Is it better to start with an acoustic or electric guitar?

Apparently someone asked a certain band member, “If you want to start playing guitar, would you rather play acoustic or electric?”

In response, the band members advise, “Maybe electric is better?”

“If you already have both guitars at home, you probably have an effect processor,” he says, so he recommends an electric guitar that can change the tone.

Why the electric guitar was such a high hurdle

Even so, having an acoustic guitar and an electric guitar already at home is a pretty enviable situation.

When I started playing the guitar, the hurdles to playing the electric guitar were high.

There are three reasons why electric guitars have such a high hurdle.

Electric guitar requires a guitar amplifier

By connecting an electric guitar to a guitar amplifier, you can produce sounds unique to electric.

If possible, it would be even better to have distortion or overdrive.

Since an electric guitar cannot stand alone, it would be safer to purchase the following items at the same time.

A strap is an essential item when playing the guitar standing up.

The cable serves to connect the electric guitar to the guitar amplifier.

If you want to connect at least one effector, you’ll want to get two or more.

It would be best to aim for a cable length of 3m to 5m.

When using multiple effectors, prepare shorter cables as well.

A patch cable of about 15cm will easily work.

Including the strap, cable, effector, and guitar amp, the total purchase price should be around 20,000 to 30,000 yen more than the electric guitar.

Housing situation

Electric guitars can produce much louder sounds than acoustic guitars.

It’s fine if you have studio-level soundproofing equipment in your home, but if you live in a typical home, additional work is required.

Especially if you live in an apartment complex or condominium, the sound of an electric guitar can be a nuisance to your neighbors.

However, if your guitar amp has a headphone jack, you can practice playing the electric guitar while wearing headphones.

I hope each of you will work on that.

Electric guitar played by a delinquent

From the late 1960s to the 1970s, there was an image that electric guitars were played by delinquents.

Probably from the mid-1980s to the 1990s, the image that electric guitars were bad seemed to have diminished.

This is also thanks to our predecessors.

The fact that a high school student played an electric guitar in the anime may have helped change the image.

Why does he recommend an electric guitar as your first guitar?

The band members mentioned above recommend the electric guitar as a first guitar because it changes the tone.

The tone of an electric guitar changes by selecting the pickup and operating the volume and tone knobs.

You can also change the tone by using a guitar amp or effector.

The strings on an electric guitar have less tension than an acoustic guitar, so it’s easier to play chords, which may help you improve faster.

Personally, I would recommend trying both acoustic and electric.

Due to budget constraints, many people tend to start with one or the other…

Summary

When someone asks me, “Should I start playing the guitar, acoustic or electric?”, how would I answer?

If possible, maybe both.

There is a theory that 90% of guitar beginners give up, but I just hope that as many people as possible can enjoy playing the guitar.