Need help on a good beginner guitar for a young kid?

[HighGain510]

My neighbors back home in PA are teaching their kids (8 an 11) to play guitar. They are looking for something decent that is $200 or less. He currently lets them use his Ovation but he would like to get them an electric guitar that they can share. It's been a while since I've looked into the budget scene for younger guys so any suggestions on which brands/models would be good for beginners with tiny hands? They both still pretty small (even for their ages) so they might be okay with standard size and scale but if you know of any decent smaller-sized electrics that don't play and sound like absolute crap help me out here. I didn't know what to tell him so if anyone can share some ideas let me know. Humbucker or single coil (he said that his son "liked the look of the strats they had"), doesn't matter. Thanks!

 

[Vegetta]

Id say a 321 Ibby (tho depending on where yo uget it it might be more than $200

The ESP MH 50 I played was not a bad guitar either it was less than $200

 

[shredlord]

ive heard the yamaha pacifica 112 is supposed to be pretty damn good for the price, its the begginer guitar i wish i got, but i dont actually have any experiance with it, so if anyone knows better......

 

[PlanetJeff]

You should consider the Squire Strat it was my first electric and they are really decent guitar's, mine cost 250 but I'm sure you can find cheaper ones.

 

[Jeff]

Matt, these are pretty decent little guitars:

Buy Ibanez GRGM21 Mikro Electric Guitar online at Musician's Friend

Nicer than the Squire mini strats, IMO.

 

[Thomas]

Id say a 321 Ibby (tho depending on where yo uget it it might be more than $200

All the better if you can get hold of an older Korean version.

 

[OzzyC]

Matt, these are pretty decent little guitars:

Buy Ibanez GRGM21 Mikro Electric Guitar online at Musician's Friend

Nicer than the Squire mini strats, IMO.

I was going to suggest the same- I haven't tried them to know anything about their quality, though.

 

[Lucky Seven]

Yamaha pacificas are some of the best beginner guitars around.

 

[Pirelli]

Yamaha pacificas are some of the best beginner guitars around.

QFT. I started on one, you can't beat them for the money.

 

[budda]

i'd get them to look at the pacifica, squier fat strat, jay turser strat.

maybe a squier tele, used epi SG, used epi LP studio?

 

[abyssalservant]

Get a BC strat from EBay . . . I paid $70 inc. shipping
*chuckles* I'm redoing the finish . . . the guitar's actually a lot better than I expected it to be. Honestly, it's a decent guitar and I enjoy playing it.
Dunno about shorter scales . . .

 

[7 Dying Trees]

Second hand, that way if it's a bad one, or if he grows out of it, it won't lose money, plus you'll get a better guitar for the money.

I started electric on a squire strat after playing a steel strung acoustic, they aren't bad guitars. The pacifica's are decent too. Just steer away from no name brands as they do really really suck. A squire you can upgrade the parts if it sounds good, and will last.

 

[Groff]

Second hand, that way if it's a bad one, or if he grows out of it, it won't lose money, plus you'll get a better guitar for the money.

I started electric on a squire strat after playing a steel strung acoustic, they aren't bad guitars. The pacifica's are decent too. Just steer away from no name brands as they do really really suck. A squire you can upgrade the parts if it sounds good, and will last.

I would like to add to this.

If you go second hand, then you can probably get a better guitar for $200 than you can new. What's good about this is that if they get a pretty good guitar, then he's more likely to stick with it. Don't know how many times when I used to work at guitar center, that I'd sell some mother the crappiest drumset (because I couldn't convince her otherwise) and they'd come to me a month or two later looking to upgrade because their kid realized they had a POS and really lost the urge to play, and were asking for a better kit.

The same goes for guitars, if you get a guitar that goes out of tune, has horrible action and plays like crap, it'll be discouraging.

My suggestion would be to find a decent Ibanez RG with a fixed bridge. (no need to put a beginner though the complications of a trem)

 

[Unknown Doodl3.2]

My first guitar was an Ibanez GRX20. It's been beat to hell and neglected so many times and it's still intact. It would probably be the guitar I saved if there were a fire and it cost me like 200$

 

[funny_guy7876]

Hey guys, kinda going on the same subject what's a good "first 7 string"? I'm now getting into 7 strings and I don't want to invest too much since I'm more partial to 6ers.

 

[gunshow86de]

He should look at the SX's on rondomusic.com

If they need an amp too, Guitar Center has a crap load of those beginner packs with guitar, amp, cable, tuner and strap for dirt cheap. The GC by me has stacks of Ibanez and Fender ones going out the door. I guess they didn't sell as many at Christmas as they had hoped.

 

[Variant]

Jerzy Drozd Legend XII fretless bass.

 

[march]

check out this guy here, I've bought from him before and is very nice to deal with (but Chris can get busy, as his shop is run by himself and an associate, Martin). His prices are very reasonable, which is a plus.

Chris' Guitars - Fender

found these;

43. 2003 Fender Jason Ellis Signature Showmaster, new—never retailed and perfect. I found a few guitars that "fell off" my site a year ago, after they were moved from the "just in" section. This is a killer player and a good choice for the metal fans who want dark looks, low action, and quality tone in a very moderately priced guitar. The defining features of this guitar are a graphic designed by Jason on a dark gray semi-gloss finish, recessed double-locking licensed Floyd Rose trem, Duncan Designed Detonator humbucker and single coil in the neck, black hardware, and reverse headstock. List on this model was $448.99 but this one’s unplayed and just $239.

44. 2002 Fender Squier Showmaster Deluxe, new—never retailed. I found another one that "dropped off" the site a long time ago. It's actually a 2002 model but never retailed so it's immaculate. "Showmaster" is Fender's model name for their "SuperStrats", most of which have locking tremolo and no pickguard, and most are neck-thru construction. Features desirable Shoreline Gold Metallic finish, neck-thru construction, dual humbuckers, and a very good quality licensed Floyd Rose tremolo system. They made a few Showmasters and please don’t confuse it with the bolt-on model, this was the higher end Squier Showmaster with a list of $583 and is a killer player with stylish looks and a lot of "SuperStrat" for $299.

60. 2002 Fender Squier Stagemasters, new—never retailed, choice of Black Metalic(sold-out) or Blue (one remaing), Humbucker-Single-Humbucker pickup configuration, double-locking Floyd Rose tremolo, reverse headstock, black hardware, I’ve said it before – I wish they had quitars of this quality when I was growning up – I could have been famous! - one very small ding but otherwise as new, $175

 

[Nick]

Yamaha pacificas are some of the best beginner guitars around.

and again

these dont look like much but they are actually pretty decent for how little they cost

 

[DomitianX]

I bought my daughter (she 10) a Ibanez Mikro for X-Mas last year. Nice little guitars, stay in tune nicely and a smaller scale for the small hands. She loves it.