Before you buy, free tuner, basic chords, changing strings.

What to look out for before you buy your Guitar!

I want to keep this short and sweet and packed with great information, so I’ve put together a video here for you to look at:

Go here: What to look for


Now you will know what to look out for, before you buy!






How to tune the thing:
To make life easier I have a link to a free desktop Guitar tuner!

Go here: Download Tuner

Download the tuner and have a bit of fun with it. (Turn your speakers on! J)
The notes of each string are E. A. D. G. B. E

Start by tuning the bass E string (the fat one) using the tuner or pitch pipes. Gently turn the tuning key (machine head) to the left or right until the string sound matches the note on the tuner or pitch pipe, loosening the string will lower the note, tightening the string will raise the note. When this string is in tune repeat the process through the other strings, when all are tuned you are now at concert pitch and are ready to play.



How to play the basic open end chords, OOPS! This bit you might need some help with so

Go Here: The Basic Chords



Sling in a few minors and 7ths and your on your way!


Restringing A Guitar

It is important for all guitarists to know how to restring a guitar. Properly maintaining a guitar is vital, part of this is regularly changing the guitar strings. You can get this done professionally but it’s not difficult to change a set of guitar strings yourself.

The first thing you need to think about is what new strings you will be putting on your guitar. There is a wide variety of different strings available and it’s important to select the best set to suit your guitar.

The first step to changing your guitar strings on either an acoustic guitar or an electric guitar is to remove the old strings. This is a pretty simple procedure that will not take long. Simply turn the tuning key / machine head until the string starts to loosen.

After a few turns the string will go slack and you will be able to unwind the string and remove it from the guitar. You may need to take the pin out that holds the bottom of the string in place at the bridge of the guitar, this usually only applies to some acoustic guitars.

Simply repeat this with all six stings. It is best to take them off one at a time or you will end up with a tangled birds nest of strings! Take a note of how the string was fitted at the bridge, some strings come through the back of the body of the guitar, some are held in by pegs and some will go through a small hole in the steel section behind the bridge. If you have a floating bridge (usually on expensive electric guitars) you might need advice from me personally as this can be daunting if you don’t know how to do it!

Some Examples of strings through the bridge! The white guitar has strings that go through from the back of the body, the black guitar has strings that go through the back of the bridge, this is also the type of bridge that may have the peg fixings. The blue guitar has the daddy of all bridges, this is a floating bridge! Do NOT attempt to restring this one unless you know what you are doing!! Just email me and I'll take you through it.

The next step is to start adding the new strings.

Most people start with the low E and work their way down, however some prefer to start on the high E, there is no right or wrong way when it comes to doing this. Take your first string and thread it though the body of the guitar, or the hole in the steel that you took the string out of, if you have pegs take the ball end of the string over the bridge and then secure the end in the hole using the little pin. Push the peg in firmly taking the ball end into the guitar and then make sure it is not going to pop out soon as your start tightening the string.

Now run the string up the neck of your guitar and make sure it goes into the groove in the nut at the top of the neck. Now thread the top of the string through the hole in the tuning key / machine head and pull it tight. Now bend the string back on itself as much as possible, this will prevent the string from slipping when you tighten it. Now start to turn the tuning key in an anticlockwise direction, this will start to coil the string round and tighten it. It’s wise to keep some pressure on the peg at the bottom of your guitar to make sure this does not pop out.

If you have a guitar with 3 tuners on the top and 3 on the bottom, the bottom 3 tuners are turned in a clockwise direction

As you turn the tuning key the string will start to tighten up. As it does it will slip a few times, this is normal so don’t worry about it. Keep on tightening the string until it gets somewhere near to the correct note as indicated on you tuner or pitch pipe. Don’t try tune the string correctly at this point as new strings tend to stretch a great deal over the first few minutes so it will instantly go out of tune, don't worry is is normal for this to happen. It’s a good idea to pluck the string a few times just to stretch it out a little, however be careful on the lighter strings not to really over tighten them as you may snap them, be guide by your tuner or pitch pipes.

When you have added your first sting it’s simply time to repeat the process with the other strings. Take your time with this and when you get to the high E string make sure you don’t tighten it too fast as this could lead to it snapping. When you have got all the string in place and you have them all reasonably tight, you can then get some wire cutters and snip the ends of the string off. This is not essential but it does make the guitar look far neater.

Finally

When all the strings are in place and you have made sure all the pins at the bottom of your guitar are firmly in place (if you have them) it is now time to tune your guitar again, you may need to do this several times but the strings will settle down.

Your guitar really can make a wonderful sound. However, even the very best guitar can start to sound old and tired if the strings are not changed on a regular basis. It’s therefore important you learn how to restring your guitar and make sure you change guitar stings on a regular basis.

