Thinking about picking up a guitar

Dannyalcatraz said:

The usual litany involves questions about:

Budget
Musical style
New/used
Location (affects availability)
Combo amp or head plus cab
Effects modeling or none
Tube or solid state

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So, let us see...

Budget: I'm going to guess my MiL would be happy to be able to drop $100 on me for the "big present" for the holidays.
New/used: I'm perfectly happy with used, and expect this would get more bang for the buck.
Style: I'm not likely to be playing any really seriously heavy metal - some 80s hair metal would be the limit there. Otherwise, the folkier end of the rock spectrum.
Location: I'm actually thinking to send my MiL to online sources. I'm in Boston, she's in New Jersey, so major metro area, East Coast.
Combo vs amp/head: Portability isn't that much of an issue, as I don't expect it to travel much, and my versatility needs are still low, being a beginner. Combo is likely the way to go, as they're simpler.
Effects Modelling: I can add much of that with pedals and such as I go, right? No need to worry about putting it in the amp now.
Tube vs Solid state: No current preference. I understand that tubes give somewhat cleaner tones, which is probably my sound preference. On the flip side, with solid state, I never have to replace a tube. Solid state is probably cheaper, and for now, that may be the best bet.

Just to be clear - anything that has an actual wattage rating, as opposed to running off a 9-volt batter, is probably going to be an improvement in my equipment.

My understanding (someone please correct me if I am wrong) on power is this. I don't expect to play really loud very often. It is a small house, and it fills with sound easily - though the image of cranking up to play the Star Spangled Banner on the 4th is really enticing, that's not likely to be my standard mode of play However, I'm also aware of some of the characteristics of amps - somewhat ironically, having the ability to do power also means that it will generally sound better when played at lower volume. So, while I might not need the volume of something over 15 watts, a 40 watt amp will likely sound better, even with all other things basically equal.

I picked up a Fender Mustang (it's $120) when I started to learn last year, and its a pretty good practice amp. Its got USB connectivity, and with the included software can emulate a lot of amp sounds. You can plug in a set of headphones and be stealth guitar god if you feel like it...

If thats a little over what you'd want to ask of her, you could ask for a copy of Rocksmith 2014, which is a game/guitar teaching tool that I've also been using. Getting the version with the USB cord is important, and its a little more than a standard PS3 or XBox360 game, but might be available on sale as its been out for a while. The next gen version is coming out pretty soon if you are on PS4 or XBox One. There is also a PC version. The USB cord can be used on its own to get sound into your PC for non-Rocksmith related uses (recording, etc), if I'm reading the details correctly, although I've never tried it to verify that.

Amps:

pawn shops and Guitar Centaur are good places to find used musical gear, including amps.

A few years back, I got a Spyder II 1x12 75 watt amp for $100 in good condition. new would have been $300, and the Spyder III was just about to come out.

That was a great bargain, and it is about as big as you should ever need to go.

I got my first solid state amp for $40 at a pawn shop, and that was a Crate. Probably had a 4-6" speaker. decent sound. I even sold it for $40 a few years later (gear in decent condition can usually be sold for what you paid for it).

So $40-$100 should get you a decent used amp. if the MiL buys it, it'll be a surprise on what you get, but it's free, and it's better than a battery powered practice amp (same kind of thing I started with).

Before you go gaga over tube vs. solid state, there's a key lesson on Tubes. They require energy to get that Tube Tone. Which means volume. If you can't turn up past 5, you may never not reach the warm zone, in which case, it won't sound any more magical than a solid state.

Plus, the Tube amp will cost more for same size/power as a solid state.

An extra lesson I learned was that my $40 crate compared to a friend's $40 solid state Fender just could not compete for warmth of tone. Sure, I had metal distortion down, but toward the clean end of things, the Fender had a warmer richer tone (and it was solid state).

So i would recommend a Fender amp, just on the chance that it'll sound warmer for the style of music you prefer compared to something like a Crate.

Rocksmith is a great idea for a gift. Tunes strike me as more than you need right now, I would go solid state.

