[Closed] Tell me about kids' guitars

So long as the action isn’t too high for her to fret properly, even a cheap one* should be fine.
*By cheap, I mean £75-100, or else try something in a shop, to see what she can manage, then see if a s/hand one can be obtained.

bullet mustang gets good reviews, 24" scale so short but not so short a full size one is a big jump when she's older. can be had for £100ish & has humbuckers for a death metal fix

7 year old typically got short concentration spans - no matter how special we all think our kids are. At 7 its 98.9% certain to get chucked under the bed within 60 minutes of picking it up and realizing it doesn`t sound like it should ...

If you can play guitar yourself then you can ease them into it by allowing them to pick a few strings on yours whilst you share the sofa to put a tune together to encourage them

but .. an easier introduction to learning guitar is a ukulele ... smaller, and less strings help lots.

Uke

Can she get lessons at school then rent one from local education authority music service?

We are renting that way and it's a very nice guitar to play (I'm told...)

That way you can also upsize as she grows easily if she keeps it up.

Bullet Mustang seconded. Great guitar.

I think this is because she loves the death metal cover of ‘Let it Go’ by Betraying the Martyrs

does not equal

a ukulele

😆

I've got an Ashton half size acoustic guitar if you are looking for second hand. Colour is the TP option in the link below (blueish/purpleish). Zero interest from my two in playing an instrument, so it's virtually unused.

Example

My eldest (7) wanted a guitar last xmas as he kept wanting to play mine and was addicted to School of Rock, we picked up a bargain of a vox amp and 3/4 scale strat copy off gumtree for peanuts as the sellers kid never played it. Whilst it was a great idea, and he loved dicking around with the phaser / pitch shifter etc modes on the amp, it wasn't until he had lessons at School (which required an acoustic...) that he really got a grip of what he was doing.
Like moonman said, their attention span is tiny, so dont worry if its covered in clothes in a months time.
Watching him play smoke on the water at the xmas concert (\m/) was pretty cool though.

I have two kids acoustic guitars squirreled away (ex school tuition ones that I was gifted but my girls are now focused on singing, piano and flute so they don't get used). If you are ever passing Harrogate you are welcome to them. (I think one may need a bit of attention).

My son (6) has had a small one for a few weeks from Aldi (but bought years ago so not sure if currently available). He uses it like a 6-yr old would. It goes out of tune very quickly, probably because he's mostly interested in the twiddling the pegs.

I think this is because she loves the death metal cover of ‘Let it Go’ by Betraying the Martyrs

does not equal

a ukulele

Exactly 🙂 We have a ukulele, my eldest was playing one at school so we thought we'd try it. I've played it more than they have. I am well aware of the brevity of her attention span, but my reasoning is that if we don't buy them then they'll never have the opportunity. Electric guitars are what inspire her, so if we get something else then it's less likely to. She won't see it as a stepping stone even if it is.

She loves music in general, so I'm trying to talk her through tracks we like listening to, explaining about chords and base lines and so on. Hopefully it sinks in and will focus her mind a bit.

I'll check out the local classified type places see what's around.

I have a (modified) Bullet Mustang as my only guitar and love it but it is not a kids size guitar.

I played a 3/4 Squier strat in a shop and it was good (£100 though), even do pink so you can condition your daughter (or maybe put a Feminist don't wear pink sticker on it)

My lad can play. He's been learning for a couple of years now on a 3/4 accoustic with school and is part of the local Music Centre guitar ensamble.

I got him an electric (Washburn WIN14) second hand from the local instrument shop for £50 including a warranty and a 50W Marshall Amp kindly donated by a fellow STWer. Whilst he'll play the electric he is much happier with the accoustic as, whilst it is only a bit smaller, it is a lot lighter and he's quite a big strong lad.

He does like to try and blow out the windows every now and again though!

Of course you know your 7 year old much better than I could ever. Although a typical 7 year old will get bored with something that requires their attention for too long, and something that does not give quick returns on that attention. Sat on your lap listening to you yacking on about whatever is probably more enjoyable for her than whatever your going on about .. the great things about 7 year olds is that they love spending time with you.

And as for never having the opportunity to do so again ... she is 7 you said!

