Where should i go for my sons electric guitar package?

[BigonaBianchi]

Here is a quick google for some kit that might suit...I just stayed with one dealer but they all do similar stuff...(never used Dolphin they just came up first):

Here is a reasonable Guitar/amp package:
http://www.dolphinmusic.co.uk/shop/flypage/product_id/21355

..and here are a couple of reasonable starter practice amps should you go with a guitar not in a package deal.

Here is a neat little practice amp for cheap:
http://www.dolphinmusic.co.uk/shop/flypage/product_id/31782
Here is another:
http://www.dolphinmusic.co.uk/shop/flypage/product_id/31106/r/base
tranny amps but not to bad for cheap amps...I suggest you get a overdrive or distortion foot pedal to stick in front if he wants that POWER METAL tone...not necessary if clean is his thing though. Here is a good distortion pedal:
http://www.dolphinmusic.co.uk/shop/flypage/product_id/12685
Here is one of the tuners i use:
http://www.dolphinmusic.co.uk/shop/flypage/product_id/4343

If you like the idea of SMALL and QUIET ...all singing all dancing box of tricks then how about this gizmo:
http://www.dolphinmusic.co.uk/shop/flypage/product_id/29947
He'll need some headphones or a Hi Fi to plug it through but it sounds pretty cool...has a good range of effects built in as well as a tuner....I use a POD on a lot of my recordings..just direct into a mixing desk...no need for a mic or amp at all!

 

[BigonaBianchi]

i also reccomend a marshall amp as they are the cleanest sound.

Marshall amps are used my hard rock bands because they provide a warm overdriven/distorted (not clean) tone when cranked up and the valves cook. However they can also provide some nice warm clean tones on lower gain settings. The trick with a marshall is to crank the power stage. None of that drive the amp stuff applies to tranny amps though (which I dislike).

Talking of Strats. Anyone know what the skinny is on Korean made ones? It looks like some expensive Strats were made in Korea, or are they crap?

Most guitar manufacturers especially Fender have a 'range'of guitars...basically they offer the lure of top end axes at mid range prices...so yes some are USA some are far east and some are mexican (Baja California). The uSA ones are the more expensive but not always the best. I have a USA strat and a mexican classic 70's...and after a few basic set up tweaks on the mexican I defy anyone to tell me the difference in tone or palyability...again it's like bikes...top names (Dawes comes to mind) who sell bikes from the far east on the back of their UK pedigree....same thing with Fender...but the lower end guitars can still be cool. The thing is to get into a shop and try them out.
For me...I'd want a Mexican above a Korean...but I'd go to the shop and play both and get whichever felt and sounded best. Mostly it's snob appeal I reckon BUT the type and cut of wood is the crucial thing....dont plug in to test...play in a quiet room unplugged that should give you the real guitar tone/sustain without it being coloured by the amp....get he guitar tone right first

would not recomend an ibanez for a beginner or an advanced player as they are only for one type of style "metal"

I disagree.

No guitar is really just for one style or another...I have an Ibanez and sure I play metal, but it is a very versatile axe. It has some superb clean tones and out of phase combined pick up tones. It has a wide flat neck which is accurate and comfy to play. I know many who play Ibanez for non metal styles

The equation of the optimum number of bikes has been clarified on this forum as n+1, where n is the number of bikes currently owned. I think we can also say the same for guitars. Beware if your kid gets into it.

Agreed..it is addictive and EXPENSIVE. I have well over £20,000 worth of gear in this room alone and i am still learning how to use it...mostly it's already dated when I buy it...technology moves so quick these days....but a GOOD guitar will out live you.

 

[downfader]

i play guitar and i would recomend an epiphone les paul.

yamaha are ok but epiphone have better sound and i find are just better guitars overall.

i would not recomend an ibanez for a beginner or an advanced player as they are only for one type of style "metal" .

my first guitar was a musicas but now i use a stagg sg.

i also reccomend a marshall amp as they are the cleanest sound.

hope this helps

Err no, Ibanez are not exclusively a metal guitar! I have an SA360 and have used it for blues for years, also country licks. And Marshall is not necessarily the cleanest (which is subjective anyway), when you consider the jazz amps and tech 21 stuff.

I do think we should play the guitars we feel comfortable with, and what suits one person may not suit another.

 

[DJ]

Wow, what amazing feed back (no pun intended) I never expected this kind of response!!

Special thanks to BonaB for all that info,cheers. I listened to your Missbehavin track too, liked it tho metal has never been my thing.

So, I will be in Clapham checking out the Lgs.

The Ibanez sounds good, maybe with a marshall amp and one of the pocket pod gizmos. He can borrow my sennheiser head phones I think.

My son Likes Mettallica and Muse, I know muse don't make a Metal noise but they do use a wide range don't they!

I have always Loved Bruce Springsteen, I love to listen closely to the songs and figure out whats going on in his music.

I was a little surprised to hear the warning's of n+1 etc, Bruce has used the same guitar for years and I thought this is how it is, that must be nievity!

Doesn't matter to me if he starts a collection, if it becomes a passion then that is fine.

He will be coming with me to the lgs so that he can choose the one that he will want to pick up and play, I realise this is important so that he is not put off straight away.

