Recommended Guitar for Beginner

• 

  Strahany on 15/06/2017 - 01:22

  Pick up a secondhand Cort if you want an acoustic, or Squier if you want electric.

  There are plenty of 'no name' brands out there with questionable quality, but at least these two brands have some kind of reputation to uphold. My guitars have been like this:

  1) No name classical acoustic - trash
  2) Magnum strat copy - trash
  3) Samick strat copy - trash (guitar was okay, but it wasn't well looked after)
  4) Epiphone SG - solid
  5) Fender American strat - amazing
  6) Fender Japan Mustang - amazing
  7) Cort acoustic - solid

  Don't waste your money on the low tier options like I did (granted, I was around 10-12 when I had these, and my first decent guitar was the SG at age 16). The Cort or Squier will do the job nicely, if not allowing you to get both. I wouldn't go any lower in quality than these level options, otherwise you'll not save that much but be left with something you'll want to upgrade if you stick with it.

  There are plenty of brands that are a step above (Fender and Takamine acoustics have some lower end options, as well as Epiphones or Mexian Fenders for electrics), however this is risking crossing the line of becoming too expensive for a guitar to learn on, despite being a great first long-term guitar

  • 

    verticallychallenged on 15/06/2017 - 01:39

    Thanks for the advice! Found a Cort on ebay for ~$120 reckon that'll do?

    • 

      Strahany on 15/06/2017 - 02:02

      Try to find a 'solid top' if you're getting an acoustic. This means that the 'top' of the guitar (what you see when looking at it front on) is made of one piece of solid wood, rather than laminate. Of course, the rest of the body will be made with laminate, but you can usually still get decent tone out of a guitar with only the top being solid. I'd shop around until you can find a solid top, and you might get lucky and stumble upon a 'solid wood' guitar, which has no laminate.

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  LaProblematique on 15/06/2017 - 02:04

  I'd just pony up $500-$700 and buy a used (often like new) Martin or Taylor acoustic. Put it this way, six months down the track you'll either want to upgrade to one saving you the hassle in the long run, or you'll want to sell it. In which case they have much better resale value than Corts.

  • 

    Strahany on 15/06/2017 - 02:13

    A used solid top Cort can be snagged for 200ish, whilst those 500-700 Martin/Maton/Taylor's are unlikely to be more than a solid top or solid top + back. One would assume that these prestigious brands will provide a better guitar, but the difference is minimal and must be viewed objectively (think how the Japanese Tokai/Greco Les Paul's were outperforming the Gibsons of the 80's at half the price or less).

    • 

      LaProblematique on 15/06/2017 - 02:14

      Yeah may be waiting a while for a quality Martin or Taylor to pop up for those prices. Takamine make some great acoustics, definitely consider them in your searches OP.

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  chumlee on 15/06/2017 - 06:39

  +1

  Air guitar

• 

  yk300 on 15/06/2017 - 08:28

  +2

  I recommend Yamaha, Cort, and Lag to my students. You can always get a good second-hand guitar on Gumtree.
  IMO best to spend around $200 to balance getting a decent guitar and not investing too much in something you may lose interest in later.

  A few recommendations to get you started:
  1. $209 Yamaha Gigmaker 210 Guitar Pack - Probably the best value for money
  2. $369 Yamaha Gigmaker 800 Guitar Pack - Similar to the 210 Guitar pack above.
  3. $189 Cort af510 - You may want to account some money for accessories. I have been amazed by the Cort guitars I've seen. Great guitar at that price point.

  Bottom line: pick a guitar that you think looks and sounds good. I would recommend spending some time at the music store. I spent around 5 hours playing different guitars before buying one.

  Hope that helps

  • 

    R-Man on 15/06/2017 - 09:19

    I agree with these. We bought the Gigmaker 210 pack for a mate's birthday as a beginner guitar pack and it's a great sounding guitar with good accessories. 4 years passed so far he's still happy with it!

  • 

    tabz on 15/06/2017 - 19:31

    I'd recommend Yamaha too.

    Currently using a Yamaha FG730S as my full sized acoustic and it's such a fun guitar to play. Has a great feel and sound to it.

  • 

    verticallychallenged on 15/06/2017 - 21:38

    +1

    Sweet, been eyeing some of the Yamahas but will definitely check out the other brands. Appreciate your help guys!

• 

  AkiraSaito on 19/08/2017 - 13:13

  +2

  I started with a $200 Cort and it destroyed my love for guitar.

  Don't buy anything under $200

  If you are tight budget, maybe start with a classic Yamaha.

  My friend has a taylor baby 3/4 size acoustic, and I really enjoyed it, the sound, the touch, everything feels great but it's a bit over my budget.

  I want to buy a 3/4 body guitar but there aren't many options in the market under $1000.

  Then I found https://www.artistguitars.com.au/ has the model I want.

  A solid top 3/4 body for $349 with Fishman pickup, or $418 with a hard case. https://www.artistguitars.com.au/buy/artist-omc100eq-acousti… check the demo video maybe you will like its sound.

  I made the order because it's cheap and they have really good reviews. They also have very good customer service, online support. Their pickup warehouse is sometimes overwhelmed and long waiting because they put only one clerk at the counter.

  I really love that guitar, it's just perfect. There is nothing to complain about. $350 feels better than $1000+ of some big brands.

  And I became a repeat customer for their shop. I bought a hard case for my 3/4 OM guitar,
  an electron guitar for $299 because I like its look https://www.artistguitars.com.au/buy/artist-stealth-lp6-mode…
  and an amplifier for about $200
  I will probably get a solid wood from them for $799, given their other products are so good in quality.

  In my opinion, if you are looking for a nice solid guitar from $300 ~ $800, go for them, you won't regret it.

  Even you are looking for cheap beginner guitars, their $100 to $200 range is not bad and better than most cheap guitars you can find in the market.

  I would personally recommend you to start with a solid top if your budget allows. It feels and sounds so much better. The cheapest one starts from $249 and it's a 3/4 body with EQ: https://www.artistguitars.com.au/buy/Artist-'Little-Artist'-… I honestly don't think I can find anything to beat it at this price. If you don't like 3/4 body you can go for a full sized.

  A good guitar will help you greatly with your learning.

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  biozet on 29/08/2017 - 12:32

  Yamaha pacifica is a hell of a lot of guitar for the price. I've had two Ibanez acoustics, both second hand which have had a fantastic tone and resonance. Top tier acoustic i'd go martin. play and listen before you buy anything.

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  Cave Fire on 22/05/2020 - 21:58

  Ok… what kind of music do you want to play? If rock or modern, you probably want a steel string. This is generally a louder sound than a nylon string. If you are into classical etc then a nylon string can be chosen. It is also easier on the fingers. I would also investigate secondhand options. Guitar should be as new, no damage or loose parts. People at uni buy them but find they have no time for practice. You can also do a web search on places like cash converters.