My son started guitar lessons at about age 11; he won my boroughs Young Contemporary Musician of the Year competition within 2 years of picking up the guitar, so has/had some considerable musical ability there ... although at 7 it was well hidden and reluctant to show itself some.

Getting a 7 year old sat comfortably with a guitar will inevitably be a challenge and probably a chore in no time for them; a ukulele is easily picked up, positioned and learned to knock out a tune or two to keep interest. You will probably be surprised to hear what you can knock out on a ukulele too .. youtube some.

Maybe a question here is who wants your 7 year old to learn to play guitar the most; you or your daughter?

We bought my 9 year old daughter a 3/4 size Squier strat for Xmas (looks great in red and white).
She can allready read music and plays cello in a junior orchestra but we noticed that she was often on youtube learning rock songs on her uke. We now get youtube up on the TV in the front room and both learn tunes together on the guitar. It's fun and she asks to do it
The Squier was about £100 but well made and plays well.

Maybe a question here is who wants your 7 year old to learn to play guitar the most; you or your daughter?

I knew that would come up. I dunno what in my posting history suggests I'm insensitive and don't think things through... 🙂

I would rather she played the keyboard tbh as it's much easier for little fingers with less strength and co-ordination, and it also teaches you about the scale, but she isn't interested. Electric guitar is the only thing she says she wants. We have a uke as I said but that holds no interest. Of course if we bought an electric she's likely to also get bored, but it's all about planting seeds and providing opportunities at this stage. Electric guitars are also easy to practice in near silence which is key for her as she's very shy.

^ this, but with bass..... my youngest has the role of Katie in the school production of School of Rock and had to learn enough to play that part, but then i picked up the bass she'd been loaned by the school, and now we're learning together. Mainly 'iconic' bass lines, as opposed to proper learning but I'm now thinking of subscribing to the Fender play program and doing it properly

I bought 'her' an Ibanez for Christmas - so that even when the school one goes back we'll have one between us but already we're having a lot of fun playing together so I'm on the look out for another (stealth want ad....maybe)  We aren't any good (yet), but I also picked up a Fender Rumble 15 in the package from the LGS so what we lack in talent we can make up for in volume......

talk to a local guitar repair tech, he will have some tips on what to get and (more importantly) what to avoid

I got my son a squire 3/4 strat from ebay last year for xmas when he was 7. He couldn't play my 335 copy as he couldn't get his arm around the body.

the squire was 55 quid from ebay and is metallic gold. it's bloody lovely, great tone through my valve amp as well.

so my son had 6 months of lessons but stopped practicing and lost interest. Guitar started gathering dust (just like his dad's).

Then in November his school were doing a musical evening and he's in the uke orchestra but wanted to do a solo piece on his guitar, teachers agreed and as it was one of the other pupils birthday's he learnt happy birthday. Practiced every day for 4 weeks straight, then on the night absolutely nailed it. Huge round of applause and the room got a little dusty.

Now he's planning next year's solo piece (currently wants to do Blue Orchid with his friend who plays drums).

Anyway, the moral of my story is, give them something to focus on and they will work at it despite the short attention span. oh , and watching your kids perform is awesome.

I bought my daughter a 3/4 sized Fender acoustic for her birthday back in May, i think it was about £85 (certainly under £100) - she's having lessons at School and it is starting to make sense.

She's asked for a an electric-acoustic for this years birthday but think i'll discuss with her guitar teacher first as don't want to get it wrong.

I played a 3/4 Squier Strat in a shop for amusement. It played really well, the salesman found my efforts amusing so plugged me in, and it sounded remarkably Strat. Don't be surprised if you find yourself playing it, Molgrips.

My son is 7 - but on acoustic (he want's an electric mind). I got a Stagg for £40 just before they finished for Christmas which is much better than the even cheaper one he had previously. He is on a 1/2 size though, and I would seriously suggest looking for something of that diminutive size rather than a 3/4. The latter will just make life harder and potentially put them off.

I guess the electric version is probably this:

https://www.richtonemusic.co.uk/product/-_junior_s_electric_guitar/?gclid=Cj0KCQiApbzhBRDKARIsAIvZue8dr9tWsn7LRxazehmMHRDZUNTU8gvDwzAThEODYqjz1IgR_cckIQgaAoYtEALw_wcB