Starter kit: thoughts?

Snags

Asking for a friend (genuinely) but sadly not one that lives nearby, so I can't take them shopping.  Usually situation - sprog (very early teens, possibly pre-teen) has had a couple of lessons at school and is enjoying it and has been complimented by the teacher.  So mum has asked me what they should be looking at as a starter kit.

Family aren't made of money, based around Nottingham.  My stock answer used to be Yamaha Pacifica and the best small amp they can afford, on the grounds that a shit amp makes even a good guitar sound shit, whereas a good amp can apply a small amount of shine to even most turds. No-one  knowledgeable local to help them with private purchases, so it's likely to be a shop job.

Any thoughts of stuff work looking at, combined budget is probably £300 max, which in this day and age should get them something better than I got 35 years ago!

King85

Affinity strat or Tele and a Mustang gt40 or katana for an amp. 

bazxkr

Someone had a used CV50s strat on here for around £200, put that with £120 of used Katana 50 and that is one hell of a good start. Sure there are good folk on here that are around Nottingham that would help

SH gear doesn't really sit well I know for a Xmas pressie but you can get a lot of bang for your buck at the moment.

At the end of the day the sprog probably already has an idea of likes - LP, strat or whatever. That it is always a good start cos if it is what they like they will want to pick it up and play. Teen with big hands or small hands can also be important in getting a guitar that suits the hand. If uncomfortable they won't wanna pick it up.

If new & a Slash fan then that Slash starter pack seemed to get pretty good reports (think was Epiphone) a year or two back

thegummy

If that new Andertons budget range really is individually set up in store it must be worth a look - I'd doubt many budget models would be.

I'd always have the same thought as yourself though with the Yamaha for low priced instruments.

SlopeSoarer

I've been impressed with my Vintage V6 (Strat style), so much so I sold my Squier Classic Vibe. Can be had for £245 new probably £150 for a good used one.

I've not seen it mentioned much on the forums but I have a VOX VX 2 amp which can be bought new for £111, probably used for about £60-£70. I've loved the amp it is fairly small, models a few amps and has an array of pedal effects which can be used via computer software.
 

skunkwerx

Personally I'd go with a blackstar id core for £99. 

Built in tuner so you don't have to buy one, unless they have a phone around, gain, effects, channels etc. 
Easily transportable. 
Sounds good. 

Spend the other £200 on a squire, or yamaha or similar. 

Pmt seem to offer me a set up/tweak when I've bought a squire/Fender before. 

But its important to budget for stuff like a stand, because its frikkin useful, no point leaning it up on walls everywhere, and a gig bag because it sounds like they may be taking it to school.  

Shrews

Don't forget that he/she will also need

 - A lead
 - A tuner
- Some sort of book
- Maybe a stand to hold the book
- Some picks
- A capo
- Maybe some headphones
- A case (or as minimum a gigbag)

The above alone is a minimum £80 I would guess

This comes in at £180 and looks good. Get a nice £70 case for it and this would look awesome to open on Christmas Day. It might not be the best but a start is a start and he's young enough to keep building .

https://www.andertons.co.uk/guitar-dept/electric-guitars/electric-guitar-starter-packs/epiphone-les-paul-player-pack-in-black

Rabs

And for £249 you can get the Slash AFD pack..

https://www.andertons.co.uk/epiphone-slash-afd-les-paul-special-ii-performance-pack-uk-ppgs-ena2aanh3-uk?LGWCODE=PPGSENA2AANH3UK;56375;6335&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIjd6ko9T_3gIVS7XtCh0snAIsEAYYBCABEgLUS_D_BwE

https://i.imgur.com/zsU8gGN.png

Snags

Thanks all, keep 'em coming. I've pointed out a couple of starter packs, and the lad appears to be more Coldplay than Metallica. So far have been thinking HSS S-type for flexibility.

 It's the individual items and pairing that's interesting particularly amps, as I have no clue about that end anymore. Lead, strap etc. won't be forgotten, and his mum is a good haggler so I'm sure a shop would "make" a bundle even if it's not official. Plus I have spares I could chuck in if need be.

Rabs

How about

https://www.gear4music.com/Guitar-and-Bass/Seattle-Electric-Guitar-and-Amp-Pack-Seafoam-Green/1IRB?origin=product-ads&campaign=PLA+Shop+-+GENERIC&adgroup=GENERIC&medium=vertical_search&network=google&merchant_id=1279443&product_id=70967d1&product_country=GB&product_partition_id=473137749541&gclid=EAIaIQobChMImrTXktf_3gIV8QDTCh2hAwf8EAkYJyABEgLJU_D_BwE

https://i.imgur.com/toO6MyY.jpg

The amp the comes with the Slash pack looks cool to me and Epiphones can be surprisingly nice to play..  And this could be your chance to influence his taste a bit 

HAL9000

Snags said:

...have been thinking HSS S-type for flexibility.

