Clyde Lee Dennis asked:

The exceptionally talented Rock artist Vanessa Carlton has released her CD entitled Harmonium. I am very confident and happy to announce that I believe Vanessa Carlton fans, and Rock fans alike will be pleased with this one. With the release of Harmonium Vanessa Carlton’s artistic excellence is on full display as Carlton has once again delivered a brilliant collection of tracks that could very well be her best work to date.

I wish it weren’t the case but, it’s not everyday that I get a CD from an artist that I can just pop in and comfortably listen to from beginning to end. There is usually a song or two that I just can’t force myself to get through. Not at all the case with Harmonium. Every track is enjoyable and was pretty easy for me to listen to from start to finish.

One of the refreshingly nice things about this CD is the way all of the participating artists seem to be really enjoying themselves. Combine that with the overall presentation and you’ve got one of Vanessa Carlton’s most impressive releases ever.

I give Harmonium my highest recommendation. It just plain belongs in any serious music collectors collection regardless of genre preference.

While the entire album is outstanding the truly standout tunes are track 2 - What’s To Say, track 7 - Half A Week Before The Winter, and track 10 - She Floats.

My Bonus Pick, and the one that got Sore [...as in "Stuck On REpeat"] is track 1 - White Houses. Wow!

Harmonium Release Notes:

Vanessa Carlton originally released Harmonium on November 9, 2004 on the A&M Records label.

CD Track List Follows:

1. White Houses 2. Who’s To Say 3. Annie 4. San Francisco 5. Afterglow 6. Private Radio 7. Half A Week Before The Winter 8. C’est La Vie 9. Papa 10. She Floats 11. Untitled - (hidden track)

Personnel include: Vanessa Carlton (vocals, piano, Fender Rhodes piano, keyboards); Lindsey Buckingham (vocals, acoustic guitar); Pharrell Williams (vocals, background vocals); Stephan Jenkins (electric guitar, organ, keyboards, drums, percussion, programming, background vocals); Arion Salazar (electric guitar, bass guitar); Jesse Tobias, Tony Fredianelli (electric guitar); Jerry Hey (trumpet); Abe Laboriel Jr. (drums); Luis Conte (percussion).

Patrick Omari asked:

Once upon a time, really not very long ago, if you wanted to know what it was like to play guitar you bought a guitar, learnt some chords and got sore fingertips before strumming out that first baby-steps, three or four chord song - usually “Knockin On Heavens Door,” “Smoke on the Water” or, if you bought a capo too, “Wonderwall.”

Then, as you progressed from strumming chords you could pick out individual strings and when you threw in a D and G you had “Everybody Hurts” and as the skill builds up you could tackle those songs that would make your wrist fall off with practice such as the circus like riff that opens “Sweet Child Of Mine.” With every Nirvana riff nailed a feeling of satisfaction would emerge and you’d become braver, tackling more complex sounding tracks such as Jane’s Addiction’s “Just Because” before your confidence was up enough to play with other guitar bashers - or, in technical terms: musicians - and learn more.

At least, that’s how I did it.

Not anymore though. This thing called Guitar Hero traversed its way from Japanese arcades to shop shelves. A miniature, plastic little guitar shaped controller with colour coded buttons in place of frets. No need to learn actual chords and riffs when you can push coloured buttons, as prompted along to guitar classics. Then there’s sequels and dedicated editions. Not to mention being able to hook it up with your mates games and have face-offs. If only you could do such things with REAL guitars.

Then there’s Rock BAND - to give you all the fun of being in a real band without any of that troublesome stuff of say, buying instruments, learning instruments, learning and writing songs and.. creating. Oh no, who needs that when you can spend upwards of 70 quid on a fake guitar or drumkit which, by the way, you look really cool playing, and PRETEND?! Wow, with one person singing, one person pushing buttons pretending to play guitar and another hitting colour coded drum pads it’s almost like you’re in a band! Wow.

