Electric guitar for children ?

For guitars of the straight waisted variety (or reverse offset).
User avatar
frelonvert
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 1713
Joined: Thu May 13, 2010 1:21 am
Location: Toulouse, France.
Contact:

Electric guitar for children ?

Post by frelonvert » Sat Aug 01, 2015 4:15 pm

Hey, I am looking for advices.
I have two boys 6 and 4 and they are very curious about my guitars but they are way to big for them to have fun with.
So I was searching for a coll children electric guitar for them.
My goal is to teach them a little bit but most of all that they could envoy playing with it.
First, I have thound the mini squier strats:
Image
or
Image

I dream also on those so cool but rare Jazzmaster Champ japanese models:
Image

But may be a Loog would be the best for them:
Image

Any advices ?
Take care the skons is evrywhere !

User avatar
shinealight
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 319
Joined: Tue Nov 12, 2013 12:24 am
Location: Fucking, Austria

Re: Electric guitar for children ?

Post by shinealight » Sat Aug 01, 2015 5:06 pm

I think you've just answered your own question, they all seem like good options!

I kinda want a Loog of my own now, they look like a great thing to play around with for practicing triads + different tunings. And they even had a lucite model.....imagine having two little miniature ca. 1970 Keith Richardses at your house.....

User avatar
dc
Expat
Expat
Posts: 2319
Joined: Sun Oct 08, 2006 9:57 pm
Location: seattle

Re: Electric guitar for children ?

Post by dc » Sat Aug 01, 2015 5:15 pm

Gibson. :ph34r:
in the coldest night / huddled 'round the dying embers

User avatar
FightingPlankton
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 2090
Joined: Sun Oct 27, 2013 5:36 pm

Re: Electric guitar for children ?

Post by FightingPlankton » Sat Aug 01, 2015 5:27 pm

for quality to dollar... the mini strat is probably your best bet. I bought my kid(he's 1) a first act guitar just to get him interested, but plan on getting him a mini strat when he's 5. There was nothing more frustrating for me learning to play than being stuck w/ the cheapo 1st guitar i had with a horribly unplayable neck. I think if more parents bought their kids quality instruments in the beginning that are easier to play than the 6" diameter log necks the get...fewer kids would get discouraged and give up.

Now, i have played an ibanez mikro guitar, and while it is a shorter scale, it didnt seem like it'd be a good beginner guitar to me. That being said, i played their mini bass and thought it was actually REALLY good. Like, I almost wanted to buy it for myself. that and the Jag SS bass(as if jag bass wasnt short scale already ;). )
What is acoustic? Oh, you means a grandpa's guitars? A grandpa's guitars? That's for pussies and grandpas. I think you know it.

User avatar
noisepunk
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 16807
Joined: Sat Apr 03, 2010 5:55 pm
Location: glasgow, scotland
Contact:

Re: Electric guitar for children ?

Post by noisepunk » Sat Aug 01, 2015 9:04 pm

When I first started playing guitar, chords were pretty daunting, so I spent the first year or so playing approximations of songs I liked on only the low E string until it broke after which I would just move down to the A and so on...

It probably didn't sound very good, but I think keeping it simple and not worrying about correctness was what kept me from burning out on it like I did with the drums. And with that in mind, based on how my mind chose to approach the guitar, I think the Loog makes the most sense.
FightingPlankton wrote:for quality to dollar... the mini strat is probably your best bet. I bought my kid(he's 1) a first act guitar just to get him interested, but plan on getting him a mini strat when he's 5. There was nothing more frustrating for me learning to play than being stuck w/ the cheapo 1st guitar i had with a horribly unplayable neck. I think if more parents bought their kids quality instruments in the beginning that are easier to play than the 6" diameter log necks the get...fewer kids would get discouraged and give up.
They sound awful.

I don't know about anyone else, but the one thing that made me almost give up guitar when I was learning was how terrible (to me, at the time) my first guitar sounded. My second guitar also sounded awful, but it was a lot nicer sounding in comparison, and it came to me at just the right time to save me from throwing in the towel.

I have one of these mini stats (I got it because it's the same scale as a tenor guitar, which is how I have it tuned) and it is one of the least pleasing sounding things ever, not just guitars, not just musical instruments, all objects, this thing is in the top ten.
dc wrote:Gibson.
I can't tell if this is facetious or not, but I absolutely agree... with epiphone anyway, they have that mini V and mini LP they did for a while.

