Choosing An Instrument: Electric Guitars
Chris Kuklis
Welcome to the third installment of Brooklyn Guitar Lessons' Choosing An Instrument series!
While there are a wide array of factors to consider when selecting your first guitar, my aim is to present a few easy recommendations which I feel are the best balance of playability, quality construction, and affordability.
In this post, I'll be discussing a few choices for a great starter electric guitar.
The Myth Of The $100 Guitar
As I discussed in the Choosing An Instrument: Acoustic Guitar post, it's easy to find electric guitars in the $100 or less "bargain" range, or sub-$200 electric guitar "starter packs" that include an assortment of accessories. While these guitars may be tempting to a new student looking to test the waters, they're usually made with the lowest quality materials and are prone to all sorts of problems.
For electric guitars, this includes: necks that warp, poorly finished fret ends that cut into your hand, pickups that sound thin/weak or overly muddy, low-grade hardware, tuners that perpetually slip out of tune, and strings that buzz against the tops of the frets.
As is the case with cheapo acoustic guitars, a $100 electric guitar might seem fine at first, but will quickly degrade to the point where it's no longer fun (or even possible) to play, doomed to live out the rest of it's life stuffed in a closet or collecting dust in the corner.
Luckily for us, recent upgrades in overseas production have led to a diverse array of surprisingly great instruments at prices that are easy on the wallet.
PLAYING FAVORITES
Before we get into specifics, I'm going to take a moment to admit a little bias: I'm a Fender guy.
For me, Fender guitars have the feel/sound/bulletproof construction that I've come to know & love, and their ease of setup makes them fantastic guitars for beginners and pros alike. Not to say that I don't appreciate other brands (and do I love my vintage Gibson hollowbody dearly), but I feel like entry-level Fenders are both more reliable and a better value than similarly priced offerings from other axe-makers.
When I began my six-string adventures (roughly twenty years ago!), no serious guitarist would have ever recommended a Squier guitar. A foreign subsidiary of Fender, Squier made some of the worst versions of Stratocasters & Telecasters available. Sure, they were dirt cheap, but they also suffered from nearly every problem described above.
In recent years, however, Squier has gone through a veritable revolution. While they still make that sub-$100 nightmare of my teenage years, they've also upgraded their production lines and expanded their scope to include some surprisingly well-built instruments that are a steal for the price.
With that said, let's take a look at some of the great options for a first electric guitar!
THE ENTRY LEVEL
Squier's Vintage Modified Telecaster Deluxe
At an average street price of $200, the guitars in Squier's Vintage Modified Series are an incredible value. They're very well built, have quality hardware and electronics, great pickups (designed by Seymour Duncan), and smooth playable necks. They offer a wide ranges of styles, from garden variety Stratocasters and Telecasters, to more exotic offset guitars like the Jaguar and Jazzmaster.
A couple years back I purchased one of Squier's Vintage Modified Jaguars, and couldn't believe how great it was... All of the classic surf-esque Jaguar vibe at a very low price. Since then I've played it at gigs, and even used it on some recordings, with superb results.
THE MID-RANGE
Fender's Standard Stratocaster
If you've got a little more to spend, it's worth taking a look at Fender's Standard Series. Built in Ensenada, Mexico, these are the meat & potatoes of Fender's main line. They're solid, reliable workhorse guitars, with more refinement in construction and finish than the Squiers above. The difference here is really in the details, and something you'll come to appreciate as your skills expand.
Fender's current line includes four of their iconic axes: Stratocaster, Telecaster, Jazzmaster, and Mustang. Each one has its' own distinct sound and feel, and is built to last you many years.
At a street price of $499, these guitars represent a really solid value, and if you're willing to shop around a bit you'll be able to find used models going for around $300.
Among my personal collection is a Standard Telecaster that I've had for around 15 years. I've played it at thousands of shows, logged even more practice time on it, and have played it on professionally released recordings. Even today, I still find myself reaching for it on a regular basis.
Chris Kuklis performing at SXSW with his Fender Standard Telecaster
These two guitar lines are my go-to starting point for beginning students, but there are many choices out there. Take a look at the guitars your favorite players use, and compare that to some of the options listed above!
Love Hendrix or Clapton & want to keep it affordable? Check out Squier's Vintage Modified Stratocaster.
Have a passion for country licks and chicken' pickin' and a little extra dough? Fender's Standard Telecaster would be a great place to start!
If you have any questions about the best model for you, or would like a specific recommendation, feel free to comment on this post or message me directly via the Brooklyn Guitar Lessons Contact page.
Thanks for reading, and happy shredding!
- Chris