Qualities to look for in a good guitar

This is a continuation of the earlier blog "Starting off on the right note". I felt that this deserved a blog of it's own.

Also, note that much of the blog only talks about affordable, indian/imported guitars. I know that there are super quality guitars out there, but these are not the topic of discussion. So here goes...

Qualities to look for

a) The strings should be just above the frets. This reduces the force needed to press down on the strings. Reduces sore fingers and increases comfort and pleasure in playing, though the natural volume of sound produced without a pickup decreases. Also, too low an "action" can cause buzzing/rattling of the strings when playing the higher frets. Go for an action which is comfortable.

b) The 'Pickup' ie. the electric jack for connecting to the amplifier should be preferably built-in.

c) The 'cutaway' at the base of the neck allows us to play 'Lead' guitarist i.e., the bottom half of the finger-board is easier to reach unlike the Jumbo model.

d)The fretboard should be straight without a bend. Just sight the entire length of the finger-board - it should be straight.
Another way to cross-check this is to press one string down onto the first fret,while pressing the string onto the last fret with the other hand. If the string touches all the frets in between the first and the last frets, the fretboard is straight. But DO check that the frets are also all at the SAME height, and not ADJUSTED in height, so as to make the strings touch all the frets.

e)The size of the guitar should be comfortable. No sense buying a jumbo guitar, if when playing it it feels more like something you have to strain to wrap your right arm around. Of course, a bigger guitar does give a warmer, more resonant sound due to it's bigger box.

f) Check that there are no cracks anywhere in the guitar. This is important.

g) Make sure that the tuning pegs all work smoothly, without any squeaks and don't wobble.

h) The frets should all be smooth and not have any sharp or uneven edges. This could nick your fingers as you play.

i) Reputed brands like Gibson(not Givson, a local brand) and Ovation might cost a lot, but should be worth it. Some of the cheaper chinese imports like GB&A were also recommended by the shopkeeper as being good. Victor recommended the Signature brand(Rs 2500 onwards) as a good enough buy.

j) Do go in for an acoustic pickup, as this will allow you to connect your guitar to not only an amplifier, but also to hook it up to the computer to do loads of stuff - From Tuning it with software to automated writing of compositions, and electric guitar effects.

k) last but not least, make sure that the guitar you are buying is not oversized, as it makes it that much more difficult to handle.

l)Check out the software at sourceforge for guitars.(http://sourceforge.com)

m)Buy a pitchpipe (E Note). Use this to tune your first string. Then do a "Relative Tuning" of the other strings. Or just hook it up to your PC's soundcard with the microphone and tune it with a freeware Win32 Tuner software called "Audio Phonic Guitar Tuner".

Recommended Books

Principles of Correct Practice for Guitar - Jamie Andreas (www.guitarprinciples.com)
I highly recommend this book. This is probably the closest you can get to the subject of Guitar Zen. Even if you can't buy the book,the articles on the website should give you a good idea of correct guitar practice principles. BTW, the author is a woman.

Complete Idiot's Guide to playing the Guitar ( A Good beginner book)

The Guitar Handbook - Ralph Denyer ( costs around 800 Rs in India - if ordered through Sifymall.com. Not very high on explanation, but is a matchless reference book)

Software
------------
Audio Phonic Guitar Tuner ( freeware)

Solfege - An ear training software (freeware)

Guitar Pro 4 (latest version Pro 5) - An excellent software, but not freeware. Costs 60$. But it's among the best out there. The 15 day evaluation version can be downloaded for free.


Costs
--------
Acoustic Guitar Rs. 2500 onwards
PitchPipe(Rs. 45), Soft Bag(Rs. 200) and strap(Rs. 100)
Extra set of good quality strings Rs. 95

You can try attending guitar lessons at your local YMCA, as they are quite reasonable.