Yamaha Pacifica 112

Snags said:

 It's the... ...pairing that's interesting particularly amps...

Fender Champion 40 should pair up fairly well for those Fendery cleans and some mild crunchiness.

King85

For the price of a Champion 40 you're almost at the cost of a Gt40 or a Katana where you've got countless variety of amps and effects to experiment with without the cost of buying pedals.

fob

Do they need an amp? Spending the lot on the guitar (or just saving the difference) might get something a little better and they can play it acoustically. If the lad is just a couple of lessons in that should suit him fine for a good few months. It would give the family a bit of a chance to then save for an amp - perhaps as a birthday present.

Are they willing to buy second-hand? You could perhaps peruse the classifieds here and make suggestions. It would be worth finding out what they are currently playing (presumably a school instrument) to see what scale length they're comfortable with.

If they do want to go new I'd be looking at Harley Benton - the German mega-box-shifter Thomann's home brand. There's a lot of high praise for these low budget guitars although I haven't tried one myself (I am looking for an excuse to buy one though just to see how good they are). They do starter kits as well.

HAL9000

King85 said:

For the price of a Champion 40 you're almost at the cost of a Gt40 or a Katana where you've got countless variety of amps and effects to experiment with without the cost of buying pedals.

Indeed. A GT40 or Katana will be fat more versatile. However, since the OP suggested that the buyer would be more Coldplay than Metallica, the Champion seemed like a decent cleans option.

Shrews

This is a Christmas present for a kid. 

On Christmas morning he needs to take off the Christmas wrapping, see there's a guitar-shaped hard case, open it, and see one of those Epiphone's in all its glory.

That would be a 'Wow' moment for a kid.

Next present is an amp with cable and tuner.

Plug it in and start playing, with a book of four chords and some lessons booked for the 27th and over the next month so he can get right into it.  

He will have no comprehension (yet) of what a decent amp is.  That can wait until he falls in love with playing and realises there's better out there, likewise the guitar and all the other bits.

Key things

 - Ok guitar
 - Ok amp
 - Cable
 - Case
 - Tuner
 - Strap (he'll only want one a week later)
 - Ok headphones
 - Lessons booked
 - Simple book of chords

That kid will be so impressed on Christmas morning. Not only that, he'll probably go straight up to his room, stick on his headphones, try getting it tune and then start trying to learn some chords.

By dinnertime, when he realises he can't do it, he'll look forward to the lessons coming his way and spend the afternoon doing something else!

Snags

True dat 

notanon

Don't need books for chords, you have the internet.

If you want to save on amp cost and If you have any other type of speaker then maybe behringer v-amp? Has interface for recording etc etc etc. Headphones are excelled though.

Mine was up for sale here as I finished using it when I was staying abroad in hotel. II decided to keep it. Awesome tones and can record on a laptop.

I can check later but you might need a 3.5mm adaptor for the ordinary headphones. They are only a quid from wilko.

Can get an almost new v amp3 for £50 probably cheaper: https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https://www.ebay.co.uk/ulk/itm/392182758234

Will make Christmas Day a little more pleasant for all. I used to hate being told to turn it down. Headphones in these give good results.

Has input for being tracks from mobile.

Might dog mine out later :-)

Good luck.

Shrews

notanon said:

Don't need books for chords, you have the internet.

True,

Problem I've had as a beginner with internet chords, is they are not adapted to the beginner (although Justin's tutorials are excellent). Go to most sites and the chords are just too complicated for a beginner and then you also get the problem of different versions.

It's got to be something easy for him to look at on Christmas day to get him started and the kid doesn't want to be too confused either.

Mind you, I'm saying that as a 52 year old, not as a kid who is probably more used to doing things electronically.

Phil_aka_Pip

I used to suggest that a cheapo s/c guitar usually sounds worse than a cheapo h/b equipped guitar, especially by the time the "fun" aka distortion switch has been engaged on the cheapo practice amp with the "powerful" 10W ss amplifier and 6" speaker, so go for the Gibbo knockoffs rather than the Fender ones. There should in theory be less tuning issues as there is no badly set-up wang bar to deal with.

ESBlonde

Harley Benton have developed a great reputation for value and playability. I'd be tempted to look at Thomann with their great delivery and returns policy.

SNAKEBITE

A good few years ago now I took the ex sister in law to GAK and they put together a starter pack from gear in the shop.

Now I know you are nowhere near GAK but maybe this principle could be applied from a local shop, or even mail order from a whole raft of likely suspects.