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Should Beginners Buy Expencive Gear ?
Poll
Should beginners buy expencive gear?
Yes [ 18 ] ** [29.03%]
No [ 7 ] ** [11.29%]
Only after some time [ 21 ] ** [33.87%]
Only when they get to more advanced level [ 16 ] ** [25.81%]
Total Votes: 54
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Bogdan Radovic
Feb 22 2008, 09:40 PM
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I know that a lot of people think that beginners should not spend much money on expensive gear...That they need some experience/years of playing after that are they "allowed" to buy expensive stuff ? What do you think about it ? Are those people right and why ?

In my opinion its not true..If you CAN you should buy what ever you want no matter if you are just starting to play or anything.I think that beginners will have much harder time learning to play on a "cheap" or "beginner" guitar that is not well made instead on some middle class guitar or high end one..Don't get me wrong , not every cheap guitar is bad..But often they are lower quality made (not every one though)...I remember playing such a guitar and I was having hard time with it, and than I went to a friend and tried his and it was much easier to play..Of course generally expensive gear won't make you a better player or give you any skills...But than again I think that beginners should not feel ashame having all expensive gear and just being beginners(some people I know tend to make them feel that way)..Remember that beginner is a loose word , today you are - tomorrow you are not all depends to individuals...

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glazmusik
Feb 22 2008, 09:48 PM
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Well, I think the main idea behind it is that if one buys a guitar and then decides that he doesn't like playing, he won't have lost that much.

I don't think that you should go out and lay down $$$$ for guitar stuff, or anything, really, right off the bat. It's not the gear that makes the guitarist. Buy something that you know will last you. The first guitar that I bought, because I knew what I wanted and that I would keep on playing, was a Epiphone Les Paul Standard, which is a little expensive for a first guitar I guess, but I love that guitar. It's still my favorite.

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bmh1109
Feb 22 2008, 09:52 PM
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QUOTE (Bogdan @ Feb 22 2008, 03:40 PM) *
I know that a lot of people think that beginners should not spend much money on expensive gear...That they need some experience/years of playing after that are they "allowed" to buy expensive stuff ? What do you think about it ? Are those people right and why ?

In my opinion its not true..If you CAN you should buy what ever you want no matter if you are just starting to play or anything.I think that beginners will have much harder time learning to play on a "cheap" or "beginner" guitar that is not well made instead on some middle class guitar or high end one..Don't get me wrong , not every cheap guitar is bad..But often they are lower quality made (not every one though)...I remember playing such a guitar and I was having hard time with it, and than I went to a friend and tried his and it was much easier to play..Of course generally expensive gear won't make you a better player or give you any skills...But than again I think that beginners should not feel ashame having all expensive gear and just being beginners(some people I know tend to make them feel that way)..Remember that beginner is a loose word , today you are - tomorrow you are not all depends to individuals...



Im gonna agree with you Bogdan, if you can afford it i say go for it. It might not be the best idea to buy the most expensive stuff right when you start out until you know for sure you're gonna stick with it and be dedicated to getting better. But beyond the point you honestly think you're into playing guitar for a long time to come i think any gear is fair game for a beginner. Look at me for example, ive played guitar coming up on 1 (yes only ONE) year and i have a marshall TSL, 2 other tube amps, and 3 guitars. I love playing and i plan on keeping all of these things for a long time so its a justified expense to me.

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Bogdan Radovic
Feb 22 2008, 10:03 PM
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Thats a good point there about possibility of quiting..But than again guitar that are middle and higher class are not hard to sell used..But if you have a "cheap" guitar its a very hard thing to do...I would not like to start playing tennis with a bad tennis racket , or start driving an old car...Those things can get in a way of your progress (in car and tennis examples - safety)..Its ok if you don't have the money, just choose your guitar carefully..But if you have the possibility and want to buy something and than the "opinion of what others will think" gets in the way is a bad way to go..It may sound stupid but playing an instrument that sounds bad and its not well made (just because others think you don't need better one) can make you down and less inspiring and can encourage quiting playing in the first place..Same thing is with amps, effects others...And please note that I don't think that every "cheap" guitar has to be a bad one,poorly made or something..There are some that are that way and beginners often don't know how to choose..Of course decent guitars can be found for "cheap" money too wink.gif

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shellshock1911
Feb 22 2008, 10:12 PM
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Well of course anyone CAN buy anything they want if they have the money. But I think it is funny how people think that gear matters at all when practicing out of your home. In a band situation, I can see where you would need decent to good gear, but if you are a beginner, you won't be playing in a band anytime soon. I saw a youtube cover once of Freebird where a guy had a 1968 Vintage Explorer, vintage Marshall stack, overdrive pedals, etc, etc, etc, just so he could cover a song. I have seen a better cover played on a Squire with a Roland Microcube, showing that gears importance in practicing is like 0. All you need is a guitar, you don't even need an amp. Amp is great addition though. I've been playing for about 1 year now and have spent maybe $550 max on gear.

