***The Official Guitar Thread***

[a1ex2001]

Get a used Baja Tele and then live happily ever after?

It is a tempting option they are pretty decent value second hand.

 

[Raymond Lin]

It is a tempting option they are pretty decent value second hand.

Roadworn tele is another option, they are custom shop designed made in Mexico. There is still no new replacement for them after they were discontinued a couple years ago. People say they were taking too much sale from the Custom Shop being pretty much the same spec, just much cheaper. It’s what my Strat is.

 

[uncle_rufus]

I'd never buy a pre-worn guitar, just not my thing - I don't worry too much about my guitars getting little dings and scratches and don't think wear looks bad at all, but it feels like buying pre-worn jeans which I also don't do

I'd quite like a double white bound Tele in Lake Placid Blue with a rosewood fingerboard, but I'm in no rush

 

[a1ex2001]

I'd never buy a pre-worn guitar, just not my thing - I don't worry too much about my guitars getting little dings and scratches and don't think wear looks bad at all, but it feels like buying pre-worn jeans which I also don't do

I'd quite like a double white bound Tele in Lake Placid Blue with a rosewood fingerboard, but I'm in no rush

 

[a1ex2001]

I wouldn’t buy most guitars as relics just something about a beat up Tele talks to me it is a pointless aesthetic thing but most people buying a guitar don’t just buy what they need!

 

[Raymond Lin]

I'd never buy a pre-worn guitar, just not my thing - I don't worry too much about my guitars getting little dings and scratches and don't think wear looks bad at all, but it feels like buying pre-worn jeans which I also don't do

I'd quite like a double white bound Tele in Lake Placid Blue with a rosewood fingerboard, but I'm in no rush

sometimes the relic ones are the only ones with the spec that you want, annoyingly.

6 point bridge
Nitro lacquer
RW board
7.25” fretboard
Satin neck
Olympic white

 

[SexyGreyFox]

The music should turn you on....The urge to play everyday whether it be a crappy Spanish cheese grater or a top line Martin.

Sounds like a nice fairytale but you wouldn't see Tommy Emmanuel on a cheese grater.
If you want to play better it's best to have the correct tools and a cheese grater isn't going to cut it.

 

[easyrider]

Sounds like a nice fairytale but you wouldn't see Tommy Emmanuel on a cheese grater.
If you want to play better it's best to have the correct tools and a cheese grater isn't going to cut it.

You’ve totally missed the point....

My point was many who start off use the guitar they have as an excuse....not to play it....Clapton started on a crappy guitar, Lennon, McCartney, Harrison, countless others all started to play on crap...

I started on a crappy Hohner Strat....did I give up ? No ....once I bought a decent guitar I could already play it....

Suggesting you can’t play or learn on an Encore Strat copy is BS...or a squire or whatever....

Even you have posted in this thread that you went to a gig and the awesome guitar player you were watching was using a crappy squire Strat...

Pete Townsend first guitar

First guitar
(Christmas 1956)
Christmas 1956:

• £3 Hyra guitar, “from [his] grandmother Denny like those found on the wall in Spanish restaurants.”

 

[SexyGreyFox]

You’ve totally missed the point....

and you've missed the point, you start off on a crappy guitar and hopefully get a new one.
Alex above has already got guitars and he wants something better for him, if he doesn't like the Strat shape and it doesn't turn him on then he isn't going to continue with it.
Don't talk to me as though I haven't been gigging and teaching for 50 years please, I would never do it to you with anything you are experienced in.
It's very hard to motivate somebody on a crap guitar, you can show them chords and scales but put a decent guitar in their hands they realise very quickly how good it can be, how much better it can be and something to aspire to.
This happened with Clapton, Lennon, McCartney me and you among millions of others, those who carry on always end up with something better because they have tried other musicians gear but you certainly wouldn't continue if that was all that you had got.
These guys were playing on their crap guitars but were visiting music shops and trying out proper ones so knew what they could end up with, absolutely none of them would be thinking "Is this as good as it gets?".

