I have recently become interested in Guitars and want to learn how to play one. I want to learn either Bass Guitar or Electric Guitar because 3 other people in my family are learning acoustic and i wanted to be different. So I want to know the difference between the two and which one is easier to play.

I’ll get this out of the way, I’m a bassist.

Guitar and bass, if you put enough time and effort into it, you’ll sound great either way.
I’ve got no idea what music you listen to, so here’s a basic idea.

With guitar, you’re going to end up learning a ton of chords and your fingers will start jumping into position on their own. Once you get it, it’s great. You can play a ton of blues and pop stuff and some of the old classic rock. With that, you’ll learn how to move each finger on its own. Once you master that, which can take a few weeks, to a few years, depending on how you practice, you can shred any guitar to bits.

With bass, you’ve got this deep and thick tone, for the most part. You’re notes are not as defined as a clean guitar, but that thick sound makes up for it. Each note you play, if you play it well enough, will resonate more than a guitar. I don’t mean anything about how long it lasts, but how it feels. You feel bass more than you feel guitar. With most music that you probably listen to, unless it’s jazz, the bass is not as strong as the guitar and doesn’t come out as strong, but it gives a feel to the song that the guitar doesn’t. You’ll learn how to pick with your fingers to get that thick bass tone and finger independence is a huge factor it how it sounds because of the bigger frets and neck. You’ll also end up learning how to get that really cool funk sound that bass is famous for, slapping.

A bass almost always has a longer neck than a guitar. With that, the frets are also bigger. You have to worry about fret buzz (that really annoying vibrating/buzzing sound when you don’t put your finger close enough to the fret) more on a bass than on a guitar. It is important on a guitar also, just not as much. Bass is more physically demanding (longer neck, bigger frets and 4 strings), but you have more things to deal with on a guitar (more strings and chords).
There are alot less bassists than guitarists, so your more likely to be asked to join a band if your a bassist.
One of the best ways to learn how to play different styles of guitar is from other people who are about as good as you, not better, not worse. They are the best teachers because they still have the same problems you do. Guitar teachers often forget about those problems because of how long they’ve been playing. There are more guitarists than bassists, so that could prove to be helpful if you play guitar.

One isn’t easier than the other, but you learn differently for each one.
Everything I said is standard, not all bassists play with their fingers and all not guitars do anything other than chords.

I doubt you wanted an essay for an answer, but consider it.
It’s your call, so good luck!

ok basicly i have nothing no guitar ummm nothing so is it hard?
do i need a acoustic guitar i need help i dont know anything!!
Nothing wrong with starting on an electric but I would recommend starting out on acoustic since they help you build up calluses, just play the basic chords A C D E F and G, chords are the base of all music

i have always love music like jimi hendrix, and zeppelin, so i started thinking about learning how to play the electric guitar how hard is it?

Hi Mick, Playing guitar is not that hard at all. All you need is lots of passion and dedication to practice everyday. Having good guitar lessons to follow is also a great help of course! If you’re into Hendrix and Led Zep then you probably want to Learn Lead Guitar (which you can do here http://www.leadguitarzero2hero.com ) however I would suggest you start to Learn Acoustic Guitar first. Here’s a cool Free Chord Guide if you want to Learn Guitar Chords.

http://www.rhythmguitarzero2hero.com/learn-guitar-chords. It has the 34 Chords every guitarist must know. There’s also a bunch of free lessons at http://www.rhythmguitarzero2hero.com Good luck and all the best!

So I’ve always wanted to learn how to play the electric guitar and now I’m really motivated. Are there any tips or tricks out there that could help me? Favorite brands? Favorite sites for tabs?

You’ll probably have an easier time learning to play guitar on an electric, since the necks of electric guitars are thinner than those of acoustics. And electric guitar strings are closer to the fretboard, which makes it easier to move comfortably between chords and notes smoothly (and less painfully).

If you haven’t yet bought a guitar, the best thing you could do is go to a guitar store and test drive a bunch of different guitars, since each one will have its own sound and feel. Ibanez makes fantastic guitars that are built like rocks, sound great and are often nicer than guitars costing twice as much. They’re also famous for their user-friendly necks, which are ideal for beginners or people with small hands. Fender guitars also have fairly thin necks (including the Squier guitars) and are good, reliable guitars. Lots of people start out playing Epiphone guitars because they’re well-made and priced very reasonably, but they tend to have really chunky necks that can make them challenging to play. There’s no such thing as a one-size-fits-all guitar, though, so you’ll have a better idea what works for you if you handle a whole bunch of guitars before choosing one. Chances are, one guitar will just feel really comfortable and natural in your hands.

