During this summer, I didn't have much to do, so I decided to take up a few hobbies. I've done plenty of drawing and painting already, and I'm going to put that aside for now and learn some guitar. I was originally going to learn purely from online resources, but after reading the Wikipedia article on guitar, I was like zzzzz, so I come to TL to ask for help instead because you guys make everything funner. So hopefully you guys can answer all the questions I will have during the next few weeks.

So my first question is, how do I pick a good starting guitar? I don't have one yet, and I can't spend a lot of money. I browsed through a few ads for second hand guitars and I've made some calls to take a look at a few. So what should I look for when choosing a guitar?

Second question is, where do you recommend I start? How did you guys learn how to play?

Dark Stalker

102 Posts

July 14 2011 03:31 GMT

Get a cheap Yamaha steel string. No other cheap guitar sounds better or lasts as long.

By cheap I mean less than $500.

Use the search function and find the guitar thread.

frogurt

Australia907 Posts

July 14 2011 03:43 GMT

Learn your chords and scales first. It'll be zzz but it will help you out infinitely when you start playing stuff.

XXGeneration

United States625 Posts

July 14 2011 04:14 GMT

This is exactly what I'm looking for, as I'm in the exact same situation as you, except my uncle lent me his old guitar. I'm eagerly awaiting responses. :3

Chairman Ray

United States11903 Posts

July 14 2011 04:29 GMT

I just got a $50 guitar from XS cargo. It probly sucks shit, but I'm gonna use it to learn to play, and then upgrade if I'm still interested. Anyone recommend any online resources? I think ima google up some tutorials.

Dalguno

United States2446 Posts

July 14 2011 04:34 GMT

On July 14 2011 13:29 Chairman Ray wrote:
I just got a $50 guitar from XS cargo. It probly sucks shit, but I'm gonna use it to learn to play, and then upgrade if I'm still interested. Anyone recommend any online resources? I think ima google up some tutorials.

One thing that is super simple to learn is tablature, or "tab" as it is more commonly known. Very easy to learn, and once you get some basics down, incredibly useful if you want to learn how to play a certain song. It's like notes, but simpler.

www.ultimate-guitar.com is pretty much the best online source of tab there is.

HeavOnEarth

United States7087 Posts

July 14 2011 04:44 GMT

open google
"name of song u like" "chords"
"name of song u like" "power tab" -> download something like tuxguitar(free) to open the file.
keep it enjoyable for yourself. don't focus too much on getting super gosu.

Divinek

Canada4045 Posts

July 14 2011 04:46 GMT

i just thought of stuff i couldnt play, and then forced myself to learn how to play that. Slowly making the stuff harder and harder etc it was a really fun and extremely motivating way that dedicated the shit out of me to guitar. I'm at the point now where I can learn anything with a bit of practice though I dont know any popular songs so my friends are always like play this! And i have to inform them that i havent learned other peoples songs really and then they get sad face. But then happy face when i play my stuff!

I highly recommend this path

Krohm

Canada1857 Posts

July 14 2011 04:50 GMT

Well once you do get a guitar, I'd suggest you get the program guitar pro. It's what I used it helps out with the most basic stuff. Like learning to understand guitar tablatures. It's easy to find cracked copies.

I pretty much quit playing guitar and had to sell of my two electrics (Money problems).

UnKooL

Korea (South)1667 Posts

July 14 2011 05:00 GMT

#10

The single most important website for learning guitar on the internet is www.justinguitar.com. When I first learned how to play I just dove right in to playing songs that interested me by going through www.ultimateguitar.com, but I don't think I've improved as much as I should have so I started using justinguitar. Ultimateguitar.com also has great guides for beginners if you browse the lessons tab I believe. Good Luck and Have Fun.

Chairman Ray

United States11903 Posts

July 14 2011 05:19 GMT

#11

Ty for all the links. I just finished some basic lessons from random youtube videos. Can play some basic riffs now. Good thing I still have calluses from violin or my fingers would be sore lol. I'll check out some of the links tomorrow.

ketomai

United States2789 Posts

July 14 2011 05:26 GMT

#12

On July 14 2011 14:19 Chairman Ray wrote:
Ty for all the links. I just finished some basic lessons from random youtube videos. Can play some basic rifts now. Good thing I still have calluses from violin or my fingers would be sore lol. I'll check out some of the links tomorrow.

When you start doing chords your fingers will be pretty sore because the callouses are in a different spot

. justinguitar is a very good site and I second the recommendation for someone starting out.

Chairman Ray

United States11903 Posts

July 14 2011 05:37 GMT

#13

justinguitar looks pretty good. Should I just start from beginner courses and go video by video?

ninini

Sweden1204 Posts

July 14 2011 05:58 GMT

#14

My most important tip in terms of learning is to just try and play things you like. That's how I improved the most. You might even consider getting a electric guitar instead, if you would be more interested in playing that kind of music. I play electric guitar exclusively myself, because I find most acoustic stuff boring.

First, you should start playing after tabs. If you can't find tabs for a song, forget about it for now and find a new song. I recommend the program power tab, which is free. You can find "power tabs" on ultimate guitar, then you just open them in that program. The quality on those tabs is generally more accurate than the ones you find in text form. Eventually you will get a good enough ear that you can hear when a tab is wrong or even figure out a song from scratch.

When you start learning something it's extremely important that you learn it slowly. If you're playing chords, ask yourself how you should move the fingers when you go over to the 2nd chord, and so on. If you pluck single notes, it's the same thing.

Work on your picking (right hand) technique. Don't play sloppily, or with tension. This goes for the left hand too. Your technique might be good enough to play certain songs, but if you try something harder you will hit a wall if you don't fix your technique. So it's better to just play properly from the start.

A lot of ppl overemphasize the time you need to invest for practice, and they also underestimate the actual brain work needed for productive practice. If you play something wrong, don't try it again. First you need to ask yourself what you did wrong, and then play that part slowly until you have fixed the problem.

Anyway, I hope you're prepared for a ton of physical pain. Acoustic Steel guitar is probably the most painful instrument to play, but it gets better as the skin on your fingers thicken, so play with moderation for the first 2 months or so.

ketomai

United States2789 Posts

July 14 2011 06:09 GMT

#15

On July 14 2011 14:37 Chairman Ray wrote:
justinguitar looks pretty good. Should I just start from beginner courses and go video by video?

Yea the intent is that you go through all of the videos in the order and it will introduce new things at a good time to learn them. It gets you used to the basics and gives you solid fundamentals for later.

My experience is that if you just pick random things to learn instead of learning methodically like this you develop some bad habits that hinder you if you want to play at a higher level later on.

Keldrath

United States449 Posts

July 14 2011 06:10 GMT

#16

i learned to play by watching youtube videos, i def recommend it there are so many things to learn from them, best to start with the basic chords and work up from there into basic songs, the first i learned was every rose has its thorns and i really recommend it as a place to begin.

to start out its pretty tough but after a couple months of consistent practice your fingers will get in shape and be able to stretch easier and will get used to the chord shapes and will be really easy to transition between chords and your fingers will grow callouses making playing for extended periods not hurt at all anymore.

its not an easy thing to play but its very much so worth it! progress will be slow at first dont let that discourage you

Dark Stalker

102 Posts

July 14 2011 06:38 GMT

#17

www.youtube.com/howtoplayguitar2

surfinbird1

Germany999 Posts

July 14 2011 08:47 GMT

#18

The real question is this: Do you want to learn to play the guitar or just play a few chords for campfire songs. I played concert guitar for 15 years and I can tell you that lessons are pretty much unavoidable. Learning it on your own takes a ton of dedication and experience with learning and practicing in general.