so, I bought myself a guitar.

[weepete]

I got a bit bored recently, so while walking to have a few pints in the pub while watching the football with my mates I passed my a music shop, popped in and bought myself my first proper guitar. A black and white Fender Squier Bullet Stratocaster!

I was thinking about learning for a while so just bit the bullet. Spent yesterday practicing and setting it up to get a nice low action. Today I had some spare time at work so learned what notes are on the fretboard then practised a bit when I got home. Discovered what I was doing wrong yesterday and pivot points. Just about got my first chords down (E major, D and A) with the changes tonight where it's just about in time. Chose A/C D/C Back in Black to learn as my first song. Had my first "my god, that actually sounds like the song" moment. It was cool.

If I get on with it (looks positive just now) I'll sping some cash to get it set up properly by a good shop (I have a couple of contacts that should be able to put me in touch with where locally is good). In the meantime I'm doing what I do, read shedloads when I can't practise and practise when I can.

Anyone got any tips?

 

[crzyfotopeeple]

Congrats on the new guitar! It's surprising how many songs you can pick up with just a few basic chords. I have an app for the iPad that allows you to search thousands of songs and displays the words and chords nicely on the screen. It will even auto scroll as you play along. I love learning cover songs and playing definitely is a stress reliever for me. Keep it up and have fun.

 

[table1349]

FREEBIRD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[runnah]

So I guess now you'll start playing wedding gigs and undercutting local bands?

 

[astroNikon]

" bit the bullet" and bought a "A black and white Fender Squier Bullet Stratocaster"

funny

 

[astroNikon]

So I guess now you'll start playing wedding gigs and undercutting local bands?

That's the way it goes. These newbie buy a new something while drunk and all of a sudden they are Pro. Then the wedding party is dismayed at their low cost / free band when they can't even play the wedding standards off the top of their head, much less anything in tune or recognizable.

 

[JonA_CT]

Music is 100% that way, but in some ways its much harder to make it as a local pro than as a photographer, just because there are fewer opportunities, and the "exposure" gig with pay being food and beer is incredibly common. It took my cover band about 3 years to get to the point where we could feel comfortable charging our rate and turning down folks who didn't want to pay it, at least in the bar/club scene. Events are much easier to charge a good wage, but again, somewhat limited opportunities.

But yes -- lots of hacks out there in music too. And going pro can be just as miserable. The lead singer in my band clears just about $35k a year between wages and tips playing solo acoustic gigs. He plays 4-5 nights a week and is rarely home before 2AM. He also can't have normal relationships with people because of his schedule.

Anyways, weepete, a set-up is definitely a great first step. Not sure what the run there, but you can get it done for about $40 here, and it'll make the guitar much easier to play and therefore much easier to learn on. Lessons, if you can swing them, are also a great idea initially. They will teach you some good techniques and basics and it'll be much easier to learn on your own.

Good site for tabs and info for guitar players -- www.ultimate-guitar.com

 

[Peeb]

You playing thru an amp, or strictly headphones?

I've gotten decent results playing with headphones thru a smartphone. When it comes to amp modeling, you can get a multi-effects rig from various sellers like Line6, Digitech, etc. I really like an app for my PC called S-Gear by Mike Scuffham (google it). His amp models are quite excellent! If you want to jump off the deep end, there's the boutique stuff like Fractal Audio Axe FX or Kemper. WAY more than I would recommend for a beginner (or most amateurs, really).

There's really nothing like that 'amp in the room' sound and response however. Then you've got to decide if you like the pristine cleans of a Fender, the chime of a Vox, the fantastic dirt of a Marshall, etc. You can change the character of your tone with pedals into your amp as well. Overdrive for a little grind, or Distortion for over the top gain, Fuzz for that unique vibe- etc. The you can delay (echo) your tone, reverb it, or modulate it.

What a fantastic hobby! I've been in love with the guitar forever. What a great vehicle to express yourself!

 

[weepete]

So I guess now you'll start playing wedding gigs and undercutting local bands?

Yeah, I figure I could just wing it by attaching a gopro to the headstock in a two for one style.

 

[weepete]

" bit the bullet" and bought a "A black and white Fender Squier Bullet Stratocaster"

funny

Pun entirely intended.

 

[weepete]

Music is 100% that way, but in some ways its much harder to make it as a local pro than as a photographer, just because there are fewer opportunities, and the "exposure" gig with pay being food and beer is incredibly common. It took my cover band about 3 years to get to the point where we could feel comfortable charging our rate and turning down folks who didn't want to pay it, at least in the bar/club scene. Events are much easier to charge a good wage, but again, somewhat limited opportunities.

But yes -- lots of hacks out there in music too. And going pro can be just as miserable. The lead singer in my band clears just about $35k a year between wages and tips playing solo acoustic gigs. He plays 4-5 nights a week and is rarely home before 2AM. He also can't have normal relationships with people because of his schedule.