EDIT: A lot of a beginners buy high dollar gear because they are so used to getting everything they want quick and don't realize that you don't buy skill with money, you buy it with practice, which many people are unwillingly to put forth to advance, so as a result, turn to buying gear, and then realize they have wasted a ton of money and as a result either, decide to start practicing more, spend more money on gear, or give up and quit.

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skennington
Feb 22 2008, 10:17 PM
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Personally, I have about 1500 tied up in gear and a beginner. I think it's a matter of what you want anf if you can afford it. If I ever lose the drive to play, I can look at the gear and say, Damn, I got to much tied up in this to not practice. tongue.gif Just my opinion smile.gif

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Hisham Al-Sanea
Feb 22 2008, 10:28 PM
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if they have enogh money its better to start with comfortable gear thats will help them in practicing

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Bogdan Radovic
Feb 22 2008, 10:34 PM
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QUOTE (shellshock1911 @ Feb 22 2008, 10:12 PM) *
Well of course anyone CAN buy anything they want if they have the money. But I think it is funny how people think that gear matters at all when practicing out of your home. In a band situation, I can see where you would need decent to good gear, but if you are a beginner, you won't be playing in a band anytime soon. I saw a youtube cover once of Freebird where a guy had a 1968 Vintage Explorer, vintage Marshall stack, overdrive pedals, etc, etc, etc, just so he could cover a song. I have seen a better cover played on a Squire with a Roland Microcube, showing that gears importance in practicing is like 0. All you need is a guitar, you don't even need an amp. Amp is great addition though. I've been playing for about 1 year now and have spent maybe $550 max on gear.

EDIT: A lot of a beginners buy high dollar gear because they are so used to getting everything they want quick and don't realize that you don't buy skill with money, you buy it with practice, which many people are unwillingly to put forth to advance, so as a result, turn to buying gear, and then realize they have wasted a ton of money and as a result either, decide to start practicing more, spend more money on gear, or give up and quit.


But its harder to advance on a guitar that is not well made , typical thing is to have bad action for example...Nice fender strat would come in handy than..When you get to some level its easy to play any instrument and try to get max out of it but it gets little trickier other way around..Buying new gear won't make you play better , but it "may" allow you to be more comfortable when playing and that way let you advance while PRACTICING easier..For example good guitar + nice sounding amp.Sound of amp is what are you listening all the time while practicing (if you are using one) and if it sounds bad well I don't know how long you are going to be able to imagine how it would sound on a decent one.It may bring you down smile.gif I never said that gear will make you better guitarist or musician , but than again why are you looking down on people that have good gear and don't play well?? Do you expect by default if they have a good guitar that they are awesome ? Good gear is a bonus , rest is on you and practicing.. smile.gif

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visi0n
Feb 22 2008, 10:35 PM
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well i have a cheap guitar too € 160 it was, and its a good quality after playing 3,5 years its still comfortable .. when a beginner buys a very expensive guitar and for about a year he thinks, hmm guitar is not the instrument for me gonna try something else .. that expensive guitar will stay .. i think its better to buy a cheap guitar .. but not a very cheap one, not something where you dont comfortable with.

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Bogdan Radovic
Feb 22 2008, 10:40 PM
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QUOTE (visi0n @ Feb 22 2008, 10:35 PM) *
well i have a cheap guitar too € 160 it was, and its a good quality after playing 3,5 years its still comfortable .. when a beginner buys a very expensive guitar and for about a year he thinks, hmm guitar is not the instrument for me gonna try something else .. that expensive guitar will stay .. i think its better to buy a cheap guitar .. but not a very cheap one, not something where you dont comfortable with.


You can find a decent guitar in that price range too..But than again beginners often don't know how to choose an instrument and buy some start kit or something that can be lottery (good or bad)..And its OK too in my opinion.I'm here debating just against an "public" opinion that beginners should not buy expensive stuff in any case just because of them being beginners smile.gif
Remember that good instrument can be sold well as used too..

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Chris Evans
Feb 23 2008, 12:43 AM
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Heck yea why not if you can afford it, I was given my first guitar, I have no idea of the make etc as soon as I could afford it I bought a £400 (UK stirling) Charvel (god I miss that thing!) if I`d have had the cash to have bought it in the beginnning then I would have.

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Tjchep
Feb 23 2008, 01:05 AM
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Well. To some extent yes.

But then if you go to crazy, you'll just buy buy and buy, and have all this junk and not be able to put it to good use. And you'll spend all your time experimenting.

But a beginner with rack gear = ridiculous..

Beginner with good guitar = Fine by my books, give them a line 6 pod and thats all you need for practicing.

Then when you need to record. You can go try out stuff and really know what you want.

