Past Tense

When people come to see me play in my live band, they often ask me which electric guitar they should buy. The answer is the same everytime. I always tell them to pay more and get a professional quality electric guitar.

The problem that most people run into when buying an electric guitar is they arent willing to spend enough to get a quality instrument. The old adage you get what you pay for is certainly true when buying guitars. I can tell you from experience that if youre willing to pay a little more, youll get a much better guitar.

Cheap guitars end up working against you because they aren’t comfortable to play. If your fingers hurt after playing for a few minutes then you’re not going to keep playing. It takes more time and skill for guitar manufacturers to make a comfortable guitar. That’s one of the reasons the comfortable guitars cost more to buy.

There are some decent beginner guitar packages out there which include the guitar, and amplifier and other accessories. This is a good way to get started but the quality of the guitars in these packages is usually quite low. I honestly feel like youre better off just laying down the extra cash right off the top for a quality guitar.

Attention to the little details is really what sets the high quality guitars apart from the poor ones. Having a neck with well finished fret ends will make things much more comfortable on your hands when you play. Also, the way the bridge is aligned with the neck as well as how low the nut is cut will determine how low you can have your strings. A lower string height will make the guitar much easier to play.

More things youll find on the expensive guitars are better bridges and pickups. The bridge is extremely important for being able to get the guitar in tune. It also affects how close you can get the strings to the neck which makes things easier to play.

Electric guitar pickups determine how the guitar sounds more than any other piece of the instrument. Cheaper pickups will hum and their sound will not be as clear and defined as the more expensive pickups. Professional grade guitars will always have better pickups that are matched to the guitar and each other.

You’re only hurting yourself if you don’t get the best guitar you can afford. If you just pay a little more, you can get a guitar that you will enjoy playing for years to come. The professional quality guitars keep their value better as well and often will increase in value over the years. My own personal recommendation is my favorite guitar ever, the Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster.