Acoustic or electric guitar?

[badpenguin]

I do play a real one. it's black.

[knotty]

So you acoustic guys would throw your kids off the top board a few times, then if they stuck with it and dont drown, teach them to dive on a lower board?

I think a lot of kids start with acoustic and quit because of it.

[gardo]

So you acoustic guys would throw your kids off the top board a few times, then if they stuck with it and dont drown, teach them to dive on a lower board?

I think a lot of kids start with acoustic and quit because of it.

I think too mny kids play Guitar Hero and want the instant gratification, then they find out it takes hard work and quit..

 

[DeepEnd]

I think too mny kids play Guitar Hero and want the instant gratification, then they find out it takes hard work and quit..

^ This. Years ago, our daughter decided she wanted to learn guitar. I bought her a used Epi, set it up, and put new, light strings on it. She tried a few chords, discovered she couldn't play them cleanly, and gave up. The guy I set up the Squier for seems to have taken the same path. He tried a few cowboy chords like a D Major and couldn't play them cleanly and he hasn't said any more about lessons. There are people who appear to have figured a few things out. Here's Phil's review of the new Epiphone Pro-1 beginner acoustic: http://www.harmonycentral.com/expert-reviews/epiphone-pro-1-acoustic-guitar. Note that it comes equipped with 0.009 strings, which are lighter than what I have on my Strat. Of course, it will need a setup when the owner puts medium or even light strings on it and it won't sound as good as an acoustic with heavier strings but it might appeal to a beginner.

[Surrealistic]

 

 

I think you just nailed about half of the people here

 

You may say that. I couldn't possibly comment

[Ratae Corieltauvorum]

Even so.....

 

I have to disagree with all you saying acoustic first........

 

Start with the one you WANT to start with. If acoustic music is your thing and you LOVE the sounds of acoustic guitars in the music you listen to then start with acoustic. If you like electric guitar music then start with electric.

 

When I was younger all I wanted to play was electric guitar. I followed the stupid tradition of "start out on an acoustic" and it was a complete waste of my time because it didn't give me the sounds I wanted to hear so I quickly lost motivation. I should have just gotten what I REALLY wanted right from the get go.

 

Not to mention why would anyone suggest starting out on something that is MORE difficult to play? That's just ridiculous logic. 'but it builds finger strength'....yeah.......while killing motivation. The first time you surf you don't get a 5'6 short board. The first time you try to hit a baseball you don't go to the 90mph pitching machine. You don't try to learn a video game by starting on the highest level. Starting with a guitar that is EASIER to fret is just common sense.

 

Besides.....everything you want to play on an acoustic can be played on electric.....but the reverse does not hold true.

 

I fully concur with this post, the only similarity between electric and acoustic is number of strings, tuning intervals and vaguely the shape. Beyond that, the skills learned on the fingerboard, the scales etc have a relationship, but spend 1, 2-3 years on an acoustic and then give someone an electric guitar, and see how they get on.

 

They won't know about tone shaping, amplification, dialling an amp to get sounds you hear, they'll know nothing about single coil v humbucker guitars, sweep picking, and numerous other skills that the the electric guitarist knows.

 

If you want to play electric guitar, buy and learn on an electric guitar. If you only ever want to play acoustic then buy an acoustic and even then you'll have to decide steel string or nylon string, picking vs finger style.

 

You must know what you want to play.

 

It's like saying learn how to ride on a pedal bike and then climb on a Ducati 1150.

[Ratae Corieltauvorum]

I managed to get away with having almost no skills at all in my first band. (As long as you call it avant-garde, experimental rock/jazz fusion you can fool quite a lot of the people quite a lot of the time).

 

But you were happy

[Ratae Corieltauvorum]

So you acoustic guys would throw your kids off the top board a few times, then if they stuck with it and dont drown, teach them to dive on a lower board?

I think a lot of kids start with acoustic and quit because of it.

 

Not only do I agree with this but have heard numerous guitar teachers say so, and witnessed it first hand with around 7 of my son's fellow students. If it wasn't for the fact that he has a whacky guitar teacher and I throw electric gear at him and let him mess about with basic modelling, he'd now not be trying various experiments with both is classical and electric playing

[gardo]

 

I fully concur with this post, the only similarity between electric and acoustic is number of strings, tuning intervals and vaguely the shape. Beyond that, the skills learned on the fingerboard, the scales etc have a relationship, but spend 1, 2-3 years on an acoustic and then give someone an electric guitar, and see how they get on.

 

They won't know about tone shaping, amplification, dialling an amp to get sounds you hear, they'll know nothing about single coil v humbucker guitars, sweep picking, and numerous other skills that the the electric guitarist knows.

 

If you want to play electric guitar, buy and learn on an electric guitar. If you only ever want to play acoustic then buy an acoustic and even then you'll have to decide steel string or nylon string, picking vs finger style.

 

You must know what you want to play.

 

It's like saying learn how to ride on a pedal bike and then climb on a Ducati 1150.

 

 

Here is an example of what an acoustic player can do after 2 months on electric

 

.[video=youtube;cm8Ic2TwGjk]

 

I would nver put someone on a Ducati who can't balance a bicycle

[Ratae Corieltauvorum]

I presume you know this guy ^^^^^

[gardo]

I presume you know this guy ^^^^^

Never met him but have been impressed wiith his talent for some time.

