This is a full comprehensive guide for buying a guitar.  We will help you through the common mistakes, tips, and selection process.  Here at Northwest Guitars we have built the store on the success of the player, not the purchase.  This means we are invested in more then the first sale.  It is in our best interest that you become the best guitar player you can be.  This is why we have repairs, lessons, hand selected stock and shows/clinics.  So enough talk.  Lets start the guide!

Tips to Buying a Guitar

1. Buy a Quality Instrument:  This seems like a duh moment but the number 1 mistake people make in this industry is buying inexpensive low quality guitars online or from a big box store.  We are very brand conscious here in the U.S.  So they do "research" by looking into a brand they recognize then looking at reviews on that product but the people buying that model of guitars are the same level as you.  Experts aren't buying inexpensive guitars so why would knowledgeable people be leaving reviews on beginner guitars?  Another place is a random bias or sponsored guy on Youtube.  Lastly asking a friend who hasn't studied the industry to help shop for you.  Maybe your friend has a certain brand of guitar and that's what he knows so that is what he recommends. Guitars are not as simple as they look.  Anyone can put strings on a board but to make a guitar, all the fret placements must be perfectly precise.  The action of the strings need to be low enough to be easy to play but high enough to not get buzzing.  The fret ends need to be shaved, pick ups adjusted, intonation checked.  No one can do all that for $50.  Remember, a guitar that won't stay in tune is not an an instrument.   A good quality guitar will usually cost at least $200 and up. That is one that has the right pickups, setup correctly, feels right and looks right.  Quality can be tricky to spot but that's why you have us!  This is why "We select our own stock" is a big deal.  We did all this for you.   All this leads me to the next tip.
   
   
   
2. Get a Setup:  We want you to buy from our family store but if for some reason you buy somewhere else make sure its setup properly.  While you are learning you don't want to be fighting with the guitar.  A setup requires a tech or specialist.  Even if you get a decent guitar $200 and above, not all of them are setup right.  Because of the way our world does business everything under $1000 is made overseas. Here at our store, we pick the best at every price point and on top of that we do a $100-$80 setup.  This means any guitar you pick up here has been played by a knowledgeable guitar player who knows what to look for.  Its like having a best friend who's a guitar expert picking out the best guitars for you.
   
   
   
3. Get a Professional Teacher:  I made this mistake, my friends have made this mistake and I would be willing to bet you will make this mistake.  The internet is a great source of information but it doesn't replace a human correcting your body positions.  Think of it this way.  If you had to be in a fight, would you want to learn martial arts by reading a book or Youtube video or would you rather learn from a grand master?  In my personal experience there is 3 very important reasons for a teacher.  The first is fun.  A professional teacher has taught all kinds of different people with different musical tastes.  Not only will you progress faster but he will show you exciting content custom for you.  I can't wait to get to my lesson to see what music I can discover.  The next is responsibility.  We all like to think that we have the pure force of will to create a good habit but 99% of people I see don't practice on their own.  If you have a teach you know you are paying money but also he will know if you practice.  This will cause you to practice more often.  Lastly physical corrections.  I've seen so many people do chords wrong or develop bad habits that a teacher would have prevented.  Worst case; you hurt yourself.  I've seen people develop issues with their hand because they are forcing things they shouldn't.  This can lead to serious injury.  It sounds funny that learning guitar can do that but its just like learning to lift weights.  If you do things the wrong way you can have a serious issue.

Guitar Buy Guide 1: Quality

Guitar Buy Guide 2: Setup

​Guitar Buy Guide 3: Teacher

Read more on our blog.  Click here!

       Buying a guitar can be a daunting a process.  There are brand driven fanatics, beginners who are giving false information, and about a trillion brands and models.  This is where we saw a niche for our existence.  My father and brother started this store because they wanted to create a store that does all the hard work for you while making the experience fun.  You can support our store by getting a guitar here.  Where we hand select everything we carry, setup and give you a free lesson.  Big stores don't care if you are successful.  They care about the purchase.  We care about you becoming a guitar player.  We want you to get excited, practice, hang out here, come to our shows and create a life long hobbie.  Its good for you and its good for us.  The way business should be.

Selecting the Instrument

1. Acoustic or Electric:  Figure out the kind of sound you want.  To be perfectly honest most people don't have a clue what they want to play or the guitar that's right for them.  And honestly at that point just have our staff member pick something for you.  Its best to dive head first.  There is nothing wrong with figuring it out as you go.  However if you do have a vague idea of what you are interested in, its pretty easy to figure out if its acoustic style or electric.  Again our staff member can figure this out by asking some simple questions.
   
   
2. Price Point:  How much do you want to spend? 
   $1000 and up is American, Japanese or Canadian made guitars.  This is the highest quality you can get. 
   $700 - $900 is the best of the overseas options.  This is quality woods, great pick ups, great hardware just not put together with the time, knowledge and care that the premiere factories will put into the process.
   $500 - $600 This is the mid level guitars.  Still a very playable, nice guitar.  They have more colors, woods, styles then the inexpensive guitars but not as many options as the higher level guitars.
   $300 - $400  In this area you will see limited options.  What you see is what you get kind of guitars.  Solid tops generally start in at this price point and most pickups are generally generic factory brand.
   $150 - $200 This is bottom of the barrel.  This is where you need to be careful.  Quality can start to very drastically.  Expect very little options and all factory generic parts.  Its still very possible to find a good guitar in this range but sound quality is low.
   $100 and below.  If this is your price point I'm sorry to say but I HIGHLY recommend you just don't buy a guitar.  I know that sounds harsh but I'd rather you spend no money than buy a guitar that won't work.  The reason is you may get frustrated and just quit. Then it's harder to come back to the guitar after that bad experience.  If your budget is at this point I suggest keeping in touch with us on our used guitar stock or saving up.