Let me illustrate how I see this in terms of the devolution of music: imagine you’re walking down the street. You walk past a house and the garage door is open, inside a drummer twirling the bolts on top of the symbols and setting up while two kids churn out guitar chords and lanky kid with a bass (they’re always the lanky ones) tunes up. Two minutes later they’re in the middle of a slightly loose and ever so slightly out of tune cover of “Love Buzz.” It’s not great but they’re getting there and in a few months they’ll be playing it infront of people and calling themselves something like Plastic Glass and people will be jumping up and down. Teenage girls will be adoring them and soon they’ll be writing their own tunes and maybe, this is just a maybe mind as the record industry is in a scary state, they might even get to make an album.

Keep walking down the metaphorical street.

Now you come to a house with no net curtains, you can see straight through the window. Inside there’s a large tv and around it three young adults, one of them has what looks like a microphone in his hand, another has something resembling a stratocaster (it even says Fender on the headstock but you can’t see that from the street) and the other is sat behind what looks like half a drumkit but somehow.. not quite right. Then as images appear on the screen they start what looks like a game of make believe and dance around as if they’re pretending to be the band that made the music on the game. Never mind they didn’t write it, never mind that they don’t know how to really play but they are going to pretend they did. After three and a half excruciating minutes of watching these people pretend (just be grateful the kids in this house aren’t into it enough to dress up too) they do a little excited jump - perhaps even a little chest bump - and celebrate the fact that they got enough points to unlock another song they can pretend to play.

Now if people continue to do this instead copying songs at the first place you stopped how will music get made? Where will the soundtracks for your Make Pretend Game come from?! If you ask me, the only difference between Rock Band/ Guitar Hero and the old Harry Enfield sketch of Tim Nice-But Dim rocking out with his tennis racket to Dire Strait’s “Sultans of Swing” is that his racket wasn’t actually shaped like a little plastic guitar and could do something useful like play tennis.

It’s getting so bad that bands are actually releasing their songs ONLY via these games.

So yeah, if you wanna know what it’s like to be a gangster and blow things up then by all means by a game. And yes it may be fun and quicker than actually learning but if you want to know what it’s really like to play guitar, buy one. You can pick them up cheap enough to start learning on - easily as cheap as buying the game and controllers. If you want to get the rock band experience find a couple of friends that play instruments - not toy ones - and play with them. Trust me, it’s the most fun you’ll have.

Victor Epand asked:

The bass is similar in appearance and construction to an electric guitar, but with a larger body, a longer neck and scale length, and usually four strings tuned one octave lower in pitch than the four lower strings of a guitar.

Bass guitar can be accessorized with various gears. It includes case, Bags, Strings, Picks, Tuners, Stands and Cables.

Bass guitar case

Guitar cases are available in different materials. Molded Electric Bass Guitar Case with Plush Interior features a unique through bolted system, which attaches the exterior body to the interior foam for rugged protection. The plush interior keeps the instrument safe, and the protective foam inside supports the guitar, even the neck, for maximum safety. The lightweight and durable semi-rigid case is great for protecting the guitar.

Bass Guitar Bags

Different kinds of guitar bags are available in the market. These bags are made to keep the guitar safe from any kind of scratches.

Bass guitar strings

Rotosound Long Scale Bass Strings, Set of 4 Rotosound is one of the first string companies to produce this kind of string. Introduced in 1962 it changed the sound of the instrument instantly.

Guitar Picks

From soulful blues licks to searing metal riffs, your pick is where it all begins. Fender offers a wide variety of picks, in any thickness and made from a variety of materials and an amazing assortment of colors. Wide variety of gauges, shapes, sizes and materials from Dunlop allows the player to select the exact pick for his own particular style of playing.

