which guitar?

Number one advice is to go along to many guitar shops and pick-up/play guitars irrespective of brand. Then as you get an idea of what you like consider price. For instance in my own recent search I picked up a lovely olympic white Stratocaster, American series and very heavy - but it cost two or three times what I paid for my Brawley which has a pretty much equivalent sound. Maybe my ears aren't connoisseur's ears but since they aren't I don't need to pay above the odds <img src="images/smiley_icons/icon_smile.gif" border=0 alt="Smile">

Beware guitars which try to give you a retro experience. Guitar technology has come a long way sisnce the 50s/60s so no matter have lovingly made a relic tele or strat might be genuine era passive electronics won't be as much fun as a good modern guitar (had great fun with the push/pull pot of my Brawley - pull and the coils are cut giving a telecaster-esque sound).

If you don't have a specific yen for a particular sound look for a guitar that gives lots of tonal variation with the minimum of fuss. My Brawley proves two knobs can do a huge amount. Likewise beware low output low quality pickups, I played a Peavy Rockingham which was fun but obviously faint and fuzzy.

Get the shop to give you a clean zero-gain tone and set the volume then play various makes and prices points through it - you'll be surprised. The Yamaha Pacifica is a nice feeling guitar but it's pickup is faint at a level where I could happily play a Bolin and a Brawley (the Bolin is very, very expensive).

If I was looking again I'd avoid collectable name makes like Gibson and Fender as a rule (unless of course I found something heavily discounted for decent reasons). Ibanez and Jackson tend to do death-metal specials, at least the shops I looked in didn't stock the more unusual parts of their ranges. Semis and archtops tend to be pricey and less robust so unless your particularly want a particular vintage sound keep looking (I can dial up a decent 'Searchers'/Brit invasion from the Brawley without spending huge amounts on an Epiphone Casino, which commands a price due to the Beatles connection).

Losing my point now, I'm sure others will add what I've missed and counter me <img src="images/smiley_icons/icon_wink.gif" border=0 alt="Wink">

<table border="0" align="center" width="90%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td class="SmallText"><b>cytania wrote on Wed, 21 February 2007 15&#58;00</b></td></tr><tr><td class="quote">
Number one advice is to go along to many guitar shops and pick-up/play guitars irrespective of brand. Then as you get an idea of what you like consider price. For instance in my own recent search I picked up a lovely olympic white Stratocaster, American series and very heavy - but it cost two or three times what I paid for my Brawley which has a pretty much equivalent sound. Maybe my ears aren't connoisseur's ears but since they aren't I don't need to pay above the odds <img src="images/smiley_icons/icon_smile.gif" border=0 alt="Smile">

Beware guitars which try to give you a retro experience. Guitar technology has come a long way sisnce the 50s/60s so no matter have lovingly made a relic tele or strat might be genuine era passive electronics won't be as much fun as a good modern guitar (had great fun with the push/pull pot of my Brawley - pull and the coils are cut giving a telecaster-esque sound).

If you don't have a specific yen for a particular sound look for a guitar that gives lots of tonal variation with the minimum of fuss. My Brawley proves two knobs can do a huge amount. Likewise beware low output low quality pickups, I played a Peavy Rockingham which was fun but obviously faint and fuzzy.

Get the shop to give you a clean zero-gain tone and set the volume then play various makes and prices points through it - you'll be surprised. The Yamaha Pacifica is a nice feeling guitar but it's pickup is faint at a level where I could happily play a Bolin and a Brawley (the Bolin is very, very expensive).

If I was looking again I'd avoid collectable name makes like Gibson and Fender as a rule (unless of course I found something heavily discounted for decent reasons). Ibanez and Jackson tend to do death-metal specials, at least the shops I looked in didn't stock the more unusual parts of their ranges. Semis and archtops tend to be pricey and less robust so unless your particularly want a particular vintage sound keep looking (I can dial up a decent 'Searchers'/Brit invasion from the Brawley without spending huge amounts on an Epiphone Casino, which commands a price due to the Beatles connection).

Losing my point now, I'm sure others will add what I've missed and counter me <img src="images/smiley_icons/icon_wink.gif" border=0 alt="Wink">

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Nice post but I don't think you really answered his question. I do agree with not always going with the standard Gibson or Fender, but here is one point I like to make with people who are buying guitars. Unless you plan on never truly upgrading and keeping that guitar forever, playing a Fender, Gibson, EPI for one gives you a decent sounding nice axe and two they are a hell of a lot easier to sell over something like a Brawley. Nothing personal but I could re-sell a thousand strats or les pauls in the time you sell the Brawley.

when i first started playing all my friends that were musicians told me that i didnt need a name brand guitar 2 learn on they just told me 2 get a nice sturdy CHEAP guitar that i can easily play and easily part with so the guitar that i got was a Series101 standard electric Strat it was a good guitar 2 learn on and by the time i became fairly well i didnt even want that guitar because it so trashed man that thing looked like it had been through Hell and back but if care 2 read this you should take my advice in consideration and KEEP PLAYING no matter what kind of gitar you get. <img src="images/smiley_icons/icon_biggrin.gif" border=0 alt="Very Happy">             

             peace