Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

It's Never Too Late to Learn Guitar

adamharkus.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

191–200 of 239 posts

Re: It's Never Too Late to Learn Guitar

#191

Post by mikestew »

eggpy wrote: post #174
SwellJoe wrote: post #109

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"If you're playing rock guitar, there's a real temptation to use way too much distortion to get what you think is the sound on records. Most great rock guitar tones are much cleaner than they sound. When in doubt, use less gain." So true it hurts. I'm a guitarist of three decades and I worked as a recording engineer through college and occasionally as a hobby since then (I went to school for audio engineering). The n…

mosquito tone?

Over-distorted, i. e., buzzy, like a mosquito.

Re: It's Never Too Late to Learn Guitar

#192

Post by mikestew »

cousin_it wrote: post #6

Warning! If you're middle-aged and thinking of picking up the guitar, you should realize that the public image of guitarists has shifted from "sexy gods" to "annoying hobos" sometime in the last two decades. If you are at least partly motivated by popularity (and who isn't), maybe pick another hobby that actually helps people be popular now, not in your imagined past. So in a sense, yes, it is sometimes too late :-(

If you're middle-aged and picking up the guitar for the first time in the hopes of getting chix, you've got other issues that need to be addressed first. You can still learn the guitar, but hopefully your therapist can help steer you such that you're learning it for the right reasons.

If you are at least partly motivated by popularity (and who isn't)

Umm, me? I picked up the mandolin in my 50s because I wanted to learn how to play it. To date, I've not had one woman throw herself at me as a result. I'm perfectly okay with that. That brief flirting with the hammer dulcimer wasn't any better. Perhaps I'll try accordion next.

Re: It's Never Too Late to Learn Guitar

#193

Post by themckman »

probably_wrong wrote: post #161

Since there are so many guitar players in this thread, I'll go ahead and ask The One Question that pushed me away from playing (and keeps me away): How do you know what to do with your right hand? Most books I've (admittedly, casually) read and most tabs on the internet are surprisingly silent about this.

That's a great question and one that I've struggled with myself. Best I can do is tell you to find a guitarist who you respect and appears to play without effort, find videos of them playing and try to emulate what they do. Practice with a metronome at very slow speeds and really focus on the motions and positioning required as you move from note to note and string to string. Arpeggios work really well for this type of practice because they're going to require you to hybrid pick and sweep to play them really fast.

Re: It's Never Too Late to Learn Guitar

#194

Post by simon_uberchord »

Hi folks, I just had a look at the user statistics of our guitar teaching app Uberchord. More than 10% of our user base is actually older than 50. If you look at the most active users, the percentage is even higher. So it seems that even if you are late in the game, you can still start learning with a little help of your phone.

Re: It's Never Too Late to Learn Guitar

#195

Post by cylinder »

cousin_it wrote: post #6

Warning! If you're middle-aged and thinking of picking up the guitar, you should realize that the public image of guitarists has shifted from "sexy gods" to "annoying hobos" sometime in the last two decades. If you are at least partly motivated by popularity (and who isn't), maybe pick another hobby that actually helps people be popular now, not in your imagined past. So in a sense, yes, it is sometimes too late :-(

what an odd comment.

Re: It's Never Too Late to Learn Guitar

#196

Post by mikestew »

telekid wrote: post #11

I decided to start teaching myself guitar about three years ago, at the age of 24. I had always wanted to learn to play an instrument, but before guitar, nothing ever really stuck. When I picked up the guitar, I approached it from a different angle. The key for me was realizing that I could treat this like a 20 year project. I bought myself a guitar book[0] and started working through it page by page. I stopped worry…

The key for me was realizing that I could treat this like a 20 year project.

Gawd, I wished I had that realization when I was 20. Or 8. I wanted to learn everything now, and grew frustrated when I didn't. Took shortcuts that I'd pay for later. I'd be a better guitarist today had I taken your mature outlook.