Guitar straps

Guitar straps are available in woven polypropylene with leather ends, black leather, suede, and also guitar strap with Jacquard Sun Images. The famous brand called Levy’s Leathers has grown to become one of the leading guitar strap makers in the world. With premium leather straps as well as models made of vinyl, fabric, faux fur and polyester. The straps are available in different colors. And also various sizes, designs of locks and stretching flexibility are in offer.

Guitar tuners

Guitar or Bass Tuner with LCD Needle and Reference Tone High accuracy and superb functionality have made Korg tuners the worldwide favorite. The new GA 30 joins the best selling GA series of tuners. With even more features, like a pitch reference tone and Quinta flat tuning, the GA 30 tuner packs basic functionality and convenient tuning. Guitar Tuner with Tunings for Guitar, Bass, Violin, Viola, Cello, and Steel Guitar the Strobo Flip is the latest in the Peterson line of Virtual Strobe Tuners.

Guitar stands

Bass guitar stands are available in Velveteen Rubber and Security Strap with Black Powder Coat Finish. This classic guitar stand is an ideal solution for securely storing a guitar or bass when not in use. The padded frame prevents marring of the finish of the instrument while in the stand and the security strap keeps the neck securely in place to prevent tipping of the guitar out of the stand.

Guitar Cable

Pro Co cables are the professional choice for the most demanding applications.

Ricky Sharples asked:

Country guitar lessons in these days of the world wide web are now popular all over the world. If you are wondering what the fuss is about I will just mention some aspects of country guitar playing that excite the interest of music fans and guitar enthusiasts alike. This article will focus on a couple of the more individualistic guitar styles in country music and also talk a little about the Telecaster - the country musician’s guitar.

First let us look at a guitar style that has entered the country genre through blues and rock. The slide guitar, also known as the bottleneck guitar is a lyrical way of expressing feelings through guitar music. It was developed in the early twentieth century by the early blues players, and popularized by young white rock and blues players in the nineteen sixties. Now there are many country guitar players who see the musical possibilities in this style of playing. The key to this technique is sliding an object along the guitar strings to make a whining or wailing sound. This presents the guitar player with many opportunities to play notes that fall between the frets of the guitar as well as imitating the sound of a singing voice.

The term “bottleneck” refers to the practice of many slide guitar performers of producing the sliding sound by fitting the neck of a bottle to their first or second finger. Popular wisdom has it that other players used the blade of a knife. Modern slide guitar players usually go to a music shop and buy a slide. You can play slide guitar with the guitar held in the normal playing position or with the guitar in your lap. A player can use an ordinary steel string acoustic guitar tuned in the standard way or to an open chord, or a resonator guitar which has a distinctive metallic sound well suited to slide playing.

Another guitar style used by country guitar players is chicken pickin’, developed to high art by Walon Jennings. It is used in lead guitar solos and involves the guitar player pulling on the string with his right hand fingers and at the same time damping the string with his left hand. Most country guitar players use a plectrum or thumbpick to play bass notes in conjunction with chicken pickin’ on the treble strings.

Chet Atkins is a country guitar player who was adept at the chicken pickin’ technique but he was most well known for his adaptation of the Travis picking technique. Merle Travis developed an impressive solo playing technique using his thumb to pick bass notes and his index finger to play melody or filler notes. Chet Atkins was so impressed with Travis’ solos that he assumed that Travis was using his second and ring fingers in addition to his index finger. This mistaken assumption led to a whole new generation of country guitar players inspired by the Chet Atkins style.

If you want to take country guitar lessons you should learn about the typical sound that is associated with country guitar music. While rock and roll has as many sounds as there are guitar players, country guitar has its own sound. This is due to most country players opting to stay with the clean, unadorned sound of the Fender Telecaster. The “Tele” had a sound that made aspiring guitar players sit up and take notice combined with a design that made it a dream to play. It is a solid body electric guitar with two pickups, and was the first electric guitar to be successfully produced and sold on a large scale.