Thanks again for all this, I have saved most to file for my referance,

really pleased, djtheglove

 

[nickb]

Interesting thread. I've just been through this with my lad - he's 13 and has played the piano since age 6, took up the drums last year and the ukulele earlier this year. He announced recently he wanted an electric guitar. He's pretty serious about his music, so I'm happy to fund these 'projects'.

Having just finished Slash's autobiography, he insisted it had to be a Les Paul (copy!). Based on internet prices, I was thinking about buying him an Epiphone and he would fund the purchase of an amp. With that in mind we set off into town and looked at what was available in the 3 music shops. We agreed that the Epiphones are a bit too expensive for a first instrument and we ended up comparing a Tokai (£299) and a Vintage V100 (£219) and on the advice of the salesman in the shop we went for the latter. Again, on the guy's advice, I bought him a Marshall MG15CDR amp (£89) to go with it.

It sounded pretty damned good in the shop, being played by a guy that knew what he was doing. It doesn't sound quite as good at home - yet!

Whilst the numbers above are outside of the range that the OP quoted, I've seen the Vintage as low as £160 on the web. I was happy to pay LMS prices as the instrument was set-up correctly and it's comforting to know I can go back there if we need aftercare.

 

[DJ]

I think that's it Nickb stick to the local shop, for the after care and service.

 

[Mr Pig]

I wouldn't worry too much about getting a Marshall amp, at the lower end they're all just transistor amps anyway and the sound is much of a muchness. I'd think about what he'll want to do with it, how much space he's got etc. You don't need a 100 watt amp if he's just going to be plunking in his room and bigger amps are heavy if he might want to move it around. On the other hand buying a bigger amp now might save you from having to buy one later.

look closely at the facilities on the amps too. Some have very few whilst Line6 at the other end of the scale are packed! Masses of effects and emulation programs, iPod socket, built in tuner, they can save you from having to buy a lot of other stuff.

 

[downfader]

Infact if you're getting a pocket pod that will expand your sonic palette immensely, the amp is less critical with the PP as you'll be able to tweak eq, drive and so on to a degree.

 

[galaxy1]

Ibanez make really good guitars although I don't know about their budget stuff.I think the yamaha pacifica would make a better beginners guitar until he can get himself an ibanez rg prestige ( in metallic red) or a PRS

 

[DJ]

Okay so a pocket pod and then a cheaper amp, your probably right he wont need a large amp, as he will be in his room mainly,

Whats a line6 Mr Pig is that a make?

I will get him to look at the Yamaha, pacifica as well as the Ibanez.

 

[galaxy1]

Line 6 are a make which make digital gizmos and amps and guitars etc which sound like (are modelled on) famous amp ,guitar and effects .

Another option if you're going with the cheap amp (which will have crappy sounding distortion on it) is to get a separate distortion pedal (boss ds-1 is quite good or a multifx like a digitech rp100) .

The important thing is to find a guitarist friend and get him/her to try all this stuff out

 

[galaxy1]

You could always get one of these .mmmmm prs se standard glurk!!

 

[Mr Pig]

Line6 make, among other things, amps that contain digital emulation circuitry that can make the amp 'copy' the sound of other amps. They have a clean channel too obviously but the digital effects add a bewildering array of options. Basically it's a bit like having a digital effects pedal built into the amp, which makes them very good value. They also have headphone and iPod sockets, so that junior can play along...or in my sons case have a 150 watt iPod dock! They also have a foot pedal socket and lots of pre-programmed settings which adjust everything on the amp for you, I think my son's has about sixty! Also, once you've found settings that you like you can store them so that you can go back to them at the touch of a button! It's very clever stuff.

Marshall DFX amps also have digital effects built in but nowhere near as many. I was going to go for a Marshall amp, an MG100DFX, but I think that you're paying for the name at this level. Other brands sound as good and give you more power and facilities for your money.

Purists turn their noses up at these digital amps, and to be fair I don't think the first generation ones were up to much, but at this level you're not getting a valve amp anyway. Besides, at bedroom sound level absolute quality is nowhere near as critical. An amp which saves you from having to buy a digital effects pedal (£100+) is making a good case for itself before you even switch it on!

 

[BigonaBianchi]

Line 6 make the POD range.

he wont need an amp if he has the POD, just a set of head phones and/or plug the POD directly into any stereo/hi fi amp for bedroom use.

I would second the comment about low end Marshall amps..in fact any low end amp is going to be a transistor amp and IMHO those are not the way to go for a good guitar tone...you'd be better off withan amp modeller like a line 6 POD or the behringer equivelant say....ok it's not a valve rig but it sounds pretty close at very low volume. He wont need to play at volume until he joins a band with a drummer. learning to play is best done quiet.

Take a guitarist along with you to the shop if you can...but failing that you wont go far wrong with a Fender Squier series strat, a Line 6 Pod, a cable, a range of picks and a strap. That will get him rocking. For added amusement add a Boss DS1 or OD1 up front...the POD has th etuner you need already. Get him a spare set of strings, a peg winder and a small guitar multi tool as 'stocking fillers'. Trust me on the POD's... with that he could walk into a pro studio and deliver the goods as well as taking it on his hols etc...it's the cheapest most versatile solution for a beginner.

 

[Mr Pig]

What's a peg winder?