is anyone else still searching for a guitar that they connect with?

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i read threads about people who find their guitar (from the first time they pick it up to try,they just connect with it).

unfortunately i have yet to find mine. 

i have been trying to play guitar on/off since 1993 but have never yet found a guitar that i have connected with in that way. 

i wish i could find THAT guitar one day,but i don't think i will tbh.

anyone else not found their guitar yet?

apologies for the rambling btw 


i like cake :-) here's my youtube channel   https://www.youtube.com/user/racefaceec90 



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Comments

  • carloscarlos Frets: 3426
    How many hours do you practice and play a week?
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  • tbh it varies atm.

    i go through phases where i won't play for days/weeks,then the desire will kick in again.

    due to various reasons (depression,insomnia,laziness) my conentration has been pretty bad atm so my practise has been very sparse.

    i must add i am not a good guitarist,and just play at home so that and depression isn't a good mix.

    more than once i have thought about jacking the guitar in,but the desire is always there to play the guitar.

    i currently have a squier bullet mustang and a j mascis jazzmaster (and a boss gt-1).

    i am currently saving up towards a new guitar of some sort (not a clue as to what yet though lol).

    again apologies for the rambling.
    i like cake :-) here's my youtube channel   https://www.youtube.com/user/racefaceec90 



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  • TanninTannin Frets: 5268
    The more you play, the faster you learn, the better you get, the more you enjoy it, the more you play, the faster you learn.

    There is a threshold: play less than that amount (probably a different amount for every person) and you never really get much better. You go around and around making the same-old, same-old mistakes and that gets boring so you play less and less. Reach that threshold and pass it, and there is no turning back. Playing becomes a simple pleasure and you no longer have trouble getting in enough play hours every week, you have the (much nicer) problem of finding other, less pleasant and important things you usually spend time on to stop doing so that you can play more. (Watching TV would be favourite.)

    Oh, and having a really nice instrument helps. Something that is a joy to just strum a chord on, never mind play real stuff. Don't expect that instrument to jump out at you and ask to be taken home. Hunt it down. Don't be obsessive, be patient. Haunt the shops, try things out, think things over. Don't expect to fall in love at first sight. If that happens, fine, accept it, but don'\t expect it and don't romanticise it - a guitar is, after all, just a tool. Take as many weeks or months or years as it takes for you to make up your mind that a particular one is right for you. But be aware also that past a certain level, there isn't really "better" anymore, there is only "different".

    Out there in the High Street, there isn't one perfect guitar for you, there are dozens, any one of which is all you really need. Example: I have seven guitars. Each one of them is, in its own way, my "perfect" guitar. I love them all but the reality is that I could be happy with any one of them. One would be enough, and for a long time it was. Even now, I only ever play one at a time. :)

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  • grungebobgrungebob Frets: 3299
    Playing guitar is a hobby. A hobby should bring you joy, if playing guitar doesn’t do that anymore then that’s ok. 
    You don’t have to play everyday, only when you want to. Don’t compare your ability to others for progress, only compare how good you are now to how good you were. 
    Take a break if you need it, find another thing that brings you joy. You can always return to guitar.  
    New guitars are nice and can spur you on to play more but if guitar isn’t currently doing it for you I doubt a new guitar is the answer. 


    I’m similar to you I bet in ability and mindset. I took a break of 5 months from guitar and picked up a new hobby that got me out my house and comfort zone. Met a great bunch of guys and my whole attitude improved. That was 3 years ago I still do that hobby and I play guitar daily. 
    I’m happy bashing out the same songs I did as a 16 year old only now with better timing and slightly better gear. 

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  • NeilNeil Frets: 3594
    When you get to a certain point in your playing you will appreciate what you have and probably know what you may prefer as your next instrument.

    Until then guitars all seem as unaccommodating as each other, which I think is probably how you feel. 

    A break can be a good thing so you come back fresh.

    Good luck with it all mate.  :)
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  • thanks for the replies everyone :-)  definitely some good advice  there to think about.


    i like cake :-) here's my youtube channel   https://www.youtube.com/user/racefaceec90 



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  • After a similar number of years searching as you have, I haven't found the one, but I did find this quote from Seneca:

    "If one doesn't know to which port one is sailing, no wind is favourable" 

    It made me stop and think about my playing.

    Here are two questions to exercise the grey matter, they might be useful, they don't need complete answers 
    • Can you compile a list of the features: sonic, tactile, aesthetic and practical that you want from your guitar?
    • What are your ambitions for playing guitar?  Perhaps to connect to music or connect to an audience?
    as a south-paw my hunt for the perfect guitar is a little more difficult as I soon discovered I didn't want a black Squier strat or a Tanglewood acoustic - so that ruled out 99% of music shops ( but I still had to check ;^). 


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  • TeleMasterTeleMaster Frets: 10103
    I think people overthink this a lot and I’ve been guilty of it too. We say a lot of stuff about a new guitar to justify the purchase to ourselves. ‘This is the best guitar ever’ then three weeks later ‘FS: Best guitar ever’. 

