Hey guys

I've always wanted to learn the guitar by myself. I should have taken lessons during my high school life, but I wasn't that interested back then compared to now. Regretting a bit now

Anyway, I'm 20 this year. Is it still too late to pick up guitar? If yes, which method do you guys suggest? I've heard numerous like Play-by-Ear etc.. Which is the most effective?

And which guitar should I go for first? Electric or the normal one?

I got a couple more questions, but it slipped my mind I'll post here again when I recall.

Thanks

i think nth is too late ...
but 20 yrs old is still a big sum ...

correct and hardcore practice makes perfect ^_____^

1st guitar .. i always got advise from my other guitarist friend ... but a chapalang 1 and play till ur finger wore off

after that oni go for good 1 ... well that is for my case

True also, I got an not-so-new acoustic guitar at home. Seagull I think, was around RM5k when my dad bought it.

Feel like getting a damn cheap electric guitar. No need extra features or whatsoever Any good recommendations?

never too late isnt it? i started to learn guitar when im 21 years old.
(now 22 =p )

I recommend u to learn from a guitar teacher, bcoz correct practise makes perfect. besides, IMO learning from a teacher is faster than u slowly figure how things work out.

damn cheap = kapok brand or any less than RM100 acoustic guitar

good for building your finger strength... and sufficient enough if you want to learn songs that only involves strumming or simple riffing.

i agree with the other posters. buy a cheap guitar 1st to improve the fundamentals. no need teacher actually, unless you plan to be an artist . just play whatever the hell you feel like playing. practice some scale, which is very important to build dexterity. buy a book for reference and watch a lot of live videos to see the proper implementation of a technique.

as a friend of mine once said(he's a really pro player), "guitar is the easiest intrument to play, but the hardest to master".

First, all instruments are easy to play, difficult to master. Not just guitar.

Secondly, a good teacher is a must. I've taken lessons since I was five from run-of-the-mill music-degree teachers to pub players to performers in the KLSO; the good ones gig regularly.

ya ... i got few friends as my guidance ..

and my tutor is www.google.com
i think u can do thru it if u got the effort

get a teacher, definitely.
once you practice something wrong, its very hard to correct it(i went through this for quite some time)

not really, ever played a trumpet? it's hard to start with it, when you get the hang of it, it's easy. woodwind instrument is the same too. very hard if you don't actually know how to control the air flow. a trombone is easier to start with, and not too hard to master too.

a guitar is different. being that it has techniques that involved strenght and dexterity, and sometimes both at the same time. it also requires some snyc with your hands. a piano requires this too, but piano does not requires much finger strength. although a drum also requires dexterity and more strenght, i does not requires precission and subtlety that a guitar requires.

i agree a teacher is needed, but only if your'e really serious about it. otherwise, your own will and your musical passion is enough to make you practice and find your own references. besides, i'm happier playing with my own pace.

define master. If mastering an instrument means getting the hang of it, i'd say i've mastered almost every instrument there is in this world

"master" as in profesionnal (satriani, malmsteen, hendrix or etc level la). not getting the hang of an intrument, although i admit that some of my sentences did reflect that . bare with me, i'm a little blur today after spending most of the morning in IBM server room.

This post has been edited by zeroglyph: May 15 2007, 03:26 PM

I disagree with your point that Trombone is easier and not hard to master..

Even a simple triangle requires good , hard and effective practise to achieve the right tone.

Just to state my point of view that there is no "Easier" or "Harder" instruments in this world


To the tread starter - Its not too late to start.. Just be committed and Don't ever give up

well, i'm actually comparing it with a trumpet, not other instruments.

anyway, we are entitled to our own views, cheerio!

This post has been edited by zeroglyph: May 15 2007, 04:21 PM

Seagull's are nice stuff... u've got something to start of with already!

Yes I agree with you. I did some mistakes too, and it was really hard to correct.

If you're serious about being good at it, getting a teacher to teach you is the best way to go. At least you wouldnt be lost from reading conflicting info on the net. When you think that you're better and can start practicing on your own, then you can stop taking lessons.

I just came back fiddling around with my friend's electric guitar, and damn the feeling is nice

He started playing Incubus - Drive, GnR - Sweet Child o'Mine and another song and how I wished that would be me playing instead

For certain, I'm gonna pick up guitar seriously this time Starting off with my 7 weeks holiday coming soon

So it seems that most agree that I should get a teacher first, as not to pick up bad habits. How much do you reckon I can master with 7 weeks, if say I learn for 4 hours per week?

tat's quite less for a holiday, unless u've got something more important to do.

u got a seagull acoustic??? wow
thats really nice stuff dude

anyway u prolly should get a teacher
unless u prefer to start off on your own.

p/s if u ever wanna give away ur guitar
im always available

I dont think any of us will be able to 'master' the instrument in any way. Its a life long journey. Just make sure you dont stress your hands from practicing too much. Injury can happen if you're not careful. If it hurts, make sure you dont force yourself.

^
last time i play until my hand spazing
spasms

i used to play flute ... is quite tough at 1st but later will be easy ..

trumpet .. walau eh ... i still cant forget my the lips pain after the 1st few practices..

trombone, tuba and drumkits ... all nvr tested yet except for the norm brass band single drum. All this thx to high school brass band which i suffer for years >.< !!!

learning guitar now is like new level ... very challenging compare to all things i had touched ... eventhough i still hope im able to play piano 1 day.

i used to play the saxophone a few years back
pretty fun until i heard eric johnson and steve vai

I don't think its possible to actually "Master" the instrument in such a short period of time...

But you will surely improve through that and probably "Master" the basics



Trumpet... I know how you fell bro
I used to play Trombone...
Can you flutter tongue? I can't seem to do it...