And the crappy guitar in question was a Squire Strat used by a SRV tribute band, it was one of those 1 in a million where it sounded and played better than his two proper SRV's and cost him £30 from a second hand shop. It was far from being crappy, it's a collectors piece.

 

[easyrider]

and you've missed the point, you start off on a crappy guitar and hopefully get a new one.

That’s what I said...I did just that....but the crappy Hohner I had didn’t stop me from practicing 12 hours a day until I could afford something else...

My post was that many people in my experience use the crap guitar as an excuse not to play....Clapton once said “if you can walk past a guitar in your house and not have the urge to play it then maybe guitar is not for you...“

There is some truth to this...I play my guitar daily without fail...I have one leaned up on my sofa next to me right now...I have one in my office at work....I need to play...

Alex above has already got guitars and he wants something better for him, if he doesn't like the Strat shape and it doesn't turn him on then he isn't going to continue with it.

I doubt he would if it was a £2000 LP or £2000 Tele either....

Don't talk to me as though I haven't been gigging and teaching for 50 years please, I would never do it to you with anything you are experienced in.

Your example of Tommy Emanuel using a cheese grater was BS though....That’s not what I meant and you know it...Why would a virtuoso use a cheese grater? could Tommy make a cheese grater sing? Probably.

It's very hard to motivate somebody on a crap guitar, you can show them chords and scales but put a decent guitar in their hands they realise very quickly how good it can be, how much better it can be and something to aspire to.

Here lies the problem...Motivation does not come from the teacher...it comes from the individual...the desire to want to learn and play...

An Encore Strat with a decent setup would be no different than a Mexican Fender Strat for learning on...Hell I had an electric for three years and never used an amp...it was never plugged in...I just played G C D chords over and over again for hours on end until I could do it without thinking and with my eyes shut...I then learned a Barre Chord and worked out the different chords all over the neck using the same finger position....for months and months and months and hours and hours and hours.....a teacher can’t teach you effort and resilience and the absolute desire to succeed to a level you want to get to....sure he\she can show you scales but you have to learn those scales and play them again and again and again and again until they are performed without thinking...

This happened with Clapton, Lennon, McCartney me and you among millions of others, those who carry on always end up with something better because they have tried other musicians gear but you certainly wouldn't continue if that was all that you had got.

The key here is that they carried on....they didn’t blame the tools they practiced and once they could play they upgraded...I’m talking about people who don’t practice , don’t play and suddenly think that buying an American Telecaster or PRS will make them play...it won’t....

These guys were playing on their crap guitars but were visiting music shops and trying out proper ones so knew what they could end up with, absolutely none of them would be thinking "Is this as good as it gets?".

And that’s not what I said...All these kids were already guitar players before they got something decent....

And the crappy guitar in question was a Squire Strat used by a SRV tribute band, it was one of those 1 in a million where it sounded and played better than his two proper SRV's and cost him £30 from a second hand shop. It was far from being crappy, it's a collectors piece.

And because he could already play he wasn’t insecure enough to worry about what it said on the headstock...Most wannabes do...they suddenly think I own a Fender and now I’m a guitar player.....when in fact they will never be a guitar player even with a fender custom shop in their hands as they like the idea of playing the guitar but don’t actually practice enough...

 

[Raymond Lin]

I can’t be bothered to read all that, but I don’t think it matters WHAT inspires you to pick up the guitar, be it the music or the guitar. Long as you do, that’s all it matters. If the guitar is a barrier, removing that barrier is only a good thing, if the guitar don’t inspire you, removing that barrier is a good thing. Providing you can afford it, it’s not hurting anyone.

My first full-electric guitar is a PRS Custom 24, come at me . I pay for it myself with money I earn, so really does it matter?

But if you ask me if I would swap the guitar with the musical talent and skills that you guys have? In a 1/4 note.

 

[GiraffePencils]

I have to throw my 2p in here,

First guitar:
Cheetah strat; a block of plywood with an action a mile high and tuners that couldn't hold anything. played it a fair amount mostly downloading tabs from favourite songs and barely playing them at an 8th of the speed they're meant to.