    If the guitar is comfortable, stays in tune, you like how it looks and how it sounds, don’t worry about this connection stuff too much. If you play the guitar enough and for long enough you will get that with almost any guitar. Most musicians are more concerned with making and playing music and the guitar is just the conduit for that. 

    The amount of autobiographies I’ve read where the guitar you see these famous people with every show is the first guitar they’ve bought, or one they bought for £200 or something and they’ve just stuck with it through necessity should reassure you. 
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  • axisusaxisus Frets: 28280
    Yeah, got mine. You need to establish the kind of guitar you like best, then search for the one that rocks your boat.
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  • DominicDominic Frets: 16012
    I think the journey is to progress your own capability to a point where you can make any guitar sound good.
    I'm pretty certain Usain Bolt could slaughter me in the 100m wearing a pair of oversized Wellingtons even if I had the best running shoes known to mankind.
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  • SteveRobinsonSteveRobinson Frets: 6914
    tFB Trader
    Have you ever had your guitars set up, frets dressed etc.? This can make a huge difference in the feel of a guitar.
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  • SputnikSputnik Frets: 51
    I've met @Dominic and, as delightful a gentleman as he is, I suspect Wee Jimmy Krankie could give him a run for his money in similar circumstances ...
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  • Rob1742Rob1742 Frets: 1028
    I don’t think the actual guitar is the problem, it’s the desire to learn to play.

    I have 25 guitars, I can pick any of them up and enjoy playing them, I could get rid of 24 and still enjoy playing the one left.

    How many musicians started playing in their bedroom with a cheap old second hand knacker that they played for hours? 

    I go for a week or so without playing, then I can pick up a guitar three times a day for weeks. It has nothing to do with the instrument itself, it’s about wanting to progress.

    For me the best thing to make me play the guitar is to watch some videos, or go on guitar tab app and see what gives me the desire to need to pick the instrument up. 

    You need to have a reason, you need to want to do it.

    I am crap, but I looked through guitar tab app last night and I found something that made me want to get up today and learn. Take 24 guitars off me and leave me with one and that need to play what I searched last night will still be there. 
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  • RolandRoland Frets: 8590
    IMHO “The One” is a moving target. The guitar which works best can change over time. If you're searching for something, but don’t know what it is, then take the opportunity to play lots of different guitars. It’s an excuse to visit lots of music shops without buying anything.

    Don’t forget spend time learning how to get the best out of what you’ve got. Learn it’s foibles, for example how the sound changes in different areas of the neck, and with different pickup, tone and volume choices. 
    Tree recycler, and guitarist with  https://www.undercoversband.com/.
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  • GreatapeGreatape Frets: 3490
     I think the Mascis is a decent guitar? I'd spend the money on a good teacher. 
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  • octatonicoctatonic Frets: 33725
    In my experience people who are searching for 'the one' are unhappy with their playing.
    When I see people writing 'I just haven't bonded with it' I tend to assume their practice approach is wrong.

    I've been playing for 35 years, a guitar is pretty much *just an instrument* to me now.
    Give me a guitar, I will play it and generally be ok playing it provided certain structural/tuning issues are not there.
    Yes, I prefer some guitars more than others, my Forshages, Tom Andersons and a Fylde acoustic get most of my time.
    But I will happily play a £300 Squier if I have to.


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  • MellishMellish Frets: 945
    I haven't read all so apologies if I repeat someone. But do your guitars intonate ok? What is the playability like? It's easy for either to put anyone off until sorted. I've found the one I'll never part with, an HD28 :) 
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  • DominicDominic Frets: 16012
    Sputnik said:
    I've met @Dominic and, as delightful a gentleman as he is, I suspect Wee Jimmy Krankie could give him a run for his money in similar circumstances ...
    Thanks for that...........I'll have you know that I beat Wee Jimmy Crankie in a fight
    .......and I've lost a lot of weight since then
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  • TeleMasterTeleMaster Frets: 10103
    I would advise against buying and selling pods of guitars. Unless you really want to try and buy lots of guitars and gain pleasure from that I wouldn’t get on this merry go round. Go to a shop, try guitars from all price ranges. Have a feel of the different radius, the different frets, the wood types and finishes, the shapes, the pickups, the bridges, the creature comforts like rolled fretboard edges, contours etc etc.

    Really do your research and go and try as many as you can without buying them and then pull the trigger when you are really sure. Get them online so you can return them. You can do this multiple times. Some shops offer very cheap returns services so you can try a few out if you want.
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  • carloscarlos Frets: 3426
    @octatonic ;
    Yup, which is why I asked him about his practice routine and how much time he spent with the instrument.
    Yesterday I took my Harley Benton Fusion (Iron Gear pickups) instead of my Vigier to band rehearsal and it made fuck all difference. Okay, maybe it'd have been slightly more comfortable to use the Vigier for 4 hours due to being lighter and a shorter scale, but bonding? It's just wood and steel.
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