Playing A guitar on a budget

I am writing this section for all up and coming guitarists and ones that are on a tight budget with the current economic slump. Ill start this blog with the up and comers part.

So you are wanting to start playing but u need a guitar and amp along with several other pieces of equipment. The big expensive pieces of equipment (guitars and amps) can be a shock to you and your wallet, but there are a few ways to reduce the amount of money. First recommendation is ebay, Ive bought 2 guitars off of ebay and they are great instruments. Buy you have to be weary and use common sense, there is no such thing as a .99 cent Gibson Les Paul. Now James Hetfield (Metallica) actaully started playing on a Chinese copy of a flying V, so they may be decent guitars. And to start with you just need mediocre so I would recommend Squier, Epiphone companies that offer popular models at a fraction of the cost compared to their more expensive counterparts Fender and Gibson. Now I have bought an amp off ebay also but it wasnt the greatest experience. The seller was great but the shipping company tore the box up and damaged the amp some. I have also bought from online store and the same thing happened. So I would recommend just buying from your local store if you have one.

Another option you have is online stores that offer used gear, such as musiciansfriend.com But there prices are usually kind of high as compared to ebay. Also you can look for new gear also, last I checked a Squier was 99 bucks which is a good price for a started guitar. Another online resource is craigslist, but as it goes with ebay you need to be weary and you have to stick to your guns because people will try to screw you over. This resource works very well in big cities where you can go play and try it out, its not the most effective way in rural areas like me.

Classified ads both online and in print are another great resource. I hate to admit this but for every one starter that sticks it out prolly 5 or 6 dont. Obviously they dont want a guitar just sitting around so you can buy these for a could price and usually get both a guitar and amp. Sometimes people that have guitars will pass away and they family will sell there guitar. Estate auctions are good places to get really good deals, hoping that someone else isnt looking too.

Pawn Shops are an ok way to buy stuff but I would HIGHLY recommend that you take someone that knows more about guitars than you along. Because people usually sell some real pieces of junk but once and a while you can find a gem. Also there prices are pretty high too and having someone older there to help you talk it down really helps. Last but not least just go to your local music store and ask to see some guitars for beginners and some practice amps, and usually they are more than willing to help.

As for other stuff you need to get started are strings, a tuner, metronome, and cleaning supplies, and a case (depending on if the guitar came with one). Now with a tuner and metronome I would just buy a new one along with metronomes, they arent that expensive and they are necessary. As for strings I would recommend going to musiciansfriend.com and they have a box of 12 packs of strings for 50 bucks, so thats a little over 4 bucks a pack, not bad considering some stores charge 10.00 bucks a pack. My recommendation for cases is buy a hard shell case because it protects the guitar more than a gig bag and it also helps keep the neck from going one direction or another. Thats my part for the beginner now onto the tight budgeted musicians section.

All of these prior recommendations apply to you also, ive bought a limited edition (1 of 400 made) Gibson SG for 500 big ones off ebay, along with my fender amp. Now another thing I recommend is do some research on stuff your going to buy. If your looking for a tube amp just dont stick to the name brands like Fender, Marshall, and Vox, look around and see what else is out there. You can use my prior recommendation about where to look but also pick up a guitar magazine and see whats advertised. My example for this is I kept seeing Bugera amps in guitar world and Guitar Player and kind of doubted there cred because of the newness of the brand. ButI researched it and it had a ton of good reviews (it also had its naysayers because its a Peavey 5150 copy).  So I decided to try one and I loved it and I loved the price. This is a 120 watt all tube amp that if you where going to buy a name brand would be over thousand new, just for the head, I bought the head and cabinet for 800 bucks. Now I know that its no Marshall but it gets the job done, plus they care more about customers because they are a small company and dont have the big name players like the other brands do.

Now Ive covered guitars, amps, and other equipment but I havent mentioned pedals yet so here it is…Ebay. I cannot sing enough praises for ebay on this one. My cost for all my pedals new would have been 780 bucks, which most of us cant just shuck out. But I got all my pedals on ebay for half price if not a third of it. Now I know they are used but if they dont work you can return them for the most part so be leary of ones that say they cant or wont and check there feedback really closely. Now heres teh example I got a Jimi Hendrix wah which runs 150 new for 31.oo dollars, pretty awesome. I also bought a vintage Boss Noise Gate that runs 120 new for 35.00, another great deal. Now heres where the research comes in im looking to finish up my pedal board with a compressor pedal and of course there are tons of boss ones there but they are asking a pretty penny for them used. Well I saw this .99 cent one that is a brand Ive never heard of. I researched it and its built on the Boss frame and does a great job and hoping I can get it for 20 bucks, which really beats 80.

Another option for pedal is buy a multieffects unit that has a ton of effects built in. I know Digitech has one with almost every effect for like 100 bucks new. Now if you play coffee shops and use only one effect per song this is great or for the the beginner to help figure out what effects they like. Im not a fan of these because several songs that I do require me to turn 3 effects on and off and I dont like the feel of the wah pedal on these kind of units. Also Im pretty old school and dont like the digital BS. But if you like that kind of stuff give it a look. Now this money you saved buying used, consolidating pedals into one, or off name gear could actually help you buy a name brand Guitar, amp or pedal down they road.

Hopefully this has helped and happy hunting. (By the way show this to your parents if they are questioning if they can afford to buy you a guitar and amp, if this till doesnt work shot me a comment on here with your email and I can send you links or talk to your parents for you because music is a great past time and every kid should have an oppurtunity to try it).