Thankfully, I grew up and when time came to pick up the mandolin, I now have an outlook similar to yours. Not as explicit as "20 year project", but I knew I needed to be in it for the long haul. So I haven't skipped things, I practice the mechanics (scales and the like) nearly daily, and sometimes I save something for later (like cross-picking; I'll get to it eventually after I get those arpeggios down). I've made more progress more quickly on the mandolin than I ever did on the guitar, even discounting the headstart of knowing another fretted instrument first.

Re: It's Never Too Late to Learn Guitar

#197

Post by baby »

Lon7 wrote: post #159
baby wrote: post #51

Can't you ditch all of that and use one of these cool new programs where they show you where to play on the guitar, you play in there, and the mic detects if you played correctly then proceeding with the next note? I think RockSmith is one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uaHsqGSetVo I think there are others that might look more pedagogical.

RockSmith is a fun tool to practice with but I'd be very hesitant to recommend someone use it as a method to actually learn the guitar. The biggest problem is that by learning differently, you create a real barrier between yourself and other musicians. Most guitarists learn to play in a somewhat similar manner. You learn to follow along with music and play by the tab or sheet music. The feedback you get is solely fro…

I don't think the goal of most people is to become a well rounded guitarist. Otherwise the route I would advise is to learn solfege.

Re: It's Never Too Late to Learn Guitar

#198

Post by baby »

fastbeef wrote: post #86
beat wrote: post #41

As someone who has been playing for 35 years or so, here are some observations... First and foremost, guitar is a pretty straightforward instrument for beginners. There's a reason it's the most popular instrument in the world. If you put in the effort, you can be playing something musical in a few months, and proficient in basic folk/rock music in a couple of years. It doesn't take "talent". It just takes effort. Som…

+1 on getting good gear from day 1. Being a "guitar guy" people always ask me to recommend a starting kit when their kids are starting to play. I always tell them, look, spend twice as much as a crappy beginner set on a decent used Fender + decent amp. This will make playing much more fun and the chance that they will continue to play is much higher and if they don't catch the bug? No biggie, sell it for the same amo…

I have a different take, I always advise people to get the cheapest guitar they can find, a second hand one if possible (because for the price you'll get better quality). I've bought guitars for 50$ that were really good guitar for myself, so I can't see why you wouldn't be able to start with that.

Re: It's Never Too Late to Learn Guitar

#199

Post by [deleted] »

fastbeef wrote: post #86
beat wrote: post #41

As someone who has been playing for 35 years or so, here are some observations... First and foremost, guitar is a pretty straightforward instrument for beginners. There's a reason it's the most popular instrument in the world. If you put in the effort, you can be playing something musical in a few months, and proficient in basic folk/rock music in a couple of years. It doesn't take "talent". It just takes effort. Som…

+1 on getting good gear from day 1. Being a "guitar guy" people always ask me to recommend a starting kit when their kids are starting to play. I always tell them, look, spend twice as much as a crappy beginner set on a decent used Fender + decent amp. This will make playing much more fun and the chance that they will continue to play is much higher and if they don't catch the bug? No biggie, sell it for the same amo…

[deleted]

Re: It's Never Too Late to Learn Guitar

#200

Post by [deleted] »

fastbeef wrote: post #86
beat wrote: post #41

As someone who has been playing for 35 years or so, here are some observations... First and foremost, guitar is a pretty straightforward instrument for beginners. There's a reason it's the most popular instrument in the world. If you put in the effort, you can be playing something musical in a few months, and proficient in basic folk/rock music in a couple of years. It doesn't take "talent". It just takes effort. Som…

+1 on getting good gear from day 1. Being a "guitar guy" people always ask me to recommend a starting kit when their kids are starting to play. I always tell them, look, spend twice as much as a crappy beginner set on a decent used Fender + decent amp. This will make playing much more fun and the chance that they will continue to play is much higher and if they don't catch the bug? No biggie, sell it for the same amo…

[deleted]
Post reply on HN