When it comes to choosing a guitar for whenever you just feel like playing, it can be a bit hard. But luckily, there are a few ways you can choose the right guitar so you can rock out with your friends. Whether it’s a small jam session or even just something you can carry around with you, you’ll want a mini guitar. Here, we’ll tell you how to choose, and some aspects that will help you with your decision, including common mistakes.
Know Your Budget
Your budget is a big part of this. Mini guitars tend to be on the cheaper end, but they can cost several hundred, to even over a thousand dollars. If you’re just starting out, I suggest going mid-range in price, that way you’re getting a quality guitar that actually sounds good. As a rule of thumb, usually the super expensive ones are for pros, so unless you’re at that level, and you’ll get use out of this, it’s best to not put your money into that yet.
The super pricey ones are specialized and crafted in a specific way, and you probably don’t need that unless you’re like really wanting something highly specialized.
Know How Much You’ll Play it
Wear and tear happen, but the best thing that you should do is understand how much you’ll play it. Will it be something you’ll use every day? If so, opt in for a little bit more expensive one. If not, you don’t need to spend a ton, because that can add up to wasted money. Be realistic with this number, because if you’re playing every other weekend, you’re going to end up using this a lot, and it can create wear and tear.
You Don’t Need the Super Fancy Bells and Whistles
Mini guitars are for jam sessions, so usually, you want something that looks good. However, you don’t need the handtooled straps, or even a super expensive tuner. Instead, put it into a guitar that you’re getting. If you already have a lot of the resources already, then you’ll be fine. You don’t need to get the most expensive metronome to go with this. Trust me, you can find those for free online.
Shop Around
When choosing a mini guitar, please shop around. Don’t actually just go with the first one you see. If you can, play them. You want to really sit down and see if it fits well in your hands. Play it, actually visualize yourself using this. Will it sit right in your hands? Does it feel too big or too small? Does it feel awkward whatsoever? If any of that is a consideration, you should look around and find the one that best fits you.
This also goes with the price factors as well. If you’re looking for a good price, don’t’ just choose the first music store. The truth of it is, they’ll pretend to run “sales” when in reality you’re not saving all that much, and sometimes you can find the same model for cheaper on Amazon, or secondhand stores. You want to shop around quite a bit for this since it is an investment. Going for the first one you see isn’t smart, because chances are, you’re going to miss out on some huge opportunities, or even a better deal.
Choose Based on what Style of Music you enjoy
You want to choose the mini guitar that you want to use based on the style that you have. If you want an electric guitar, then you can get electric. If you like acoustic for small jam sessions, then go acoustic in style. If you’re thinking of playing more traditional music, or even classical music, then go with a nylon string guitar. Many times, people are told to go acoustic, especially with mini guitars, which I do suggest if that’s what you like, but if you’re thinking about possibly playing more rock songs, and you’re going to pick it up and use it for that, then get a guitar that’s based on that as well. Remember, this isn’t just what the “experts” say, but it’s what you want as well.
Consider Where your Fingers go
It isn’t just how your guitar feels, whether bulky or tiny, you want to make sure that your fingers and strings won’t be too far from where the fretboard is for you. You should look for low action up and down the fretboard. It makes it so much easier. You want to play with the fretboard, feel it, and try to figure out a sound that is clear, and not too punchy either. You should listen to this, and you should check that your guitar sounds in tune quite a bit. If you can manipulate that easily, that’s a big part of this.
Figure in Sound!
The sound is subjective, but you should listen to your guitar, and really, if it sounds awkward and bad, don’t buy it. You should choose one that sounds good, even if you’re not totally sure if that’s a good sound or if it’s discordant since you don’t know how to play sometimes. Just choose one that sounds good to you.
All of these factors should go into choosing a mini guitar, especially if you’re planning on being serious with using this, and you plan to take it around for jam sessions.