Lisa Posted May 25, 2020 Share Posted May 25, 2020 Hi I know nothing about guitars, but my brother is 40 soon and I would love to get him one. He is a left handed and total beginner, could someone recommend a guitar? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ezbass Posted May 26, 2020 Share Posted May 26, 2020 Hi Lisa, What sort of budget are you looking at? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisa Posted May 26, 2020 Author Share Posted May 26, 2020 I have no idea what to spend but I’m def flexible Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ezbass Posted May 26, 2020 Share Posted May 26, 2020 Here’s the thing, you can spend as little as £50 or as much as £8k+. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisa Posted May 26, 2020 Author Share Posted May 26, 2020 I have no idea what to spend but I’m def flexible Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisa Posted May 26, 2020 Author Share Posted May 26, 2020 Maybe a few hundred? Sorry have no idea where to start Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dad3353 Posted May 26, 2020 Share Posted May 26, 2020 On 25/05/2020 at 22:05, Lisa said: Hi I know nothing about guitars, but my brother is 40 soon and I would love to get him one. He is a left handed and total beginner, could someone recommend a guitar? Thanks Lisa... If there's a decent, guitar-oriented music shop nearby (t'would be useful to know what region that may be...), how about asking them for a 'gift card' or similar, and arrange for your brother to come along and choose one, up to the value you've set with the shop..? T'would be nice if they knew, beforehand, that he's 'lefty', so as to have something to propose. Another big factor would be his tastes in music, and experience level. Does he already play guitar..? Would an acoustic be suitable, or an electric (which implies having an amp...), or even (sacrilege..!) a bass..? There are very many splendid guitars, or all shapes and styles, for £100 or so, and ten times more to choose from up to £500. Does the brother have an 'guitar heroes' that he may like to emulate..? When is 'soon'..? Time enough to order something on t'web and have it delivered..? Stuff from Europe may take a few days longer, but they have a wide range in their catalogues; there are several reputable on-line sellers in the UK, too (some with 'real shops' as well, such as Andertons; there are others still...). Hmm... More questions than answers, I'm afraid, but I know my brothers better than I know yours, so it's not easy. Fill in some of the gaps in our knowledge and we'll try to be more helpful still. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisa Posted May 27, 2020 Author Share Posted May 27, 2020 I am based outside Cardiff but my brother is in Germany so not so easy to pop it back, I will probably use amazon for ease. My brother has never played anything but as a surprise for his bday my mum thinks he will take to playing the guitar with his 8 yr old. She has visions of them singing together I would love to pop to a shop but with the current lockdown we are stuck. Music wise he tends just to listen to the radio. thanks for bearing with me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dad3353 Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 First guess would be for an acoustic guitar. Yamaha are a pretty safe bet, in quality terms, both for the build and sonority, as are ibanez and Cort, but there are many more fine guitars to be had. In general, one gets better for spending more, but even the 'budget' ranges are worth playing. An option worth considering, although not indispensable, is an electro-acoustic. Plays as an acoustic, but can be plugged in; especially useful for recording directly into a computer interface without an amp. Here's a link to the Thomann German site; they are a highly reputed mail-order giant, based in Germany, so no delivery worries if that's where it's to go. This is their 'lefty' acoustic guitar section... Thomann Lefty Acoustic Guitars ... ... from which you might find inspiration. Filtered by 'In stock', then 'Five Stars' , with 'Pick-up system', and sorted by price, rising, I see a Harley Benson at £195, a Cort at £266 and an Ovation at £430. Without the Pick-up, I see two Fenders, at £155, a Takamine at £222, an Ibanez at £348 and a Taylor at £535. Any of these would suit an absolute beginner, and will give years of enjoyment. The higher end of the price range brings a more 'concert-ready' quality of sound, but none of these are 'duds'. There are others, of course; these are just a few. Any use to you..? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ezbass Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 Ad Dad says, Yamaha are a pretty safe bet for any musical instrument at any price point, I've certainly never played a bad one. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisa Posted May 27, 2020 Author Share Posted May 27, 2020 Thank you so much x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dad3353 Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EdwardMarlowe Posted June 21, 2020 Share Posted June 21, 2020 Lefty player here. Great idea for a gift - at the least, your brotehr will have a bit of fun with it. If he really takes to it, you'll have given him a new hobby that will be a source of joy for years to come. Thomann are a good idea - I've not bought directly from them (yet), but they have an excellent customer services reputation and they are also based in Germany. so if ever there's a warranty issue, that would suit for your brother. For acoustics, I can absolutely recommend Tanglewood as a brand for very good left handed provision; the Harely Benton parlour acoustics at about £200 look great on Thomann. If you look to an electric, I'd be looking to what music he likes - what do his favourite guitar players play? For Fender Types, the Squier range, especially the "Classic Voice" guitars, do have some cracking lefty models. If you were looking in the £500ish range, the Fender Player series catersquite well for we lefties as well. For Gibson types, I think the best starter models tend to be from the JHS brand "Vintage", though the JUnior DC and Junior SC models from Thomann's in house Harley Benton brand are also gorgeous. An acoustic will probably be the most affordable way to start off as you can get something really quite nice for about £200, and you don't have to start with amps and cables and such that can quickly add another couple of hundred to the start position. You'll read a lot in descriptions about 'solid top', 'all solid' and 'laminate'. This refers to the wood the guitar body is made from. The general accepted wisdowm is that all-solid is best, as the real wood changes and 'brethes' over time, and the sound improves as it matures. An all-laminate guitar won'tg do that - the sound will always be the same as it starts off. Which is not necessarily a bad thing, if that start-sound is already great. Although laminate guitars are usually cheaper, some very expensive semi-acoustic guitars use it as it is less prone to feedback - horses for courses. A solid top is a common compromise - the benefits of the top (which is whre the main effect on the sound is, arguably, as that's hat the bridge anchors the strigns to at the body end) with the benefits of the laminate (cheaper - also often more stable than soid wood can sometimes be). Seriously tempted by one of these myself - https://www.thomann.de/gb/harley_benton_custom_line_clp_15me_lh.htm More options: https://www.thomann.de/gb/lefthanded_acoustic_guitars.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
