I'm wanting to get an electric guitar to start practicing some things...any recommendations for a beginner electric guitar for a good price? I'd prefer a pack with an amp too. I don't know where to go as far as online. Any help would be great.
A Cheap Fender Stratocaster replica is usually the "starter" faviroute. Decent weight, good enough sound and generally comfortable. I dunno about availability in the States, but in the UK most music stores sell "starter packs" starting at around £80 with a decent strat' replica and small amp. You can pick up some good deals on ebay too.
Less than 200$ preferably, but a little more wouldn't hurt. Alright, I'll look into those more here. So far I have found a a pretty good Fender Squire pack for a decent price(about $184 total).
I can't help on your guitar choices (I play the drums, or try to), but my sister tells me that www.musiciansfriend.com is a great place to order from.
Dont go online to buy a guitar,go to a pawn shop or a small music store,you can always talk them down in price there.Yes you can get a alright guitar and a pratice amp for under 200 most of the time.I like fender guitars myself,I have been playing for over 10 years and I have been playing drums for over 7 years.And the fender squiers guitars are cheap and light and they dont sound good at all.But hey you have to start somewhere. Good Luck
On getting a Guitar the best advice is try some out. I know for me I own a fender, Ibanez and an Ovation. If you want to be able to learn I would recommend a guitar like Ovation. The are an acoustic electric so you do not need an amp to play. This way you can take it with you and play it at lunch time if you want. based on your height and hand size you may like some other brands. Guitars are more personal since each maker makes them with differnt size necks and the weight varies on each guitar. It is true more people prefer fenders since they have a smaller neck and you can usualy find a good used fender for under 200. The other thing to consider is what type of music do you want to play. For blues you would rather have a good rythem guitar, for rock fender plays good and for hard rock I prefer the Ibanez over my fender for the sound. Hope that helps
Squires are decent enough starter guitars - Next time I'm at the pub I'll ask a few of my mates your questions - I have 3 friends all of whom play and teach guitar, so get these questions quite often
Alright guys, thanks for the advice. I do have a question. I went to the mall today and they had a Silvertone guitar pack for $250. Would that be an alright guitar?
As others have mentioned, names on paper/internet don't translate into a good deal. You need to pick it up and give it a try. Make sure the guitar matches the kind of music you want to play - I bought a Fender Strat and a big Marshall amp back when I was just starting to move toward acoustic guitar playing, and I've not got the use out of it I could have. With that said, Squires are cheap, reasonably sturdy and have consistent quality (if you're buying them new - avoid second hand for any cheap guitar), and are fairly tonally flexible. However, there's a truism that if you want to compete with Fender, you have to have twice the quality at half the price - so it's worth looking at the competition. A mate has a Yamaha Pacifica which he picked up for around the same price as a Squire, and from the short go I had on it, felt like a far better guitar. If you really don't know what to get, though, and are determined to buy online - a Squire will last for at least a few years, by which time you'll have a much better idea what you want in a guitar.
I happen to have a little Yamaha Strat-knockoff I bought third-hand from a friend about four years ago, and the thing works excellently. It's the type you'll see in Costco stores with a little cheapo amp for less than $150, and as long as you're just starting out, that's the perfect price range. Squier by Fender is a good low-priced entry into their line, and I thought Gibson had a few similar models of Les Paul on the low end of the price range. Pawn shops can sometimes seem like a good deal, but unless it's a really big shop, you'll rarely find any discernable brand names, but everything will be priced as if it were a freaking American-made Strat. If you do find a nice price, make sure they'll let you plug it into an amp and check it out first. My advice is to check out a place like Guitar Center, or any local music shop. Guitar Center has a pretty huge selection and often has pretty impressive sales that knock prices down a decent amount. Your local places will often sell gently used guitars, often at really reduced prices. But yeah, I'd say avoid buying online, or at any point where you can' actually touch the guitar. The one exception would be Musician's Friend--they're really reliable, and they carry about the same stock as Guitar Center (not sure if the companies are related). You can go test things out at GC, and then order from MF, which often has some pretty hefty discounts.
