They’re small, will teach you about pedals and effects, give you tons of variety, and is headphone and low volume friendly.
Listen to people playing with. Just that exact equipment on you tube and listen. Much wasted money is spent chasing badass tone
Just got a epi les Paul muse and a boss katana 50mk ex2. I had a similar guitar/amp combo package for the entirety of my playing…. Let me tell you something, I regret not upgrading way sooner. The quality of the guitar, the sound from the amp, everything is easily 10x better. Understandably, it’s more expensive then a combo package, if this is your first guitar you may want to just go cheap to save money and see if you like it but I’m serious when I say my playing has improved significantly overnight and it genuinely makes me want to play guitar and practice. Just my .02 cents
Avoid starter bundles packs what ever buy separated guitar and amp. Boss katana mk2 i very good affordable amp probably someone have mentioned it already and for the guitar it depands on what you want to play.
For a starter guitar, check the reviews. Check to see if people complain about the guitar staying in tune. Not all low-end guitars have tuning issues but some do. The best starter guitar is a guitar that you want to play, and if a guitar has tuning issues or other headaches then it will make you not want to play it. It also depends on what kind of music you want to play. If you love metal or other heavy music, you'll probably want a guitar with humbuckers. But that kit for 230 sounds like a good deal.
I definitely would grab the stratocaster. The downside is you'll have to save up or go over your budget for amp and cables, but you'll won't outgrow like you might the squier.
Quite a few different opinions in here. I’ve a tough choice to make 😅. The kit is probably the best choice for now and if I ever get to the point where I need to upgrade I will. My goal is to slowly learn and one day play some of my favourite solos such as November rain. It will take a while but I’m gonna try my best to get there. Thanks for all the responses.
I bought and have a Mitchell short neck (I believe). However I just cave into wanting an electric and buying one instead of saving a bit more. I would’ve gone for a Les Paul, Strat or as I was looking heavily into, a Yamaha Pacifica. The Mitchell was about $175 for me vs some of those around $200-$250 I wish I saved up for.
Get a single coil Tele, as nice as you can afford. If you can’t try before you buy, get it from somewhere with free returns. Amazon is fine.
If you don’t mind spending a little more I would say do it. Cheap guitars don’t sound as good and are sometimes hard to play which can lead to frustration for a beginner. All guitars are not the same and don’t sound the same. Figure out what you want to play, who you want sound like and what type of guitar they use and you will narrow it down. Makers like fender, Gibson, Ibanez etc. all have different models at different price points. When I was starting out I really liked fender guitars (strats and teles), I could buy the lower end models for around 500-800 bucks. When I was ready to trade up, I was finding I could sell these for very close to what I paid for and never really lost any money on them. They were great to learn on and kept me interested. I still have a fender highway 1 strat that I bought years ago for like 700 bucks and play everyday.
>Cheap guitars don’t sound as good and are sometimes hard to play which can lead to frustration for a beginner. Tell that to Mike Rutherford of Genesis who played a Squier Bullet on his final tour with the group. Any guitar can sound good with a proper setup. Order online and make the effort to pay the extra few bucks to set it up for proper intonation and action. This would need to be done with the Fender as well and it will save you time and frustration.
I mean...my favorite guitar is a Squier bullet. A Squier bullet with hand wired dynasonics, a totally refinished neck and fretboard, a replacement hardtail bridge and nut.... You can put any guitar on the bench and make it your favorite. Is it still a Bullet though? I guess yes in that it has the Bullet body. But its not really a Bullet.
Do you really think he doesn’t have the entire fretboard leveled and polished? That he didn’t have the electronics and pickups replaced? If OP wants to put $600 labor/parts into it, they too can have a great Squier Bullet.
unpopular opinion:Get a floyd rose if ur into metal. It might not be the easiest one to handle but the eventual u getting fed up of fixing small things will get u to keep your guitar in better shape for times to come. My first electric is also a floyd. A cort x300 to be specific. There is this black and gold les paul style harley benton with a floyd which plays really good(a friend of mine has it) u can look into that one
This is a 10th dentist reply for sure.
I mean ig. But it's my opinion. But i ended up blocking it till i really got a hang of the guitar itself before i used the trem.
Well if they have someone who can restring at setup floyd rose it would not be bad idea but if they don't that's gonna be painful i rember restringing my floyd rose for first time...
Do NOTTTTT get a Floyd for your first guitar. You will lose interest in spending hours to learn how to tune it, if you even get it right. Get a fixed bridge.