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Post by zooba on Apr 12, 2008 6:23:02 GMT -5
Just as a thought exercise (for the time being) how much would it set me back (time and money wise) to pick up a nice guitar and start learning? I finally snapped this evening listening to a solo on Living Sacrifices debut album and thought, 'to heck with it, maybe I should start to learn guitar.'. As I am currently working full time I figure now would be the best time to make the initial investment. I am thinking of switching to part time soon so then I would have time to actually learn. At least I need to learn enough to make my compulsive air-guitaring look less ridiculous So my question is...what sort of cost am I looking at? I have a friend who has been playing guitar for 15+ years and is a personal friend of Mr. Sherlocke who I am sure will be able to assist me in this regards, but I'm guessing that it won't be less than $1000 for something that actually sounds half-decent? I was also worried that I might not have the time or commitment to learn, but then I figure that given how much I love my metal (and I do love my metal) that that probably won't be a problem. Plus if I actually get lessons that will be quicker than self teaching, right? Any and all advice would be much appreciated.
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Post by ironguardian on Apr 12, 2008 10:29:19 GMT -5
Get a bass guitar instead, there aren't enough of them in Perth, and my band will need one You can get a good guitar for around $300, you don't need to spend thousands, especially not on your first one. I'm thinking about getting lessons too, just to make sure my technique and such is correct.
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Post by Todd on Apr 12, 2008 20:46:29 GMT -5
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Post by exodus312 on Apr 12, 2008 20:58:18 GMT -5
guitars don't need to be expensive to sound good. It's all determined by who's playing it, and who produces it (IMHO, anyway). Choice of amp has a bit to do with it, as a cheap amp won't sound as decent as a more expensive amp.
In the long run, it basically comes down to how much you want/have to spend. I bought my guitar for about $500 almost 10 years ago, and it sounded fine then, and sounds fine still. Yes, there are other guitars that sound better, but so what?
Another bit of advice is: Don't buy the expensive brand name guitars as a first guitar, unless you've got a lot of money. For example: A Gibson Les Paul costs $1000+, whereas an Epiphone Les Paul will cost a lot less, unless it's a signature guitar or something. Yes, it doesn't sound as good, but most people won't notice.
Finally: Check out places like the Quokka or something similar. A friend of mine got a really good Epiphone Les Paul from some guy in Maddington (I think?) this way, and it only cost him about $500 or something, and the guitar was in really good nick.
As far as lessons go, yes, they can help you get a lot better a lot faster than self-teaching, but you have to have the right teacher and the right attitude about it. If, for example, all you want to do is play metal songs, learning from scratch will may frustrate you endlessly, as you learning how to play songs as Michael Row The Boat Ashore will certainly not be what you want, and that's when complacency kicks in. A mixture of both lessons and self-teaching is probably the best way to go about it. That's the way I did it: Lessons for a year, which taught me the basics (chords and whatnot), and then I did away with them for a long time, before going back to them (which have also now stopped, but it taught me a whole heap more about things, such as learning by ear)
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Post by zooba on Apr 16, 2008 8:36:22 GMT -5
well I'm meeting with my friend tomorrow...as well as playing the guitar he also worked in a music shop for many years so I'm sure he'll be able to help me out.
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Post by bleachedsorrow on May 1, 2008 11:53:47 GMT -5
If you ever have a question don't hesitate to ask i used to teach beginner guitar for a while. I'd also recommend that you get an acoustic to start with if anything...if you do pick up bass which is equally fun to play you should. I played bass in almost all the bands i've played with save the most recent and it's notoriously the hardest instrument to find in a band. Plus because of lack of good metal bassists (at least here in the US) if you can get decent enough at it you can have your pick of bands. I mean bass may seem boring but look at Steve Rowe, Geddy Lee, and Steve Harris, their styles and playing are def some of the best around.
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Post by ironguardian on May 2, 2008 3:42:03 GMT -5
Yeah, Steve and Steve ( ) make it interesting. Harris is brilliant on stage, as is Matt Skipworth. Phil from Fearscape is a prime example of the technicality which can be found in bass playing. Zooba, I'll show you a live version of The Die Is Cast from Stump last year if you want to be blown away by a bass solo.
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Post by ironguardian on May 7, 2008 5:13:38 GMT -5
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Post by zooba on Oct 11, 2008 8:33:50 GMT -5
I'm still seriously considering this...I don't know if I want to learn guitar or bass as I confess like every wannabe musician out there I have always wanted to shred a solo (not like I'd be doing that for a few years I know). The more I think about it the more I think that this is something that I would be able to do and won't get tired of in a few months time. Just to clarify, when I say 'seriously considering this' I mean, thinking of selling my xbox/wii and learning guitar instead... So, seriously considering this...
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