If you prefer to learn on your own, rather than take lessons, there’s a fantastic DVD set that will teach you everything you’d learn from years of private lessons. It starts with the very basics (parts of the guitar and their functions, tuning, etc.) and moves into chords, scales, tablature, etc. I bought the DVDs after playing for more than 20 years and can’t believe how much my playing has improved. And the advantage of DVDs over a teacher is you can work at your own pace and review whenever you feel the need. Even better, the entire set costs $40. Here’s a link:

http://books-videos-music.musiciansfriend.com/product/Rock-House-Learn-Rock-Guitar-Beginner-Intermediate-Advanced-Package?sku=942719

If you want to do some research on guitars, Musician’s Friend is a great resource. You can search by brand, price or customer rating. Guitarists also post instrument reviews that will give you a good idea which guitars are great and which ones have issues that make them difficult to play or keep in tune. Here’s a link:

http://guitars.musiciansfriend.com/electric-guitars/solid-body

Trust your instincts when you’re test driving guitars, since they’ll serve you well. The more comfortable your guitar is, the more you’ll be inclined to practice and the sooner you’ll become a really good guitarist. Good luck!

How did Eddie Van Halen, Slash, etc. learn how to play electric guitar without knowing how to read music?

Guitar music is super easy to read but very hard to play. Guitar music is written in whats called "Tabliture". It’s basically a picture with numbers of where to put your fingers. You don’t have to be able to read music the conventional way to read tabliture. Eddie and Slash (Saul Hudson) had influences that range from Elvis Presley to the old days of punk (Ramones, the Clash, The UK Subs) to Neil Young and Eric Clapton.

what dvd or books are the best? how much should i practice?
i already have an amp and a guitar, do i need anything else?
thanks<3
oh and any other tips and such would be greatly appreciated :]

If you’re serious about wanting to learn the guitar, take lessons. If you teach yourself your teacher doesn’t know how to play the guitar.

I have been wanting to learn to play electric guitar since I was a little kid when I saw sign o the times by prince. I have been wanting to learn now that I can afford a guitar and learn to play. So my question would be is it easy to learn and read the chords and where can I go to learn to play????

Facemob,

It is easy to learn if you do it the right way. There are a lot of ways to learn and some are harder than others.

The best approach is one in which you have FUN. Here’s the best way I know to have fun learning the electric guitar:
1. First make a short list of your favorite pop/rock (or any genre) songs. Maybe 10.
2. Look up chords for these on the web.
3. Pick out the one with the fewest number of chords
4. Look up those chords and learn how to finger them
5. Play that song every day for a week or two, and you’ll KNOW those chords by heart.
6. Rinse and Repeat
That will get you started and keep you occupied for months. There is much more information about learning guitar at a website know of, and I will include the link below in case you are interested.

Good luck rocking!
John

I’m talking metal guitar, and playing riffs and solos. Does it take many years for the average person to pick things up? I know there are young kids on youtube who are playing Van Halen’s "Eruption". Does it just add up to dedication, and how bad you wanna learn things?

Just two additional suggestions…

You will improve 10 times as fast if you find another to play guitar with, then you will sitting alone in your room practicing.

Also, and this may sound silly, you need to sing…even if it’s just to yourself. Singing while you play helps with getting proper rhythm and timing down, which will only help you speed up the learning process.

Record yourself. This is critical to hear areas that need improvement, and will give you better insight to what works for you and what doesn’t.

Do not neglect your chords and rhythm playing.

You will never be a good lead guitarist until you’re a good rhythm player.

Forget scales, except for the pentatonic for now.

Pick a favorite song, and learn all guitar parts to that song. Not just the solo’s but the rhythm.

Average time to play songs comfortably, and begin getting familiar with guitar….one year..minimum.

Best of luck and keep pickin’ till those fingers bleed!

I’m getting a guitar finally, after always been wanting to learn. Do you have any beginner tips for me?

The history of the guitar is over 400 years old. Many different styles and techniques have arisen over time. No one could master the instrument on their own. You wouldn’t want a self taught doctor or pilot would you? Music is just as deep as any other human undertaking. People who object to lessons either have had bad teachers, or feel like they already know everything there is to know, and can’t be bothered to learn from another person. Every great guitarist has had someone at some time teach them the basics. Most self taught players hold the guitar wrong, and choke the neck with their palms touching it and move their fingers in inefficient and awkward ways. To a professional it’s almost painful to watch, and you will not even be considered to be hired to play with them. Talent is NOT enough. Without knowledge you will just spin in circles and will never reach your potential. You can always choose which of that knowledge to use or to ignore. But you can’t make choices when you don’t even know what they are, Take Lessons! Do it for years and years. You will kick butt…

hey,
i need some good sounding songs that i can play to impress people, and to help with my music betec course, that arn’t that hard,
indie/alternative/brit pop/rock would be good
Thanks
Phoenix - 1901
Silversun Pickup’s - Panic Switch