In the early days of the electric guitar both rock and country guitar players wanted to be heard by the audience without feedback interfering with the sound of the guitar. The Telecaster filled the bill when it came out in 1950 and has remained a popular choice for solo guitarist ever since. Country guitarists noted for being enthusiastic Telecaster players include Buck Owens, Waylon Jennings, James Burton and Merle Haggard.

Logan N Young asked:

When you have purchased a guitar, next thing you want to do is to buy cheap guitar amps. Guitar amplifiers come in all shapes and sizes: practice, pre, mini, full and half stacked amps etc. Some amplifiers can do well in many departments, while some others are designed to produce specific tonal qualities. The most popular companies known for producing amps are: Marshall, Yamaha, VOX, Fender, Mesa, Line 6 etc.

While looking for cheap guitar amplifiers, you will have to choose between the tube amps solid state amps and hybrid amps You will also have to decide whether you want a combo or separate head and speaker cabinet. Of these amps tube based amps use the vacuum tubes to produce sound. They are very loud and generate lots of heat when operated. Many musicians prefer tube amps as they produce warm tones and if pushed hard they can produce a natural distortion which adds more impact to the music.

The solid state variety use transistors and integrated circuits instead of tubes. Although they can’t match the sound quality of the natural, smooth distortion produced by tube amplifiers, still they are versatile, maintenance free and economical. They use a broader range of tones as compared to tube amps If you are looking for cheap guitar amps you should go for solid state amps they provide reasonably good quality sound in a small budget.

Since the advent of microprocessors and digital technology, digital amplifiers have come in the market. They can simulate the sounds of a variety of tube amps without using actual tubes. They are cheap guitar amps which combine the latest technology with traditional sound quality. You can’t make out the difference unless you are very sensitive to the notes.

A hybrid guitar amplifier combines the power of the solid state amps while tone comes from the tube amps technology. This way you get cheaper guitar amplifiers as compared to tube amps with similar quality, it’s easier to carry and maintain.

Other Considerations

Combos: They consist of a single unit to house the electronics and the speakers. Thus, they are easier to transport and are quite handy. They are also not very expensive and give you full value for money.

Separate amps: These amps give you more flexibility in terms of speaker size and type. The speaker is away from the electronics, thus electronics are shielded from vibrations, which increases life and reliability of the electronic components.

There are cheap guitar amps available in the market, known as practice or mini amps For beginners they provide good support and are easy on the pocket. They are small in size, and the quality of sound produced by them is reasonably ok. You can use then as practice amps at home or in small gatherings. What kind of amp you choose depends solely on your usage, style, budget and personal choice.

The bigger idea is that an amplifier is an integral part of playing a guitar. Even the costliest best quality guitar won’t sound as good if it is not attached to a suitable amplifier. So don’t just go in for the cheap guitar amps go for amps that provide you with desired sound effects. An amplifier is a long term investment, you won’t buy it every month, and so do not compromise on quality, your style and actual needs.

Richard Neesal asked:


If you are, or wish to be, an electric guitarist, you would know that one of the most difficult tasks awaiting you is the selection of your electric guitar. No matter what your level of interest and your achieved expertise in the guitar, the art of choosing the right guitar for yourself remains complicated and challenging for the simple reason that it could play an integral role in producing the signature tone and style that you might hope to originate as your distinctive mark.

The fundamental design is more or less a constant in the various makes of electric guitars available in the market. The standard construction is along the lines of: a body, the neck, the head stock piece, electrical pickups and the bridge.

The crucial part in which the electric guitar differs from the acoustic version is in its use of the amplifier. The amplifier is a device required to broadcast the sound produced in the guitar: every pluck of the strings is captured by the pickups and routed through the amplifier at which point several differing sound effects can be introduced.

The two most important factors that you would have to consider at the time of buying the electric guitar for yourself are price and sound.

Electric guitars are available for a wide range of prices, from as low as 99 to as high as 20,000 dollars. Thus, having an idea of your budget limits is very useful. A beginner should preferably look for a starters kit which would include instruction manuals along with the guitar and the amplifier.