Admittedly he's not just any acoustic player. Here's a clip of him as a child ,playing California Dreaming

[video=youtube;iAhZZc_Bwps]

[Ratae Corieltauvorum]

Never met him but have been impressed wiith his talent for some time.

 

You know his journey, how in two months he went from acoustic to that?^^^^^

[gardo]

 

You know his journey, how in two months he went from acoustic to that?^^^^^

Based on his aacoustic ability ,I believe it.

[Ratae Corieltauvorum]

Based on his aacoustic ability ,I believe it.

 

You know that's not what I asked?

 

There are thousands of Asian automaton players, but lets take this guy, you show me a pic from when he's about 5-6 and then playing electric.

 

Where's the one where someone hands him an electric guitar an amp a lead and he figures the whole thing out himself?

 

And I wouldn't even put any of the worlds best cyclists on a motorcycle bigger than 125cc, without considerable tuition, because although they have a similar form, they behave completely differently, have different behaviours and require different skills sets

[gardo]

People will always believe what they want to believe.

I have no reason to doubt and you have no reason to believe.

c'est la vie

[Ratae Corieltauvorum]

People will always believe what they want to believe.

I have no reason to doubt and you have no reason to believe.

c'est la vie

 

Sorry dude, not with you.

[knotty]

 

Sorry dude, not with you.

Nor me. I thought we were talking about the best instrument to learn electric on. People who can play acoustic can sometimes play electric. Proving what?

[GAS Man]

I always recommend that folks start with an electric guitar. Why?

 

If the music that you like listening to is "electric guitar" based music, then you'll want to create that sound.

 

Electric guitars are much easier to play since they generally have thinner strings and bigger frets.

 

So if it creates the sound you're after, and they are easier to play, you are far more likely to stick with it and learn faster on an electric.

 

However, if you want to grow up to be Sheryl Crow, then by an acoustic. (or Paul Simon )

 

But I'm always very adamant that the "starting off on an acoustic" is bad advice that been given through the millenniums.

 

Electric and acoustic guitars are really 2 very different animals. You can have fun with barre chords on an electric, but try the same on an acoustic and you get to enjoy massive hand cramps. Folks who play acoustic learn to play "partial chord" formations to minimize the effort. While that also translates to electric guitar, it's the basic (complete) chord shapes, and barre chords that most folks learn first.

 

[Willyguitar]

Go for an acoustic. Then you won't feel obliged to engage with the morons on this forum

[DeepEnd]

. . . You can have fun with barre chords on an electric, but try the same on an acoustic and you get to enjoy massive hand cramps. Folks who play acoustic learn to play "partial chord" formations to minimize the effort. While that also translates to electric guitar, it's the basic (complete) chord shapes, and barre chords that most folks learn first.

That's odd, I don't. Then again, I learned to play barre chords from a guy whose main guitar was a Fender Jazzmaster. In my experience, most (but not all) acoustic guitarists play full blown barre chords but honestly, I play whatever works in a given situation. An acoustic that has been properly set up with light gauge strings (12's in the case of an acoustic) isn't all that hard to play. It just takes patience to learn, which is often in short supply, and realistic expectations, which are also often in short supply.

[knotty]

Go for an acoustic. Then you won't feel obliged to engage with the morons on this forum

You sound a little bitter Willy, not like you.

Things ok?

[billybilly]

Go for an acoustic. Then you won't feel obliged to engage with the morons on this forum

We've established a nice little community here, obviously, you haven't been around much.

[gardo]

It wasn't until I took some electric guitar lessons that I was taught to use partial chords

[Grant Harding]

Go for an acoustic. Then you won't feel obliged to engage with the morons on this forum

You OK man?

[GAS Man]

That's odd, I don't. Then again, I learned to play barre chords from a guy whose main guitar was a Fender Jazzmaster. In my experience, most (but not all) acoustic guitarists play full blown barre chords but honestly, I play whatever works in a given situation. An acoustic that has been properly set up with light gauge strings (12's in the case of an acoustic) isn't all that hard to play. It just takes patience to learn, which is often in short supply, and realistic expectations, which are also often in short supply.

 

A major part of the basis for my response is my own personal experience. I got the "hard to play" acoustic guitar at the age of 10. It largely remained an occasional play toy for me since it was/is (i.e. still have it) hard to cleanly fret a full chord. In my teens I remember I got my first electric, but it was also set up poorly (didn't know about set-ups back then) and I didn't even have a guitar amp for it for most of the time I owned that one. But still, I had started learning a few songs on it, mostly playing lead lines. Finally I met a friend in college when I was about 24. He got me inspired to go on to the next step. Then around 27 I got my first "good" electric guitar, and I've never put down the electric guitar since (i.e. 30 years later). And even though I've since picked up a couple higher end acoustics, I don't find them to play any where near as easy as my electrics. They need thicker strings, a bit higher action for good tone, and the frets are generally shorter.

 

But as far as my comment on chording goes, I've just taken note that when I'm watching good acoustic technique, I observe a keen skill in their use of minimal finger effort. Forming a chord on only the critical strings or knowing transpositions of a chord that can be played with more ease are important skills for both acoustic and electric; but I think that with electric guitar, you can more easily get a good sound/tone with less perfection of technique. Or maybe I should simply say, it's a lot easier to bang out the barre chords to Wild Thing on an electric and get a good groove going, which can be a lot of fun and give you a grin, than it is for you to learn Kottke's Ojo on an acoustic and put a smile on everyone, But same thing on an acoustic guitar?, then not so much.