Lessons in Buying Your Guitar

Shopping in the North Herts - South Cambs area;

Despite the size of Royston and the number of musicians/bands, there has not been a guitar shop or even a string seller in town since the mid 90's. But there are plenty in the surrounding towns and also some second-hand stores such as Cash Converters which stock guitars. Coda Music in Stevenage have shown themselves to me as a good seller of used guitars, along with all the new ranges of course.

I offer students both current and interested a no-cost service of shopping with you for your acoustic, electric, or bass guitar, amplifier, effect units, and other guitar accessories, so don’t buy items you can't test on ebay.
I don't drive but if you can provide transport or we go by train, I'll shop with you as I always need bits & bobs, want try different equipment and just love guitar shops!

Acoustic Or Electric for Beginners?

There is a myth out there that the Acoustic guitar is 'easier to play' or 'easier to learn with' than Electric guitars. This is Absolute nonsense so here's a little lesson:

Electrics; Electric guitars have a much thinner, less bulky body which lets you look over and reach around them easily, plus the strings are usually thinner and closer to the neck, making all the pressing and bending easier on fingers. Some acoustic purists may still insist you should learn to play the hard way; well if you learn to drive a rough bus first you will find a smooth car a doddle afterwards wont you? That's what they are on about, but that's if you bother with the bus for more than a month!

Acoustics; If you do want to go for the acoustic for its sound and not just the old hippy's tale, you may want to consider an 'Electric Acoustic'. These have either built-in mini microphones or pickups and can be plugged in to PA systems for stage shows or directly into recording units including PC sound cards for great acoustic guitar sounds straight down a cable. This also means you can plug into distortion pedals, reverb, echo etc.

One more benefit to your play is that these often have slightly smaller bodies which make them more comfortable and easier to handle/play if you are not enormous yourself.
Note: Due to the smaller build they are not quite as loud or bassy, until you plug into the PA system!

So to summarise; decide if you want to drive the hot Electric or soft Acoustic sound and buy *that* guitar.

Junior size Guitars

All you parents out there: I started at 14 with an electric, got all four types now and still find the electric the easiest to play at 32.

Please don't start your kids on one of those lifeless plastic string classical guitars, they drive me mad. Uncomfortable to hold, difficult to play and awkward to re-string, and they won't spark any enthusiasm.

You can buy junior lead and bass guitars called ¾ size guitars designed for under children of small build which are much easier to play. These can be plugged into an amplifier and given sound effects which inspire more play. Don't worry, £46 Marshall amp shown to the left has a headphone socket. This one does not hold any effects of its own, see the DFX series below for this feature.

Good price Juniour electric guitars; 'Sponge Bob Outfit' with a built-in speaker for £99 (not the greatest sound) or the 'Stagg Mini-Strat' for £79 (requires amplifier). As for a Junior bass, the Tiger bass & amplifier package is on offer for £70 as I write this (£130 RRP). Make sure you get a tuner too, they are vital and the Quick-Tune QT11 shown below costs less than £10 to make sure your notes are correct.

Note Sorry, but I link to Google product search results now not directly to retailers as the links keep going dead.

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Beginners Amplifiers

I have been through a few amps in my 17 years of guitar play, here is the range of Marshall practice amps I can personally recommend as I owned the 30watt Marshall while my MesaBoogie was out of action. Growling overdrive with a decent speaker and a choice of 4 digital effects;

The Marshall MGDFX series.

• MG15DFX ~£89, 15watt, 8" speaker, 2 channels, button-switch channels.
• MG30DFX ~£119, 30watt, 10" speaker, 2 channels, EQ for each channel, foot-switch channels. (Switch pedal not included)
• The 2 channels; Clean & Overdrive (distortion switch)
• Digital Effects;
• Reverb  (big hall sound)
• Delay  (echo...echo...echo)
• Chorus  (watery wobble)
• Flange  (phasey sweep)
• Both have headphone socket & line out (send to tape/computer etc)

The 15watt: If you are not planning on switching overdrive on/off very often and don't need much more volume than a home hi-fi, then the 15watt will cover your needs. Typical £89

The 30watt: If you are a Metal Head- go for the 30watt for better distortion control and a fatter sound. Once you add the foot-pedal switch it is around £45 more than the 15watt. Typical £119, £135 with pedal.

The Effects: It is good to have effects on your guitar as it makes every note you hit sound more charismatic and atmospheric, which draws attention away from the paper and in to the resulting music, encouraging you to make your own instead!

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Stevenage

Coda Music; 51a High Street, Stevenage - 01438 350815 (also used guitars)

Cambridge

Drum & Guitar Centre; 4 Norfolk Street, Cambridge - 01223 364410

Arena Music; 222 Mill Road, Cambridge - 01223 247617 / 247605

Hitchin

Machinehead Music; 10 Bucklersbury, Hitchin - 01462 433305

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Second Hand Guitars & Amps

There are Cash Converter shops and similar used equipment traders scattered around towns, and of course the dreaded eBay, but the best option for second hand guitars are guitar shops themselves because when they take in a guitar they know all the potential defects to check for and repair before trading.

Coda music in Stevenage has a regular trade in used instruments sold with 3 month warranties and you can always plug in to an amp and play to check you like it, remember I go with you. Can't do that online.

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Buying Guitars on Ebay Advice

Not something I recommend unless you know what you are buying, so if you do not know the range it is my advice to take an afternoon and walk the guitar shops first to see what is good and what you like. Face it, why are these people selling their guitars on ebay? Most of the time it's because they're damaged or they weren't happy with it themself.

Here are the vital questions to ask an eBay seller before you start bidding:

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Guitar Shopping with Del (you know it makes sense ;)

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