Tips for an old guy trying to learn guitar

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Roadliner said:
Man I've alwas wanted to learn to play guitar. Thanks to a broken finger in my younger days that healed wrong, I can't spread my middle and ring fingertips apart when they bend around the neck.. really messes up the whole fret thing lol.
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I have broken and otherwise injured the pinky on my left hand more times than I can count. I also have stiffness that is an obstacle to fretting, for sure, but I am sure I can work through it. Probably doesn't help that severe arthritis runs in my family and I'm sure that is beginning in my hands right now.

But, I can do a lot with those fingers right now that seemed impossible 60 days ago. I'm just going to keep working and keep stretching the fingers...
 
Ridire said:
I have broken and otherwise injured the pinky on my left hand more times than I can count. I also have stiffness that is an obstacle to fretting, for sure, but I am sure I can work through it. Probably doesn't help that severe arthritis runs in my family and I'm sure that is beginning in my hands right now.

But, I can do a lot with those fingers right now that seemed impossible 60 days ago. I'm just going to keep working and keep stretching the fingers...
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Arthritis is no fun.. hopefully you stave it off for a while.

My middle finger is actually bent toward my ring finger at the knuckle.. so when the fingers bend around the fret board the middle finger tip points toward the ring finger tip and they touch instead of separating.
 
Roadliner said:
Arthritis is no fun.. hopefully you stave it off for a while.

My middle finger is actually bent toward my ring finger at the knuckle.. so when the fingers bend around the fret board the middle finger tip points toward the ring finger tip and they touch instead of separating.
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Yeah, that's a little more severe than my stiff and stubborn fingers.
 
A while ago (about a year, shortly after I started), I was having a hard time playing my guitar so I went shopping and casually came across a Yamaha acoustic which I just fell in love with. It played amazingly, and it sounded so rich. I wanted to buy it, but hadn't saved up enough gift money yet for the spouse to bless the purchase, so I let it go. About 6 months later I was at a store, and they happened to have it (this guitar is a tough one to find), so I played it out of curiosity, and sure enough - it was just as I remembered. I made up my mind - I'd buy this one, sooner or later.

So last week I'm browsing the internet and casually shopping, when I decided to see if I could find this Yamaha anywhere I'd be travelling over Memorial day. Well, no, I couldn't. Actually, it turns out it was pretty much impossible to find, because it was a limited edition which had been discontinued and there were only just a few left over for sale. I sort of stumbled across one on Guitar Center's website (for some reason it was not easy to find), and saw I could have it shipped to the local store from CA. Sounds good to me. Oh, and on top of it, the price had dropped 30%, which meant I could spend gift money without any grief from the spouse :)

So that's my guitar update. Just got it yesterday, and it's beautiful. Needs new strings though - for some reason, 4 of the strings are discolored and in horrible shape, but oh well.
 
HarborTownBrewing said:
A while ago (about a year, shortly after I started), I was having a hard time playing my guitar so I went shopping and casually came across a Yamaha acoustic which I just fell in love with. It played amazingly, and it sounded so rich. I wanted to buy it, but hadn't saved up enough gift money yet for the spouse to bless the purchase, so I let it go. About 6 months later I was at a store, and they happened to have it (this guitar is a tough one to find), so I played it out of curiosity, and sure enough - it was just as I remembered. I made up my mind - I'd buy this one, sooner or later.

So last week I'm browsing the internet and casually shopping, when I decided to see if I could find this Yamaha anywhere I'd be travelling over Memorial day. Well, no, I couldn't. Actually, it turns out it was pretty much impossible to find, because it was a limited edition which had been discontinued and there were only just a few left over for sale. I sort of stumbled across one on Guitar Center's website (for some reason it was not easy to find), and saw I could have it shipped to the local store from CA. Sounds good to me. Oh, and on top of it, the price had dropped 30%, which meant I could spend gift money without any grief from the spouse :)

So that's my guitar update. Just got it yesterday, and it's beautiful. Needs new strings though - for some reason, 4 of the strings are discolored and in horrible shape, but oh well.
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Cool! They make nice guitars.

String discoloration is not uncommon. If they show signs of wear, it's probably just from being demo'ed in the store.
 
I kinda like my strings with a little age on them. maybe don't sound as bright when they're old, but they don't feel bad

when I change my strings is when they start to feel "crusty"

had always used Markley lights (9 to 42) until I got my maple fretboard Strat, then those felt like I was playing barbwire. switched to regular Slinky (10 to 46) and happy now
 
Homercidal said:
String discoloration is not uncommon. If they show signs of wear, it's probably just from being demo'ed in the store.
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That's what I'm thinking. I usually wipe down my strings each time I play, so I'm used to them keeping in good shape for a long time. These were as worn as the strings on my grandpa's guitar which had been untouched for 15 years. None the less, new ones will work wonders for the play and tone.
 
