Keep an eye out on gumtree, there are good guitars going at great prices!
Nothing wrong with the Ibanez jumstart kits, but you might find it limiting 6 months down the line!

Thanks for the reply, any tips on spesific guitars? I want to buy right first time...

WElcome

Ibanez make some great guitars that are fairly cheapish and will serve you well forever , look in classified here there someone in the cape selling some good kit then keep an eye on gumtree as another poster mentioned.

best to buy second hand cos the "value" of kit takes a large deprectiation kit as u walk out the store...

Look for a good ibannez or similar, i would not buy one of these starter kits cos you end up with kit that is difficult to resell. go an test guitars as well ....yr fingers will tell you which feel good an which dont

Well, it all depends on your budget.

Try and find a Epiphone Les Paul Custom. They are just great guitars.
If you are looking for a shred neck then Ibanez or Jackson will do. Not that you can't shred a Epiphone neck :-[

Also look at the Cort range of guitars!

You can always upgrade your pups later.

What type of music are you planning on playing?

Maybe it might help if someone were to say what constitutes a good Ibanez? Models?

What styles do you like? Are you into metal? Classic rock 'n roll? Jazz?

I say this because there are good budget instruments that are more suited to each style. Or, to be more honest, their are budget instruments that have more of the look for each style (because in reality you can play any style on any guitar but few opt to do this) - which may make you less likely to want to replace the guitar very soon.

Once you get some direction here on this forum, you're likely to get a lot more for your money buying second hand. Guitars tend to last for 15, 20, 60 years. So there's no particular advantage to buying new. You'll just get a more poorly made instrument for the same money. Second hand = more bang for buck.

It might also help if you give us some idea of how much you can spend. What do those Ibanez kits cost? Like R2,000?

What you guys are saying makes a whole lot of sense. I think I'll rather save up and buy some decent secondhand gear.
My budget is really tight, seeing that i'm still a student but in time I may buy something decent.


At the moment I don't really know what I want to play. I love rock blues etc. For now I'll just have to practise on the g225. ?

Edit
Just saw your reply now singemonkey. The kit from Ibanez goes for about R3400.
The problem is I like a variety of styles, thank you piano lessons for 15 years... I need direction... I don't mind waiting six months for a nice deal to come along, and to save up enough to get it.
I think I should listen to more music, maybe that will help me decide on what to play...

There's a forum member selling a Fender Stratocaster with a humbucker at the bridge (very versatile) for R4,000. That's not bad for rock and blues - imo ?

http://www.guitarforum.co.za/classifieds/mim-fender-hss-stratocaster-midnight-wine/

At around this price you can get a very versatile, well made guitar that should take you at least 3 years of playing before you start wanting more (and with a decent guitar like this it's worth upgrading the parts).

Another thing I didn't mention about second hand is that you'll get more of your money back (quite likely all of it) when you resell. That Ibanez kit, for example, you'd be lucky to get R1,800 in today's prices if you resold. Whereas a second had guitar that's worth R4k today is worth R4k to the next buyer and R5k in four or five years time. Guitars, unlike cars, don't really depreciate.

singemonkey wrote: There's a forum member selling a Fender Stratocaster with a humbucker at the bridge (very versatile) for R4,000. That's not bad for rock and blues - imo ?

http://www.guitarforum.co.za/classifieds/mim-fender-hss-stratocaster-midnight-wine/

I would grab this guitar in a heartbeat if I were you.

You can then save up and get a nice little amp later........

But the main point is, there are a lot of really good instruments going around for the price of that kit. So hold off, decide what kind of thing you want and then hunt for it.

As for an amplifier, you can get the kind of thing that comes with that kit for almost nothing second hand. So that'd be a decent start if you spend the bulk of your money on the guitar. Otherwise, you can pick up a Roland Cube which has built in effects and sounds really good for such a very common and cheap (especially second hand) amplifier.

R3,500 - R4,000 can get you a helluva nice guitar. You could spend another R400 - R1,500 on an amp (from very cheap and nasty to rather nice) and you're good to go. I'd say rather get a great guitar now, and a crappy amplifier. It's going to matter more how nice the guitar is to play than how nice it sounds. Later on you get a great amp to complement the guitar and you have great sound and great playability.

Thanks for the link singemonkey!! I'm so keen on this guitar!!!! We have a yamaha clavinova at home with line ins etc so I can run it on that for the time being. Do you think I would be doing the right thing getting this guitar guys? I'm putting all my trust in your opinions as I have no experience of guitars!!
Thanks

There is a marshall prac amp on the classifieds for R600 that I would definitely check out if I were you.

