hey everyone! as part of new year resolutions i have decided to actually fullfill my one of my dreams, which is to buy a guitar and learn how to play it. i used to play keayboards and a bit of piano, but i sort of quit.

i have picked up guitars before and i was basically self teaching myself, but since that was so long ago i barely remember, i want to finally learn for sure this time.

 

im planing on resuming playing an acoustic, but i dont want to start with a bad guitar, so what characteristics should i find in an acoustic?

what models or brands should i look for?

 

i would really apreciate all of you help, thanks in advance ;) !!!

 

ps. keep in mind that im not hoping to spend a fortune, but not too little as well.

Go to shop and play it. Only you can decide if the sound is right for you. Best of luck with it! :D

I got myself a Fender DG3, not expensive, not that naff either.

I taught myself on that, took me 3 months of 2 hours solid practice every night, Just wish I learned at an earlier age, as i aint to good with lead...And I cannot read music either. But I write all my songs on that trusty well gigged and rather worn out guitar!

I'm currently trying to learn "Careful Where You Stand" thats very hard work for me!

Good Luck!

Ted, i actually did!! thanks for the advice mate!! :D

 

freezeplay, i was actually interested in a fender dg 1o ce or a dg 11...but i still havent decided!! epiphones look cool, but there's something about fenders i just love!! :D

the best advice i can give when buying a guitar is always check the action of the guitar.By this I mean how far away from the frets the strings are.If they are to far away the strings will be a lot harder to press down and the guitar will sound awful even if it is tuned perfectly using the 5th fret method.Also listen for any buzzing when freting a string this means that the string is most likely to close to the fret or the neck is warped.Always ask if the guitar has a truss rod in its neck,if so you can adjust the height of the strings by turning the rod using an alan key.The rod can be found just under the neck inside the hole of the acoustic guitar.Turn the key clockwise to bring the strings closer to the frets or anti-clockwise to move them away from the frets.

 

I hope there is not too much for you to take in there and i hope this helps you.

 

Thanks for listening.

 

Bohs Man.

Actually it's not just action that counts, the feel neck is just as important, I was going to buy a US Gibson Les Paul but I could not get on with the neck, it was really uncomfortable for me, just too rounded. so I bought an Epiphone Riviera instead (http://www.epiphone.com/default.asp?ProductID=6&CollectionID=1) - the neck on those is shallow.

 

(Gibson/Epiphone without going into "detail on guitars specs" are same company)

freezeplay, bohs man, thanks for the advice!!

i agree completely about the feel of the neck, if its uncomfortable, chances are im not going to play well, i dunno if its just me, but epiphones in general just have that effect on me...

yep bang on about the neck thing.

had to go through about 30 guitars in one day in the local guitar shop just getting a feel for the necks... picked out a couple of em and ended up with a nice Maton. love it to bits!

yeah epiphones are solid. good guitars

My acoustic is really old. My grandfather actually made it himself. But it's starting to warp and it makes me really sad cuz I love playing it. He used to play it all the time and he gave it to me before he died. Are there places that do work on old guitars?

 

Anyways, I think I'm gonna stop at GuitarWorld tonight and take a look at some of the ones you guys mentioned.