A shitty single coil is like having needles shoved into your ear canals- a shitty humbucker typically sounds muddy at it's worst which is frustrating my not painful.

User avatar
FightingPlankton
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 2090
Joined: Sun Oct 27, 2013 5:36 pm

Re: Electric guitar for children ?

Post by FightingPlankton » Sun Aug 02, 2015 12:28 am

noisepunk wrote:
FightingPlankton wrote:for quality to dollar... the mini strat is probably your best bet.
They sound awful.
I started playing when i was 14 and tone didnt even begin to enter my train of thought. I thought my Lotus LP copy and my Crate hybrid 2x12 sounded amazing...especially when i turned on my Danelectro FabTone distortion.

What i'm getting at, is...at a young age, i would take playability over tone. I mean, the majority of my non-musician friends cant tell the difference between a fender twin and a JC-120...so im pretty sure a 5-12 yr old isnt going to notice the crap tone of their mini strat.
What is acoustic? Oh, you means a grandpa's guitars? A grandpa's guitars? That's for pussies and grandpas. I think you know it.

User avatar
cbrown
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 1339
Joined: Sun Apr 07, 2013 12:53 pm
Location: Scotland

Re: Electric guitar for children ?

Post by cbrown » Sun Aug 02, 2015 1:39 am

I'm going to give my daughters (5&3) a Squier Duosonic later this year. They enjoy playing my guitars now but the 22.7" scale on the duosonic should be ok for them given their skill level and attention span.

Shell pink repaint and jaguar pickups because I just can't leave anything alone.

User avatar
noisepunk
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 16807
Joined: Sat Apr 03, 2010 5:55 pm
Location: glasgow, scotland
Contact:

Re: Electric guitar for children ?

Post by noisepunk » Sun Aug 02, 2015 6:00 am

FightingPlankton wrote:
noisepunk wrote:
FightingPlankton wrote:for quality to dollar... the mini strat is probably your best bet.
They sound awful.
I started playing when i was 14 and tone didnt even begin to enter my train of thought. I thought my Lotus LP copy and my Crate hybrid 2x12 sounded amazing...especially when i turned on my Danelectro FabTone distortion.

What i'm getting at, is...at a young age, i would take playability over tone. I mean, the majority of my non-musician friends cant tell the difference between a fender twin and a JC-120...so im pretty sure a 5-12 yr old isnt going to notice the crap tone of their mini strat.
I certainly noticed- It made me not want to play. Children's ears are more sensitive then ours (especially any of our since everyone on here as been to a concert at some point in their life) and the size of their ear canals makes them especially sensitive to treble. The one I have doesn't play especially well either, so there's that...

User avatar
Maggieo
Expat
Expat
Posts: 13446
Joined: Mon Oct 02, 2006 10:36 am
Location: Nebraska, USA
Contact:

Re: Electric guitar for children ?

Post by Maggieo » Sun Aug 02, 2015 8:50 am

cbrown wrote:I'm going to give my daughters (5&3) a Squier Duosonic later this year. They enjoy playing my guitars now but the 22.7" scale on the duosonic should be ok for them given their skill level and attention span.
Seconded!

Image
Duo-Sonic & Atomic Space Tone, October, 2008 by Maggie Osterberg, on Flickr
“Now I am quietly waiting for/ the catastrophe of my personality/ to seem beautiful again.”- Frank O'Hara
I am not an attorney and this post is for entertainment purposes only. Please consult a licensed attorney in your state for legal advice.

User avatar
frelonvert
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 1713
Joined: Thu May 13, 2010 1:21 am
Location: Toulouse, France.
Contact:

Re: Electric guitar for children ?

Post by frelonvert » Sun Aug 02, 2015 9:52 am

I thought about duo sonics but I don't know why those squiers are preatty hard to find these days. These should be good^^
Take care the skons is evrywhere !

User avatar
MKR
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 1702
Joined: Tue Mar 26, 2013 9:06 am

Re: Electric guitar for children ?

Post by MKR » Sun Aug 02, 2015 10:10 am

noisepunk wrote: They sound awful.

I don't know about anyone else, but the one thing that made me almost give up guitar when I was learning was how terrible (to me, at the time) my first guitar sounded. My second guitar also sounded awful, but it was a lot nicer sounding in comparison, and it came to me at just the right time to save me from throwing in the towel.

