beginners guitar player thread

New year's resolution :p and 4 weeks now with used free Yamaha FG750s. I'm ok with open major chords as learned them some 25 yrs back but never progressed beyond that partly due to frustrations with strummings. Within 2 weeks, I was at 120-130/minute on some chord changes and now mainly focussing on strumming patterns. Also getting better on using pick. Currently doing practice on boom-chika pattern. To keep interests & motivation, learning few simple intros and basic fingerpicking style. Goal for end of Feb is to learn to play intro of I walk the line and quicker changes on B7.
 
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just my 2 pence on strumming patterns

i would'nt get too bogged down on all that up down down up down down business ...fine if you can get on with it alright....personally i found listening to the track and getting the feel of it that way was easier.......no-ones going to notice that you played an extra down or left an up out....

long as it's got 'that groove' as they say :smashin:
 
:thumbsup:

just my 2 pence on strumming patterns

i would'nt get too bogged down on all that up down down up down down business ...fine if you can get on with it alright....personally i found listening to the track and getting the feel of it that way was easier.......no-ones going to notice that you played an extra down or left an up out....

long as it's got 'that groove' as they say :smashin:
I do exactly this best to my ability.
That up down 1234 marlaky just makes harder work for yourself I find.
Like you said, just get the groove and the feeling.
 
I evolved to that but needed a lot of help to get there. I was clueless. Timing all over, arm stopped moving or jerking etc.. I just learned the basics which in turn got the mechanics right. I'm not a great strummer but can just get on with it now without thinking about the DUDU...maybe that's a good thing or not?

I remember this clip along with many others. A bit drawn out but he makes the point.

 
IMO I've made great improvements since starting with simple DDDD and now mixing with 3rd miss & ups. When first started, I did spent a day looking on how to hold pick :D. Still missing some UP's but most of the time I feel comfortable with it. I'm learning blowing in the wind (D DU D DU) for strum and most of the song sounds alright to me apart from some miss on up stroke and few extra addons("grooves") to match my poor singing. I can currently strum at 140bpm but the song is at 175 :(. Like hyperfish, for me it's to learn basic to get mechanics right. Boom-chika is proving to be challenging with very slow tempo or it could be me trying too many things so early in learning process.

Edit: forgot to add like reevesy, I'll be 46 by summertime. Extra motivation seeing so many old time posters still here and hopefully one day I'll look back here in 5 yrs time laughing at the early struggles :rotfl:
 
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Still think the early days are probably the most rewarding...getting hours of fun just strumming between 2 or 3 chords...think at one time I had about 20 or 30 songs down just using A,D and E.

I've found the better you get the more you realise what you can't do !
 
I also started out as quite a heavy hitter....only recently have I start to get use to not strumming so hard...a lighter touch does seem to help with the tone...especially with electric .plus as someone once said somewhere....
When it comes to dynamics ..
If you start out playing loud you've nowhere to go
 
Well managed another trip to my local guitar shop today, only me in, well apart from the bloke who was playing a new Gibby SG, which he later bought.

Tried the Gibby classic, thought I'd really like it with it having one of the thinner necks, didn't feel that thin to me, and the guitar didn't float my boat at all, much to my disappointment.

Tried a few Gibbys now and they're not doing anything for me at all atm.

Anyway, next tried a semi-hollow Gretsch, nice guitar, but still I couldn't get used to the neck. And didn't get a warm glow from playing it.
It was a nice guitar tho.
They didn't yet have any of the new Electomatics in yet, that I like the look of, so couldn't try.

Shop assistant asked how I was getting on, and said have you had a try of one of these=
20190209_134016.jpg

Wow that thing played like butter, I'd never heard of them, but it was a gorgeous axe.
I'm not into the bixby bling thing, but later googled that they do a LP like version, I'm now gassing for one of them.

