A Parent's Guide to Buying a Guitar
Hallowe'en has passed so the push to get the Christmas buying frenzy going is already in full swing. We've already seen the teasers for the coming "Black Friday" events and so parents are starting to embark on their purchases of guitars and other musical instruments for their kids. This article is written from the reference point of guitar and bass, but applies equally well to ANY musical instrument. I am sticking to guitar and bass because I can speak to these areas with lots of knowledge. I cannot do that for drums, keyboards, wind instruments or other stringed instruments. Home recording gear is not included here, and I will look to cover it in another article.
Full disclosure : I receive no compensation or other long term benefits from association with guitar shops or instrument manufacturers. Believe me, I would be thrilled to be getting something in return for what I do. But I don't and I want to make that crystal clear.
When it comes to buying an instrument for your loved one, the last place to look is the Internet. Yes there are lots of well intentioned sites to make purchase and delivery easy. There are more that just want your money that have neither the inclination or capacity to add any value to your purchase.
What's MAP?
Instrument manufacturers, like pretty much everyone else have a program typically called MAP. MAP stands for Minimum Advertised Price. A store can sell for less, but cannot advertise doing so. If they do and are discovered, they could face fines or even be cut off from offering gear from that maker. MAP companies also often provide rewards to sellers who discover and inform on sellers who are not following the MAP rules. Like it or not, it's the way things work. This is why you will see all sellers having the same price in their ads. Going into a store may reveal end of line instruments, special sale items as well as great value on certified used instruments.
Where Do I Buy?
My guidance is that buying any instrument requires guidance and support from a seller who is both knowledgeable and without a specific bias. Music stores may have staff on commission or paid a flat rate. You can ask, but an intelligent consumer will figure things out pretty quickly regardless. The amount of knowledge and support that you will get in a big box store is going to be a number rapidly approaching zero. The amount of knowledge and support that you will get through pure Internet purchasing is also likely to be minimal. Some large Internet resellers have people available all the time to help buyers with purchases, but most use the Internet sales site as a way to capture sales for buyers too distant to enter the store, buyers who have already done their research, and buyers looking for simple delivery of products.
Therefore, to obtain the highest standard of success in your purchase go into a proper guitar store. Tell the seller exactly what you want and your budget because many sellers are musicians first and sellers second and may not have been trained in sales customer service. The good news is that they can be incredibly clear and honest without a big bag of spin.
Buying the wrong instrument will result in what we call a closet or under bed instrument. It's hard to play, poorly set up, or sounds crappy and therefore never gets used. Waste of time and money. You may need to spend a bit more than you had expected to get a better instrument but at least that instrument has better odds of getting used. Good guitar stores inspect every instrument before it goes out to ensure that the strings are in good shape, that the action is reasonable, that all the controls (if existing) work, and that the neck is set properly. A store that does not offer these things by declaration or when asked, is the wrong place to be. You won't find this in any big box store or on the majority of internet stores. I know what I am looking for and am always impressed when the seller says "wait a second, I want to make sure that all is right with this before you leave".
All guitars need some specific accessories. All guitars need a case of some kind. Many guitars come with a soft case aka gig bag or hard case, but lots don't as the maker is trying to hit a certain price point. The cardboard box that the instrument shipped in is NOT proper storage. Get a case. You do not have to go with the maker's branded case, there are plenty of general use gig bags that are ideal and are low cost. The illusion of perfect pitch is just that. Get a digital tuner as part of the purchase. A Snark (brand name) is typically under $25 and your kid will not be able to tune the guitar without it. An out of tune instrument is a pain to play and torture for the ears. There are smartphone based tuners. The very best of them are only ok and those cost like a real tuner that can be stored in the gig bag.
If you are buying an electric guitar or electric bass, that instrument needs an amplifier. It does not need a 100 watt amplifier with a speaker cabinet requiring strong people to move it. A simple low power solid state amplifier with some built in effects will go a long way to keep your player playing, and one of low power will help you retain your sanity and keep neighbours from complaining. Most of these amplifiers also have headphone outputs (look for this feature) so your growing musician can play and practice to heart's content without disturbing the rest of the home. Don't forget an instrument cable. Ernie Ball cables are priced right and are well built. Some cheaper cables may save you $5 but add a lot of cable noise and prove not to last.
If you are buying an acoustic guitar, get a humidifier for it. Again, not expensive but a requirement if you want your investment to last. This is particularly true if you buy an instrument with a solid wood top as opposed to one with a laminated top. Laminated is a fancy way of saying plywood. Plywood sounds like crap. Put a micro-fibre cloth in the wrapped package for wiping down the strings after playing and to keep the guitar finish clean. That's all you need. Almost.
After being a player and collector for over forty years, the number one thing missed with instrument gifts of any kind is training. You may have heard that music lessons are not needed because "it's all on the Internet". Some makers even advocate new buyers to go to their site for lessons. This is, at the risk of offending some, a load of BS. There is nothing that you as a parent can do that will engender the love of music and becoming a musician as including a lessons package with the instrument. A good teacher will teach not only the basics but also how to play songs that resonate with the new player. Being able to play a song creates confidence and enthusiasm and a personal coach does more for this than anything. Very very few of the great musicians in the world got where they are without lessons, many attended prestigious music schools. If your selling store does not have a lesson program, you might consider that as an issue. If you live far from your chosen music store, odds are good that there is a person in your village or town who offers lessons.
What Brands Are Good Value?
At some point, parents want some guidance on what brands to buy. I respect this but caution against getting trapped in brand loyalty over applicability. That said, here's a short list of makers of low cost but good quality offerings. Please understand that these are my personal recommendations based on my personal assessment. Some popular names may not appear, and if they don't, it's because I do not consider them to be good buys.
- Electric Guitar ($300 - $500) - Epiphone, Gretsch, Ibanez
- Electric Bass Guitar ($300 - $500) - Ibanez, Epiphone
- Acoustic Guitar ($300 - $500) - Yamaha, Epiphone, Fender
- Electric Guitar Amplifier ($100 - $300) - Blackstar, BOSS Katana, Fender, Line6
- Bass Guitar Amplifier ($100 - $300) - Ampeg, Fender, Hartke
Buyers who are shopping around will note the absence of the Fender sub-brand Squier from the lists of electric guitar and bass options. This is intentional on my part. I chose these price ranges based on my experience. There are lower price bands. As a generalization, what you find there are disposable or poor quality offerings. It's your money and your choice, but I would caution away from them unless you find a great store with an excellent exchange policy or perhaps a defined trade-in/trade-up program.
Conclusions
You can buy a great musical instrument as a gift without it being a financial burden. You can avoid buying a poor musical instrument by staying out of big box, department and solely online retailers. The instrument is a tool of the musician. Good tools improve the probability of successful musicianship but the biggest success factor is a good teacher.
I invite any and all guitar shops to post this article on their websites or in store with no obligation to me whatsoever.