Lets look at the open end chords up close and personal!

You can get all these chord shapes in book form from almost anywhere so I thought "a picture paints a thousand word" so these photos are what the Chords actually look like when you play them!

In any book A is shown as played with your fingers in a straight line, hey I gotta tell you this is not possible!!!

So this is what your fingers will look like when you are playing!




Lets look at the open end chords up close and personal!



You don't play the strings marked with an X

In the Chord A you don't play the bass E string as you strum!










Again in B7 you don't play the bass E string


I chose B7 as it is a full rich chord and easier to play in this position of the Guitar
















You can have a good thrash at this one!
Use all the strings
















In this Chord D you don't play the top 2 strings,
nice Chord this one, easy to play and rich in tone!
Get me getting all airy fairy!













This one E is a real rocker!!

Note the natural position of the little finger, this will come in to play later! (excuse the pun!)














In the Chord F you don't play the bass E string!















You can play all the strings in the Chord G
















This is the same Chord G as above now if you can master this fingering method then great! It is harder but may help you when you progress and get to mastering how to change chord shapes while playing in time to the beat!

Oh yeah that's still to come!

Is Your Guitar A Dud or a Babe, Take the Video Test!

Is your Guitar a Dud or a Babe, take the video test and see! Just pause the video to check your Guitar! If you come across a problem with your Guitar just email me bprsawford@aol.com and I will give you my FREE advice as to what can be done to help rectify the problem, most problems are easily solved my friend, so don't worry!


Video Test!


See this on Youtube Click Here!

A Few Freebies for you!

I have chosen this desktop tuner as it is easy to download and the site is not covered in ads and crap!

Download Desktop Guitar Tuner Here!
Just go to the site click on download, this will be sent to you in a zip file direct to your desktop screen. Open the zip file as requested and allow file to be accepted, then a box will appear showing "set up" just click yes to every thing prompted, the tuner will then appear ready to use! You will see you can use it for all Guitar types. Be sure to have your speakers turned on!

Just close it all down when you have finished. Next go to your start menu and open "all programs", you will see a new title "GCH Guitar Academy" move your mouse over it and highlight "Guitar Tuner" right click on this and scroll down to "send to" and double right click on "desktop short cut", its now on your desktop ready to use whenever you need it! Cool!

Play Guitar today the E-Book Vol 1 Mastering the Basics

Watch the Videos below for an overview of my new E-Book!

"Play Guitar Today"

Volume 1: Mastering the Basics.

Part 1




Part 2




Part 3





Part 4




Guys I need some testimonials so Email me bprsawford@aol.com and I will send the first few of you a FREE copy of my E book so you can give me some feedback and possibly a testimonial.

Tell your friends about my blog and lets start getting a question and answer session going! I will help you in anyway I can!

I need the questions you need answers to! Please Guys feel free to add a question or an answer in the comments section to any of the queries raised, as one of the super stores motto goes: Every little helps! I want this to be an open interactive Blog so get involved!


See what happens when you ignore my advice on "Checking your Guitar" does he have a:

Dud or a Babe

Click on the links and let me Know

This looks like a Dud but sounds like a Babe

Getting your first Guitar or just checking your existing Guitar

Hi Guys,
Just starting my new Blog and I thought I would start with what to check when you are about to buy your first Guitar, some things you must watch out for! If you already have a Guitar do the check anyway and if you find a problem I will try and advise you as to how this can be remedied.

So do you have a Dud or a Babe!


Lets start by looking at the Guitar as a whole. ( *Left handed Guitarist just change left hand for right hand for the same result!)

Firstly, when choosing your Guitar, Acoustic or Electric, the neck of the Guitar should feel comfortable in your Chord hand (left hand). I prefer a thin but rounded back to the neck, others prefer a wider flatter neck, it's up to you!

So with that done lets look at what to check: Using layman's terms.

This applies to new and secondhand Guitars.


1: Are the tuning keys at the head of the Guitar loose or wobbly, are the covers at the back secured properly?
Are the strings all wound on the same way (clockwise) as you look down on them? (clockwise then anti-clockwise if your Guitar has 3 keys at the top and 3 at the bottom).
2: Are there any rough edges to the fret board (the face of the Guitar neck with the dots on it) as you run your hand down it? Cup your left hand round the neck and gently move it down the neck, you should feel a slight ridge as you pass each metal bar (fret) but it should not feel rough.


3: Do the strings all pass neatly and evenly spaced through the Nut (the white bit shown at the head of this Guitar in the photo) and is the Nut fixed seamlessly to the Guitar?

4: Is the back of the neck free from cracks or splits to the finish or to the neck itself? Also check there is no repair where the head of the Guitar might have been refitted at some point!

5: Is the front of the neck (Fretboard) badly worn or are any of the frets (metal bars) worn or uneven, this should be easy to spot if you look down from the neck and cast you eye over each Fret!

6: Tune the Guitar or get someone to tune it for you, then as you play a string open (without any fingers on it) listen to the note and then place your index (1st) finger on the double dot or 12th fret of that string ( you can see the double dot fret in the photo above) and the tone (sound of the string) should sound the same note but just a little higher in tone.
This is called an octave. Do this on each string if all is ok move on! If not see the how this might be able to be resolved later in this posting!

7: Are all the strings set out correctly at the Bridge (white bit shown at bottom of Guitar in the photo above) and are they all fitted neatly and correctly to the body of the Guitar, if they look untidy or worn chances are the are not!

8: Is the Bridge and string mounting area fixed correctly to the Guitar? Look out for repair work or surplus adhesive.

9: At the base of the Guitar you should have a stud for fixing a strap, most Guitars have a second stud on the top edge of the body or at the top of the neck for the the 2nd fixing for your strap.

10: Is the general body of the Guitar free from cracks and splits to the front, side and back?

Hows that for a start!!!! You mean there's more? Oh Yes!


Now this is very important!
You can see from this shot that I am looking down on the Guitar neck, what I am looking for is an even tapering gap between the strings and the neck all the way down from the Bridge to the Nut of the Guitar, when you have checked from the top as shown here turn the Guitar right over and check the same from the bottom edge of the neck.
Next hold the Guitar as if you were holding a rifle and look along the neck using the top string (big one) as a sight line, this with show any slight warps in the neck! Repeat the process by turning over the Guitar and using the bottom string (thin one) as your sight line.
Hope all is well so far!

You mean there's more?


Oh S**T! What now!

I could start a whole post on this Guitar alone, so I am going to keep to basics!
All of the above information applies here but here is some extra advice.

You need to have an Electric Guitar amplified to test these bits!

Turn the amp on and put in your jack lead so you can hear the sound from the Guitar, turn the amp about half way up! (no you are not going to play it yet!).

Turn all the knobs on you Guitar to full gain or all the way forward. You should now have volume on the Guitar.
If you have a selector switch shown here as the white knob, Flip the selector to each of its settings, you should feel a click as you get to each one, there should be no noise coming from this switch as it moves through the selection process, if there is I will come back to this at the end of the post!

Next turn each knob on the Guitar backwards and forwards, this should also be a silent movement!

Next return volume knob to full on, now as you move the selector switch through each setting gently tap each pick (shown under strings in photo above) this will serve two purposes 1: which pick up is selected by the selector switch setting and 2: that all the pick ups are working.
* On the Guitar above as I move the selector pick up 1 works then in the next setting pick ups 1 and 2 work. Next just 2 then 2 and 3 then just 3, so at some point one or two pick ups may not not be selected so will not sound when tapped!

Nearly done!

I am not going into how to set up a Bridge like the one shown as this is a lesson on its own.

Just to add if you have a tremolo arm (or whammy bar is most metal Guitarists call it! Flashy gits!) you need to check that it is set in such a way that it should be ready to move into or away from the Guitar smoothly and easily and resets its self back to the same position each time!
You will find the the cheaper range of tremolo arm may take you strings out of tune after a short while, this is not unusual and in most cases you can upgrade the set up if you find you use it a lot!

If you do upgrade your tremolo arm I suggest you get it done back at the shop or by a Guitar technician!

Heck now we are done!

Answers please! Do you have a Dud or a Babe? Hope you all have a Babe!

If you have found a problem with your Guitar from what I have shown you, you should take it back to the shop and get the things rectified by them, most of the first section are fairly easy to resolve, in answer to the section on the 12th fret (Octave) if this sounds out it could just mean an adjustment of the set up of the Bridge, take it to the shop and get them to do it, in most cases this can be done in minutes while you wait! Why is it important, well now matter how well you tune your Guitar as you start to play further up the neck it will always sound slightly out of tune!

If Your Fretboard has rough edges, is warped or badly worn take it back to where you got it and see if you can get them to repair it free of charge as the Guitar ( unless explained to you when you purchased it) may have be sold to you "Not fit for the purpose" Any problems E-mail me and I will see if I can help!

On the Electric Guitar set up, if you have crackles or strange sounds when using the selector or knobs this can usually be resolved by getting them all cleaned by a Qualified Guitar Technician! Do not spray clean them yourself as this can lead to more dirt building up and crating a bigger problem later on!

Hope you found that of interest!

Keep playing and enjoy the Guitar!