Not many people stock them, but they are certainly different from anything I've seen before.
Screenshot_20190209-151633_Chrome.jpg

^^^^^^^^^
Love this.
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Yeah I've never seen one in a shop.....think they're German if I remember rightly?..or a Belgium company
.....that DSP looks very gretsch like
 
I'm off to Manchester next week so will most likely look in a couple of shops....I know Dawson's have some clearance stuff .....in store only
 
Yeah I've never seen one in a shop.....think they're German if I remember rightly?..or a Belgium company
.....that DSP looks very gretsch like
Yeah it does, the Duesenberg are all done on a pleck machine, the neck was superb.
 
not normally bothered too much on necks...though there has been a couple i've picked up that have felt a bit weird.....one of the baja telecasters springs to mind....and the SG :eek:

but so far think my favorite neck has been on the yamaha revstars..

probably half way between your normal C neck on my tele/dot and the wide neck on my junior.

have been tempted by this deal

Yamaha Revstar RS420 Black Steel - Kenny's Music...though the red is nicer..but sold out

bargain for 300 quid.

really interested in the next model up with the block inlays and slightly better pick ups....though when i played them both to me there was'nt anything between them other than looks.

there was one on the bay for a giveaway price...made enquiries but too far away....not surprisingly it soon sold
 
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not normally bothered too much on necks...though there has been a couple i've picked up that have felt a bit weird.....one of the baja telecasters springs to mind....and the SG :eek:

but so far think my favorite neck has been on the yamaha revstars..

probably half way between your normal C neck on my tele/dot and the wide neck on my junior.

have been tempted by this deal

Yamaha Revstar RS420 Black Steel - Kenny's Music...though the red is nicer..but sold out

bargain for 300 quid.

really interested in the next model up with the block inlays and slightly better pick ups....though when i played them both to me there was'nt anything between them other than looks.

there was one on the bay for a giveaway price...made enquiries but too far away....not surprisingly it soon sold

I've still not tried one of these yet, local shop didn't have any in.
I was gassing for one not to long ago, but the GAS has worn off a little for now.
Still need to try one of the New Gretsch Electomatics 5220.

There's that many good (in my range money wise )these days it's hard to choose.

That's a good price and nice guitar you've posted there.

I still love the look of the Gibson's LP, but I just think they are wort all that dosh. I'll definitely be having a look at the New Standard 60's when they come out.
But then again I'll never be able to afford one, so might not be worth trying.:(
 
everyone seem to be saying that gibson aint what it used to be etc etc
....but apart from my junior...and a 2 grand acoustic i picked up once (instantly underwhelmed by that one surprisingly) i've never played an LP or 335.

but yeah in that sub grand area...especially 400 - 800 quid range the world's yer lobster.

always felt a bit off paying a grand+ for a guitar....but when i think of the AV gear i've bought over the years.....especially the denon dvd player i once bought for 800 quid ! :eek: a grand seems nothing !

...least a decent guitar will hold it's money....(actually i could sell all mine for more than i paid for them :thumbsup: )



...unlike that dvd player which i ended up selling for 50 quid! :facepalm::lesson:
 
Like anything else, you either like them or you don't. It should be that easy, but for some reason those that don't like them get really upright. Fender had an unpopular idea with the personality cards. Players didn't buy the guitars and nobody even rembers them now. Gibson put auto tuners on guitars and the internet lost sleep and will do for years to come.
 
Nothing wrong with auto-tuners, love the ones on my LP. I think the mistake Gibson made in 2015, was it? was making them compulsory.

At least now you only get them if you wan the HP model.
 
Seriously though ...think if they would been a permanent feature I would have sold the guitar.

Been a solid operator since I changed them and the nut.

Pity I didn't sell them before everyone one realised that they were shi#e....they were making about 150 quid on the bay at one point..

...got 60 quid for mine...least it paid for the traditional kidney bean inline ones I put on...looks miles better too
 
Use them all the time :)

What issues did you have with them?
 
Well bit of fun at first ....watching them whirl round like some somthing out of the exorcist....but mine didn't seem to stay in tune very long at all
...then it would seem to be quicker to tune with a tuner than wait for them to it to finish.....thought string changes were temperamental too...though in theory they should have been easier

Plus they were ugly things to have stuck on your headstock..

Don't think I've ever seen or heard of anyone using them playing live...

That would be fun when the guitarist has to keep stopping...' hang on a minute lads'

If they work for some people that's great ..personally I was glad to see the back of them....just think they were an expensive novelty item for Gibson to invest in.

Even the girl who bought them said it was just something fun to give to her boyfriend as a present
 

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