I have one of these mini stats (I got it because it's the same scale as a tenor guitar, which is how I have it tuned) and it is one of the least pleasing sounding things ever, not just guitars, not just musical instruments, all objects, this thing is in the top ten.
this is a ridiculous post. The squier mini sounds fine for what it is no wait it actually sounds good for what it is. No i don't own one so it's not like i'm defending something dear to me, but i my friend got one for his kid and frankly it sounds like a strat and it offers a perfectly fine strat tone. keep in mind this guitar is aimed for kids up until 13 years old or something. They hardly have a sophisticated palate when it comes to guitar tone.

As to the OP, i would probably vote mini strat as well. It's the best value for dollar IMO. I actually have a fender duo sonic which i like playing enough, but my main reason for holding on to it is to pass it down to one of my kids if they want to learn guitar.

as to the squier mini here's a nice youtube review:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4zKWZI8Y54

hella1hella
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 1213
Joined: Sun Nov 24, 2013 10:22 am

Re: Electric guitar for children ?

Post by hella1hella » Sun Aug 02, 2015 11:29 am

MKR wrote:
noisepunk wrote: They sound awful.

I don't know about anyone else, but the one thing that made me almost give up guitar when I was learning was how terrible (to me, at the time) my first guitar sounded. My second guitar also sounded awful, but it was a lot nicer sounding in comparison, and it came to me at just the right time to save me from throwing in the towel.

I have one of these mini stats (I got it because it's the same scale as a tenor guitar, which is how I have it tuned) and it is one of the least pleasing sounding things ever, not just guitars, not just musical instruments, all objects, this thing is in the top ten.
this is a ridiculous post. The squier mini sounds fine for what it is no wait it actually sounds good for what it is. No i don't own one so it's not like i'm defending something dear to me, but i my friend got one for his kid and frankly it sounds like a strat and it offers a perfectly fine strat tone. keep in mind this guitar is aimed for kids up until 13 years old or something. They hardly have a sophisticated palate when it comes to guitar tone.

As to the OP, i would probably vote mini strat as well. It's the best value for dollar IMO. I actually have a fender duo sonic which i like playing enough, but my main reason for holding on to it is to pass it down to one of my kids if they want to learn guitar.

as to the squier mini here's a nice youtube review:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4zKWZI8Y54
+1 on the ridiculesness

I agree with the Mini strat. I got my newphew one and I thought it was a cool guitar. No it doesn't have novaks or any sweet features but it works great for what it is and fit my nephews hands perfect (he's 7)

User avatar
boomlights
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 124
Joined: Sun Jun 30, 2013 4:15 pm

Re: Electric guitar for children ?

Post by boomlights » Sun Aug 02, 2015 1:14 pm

I'll vote one for the Loog, as I wish that something of that scale & ease of playability was around when I was young (dulcimer's don't count!). I know most of us probably got into guitar after being obsessed with hearing records most of our lives, but to start even earlier would have been more trying on my patience than anything else. It's relatively easy to pick up a Loog & hammer out something musical pretty quickly, & even as a teen the learning curve for all 6 guitar strings was pretty tough at first (again, the obsession over the sounds in my head pushed me through). The other cool thing is having to build them up from a kit, which to my mind is pretty amazing (if I had some first-hand understanding of how a guitar was assembled, I probably wouldn't have been such a dullard about how to play it). Also, I dig that the sound is more of a lower register, is generally easier to play & has the option of being electric, for more craziness. But since it's almost as expensive as a Squier Duo Sonic, I could see how you'd want them to grow into a guitar that already is pretty substantial in its own right.

User avatar
ChrisFFTA
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 2212
Joined: Mon Apr 27, 2009 8:15 pm

Re: Electric guitar for children ?

Post by ChrisFFTA » Sun Aug 02, 2015 3:11 pm

I bought an Epiphone Mandobird and an Eastwood Warren Ellis tenor for my kids. More to get them used to strings and strumming than anything else. The eldest loves riffs so she is busting out some cool stuff :) More about getting than excited to learn than learning six string chords etc

User avatar
FightingPlankton
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 2090
Joined: Sun Oct 27, 2013 5:36 pm

Re: Electric guitar for children ?

Post by FightingPlankton » Sun Aug 02, 2015 6:27 pm

i know you said you had boys...and these arent exactly boyish...but for others interested in options for their kids who happen to read this thread, I wanted to post these.
http://www.lunaguitars.com/electricprod ... series.php
Image
I own a Luna guitar and I love it. I love their company/PR dept. more. I have so much respect for the way they treat their customers.
What is acoustic? Oh, you means a grandpa's guitars? A grandpa's guitars? That's for pussies and grandpas. I think you know it.

Post Reply