I Just Bought My First Guitar and Amp Today!

[Tycho]

Now I'm really going to rock! Yeah, my music teacher went with me to Guitar Center to look at Fenders. What we wanted they didn't have in stock, but they have a house brand they're pushing, Laguna, which my coach and I both played and felt right. I'm allowed to return it for the Fender I was looking at before if for any reason I'm not satisfied with the Laguna, but it seems like a really good guitar. I got a 15 watt amp with it, cord, strap, extra strings, and a portable amp that I can use with batteries if I want to practice out by the pool or something.

I'm going to start learning Queensryche's chords tomorrow.

I Am I, baby! Heading for Promised Land.

[mabudonicus]

Ahhh, always awesome when you become truly electric eh??

Totally unfamiliar with the Laguna brand (most of my friends play semi-vintage axes, the one I play is almost as old as me) but if a guitar teacher says it's good it should be fine- the trade-back feature is a total bonus too.

I hope to see some youtube videos of you rockin out once you're comfortable enough with your technique to play for audiences!!

What brand of amp did you get??

Any pedals or such yet, either on your wish list or otherwise future possibility-wise?
Iso&Baws&topes

With the right amp you don't really need pedals tho to play QueensRyche stuff I'd think you might need a couple FX

[Tycho]

I hope to see some youtube videos of you rockin out once you're comfortable enough with your technique to play for audiences!!

Yeah, but I'll need plastic surgery first, because if I go on YouTube now, I'll appear like a dork even before I strum my first chord. Then again, I could wear my pirate disguise.

What brand of amp did you get??

Line 6, Spider III 15 - that's what it says on the box. It has a lot of pre-set effects for phaser (that sounds cool!), flange, echo, reverb, and you can play the distortion for metal, clean, and other settings I probably won't use right now. Actually the guitar sounds really good just playing it clean.

I'm figuring out Metallica's "Nothing Else Matters" and I want to learn Queensryche of course (Eyes of a Stranger and The Hands are on the top of my list). Fade to Black is also essential Metallica for a beginner to know.

Any pedals or such yet, either on your wish list or otherwise future possibility-wise?

Yeah, I think so. I looked at them with my guitar coach, but he said I won't need them yet. He prefers separate pedals, too - not the factory set boxes with 3-6 switches on them. He plays professionally and says he likes to match that stuff on his own and he'll teach me how. He's met Queensryche and likes them, too. He's played with guys that backed up Don Dokken.

I was with Michelle (my friend and nurse who I was in the Star Wars Insider with) when we met him when we were actually buying a few extra copies of that magazine (Star Wars). George (and no, not George Lynch) actually loves Star Wars and John Williams' music. He took me with him and his girlfriend to watch a John Williams concert in San Diego last night. I will soon learn how to play Darth Vader's theme on the electric guitar. (I saw Metallica do this - the whole band) live in a concert here (Re-Load Tour) a few years ago. Of course it sounds like the grunge version of Mecco (the Star Wars disco stuff). But you put Vader's tune to drums, and you can't avoid that, so "dance like an Ewok!"

With the right amp you don't really need pedals tho to play QueensRyche stuff I'd think you might need a couple FX.

Yup. My amp has a lot of buttons and switches on it. I don't know what all of them do yet, but each has a feature with which I can disturb my neighbors!

(I'm very respectful and turn it way down or don't even use the amp late at night - but I'm sure they can still here me playing Nintendo baseball, though).

[LTBasker]

Cool, have fun getting your rock on! Personally I'd go with learning Unforgiven, but Nothing Else Matters is good stuff too.

Yeah, but I'll need plastic surgery first, because if I go on YouTube now, I'll appear like a dork even before I strum my first chord. Then again, I could wear my pirate disguise.

It's youtube not beautube, you're supposed to look like a dork!

[JimJamBonds]

Does your amp go up to 11?

[Tycho]

Does your amp go up to 11?

Yes. That's the "Irritate Neighbors Setting." But seriously, I am answering "yes." I think it goes up 1 higher, actually.

I'm new to all this. So what does that mean?

[Blue2th]

That's good news Tycho! Lots of fun those guiters.

[figrin bran]

Awesome news Tycho!

[Tycho]

I learned to play (the basic riffs not the complete songs)

Black Sabbath - Iron Man

and

Queensryche - Silent Lucidity

My coach showed me those would be easy for me to practice with, and then build upon, as I'd never picked up a guitar before - ever!

I play pretty darn slow, but it's the first time.

[Mr. JabbaJohnL]

Nice going! I dink around with a classical guitar every now and then. If you want to take the easy way out and look up the chords or tabs online (like I do), then I suggest ultimate-guitar.com. Sometimes they're off, but other users rate the transcriptions, so you can kind of see what's accurate and what's not.