How to Buy a Good Rock Guitar on a Budget

Choosing an electric guitar can be a little daunting for any beginning rocker, for a number of reasons. Cost, performance, and how cool the thing looks are just about as equally important for most newbies. Here are a few suggestions to help you get cranking!

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Catalogs, and/or Internet for researching products
• Time
• Money

How to Buy a Good Rock Guitar on a Budget

1. Do your homework. Pull up websites of companies that sell guitars online. They will have a product description and picture of most guitars they regularly keep in stock. Find several that you like and write them down.
2. Read product reviews. Most guitars have user reviews, you can get an idea of what other people who own the guitar think about it, both good and bad points. Ask them questions.
3. Play the guitar. No matter how many sterling reviews one particular guitar might have received, you still need to play it. Check with local music stores to see which ones carry the one you want.
4. Know that decent pick-ups will help your guitar's sound tremendously. Electronics have improved so much that even guitars of average craftsmanship with bolt-on necks can still sound great. In the past, this was not the case.
5. Buy a good amp. It doesn't make sense to spend your time researching and finding a good guitar if you're going to play it through a tin can amp.
6. Buy the best gear you can afford. This might seem obvious; but if you can swing plopping down an extra hundred bucks, it's usually worth it.

Tips & Warnings

• ESP makes some fantastic rock guitars for very reasonable prices.
• Don't forget to buy a case! Protect your investment!
• Also remember to buy a guitar stand if you don't have one.
• EMG and Seymour Duncan are two popular companies making pick-ups.
• Don't forget to get a good amp!