Hi,

Looking for adviced on electric guitars for my 8 year old son. He's doing the Rock School programme and almost ready for the grade 1 exam. We have a classical acoustic which he practices on at home and he uses an electric in lessons which belongs to the music shop. They use Yamaha and Farida guitars.

Any pointers on what to buy guitar and small amp wise?

New or second hand, what to look for etc.

I don't play myself so advice much appreciated.

Thanks

Dunno what your budget is but a squier strat and one of those 10w marshalls would probably be my choice. Dunno how big he is but the 3/4 size ones are a bit cheaper.

Guitar wise i'd say get a guitar that he likes the look of i.e. shape and colour, that way he'll probably practise on it more as using the settings on the amp he can make it sound more or less like any other guitar. there are a few brands worth looking out for like epiphone, yamaha, tanglewood. they are pretty common second hand as people buy them to begin with then upgrade/give up and sell them on. personally i'd go with second hand but probably through a shop if i didnt know exactly what i was looking for. check the frets for v shaped grooves under the strings at the tuner end of the guitar, look out for rust and plug it in to make sure the connections/sound are smooth with no crackling/cutting in and out. shouldn't really be a problem in a shop tho. also there are smaller scale guitars which might fit him better if he's still small.
with regards to an amp i'd go for something around 30 watts, anything bigger would be too bulky and heavy for him to carry round, would be excessively loud and would probably annoy the neighbours. try and find an amp with a distortion effect built in as he'll probably want to play around with that at some point, a headphone socket and a separate line in socket (for ipod etc) would be a good idea too.

Agree with above.

8 years old is too young to be buying anything really good, especially with the amount of other distractions kids are exposed to these days

Regards

Plum

My son did alright with a Squirer and 10 watt amp. Plus it was easy to sell later on.

I'm almost sick of saying this – 30 watts is toooooooo loud, I really can't imagine an 8 year old carrying an AC 30 anywhere can you.

I'm sitting next to my my Blackstar 5 watt and I think that is too much for a bedroom amp.

I think a roland micro cube is fine for this sort of situation

there are 30W amps and there are 30W amps; not all are as big & bulky as an AC30.

But yeah, it's still too loud for an 8YO

no. there are 30w valve amps and there are 30w solid state amps. a 30w valve amp would be well out of a beginners's budget. what beginner is going to plump for an ac30 at ~£400?
perhaps i'm jumping the gun as he's still young but should he want to play with along with a live drum kit in a band 10w isn't going to go penetrate. also a tiny 10w amp turned up to maximum is not a pleasant sound, its just fuzz.

AC30 are 700 plus

Thanks for all the replies. He's almost 9 now and big for age so plays a full size electric in lessons (which seem tiny to me, but I am 6"5"!)

I'm quite confident he'll carry on for a while as he's been going to lessons for 8-9 months once a week and practices every day. Obviously I'm not going to go out and splash on a Fender Strat and marshall amp quite yet though 8)

I think you're jumping the gun a bit Jeremy, he is only 8 after all 😉

But I agree, a 10W amp will not cut the mustard against a live acoustic drum kit in rehearsal room situations.

(on stage is a different beast as it will normally be mic'd up & sent through the PA for both FOH and on-stage monitoring)

Squier strat, marshall mini amp, lead and strap. £100?

s/h maybe

squire guitar and one of the small Orange amps would do the trick

Got my son an Orange 10W amp (looks cool) and a Suzuki Les Paul copy from 'Suzuki Europe' on their ebay store – lovely guitars at very nice prices 8)

Yamaha Pacificas are nice, they do one around squire price so if they've got one of them in the shop see if he can have a few lessons on it to see if he likes it. If they're willing to let him try a few in lessons even better!

My lads got a squier strat and 10w combo- it's plenty loud enough

+1Roland Micro Cube for the amp

Bought one about two years ago for my then 11 year old and it has been excellent – reliable, portable and fit for purpose. His guitar teacher likes it and has recommended it to his other students.

Was recommended on here but I'm ashamed to say I cannot remember by who.

Edit: I think it was Northwind – belated thanks!

p.s. he is doing the Rock School grading as well.

"I think a roland micro cube is fine for this sort of situation"

I'm kind of out of date, but these were ace last time I was looking, very nearly got one myself. If you just want a cheap practice amp, I've got a wee BC Rich one stuck in the cupboard which I've never used, it's not very good frankly- it's the sort of amp you get along with starter packs, very basic- but it makes noise and you could have it for, oh, probably £20 would cover it though I'd need to check it actually works. I'll never use it so it'd be nice for someone to.

If the budget allows something a bit better would make sense though, ideally with some FX built in as that's a big money saver if they're half decent- frinstance when i bought my Vox, I funded it by selling a whole load of footpedals, since i just didn't need them any more with this amp.

The Mini Strat looks like a pretty good idea, but is he used to full sized guitars? Generally speaking the correct answer for a first guitar is "A Pacifica whose model number doesn't start with a 0", they're very hard to beat but a lot of the Squiers are now very good value too.

http://www.thomann.de/gb/harley_benton_hbt16bk_egitarre.htm

thomann is great, you can get some cracking deals

Squier, easy. It's something he won't be ashamed to still be playing in five years time, when he's replaced the pickups with something of a Bare knuckle or Seymour Duncan variety.
Get him something nicer when he's about 12 though, and keep tabs on if he ever mentions meeting a drummer or something – get him the Marshall then 😀

Squier, peavey, ibanez and yamaha all make great value guitars. Ibanez probably are the 'easiest' to play for the money. But it's important to try a few out and see how they feel, the neck makes a big difference to how it plays and how suited your hands/fingers are.
I wouldn't reccomend a non valve marshall they sound naff the dfx being the prime example. A secondhand ashown peacemaker would be a cheap/loud/good sounding and very portable option. But valve amps are really really loud. My friend had a peavey triple x and the loudest that ever got was .1/10 in the house and maybe 3/10 onstage.

I have one of these

Battery powered amps built into recycled fag packets. very rich sound for the size, with a slightly overdriven crunch that I love, but maybe not everyone's taste – about £20, your choice of smokes.
Google for Smokey amps

Hmm, Dunhill Junior Smokers kit too???

Yamaha make very good entry level guitars, Peavey also – better quality than the Fenders I've seen at this price point.

Roland Micro Cube is a little cracker too, worry about out louding a drummer when he's ready to do so.

Hi All,

Thanks for all of the many replies – I didn't appreciate how musical STW riders were. I think I'll be giving the fag box amp a miss though 😉

My son's guitar teacher has recommended a Farida guitar. These are the ones used in his lessons at Dawsons music shop. I trust his opinion is honest, but as these are sold in the shop, it works out quite nicely as a potential sale for them too. Any comments from the STW axemen on Farida?

My research suggests they are good value and suited to younger players becuase they are a bit lighter weight compared to many solid body electrics.

I'm also liking the look of the Roland Mini Cube recommended here.

Thanks

Neil