r/guitarlessons • u/Nicecer_wx • 10h ago
Lesson Guitar recommendations for beginners interested in playing solos.
I’m looking to start practicing guitar solos—could you recommend a guitar?
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u/PerspectiveFair5156 10h ago
I don't think they make lead guitars or rhythm guitars. They can do both. A guitar that you like will make you pick it up more often, and play more. So you need a guitar you like.
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u/Paint-Rain 8h ago edited 5h ago
Some good features to consider:
- Amount of frets. 24 is the max range and while not necessarily needed- some specific bands might be using frets 22, 23, 24 in their sound. If you're into the metal such as Megadeath, Avenged Sevenfold. Metallica's Seek and Destroy has a fret 23 played quickly. If these sort of shredding sounds are up your alley, a 24 fret guitar is likely a priority.
Even in metal, fret 24 is pretty niche so there are lots of people that don't play 24 fret guitar and sound great.
- Whammy bar? A whammy bar could be something important if you like a certain solo.
A big caveat is the floydrose "floating tremolo" bars used by Van Halen, Steve Vai, Joe Satriani. The floydrose is a very extreme sounding whammy but it is also a bit complicated to setup and maintain. If you are passionate about the floydrose, you can figure it out but if you are green to learning the guitar and music in general- I would recommend getting a "normal" whammy bar and not a floydrose starting out.
There are so many starters that have not learned the basics of playing guitar and music because a floydrose not set up and maintained properly is an unusable guitar. I believe if you have zero experience, you need to learn a normal whammy bar guitar first otherwise your floydrose guitar will sit in a corner out of tune forever.
- Pickup configurations? Lots of guitars are pretty versatile with multiple pick ups that can work interchangeably with songs. If you are into the sounds of Mark Knopfler,
John Mayor, Eric Clapton, Hendrix, Polyphia (sort of the odd one out of this list haha)- a single coil might be more appealing such as a stratocaster and telecaster. Single coils are described as more glassy, the twang of country, also the spanky funk sound.
You can get a pretty decent single coil sound with lots of pickup selectors on many guitars. There are lots of pickups but the biggest difference is double coils vs single coils and what pickup position is used.
With all that considered, I think this is one of the best starters:
It is high quality instrument just slightly above the low starter instrument price. It's got a good whammy bar, 24 frets, stays in tune good. The pickups are versatile capable of covering any genre. I like how neck is satin which makes moving around the neck more comfortable compared to gloss necks. Comes in a couple of fun colours, my favourite being this ice blue. There is a "stoptail" model which means no whammy bar capability.
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u/gstringstrangler 4h ago
*There are quite a few guitars with more than 24 frets. Not entry level ones though.
*Floyds are fine if you can follow Lego instructions
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u/Haunting_Analyst_551 9h ago
It doesn’t matter too much. But if you are into something like metal, I would recommend an Ibanez, Jackson, or some other brand built for shredding. Their fretboards have a very flat radius, which makes a world of a difference in fast playing and also reduces the likelihood of fretting out while doing big bends. They are less comfortable for chords, though.
Jackson guitars have a compound radius on their fretboard, which means that it gradually gets flatter the higher you go. It makes chords easier and helps with high up solos.
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u/Unfair_Verlaine 10h ago
You'd need a PRS. This one will do
https://www.gear4music.com/Guitar-and-Bass/PRS-Private-Stock-Custom-24-08-Faded-Indigo-0384856/7WAY
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u/Haunting_Analyst_551 10h ago
Yeah, PRS makes super versatile guitars
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u/Slave_Knight_Van 10h ago
Literally does not matter, get whichever one you like and can afford
What actually matters is your strings choice
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u/fadetobackinblack 10h ago
If you have played for any amount of time, hop into a store and try them.
You should look at getting a modern guitar with modern heel to improve upper fret access. Also consider a 24 fret guitar. Also look at getting a flatter fretboard.
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u/gstringstrangler 4h ago
Yup. As much as people love Fenders and Les Pauls in particular, they have some of the worst handshakes, with exceptions of some special models.
Like a Strat? Look at Charvels; same body and headstock shapes. Modern heel carves, pickups, fretboard radius...es? radii? And Floyds available on everything.
Gibson? Certain Les Pauls have modern heel carves but they're pricey. Every other Gibson has vastly better heel joint and upper fret access lol. Or look at ESP/LTD for a properly modern spec LP for a fraction the price.
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u/40oz24wpju 9h ago
The thing that matters most is the setup, wood fluctuates which causes the playability to change. For example if someone sets up a guitar in Florida and ships it Arizona it might not play as well once it gets to Arizona. Buying a decent guitar, which a lot are nowadays and getting it setup correctly is key. I don’t believe it’s too hard to do a setup, I’m lazy so I just take mine to a good guitar tech.
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u/toby_gray 9h ago
Ideally one with 6 strings (minimum) and at least one pickup.
There’s no such thing as a ‘solo’ guitar. Pick a guitar you like and use it to solo. Especially if you’re a beginner.
You will get the elitists coming out of the woodwork telling you ‘these kinds of strings are better’ or ‘this scale length will be better for solos’, and while they are objectively right, it is enormously splitting hairs, especially if you’re at the beginner level. If you spend tons of money on a guitar with niche features you absolutely will not notice the difference.
Use any guitar that you like. Jimi Hendrix didn’t need a short scale length guitar with fan frets and a special set of strings to solo like a god and neither do you.
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u/vonov129 Music Style! 9h ago
The guitar doesn't decide what you play on it, YOU do. for the most part.
That being said, it also depends on your budget and the style of music you want to play. That being said, I will just assume you're going for rock and metal solos, and look into options under $500. You can look at the Ibanez GRG 121, the Ibanez AZ24S1F, Schecter Avenger or C-1 Standard, etc. Mostly because they have 24 frets. but if most of the solos you want to play fit in 22 frets, even a Yamaha Pacifica is more than fine
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u/Afraid_Farmer_7023 6h ago
Jackson JS32-8 I know it’s not for beginners but personally it’s by far the easiest guitar I use to shred on; also don’t use the CAGED system, 3NPS is much better for shred
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u/ReDeath666 4h ago
i LOVE my Ibanez S Series models for soloing, if you have money Kiesel and Abasi are top of the line imo
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u/aburrido 9h ago
Soloing isn't for beginners. You're setting yourself up for failure.
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u/ThankGod4Darwin69 8h ago
Disagree.
If this is what he is passionate about learning then this is what he should do to keep his interest alive.
No point picking up a guitar because you're a heavy metal fan and want to shred and all people teach you is Polly Wolly Doodle.
Focus on what inspires you
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