I play Slinky Lights on my electric and absolutely love them.

I've been all over the place on my acoustic guitar with which strings I want to play. Last ones I bought were Martin Lights, but I think I'm going to try D'Addario Lights again. I have used them in the past and liked them.
 
Hey HarborTownBrewing... what model of Yamaha did you get? I bought one of their electric acoustics in a with a mango front last year - it was my son's first 'real' guitar. I love the Yamaha and he is very attached to it!
 
HarborTownBrewing said:
That's what I'm thinking. I usually wipe down my strings each time I play, so I'm used to them keeping in good shape for a long time. These were as worn as the strings on my grandpa's guitar which had been untouched for 15 years. None the less, new ones will work wonders for the play and tone.
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There's NOTHING like new strings in my opinion. The feel, the great sound, problem is they don't last long. If you practice every day in a couple weeks they are toast. They get discolored, oily feeling, and just don't have that extra sound anymore. I used to try to wipe them down, and my guitar, but if I'm changing them a couple times a month why bother?



HarborTownBrewing said:
I play Slinky Lights on my electric and absolutely love them.

I've been all over the place on my acoustic guitar with which strings I want to play. Last ones I bought were Martin Lights, but I think I'm going to try D'Addario Lights again. I have used them in the past and liked them.
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Nothing but Ernies on my electric too. I love the D'Addario custom lights on my acoustic but I'll run whatever I can get my hands on as long as they are .11s. I HATE coated strings though, can't stand them.
 
Homercidal said:
Play with the other hand. You're starting from scratch anyway.
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If you can avoid it...don't teach yourself to play left-handed. Even if you *are* left handed, do yourself the favor and learn to play righty.

I play left handed because I'm missing fingers on my left hand. I'm naturally right-handed. It was awkward at first, but I quickly grew into it.

The real problem is finding left-handed guitars. Walk into almost any music shop and the walls will be LINED with guitars and you'll have your pick of a $200 Fender, a $150 Ibanez, and a $1400 Martin acoustic. It's a joke. When you're buying a guitar it has to "feel" right in your hands....and with such a limited choice you're losing out on that luxury.
 
snowveil said:
If you can avoid it...don't teach yourself to play left-handed. Even if you *are* left handed, do yourself the favor and learn to play righty.

I play left handed because I'm missing fingers on my left hand. I'm naturally right-handed. It was awkward at first, but I quickly grew into it.

The real problem is finding left-handed guitars. Walk into almost any music shop and the walls will be LINED with guitars and you'll have your pick of a $200 Fender, a $150 Ibanez, and a $1400 Martin acoustic. It's a joke. When you're buying a guitar it has to "feel" right in your hands....and with such a limited choice you're losing out on that luxury.
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That is true. But a lot of guitars can be strung backwards and I know several lefties who modified their guitars for them and ended up with a guitar they love and they aren't too tempted to buy that expensive guitar in the store because they know they can't play it.

A little silver lining.
 
Well it's confirmed: new strings change the guitar completely...for the better.

I ended up going with D'Addario Custom Lights (.11s) as estricklen had noted he uses. So far, I like them quite well.

One issue I had was this guitar was in need of a setup, and the strings were just a little too high for my liking. I debated: $50 for a fantastic Luthier to set it up, or my own doings on the allen wrench. I opted for the free route. After about 5 minutes of adjustments, I got the 6th string down to 3mm from the neck at the 12th fret, which is Yamaha's recommendation. It had been at 4mm before. It's hard to believe how much a difference 1 mm makes, but the guitar plays so much better now, and it sounds great.

I play at church on Sundays whenever I'm around and able to play; I'm looking forward to hooking it up to the speakers and seeing how the SRT pickup system sounds. Just need to get a good, long cable now.

And on a beer note, I'm mashing a Saison right now ;)
 
HarborTownBrewing said:
Well it's confirmed: new strings change the guitar completely...for the better.

I ended up going with D'Addario Custom Lights (.11s) as estricklen had noted he uses. So far, I like them quite well.