When it comes to determine the nature and quality of sound by which you could select your guitar within your price zone, it is handy to know the different types of electric guitars, the variations in their designs and the differences in their sound output.

Electric guitars are grouped under four broad divisions: we have the Acoustic-Electric, the Electric, the Hollow Body Electric and the Steel Electric guitar, and each category of guitar produces a distinct sound.

The acoustic-electric guitar is an acoustic guitar with in-built pickups which can be plugged up with an amplifier or a public address system. These are sturdy and durable, relatively uncomplicated in design and simple to maintain, and are among the most popular kinds of guitars for touring bands.

The electric guitar usually has a solid wood body which means that the sound is only produced through the pickup mechanism. Additionally the amplifier is used to increase or decrease volume and for generating sound effects. These are generally the most popular models among beginners and prices range from 99 dollars and upwards. Almost all the reputed guitar manufacturers like Fender and Gibson market their own electric guitar kits for beginners, comprising a guitar, an amplifier and how-to- get-started manuals.

The hollow body electric guitar follows the same lines of construction as the traditional electric guitar, except for one essential variation. The hollow-body guitar, as the name implies, has two chambers hollowed out of the wooden body. This enables the guitar to generate acoustic vibrations over and above the electric ones and thereby results in the delivery of a uniquely resonating sound. These types of guitars are generally used by Jazz musicians and come in several sizes and tones.

The other kind of electrical guitar is the steel guitar, and was popularized by Jeff Healey. These are so dissimilar in design to traditional guitars that many years of specialized practice is usually necessary to learn how to properly perform on them. Unlike the normal guitar which is played while being hung from the player’s neck around his or her shoulders, the steel guitar, is played on its back while being laid out on a platform before the player. The guitar strings on this variety are usually raised above the fret board and require the use of a “tone bar”. A tone bar is a cylindrical tube that is worn on the middle finger of the fret hand, and produces the characteristic “whine” of the steel guitar. This variety of guitar goes best with the genres of country and western style music.

Irrespective of the kind of guitar that you are seeking to buy, it is always advisable that you thoroughly research your options before finalizing your purchase. Take the opinions of experienced guitarists if possible. Otherwise you should at least try and talk to the employees at the local guitar store, and search the internet to get all the information that you need to help identify the exact make and model of guitar is suitable for you. And most importantly: always test the guitar before you buy it. Happy rocking!

Muna wa Wanjiru asked:

Some guitars have pickups to convert the vibration of the steel chord strings into electrical current and these types of guitars are called as electric guitars. In many popular styles of music like jazz, blues, rock and roll, country music electric guitars are used. It is even used in contemporary classical music. Many famous musicians enjoy playing on the electric guitars.

In the year 1932, the guitarist Kansas of Wichita performed with the electric guitar for the first time. The first solid body electric guitars was invented by Lespaul in the year 1942. In the year 1950, Leo fender designed the first commercially successful solid body electric guitar with a single magnetic pick up. It was named as the Esquire.

The movements of the strings in the electric guitar induce a very small electrical current in the magnetic pick-ups and make very clear sound. All the magnetic pick-ups usually pick up the unwanted electromagnetic noises. In an electric guitar, the unwanted noises are eliminated. Induced currents and circuits are the main working principles of electric guitars. In an electric guitar, the coils are wrapped with very fine wire and are under the ferromagnetic string.

Unlike acoustic guitars, the bodies of the electric guitars are very solid and do not have any holes to accommodate vibration. Electric guitars are made of hard wood with a lacquer coating and have six steel strings. In any music that features electric guitar the audible sound is produced by pick-ups that convert the vibrations into an electrical signal.

This electrical signal is passed on to an amplifier and then to a speaker. Electric guitars have necks that vary according to the composition as well as its shape. There are different neck shapes as C necks and v-necks. The cut of the neck can help to define the particular sound that the electric guitar makes.

