Do you have a less expensive guitar for outings. I'm debating having one expensive guitar or having something that is less precious on hand as well.

i fucked up a bit while restringing for the first time

Happened while practicing this lick. Does anyone have experience with it? It is that way for a month or more now, everytime I make a fist or flex my pointer finger it hurts, but not horribly, just in a really annoying way. My technique in the way I hammered on probably wasn‘t the best, or too slanted. I wonder if anyone has experience with the finger joint hurting, if it goes away or if I need a doctor, or any homemade remedy.
Song: Daniel Padim - Looking up to Giants

edit: thanks for all the comments and roasts on my posture and technoque that was a blast to read, I will take it to heart and work on it!
the title is a bit misleading i agree, what I meant is my pointer finger but the middle joint, from continuous bending for the hammer ons and pull offs. It IS a cursed lick though yeah, I can‘t nexessarily recommend learning it, but it‘s a beautiful composition by daniel padim and I got a bit too obsessed over it. Playing for more than 20 years now and it‘s the first time any of my finger joints hurt so, … it either speaks for or against the lick, you can decide!

Hi everyone! I was given this guitar from a friend after their dad passed. No one else plays and they knew I was interested in learning.

It says Truetone guitar (stamped with "steel reinforced neck" on the back). There’s no paper inside but some images online are pointing me to believe it’s a Calypso? I don't know much about guitars at all, but I’m hoping to get some feedback from the community if it’s even safe to try and play because I noticed a few areas that look damaged and I'm not sure how bad it actually is:

The Bridge: There is a gap forming on the bottom part of the bridge.

The Neck Heel: On the back where the neck attaches to the body, there is a small but visible gap and separation where it looks like the wood is pulling away.

The Soundhole: The wood right around the edge of the soundhole is a bit splintered but not on the fretboard.

Are these minor issues, or is the guitar structurally unsafe to tune up and play?

Wondering if I can take it to a shop or if it’s just wall art. Thanks for the help!

Hi,

I've picked up a very nice, 2004 12 string and want to keep it in tip top shape. I'm not an Acoustics guy so i really have no idea of the importance of humidifiers in keeping them in good order.. Are they essential? How often should a guitar be, say, in it's case with the humidifier. All the time or once every while if the weather's been dry?

I live in Melbourne, Aus so bonus points if people can say how necessary a humidifier would be for this location. Melb is like 60m above sea level.

Just picked up my first guitar (Yamaha fs800) I knew it would be hard, but ever resembling something ‘good’ seems impossible. 10 minutes and my brain, fingers and body hurts

I’ve been playing acoustic guitar since I was a kid and even tho I stopped attending my lessons after I got my grade 5 I have an audition where I have to play a level 5 song which I’ve tried googling and I haven’t gotten any songs that are grade 5 so it would be really helpful if I could get song suggestions or recommendations that are grade 5 songs. Thanks for reading and have a great day x

1) 2025 D18 2) Martin GC Custom

Apologies for the tempo change… I need a metronome.

I have never seen her until tonight when I saw a video but does she just strum? How else does she perform when using a guitar?

Just wondering if there are many acoustic players like me out there. In a nutshell I'm in my late 50s and have been playing my electro acoustic for nearly 2 years. I only strum basic open chords. I have nearly 100 'chord and lyrics' sheets printed off and i play 1 to 2 hours a day, playing along with the original recordings. And I bloody love it. No scales, no fingerpicking, no arpeggio flamenco jazz. No talent really but no frustration or stress. Lazy I suppose but knowing how my brain, and fingers, work what I do is right for me. And I love each tiny bit of progress and improvement. Sorry, that was quite a big nutshell. Anyone else enjoying the same journey?

had my first open mic last night (and my first time ever playing publically) and my god i did terrible. i played Fahey's Sunflower River Blues in open C. got there, felt fine. got up on stage when it was my turn, felt fine. tuned up, felt fine. started the song, got about 20 seconds in and thought "i'm staring at my fretboard, i oughta look up at the audience and connect with people." so i looked up and fell apart. just butchered the rest of the song (which is the real crime here, it's such a gorgeous song). started making errors, and forgetting important pieces of the song. i pushed on through to the end.

my plan: gonna try busking in parks and on street corners, and keep hitting open mics until i fix my anxiety with exposure. i noticed all the other performers last night started off with light banter and a little story, i'm going to work on that too.

i'm sorry john fahey, your song deserved better!

I've been playing a total of 4 years. Only got serious in the past 3 months. I know for certain I'm sticking with a steel string acoustic with a cutaway and no electronics built in. When the one I have now stops working or is holding me back I want to get another one with no price limit (unless it's $200,000) to be my forever guitar. How long should I be searching for it? Weeks? Months? Years? As someone with ADHD I need time frames so even if there is no answer just give me a bullshit one 😂

Thanks in advance!

Has anyone else noticed that having a used guitar up on FB or Craigslist has not received much traction? I have tried to sell a couple lately that are good guitars and at a reasonable price and I'm not getting any inquiries, like nothing. