Livingstone Acoustic Guitar $49.99; Semi-Acoustic Guitar $99 from Aldi starting 10th March

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ALDI

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  ENSLAVER on 04/03/2011 - 00:47

  Nice, I wonder what the pedals/mic/amps are like.

  • 

    Damo on 04/03/2011 - 07:51

    Pedals are surprisingly good - they sold out quickly last time

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    TZK on 04/03/2011 - 09:26

    It was hit n miss with the pedals. I bought the OD, distortion and chorus when they went in the discount rack. The OD was horrible to my ears(but recommended by others), the distortion was good and usuable. The chorus was really good.

    I had a friend who is a boss pedal guru check the internals and he mentioned that some of the circuit designs was very similar to the boss versions.

    http://www.bossarea.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2193

    • 

      ENSLAVER on 04/03/2011 - 13:24

      Nice link. I noticed the Livingstone/Daphon pedals are prettu much the same price on ebay, so no need to rush out, unless these are newer models? Hard to tell from the image.

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  alecator on 04/03/2011 - 01:12

  To anyone knowledgeable - im looking to start playing guitar, and as such am not lookin for a high end guitar so a $50 one is perfect. However im wondering what you would reccomend, steel or nylon strings?
  Thanks

  • 

    lsdbeta on 04/03/2011 - 01:49

    +1

    Always start with nylon strings. Starting with steel strings will shred your fingers as you don't have the calluses and will remove sensitivity from your fingertips.

    • 

      Damo on 04/03/2011 - 07:55

      +1

      And you need that sensitivity for holding tweezers for those perfectly manicured eyebrows.
      Steel strings unless your playing classical

  • 

    Giraffe on 04/03/2011 - 01:52

    +1

    Nylon strings are for playing classical guitar music, whereas steel strings are more for your modern pop/rock songs. Because nylon strings are softer they can be a bit easier to play when you are starting out - but the main factor should be what sort of music you want to play.

  • 

    pianissimo on 04/03/2011 - 01:54

    +1

    Generally nylon strings will be a bit easier on your fingers.

    It depends also on what type of music you intend to play - eg nylon strings for classical/folk and steel for rock.

    But I would recommend going for the sound you like, because if you like the sound your guitar makes, you'll be more inclined to stick with it.

  • 

    axalotl on 04/03/2011 - 06:36

    +1

    If you want to learn to play, I can't recommend these Aldi guitars highly enough. The electronics were not working on the one I bought about a year ago (nothing electronic ever seems to work from Aldi) but the tuning and intonation of the guitar is perfect. You would pay a lot more for a comprably decent accoustic from a music store. I can't understand how they can possibly make these for $99.

    Get a stand as well but don't buy the effects pedal as that probably won't work either.

    • 

      marquise on 04/03/2011 - 07:03

      If the electronics on the guitar does NOT work - does it mean you just fiddle with the settings on the amplifier instead?

      • 

        axalotl on 04/03/2011 - 07:06

        No, you just have to live with the fact that you have bought a purely accoustic guitar. You can probably fix the problem but its going to cost more than the guitar is worth.

    • 

      ndenham on 04/03/2011 - 09:26

      Surely you took it back and got a full refund? Aldi has an amazing no questions asked, no fault needed 60 day return policy.

      • 

        llama on 04/03/2011 - 10:14

        Yeah - how strange. Get a faulty product, don't take it back for repair, then diss the whole company's products. Very strange indeed.

      • 

        axalotl on 04/03/2011 - 12:15

        By the time I realised the electrics were not working they were out of stock and there was no chance of a replacement. I didn't want a refund as there was no way I was going to get a comparable accoustic anywhere else for $99.

    • 

      alecator on 04/03/2011 - 13:09

      Thx for the advice everyone
      The idea of shredding my fingertips doesnt sound great so unless the steel string sound remarkably better to my untrained ear I think ill go wit nylon to begin with.
      Just gotta hope I dont get stuck with a pink one!!!

  • 

    mkirksmith on 18/03/2011 - 05:24

    I bought both the $50 and $100 Livingstone guitars and played them for a day. Both were surprisingly good - I'd happily recommend either (I have a Lowden). I settled on the $100 as it had a lower action and so was easier to play up the fretboard and had a bit better tone - though there wasn't much in it. The $50 one was better for slide guitar - as I play a lot of slide it was a hard choice but I want to play more fingerstyle guitar.

    I agree with starting with nylon strings - though I'd suggest borrowing a nylon string guitar and then buy a steel string once your fingers are tougher. BTW, it's might be an idea to choose a tune you really like and get that right rather than flit from tune to tune and never get one completely right. It's a matter of knowing it in your fingers rather than your head and that just takes practice - going from tune to tune means you don't build up the muscle memory for chord changes as quickly.

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  marquise on 04/03/2011 - 07:13

  Thanks axalotl. I might take my chances. Then again… hell I don't think I have time to practice guitar.

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  Dexter on 04/03/2011 - 08:51

  Too bad I live in Perth

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  altomic on 04/03/2011 - 10:38

  strings can be purchased inexpensively from dealextreme.com

  • 

    A Banana4scale on 04/03/2011 - 20:02

    so you are saying buy the nylon one and then change the strings?

    • 

      pianissimo on 04/03/2011 - 23:33

      Nooooo! Please don't! Nylon strings are held under less tension so if you put steel strings on there, you will eventually warp and maybe break your guitar.

      If you're really undecided, buy one of each ;-)

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  sjawaji on 07/03/2011 - 10:50

  I am looking one for my 5 year old. Do they have 3/4 size as well or 4/4 size only. Can any one recommend reasonable 3/4 size guitar at around 50/60 bucks?

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  spam12345 on 10/03/2011 - 19:17

  I was going to get one with steel strings but They had none. Does Anyone knows which Aldi in Melbourne still has steel strings?

  • 

    EarlyBird on 11/03/2011 - 17:38

    Southland still have a few in stock.

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  juzz88 on 13/03/2011 - 18:29

  Does anyone know if anywhere in the Western Suburbs still has stock?

  If not, anywhere else?

  I'll be calling Southland tomorrow, but any more stores that you can tell me about would be appreciated.

  Cheers.

  Edit: I'm looking for Acoustic or Semi-Acoustic btw. Also 2 stands. So if you saw some left, please let me know where. :D

  • 

    spam12345 on 13/03/2011 - 18:36

    Have you checked ALDI Sunshine? I went there on Friday, there were 2 steel-strings guitars (I picked up one) and plenty of semi-acoustic and classical guitars.

    • 

      juzz88 on 13/03/2011 - 22:04

      No but I'll definitely check it out, thanks.

      I went to Keilor Downs on Thursday night and apparently they were all out by 11am!

      Just a quick question as I'm a but of a guitar n00b.

      A semi acoustic is just an acoustic with pre-amps right? So unplugged, the acoustic and semi-acoustic should sound more or less identical right?

      Cheers.

      • 

        spam12345 on 13/03/2011 - 22:21

        I'm also a noob. I just started teaching myself guitar about 4 months ago. I think they should a little different (maybe due to different shapes/sizes, quality of wood, …).

  • 

    juzz88 on 14/03/2011 - 15:14

    Went to Aldi Caroline Springs and picked up the last semi-acoustic. Electronics work and the guitar sounds great both plugged and unplugged.

    Also went to Aldi Burnside and Deer Park and none of the four stores I went to (including Keilor Downs on Thursday) had any guitar stands left. Not that it really matters though since you can get stands off ebay for $20 whenever you want.

    Cheers for the help guys.

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  spam12345 on 23/03/2011 - 21:17

  Probably a bit too late, but I went to Aldi Melbourne City last weekend. They still got many semi-acoustic guitars left.