Recommendations for Electric Guitar for 7-year-old

[djmcconnell]

Our nephew turns 7 next month and has expressed some serious and ongoing interest in playing guitar (he digs the electric, but acoustic is an option, particularly if the group has some wisdom to share on this.).

I'd appreciate input from those who've been through this with the little ones about the right kind of guitar to start someone out on (i.e., scaled down model, women's model, full sized, etc.)

We don't have a lot of money to drop down for this, so input on pricing

[stingx]

For $109 you simply cannot beat this deal from Rondo:

http://www.rondomusic.com/sst5734vwhpack.html

http://www.rondomusic.net/photos/electric/sst5734vwh5.jpg

Perfect for small hands and extremely easy on the wallet. I wish my first guitar was even close to this one. :thwap:

Even comes with all the goodies, including the amp!

http://www.rondomusic.net/photos/electric/sst5734vwhpack1.jpg

[just strum]

I would say that is a good recommendation. A nice price and it's not a toy. Although I don't know anything about that specific guitar, people have good things to say about the items they purchase from Rondo.

You will be spending a small amount on something that won't discourage your nephew from playing and practicing.:AOK:

[djmcconnell]

Nice little package price. Same amp sells at Amazon for about $60 bucks and the guitar sells at Rondo for about $90, so a really good value.

I think we'll probably jump on that.

[t_ross33]

If you can talk him into it, you may want to start him out on a small scale acoustic. It will help him learn better fundamentals and develop hand and finger strength. Not as sexy as electric, but electrics are easier to "cheat" on. Distortion and power chords hide a lot of sloppy playing. Trust me, I use it often :D

That being said, the Rondo deal would be my recommendation. As JS mentioned, it's not a toy. The one thing I tell parents/adults when buying instruments for kids is to invest the few extra dollars - it's worth it. I've seen too many kids get frustrated, discouraged and lose interest because they just can't make their cheap "toy" guitar sound anything like what they expect (if it can even stay in tune).

Trev

[just strum]

Trev makes a good point about the acoustic guitar. I had many people tell me to start out acoustic. I eventually moved to acoustic after about a month or two of electric, but I was drawn by the sound. Once I moved back to electric I think there was some benefit from the time playing the acoustic.

Another thing to keep in mind, I would set up lessons. I see these young kids where I take lessons and they amaze me. In the hands of the right instructor, there are no limits to what they seem to achieve.

Bottom line is - get the instrument that will hold their interest, because in the beginning that is the biggest hurdle - no toy guitar and if you get the electric, don't install the whammy bar - let him focus on learning to play and not making "cool" noise.

[sunvalleylaw]

For a smaller scale acoustic, my son went with a S-101 that is quite nice. 3/4 scale, nice sunburst top. I think Samick makes them.

[tjcurtin1]

I don't know about anyone else's thoughts or experiences here but here's my2 cents worth:

Guitar is a pretty challenging instrument for a child of 7; they generally (I'm not talking about the rare prodigy here) don't have the fine motor skills development, coordination or muscular strength necessary, so it's likely to end up a short-lived experience of frustration, with the guitar ending up in the closet or being yard-sale'd. Also, I don't think that an electric instrument is a great idea for little kids; call me old-fashioned, but I think that the experience of the unmediated sound of an acoustic instrument is healthiest for young kids. I also think that most children this age are not ready to sit down and take lessons; again, there are exceptions. I'd try to find a decent small acoustic for him to borrow and try out, if he truly seems determined, and take it from there. If he is truly musical and wants to play something, I'd recommend the recorder (end-blown flute); I've seen young kids take great pleasure in this relatively-easy-to-learn instrument, and become quite good at it. It gives them a taste of playing an instrument and at doing so successfully, which can create the impetus to tackle more challenging instruments as they get older.

[stingx]

I don't know about anyone else's thoughts or experiences here but here's my2 cents worth:

Guitar is a pretty challenging instrument for a child of 7; they generally (I'm not talking about the rare prodigy here) don't have the fine motor skills development, coordination or muscular strength necessary, so it's likely to end up a short-lived experience of frustration, with the guitar ending up in the closet or being yard-sale'd. Also, I don't think that an electric instrument is a great idea for little kids; call me old-fashioned, but I think that the experience of the unmediated sound of an acoustic instrument is healthiest for young kids. I also think that most children this age are not ready to sit down and take lessons; again, there are exceptions. I'd try to find a decent small acoustic for him to borrow and try out, if he truly seems determined, and take it from there. If he is truly musical and wants to play something, I'd recommend the recorder (end-blown flute); I've seen young kids take great pleasure in this relatively-easy-to-learn instrument, and become quite good at it. It gives them a taste of playing an instrument and at doing so successfully, which can create the impetus to tackle more challenging instruments as they get older.

Good point but, drawing from my experience and similar experiences of friends who grew up in musical households, I would always pick up ANY guitar that was lying around. I had older friends of the family that were very supportive and helpful and enjoyed showing me how play things on the guitar - they were quite patient. I don't know how it is in grade school now but when I was there you took a music class every year and I got hooked on cornet. I was playing in the school band since the 3rd grade and would play all the graduation ceremonies, etc. Music is music and notes are notes, once you learn music it is very easy to figure out how to play another instrument and make music on it. From cornet I had a brief fascination with the keyboard and then I got hooked on guitar. Did I stop for a bit, sure - kids are kids, but the love of music was there as was the foundation of music learned from a young age. So, based on this, I would never deprive a child who wants to play because of age or my thinking that he may not pursue it. Kids are like sponges and it's unreal what they can absorb that an adult would take much longer to. That guitar I posted a link to would set you back one night of a few drinks in a bar, maybe the movies with snacks, etc. For that price I think it is money well spent if it could spark even the smallest flame in a child and get them away from a gaming console and actually inspire them to do something worthwhile that will last them a lifetime.

[sunvalleylaw]

My son started at 8 and 1/2 and is nearly two years into it now. He started with his 3/4 S-101 acoustic, which he still picks up and plays. He switched instructors recently and takes his Fullerton electric most times now. I think the change re-invigorated him, both change in instructor and in playing electric. He still likes his acoustic, and at home plays that maybe even more often than the electric. His electric is full size, and he is now 10, so it is a bit big.

[tjcurtin1]

but the love of music was there as was the foundation of music learned from a young age. So, based on this, I would never deprive a child who wants to play because of age or my thinking that he may not pursue it. Kids are like sponges and it's unreal what they can absorb that an adult would take much longer to. That guitar I posted a link to would set you back one night of a few drinks in a bar, maybe the movies with snacks, etc. For that price I think it is money well spent if it could spark even the smallest flame in a child and get them away from a gaming console and actually inspire them to do something worthwhile that will last them a lifetime.

Absolutely agreed! Encouragement of musical inclinations is one of the best gifts you can give a child - so much more rewarding and healthy than the aforementioned game console and perhaps second only to playing outdoors. I only meant to suggest that, at that very early age (pre-7), something more manageable might generate a more gratifying success, leading to bigger/different musical adventures as the child grows up.

[djmcconnell]

Thanks for all the thoughts and recommendations. I'm more of an acoustic guy, so that recommendation resonates with me (pun intended), but since he always jumps right to the electric at our house, we're of the mind that might engage him more at present.

If he stays interested, we'll have to fix him up with an acoustic (or even my old nylon string that no one touches anymore).