subject: Guitars - Choosing Between Electric Or Acoustic [print this page] As a guitar instructor, I'm often asked which type of guitar you should start with, electric or acoustic? Here's a rundown of the pros and cons of each and how your decision should be formed.
Neither type of guitar is "better" than the other. They are simply different versions of the same instrument. Both have six strings and are tuned exactly the same way. So, on the surface, both types of guitar are played exactly the same way.
Here's some of the main ideas to think about in making your decision...
1. What kind of music do you want to play? If you're super interested in death metal, punk, or the like, then you'll want to go with electric. If you're a fan of classical, delta blues, country, etc, then you'll definitely want to start with acoustic guitar.
2. Where do you like your difficulty? No doubt about it, acoustic guitar is a somewhat more difficult instrument due to a few factors I'll talk about below. If you're the type of person that would rather get the hard parts out of the way and take it easy later, start on acoustic. If you'd rather take it easy at the beginning and work your way into harder things, start with electric.
Acoustic Guitar
Pros:
- Builds better hand strength
- Encourages better tone because you're not being helped by technology
Cons:
- Thicker strings can be harder on your hands and fingers until you build up strength and callouses
- While rather quiet, it can't be played silently (a concern for apartment dwellers)
Electric Guitar
Pros:
- Lighter strings are easier on your hands and fingers at first
- Can be played silently if your amplifier has a headphone jack
- Not as much hand strength needed
Cons:
- Moving to acoustic afterwards can be harder as you'll need to increase hand strength
- Reliance on distortion and effects can make for sloppy technique
- Need to learn more muting techniques to deal with amplified sound
For myself, I started on acoustic guitar (a terrible, difficult to play one at that) and moved to electric later. I've always felt that served me very well. The transition from acoustic to electric was quite easy. Going the other way, from electric to acoustic can be a little more difficult simply due to hand strength issues and being comfortable with the larger body.
For my students I also suggest starting with acoustic. Even if you do start with electric, be sure to practice without distortion and effects. Those can mask a lot of sloppy playing and you'll miss the things you should be fixing. But, of course, when it's time to rock out, go for it!
So the decision of whether to start with acoustic or electric guitar depends on your goals as a player and the type of student you are. My suggestion is starting with acoustic guitar, but your own goals should be the deciding factor.
