Buying your first guitar isn't complicated — but it's easy to get wrong. Here's how to avoid the mistakes most first-time buyers make.
What Confuses Most First-Time Buyers
- Not knowing whether to start acoustic or electric
- Buying something cheap that's hard to play
- Not realizing setup matters as much as the guitar itself
- Choosing based on brand instead of feel
Acoustic or Electric First?
Play what you actually want to play. If you want to play rock, start electric. If you want to play folk or singer-songwriter stuff, start acoustic. The idea that acoustic builds better technique is mostly a myth — it builds calluses faster, but it also makes learning harder than it needs to be. Start with what motivates you. See the full breakdown in Electric vs. Acoustic for Beginners.
What to Spend
For a new guitar, $200–$400 gets you something that plays well and holds up. Below $150 new, quality control gets inconsistent. Used guitars in the $100–$250 range can be excellent — often better than new guitars at the same price point, especially if they've been set up properly. Before buying used, check our Used Guitar Buying Checklist.
What Actually Matters
- Playability — action (string height) matters more than brand. A cheap guitar with a good setup plays better than an expensive one that hasn't been touched.
- Tuning stability — if it won't stay in tune, you won't want to play it.
- Neck feel — this is personal. Shorter scale lengths are easier for smaller hands.
Brands Worth Considering
For beginners: Squier, Epiphone, Yamaha, Fender (Player series), and Taylor Academy for acoustics. These are consistent, widely available, and easy to work with if something needs adjustment later.
Brand matters less than most beginners think. How the guitar looks and feels in your hands matters more — if you don't like picking it up, you won't play it. A guitar that doesn't get picked up doesn't get played. We've seen beginners quit because they bought the "right" guitar instead of the one they actually wanted.
Used vs. New
Used is often a good value — especially locally. You can see the actual condition, play it before you buy, and avoid the new-guitar markup. Used Squiers, Epiphones, and similar instruments come through the shop regularly — most play better than new guitars at the same price once they've been looked at. Most used guitars benefit from a setup before you play them seriously — it makes a bigger difference than most people expect. Every used guitar we put on the floor gets a setup before it's listed. See our current used guitar inventory.
If you're in the Glens Falls area and not sure where to start, bring someone who plays, or get in touch — we'll tell you straight.
Paul's Guitar Hideout is located at The Shirt Factory in Glens Falls, NY. Use the Cooper Street entrance and take the stairs up. If you need assistance, give us a call and we'll come down.
The Shirt Factory
71 Lawrence St., Suite 201B, 2nd Floor
Glens Falls, NY 12801
Wednesday–Sunday, 12–5pm
(518) 217-8695 · info@paulsguitarhideout.com