How to choose the right guitar? [Beginner's Buying Guide]

Buying a Guitar for the first time is not child's play, especially when you know nothing about it. To choose the right guitar for yourself, learn the right things that help you take the right decisions. In the beginning phase of learning music, selecting the wrong instrument won't be a good start. So, educate yourself enough about guitars to choose a good Guitar for yourself as a beginner.

There are various factors to focus on to find the right guitar for yourself, but, we'll be focusing on factors that affect the quality & playing of the Guitars for beginners. So, We'll be sharing the required information to select the best guitar for beginners while keeping it simple.

Before visiting the musical instrument shop, there are lots of things to decide and think of at home. Like what you want, where you'll get the best and so on. Let's see what we can help with that problem.

Know what you want

The first step is to know what you want, to decide what type of guitar you want to learn or which guitar you're more excited about. There are many types of guitars that you can find online or in your nearby stores, but among them, electric and acoustic guitars are the most chosen ones. It's all upon you & you're responsible for selecting the right guitar type for yourself.

Which type of guitar is best for beginners?

We've found that an electric guitar is easier to play cause it has lighter strings and is more comfortable than acoustic guitars. Acoustic guitars have heavier strings which will also give pain to your fingertips for the first few months. After a few months of playing it, your fingers will strengthen and adjust.

However, Most people start with an acoustic guitar at the beginning cause it is much simpler, easier to learn & more portable than an electric guitar. Acoustic Guitars are considered to be the best choice for beginners.

In the beginning, it's better to start with an acoustic guitar. The more you go ahead, you can try different guitars if you want to.

Our Opinion:

Ukuleles are the better choice for beginners cause it has nylon strings, are easier to play and are less painful to your hands. While learning Ukulele, you'll also get to know whether you have the patience of learning a guitar or not.

So, If you want, you can also go with the ukulele at the beginning, then move on to guitars.

How to choose a guitar size?

The full-sized guitar (typically 40-41 inches) will be the best choice if you are a full-grown adult. If you're a teenager or got a small height, select the one that you're comfortable with. Buying the 1-2 size bigger or smaller guitar won't affect your performance or playing.

While choosing the size, make sure you're comfortable with the guitar's size, whatever size you pick.

Buying Guitar Online vs In-Store

There's another question that comes to everyone's mind while buying the guitar, "Should I buy it online or from stores?". Well, the answer to that question is, it depends on you.

Picking the best guitar for yourself as a beginner is not that easy when it comes to visiting nearby stores. On online platforms, you can at least check others' reviews and decide, however, in stores, you've to do that all.

Online shopping is easy, but the physical store wins when providing warranty services for that guitar. At stores, you can get your guitar repaired whenever you want in lesser time. In online stores, you've to go through many procedures to claim your warranty services and it may take a long time too.

We'll leave that to you hoping you'll decide by yourself whether to go online or offline stores. It'll be good to decide by yourself according to your comfort zone.

How to pick the best guitar as a beginner?

Before you hop on to the stores or websites to buy the guitar, there're lots of things to know about it. Make sure you've basic knowledge about guitars and their parts.

If you don't know anything about it, don't worry, we'll be guiding you through that.

First, you've to know something about guitars. Look at the diagram that we've shared below and memorize all the parts if possible. It won't be too hard to remember all that.

We hope that you've remembered all those parts of guitars that are listed on the diagram.

Now, Make sure to check the things mentioned below before buying a guitar as a beginner:

Tuning: Check whether all the stings stay in tune or not. If not staying in tune, tell the problem to the store owner or start looking for the next one. If you don't know how to tune a guitar, use the built-in guitar tuner or mobile apps for tuning a guitar. 

Electronics Accessories: When you finish tuning it, turn on the guitar's tuner and equalizer, and check if it's working fine or not. If the guitar's tuner is showing all the strings tuned perfectly, then it's working. Check the speaker connecting port, so you don't have to bother later.

Neck: One of the main parts of the guitar's body is the guitar's neck. The neck is the part where the fretboard/fingerboard is aligned & you play the chords. Verify the guitar's neck is not bent and is straight. If you doubt it's not straight, ask them for a repair or look for a new guitar.

Truss Rod: Truss Rod works like a backbone to a guitar, it connects the neck and the body of a guitar. It is located on the inside of the guitar and is visible from the sound hole. Make sure that your guitar comes with one so that it can be fixed later if the neck bends.

Guitar's Condition: Check the parts of the guitars and look for scratches or damages. If any faults or damages are seen, kindly ask them to repair or to show a new one. You can also find out about guitars' conditions by comparing them with other guitars.

Strings Distance: Look at the distance of the strings from the fretboard, and make sure that the strings are not placed too far from the neck to the point where the neck and body of the guitar meet.

Comfort: Make sure the guitar you're picking is comfortable for you to play and easy to grab. Overall, make sure it is comfortable for you.

Conclusion

In this article, we've talked about the essential factors that affect the quality of the guitar. The factors mentioned in this article are the most important things to check while buying a guitar. We hope you have read this article carefully and have gained enough understanding to select the best guitar for yourself.

Is it easy to buy a good guitar for beginners?

Or

Is it really that hard to choose one?

Let us know your thoughts in the comments, and share this with your friends who are willing to buy a guitar.