Second guitar:
B.C Rich Mockingbird; far more expensive, all the bells and whistles (I thought) for 6/7 years I barely played it, I messed around with it on and off. not really that interested.

Third Guitar:
Gretsch Hollow body; Thought I needed something I could play acousticly due to noise concern.......played a bit more, probably every week

Fourth Guitar:
Stagg Junior classical; Bought for 10 quid in a car park...... played this guitar every day, for about a year and a half, loved to play it.

Fifth Guitar:
Baton Rouge AR31C/ACE; my daily guitar now. I like acoustics it seems, nice satin/openpore neck. For years I had electrics, more expensive electrics, but in the end, none of those guitars inspired me to play. I got easily 300% better at guitar over the year I played the stagg than the years I had other guitars.
Gotta have a guitar that you love to play. Yeah some people can motivate themselves thinking of the goal (being good) but that's just not always there

 

[easyrider]

I can’t be bothered to read all that,

Most feel that way about practice.

but I don’t think it matters WHAT inspires you to pick up the guitar, be it the music or the guitar. Long as you do, that’s all it matters. If the guitar is a barrier, removing that barrier is only a good thing, if the guitar don’t inspire you, removing that barrier is a good thing. Providing you can afford it, it’s not hurting anyone.

The guitar is a tool to practice...I spent hours on the guitar not even playing it...but working out where each note was and figuring out the patterns etc...No guitar is a barrier...The Barrier is giving up...The whole notion of the Guitar being the inspiration when starting out is BS.... There is none...Its hard craft....The obsolute desire to play it....The drive to play the G chord in 4 positions....over and over again and over again. Repetitive practice and practice and practice....If you rely on the guitar shape or action or amp sound then you really are in trouble...These are so low on the pecking order when starting out....

My first full-electric guitar is a PRS Custom 24, come at me . I pay for it myself with money I earn, so really does it matter?

But if you ask me if I would swap the guitar with the musical talent and skills that you guys have? In a 1/4 note.

It doesn't matter...But you are not a guitar player so its a moot point...Your an example of all the gear and no idea Your're pedal board is a distraction from actually playing it!

 

[easyrider]

Gotta have a guitar that you love to play. Yeah some people can motivate themselves thinking of the goal (being good) but that's just not always there

And what happens when you don't have this luxury? When I started I had one guitar.... I couldn't afford another or even an amp...I didn't know any better I just got on with it....

 

[GiraffePencils]

And what happens when you don't have this luxury? When I started I had one guitar.... I couldn't afford another or even an amp...I didn't know any better I just got on with it....

Then they don't,
I'd argue you're a minority, like people who teach themselves from ear..... some people can do to, but a lot of great players had teachers.

Different people learn in different ways. You clearly see the grind as a bitter pill you need to swallow to get good.
Other people need that motivation of a good sound/feel of the guitar along with it.

 

[Raymond Lin]

You say all that except you don’t know that I don’t use any of that to practice.


I sit on my sofa with my telecaster unplugged to practice chords, changing between them, back and forth, for like an hour while watching something on TV but half a mind on if the note I am hitting sounds right. Then I move to another chord.


The pedalboard(s) or amp are not a part of the equation at all, can you imagine plugging into all that through a 20W amp at home? Lol. Yes I have all that gear, and I am the first person to admit I have all the gear and no idea. I think I have said myself that I am the poster boy for it. I am self aware. But come at me bro, I paid for it with money I earned. Or are you just jealous?

 

[easyrider]

Then they don't,
I'd argue you're a minority, like people who teach themselves from ear..... some people can do to, but a lot of great players had teachers.

Different people learn in different ways. You clearly see the grind as a bitter pill you need to swallow to get good.
Other people need that motivation of a good sound/feel of the guitar along with it.

I'm not saying a good sound or feel of a guitar is not a postive thing...But it shouldn't be the foundation when starting out....Like I said...many start out with say a USA strat....and they don't practice...Not because its hard to play or it sounds bad...they just don't really want to learn.

 

[uncle_rufus]

Interesting discussion!

