Buying Your Very First Electric Guitar? Here Are Some Top Tips

There's no doubt about it, the standard of low-cost basic electric guitars is way better than it used to be. Having said that, there are things to look for when selecting a budget, first electric guitar for possibly yourself or possibly your son or daughter.

Budget electric guitars commonly adhere to the popular styles of the costlier models. These usually fall into two categories which are either: single cutaway such as the classic Les Paul style, or perhaps the double cutaway just like a classic Stratocaster model. It's really worth testing both types as some guitarists feel more at ease when using the natural curves and lines of a dual cutaway electric guitar, and others will just have to possess a Les Paul style, exactly like Jimmy Page and Slash.

Whilst without any doubt you get a lot more for your money than in the past, there are certain areas that you will most definitely need to cast your eye over before committing to a purchase. To keep the price down, corners obviously end up being cut however, many companies will cut more corners than others.

The first thing to take a look at is whether or not any sharp edges have been left down the fret board. Often the frets may not be filed and finished as well as they could be which can lead to painful hands and fingers when shifting your hand up and down the fret board.

Another area to observe would be the machine heads, also referred to as the tuners. If they are cheaply produced and too lightweight you will battle to keep the guitar in tune which is a nightmare. Turn the machine heads to ascertain if they feel sloppy or loose.

Now you will want to check out those all-important guitar pickups. Once more, these will naturally be manufactured within a strict budget but some will definitely sound much better than others. The Les Paul style single cutaway electric guitar will have humbucker pickups (fatter sound) and the double cutaway Stratocaster style will have single coil pickups (thinner, twangy sound). Play your test guitars through an amplifier and make use of your hearing, you will soon know whether or not a specific electric guitar sounds cheap and bad.

One last area to check out is the general finish of the guitar. Do things fit adequately and is there a very bogus paint job?

If you take into consideration the few points listed above there is every probability that your very first, budget electric guitar could be a very presentable initial guitar. Don't be afraid to try lots of different makes and types, this is the only way you are going to really know what you would like.