On volume: even a low-wattage amp can be ridiculously loud if cranked. Even a 15 watt amp can rock the house, although it may not be able to keep up with a live drummer. What extra wattage buys you- besides some volume- is headroom: an increase in the amount of volume your amp can punch out before it starts to distort.

So a 15w amp will distort at a lower volume than a 40w amp.

That said, I opted for headroom (wattage) over low-volume distortion because, for one thing, I bought very good distortion pedals. (Yes, plural. ) My 40w Fender never goes to the other side of 4.

On SS vs. tube: tube amps and pedals go together like bread & butter. SS amps area bit more finicky. The best ones are just as friendly to pedals as their tube cousins, but the less expensive ones vary in which they work well with, model to model. Some simply hate pedals...but you wouldn't want those anyway.

And modeling amps of any kind are notorious for not playing well with pedals.

Given the $100 budget, I'd try to aim MIL towards a nice pedal, or better, a gift certificate at a local music store. Barring that, check the used amps available on Guitar Center, Reverb.com, eBay, etc. for a small Fender, Vox or Carvin tube combo.

Janx said:

I think I see the problem. Maybe we can Deflect her to something useful.

As a general rule, never buy a present in the Hobby Topic for somebody else.

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Yeah, I know. That is a good rule, and I usually follow it.

However, I don't normally need a lot of *stuff*. I'm just not a *stuff* kind of guy. This apparently makes me incredibly difficult to buy anniversary, X-mas, and birthday presents for. So, when the holidays approach, it is kind to my family if I take any *stuff* I might want, and get it into the list. I know that I may not get a perfect item, but it will make them happy to be able to get me something other than a gift card.

From what you guys are saying, I am probably going to be okay if I say, "Go to one of these sites or stores. Buy a Fender amp between 15 and 40 watts, used," and I am likely to get something that is a notable improvement for me, and within their budgets, and everyone is happy.

I will also put stuff like pedals and other accessories on the list, but from a sheer priority scale, the amp is probably the top real priority.

Are you planning to play live gigs (such as at a nightclub) ?

Back in the day when I use to play in a band, I had a Marshall stack. Eventually I sold off the stack and most of my old guitar equipment when I stopped playing in bands altogether. It became too cumbersome to haul around when I was moving from town to town, where it was largely just collecting dust in the backroom/storage.

These days I just use a small Peavey practice amp without any pedals. I just use the built in distortion on the amp.

ggroy said:

Are you planning to play live gigs (such as at a nightclub) ?

Back in the day when I use to play in a band, I had a Marshall stack. Eventually I sold off the stack and most of my old guitar equipment when I stopped playing in bands altogether. It became too cumbersome to haul around when I was moving from town to town, where it was largely just collecting dust in the backroom/storage.

These days I just use a small Peavey practice amp without any pedals. I just use the built in distortion on the amp.

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a marshall stack is over kill for a small gig. I think a 1x12 with 60-80 watts will do the trick. In a larger venue, you should be relying on a PA, not a stack as the amp is for tone, the PA is for distribution.

Umbran said:

However, I don't normally need a lot of *stuff*. I'm just not a *stuff* kind of guy. This apparently makes me incredibly difficult to buy anniversary, X-mas, and birthday presents for. So, when the holidays approach, it is kind to my family if I take any *stuff* I might want, and get it into the list. I know that I may not get a perfect item, but it will make them happy to be able to get me something other than a gift card.

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Brother, you have just picked the right hobby for your gift-giving family members.

There are literally thousands of bits & bobs available, from $3 up to the sky in the hobby.

From what you guys are saying, I am probably going to be okay if I say, "Go to one of these sites or stores. Buy a Fender amp between 15 and 40 watts, used," and I am likely to get something that is a notable improvement for me, and within their budgets, and everyone is happy.

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Pretty much. (Or Vox or Carvin, too.)

ggroy said:

Are you planning to play live gigs (such as at a nightclub) ?

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Having bought the guitar only a couple weeks ago, I have not made any such plans, no.