How To Buy Electric Guitars – Choosing The Perfect Guitar For You

There are a lot of factors to consider when you’re looking to buy electric guitars, but by far the most important is to get a guitar that works for you. Someone else may love their Fender and think it’s the only guitar worth playing, but you may pick it up and find it feels like you’re trying to play a tree trunk while wearing baseball gloves.

Ask any professional axe man and they’ll tell you…guitars are very, very personal. What works for one player might not work for another. Buying an electric guitar is a little bit art, and a little bit science…and a whole lot of trial and error.

First, think about they type of music you want to play. This makes a huge difference in the model and make of electric guitar you’ll want to use. If you’re into hard power metal, lots of high note bending action, or high octave vibrato bar stuff, you’ll want a guitar with a floating tail piece (also called a floating bridge or a fancy bridge.) If you aren’t going to play like that, then you want a non-floating tail piece.

Also consider what neck thickness will suit your playing style. Metal and rock are better played on a guitar with a narrow neck, so you can let your fingers fly over the fretboard with ease. If you’re into slide blues, on the other hand, than you want a nice wide neck with an arch on the backside to give you support.

You also want to make sure there’s no buzz…strings banging against the frets when you play. Check the distance between the fingerboard and the string (this distance is called the action). Try strumming at several different frets and listen for any buzzing sound. If you hear one, ask the people at the guitar shop if they can adjust the neck for you. They should have no problem with this…if they do, don’t buy a guitar from them.

Now, hold the guitar for awhile. Stand up and play it, sit down and play it. Is it comfortable to hold both ways? A guitar needs to be like an extension of your arm. If you’re just learning, then it might take some time to really feel that, so just make sure you can hold it properly and for a good amount of time. If it’s too heavy or bulky for you, you won’t want to play it.

Also, make sure you play it in the store, hooked up to am amp if at all possible. Work it in a little. Bend strings, use the whammy bar, and see if it stays in tune. If it doesn’t stay in tune very long, don’t buy it. make sure you ask someone at the store to tune it for you first, so you know what it should sound like! Then see how you like the sound of it. Is it clear, or does it sound tinny and weird? Pick one that has a nice, clear, crisp sound. You’ll know it when you hear it.

Now you know what to look for when you buy electric guitars…so have fun trying them all out!