Are you ready to be the next Dave Matthews? Or maybe you’re just hoping to strum a few chords and win over a girl. Whatever your reasons for wanting to buy a guitar, here are just four tips for making sure that you find a great model and get the best deal.
1. Know What Type You Want
Are you looking for an acoustic guitar or an electric one? If it’s the latter, would you prefer to choose from electric bass guitars or leading vocal stats? What about body types? They come in solid, hollow and semi-hollow, and each of them has a different sound. Do you know which kind is right for the genre of music you’d like to play?
2. Have a Budget
Guitars can cost anywhere from $50 to $5,000. They also come with a variety of necessary accessories like stands, amps, tuners, cases and extra strings. As you browse guitar collections, bear in mind that the listed price of the instrument isn’t the only expense you’ll face in a lifetime of guitar ownership. You should consider all costs before making your final decision.
3. Notice the Neck
Guitar “necks” come in several varieties, including bolt-on necks, set necks and neck-throughs. Like body types, the construction of the neck affects the sound of the instrument, so you’ll probably need to play the different types a little to truly differentiate between their styles.
4. Choose a Material Type
Guitars can be made of many different types of wood. If you have a particular preference among maple, mahogany, rosewood, ebony and ash, you’ll know right away what kind to buy; if you don’t, however, this is another case where you’ll need to feel the guitar in your hands before you can make a decision.
These are just a few things to keep in mind as you shop for a guitar. Don’t be afraid to strum several different models or play a few songs while in the shop. A guitar is an important investment, so you’ll only want to buy the best.
