VG-99 + budget guitar a good beginner combo?

[damondeville]

I am a clueless nerdy beginner choosing his first gear.

 

I am thinking of getting:

a budget solid body electric guitar (say 200 bucks)

+ a VG-99

+ a GK-3 hexa pickup to hook up the two

and connect the VG-99 to my (Vista) laptop, itself connected to my good stereo speakers (Harmann-Kardon) to produce sound.

 

I would like to know whether:

1) such setup is possible at all (or are there some tricky connection problems)?

2) it will result in diverse, fun, good enough sounds to a beginner's ear?

 

My reasoning is:

 

1) Once connected to the VG-99, the guitar pickups are bypassed and the guitar sound quality comes essentially from the COSM guitar sim + the amp sim + the effects, hence the difference between a low-end and high-end guitar is minimal and not worth the extra-cost

 

2) Though the VG-99 is pricey, the alternative is buying a decent guitar + a a decent amp + a decent effects box which must end up costing just as much or even more, and then you still can't play classical, 12 string, acoustic or bass guitars nor have fun with synths pads or a MIDI driven software sampler.

 

3) Practicing with many different sounds might turn significantly less dour and discouraging the initial kiloHours of lonely, noise pollution sounding, endless scale, chord progression and strumming repetitions that a beginner faces before being able to output anything even remotely musical.

 

Does it make sense?

I am missing something.

 

Thanks a lot in advance for any feedback or hints.

[-MBro-]

This makes sense.

[randombastage]

If you can afford it it won't hurt to do it that way other than you'll waste hours tweaking the gear instead of developing skills...

You could buy a decent cheap guitar like a squire strat and a Roland Micro cube amp for less and still have lots of tones including headphone capability and focus on learning to play...then start buying high end stuff after you have the skills to make use of it. But rock and roll isn't about common sense so do it anyway it works for you....

Also a Pod XT is pretty cheap compared to the VG set up and has tons of effects and tones (I have both the Pod and VG99 and use them about the same amount).

[thirsty one]

I wouldn't start off with a VG-99 system. YMMV

[aliensporebomb]

Kind of like learning to drive on a Ferrari Testarossa as your first car.

 

Yes there are a lot of different sounds you can get but the VG-99 is so deep you could spend years tweaking instead of playing.

 

So as long as you find some sounds you like and concentrate on playing it should be ok.

 

My recommendation: the $200 guitars are very likely {censored}e. Buy a used fender strat or the like and play that, not a budget one

but the guitar that's going to make you reach for it and want to play all of the time. My friend bought a budget axe and I spent

many an hour trying to get it somewhat playable (it was a $120 department store strat copy) and it was hideous even when set

up its best. You have to find something you will want to play.

[Will Chen]

Kind of like learning to drive on a Ferrari Testarossa as your first car. Yes there are a lot of different sounds you can get but the VG-99 is so deep you could spend years tweaking instead of playing. So as long as you find some sounds you like and concentrate on playing it should be ok. My recommendation: the $200 guitars are very likely {censored}e. Buy a used fender strat or the like and play that, not a budget one but the guitar that's going to make you reach for it and want to play all of the time. My friend bought a budget axe and I spent many an hour trying to get it somewhat playable (it was a $120 department store strat copy) and it was hideous even when set up its best. You have to find something you will want to play.

 

 

$100 Guitar into $300 amp, YMMV.

 

[YOUTUBE]

[/YOUTUBE]

[TieDyedDevil]

I am a clueless nerdy beginner choosing his first gear. I am thinking of getting: a budget solid body electric guitar (say 200 bucks) + a VG-99 + a GK-3 hexa pickup to hook up the two and connect the VG-99 to my (Vista) laptop, itself connected to my good stereo speakers (Harmann-Kardon) to produce sound. I would like to know whether: 1) such setup is possible at all (or are there some tricky connection problems)? 2) it will result in diverse, fun, good enough sounds to a beginner's ear? My reasoning is: 1) Once connected to the VG-99, the guitar pickups are bypassed and the guitar sound quality comes essentially from the COSM guitar sim + the amp sim + the effects, hence the difference between a low-end and high-end guitar is minimal and not worth the extra-cost 2) Though the VG-99 is pricey, the alternative is buying a decent guitar + a a decent amp + a decent effects box which must end up costing just as much or even more, and then you still can't play classical, 12 string, acoustic or bass guitars nor have fun with synths pads or a MIDI driven software sampler. 3) Practicing with many different sounds might turn significantly less dour and discouraging the initial kiloHours of lonely, noise pollution sounding, endless scale, chord progression and strumming repetitions that a beginner faces before being able to output anything even remotely musical. Does it make sense? I am missing something. Thanks a lot in advance for any feedback or hints.

 

Oy...

 

OK. You're learning to play guitar. Great. Congratulations!

 

Now you want to know whether it's a good idea for you to spend $200 on a guitar and another $1,500 on a noise toy?

 

IMO: no freaking way!

 

Your justification is charming in a naive sort of way. I get the impression that you must *really* want a VG-99. I'll admit: the online demos are impressive.

 

First you have to realize that the VG-99 is *only* about sounds. If your technique sucks - and, no offense intended, as a beginner your technique *will* suck - the sounds out of the VG-99 will also suck. Music comes from your choice of notes and how you execute those notes upon your instrument. You're in for a *huge* disappointment if you think that the VG-99 is somehow going to elevate your beginner's playing into something that sounds "more musical".

 

Second, the VG-99 will not electronically transform a crappy guitar into a good guitar. The things that are important about a guitar - accurate intonation, good action, clean fretting, comfortable ergonomics, etc. - are unaffected by the VG-99. There's more to an electric guitar - a *lot* more - than just the quality of the wood and the pickups.

 

Third, using the VG-99's MIDI output to drive a software instrument seems like a cool idea. In reality, it can be. But while you're learning to play, MIDI guitar will cause you nothing but heartache and frustration. Your technique has to be *impeccably* clean to get accurate MIDI triggering. That kind of technique comes only from hundreds or thousands of hours of practice.

 

 

 

Yah, I know I'm raining on your parade. No apologies.

 

 

Here's what I'd recommend instead. Go play a bunch of guitars. Look at those $200 cheapies, but also look at higher-end guitars. Heck, you were going to spend $1,700 all together for your "cheap guitar plus awesome noise-toy" rig... Check out guitars in the $500, $700, even the $1,000 range.

 

As a beginner it's going to be tough for you to evaluate a guitar's quality. Bring along someone who can play well: a trusted friend or a teacher. Have them play a variety of styles on different guitars through the same amp and just listen. You *will* notice differences in the sound. Repeat this a few times on different days. Narrow your choices down to a few good-sounding guitars. Now use your eyes: which guitars would you want to be seen playing? Rule out any guitar that doesn't appeal to you visually. Take what's left and hold the guitars as if you were going to play - even if you can't play yet. You'll get an intuition for which one will be more comfortable. That's the guitar you should buy.

 

BTW, one of the advantages of sinking more of your money into a guitar is that you'll get more back if you decide to sell. A digital noise toy depreciates frightfully when the next big thing comes along to replace it. You'd probably get $1,000 back on a quick sale of a VG-99 / GK-3 package. As soon as Roland (or someone else for that matter) comes out with a "better" unit, that resale value will plummet like a rock. By way of contrast, you'll probably get 2/3 of the new purchase price out of a guitar whether you sell it tomorrow of five years from now.

 

 

OK. Now that you've picked a guitar, what are you going to play through?

 

I have two suggestions. Your idea about playing through your computer into a pair of monitor speakers is fine. As a beginner you're not going to have to worry about playing with others, keeping up with a drummer, etc. for a while. Playing through the computer also gives you a quick way to record your playing, which is an invaluable practice aid. A number of low-cost amp modelers have a USB connection that'll send audio to your computer. From there you can route the audio to your monitors or recording software.

 

You should be able to get a decent amp / FX modeler with USB output for $200 or less. I use the Digitech RP355 for practicing, performing and recording. There are similar offerings from other vendors. They're not interchangeable despite listing many of the same amp and effect models. Do the same thing you did when auditioning guitars. Bring along a good player to put different units through their paces while you listen. Pick the model that sounds best to you.

 

The other option would be to look at some of the smaller modeling amps. You'll find a lot of choices in the $300 to $500 range. These will give you capabilities similar to an amp / FX modeler with the added benefit of portability in case you want to jam at a buddy's house. Some of these units even have built-in accompaniment and recording units which can be somewhat useful (they all tend to have pretty serious limitations compared to computer software).

 

 

 

Anyhow, you asked for hints... I hope this gives you something to ponder.