Best Acoustic Guitar Buy

Posted on April 20th, 2011

There are quite a range of acoustic guitars for beginners, but the best acoustic guitar buy in my opinion, for a beginner, is a Valencia guitar.

These guitars just never fail to impress me, and i know i ramble on about them often, but i will continue to do so, as they are excellent value. Over the years, in my capacity as a volunteer guitar teacher within my community, i have always made sure i had a Valencia guitar on hand. I always use the nylon string guitar in these situations, as beginners find them a little less challenging, and easier to play.

Getting someone to play a few familiar notes quickly and easily is my approach when teaching, so as to encourage, inspire, and show a person that they can do it, and with some regular application, they will learn.
These guitars have really impressed me over the years with their reliablity, affordability, warm, full tone (for the price), and easy playability.

Valencia guitars have been around for many years, and i note that these days, there is also a range of steel, and nylon string guitars with pick ups onboard.
I will road test some of these guitars soon and report back to this site with my impressions.

I look forward to trying out the whole range of the amplified acoustics where possible, as it will be interesting to hear, and see, how Valencia make the transition from pure acoustic guitars, to guitars with pick-ups.
What will they sound like amplified? Well, you can be sure i will give them a good solid workout.

I will be interested to see what kind of pick-up configurations are used, pick-up placement, and type chosen, and how that responds to the particular guitar, its shape, and its wood.
Valencia have always made good, reliable guitars, at a very affordable price, so i am keen to see how and if, they take any shortcuts in the pick-up department.

Until next time, keep playing, and………..Break a string.

Brian

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged as: , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Best Beginners Valencia Acoustic Guitar Review

Posted on April 15th, 2011

Romance in a best beginners acoustic guitar review? Yep, you bet. I will also add passion, beauty, love, freedom, communication, language.

Music is a language, a beautiful and effective way to communicate. It is a language of love, of lust, desire, and great solace. It can inspire us to greater heights, and it can console us in times of need. Take the guitar. It is shaped like a woman, non? A goddess in our hands to be loved, caressed, respected, and always cherished. An instrument weilding such power and grace, that it can make us laugh, and make us cry. Look at the passion and tradition of Flamenco, the gut wrenching earthy stories of the Blues, the power of Heavy Metal music, the intensity of Bluegrass, or the gentle pluck of a nylon string classical guitar.

Let me lead you to a beginning. A starting point, from where you can take the first step. It doesn’t matter what age you are, where you are from, where you have been, or where you think you are going, you can play guitar. Yes, you can learn to play. Can you dedicate around 20 minutes per day to practice? If you can arrange your day so you have at least 20 minutes to practice, you are off to a good start. If you can dedicate even more time regularly, by which i mean daily, to practice, that is even better. It is important for you to understand that the best and quickest results are achieved by REGULAR daily practice.

Now, if you are so busy that you cannot schedule a regular 20 minutes or more practice into your day, dont worry, and dont be put off. Just pick up your guitar every day, even if just for a few minutes, and give it some attention and love. It will appreciate this, and love you back ten fold later on, believe me.

For a beginner, i recommend you start on a nylon string acoustic guitar, also commonly known as a classical guitar, or folk guitar. An excellent guitar to begin on would be any of the Valencia nylon string acoustic guitar range. They are a strong and reliable guitar that i have used for many years. I have one i donated to a youth community group 15 years ago, that is still going strong, and actually is sounding better than ever, despite a few scratches from expected wear and tear over those years. They hold their tuning well, and are easy and comfortable to play, giving a warm and full sound.

They are not expensive, very cheap comparatively, and an excellent and wise investment for the beginner guitarist. Some models come with an instructional DVD and gig bag. Get a hold of one now. Happy pluckin!

Let us take a moment to reflect on the tragedies that many have, and are enduring, that struck the planet in 2011. My condolences, and wishes of strength go out to all of those affected by the earthquakes, and resultant tsunamis in New Zealand, Japan, and elsewhere.

Brian.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged as: , , , , , | Leave a comment

Best Acoustic Guitar.

Posted on March 4th, 2011

 

Playing guitar is one of the great past times, hobbies, or professions, that we can get into. Playing your best acoustic guitar is a skill you will carry with you for the rest of your life, if you give yourself a chance, and give yourself the chance to learn.

I am going to talk about Valencia nylon string guitars in particular, as i have owned a few over the years. I love these guitars, and they are especially a great beginner guitar to start out on. They are strong, reliable, and have a full and warm sound. They are also in my opinion, the best value for money for an acoustic guitar on the market. The prices are very cheap. You can play the guitar straight out of the box, however, you will need to buy a guitar tuner, but these need not be expensive.

You can play for yourself, or play for your friends, your partner, your family. What a magical world it is! Music is magic, and it can soothe the soul, soothe the savage beast, make us smile, make us cry, gets us feeling happy or sad, reflective and motivated. Music is life, and it inspires!

I started out on Valencia nylon string beginner acoustic guitars all those years ago, and i still play one today. Why? Because they are solid, reliable, sound great, and they are cheap, plus, mine just keeps sounding better with age. (Like me!) You want to start with a nylon string guitar, which are also known as classical guitars, as the nylon strings are easier on the fingers for a beginner.

You will develop hardened fingertips after a little practice, which is what you are after. Your fingertips will toughen up, and they wont hurt at all eventually. Heres a description of Valencia guitars from the manufacturer.

Beautiful Spanish Guitar Styling, usually only found on guitars double this price! Standard Classical Guitar Setup: Bottom 3 strings are steel strings, top 3 are nylon strings. Classical style open tuners. Natowood fretboard and bridge. Elegant Basswood back and sides Ornate sound hole binding Instructional DVD included ! Overall length 36 1/2in. Width of the nut 1 11/16in. Scale length 23in. Weight 5 lbs. 

Heres what some customers have to say….

Overall, It was a fair price, and will provide my son with what he needs to get started with guitar.

I like the nylon strings on this. It stays in tune, sounds nice and seems to be very solidly constructed.

It comes with a bag. It is affordable. It has a very nice sound to it. It did take a while to tune it, but it has stayed in tune easier as we have had it a few months now. It really is the perfect size for my 7 year old.

You dont need to start with an expensive instrument. Valencia guitars, and i ve played many, are very comfortable to play, well made, cheap to buy, and sound excellent for a beginner guitar. May i suggest the Valencia Classical Kit 1 Black full size nylon string guitar, the Valencia VG-180CE Acoustic Electric nylon string guitar, or a great beginners guitar for a smaller person, the Valencia Classical Kit1 3/4 size nylon string guitar.

The construction is sturdy, solid, and sound, and i have one that i donated to a drop-in community centre about 15 years ago, that is still going strong, and yep, it has a couple of nicks and scratches now, but it still sounds great. In fact, like all wooden guitars and musical instruments, it just sounds better with age. The best acoustic guitar that I highly recommend, is a nylon string acoustic guitar for beginners, from kids to teenagers, adults to grandparents.

It doesnt matter one bit how old you are, it is never too late to buy a guitar and learn. So come on, and get started! 

The Valencia Classical Kit 1 3/4 Size Classical Acoustic Guitar is a great guitar to begin on.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged as: , , , , , | Leave a comment