[Jahn]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fureshi thanks for all the tips guys. i haven't found a teacher yet but still having fun messing around. all i wanted to do today was get off work and come home to play with the guitar. btw jerb, what would be the purpose of using a thinner pick?

if you get a chunky pick, it has a nice strong attack and it's great for power chords and vicious riffs and solid chicken pickin' - but it's hell on the fingers and hard to keep a good rhythm going imho. I use the wussy Dunlop Tortex mediums (.60? the orange one) and it's perfect for my strumming - still enough backbone to it to make noise, but flexible enough to really have smooth strumming and pick up some good momentum for syncopation. it's no good for solos tho, but i never do those, hehe!

The red one right below it in diameter is even wussier, and what I started with when I began guitar. Wimpy tone but I never dropped the pick! BTW, I like this brand because it's not slippery.

 

[skyline889]

Here's a picture of one given to me by my sister haven't tried it though, some people prefer to play without a pick, I do, so you might want to play a little bit before you go hunting for a really nice one.

 

[pezzy]

I think hes yamaha should be alright to play with in terms of string gauge and action. Pretty much all the yamahas ive played in stores were really easy to play with. But maybe thats just me since the guitar i have is the biggest pile of crap .

 

[Febs]

As far as picks go, at this stage, your best bet is to try a couple different thicknesses and just use whatever feels the most comfortable to you. As you play more, you can try different picks and you'll probably find one that you prefer, but it's not something that you should concern yourself with too much at this stage.

That said, I usually use Dunlop Nylon 1.0 mm. The Dunlop Nylons have raised lettering, which I find makes a good grip.

 

[Jahn]

That's right, Mark Knopfler from Dire Straits never uses picks, even for his solos. Go Fingerstyle! When I started out I strummed with just my thumb - bad habit lol, I couldn't keep up speed or get decent attack and my thumb hurt like hell. Then I started strumming simulating holding a pick with my thumb and pointer finger, and eventually said "uh, why don't I just use a pick then?" and so i did.

 

[hubcaps]

Quote:

Originally Posted by skyline889 I do, so you might want to play a little bit before you go hunting for a really nice one.

Picks are really cheap and most music stores carry a large selection. You could always get a variety pack. I usually buy them by the dozen cuz I'm always losing them.

IMO, it's good to use a variety of sizes because they each have a different tone and play differently. Jahn mentioned it briefly. A pet peeve of mine is when people only use very thin picks and try to play loud and hard. They always break strings. Thin is good for beginners becasue it's a little more forgiving when you strum. As you get better, thins should only be used to play softer or when you're playing percussive stuff (e.g. dave matthews).

 

[pezzy]

sometimes if you talk to the guys at the shop they will give you picks for free. I remember when one of my mates bought a ukelele the shop keeper gaves us a hand full of picks.

 

[mojoman]

Congrats on the guitar. My first guitar was a Yamaha FG-110. That was a long time ago. It served me well for 3 or 4 years and when I was ready for something better I sold it for about what I paid.

When I started playing I had a couple of friends that played and they taught me a lot of the fundamental techniques. If you have some friends that play, see if they wouldn't mind helping you out a little. If you're really own your own with this, find a teacher and take a few months worth of lessons. I would look for someone who plays the kind of music you want to learn. I used a teacher once and he would just ask me what songs I wanted to learn. I'd bring him tapes and he'd learn them teach the songs to me. I have a minor in music so he would also explain the songs to me from a music theory perspective too. I spent three months learning to play The Clap off of the Yes Album. While it seems like a long time to learn one song, my teacher taught me a lot more then just the notes and how to pluck them.

The most important thing is to have fun. Making your own music can be great fun. You also have an advantage over when I started playing in that there are a ton of good instructional dvds to learn from. It's much easier when you can see what's being done rather then trying to figure out from guitar tab. A good place to look for stuff is sheetmusicplus.com. They have a ton of instructional materials for guitar players in all styles of playing.

 

[fureshi]

right now i'm using a dunlop 0.75 pick, which feels fine. i'll probably try other thicknesses someday when i really learn how to play. by the way, i've noticed on the acoustic guitar forums that people change strings every few weeks. do they really go flat that quickly? there also seems to be a huge variety of strings to pick from (when i eventually need to change them). do you guys have any favorites?

 

[mojoman]

I use Martin Marquis 80/20 Acoustic Bronze Light Guage. It's the only strings I use for all my acoustic guitars.

 

[hubcaps]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fureshi right now i'm using a dunlop 0.75 pick, which feels fine. i'll probably try other thicknesses someday when i really learn how to play. by the way, i've noticed on the acoustic guitar forums that people change strings every few weeks. do they really go flat that quickly? there also seems to be a huge variety of strings to pick from (when i eventually need to change them). do you guys have any favorites?

All personal taste, and also your guitar. I change them every couple months when they look and sound dull. I guess it depends on how much you play and how dirty they get. There are strings that last longer because they are coated (e.g. elixirs), but they cost about 2x normal strings.

My preferences are elixirs, d'addarios and martins. I like elixirs on "brighter" and cleaner sounding guitars like taylors. I like the later two on "warmer" guitars like martins.

 

[pne]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fureshi right now i'm using a dunlop 0.75 pick, which feels fine. i'll probably try other thicknesses someday when i really learn how to play. by the way, i've noticed on the acoustic guitar forums that people change strings every few weeks. do they really go flat that quickly? there also seems to be a huge variety of strings to pick from (when i eventually need to change them). do you guys have any favorites?

fyi the longest pair of acoustic strings I used lasted me maybe a year, but after that they really needed changing. if you give them a quick wipe with a cloth after playing, oil and crud won't build as quickly and they will last longer. As for my electrics..I have an old strat imitation that hasn't had a string change in 2 years.