Taking A Look At Acoustic Vs Electric Guitar

acoustic guitar

There are so many choices when it comes to picking out a guitar, and that is after you have decided which category your guitar is going to belong to. You decide that you definitely want to learn guitar, but you are torn between acoustic or electric. On one hand it was so cool to see Kurt Cobain jamming out in a special acoustic performance on MTV, but it was also fun to see KISS back in the day. What are you supposed to do? The best thing to do is to learn the difference between the two before deciding where to go from there.

The difference between an acoustic guitar and an electric guitar is simply amplification. An electric guitar needs an amplifier, but they are much easier to play. The electric guitar will cost more because you will have to purchase a good amp, and they both cost quite a bit of money. The acoustic guitar is more limited in shape and size because both shape and size make a difference on the sound that comes from the guitar. Therefore, you do get more of a selection when you choose an electric guitar. Although the electric guitar is easier to learn on, there are obviously limited types of music that you can play with it. So, if you learn with an acoustic guitar, you might find yourself a better musician in the long run.

An acoustic guitar does have choices as well. You can get a steel string or a nylon string guitar. A nylon string guitar is good for playing music styles such as classical, flamenco, and folk. The reason for the particular styles is that the nylon string produces a more tranquil sound. The steel string guitars are louder and you find that they gravitate more towards rock, country, and any other style that requires a louder, more crisp sound. The steel string is played with a pick while the nylon is almost always played with fingers.

If you are truly stuck deciding between the two guitars, you could choose an acoustic/electric guitar and kill two birds with one stone. The blended guitar has a longer neck that resembles an electric guitar, but it also has a more shallow body than the typical acoustic. The draw back to these guitars is that they sound better with an amplifier. They do all right without an amp, but there is a distinct difference in the quality of the sound. The benefit to these guitars is that they are easier to learn on because of the resemblance that they have to the electric guitar.

One thing that is never a good idea is to bite off more than you can chew. You should master whatever you feel the most comfortable with first. For example, many people fall in love with the sound of a twelve-string guitar. This guitar is known for a rich sound that resembles two guitars playing at once. However, the twelve-string guitar would be frustrating and infinitely harder to learn before mastering a simpler six string guitar. You should also pay close attention to your own person preferences. If you want to be a rock star, and you love Aerosmith, buying a huge acoustic guitar would not be the wisest decision because you will hate learning to play. The same rule applies for the next James Taylor; don't invest in an expensive amplifier if it is just not your style.