Guitar Article Written by “Friend Of Mike Walsh”  

Should a Beginner Pick Up An Expensive Guitar?

 by Rene Kerkdyk

If you are already clear about which type of guitar you want to buy, it remains to be clarified how much money you want to take into your hand. There are representatives of both camps: those who advise a more expensive instrument and those who advise a cheaper instrument. Let's examine the arguments of both camps.

Representatives of the first camp often talk about the quality of the instrument. When the price goes up, so does the quality of the workmanship. This means that correct and good-sounding tones can be extracted from the instrument more easily. So it makes the instrument easier to use. And here I basically agree. An instrument shouldn't make playing the guitar harder than it already is.

Another aspect is the motivation to play with the instrument. Once I've reached deep in my pocket to buy a beautiful instrument, the chances are that I'll stick around longer to learn to play the guitar. The idea is to want to convince yourself that it was a good investment. I can't tell you whether it will work for you. I just know that I had to save some time on my first guitar and I still play the guitar passionately today.

Representatives of the second camp often emphasize the benefit per euro. True to the motto: "If I can save $ 200 on buying the guitar and take lessons for it, I get a lot more of it." And I can understand this argument well to a certain extent. Especially the low-cost electric guitars have made a big step forward in the last 20 years. Most of the new guitars are actually set up well. That makes the beginning motivating and you have saved some money. As long as the instrument does not get in the way while playing, I am convinced of inexpensive models, especially for beginners. In doing so, I would not go below the $ 100 limit. Reasonable entry-level guitars can be found in the range of $150 to $200 .

I would rather hold back on the subject of the sound of the guitars. I've heard inexpensive Yamaha guitars that sounded amazing and expensive Les Pauls that didn't. Here I recommend listening to your gut instinct. Have the seller play the guitar and listen to what it sounds like. It's best to have the same piece played on multiple guitars so that you can compare.

I hope this article helps you choose your first guitar.

Have fun playing the guitar!

This article was written by Rene Kerkdyk. He teaches guitar in his guitar school in Hildesheim.