I started playing at about 16, cheap strat copy, then a cheap les paul copy, after maybe 5 or 6 years I eventually got my first "proper" guitar which was a Jackson Dinky at £700ish but made the mistake of getting a floyd equipped guitar and that meant ironically I didn't play it that much... Next guitar after that was a Epiphone Les Paul I got on ebay for about £280 (maybe 10 years into playing) and finally after 15 years I bought an American Pro/Standard Strat for myself as a 30th Birthday present

Gear isn't really important I agree - but that cuts both ways - it doesn't matter if you have good gear or bad gear provided you focus most on playing and improving the two parts of your equipment you can't buy - your fingers and your ear

 

[easyrider]

You say all that except you don’t know that I don’t use any of that to practice.


I sit on my sofa with my telecaster unplugged to practice chords, changing between them, back and forth, for like an hour while watching something on TV but half a mind on if the note I am hitting sounds right. Then I move to another chord.


The pedalboard(s) or amp are not a part of the equation at all, can you imagine plugging into all that through a 20W amp at home? Lol. Yes I have all that gear, and I am the first person to admit I have all the gear and no idea. I think I have said myself that I am the poster boy for it. I am self aware. But come at me bro, I paid for it with money I earned. Or are you just jealous?

The points I am making are not really directed at you....You're just an example of it....Like I said in a previous post, you won't be the first or last person I encounter that likes the idea of playing the guitar....

Its your money that fine...Do what you want...But don't for one second think that that PRS will make you practice more.... It didn't and you haven't...

And as for Jealous? No Your Pedal board is Vulgar and not my cup of tea...I could replicate your board tomorrow and order all the bling you have an afford it tens over...But it just doesn't interest me...

When I was 15 My mates older brother had a friend 3 years older than me who could pick up any instrument and seem to play it...He was a brilliant guitar player, bass player and drummer....He was in a band and I was sometimes allowed to go and watch them rehearse. Anyway one day after school I went and watched them...I was sat on a chair tapping my thighs to the music...After the song finished he came over and asked me what I was doing...I said just watching...He said why are you not playing the drums? I said what? I'm not a drummer he said would you like to be? I said yeah why not....He said all you need is practice...I said I dont have a kit...He said yes you do....I looked at him and wondered what he was on about....He pulled up a chair and showed me exactly what he was playing just then on the kit on his legs...He used the floor as a bass drum, his thighs as the snare and toms...

He said Practice this...He showed me independence on the foot against the snare and said practice that until it comes naturally and you dont need to think about it..Then he left and finished the rehearsal.

I went home and practised on my thighs and foot this beat he had showed me...I couldn't do it.. my foot hit the floor when I hit the snare....Then about 2 months later I woke up and suddenly had limb independence!

I worked out rock beats, triplets, syncopation all on my thighs and floor....tapping along to records....did this for years...It just became a habit tbh....Anyway I was more interested in the guitar....I then turned 18 and my parents asked me what I would like for my Birthday...I said a drumkit....Me and my dad scoured the second hand market for one and sourced an 1972 Hayman Vibrosonic kit....I set it up and could play the drums after never having played a kit in my life....

I learnt to play the drums on my legs...

So the lesson I learnt is...You dont need the gear you need passion and the desire to learn....If spending thousands on pedals floats your boat thats fine...Me I'm more interested in learning something new on the guitar even when its not plugged in.

 

[Raymond Lin]

I know I don’t need the gear to learn. I don’t think anyone is arguing with that. The POINT is, I can, and I want to…your problem is?


You don’t have a problem?


Then what is that wall of text about besides you giving 1 person’s example. Someone else who wants to pick up a guitar also are setting their own example. There are more than 1 way to skin a cat. None of it hurts anyone. Just because it works for you doesn’t mean it will work for someone else.

And I repeat, 99% of the time I sit in the front room with the guitar unplugged practicing chord changes, what I spent on gear in the past or future is nothing to do with anything, you can bring up my pedalboards is you like but that's nothing to do with it except it sounds like you are jealous. I already said that if I can trade it all for musical talent, I would. It's not about the gear at all, I don't use most of it anyway, but I have it, it hurts no one.