Who Plays Acoustic Guitar?

YouTube is your friend.  Search for "beginner guitar tutorial" and you will find piles of great stuff to get you started....basic chords, how to read tab, etc.   One tip though, don't go into it thinking you are going to be a pro as that is just going to make the learning curve tougher and you will get easily frustrated.     Just be happy with what you are able to achieve and have fun with it  

 

Learn all chords. Learn to restring your equipment. Learn how to the by ear. Start with 3 chord songs. G C D. Like 1000s of songs. I dislike Takamine guitars. But if you play it, learn and enjoy

 

OP just started and is excited about their gear.  Was this dickish comment really necessary?

 

@[member="Shiva Blaster"] Just because I have a personal preference, does not mean it was meant to be a negative statement. I have put some purposeful tips for learning guitar, in a post about learning guitar. You?

 

I managed to do the same in the post above yours, except without dissing their gear purchases.    OP's question was not "what do you think about my gear?".    The question related to what to do with the gear, and I'm not sure how specifically mentioning that you don't like said gear is at all relevant to the thread.   Just seems like an unnecessary dick comment, the last thing a new guitar player needs is a gear snob nitpicking their equipment.  

 

I was unaware that "watch YouTube" was critical advice. Some of us weren't fortunate enough to have the internet. However, I'm assuming that this is a moot point but, I said I dislike takamine guitars. Where did I bash anyone? Maybe takamine a bit, as I find there are many better options.

 

You realize that the the original question was posted using the internet, right?       If OP is on GC, than I am fairly certain they have access to Youtube as well.  
 
 A lot of new players might not realize just how amazing of a resource YouTube is for beginner lessons and tutorials......you can essentially get free lessons from pros that way, and like they say a picture is worth a thousand words.
 
Do you remember your very first guitar and how you just thought it was the greatest thing ever?  I sure do.  Now image rushing to the internet to share your enthusiasm, only to have the second person that replies specifically point out that they dislike the guitar that OP is so proud of.   See my point?
 
When you are starting out, attitude and dedication play a WAY bigger role than the name brand of the equipment you learn on.

 

My first guitar was a Yamaha classical with action so high it hurt after 10 seconds. No my first guitar was a piece of crap. Also learning off YouTube is fine for small pieces. Not for learning everything. For instance, as I enjoy playing metal, I was attempting to learn sweep picking. Couldn't figure it out. Went to a guitar lesson. Half hour later it wasn't a problem at all. YT is fine as a supplement. Just not your end all be all.

 

Well OP was clearly very proud of all their first gear purchases and I just found that comment unnecessary.    New players need lots of encouragement, learning can be frustrating enough without them second guessing their gear.   99% of the time, issues have nothing to do with the gear.   You are right, YouTube is not the be all end all, nor did I say it was....that was just one of of the little tips I left as it is a very good jumping off point (with visuals) for things like basic chords, how to read tablature, etc.   Nothing can ever substitute a 1st person lesson with a good guitar teacher that you can relate to, but not everyone has $$$$ for lessons.

 

Whatever you want, you seem to know best. Although, I don't see your posts in any guitar related threads.

 

I was crazy lucky, way back when I was in high-school we had a classical guitar course in Grade 11 and Grade 12.   Previously there were super strict rules: no flat picks, not playing rock music, etc....it was a drag.    A month into the the course, the regular teacher (who was pregnant) had her baby extremely prematurely and they had to make an emergency hire to fill the rest of the course.   There were no teachers available that were qualified to teach music, so they ended up hiring this guy Mr. Nelson......a 45ish local rocker who showed up on the first day with his Marshall stack and FX board, so freaking awesome!   At that very moment I fell in love with guitar and started saving for my first Strat.   It ended up being the best class I ever took, and I learned a pile in those 3 months.   On the first day, he made everyone play for him, and there were 6 of us that already could play a little bit and were ahead of the rest of the class.  We got to spend the entire course in our own private practice room while the rest of the class had to learn Row Your Boat, haha.   It was totally awesome, after each class he would ask us what song we wanted to learn the next day and he would come back with all the tabs and show us how to play it.    The 6 of us would get really baked and jam by ourselves for the next 90 minutes.    I am still playing guitar 20 years later and have Mr. Nelson to thank for it.

 

 
Because I'm not just a guitarist (I've actually posted some live analog synth jam videos on here), and tend to avoid guitarist threads because that's where the know-it-all's and gear snobs lurk.   I prefer to play and record rather than talk about playing/gear on the internet.  I am also a grower, and that is the primary reason for using this site.
 
