How to Compare Electric Guitars for Beginners

Get a guitar style by comparing artists that use them.

Electric guitars have distinctive differences. Some are built to shred. Some are built for jazz. Some are for country, others are for blues. Although any style can be played on any guitar, certain electric guitar styles are distinguished by their own tone and playability.

Fender

The Fender Stratocaster guitar is widely known as a blues guitar. The Fender guitar has a single coil pickup design that adapts well to the soulful, bluesy sound. Compare the way the guitars of Eric Clapton or Stevie Ray Vaughan sound. It's a twangy sound with sustaining single notes that whine. For country, listen to the Fender Telecaster. Country guitarists like Brad Paisley, Merle Haggard and Waylon Jennings have used Telecasters.

Gibson

Gibson has become an icon in the world of hard rock. Gibson guitars have a darker, richer sound because of double coil pickups with a more solid sustain for lead soloing. Listen to Angus Young of AC/DC on his custom SG Standard. That chunky sound that hits hard is true Gibson. Listen to Jimmy Page playing the lead solo on "Stairway to Heaven," a Gibson lead. Listen to Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top. His punchy lead solos are a trademark Gibson sound.

B.C. Rich

B.C. Rich is the signature metal guitar sound. If you like heavy metal, fast leads, feedback, harmonics or any of the signature sound of Mettallica, Five Finger Death Punch or Drowning Pool, try a B.C. Rich. No other guitar has a faster neck or hotter pickups than B.C. Rich. For pure aesthetics, the extreme body shapes of B.C. Rich are show-stoppers by themselves.

For Starters

For the beginner, it's best to start out with a good quality copy, or "knock-off," of a Gibson or a Fender. You can buy a starter guitar with a small practice amp for about $100 to $125 at Musician's Friend or Guitar Center. Look for an Epiphone SG Standard or a Squier Stratocaster model of guitar. These two models look exactly like the real thing. They have low action and are easy to play.

References

• Guitar Resource Center: Beginners Electric Guitar
• Music Basics: What Size of Guitar To Buy