So you finally decided you want to learn how to play the guitar. You can care less about becoming the next musical legend; you just want to get to the fun part as fast as possible. You want to avoid learning all the theory and technical stuff, and only learn the absolutely necessary things to get rocking/jamming… You came to the right place.

This is @acousticbits and I’m here to guide you through this musical journey. Stick around and I promise you will be having fun rocking the guitar in no time. If you want to learn a bit more about myself , you can check my #introducemyself post right HERE.

Let’s get started!

First things first… if you wanna play guitar ,well… you need a guitar! So how do you go about choosing your first acoustic, and what should you be looking for? Should you just pick up anything at the store? The cheapest guitar around? I mean, you are just starting out… so any guitar will do… right? Well , the short answer is no .

In this first Acousticbits Series, I’ll cover the most important aspects of buying your first guitar if you are a complete beginner, and at the end I will give you my #1 pick for first time guitar buyers.

The #1 reason most beginner guitar players quit is because they bought the wrong guitar.

Here are some things to keep in mind when shopping for your first axe if you are a complete beginner:

1- Budget
2- Playability
3- Sound/Look

In this post, I'll discuss my #1 pick if you are buying your first ever acoustic guitar.

So after reading my previous posts, you should be able to identify the important things to look for when shopping for your first acoustic guitar. There are many good options out there and you should be equipped with enough information to make a good choice! But in my eyes, there’s one clear winner when it comes to buying a guitar for a complete beginner, the Taylor GS Mini

Even though I recommend this guitar for first time buyers, this is definitely not a “beginner guitar". I actually own it and use it regularly along with my main one. It’s the last guitar I bought but if I could go back in time, no doubt in my mind I would buy it first.

Let me tell you why:

Budget:

As you remember from my previous post about budget… I recommend staying away from the low end cheaper guitars (sub $200). In my opinion, the 200-600 is the sweet spot for a first time guitar buyer. The GS Mini can vary from 500-800 new, but you can easily find this guitar used for about 300-400. If at any point, you come to the conclusion that playing guitar is not for you… there will be a readily available supply of buyers interested. You can’t say the same thing about low end/cheap guitars.

Taylor is a well renowned brand that has a reputation for building the highest quality acoustic guitars out there. The GS mini is no exception. I own both the Mini and a regular sized Taylor and they both feel extremely well built. At times, I even prefer the Mini. I have not played a guitar (new or used) in this price range that compares.

Playability

This is a Taylor… and what you get with Taylor is the best craftsmanship, the best materials, in other words you get quality.. This translates into excellent play-ability. Once you get this guitar properly set up, the fret-board will feel like butter and your fingers will love you. I remember the first time I played a Taylor after years of playing a low budget guitar… omg, were my eyes open!

I have played many guitars in my years, and I can safely say that properly set up Taylor guitars are one of the easiest to play. The GS mini is no exception.

Sound/Look:

Again, referring to my previous post on sound/look… these are very subjective. There really isn’t a right or wrong answer.

The GS Mini s a bit smaller than a regular sized guitar (hence the “Mini” in the name) but I will elaborate on the benefits and drawbacks of this later. In my eyes, this guitar just looks gorgeous. Not only that, but you have a variety of options when it comes to the look of the Mini… you can get it in Walnut, Mahogany, Koa… you can get it as a regular acoustic or electro-acoustic, you can even get a bass version! Talk about versatile…

As far as the sound goes… again, this is subjective but I truly don’t think anyone in their right mind would think the GS Mini sounds bad. As I said before, this is a smaller guitar and smaller guitars tend to have a tiny sound. This is not the case with the Mini. I once took mine to a repair shop, and remember how shocked the guy was at the sound. I remember his eyes opening wide and yelling “woah, this tiny thing sounds huge!” Not only that, this guitar carries the signature “Taylor” sound that so many people love. I, myself, am a fan of it but like I said before, this is a matter of opinion.

Drawbacks:

Of course, there’s no such thing as the “perfect” guitar. The GS Mini does indeed have some drawbacks.

The most obvious one is its size. The GS Mini, as its name indicates, is sized a bit smaller than a regular guitar. This is no issue if you are a child or an adult with smaller hands (like myself!). If you have regular/large sized hands, learning on this guitar will be extremely easy but it will make it more challenging transitioning into a regular sized guitar.

Another drawback is the cost. Some people would consider this guitar pricey for someone just starting out, especially if you are buying new. I can understand why anyone would think like this, but I don't agree with it.

The GS Mini holds its value like no other in this price range, so you can always sell your instrument to someone else if you decide guitar is not for you. Not only that, you get so much bang for your buck that I actually think this guitar is under priced. If your budget is really tight, shop around for a used one (like I said before, they are readily available to buy/sell in the 2nd hand market) and if you look hard enough you will find a great deal. I bought my Mahogany GS Mini used with its original Taylor gig-bag for $300 from a local pawn shop.

In conclusion, if you are a complete beginner looking to buy your first acoustic guitar, definitely check out the Taylor GS Mini . You won’t be disappointed!

@Acousticbits