Time to go jam it up......have yourself a good night  

 

This is very good advice though.   Also a good idea to switch to a lighter string gauge when learning, especially on acoustic.   This will help a lot with cramping and sore fingertips.  Once you build hand strength and callouses, you can switch to heavier strings if you prefer.
 
If you are having issues with really sore fingers, dip them in rubbing alcohol a couple of times per day for the first couple of weeks.   This will help dry out the skin and build up those callouses faster  

 

I disagree to an extent, preference is key to strings. Its best to try many, which is also good practice for restring. I prefer heavy gauge strings. I do agree to an degree with your above post. Playing is best, however the conversation side has met me many friends and jam buds. There is a merit to this as playing with others makes you improve.

 

Yup, different strokes for different strokes.   For someone picking up a guitar for the first time though, regular gauge strings (esp. acoustic) are often painful to play on at first due to the extra tension.   When first starting, the hands cramps up and get tired quickly too, so lighter gauges means you can play for extended sessions and get better faster IMHO....I had major problems with cramping and pain when starting out as I don't have huge hands.   I do post in a lot of music related forums, just not here.   I've spent the last couple of years building a recording studio in my basement, so I tend to post a lot more in recording forums than I do in guitar-specific threads  or GC.    I just wander over to this section everyone once in a while.   

 

Start with basic 6 string cord knowledge. I'll use tablature outline as a basis. Unlike many classical instruments classic treble not basis, do not always work for guitar considering the speed is hard to interpret on a note scale on an expansive instrument.
Tab setup is by the Standard notes of the string of the scale (There are other scales with different pitch for notes)
E-----------
A-----------
D-----------
G-----------
B-----------
E---------
 
A chord is a combination of notes of similar pitch in different octaves to produce a harmonic synchronize of sound. I'll set up tab positions for the basic notes.(Using frets positions for each string.) 0 means the string is open at it's basement no finger position required.
A:
E-----------0
A-----------3
D-----------1
G-----------2
B-----------0
E----------0
 
D:
E-----------3
A-----------2
D-----------1
G-----------0
B-----------X(String is not strummed)
E----------X
 
G:
E-----------3
A-----------0
D-----------0
G-----------0
B-----------2
E-----------3
 
C:
E-----------0
A-----------1
D-----------0
G-----------2
B-----------3
E-----------X
 
E:
E-----------0
A-----------0
D-----------1
G-----------3
B-----------2
<div>E-----------X
 
These are all the basic chord structures, There are slight variations that you can learn later on, Such as Major chords, Minor Chords, And Add 9 chord.
At first string positions may feel awkward as well as chord transitions might be delayed and sound a little awkward. With practice these will improve.
 
Most songs have two variations which usually constitute the roles of two different guitars. Rhythm(Chords), and Lead (That plays the note changes in sound). The chords are simple basically you just strum, it can be different tempo's based on the pace of the song and also there's different ways you can strum for a different sound basically whether you strum up and downwards in a pattern. It's usually constant.
 
Lead Guitar in many songs in verses not(And, sorry) solo's, It usually is just a combination of the notes in a chord, often changing to a similar chord or the same chord in a different octave. This is how most songs get a unique sound constant, for the basis of the rhythm of the song, sometimes the rhythm guitar will continue to play a lead and the Lead plays a different lead.
 
Solos are usually notes played in a quicker succession. Usually the notes are close together for ease in the playing, but some very complicated one's can be apparent. Solos are usually a combination of single picked notes, and double picked. Usually these notes are made to meld together well, and sound different for a better feel in the playing. The pace can be very different from the verse phase of the song, You should learn the phase progression in songs and the unique sound and Rhythm they propose.
Learning tab is essentially for solo's
 
For solo's there's also changes in the way the notes are played to produce a different progression of sound. Such as string bends(Changing the pitch), and release. Hammer on(Pressing a note further down on the neck, to create a dimmer sound progression), Slides and reverse slides(Going up and down the neck playing multiple notes quickly) String tap. And harmonics. Also strumming techniques like muted, and the position you are strumming at can also be different.
 
Most of this you will learn later on, The more you practice the easier it will become for you. You'll make your way there. Also after long periods of practice your fingers will start to be damaged from playing, sometimes taking a short break for catalysts to develop is a good idea. And makes playing easier.
 
Well, Good luck.

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A musical theory lesson, very nice!

 

Yeah lol, I got accepted in Berklee one of the most prestigious musical schools in the world. I just couldn't afford to go.