Buying an acoustic guitar for my son??!!?

Question

Hello,
My son is is nearly 10, and has been having guitar lessons for about a year. He bugged me for a year previously before I gave in and agreed to lessons and a guitar. So I knew he was serious.

Well he still likes his lessons and guitar. However he has grown and the guitar is now too small! So want to buy him another one. A relative got this one for me, so I know nothing about guitars!

Anyway Im in EU, and want a decent acoustic guitar. But dont want to spend a fortune as he is still young and prob want another one!

What brand of guitar is decent?
What sort of size would he need? The one he uses now is small!
I looked on shop website and they had various makes, and said classic, western, jumbo etc??? This means nothing to me!!
What type is best to play most types of music?

Any help appreciated on decent brand, size and type of acoustic guitar!

Ps, he said he quite likes the guitars that are coloured!! Think he may have seen a blue acoustic!

Thanks

Answer 1

hey its great that your son is so willing, i started to play at 7 and not looked back since. The best thing i can suggest is to go the a guitar shop and let him look. Ask the guys behind the counter for advice, take into account his age, and enthusiasm and the amount you want to spend. I wouldnt bother with abuying a 3/4 go for a full sized. This helps in stretching of the fingers and will make him alot more dexterous in the future, and as he grows up you wont need to buy a new model. It also encourages him into becoming more accurate in where he places his fingers.

classical are normally spanish classical - these use nylon strings.
the other type is steel string, and can if not played often cause discomfort as they tend to hurt more whilst playing (this occurs at all ages!)

Jumbo is with respect to the body of the guitar, they are often bigger giving a deeper sound that often resonates longer. I suggest that you stay away from these as they may be too big for him.

I suggest going for a decent accoustic I recommend a yamaha, i have had several. They are relavtively cheap and they sound really good. A basic one will cost around (£100-200)

the YAMAHA F36SA is a good all rounder
Santos Martinez do some nice ones
Takamine, Ibanez and Martin &CO tend to be a little more pricey and are more for the dedicated follower, perhaps look at one of these when hes older.


ooh also Let him try out the different ones, suprisingly two guitars of the same make and model can actually sound very different, I went through 5 guitars of the same model before i eventually bought it.


Hope this helps

Answer 2

The best thing is to take him to a guitar shop or music shop and let him try them. I assume he wants an acoustic at the moment so there is no reason why at 10 he can't use a full size guitar. I he wants something versatile - to play most styles of music - he should go for a dreadnought which is a guitar on which all the strings are steel. If he has been learning on a classical style guitar, with 3 nylon strings on it, he may have to get used to the steel strung guitar - they are generally harsher on the fingers to start with. As for brands - how much do you want to spend? Also get him a capo, a strap, a case and some picks to use, it's all very interesting for him. I'm really glad to hear he is into guitar, it's a great instrument.

Answer 3

The most important thing is to get the right kind of acoustic guitar. There are two main types - classical and steel-string.

A classical guitar has a flat neck that is the same width right the way along. You put nylon strings on it and play classical / Spanish guitar music on it.

A steel-string guitar is used to play chords etc, using either the fingers or a plectrum. The strings are steel and the neck is tapered, being wider closer to the body.

Re size, why don't you take him to the shop and get him to try guitars of different sizes? I started at age 12 with a full size, so if you got him a 3/4 he may grow out of it pretty soon.

Regarding makes, the quality of strings (and replacing them regularly) is more important than the make of guitar. It's quite important to play it and see if you like the feel of it though - there will be differences in the action and suchlike.

Answer 4

If you want a good acoustic guitar without having to pay a fortune, your best bets are Fender, Yamaha, or Washburn. I'm pretty sure Fender makes those colored acoustics you mentioned. You probably don't want a classical because they have nylon strings and aren't really good for pop, rock, country, folk, or anything like that. The most common is a folk acoustic with a "dreadnaught" body, and that would be best in terms of look, size, and sound for your son. Check out this website: http://www.musiciansfriend.com/ You'll get an idea what's available in the U.S. and how much they cost.

Answer 5

My first acoustic was a Fender, at £220 it wasn't mega cheap, but a reasonable entry level guitar. Yamaha make Fender acoustics, so for the same money try the Yamahas, but as others have said, guitars from the same manufacturer often sound quite different.

Hitting the shops and trying different guitars is the best way to find one you like. I would avoid Gibson and Martin unless you have £1000+ to spend, you will be able to find a good guitar for less than £250 - many shops will do you a deal if you ask nicely.

I think it's probably best for your son to try and use a full size instrument at this stage - it'll save you some cash in the long-run and it will vastly improve his fingering technique.

I would consider Fender, Yamaha, Takamine and maybe Tanglewood as good intermediate guitars and somewhere to start your search with.

If you can find Country Classic strings your son will find these much easier to play, but generally look for strings that aren't too heavy as they hurt less whilst your learning.

Once your son has a feel for the type of music he wants to focus on he'll learn which guitars give him that sound, and then you can encourage him to start saving for that 1970's Fender Strat to rock out with the best of them!

Answer 6

Well it depends on how much you want to spend. You will just need a standard size guitar, probably a cutout (the part where the neck meets the base is curved so your hands can go way down the neck to play the high notes). Most guitar companies make the colored guitars, but just for a 10-year old I would recommend an Ibanez, maybe a Gibson. The next step up from those would be the Takamine and Ovation, then top of the line would be Martin and Taylor. Let him play them before you buy it, trust me you will need to hear it, some guitars just sound different.

Answer 7

You could use one of many websites about guitars (i preffer wikipedia when looking up anything: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guitar).

The largest size of guitar is 4/4. Smaller than that is 3/4 (3 quarters of the 4/4 size one) and so on.
there are basicaly two types of guitar:
classical - nylon strings(the 3 bass strings are nylon covered in metal, ussualy nichel i think), clear sound, mainly used for classical music
western/acoustic - steel(or other metal) strings, sharper sound than classical guitar, used for just about any kind of music (though i'm not sure if it is apropriate for a 10-year-old)
The color doesn't really matter.

A good thing you could do is ask the teacher (he should know best about the guitars you could/should buy from your area)

Answer 8

a hohner 3/4 size would be good, but i am unsure of the colours it comes in.

try their website.

also look on the curly music website, it it based in liverpool, the home of music doncha know! the guys in there are brilliant if yoiu phone them and ask them what they have avaliable they will not only give you the benefit of thier experience that will also give you a fair price and probably some extras too as they are proper nice people who like to see young people interested in music.

just type curly music into yahoo and it will come up! : -)

just had a look on the website meself and seen the yamaha f 310 for £89.99 it is full size though and whilst it would be beneficial for your boy to learn on a bigger guitar i reckon he should start small with a 3/4 size one.

is it classical or steel stringed he is after, because you know classical has a sweet sound and all, i love calssical gutar playing, but he is only 10, in a few years he will be all about the Led Zeppelin (if he isnt already) and Rock vibe and will most likely want an electric, if you get him a semi accoustic and a small amp ( SMALL can still make BIG BIG BIG noise!!!!) he will be on the road to riock stardom before you can say Jimmy Paige.

ROCK ON!!!!!!!!!

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Answer 10

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