So I get asked this a lot. It's horrible when a student comes to lessons after Christmas with a guitar that would be better used to bash out a fire to be re-lit as another fire than plugged into an amp.
This is my exact reply to the last one. I’m not up for editing it or removing the links. Mostly it’s down to preference and opinion I guess.
Just buy a HSS Yamaha Pacifica and be done with it….Ideally one that’s already been set up.
I was fortunate enough to get this Strat as my first proper electric guitar after playing my dad’s old rusty relic guitar for years. I still play and love it to this day so worth every penny!
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Email to parent:
Eek…
A lot of the starter kits tend to be quite terrible. It is quite easy to buy an electric guitar which is practically unplayable these days (one of my pupils has done this recently and I can’t express how bad it is!) so I’m glad you asked!
I always recommend Yamaha Pacificas as they are very good for a small relatively small amount of money. Though they are a little more than what you’ve been looking at. Fender squires are ok as well but the quality can vary from guitar to guitar.
The Epiphone Les Paul Express guitar are surprisingly good for such a small amount of cash (but not half as good as their full sized brothers):
The Fender Squire minis are probably better than the epiphone though:
The school has one of these actually.
Electric guitars are smaller than acoustic/classical guitars anyway and I think “child’s name” would be fine with a full sized guitar. The advantage of a full sized guitar is that the string tension is higher and therefore the intonation is (usually) better.
If the member of shop staff can tune it up and play a few chords that sound good then it should be ok. If they can’t do this don’t buy it essentially. Another problem that makes cheaper guitar unplayable in when the strings are too far away from the neck so it’s very hard to push the strings down onto the frets.
I hope this helps, sorry for rambling. Buying cheap guitars in a total minefield!
It’s hard to tell how good a guitar is without playing and they vary even if they are the exact same make and model.
Followed by another quick mention:
However this is much better than the Epiphone Express and you can get them from Dawsons in Leeds City Centre I think…
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I’d be interested if anybody had any other opinions?