SteveStreeting.com

I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that I plan to get an electric guitar in the next month or two to complement the accoustic that I’ve been learning on. I’ve done a bit of research, assisted greatly by the responses given to my previous post (thanks chaps), and I’m pretty certain that I’ve found the right combination for the immediate future. I’m still very much a beginner so there’s no point spending a ton of cash, but nevertheless it doesn’t hurt to try to get the best I feel I can afford/justify.

Guitar - Yamaha Pacifica 112V (link)

I still like the feel of the Fender Stratocaster, but I also liked the sound of the Humbuckers on other models (like the Les Paul) - the Pacifica is a nice middle ground in that it’s shares the physical structure of the Strats while replacing the Strat’s 3 single pickups with 2 singles and a Humbucker at the bridge, which gives a good range of sounds when used in various combinations via the 5-way selector.

In addition, pretty much every review I read says the Pacificas are built considerably better than the entry-level Squier Stratocasters. From what I hear you’d have to pay around double the price for a Strat to get the same build quality, so what you lose in ‘brand power’, you gain in value for money.

I’m no expert, but from what I hear it seems like a good bet for someone at my modest level.

Amp - Line 6 Spider III 15W (link)

I don’t need anything particularly powerful, but something with decent sound and a few effects. Nothing too fancy or overwhelming, just decent quality sounds - I can always buy a Pod later if I want more range, or a bigger valve based amp if I want to go nuts, but both  are going to be overkill at this stage.

This amp seems to have gotten some good reviews as a beginner / practice amp and the guy in our local store recommended it too, although he’d sold his last one today so I couldn’t actually try it out.

I’m pretty happy with that lineup, it’s actually less than I’d budgeted to potentially spend originally (coming in around £200 in total), but on reflection is probably pitched about right for my current expertise, which can be classified as ‘can play a few songs barely adequately’.

Feedback welcome as always!

I’ve been learning to play accoustic guitar for a little over a year now, and although I still dispair at overall quality of my playing sometimes, I can still acknowledge that I’ve made a lot of progress, considering I started from zero. My renditions of Stairway to Heaven, Ziggy Stardust and Wonderwall are at least recognisable, if not hugely flattering.

During particularly busy periods it’s hard to find the time to practice, which has sometimes led to a frustrating cycle of starting to lose callouses, finger strength and muscle memory, and then having to spend time building them back up again, which makes you feel like you’re not making any progress. So in the past few weeks I’ve been making an extra effort to find 30 minutes to play every day, even if that means delaying getting back to that work issue that’s bugging me for a while, and that’s definitely helped with my consistency.

I’ve got to the stage where I think I’d like to have an electric guitar as well as the accoustic, so I can start trying out a few different styles. This is a generally more expensive proposition of course, and I’d like to get a decent one that will last me for a good while. While my skills don’t justify buying a seriously high-end instrument, I’m certainly willing to spend a decent amount to get a quality ‘axe’ that will last a few years and grow with me.

I was in town today so I popped into our local guitar shop to play with a few. I liked the visual style of the Gibson Les Pauls, but actually when I played them, I preferred the overall feel of the Fender Stratocaster. I also really liked the Ibanez ARX which seemed kind of half way between the Les Paul and the SG.

Any opinions from more experienced guitarists (not difficult)? I have a couple of months yet before I plan to buy and I’m intending to drop in to try a few more out in between.

Oh, and in the land of make-believe instruments (which is considerably easier), my wife and I passed a couple of milestones last night. We’re starting to both play on Expert now, and we got our first set of five gold stars (which requires everyone to play on Expert and score above a certain threshold), and I also got this: