Everyone
seems to want a used guitar when they start out, presumably because they
wish to save money. Used guitars have been in high demand for the entire
40 years that we've been here. However, you can often get a new guitar
for the same price as a used guitar, or even less. This is what's called
"supply and demand." The precise value of a used guitar is equal to its
cost, plus the cost of the work that it takes to make it as playable as
a new guitar. Cheap used guitars are usually hard to play or have uncorrectable
defects. That is why they are cheap. Good used guitars can command high
prices. In fact, collector activity has driven the price of some models
to many times their new prices. Generally, though, you get what you pay
for, which is why we don't always have the very cheapest guitars being
sold around town. It's also why we sometimes discourage our patrons from
trying to salvage that garage sale special, or the guitar from the closet
that Uncle George never learned to play. Guitars have a limited lifetime,
and are often pretty warped after a few years of neglect.
McCabe's believes that the more
beginners there are who learn to play, the more experienced guitarists
there will be (a few years down the road) to buy more expensive instruments.
It is in our best interest to create lots of good guitar players. That
is why we provide lessons at McCabe's, and why we have a repair shop to
make sure all our guitars (and yours) play well. We catch a lot of flak
from our teachers if we sell an unplayable instrument to a student. We
also have a rental program, and actively
encourage beginners to take advantage of it. With any instrument you rent
from us, the cost of the first three months can be applied toward purchase.
It is the least expensive way to find out if you will be a happy guitarist,
and a very good way for us to encourage you to do just that. |
Beginners need better
guitars than experienced players, but sadly, they seldom get them. That
is often why beginners quit. This is not a trick to get you to buy a better
guitar than you need, it's just a fact. An experienced player can mash
down the strings on almost any piece of junk and allow for its defects.
A beginner has tender fingers, and underdeveloped muscles. An experienced
player knows where unwanted buzzes are coming from and can compensate.
A beginner is usually prone to string buzz, because he/she is not clear
if the cause is bad technique or a bad (or badly adjusted) instrument.
It's no fun playing a guitar that buzzes when you don't want it to, and
it makes practice less effective if you have to wrestle with your fretboard.
Obviously, the more practice
time you can get in, the quicker you will learn. If you are a novice playing
steel strings (ouch!) you will progress at a slower rate than if you are
playing nylon strings (wider and softer to the touch AND more room for
your fingers). If you start on a twelve string you will probably make no
progress at all. Electric guitars can be adjusted to play quite easily,
even though they have steel strings, but the strings are still very close
together. An optimum choice is probably to play on nylon strings for six
months or so, and, if you still want to play a steel string, change over
then.
Learning to play can be difficult
and, at times, unrewarding. There is a hump at three months or so. The
brain knoweth, but the fingers won't obey. New neuronal connections must
grow in your arms and hands. Neurons, however, grow at a fixed rate, just
like nails and hair. You can't rush the process. It's not your fault. Just
remember that by repeating the same stuff over and over, you are pushing
the axons and dendrites to reconnect in new ways. New lines of communication
are being formed between your brain and your fingers. Once the new networks
are in place, your hands will automatically go to the right position when
your mind says "B7 chord, please," and you won't have to think about it
again. Just like riding a bicycle, or skiing, or skating, the network that
makes it possible will be there for the rest of your life. And then maybe,
one day, you'll want to buy a really good, expensive guitar. |