Currently I play Bass and may venture into other instruments like guitar and clarinet if and only when I am good enough in what I am playing now..

"Jack of all trades, Master of none." << this is what I try to avoid being

james of all riffs, master of puppets.

trade the seagull with my kapok . u will surely become pro in 6 months or less

ability to play by ear is a gift most musicians have. if u have it, bless u. u'll be able to master about 75% of ur instrument quick. the rest 25 %, well, is the finger skill kinda stuff, like hand tapping, ability to shred real fast, etc. which are not that important musically la, imho.

i beg to differ that the ability to play by ear is a gift MOST musicians have. u'd be surprised alot dont.

yea . i agree.. only thru constant practise only able to recog the sound. im not beethoven heir

If you're not pursuing music as a career i think getting a teacher to show you how not to hurt yourself is enough. There are certain postures which can de disastrous to your wrists (especially true in the bass world). Then after you have the basics, you can quit. Should roughly take about a few months for that.

The rest you can learn on your own. Takes a longer time of course, but i think it's more fun and exciting discovering stuff on your own than to have someone just throw everything at you. But that's all a matter of taste. Some people prefer to be taught and some prefer to experiment.

If you're venturing into music as a career, then of course look for as many teachers as possible. Because then you're studying it. And at that point, we're not talking guitar anymore, we're talking music. And that's where all the harmonies and arrangements and theory comes in. Which i think takes away all the fun But that's just me

i think the main reason you wanna have a teacher is not only to show you new things etc but to show you what NOT to do

I saw some of the early post says that get a kapok train up finger strength....i actually disagree with it...no offence ya....

i actually met with quite a few guitarist n read alo of article abt practising....what they say is one should start with a decent guitar...actually we don't need alot strength to fret cleanly....coz if continuosly practising on high action guitars we tend to apply more pressure to fret it down...eventually fingers will getting stiffer...n once change to a good guitar...usually with lower action...we tend to fret with the same amount of strength we use on a high action guitar...n this will spoil the frets n fingerboard really fast...n actually will slower down ur figer movements....so it's always good to start with a better guitar....

sorry to those who disagree with me or offended by me.....good luck to those that are abt to start playing guitar....

^
sometimes i train my fingers by hammering on really hard =/

Why do you guys wanna fret really hard? Its a waste of energy imo. I read about soft touch, where you apply just enough force to fret it. Get to play faster. Eric Clapton says that its really important for beginners to start off with a good/decent guitar. Too lazy to type what he said right now...

copy, paste, source.
i fret hard to train some strength only but when i play i dont smash the fretboard
except maybe some heavy riffs like maybe some lamb of god sometimes i'll fret a little harder

not to say hard, more like firm.
but when you try going faster, and if you fret softly, you're going to end up with alot of messed up notes.

fretting does not require much finger strength.

but i guess you forgot about legato, hammer ons.... which your finger strength signifies your tone

This post has been edited by soulfly: May 17 2007, 12:22 AM

^
yeah. you gotta be able to control your finger strength to produce different sounds and tonalities.

Its in a guitar magazine... So cannot copy paste.

Lol, you guys talking technical stuff now so I don't quite understand

But I will try and take everyone's advice and use it

technical? like? i'm a noob

Like fret hard and fret soft.

I thought you need to press hard enough for the correct tune to be achieved right?

well sometimes i purposely fret it away from the fret abit(as in about the middle of the fret) to get that erm muddy? tone.
especially when performing speed buildups on the thick strings

i'd rather stick with the fact that having a decent guitar when u start makes it easier. not only in terms of sound, the playability and quality affects too.
i mean of course you would want a good sounding guitar and 'easier to press' frets as when it comes to electric guitar u need not fret that hard.

yeah with distortion its easier to get the sound but you gotta control the string noise
on and off i'll play my acoustic(not sure about the stock gauges) the string gauges are higher so when i play my electric guitar after that i feel my fingers are stronger

well it's intonation, you might wanna look up on the concept. pressing the string too hard will make the note go a little sharp. how hard you to fret usually depends on the guitar's action. lower action, lighter touch.

yeah, can do that to achieve that muddy effect i was talking about

fretting too hard also makes ur rhythm goes off, well, in the bass world la. Like when i started learning slap and pop, i usually fret too hard, (dun ask me why, i think coz of the tension when learning something new ) thus, my tempo always lari wan, and play a bit only, tired adee. then learnt to fret softer by more playing lo. But i still suck at slap and pop la, haha. , but at least now tempo and rhythm settle adee. .

It's not my kapok's fault yea, btw. just my tensioness . So if u still wanna trade ur seagull with my kapok, can always pm me

Haha no I won't trade my Seagull Is it a good guitar?

The face of it is rather soft though. Like a few dents are visible made by the pick :\

no its horrible
hence give it to me

i give u kapok
its better

wah how you dent it with your pick..
even with a pickguard there i dunno how i will be able to hit the body while strumming..

Don't know man really, most of the time my bro plays it.

But some other dents are caused by bumping into something. The wood is seriously soft one, I used my fingernails and put a little pressure and there is a dent already. Even softer than balsa wood :\

It's because of the moisture that softens your wood. IMO lah

Fingerpicks do alot of body damage when u slap

=/

hehe, i dented my foster parents' seagull also lar, quite fragile stuff these guitars. u are much better off with a kapok, can last u 4 or 5 years at least.
summore very hard to dent 1 .
seagull owners would always wanna scold their foster sons wan la, for denting their guitars..

Kapok RULES!

i'm using a pyramid acoustic(rm120 one)
the upper body paint actually came off due to sweat and i was wondering why is there a black line on my arm...
yup, you get what you pay for.
and that was the 2nd model i had replaced because the first one had serious technical issues like EXTRA ONE FRET?!
so 2 frets sounded the same and there were a sh!tload of other problems