Hey Friend,

That reminds me of the old Bugs Bunny cartoons, when he asks another character if they want "One lump, or two?”

Back in the day, when people served coffee and tea to guests, they'd put out sugar cubes for sweetener, and they’d usually ask the guest if they wanted sugar.

“One lump or two?”

With Bugs Bunny, you didn’t want either - that question ended with a couple lumps on the head!

That’s how I feel sometimes whenever I start working with a new student, and this question comes up:

What’s better to learn on, an acoustic or electric guitar?

That’s a tricky question, because there are good arguments for either choice.

The goal for any teacher is to provide a learning experience that leads to success for the student. Since every student is different, each one has their own definition of success!

It doesn’t matter to me. Whichever instrument you show up with is what we’re going to start on. If that makes my job a little harder, so be it - I’ll take the lumps!

But if you’re currently looking for an instrument and some guidelines, here you go…

An electric guitar is going to be a lot easier to learn on. You will have less frustration because you will see real results sooner. 

Electric guitars use a lighter-gauge string set, so they’re easier to press agains the frets and fingerboard. Less pressure equals less finger and hand pain. So if electric is an option for you, by all means take advantage of it.

However...

Generally speaking, if you start playing on an acoustic guitar, and you stick with it, you will have a stronger fretting hand (the one holding the guitar neck). That’s because the strings are thicker on an acoustic and the string tension is higher than on an electric guitar. You have to press harder on the strings for clear notes, and you will get a hell of a grip out of it! 

But you noticed the caveat - you have to stick with it. That higher tension is the cause of more budding guitarists quitting than anything else.

Regardless of the axe (acoustic or electric), your hand and fingers WILL hurt in the beginning. It’s easy to get frustrated when nothing you play sounds good because you can’t press the strings down hard enough to get a decent sound.

It’s always a good idea to try out a guitar before you buy it. How does it feel in your hands? Is it comfortable to you, or does something feel off? 

You get a feel for playability, and each person has a sense of what is comfortable for them, even when they’re just starting out. The better a guitar feels in your hands, the easier it is to play, and you’re going to want to play it more often.

Case in point - I was at a Guitar Center last week, playing a handful of acoustic guitars. I’ve played Gibsons, Taylors, Fenders, Martins, Breedloves, Takamines, Yamahas and Guilds in the past. But this time, I tried out a D’Angelico 12-string. It’s been a while since an acoustic guitar felt really good in my hands - and it sounded awesome, too!

Had a great price, too, considering it’s a 12-string. I'll have to add it to the short list of “guitars to get.”

Anyhoo, if you’re in the hunt, run yourself out to the local GC or Sam Ash (if you don’t have access to a good local music shop) and spend a little time trying guitars out. Hold at least a half-dozen different makes and models in your price range to get a feel for your ideal guitar.

Again, whatever you choose, it’s got to feel good in your hands, so make the decision for yourself. The better it feels, the  more you’ll like it and work through the challenges.

All right, that’s enough for this episode...

Hope y’all are getting things wrapped up for the year so you can start 2019 fresh and ready. I know I am - no sense dwelling on the stuff I didn’t get done in 2018…

Rock on!

Peace~

Dave