50 too old?

[Toma500]

Is 50 yrs too old to learn to play a guitar? Xmas is coming and well i have an itch to have a go .
Any suggestions on a good Guitar to learn on ,is an electric easier than acoustic to sound reasonably
good on and not have the cat climbing the walls and packing a bag .

[davepoth]

So long as you don't have hand arthritis.

I would go with an acoustic guitar - it's easier to make a nice noise with one. Go for a Yamaha, their quality control is second to none for the price point (cheap).

[davepoth]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Yamaha-F310-Acoustic-Guita...

This is the best place to start IMO, it has everything you'll need to get going.

[Toma500]

Thanks Dave that looks like just what i need the lads at work say i look like Eric clapped out the cheeky bstads.
I,ll show them roll on xmas .

[V100]

Never too old to learn. Also Fender make great guitars if you've got a little more to spend. But Yamaha would probably be the better option.

Have fun

[doosht]

I would go for a strat style electric first i.e a squier or yamaha pacifica. Have fun

[NDA]

Definitely not too old! (Says he, recently turned 50 )

I don't play the guitar (but I have a recording studio, so am familiar with them). Others may have a view on this, but you might want to ask the playing massive here about finding something with an 'easy action'. Something too stiff may wear your fingers and wrist out whilst learning.

Thoughts from the actual players?

[doosht]

Yep, thats why an electric strat is a great choice. If i would have started on an acoustic i would of given up. I know some will prob say different though.

[V100]

doosht said:

Yep, thats why an electric strat is a great choice. If i would have started on an acoustic i would of given up. I know some will prob say different though.

A lot of people I know who started on really easy to play guitars ended up being quite sloppy players, especially when it comes to an F on an acoustic! When I played my first leccy it was a dream to play after all that horrible barring.

My fingers probably disagree with me though

Get an acoustic, it is harder to play but will make you better in the long run.

[Gaspode]

50 is definitely not too old, You can become a really good player in 15 years, and Gilmour is around 65 now, isn't he?

Depending on the type of music you want to play, I would say that an acoustic is a better bet than an electric, but definitely get something decent. A crap guitar is hard to play and keep in tune, and will discourage you far more than inspire you.

Better to wait a couple of months and save up a bit more than to rush out and a buy a crap plank.

[davepoth]

NDA said:

Definitely not too old! (Says he, recently turned 50 )

I don't play the guitar (but I have a recording studio, so am familiar with them). Others may have a view on this, but you might want to ask the playing massive here about finding something with an 'easy action'. Something too stiff may wear your fingers and wrist out whilst learning.

Thoughts from the actual players?

You'll wear your fingers and wrist out from learning anyway. It's quite hard (at least a lot harder than it used to be) to buy a bad guitar these days - as I said above Yamaha are making consistently good cheap guitars, and that changed the game for the cheap makers. Avoid anything really nasty from eBay and you'll get something that works properly as an instrument.

The best thing to do is find a guitar playing friend and get them to have a quick play on any guitar you get (if it's from Argos or similar). They'll be able to tell you quite fast if it's rubbish and then you can take it back if it is.

[Toma500]

Thanks all for the advice and encouragement , i think ill have look at some Guitars soon possibly this weekend
work permitting a Yamaha sounds like a good idea theres a nice big shop in the metro centre think ill have a
look in there . Think i will give an acoustic a go first though most things electric tend to blow up minutes
after i touch them . Cheers again Tom.

[egor110]

I've just started at age 38, not easy to learn but making enough progress to stay interested.
I was told to learn on a acoustic as you it makes you have good technique compared to a electric, have a look at the vintage range like the v300/v400 good value for under £200.

[V100]

egor110 said:

I've just started at age 38, not easy to learn but making enough progress to stay interested.
I was told to learn on a acoustic as you it makes you have good technique compared to a electric, have a look at the vintage range like the v300/v400 good value for under £200.

Or alternatively, a V100

[Turn7]

what are the playing differences between acoustic/electric ?

Are we talking steel strung acoustic ?

[Gaspode]

Acoustic playing is much more precise (not sure if that's the right word) than electric. With an acoustic, the effort required to get clean notes is quite high, it takes much longer to sound good on an acoustic than an electric. On the other hand, electric techniques are ultimately much more expressive, with lots of pretty complex playing techniques - string bending, palm muting, pinch harmonics, and so on - which simply cannot be done the same on an acoustic.

Most people here are talking about steel-strung acoustics. Classical guitar is a whole other ballgame. If it's your bag, go for it, but the techniques are completely different.

I would definitely recommend starting with a decent acoustic in the 2-300 quid range if you can afford it. If you get on with it, the skills and techniques you use will stand you in good stead when/if you move to electrics. Do it the other way round, and you'll find it a bit of an uphill struggle. I don't know many guitarists who haven't got one of each.

The absolute key thing for any learning guitarist is that your guitar absolutely MUST be within reach of wherever you sit in the evenings. If you have to go into another room and get the thing out of its case, it's too easy not to bother. Practise must be done little and often. 20 minutes three times a day is much better than 3 hours once a week.