Anyways, weepete, a set-up is definitely a great first step. Not sure what the run there, but you can get it done for about $40 here, and it'll make the guitar much easier to play and therefore much easier to learn on. Lessons, if you can swing them, are also a great idea initially. They will teach you some good techniques and basics and it'll be much easier to learn on your own.

Good site for tabs and info for guitar players -- www.ultimate-guitar.com

Thanks mate, there's a few options locally so I will spring for some lessons at some point. I think a set up here probably won't cost too much either.

 

[weepete]

You playing thru an amp, or strictly headphones?

I've gotten decent results playing with headphones thru a smartphone. When it comes to amp modeling, you can get a multi-effects rig from various sellers like Line6, Digitech, etc. I really like an app for my PC called S-Gear by Mike Scuffham (google it). His amp models are quite excellent! If you want to jump off the deep end, there's the boutique stuff like Fractal Audio Axe FX or Kemper. WAY more than I would recommend for a beginner (or most amateurs, really).

There's really nothing like that 'amp in the room' sound and response however. Then you've got to decide if you like the pristine cleans of a Fender, the chime of a Vox, the fantastic dirt of a Marshall, etc. You can change the character of your tone with pedals into your amp as well. Overdrive for a little grind, or Distortion for over the top gain, Fuzz for that unique vibe- etc. The you can delay (echo) your tone, reverb it, or modulate it.

What a fantastic hobby! I've been in love with the guitar forever. What a great vehicle to express yourself!

Thanks mate, I'm just playing it without it plugged in to anything at the moment though I do have a big old bass amp that my mate is storing at my house indefinately if I want to muck about. One of the reasons I bought electric was it can be quite quiet so I can practise any time I feel like it without disturbing the wean or the missus too much, that and most of the music I really like us electic guitars. My birthday is in a few months and the family are always looking for a few gifts so a small amp will be going on that which will do me for mucking about. I've already got plans for a few mods, though I'll play it plugged in for a bit but I'm quite technical by nature and a precision engineer by trade so I'm not afraid to get stuck in to mods.

I'm a metal fan primarily so the marshalls sound great to me. Though I do like the blues as well and my favorite guitarist is Hendrix (hence why it was important to me to buy a fender as my first guitar, plus I have a mate that is an excellent guitarist and I remember back in the day when he got a fender USA strat and I really liked the way the body felt, it was just kinda "right" if you know what I mean. Very ergonomic). I do remember the old vox amps sounding good, though a bit indie for my taste.

I'd be interested to hear how you would put one through a phone to headphones? That could be very interesting indeed!

 

[JonA_CT]

Phone to headphones -- Amazon.com: IK Multimedia iRig 2 guitar interface adaptor for iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, Mac and Android: Musical Instruments

I have one of those but I never use it. You buy the hardware, and then you have to buy additional software plug-ins for every different sound you want to make.



Vox makes a bunch of super simple one-sound wonders -- pick your favorite guitar sound and go -- but it has the same problem as above.

https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_...adphone+amp&rh=n:11091801,k:vox+headphone+amp

This is probably what I would buy -- very adjustable and could do almost any sound you'll want, save for rocker pedal type effects (wah).

Line 6 Pocket POD Guitar Multi Effects Processor

When it comes time to buy an amp, especially if it's a tube amp, you don't need barely any power to play at home. I played a huge outdoor event last year (1k+ people) and I played a 15 watt Fender amp un-mic'd. Lots of power tube distortion at that volume, but that's a good thing. It'll do an arena mic'd up.

When my daughter was born, I ended up liquidating all of my amp gear and buying one of these:

Line 6 POD HD500X Guitar Multi-Effects Processor

While it doesn't have the feel of a real amp, it will make a convincing version of almost any guitar sound you can think of. I use this now when my band gigs, and honestly, in the mix, no one can tell that it's not an amp.

 

[table1349]

Dude, you bought an electric guitar. Forget all those mamby pamby headphones, and little processors and such.

You need THIS. Otherwise you need to return that thing, get your self an accoustic guitar or maybe a yukalaly. Seriously man, you have a tradition to uphold. An electric guitar isn't just for fun, you have made a commitment. You have a duty to do it right or not do it at all.

 

[Peeb]

I agree with Jon on his take on just about everything!

Another thought: I bought an inexpensive (bad) amp at first and it was frustrating. The amp for the guitar is like the lens for the camera- if you plug a wonderful guitar into a bad amp- you will get bad tone. However, plug an inexpensive guitar into a great amp and you can get great tone! Tube amps, btw are truly monsters- a 5 watt tube amp with an efficient speaker can upset the family, and possibly the neighbors! Try before you buy.

As far as amp modelers go, Jon's HD500 is a wonderful tool with great tones, but it's got (to me) a fairly steep learning curve. Perhaps that's simply because I learned on another system. BTW, Zoom has a pretty cool multi-fx modeler too. I think they are like the G3 and the G5 (been awhile).

Whatever you decide to do, you will enjoy the journey!