One issue I had was this guitar was in need of a setup, and the strings were just a little too high for my liking. I debated: $50 for a fantastic Luthier to set it up, or my own doings on the allen wrench. I opted for the free route. After about 5 minutes of adjustments, I got the 6th string down to 3mm from the neck at the 12th fret, which is Yamaha's recommendation. It had been at 4mm before. It's hard to believe how much a difference 1 mm makes, but the guitar plays so much better now, and it sounds great.

I play at church on Sundays whenever I'm around and able to play; I'm looking forward to hooking it up to the speakers and seeing how the SRT pickup system sounds. Just need to get a good, long cable now.

And on a beer note, I'm mashing a Saison right now ;)
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My house Saison is affectionately named, "Hammer-On Saison". Rock and rolllllllllllllll mannnnnnnnnnnnnnn!
 
Thrown into the fire.

So, my friend, who is classically trained, just announced that he and I will be playing a simple GNR song at the end July when a large group of friends heads out camping together. He'll be on lead, me on rhythm. Guess my practice routine just changed...

I am now focusing on this video

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-NzvEb0zGM[/ame]
 
And while I'm here, how about some tips, like the title of this thread implies.

When I'm strumming an A chord, I tend to hit the low E...when playing the D chord, the A...it really throws off the sound and leaves the low string kind of buzzing. Any tips on how to be a bit more accurate with hitting only the desired strings while strumming?
 
up thread, I mentioned how chords are formed; around the root of the scale, the major chord being I - 3 - 5

in the A major chord, the A is the root and the 3 & 5 are C# and E

in the D major chord, the D is the root and the 3 & 5 are F# and A

so, the 2 problem strings in your question are actually a part of the chord, so let those mofos ring!

in other words: RDWHAHB

but, if you can't yet, you will. or learn to mute them with with the fleshy part of a finger lying across that string and it will add a rhythmic dynamic to the chord
 
GrogNerd said:
up thread, I mentioned how chords are formed; around the root of the scale, the major chord being I - 3 - 5

in the A major chord, the A is the root and the 3 & 5 are C# and E

in the D major chord, the D is the root and the 3 & 5 are F# and A

so, the 2 problem strings in your question are actually a part of the chord, so let those mofos ring!

in other words: RDWHAHB

but, if you can't yet, you will. or learn to mute them with with the fleshy part of a finger lying across that string and it will add a rhythmic dynamic to the chord
Click to expand...

Then my "buzzing" issue is something else?

The guitar is not top of the line, but it was set up by a professional. I'm assuming it is not the fault of the equipment, but that of the user.

EDIT: and, yes, I tune it before I play each time (with the auto tuner).
 
This friend also mentioned maybe playing She Talks to Angels, as well. That one looks to be much more involved to learn for a noob like me. This friend has never seen me play, and he has been playing his whole life. I don't think he quite appreciates how difficult this is for me at this time. Dude has a college degree in guitar theory.

EDIT: I guess what I should really do is drag his ass down to my house and have him give me tips one on one while seeing what I'm doing. He brought his guitar on our last camping trip and we were talking about things...but he's a lefty, so I couldn't show him any of what I was talking about on his guitar. Not to mention that his guitar is worth about 10x what mine is worth and I was scared to even touch it.
 
Another noob question. Back in February, when I first got the guitar, the guy who set it up put new strings on it. I have not replaced them since. How often do you replace strings? Assume the guitar is "played" anywhere from 20 to 60 minutes 6 days a week.
 
I'm presuming you're trying to play the A chord like this (#s in the circles indicate finger #, 2 = pointer, 3 = middle & 4 = ring)

I don't bother. I lay my #2 across the 2nd fret along the bottom 4 strings and the bottom E gets muted. guess it takes some practice to get it right and more practice to not fully strum that string

and sometimes, what may sound like a mistake may not be one at all. example: listen to the guitar intro to KISS, Hard Luck Woman off Rock -n- Roll Over. there's a squeak near the end there. normally I would say you wouldn't want that in a song, but it kind of "humanizes" the playing.

you don't need it to sound perfect. practice will let you attack the songs with confidence and make those little buzzes and squeaks part of the song. and really, most people don't hear that kind of stuff, just other guitar players and they're effing whacked anyway.

