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Buying your first guitar is a big step for anybody, but even more for you if you intend to play seriously. Most youngsters get a guitar in their teens and play around with it for a while until the novelty wears off, and then get involved in something else such as the opposite sex, or sports or whatever.

However, a few, and perhaps you are among them, decide to take playing seriously; and for them their first guitar has more meaning. If you are simply purchasing any old guitar so that you have one, then you don't have to spend a lot of money to get a playable instrument. Most people will likely buy a cheap acoustic guitar unless they have enough money to buy an electric guitar and amplifier. However, the point is that if you are not intending to use your guitar as a serious musical instrument, then you need not pay too much for it.

If you do, however, then you should pay as much as you can afford because you tend to get what you pay for with guitars. The better makes definitely sound better, so try to save up as much as possible before parting with your cash. You must also decide what kind of guitar you want to play. Is it going to be electric? If so will it be a bass, or specially strung and designed for rhythm or for lead? What kind of tone do you want: the classic electric guitar sound of a Stratocaster or a loosely stringed Gibson to provide a Jimi Hendrix type of sound?

Most people want to play lead, but you won't know if you are cut out for that until you start playing. Even if you are playing lead or rhythm, what kind of music are you involved in? A blues guitar is strung totally different to a rock guitar, and the pick-ups are also different. It can save you money if you know what type of music you want to play, but if not, then that is probably a refinement you won't have to worry about until you are an accomplished player.

If you prefer an acoustic guitar then there are several types available. There is the traditional Spanish guitar that can be used for Flamenco or classical guitar styles, which is stringed in nylon. You should never use steel strings on a classical guitar because you will damage the bridge and the soundboard. There are other acoustic styles suitable for steel strings. Acoustic guitars are suitable for classical, folk and country music, and are also good for learning before going for an electric guitar. The problem with electric is that you also need an amplifier, so are limited in where you can practice.

In fact, the answer to most of these questions will be that you don't know! You just want a guitar to learn to play on, and in this case a relatively inexpensive acoustic guitar will do fine. You can get a playable instrument for under $100 that is good enough to learn on. You will mostly be working on chords and fingering at the start until you are reasonably competent at strumming along to a tune, and then you can start thinking about more advanced work such as riffs and picking out tunes.

Before buying your first guitar you might also want to check up on the top guitars within your price range. Many budget-makes produce low-cost copies of some of the great guitars, such as the Squire Stratocaster or one on the many Les Paul clones. However, they will not sound like the originals, so make sure that you play whatever you intend to buy before parting with your cash.

Nor should you be a shrinking violet when testing the instrument. It matters less if people laugh at your standard of play than if you buy a lemon totally unsuited to your needs simply because you played so quietly that not only could other customers not hear you but you couldn't hear yourself. Play your guitar at the proper volume so that you can hear its tone, and if you don't like it don't buy it. There is no point in buying a guitar you don't like and is going to put you off playing: you might as well buy nothing at all!

These are the main things to consider before buying your first guitar; and if you take all of that into account, you should end up with an instrument that can do the job you want it to do while also being suitable for you to learn on. Keep in mind that there will be plenty of time to seek the perfect guitar once you are able to play it properly, and that for now a functional instrument that sounds OK will do you just fine.

Keywords: learn guitar

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Andre Sanchez,