• Join the A7X Discord!

    We're updating the community and moving all social content from the community to the Discord. All lessons related conversations will still take place here though! Join the Discord below and view the full announcement for more details

    JOIN THE DISCORD VIEW THREAD

Starting out help?

Kati E

New Student
Nov 11, 2019
5
0
  • #1
    heh, so I’ve never actually played a guitar before. A friend of mine gave me one that was sitting in their shed, so I figured why not? It has a case and everything. The issue is its missing like two strings (obviously I have to get new ones lol), some of the paint on the body is cracked, and theres a few rust spots on the metal. Do you think it would be okay to play still? Its an electric guitar (and thats about the extent of my knowledge) and I’d love to learn to play on it. I plan on buying new strings, too, but I wasn’t sure if theres certain types for certain guitars?
    Any helps greatly appreciated, guys! I can also post pictures if that would help.
     
    N

    Niyar Deka

    New Student
    Nov 11, 2019
    26
    2
  • #2
    Electric guitar strings come in different types. Main thing is the gauge.since ur just starting out, I’d recommend the ernieball slinkies .9-.46
    And also, you should get the guitar set up (in a local store). Tell them to fix the truss rod, action, intonation etc. Polish the fretboard and the frets if possible and i guess that might be it. And don’t worry bout an amp, you can start off without it.
    Anyway, welcome to the community and consider yourself really lucky coz this is an awesome one and there will always be someone to help you out ( seniors like ed, jack and many more great ppl)
     

    Kati E

    New Student
    Nov 11, 2019
    5
    0
  • #4
    @niyar
    Thanks for the tips! I’ll be heading up towards the guitar center next week, so I’ll bring it by and see what they can do for me. So what, do strings fit on any guitar? Its not like, certain strings for certain types? I really hope this one can be cleaned up, I love the color. Its a light pearl with a slight shimmer to it, and its gorgeous!
    Yeah, definitely love the board so far. I’ve been lurking for a while and decided to finally post something. Figured why not learn from y’all, since i’ll be using the videos to learn to play, too.
    @calvin
    Hah, thats awesome! So inspiring to hear that such a legend started with less strings than I will be xD
     
    N

    Niyar Deka

    New Student
    Nov 11, 2019
    26
    2
  • #5
    Ur welcome, and ya the strings i said about can fit on any electric guitar(correct me ppl if im wrong). There are more advanced types like wound and stuff and would be completely unnecessary at this stage. Cheers and best of luck to you
     

    Filip Tomiša

    Campfire Attention Holder
    Nov 11, 2019
    917
    431
    26
    Croatia
    www.youtube.com
    6
  • #6
    There are acoustic strings and there are electric strings. You need electric since you have an electric guitar. The strings come in different thicknesses. The thinnest ones are .9-.46 (.9 string is the first string on your guitar aka the thinnest one and the .46 is the last string aka the thickest one).
    I’d also recommend .9-.46 strings because you are just starting out and you probably don’t have calluses (hard skin on the tips of your fingers) yet so your fingers will hurt at the beginning and those strings are the thinnest so you won’t have to apply as much pressure as you would on thicker strings like .10 or .11.
    When you remove the old strings it would be good to clean the guitar because there is probably dirt and dust on it.
    If you don’t know how to change strings and are afraid to change them yourself then you can ask someone you know or someone in your local music shop to do it.
     

    Kati E

    New Student
    Nov 11, 2019
    5
    0
  • #7
    Thanks for the clarification!
    And thanks, Filip, for the string details. Do I need to worry about body damage on the guitar, or do you think it would still be playable once I replaced all the innards? I’ll probably just have the people at the shop do it, and watch their every move so I know what to do.
     

    Similar threads

    hello there
    Replies
    5
    Views
    722
    Introduce Yourself!
    Ali S.
    Building a guitar
    Replies
    8
    Views
    1K
    General Chat
    Possessed Sinner
    • Question
    How would one go about getting an A7X style to my playing and writing?
    Replies
    5
    Views
    1K
    General Chat
    Chris Johnston
    New to the community
    Replies
    6
    Views
    890
    Introduce Yourself!
    Ali S.
    New Album Discussion/FirstVS.Changing Impressions/Easter eggs/Favorite song from LIBAD?
    Replies
    13
    Views
    1K
    General Chat
    MerkTheDon
    Menu
    Log in
    Register