AMaj-Free-Guitar-Chord-Chart.png
 
Ridire said:
Another noob question. Back in February, when I first got the guitar, the guy who set it up put new strings on it. I have not replaced them since. How often do you replace strings? Assume the guitar is "played" anywhere from 20 to 60 minutes 6 days a week.
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I play on sets for months, but I like a little age on my strings

just something else that you have to figure out on your own what works best for you. if they feel grungy and you don't like that feeling, change them. if you think they're sounding a little dull, change them. and you really can't tell the difference between a dull, grungy set and a new set until you change them. they get old slow, so you won't notice the gradual degradation. until you change them

then it's the economics of how often do you want to pay for a new set.

for you, right now, I would change them when you can. no rush, but just to show you how different a new set feels
 
GrogNerd said:
I'm presuming you're trying to play the A chord like this (#s in the circles indicate finger #, 2 = pointer, 3 = middle & 4 = ring)

I don't bother. I lay my #2 across the 2nd fret along the bottom 4 strings and the bottom E gets muted. guess it takes some practice to get it right and more practice to not fully strum that string

and sometimes, what may sound like a mistake may not be one at all. example: listen to the guitar intro to KISS, Hard Luck Woman off Rock -n- Roll Over. there's a squeak near the end there. normally I would say you wouldn't want that in a song, but it kind of "humanizes" the playing.

you don't need it to sound perfect. practice will let you attack the songs with confidence and make those little buzzes and squeaks part of the song. and really, most people don't hear that kind of stuff, just other guitar players and they're effing whacked anyway.

View attachment 281807
Click to expand...

Actually, that is not how I play the A, but the same idea. Change your 2 and 3 finger, and that is how I do it. Why? Because it makes my index finger an "anchor" that makes it very easy for me to move to the D chord and the E chord (like a place holder on the 3rd string).
 
Ridire said:
Actually, that is not how I play the A, but the same idea. Change your 2 and 3 finger, and that is how I do it. Why? Because it makes my index finger an "anchor" that makes it very easy for me to move to the D chord and the E chord (like a place holder on the 3rd string).
Click to expand...

yeah, I can see that.

ya know, I just had to sit for a minute, actually think about and picture how I make chords and where each finger is going when I transition. I've been doing it so long, it's not something I have to think about, muscle memory just does it for me. i just know by how my fingers feel to know what chord I'm making or where on the fretboard I am, and then how my elbow and wrist are angled to know where on the neck I am.

so, there ya go. more indicators pointing out it's just going to take practice. lot of practice. a little bit each day and before you know it, it just comes without thinking about it.

Used to Love Her... easy song, 3 chords

She Talks to Angels... TOUGH song, even I have trouble with that one. haven't tried it in a while.

let your friend know how long you've been playing, and whether or not you're comfortable with playing either of those songs.
 
Ridire said:
And while I'm here, how about some tips, like the title of this thread implies.

When I'm strumming an A chord, I tend to hit the low E...when playing the D chord, the A...it really throws off the sound and leaves the low string kind of buzzing. Any tips on how to be a bit more accurate with hitting only the desired strings while strumming?
Click to expand...

Targeting specific strings is just something that comes with practice. I assure you playing only certain strings on those ever popular open chords, will become quite natural given some more time. Maybe try strumming slow and starting on the bass note, working your way down. Strum really hard so no one will notice!

The wound bass strings are the worst about buzzing when played too hard, especially if your playing with lighter strings, and a lower action. When fretted it's not so bad, but if you miss your target, or are intentionally playing an open one, like on an E Major chord, you can get some of that terrible low buzz going on. It's not the end of the world, nor is it exclusive to beginners.

There is a reason why we don't play those other bass notes, even when they are a note that is already found in the chord. It's quite a scientific and long winded explanation that my old piano teacher taught me when I first learned musical theory. It's because it sounds like rhino ass. See it turns out, that the most important note in the chord, IS really the bass note. You know, the one the chord is named after? There are times when you might want to do this on purpose, and it's called altered bass note chords. F#/D is a popular one, along with B/G and E/A. Speaking of that A Major chord, good time to mention what was mentioned above, again. Muting strings. A lot of guitarists mute the high E string in the A Major chord, some just make sure not to target it, and some just let it ring out. Not a big deal really. But, there are chords out there where muting strings is a must, especially some jazz chords. Don't worry too much about it though trust me, way down on the priority list. Sorry for my slightly snude and not so funny comments about the bass notes, cuz truth be told it's kinda like some other things in life, if you accidentally bump them in the heat of things...........it's fine! Just thought I would explain it a little because I had to sit and think about that crap a lot when I first started playing because it didn't make any sense to me.

Now thanks to YOU....got that song stuck in my head, and the wife doesn't think it's as funny as I do. Oh well gonna play it anyway when I get home.

I used to love her....ohhhhhhhh yeahhhhhhh........
 
Ridire said:
Actually, that is not how I play the A, but the same idea. Change your 2 and 3 finger, and that is how I do it. Why? Because it makes my index finger an "anchor" that makes it very easy for me to move to the D chord and the E chord (like a place holder on the 3rd string).
Click to expand...