You definitely won't be disappointed with that guitar and it will last you for several years without depreciating (if you look after it well). But it's still a good idea to go to a music shop and try out 3 or 4 different ones to get a feel for what YOU like.

Thanks, will do that today.

I'm really excited about this guitar, but I won't have money for an amp just yet...

I need to finalize this before the university begins... Otherwise my studies will suffer... hehe ?

*EDIT*

I have another stupid question... What does the HSS stand for?

Trubore wrote: What does the HSS stand for?

HSS is abbreviation for Humbucker, Single, Single.

This is the pickup configuration on that particular Stratocaster...

3 single coils would be SSS

2 Humbuckers would be HH

Hope that helps? ?

Hi Trubore and welcome to the forum.

Without patronising you in any way, pickups are those square or rectangular items under the strings on the body of the guitar, basically electromagnets that "pick up" the string vibration & convert to sound - to be very simplistic. Tell you what - here's a very, very basic way to start looking at things.

HSS refers to one possible pickup configuration on an electric guitar: In this case Humbucker -Single coil - Single coil. Strat-type guitars tend to be commonly S-S-S or H-S-S. Put just as basically, single coils tend to sound sharper / clearer & humbuckers fatter / warmer.

I'm hardly touching on these topics and there's a lot more to it than that.

Don't worry about the opinions of others in the shop regarding your playing - everyone starts out in the same place. Follow Singemonkey's advice on trying out different guitars to see what you gel with. It's not just about looks: Fenders have different scale lengths to Gibsons. My hands might be comfortable with a certain scale length and profile while yours aren't & vice-versa. That's one reason to try before you buy. If you're not comfortable playing the instrument it'll just sit in the corner of your room after a while.

The Strat mentioned is a great starting point, far better (IMO) than the stuff you get in starter packs, but try a Strat first before paying for one. If a Gibson-type is what suits you then consider a used Epipone Les Paul or buy a Traditional series Tokai. Step up from the Ibanez entry level & they've got some decent guitars, but I'd try get one used if I was you. Another option is a tidy used Yamaha Pacifica 112 (look on Gumtree Cape Town - under 2500 for a very good entry guitar) which I'd consider better than much of the opposition at that level. Get yourself a used practice amp for now.

If you're seriously going into guitar, then a decent 2nd hand guitar & practice amp combined with a good guitar teacher will get you off to a flying start.

Oh yes - please, please, don't go to any blue facade'ed shops and buy a Sh!tmuller with starter amp because they're so cheap.

I'm almost on my way to PTA to pick up the fender 8) Thanks for all the advice!!! Appreciate it!!!

Trubore wrote: I'm almost on my way to PTA to pick up the fender 8) Thanks for all the advice!!! Appreciate it!!!

Does Singe get some sales commission Dee? ? ?

Congrats on the new guitar! Its a great buy that will last you a lifetime ?

singemonkey wrote: I'd say rather get a great guitar now, and a crappy amplifier. It's going to matter more how nice the guitar is to play than how nice it sounds. Later on you get a great amp to complement the guitar and you have great sound and great playability.

I'd just like to add to this, if I may:

SM has given some very sound advice, but I think it's important to note that the tone you get from your electric guitar is very dependent on your amp / effects.

I couldn't figure out, when I started playing, why some players had such an amazing sound and mine was so...unadorned. I couldn't (and still can't) play ZZ Top style pinch harmonics (squeelies) effectively on my little practice amp, just because it doesn't have the sort of response required. Your amp, and the way that it responds to your playing with different settings, is all a very important part of the learning process.

You don't need to spend heaps of cash yet though. A small practice amp will sound quite plain initially, but this is quite easily helped along by a decent pedal or two - if I stick my Tube Screamer on my 15 year-old tranny practice amp the difference is astonishing, and suddenly I can mess around with types of music that I couldn't before.

Anyhow, not to take away from any of the other advice. The guys are 100% correct, and it's very important to have a decent, playable instrument. Just keep in mind that after you have adjusted to some of the electric basics, you'll want to take another look at the rest of your rig. The best idea is to spend time with other muso's who can let you try out their stuff and point you in different directions.

Just want to thanks everybody once again for the great advice. Eventually I got the peavey 158 (also from Dee). And I'm truly happy!!

Been practising way to much, so my left wrist hurts like crazy but I'm enjoying every second