Learning to play the guitar: acoustic or electric?
 

For all the guitar geeks on the forum: did you learn to play it on an acoustic or electric one? In fact, tell us if you can play an acoustic guitar at all. I've always been under the impression that acoustic guitars are more difficult to play.

I started to play electric. technically its almost the same, but you will hear mistakes in your play more easy on an acoustic. distortion lets everything sound at least interesting :)

I started on an acoustic.
it's more difficult , but then when you switch to electric, everything becomes easier, because if you can pull nice chords on the acoustic, then you'll be thrashing on the electric.

thats right. it also depends on the quality of both of the guitars. if you got cheap ones they tend to got their strings too high that you have tu pull them down way more, especially on acoustics Ive experienced

I learned kind of on both at the same time. However, my electric guitar was hooked through a bass amp so I had no distortions or anything to make playing electric all that easier.

but you had volume! which is the birth of distortion

Both.

Both.

Acoustic is harder yeah, but learn that and you'll be a whizz at electric!

It's easier to write a song on the electric and sound good.

I learned on an electric guitar, without an amp, I mind you. A right handed guitar at that, myself being left-handed made it hard. I wasn't any good but but I could rhythm very well. Played it like a bass.

I can play acoustic but I play a right-handed acoustic upside down. I find it much easier to form chords.

I think most teachers will tell you that it is better to learn on an acoustic first. Electrics, especially in the beginning, are easier to fret of course, so play some on both. Try to learn proper technique and not to fall into bad habits.

Having a decent guitar is one thing, but it's also just as if not more important to learn how to properly tune and string (how to wrap) the guitar. I use light or medium strings just about exclusively; even the inexpensive brands are usually good. Of course for SY tunings, you need a few packs of heavy strings and a solid guitar like a Fender that will hold good tune. New strings never quite sound right for a little while. If you're breaking strings, then you are doing something wrong.

For acoustic play try a medium pick; I use the Fender mediums. For electric I think the flexible Herco nylon picks are tops; I like those (Flex 50) best for some songs on acoustic too.

my first guitar was an electric, but it was only a few months that i started on accoustic. i was 12, so, almost 9 years ago. im still shite on an accoustic though, i have smallish hands so fretting on an accoustic is often problematic for me. i love heavily disotrted electric guiat. right now ive been wailing on an an epiphone casino, black. its a lot like the one lee has been using. i really want a black metal strat, like thurston used to have in thre late 80s.

I am pretty sure that I I would play on a acoustic in standard tuning now I would suck big times. i cant remmeber when I played standards the last time...

This is true. I tend to enjoy playing acoustic more now I have a really good one

evem on electrics, if I compare my cheri strat copy to my original strat its hilarious what a damn difference

electric.

but i prefer to play acoustic.

Same, at least as of late.

Everyone I've gotten started playing guitar (three people), I've strongly recommended they start on acoustic. I'm not at all qualified to make that kind of recommendation, but they all thanked me when they moved on to electric.

Regardless of which you like more, acoustic is more practical in terms of practicing, and it's much harsher on your fingers because of the higher action. Moving from electric to acoustic can be brutal.

But I started on classical. Which, when I play now, is just fucking weird in an inexplicable way. I can't play those at all anymore.

Well, let me clarify.

I started on acoustic but I LEARNED on electric.

The thing is, I really don't like a lot of distortion (what!) so I was mainly playing clean electric guitar lines in my stuff and I decided, why not just play acoustic most of the time.. I didn't find the transition too hard because my acoustic doesn't have a high action. But if you're playing a nice acoustic, yeah the action is crazy. It's really hard for me to play fast on an acoustic with high action. Shit.

THey're both wildly different instruments. I'd say an acoustic is much harder to play but I think they sound a thousand times better than an electric so I'd rather play them.

Why not get an acoustic electric? Hah..

ovation guitars.

I started on acoustic, and about eight months later I got an electric. I got an acoustic because my guitar teacher said I should start on that. It does make playing electric easier, and if it's your first guitar, it stops you just turning up the distortion and making a lot of noise, which won't teach you a lot.

Plus you can get acoustic cheap.

I learned to play on acoustic, but it wasn't long before I was playing nearly exclusively on electric.

i first got an acoustic. it was alright but it had a really wide neck, so it was quite difficult to make my noob fingers to pull a chord :P
i think electric suits me better... so it really depends on the person i guess...

I've never owned an acoustic and have only played them maybe 3 times. They feel foreign in my hands.

I started on a cheap electric. Learned some metallica and stopped learning other peoples songs. It took me 15 years to finally buy an acoustic, and as of Saturday night my acoustic is dead. The head snapped off in my hands in a twang of spiritual introspection. Now, i need another one, cause i've grown very partial to playing acoustic. It's a different beast than electric, but they compliment eachother so well. But , as with any instrument. learn to play it and make yourself better at whatever it is you do.

I started on acoustic. It's advantageous if you start acoustic because the string action is usually higher, which exercises your fingers better and wll get you used to high-action guitars. Then when you play an electric it should be a breeze. As said above, you can hear the difference better too

i learned with the guitar from Rock Star!!!!!!

:P

mEGA LOLZ!!!

problem is I cannot find the same colored buttons on the Ibanez I bought

i play electric guitar so i can be in a band that sounds like discharge.

yeah acoustics only more difficult in that the actions higher, neck is usually thicker and strings heavier... I learnt on electric and when i got my acoustic kept getting strain injuries. I prefer to play electric though, it's much more FUN.

i started on acoustic with one lesson, then i didn't have lessons for a year. then i took up lessons again and a few months after i bought an electric and quit lessons.

It's better to learn on electric, especially if you'll end up playing it later. It's better for access to the higher frets and the neck is much thinner than an acoustic.

However it's better finger exercise with a thicker neck and larger frets. If you start on an electric, get good, and then try an acoustic it would be unusually awkward to play

yup. start with acoustic

When I think of acoustic guitars I think of those big chunky ones with nylon strings. Those are terrible to learn on.

I think you're thinking of classical guitars. They're the only kind of guitar my school has (except for some electrics with about three strings), and they are difficult to play, but they aren't acoustic guitars.

I started on electric and had no problem transitioning over to acoustic, as I'm sure is the same for most people.

What the hell is Rock Star? That movie with Mark Whalberg?

I think you mean Rock Band (or Guitar Hero or Guitar Freaks or any of those other games)?

...

Rob, quit being wrong all the time! I'm kind of kidding but... I've personally proved you wrong before and you never acknowledge it.

They just get called acoustics at my school. My old school had about 30 of them and two crappy squire strats.