There are many strings and each musician play on different strings. Tiny Grimes is a noted four-string player.

Another type of electric guitar is the hollow body electric guitar. These have pick ups mounted on its body. The hollow body electric guitar works in a same way as the old body electric guitar. The only difference is that when the hollow bodies vibrate the pick-ups and convert the body vibration in to an electric signal.

Electric guitars can be played either solo or with any other instruments. It is popularly used in pop music and even classical music. A student of academy of science completed the largest electric guitar and technology in the year 2000.This electric guitar measures 13 metres long, and weighs 1018 kilograms.

Daniel Lehrman asked:

To most people the truth about when Jimi Hendrix got his first guitar and what types of guitars he played throughout his career is somewhat of a mystery. Although, he was unarguably the greatest guitar player ever, and with his fertile musical mind, perhaps the greatest composer of our generation or ever for that matter. No disrespect intended, putting Jimi in company with Bach, Beethoven and the likes. True Genius.

The path that will be described here is what I would consider the most accurate, after a lot of research and a little voodoo-magic. Realistically though, boiling down the mixture may leave some people to disagree with me, and I welcome the input.

The evidence and consistencies suggest that his first guitar was a cheap acoustic his dad gave to him, as early as eleven years old. The story goes as such, that even at a young age of six years, his school teacher mentioned to his dad, Jimi obsesses over having a guitar so much that it may be contributing to some mental health issues. Not to discount todays teachers, but that was a very perceptive statement at that time.

His first electric guitar was bought from Myers Music in Seattle in 1959. Professed to be a white, single pickup Supro Ozark. The next axe that Hendrix played was a red Danelectro single pickup Silvertone, nicknamed Betty Jean. In’62, while doing some gigs with the King Casuals in Tennessee, he traded his Danelectro for an Epiphone Wilshire, which had dual pickups and a glued on mahogany neck with a solid mahogany body, as opposed to the bolt on Fender Stratocaster guitar necks.

In 1964, Jimi would play rhythm guitar for the Isley Brothers. During this nine month gig, he finally got his first Fender guitar, a blond’59 Duo-Sonic. He next played with Little Richard in ‘65, and briefly played a Fender Jazzmaster. However, he switched back to a Dou-Sonic when he played with Curtis Knight and the Squires. Even though Jimi later returned to the Jazzmaster.

A point of interest is that none of the gigs he had with the bands mentioned above lasted very long, because Jimi’s guitar work stole the show. His unbelievable guitar abilities were noticed by all immediately, which took the focus away from the musical-icons he worked for.

Jimi purchased his first Strat from Manny’s Music in New York in ‘66 in the summer. Early on he would use a variety of CBS Strats with rosewood fretboards. While he was staying in Greenwich Village in late ‘66 and ‘67 he narrowed down his choices to a ’60’s era Reverse Fender Stratocasterblack or white Fender Strats using maple fretboards. Which, most likely is the reason the Fender Stratocaster is the most important guitar in the history of guitars and music.

From then on he played Fender Stratocasters with large headstocks. One of his many unusual playing techniques was to play a right handed guitar backwards, or in the left handed position, obviously because Jimi was left handed. In order to do that one must reverse the strings and (bone) nut so the low E was still on the top. My understanding was that he preferred the controls on the top of the guitar. Apparently he could work his magic easier with the voluminous amount of tricks he performed, partly by messing with the volume control knob. Jimi was not much on tone controls or guitar setup. Mostly Jimi spent the bulk of time modifying his tremolo to do things like lower the pitch more than usual and create trem sounds otherwise unheard of.

