But you can imagine how the tone will sound like based on the wood used and the pickups installed.

be cheap. for your 1st guitar,around 500 max should be enough.
wether acoustic or electric,depends on what type of music you wanna learn.
if you wanna just play straight rock and blues,go for electric.
but if you wanna be a bit more all rounded and play like sweet stuff,go for acoustic.
ask for price,type of wood(the sound you get is totally different with different types of wood).
electric guitars need an amplifier to work,whereas acoustics need nothing.
since your a 1st time buyer,go with a friend whose a pro.trust me,it will save you from getting scammed.
learning how to distinguish fakes guitars from real,how to check the condition is quite an advanced learning curve,even i have not perfected it yet.try penang for guitar shops,im sure there are alot a good places there.
just remember to go to many stores before settling on what guitar you wanna buy.
i did the mistake of buying my acoustic at a certain place,and 2 days later there's another shop selling the exact same guitar at almost 100 bucks cheaper.

sorry if it's a bit kelam kabut,but i hope this helps 

3 most important things to remember ;
-used does not mean broken.you can get great guitars at a cheap price if their used,and they may even be at a better quality than the brand new store guitars.again,go with a pro friend who can help.

-learn everything you can about guitars.the construction,the wood and it's grain,for electrics,the type of pickups,effects,and a bunch of other stuff.don't just dive into it thinking your gonna be damn good the moment you buy a guitar.you need a lot of patients,and most people lose hope halfway sometimes.

-you don't need an expensive brand guitar to be great.a cheap one that you can practice on well works fine,sometimes better.always upgrade to the expensive guitars when your better,so your money is not wasted if you decide to quit.

acoustics - yamaha,ibanez,martinez,fina.these brands are good and reasonably easy to find at a 500 and below budget.

electric - sx,fina.most electric guitars are at least 1000 bucks(including amp) for a decent set.the best guitars you can get at a good price for electrics are these two,nothing else.anything cheaper is crap and a waste of wood,wire and metal.

happy guitaring bro,if you have any questions pm me

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Added on October 13, 2010, 6:52 pm
depends.if you getting your 1st electric and your noob giler,get the pack.
if your pro,personalize what you want.

acoustics,i don't really recommend buying a pack.buy 5 things only,and one is optional ;

guitar(duh)
capo
bag
guitar picks
guitar strap(optional)

remember you get what you pay for sometimes.and sometimes being practical is better than having quality.

think about this ;
you just started out.
you buy a 2000 buck fender guitar because you nak sangat quality.
play for 2 months.
stop because frustrated,cannot play advanced stuff.
2000 ringgit gone.

or-
spend 500 bucks on a decent quality guitar
play
even if stop,not that bad of a loss.
think of guitars as an investment,like how you would your house or car.spend your money wisely.and always learn as much as you can before buying.that is most important.

what about semi acoustic guitar? i am a newbie too and i am keen to play rock songs...what is the price range of semi acoustic guitar? what type of music semi acoustic guitar specialized in?does it need amp like electric guitar?

I'm a beginner of playing acoustic guitar... Now just start learn chords and strumming... But I'm quite more like to learn fingerpicking since it's look awesome and professional... My budget can up to Rm1+++... Just any suggestion that's good acoustic guitar for easy learn strumming and impressive sound taste of fingerpicking... With pre-amp even better...  

I'm a beginner of playing acoustic guitar... Now just start learn chords and strumming... But I'm quite more like to learn fingerpicking since it's look awesome and professional... My budget can up to Rm1+++... Just any suggestion that's good acoustic guitar for easy learn strumming and impressive sound taste of fingerpicking... With pre-amp even better...  

if u got money buy a taylor / martin... that's worth investing.

id hardly call them an investment

if it ain't an investment, what do u call that?

Buying a guitar

so there is no difference in getting a kapok or a taylor since both is same as buying a guitar?

an investment requires profit over time

tell me how your martin guitar is going to generate profits for you by itself?

Yes, in economic sense, investment is the act of laying down money or capital in expectation of profit.

Investment can also be a commitment of something other than money such as effort , time and energy.

I bet you have heard of people saying "why don't you invest your time in studying?"

This means spending more time and effort in studying in which has nothing to do with monetary wise.

Hope that clarifies.

Yes, in economic sense, investment is the act of laying down money or capital in expectation of profit.

Investment can also be a commitment of something other than money such as effort , time and energy.

I bet you have heard of people saying "why don't you invest your time in studying?"

This means spending more time and effort in studying in which has nothing to do with monetary wise.

Hope that clarifies.