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Ivan Milenkovic
Feb 23 2008, 01:28 AM
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Hmm, the answer is pretty obvious. If someone can buy gear right away, there's no point not buying it. Better gear can mean a lot when starting.

Off course, gear doesn't mean anything, it's the player that matters, so it is irelative really. smile.gif

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Bogdan Radovic
Feb 23 2008, 02:12 PM
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QUOTE (Milenkovic Ivan @ Feb 23 2008, 01:28 AM) *
Better gear can mean a lot when starting.

Off course, gear doesn't mean anything, it's the player that matters, so it is irelative really. smile.gif


Point is that other people think that beginners should not buy good guitars/amps when starting(look at pool results)..That conclusion is very common and it affects the same person that wants to buy better gear (others opinion affects the same beginner and in a way stops him from doing what he wanted).People say "Good gear is not gonna make you a better player!" - thats true , but in a way it may help you to advance a little better/faster and in ultimate case be a better player..Also I see that people consider ones that "have better gear" to be by default better(advanced) players/guitarists/musicians..Why is that ? If I have a awesome car I must be a good driver too ?? smile.gif

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Jamesito
Feb 23 2008, 04:32 PM
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I would classify myself as a beginner although I have been playing for about 3 years, I dident allow myself to buy an electric guitar until I had progressed a little. I started on a old acoustic that I bought for about 20 Pounds, so like $40, it gave me the sense of what guitar playing is about, great for learning chord sequences and basic rythem guitar playing. I know acoustic guitar isent very cool, but all the same it´s was the best possible start for me. I then progressed to some semi acoustics and then recently I finally made the leap of faith to a Epiphone Les Paul Custom which i love to pieces.

I would say it´s the beginners choice, what sytle do they want to play, what are there inspirations and reasons for starting to play the guitar. My brother spent about $600 on a BC Rich Warlock becuase it loooked cool and its a good guitar, and he dident appreciate metal music at all really, was it any wonder he gave up playing it after about 2 weeks? That is example of a good guitar being a motivation killer, you know it should sound awesome but you havent got a hope in hell of making it sound good. There is no point of having a brilliant guitar which you will not be able to unlock its potencial for 3 years.

My advice is start on something middle of the road at a push! even better an acoustic, although i do agree there is no need just to buy the worsed thing you can, read reviews on beginner guitars. there is nothing wrong with a fender squire, epiphone SG or maybe a les paul standard for a first guitar. Good build quality, I bought my epi for about $260 and I don´t regret it!

Peace Guys

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Joe Kataldo
Feb 23 2008, 04:47 PM
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QUOTE (Bogdan @ Feb 22 2008, 09:40 PM) *
In my opinion its not true..If you CAN you should buy what ever you want no matter if you are just starting to play or anything.I think that beginners will have much harder time learning to play on a "cheap" or "beginner" guitar that is not well made instead on some middle class guitar or high end one..Don't get me wrong , not every cheap guitar is bad..But often they are lower quality made (not every one though)...I remember playing such a guitar and I was having hard time with it, and than I went to a friend and tried his and it was much easier to play..Of course generally expensive gear won't make you a better player or give you any skills...But than again I think that beginners should not feel ashame having all expensive gear and just being beginners(some people I know tend to make them feel that way)..Remember that beginner is a loose word , today you are - tomorrow you are not all depends to individuals...



I completely agree

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Juan M. Valero
Feb 23 2008, 04:50 PM
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I think that some experience is required to know what gear you need, so I think it's necesary wait few some time to buy expensive gear...

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Gabriel Leopardi
Feb 23 2008, 05:05 PM
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It's not necesary but if you can't... why not? The diference between a cheap and a expensive guitar is so big.

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Muris Varajic
Feb 23 2008, 05:07 PM
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I believe beginner needs beginner gear.
That doesn't mean BAD gear,just not something too expensive and high pro.
He needs some time to figure out playing topics and stuff.
BUT if he's able to buy it...you can't stop him. wink.gif

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Ivan Milenkovic
Feb 23 2008, 06:12 PM
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QUOTE (Bogdan @ Feb 23 2008, 02:12 PM) *
Point is that other people think that beginners should not buy good guitars/amps when starting(look at pool results)..That conclusion is very common and it affects the same person that wants to buy better gear (others opinion affects the same beginner and in a way stops him from doing what he wanted).People say "Good gear is not gonna make you a better player!" - thats true , but in a way it may help you to advance a little better/faster and in ultimate case be a better player..Also I see that people consider ones that "have better gear" to be by default better(advanced) players/guitarists/musicians..Why is that ? If I have a awesome car I must be a good driver too ?? smile.gif


I think you missed the part of my quotaion there.... I wrote

"Hmm, the answer is pretty obvious. If someone can buy gear right away, there's no point not buying it. Better gear can mean a lot when starting.

Off course, gear doesn't mean anything, it's the player that matters, so it is irelative really. "

I think it says it all. wink.gif

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