Total newbie

[Scratcher]

Hi all.

I am a total newcomer will proceed slowly.I have bought a s/h telecaster from a guitar shop after trying a oustics and electrics.It fits me well and It will do all i want.(for now).

I am open to any tips to get going particularly how to get my fingers where they need to be on chords.getting there but sometimes I touch the string below.presume eventually my fingers will become more supple.

[ezbass]

Welcome aboard. It’s hard to go wrong with a Tele, so a good choice made there (for the sake of transparency, I’m a huge Tele fan and therefore biased). A lot of the guys here are also bass players who are also Basschat members so you might see a bit of crossover. Here, as there, photos of your guitar/s are always welcome/positively encouraged. 

[dieseldalziel]

14 hours ago, Scratcher said:

Hi all.

I am a total newcomer will proceed slowly.I have bought a s/h telecaster from a guitar shop after trying a oustics and electrics.It fits me well and It will do all i want.(for now).

I am open to any tips to get going particularly how to get my fingers where they need to be on chords.getting there but sometimes I touch the string below.presume eventually my fingers will become more supple.

Welcome aboard! I've found justinguitar.com really useful, it's a fully free online guitar course starting from the very basics which includes techniques specific to the issues you mention about fingers touching other strings, good luck!

[Scratcher]

Thanks for the warm welcome.

I have looked at justin guitars you tube lessons and am going to work through them systematically.

 

Scratch.

[Skinnyman]

Welcome to the forum! 

As mentioned above, a lot of us here are really bass players who dream of being “proper” guitarists so it’s nice to welcome someone who’s learning to handle all six strings right from the off

Unfortunately, there’s no magic answer to help you develop your playing. It’s all difficult and a bit painful at first - but then it kind of clicks together and you don’t even think about it any more. So the only advice I can offer is.....persevere!

Lessons are great - the online courses (of which there are many but the justinguitar ones seem excellent) are good but I would strongly suggest that you also sign up with a local tutor and take a few lessons on a one to one basis. This will help you develop good technique from the start and help to stop you developing habits now that may constrain your playing in the future. Courses are great but I think the real-time feedback from an actual tutor is invaluable to set you on your way.

Enjoy the forum and let us know how you get on. If you have questions about gear, technique, gear, songs, gear or anything really - Including gear, we like talking about gear - then ask away. You’ll get a million different opinions and always be able to pick one you like, lol

 

 

[Scratcher]

Thanks.

I am following the justin guitar beginners course but have also booked lessons.

[dieseldalziel]

2 hours ago, Scratcher said:

Thanks.

I am following the justin guitar beginners course but have also booked lessons.

I'm doing exactly that & have my first lesson on Monday.. technique & practice structure is what I most need from 1 to 1 lessons plus being accountable in between lessons!

[Scratcher]

First newbie question.

I tuned the guitar using a clip on tuner some were ok some of the strings out.

Got them all bang on without the amp connected.

Now when I practice the chords I have learnt already it is very hard to get the string down on the neck on the thinner strings.

Have I tuned it wrongly.Its a telecaster if that helps.

Mods feel free to move this post if it's in the wrong place.

Edited April 14, 2019 by Scratcher
Addition added.

[dieseldalziel]

Is it barre chords you are having problems with? I found I lacked finger strength initially & had to concentrate to make sure there was no buzzing I'm not perfect yet but practice it is naki g it better,my first barre I git right was Bminor as it cropped up in a song I really wanted to learn & couldn't cheat it!

[tauzero]

It might be poorly set up, or have rather heavy strings on, or both. There are mountains of information on guitar setup on the interwebs. To quickly summarise, you'd need to adjust the relief (that's the amount of bow in the neck - it needs a bit so the strings don't rattle on the frets) and the bridge height. You may even need to adjust the neck angle by shimming it. None of these are difficult, you just need to take things slowly, use the right tools for the job (you won't need anything exotic), and read all of the instructions before starting so you know what you're trying to achieve. Intonation also needs setting when you've got the other bits sorted out.

[tonys]

Justin Guitars YouTube videos are very good and a great place to start. It's no surprise that he's so popular. 

A couple one to one lessons wouldn't hurt but that this stage you seem motivated enough to take this on your own. 

As Skinny Man said above, there's lots of online guitar lesson options out there like Guitar Tricks, Jam Play, Fender Play, Justin Guitar and of course YouTube. 

YouTube has some brilliant content for beginners and are well worth checking out. You'd be surprised at how good these YouTube Instructors are. They have millions of subscribers, and dedicated playlists just for teaching beginners. 

If I had to pick one, I would say Guitar Tricks is the best. Not only for learning guitar, but the fun you have with it. There's 1000's of videos, step by step song tutorials which is really cool and a decent forum. It's not just for beginners, but for every level of guitarists right up to advanced skill levels. 

For a complete beginner friendly and cheaper options - Justin Guitar or Fender Play might be the better suited. 

Best of luck

[Scratcher]

Andyguitar has a nice easy teaching style.I use a combination of andyguitar and justinguitar on YouTube.Slowly, very slowly progressing.

 

[Skinnyman]

On 11/01/2020 at 17:29, Scratcher said:

Andyguitar has a nice easy teaching style.I use a combination of andyguitar and justinguitar on YouTube.Slowly, very slowly progressing.

 

Excellent - and how are the fingers? Still sore or calloused nicely?

 

[Scratcher]

Calloused up nicely.

I never realized how difficult it would be.

Really enjoying the journey.Frustrating and disheartening at times yes.But it's a challenge I am taking on. 

 

 

 

 

[ezbass]

14 hours ago, Scratcher said:

Calloused up nicely.

I never realized how difficult it would be.

Really enjoying the journey.Frustrating and disheartening at times yes.But it's a challenge I am taking on. 

 

 

 

 

Nothing worth doing should be easy, as there would be no sense of accomplishment. Stick with it, you won’t be disappointed.

Getting those callouses is a real badge of honour with other benefits outside of playing. Picking up hot drinks or plates without flinching springs to mind. Although my favourite was removing a large wasp from a school staff room; I held it gently by its wings and watched it try and repeatedly sting my fingertips to no avail. The small, angry beast was released through a window, where it flew away unharmed to the amazed faces of my colleagues. 

[MWH]

Hi fella,  and welcome,     i have a Tele,    but its in a cardboard box in bits,  i ought to make more effort with it,   sigh.

[Kiwi]

On 08/04/2019 at 02:04, Scratcher said:

I am open to any tips to get going particularly how to get my fingers where they need to be on chords.getting there but sometimes I touch the string below.presume eventually my fingers will become more supple.

I decided to teach myself about 10 years ago.  There's no magic solution, it's just practice, practice, practice practice and more practice. Its important that I choose songs I want to play over and over again.  So I flit between Alan Murphy, Steve Lukather, Steve Stevens and Nile Rogers tracks.  My main problem is I don't practice often enough as playing is something I do when my kids aren't asleep or needing to be supervised and I have at least half an hour to myself.