She Talks To Angels is in an "open tuning". It's fun, and should be fairly easy to learn for you, since it doesn't actually have any chord shapes in it.

The open A Major is played many, many, many different ways. I play it 3 different ways myself actually.

On the electric I would say go for months. The acoustic, 2 weeks and they are trash. Trust me. Nylons, I don't even know how to change them! haha
 
oh, and full disclosure: I play electric, (don't even have an acoustic) not with a lot of gain, but I do like distortion, which covers up my lack of ability rather well ;)

if I'm not using distortion, I'm playing arpeggios, picking individual notes out of a chord, so if I need to play one of those tricky buzzing strings, I can adjust my finger position to let that one ring out at the expense of other strings I'm not playing at that time

with settings on my compressor and overdrive pedals, I can vary the amount of distortion from super clean to heavy distort just by playing dynamics and volume knob
 
Ridire said:
So, this might be contributing to the "rattle and hum" I'm experiencing? I've never changed the strings. Something else to learn. Thank God for Youtube...
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It might be a little. When you get the new set on you'll know what I mean when I say there's nothing like a new set of strings.

I will do you a solid and make a video with some string changing tips.
 
Changing the strings on an acoustic will make a big difference for you, for the better. Sound will improve dramatically, and you'll sound like a rock star overnight. Pretty much. ;)

Regarding the muting of strings and whatnot, I spent a lot of time this past winter working on being sure that I was only hitting the bottom four strings on D and F chords, and the bottom five strings on A, C, etc. I practiced this by doing songs where I'd pick the top string, then strum down twice; gives it a good, solid, discernible bass note for each chord AND helped me get a better feel for where the strings were.

But when I'm just strumming away, I'll usually mute the 6th string on C, A, etc etc etc out of habit now. It works well in case I'm strumming hard and/or am hooked up to an amp.

Now, there was also mention of hitting the wrong strings and it sounding horrible. About two weeks ago I recorded myself and my sister (she's an amazing singer and uke player) on a pretty nice quality microphone. I'd never heard myself play before; I couldn't believe how good it sounded. In my head, I wasn't perfect and there were a few off-sounds, but on the recording I didn't notice it. And it was very good quality.

Ultimately though, my point is we can be perfectionists sometimes (which I think is good for improvement), but when the music your producing doesn't necessarily sound perfect it's important to remember it could still sound very very good to everyone who doesn't know exactly what you are doing.
 
HarborTownBrewing said:
Changing the strings on an acoustic will make a big difference for you, for the better. Sound will improve dramatically, and you'll sound like a rock star overnight. Pretty much. ;)

Regarding the muting of strings and whatnot, I spent a lot of time this past winter working on being sure that I was only hitting the bottom four strings on D and F chords, and the bottom five strings on A, C, etc. I practiced this by doing songs where I'd pick the top string, then strum down twice; gives it a good, solid, discernible bass note for each chord AND helped me get a better feel for where the strings were.

But when I'm just strumming away, I'll usually mute the 6th string on C, A, etc etc etc out of habit now. It works well in case I'm strumming hard and/or am hooked up to an amp.

Now, there was also mention of hitting the wrong strings and it sounding horrible. About two weeks ago I recorded myself and my sister (she's an amazing singer and uke player) on a pretty nice quality microphone. I'd never heard myself play before; I couldn't believe how good it sounded. In my head, I wasn't perfect and there were a few off-sounds, but on the recording I didn't notice it. And it was very good quality.

Ultimately though, my point is we can be perfectionists sometimes (which I think is good for improvement), but when the music your producing doesn't necessarily sound perfect it's important to remember it could still sound very very good to everyone who doesn't know exactly what you are doing.
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I could have said it this well

Who am I kidding? No, I couldn't

That last part... doesn't sound like any other shared hobby, does it?
 
Strangely, I like the sound old strings can make. It's a far mellower sound than new strings. Warmer I guess you could say.

New strings feel better IMO though.

This reminds me I need to finally decide which pickup to buy for my electric and get it installed. I've looked several times, but can't decide which one to buy.

Then I can try out a set of .010s on it.
 
Homercidal said:
This reminds me I need to finally decide which pickup to buy for my electric and get it installed. I've looked several times, but can't decide which one to buy.

Then I can try out a set of .010s on it.
Click to expand...
Which pups you looking at? Single coil? Or humbucker?

What type of music do you play, what kind of guitar?
 

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