Naturally Jim Hendrix had purchased and played a tremendous assortment of guitars in his lifetime. During my fact finding mission, this is the list of the other guitars Jimi most likely owned and played; a Gibson ES-330, a Gibson Firebird, a Mosrite electric resonator guitar, a Guild 12 string acoustic, a Black Widow Spider acoustic, several Rickenbacker’s including a bass Rick, a double neck Mosrite, a Hagstrom 8 string bass(it was the on played on Spanish Castle Magic from the Axis Bold As Love album’, a ‘67 Gibson Flying V, a ‘67 Gretsch Corvette, a lefty Guild Starfire Deluxe, a Hofner electric, a ‘55 Gibson Les Paul, a Gibson Dove acoustic, a Martin acoustic, a ‘68 Gibson SG Custom and a black lefty Flying V. Wow!

It is not surprising that Jimi owned so many guitars. The depth of knowledge and pure unadulterated playing style was not limited to just electric guitars and Stratocasters. His unique abilities allowed him to play any guitar with the deep soul jarring vibes that were all his. It would be unrealistic to think he was limited to one style of guitar. Or for that matter, one type of music. Jimi’s interest in music extended to the world of classical music as well.

Lost to many, is the fact that Jimi was one of the best rhythm guitarists ever, most folk know him for his lead and solo guitar work, he was also an adept bass player too. And last, he was a master at the acoustic guitar, using chords in a manner unknown to mankind at that time. This combo of skills and abilities produced the man who will be forever the patron saint of rock guitar.

A long article to read indeed. A true joy putting the info together. It turned out to be a long path to find the truth. Enjoy it.

James Johnson asked:

When it comes to finding an acoustic beginner guitar, there are many things to consider. It may actually be worth spending enough money for a high quality guitar, if you have it. The ease with which the guitar plays and the sound it makes really is related to the quality and price.

Two acoustic guitars stand out in the high end beginner guitar category. The Seagull S6 makes a fine acoustic beginner guitar of high quality, that plays well enough to take a novice guitar player well into advanced technique. It is priced in the $400-500 range. Also in this price range is the Washburn D10S. This instrument was ranked as #1 by Acoustic Guitar Magazine in a comparison of guitars under $500. While both guitars represent a significant investment for the starting guitarist, they are both very playable instruments of a quality that is capable of keeping pace with the new player’s ability as it grows for many years.

The Yamaha F310, Takamine G-240 and Fender DG7 are all good choices for the beginner. But in terms of price, the most affordable for the beginner is the Epiphone DR-100. Once you gain more experience you will want to trade up, but it’s a great acoustic beginner guitar at $120-$150.

When you are looking for your first guitar, avoid the very cheap ones. These are actually harder to play and can be hard for even an experienced player. A cheaper made acoustic beginner guitar is just not made well and usually have really high action, meaning there is more space between the strings and the fingerboard than the more expensive guitars. This can make a beginner just give up.

If your budget is less than $100, you are better off with a second-hand acoustic beginner guitar. If you see two of the same guitar, try playing both of them. Doing this will tell you the personality of the guitar, which might also tell you a little about the personality of the previous owner.

Ever hear the saying, “never buy a guitar from a jerk”? Whether a guitar picks up a “personality” from it’s owner is a point to be debated, however most guitar owners treat their instruments like people. So when you look for your first acoustic beginner guitar keep this in mind. Pay attention to the guitar’s “vibe”, and even if it sounds great, but doesn’t feel right somehow, pass on it.

If you are a beginner and can’t play worth a dime, ask the store associate to play the acoustic beginner guitar you are considering buying. Any sales person at a guitar store will be able to figure out that you would like to actually hear the sound of the acoustic beginner guitar before making a purchase. Who knows, maybe they will be assisting the next great acoustic guitar player!

Daniel Lehrman asked:

In my opinion guitar amps, bass guitar amps and amplifiers for musical purposes have evolved at such a rapid rate in the last couple of years that GPC considers a guitar amplifier one of the few guitar related items that is a better value than ever.

The constant breakthroughs in terms of technology and built in features now incorporated into many amps are great for the consumer in terms of cost. It also makes it easier to decide the whole vibe of what amp, effects gear or modeling equipment to haul around with you to a jam session or a gig a lot easier decision to make in most cases.

