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Teens Electric Guitar [message #62848] Mon, 24 May 2010 01:51 Go to next message
djessa is currently offline  djessa
Messages: 20
Registered: May 2010
Chancellor
My son is turning 15 this coming June. I want to replace his old electric guitar that he inherited from his Uncle. I remembered 3 days ago, he mentioned to me about joining the band in the school. Any idea where I can possibly buy electric guitar online for teens? I forgot to mention I need left handed guitar.
Re: Teens Electric Guitar [message #62855 is a reply to message #62848] Mon, 24 May 2010 18:54 Go to previous messageGo to next message
CountryFried
Messages: 10
Registered: May 2010
Location: USA
Chancellor
One place you might want to check is at a local pawn shop. Although this isn't online shopping, you would save on the shipping and handling fees. My son is almost 16 and has been playing guitar since he was 12. For his 15th birthday we found him a very nice electric guitar at a pawn shop here in our hometown. However, if you don't find what you are looking for at a pawn shop, you can go to musiciansfriend.com. This website carries a wide variety of very nice guitars, amps, and many other instruments too.

~CountryFried~
Re: Teens Electric Guitar [message #62859 is a reply to message #62855] Tue, 25 May 2010 10:54 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Thermionic is currently offline  Thermionic
Messages: 208
Registered: May 2009
Master
I second the choice of Musician's Friend. They're a fine company with fine service. Another great online retailer is Sweetwater, which is my personal favorite.

But, as CountryFried indicated, a local pawn shop is often your best bet, that is, if you can get lucky and find what you're needing. A lefty model will of course be tougher to come by in pawn shops than in online or brick-and-mortar retail outlets.

My experience has been that some pawn shops seem to have only very low-end instruments, while others tend to have quite good instruments in stock at any given time. Still others typically have a mix of the two. Of course, it depends on your particular locale, the area the shop itself is in, and the shop owner.

Here in my town of 28,000, you'll find junk at most of the pawn shops, and mixed fare at the rest. In the cities and very large towns, you'll find only junk at a few, mixed fare at most of 'em, and a couple with a reputation for carrying decent stuff almost exclusively. Often times, you'll find the owners of those shops are guitar players themselves, who have an eye for the better stuff and are knowledgeable about it.

The good thing about a nice used guitar (besides lower price) is that well, it's used! When you buy a new guitar, you'll most always have to do some adjustments after the first seasonal change, especially if it's been played quite a bit by that time. A used guitar is more stable, as it's had time for the wood to settle in and figure out what it's gonna do. Although rare, I've seen new guitar necks twist after some time has passed, which demands a very expensive repair by a highly skilled luthier if it's a glued-in or through-body neck, or a complete neck replacement if it's a bolt-on neck.

But, when you buy a used guitar that's at least a year or two old, it's already stabilized and you won't get any surprises later on. Used, well-played guitars will also typically sound a bit better than the same model bought brand new.

Thermionic Smile
Re: Teens Electric Guitar [message #63494 is a reply to message #62859] Fri, 23 July 2010 04:39 Go to previous messageGo to next message
JiminyCricket is currently offline  JiminyCricket
Messages: 50
Registered: July 2010
Baron
Not sure what kind of budget you have, but if you are not sure how long he will be interested in playing you could start with something from this http://http://www.zzounds.com/cat--Left-Handed-Electric-Guitars--2645 site. The cheapest I could see was around 170 dollars and I think shipping is free.
Re: Teens Electric Guitar [message #63611 is a reply to message #62848] Mon, 02 August 2010 00:34 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Soundbuzz is currently offline  Soundbuzz
Messages: 27
Registered: July 2010
Chancellor

What Thermionic said is true, guitars sound a whole lot better with age. I bought my Aria solid-top first-hand, and after having it for a couple of years, I find that it developed a sweeter and brighter tone to it.

Buying a second-hand guitar has more pros than cons to it, but I'm not sure if I would buy a second-hand guitar online as anything second-hand I believe I have to see first to assess it. It might be better to go to a well reputed shop that sells second-hand guitars, and if you have someone with you that has considerable knowledge on guitars, even better, as some defects on guitars are harder to spot without a trained eye. But otherwise, I'm sure the seller will be able to help you out. Look for reviews of some guitar shops in your area, you'd be able to find a good shop with good reviews for your first guitar shopping expedition. Surprised

I think guitar bundles (these you can find online) consisting of guitar, amp, picks, guitar bag, strap, etc can also be helpful as there are other things to consider when buying a guitar. Some even come with instructional DVDs, though I'm not sure how helpful they are.

Has your son been playing guitar because you mentioned he has an old guitar given by an uncle? If that's the case then maybe asking your son what he would like is a better idea though as he might have an idea of what type of guitar he wants for the music he wants to play. Unless you intend to surprise him, then you have some homework to do. Smile



The lunatics are in the hall.
Re: Teens Electric Guitar [message #63753 is a reply to message #63611] Mon, 09 August 2010 00:17 Go to previous message
Old Timer is currently offline  Old Timer
Messages: 11
Registered: August 2010
Chancellor
I agree that you should check with him before buying anything. No matter how hard I try to keep up with the interests of the younger people in my family it is easy to get it wrong. It was hard work buying MP3s for the youngsters last year, so I got some advice from my eldest grandson.
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