OT - Question for guitar players Options

[SpecialK]

My boy's been playing for about a year now and absolutely can't get enough, literally plays for hours every night.

I got him a Fender Stratocaster and a small Marshall amp for Xmas last year, and was hoping some of the "gitfiddle" pros on the board could steer me towards some worthwhile gadgets (phase shifters, wah-wah, etc.) that are out now. It's been 20 years since I picked up my Univox and I have no idea what's "state-of-the-art" anymore. Wanted to keep the price for worthy guitar gizmos to around $200 or so.

Maybe even a descent acoustic would be the ticket! (He's bigtime into Eric Clampton, Pink Floyd, and some of the old school finger pickin' stuff like "Classical Gas")

Any suggestions?

Kevin

[Eric_Shea]

My Tele case fits in the rear trunk. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

The cool thing is... guitars are getting much better in quality for much less dough. The market revenue is flat while unit sales soar. This is both good and bad.

Good = More people playing guitar and interested in music vs. "Gameboys"

Bad = It's all having to be made overseas where Tao Chin Ho works for $0.50 per day (no offense intended... you're welcome to call me John Smith)

Good = You get a good guitar at a good price.

Bad = Company's have to do 40% more to get the same revenues so, dumping boatloads in one simple order to chain outlets is attractive. The McMurry's, St. Charles Guitar Exchange, Skips, Gelb, Showcase, Haute and countless other independents of the world then suffer. Even the Wal*Marts and COSTCO's are getting involved.

My guess is that a decent American made acoustic will start at the "Takoma" pricing and go up from there. Others will be made overseas and frankly... the quality is damn good these days (for what you're looking to buy).

As I see it the criteria is $200 and this kids a player already (Strat and Marshall and pulling all sorts of TAB off the Internet) Miles nailed it in an earlier post. Look for a "Solid Top" folk acoustic (steel string not nylon classical). Classicals are cool for their unique inherent sound but... that's not what this kid will be going for right now. He'll be looking for cool acoustic parts in todays current tunes... those are all steel string folk style acoustics. He's playing an electric right now so even "most" acoustic spacing will be slightly larger than what he has. When he really becomes proficient then a classical should be in his arsenel. An earlier post recommended an acoustic/electric... that would be great if you could find it in the price point. I'd recommend a full size (dreadnaught or similar) with a cut-away and a pickup installed. Takamine's are great options there and the Tak brand manager is a good friend. Full size because, if need be, they can be played non-electric and sound great.

Happy Holiday Hunting...

My $0.02 whether you asked for it or not! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/w00t.gif)