Except for the diehard guitarist. And there is lots of excellent competition in the field of amps nowadays.

In the beginning all amplifiers were powered by vacuum tubes the same technology was used in most home stereos, radios and televisions until the mid-1960s. Tubes created all the great sounds that we learned to associate with electric guitar music. But by the mid seventies solid state technology was starting to sway much of the market with new amps that could produce great volume with little or no distortion and required no maintenance with more durability.

Note: The term valve is the same thing as a vacuum tube in amplifier speak.

Most of the modern designs are called hybrid, which means there is a tube/s in the preamplifier section, and the power amplifier section uses solid state circuitry for its power supply. In my opinion an overdriven preamplifier tube definitely sounds better than the popular pure solid state overdrive circuits, however, it does not sound as deep and warm as a full tube powered amplifier to me. The opinion at GPC is that the hybrids are a real breakthrough in terms of getting quality sound using tubes and solid state circuitry in harmony to get the great tube sound and solid state reliability every body wants in one cabinet.

Take it a step further to built in Digital Modeling. Another field gaining steam fast is digital modeling amps. Great for the home player or fantastic for the studio artist. The Fender Super Champ XD Guitar Combo is a super deal for the money with a power output of 15W RMS into 8 ohms, one 12AX7 and two 6V6 tubes, one 1 8 ohm Fender Special Design speaker and a voicing knob with 16 different preamp voices emulates perfectly any style of music and it has 16 different effects built in to it with an effects level control knob. The convenience of changing your sound on the fly keeps your focus on playing the guitar.

Other amplifiers such as the Fender Cyber Twin SE Amp and the Vox Valvetronix AD50VT 50w 12 Guitar Combo cost more but are similar or better in most cases due to cost and intended usage. I would recommend the more expensive models for professionals or hi end players. They provide the same amazing versatility at a higher price. The main reason for a bigger amp would be a larger venue, not necessarily sound quality.

Some of the modern features include, in addition to simulating many popular amplifier sounds, entirely new ones can be created and saved and can be looped to play over and over. It is important to mention that you can still buy an amplifier without all of the high tech built in features and add the equipment you prefer.

Not mentioning the new line of practice amps would be a disservice. The Fender G-Dec is so popular now that it comes in several models and It packs amp modeling, guitar effects, a drum machine, MIDI synth, and phrase sampler into one combo amp. It is set up to be your own personal backing band, ready and waiting for you to step up and play.

You can actually hear sound bites from different amp settings here under sound clips. Another example of using the internet to choose and purchase your guitar equipment. GPC highly recommends the G-Dec for beginners especially. I am not a beginner but I have an original G-DEC and use it to practice with very often due to it’s small size, versatility and simplicity of use.

The newer amplifier combos are very encouraging and very usable in live or recording studio situations. The versatility alone makes these systems almost a natural choice for musicians who need to cover a wide range of amplifier sounds and digital effects with a single setup, for example if you play covers, or need to record quickly and can not afford to waste studio dollars connecting different amps and cabinets.

Realistically speaking, lots of people can’t hear the difference between hybrid amps or full tube amps. Personally, the hybrid amps sound so good that unless one is a professional guitar player with unusual demands or you like to use the extra gear as many guitarists still prefer, the future of hybrid amps and amps with built in processing equipment looks bright and encouraging. GPC always recommends getting the best amp you can afford. Don’t buy the cheapest one if you can avoid it. Take advantage of free shipping, the lowest possible legal prices and a 45 day return policy. You may even qualify for an no interest for one year credit card. Why not shop at home and save your time and gas from now on? Of course if your giving a gift and not sure what to get, buy a gift certificate. Every guitar player loves a gift certificate.

A question worth pondering. How does a self tuning guitar react when you bend a note? Let me know if you have an answer, or I’ll have to find out myself.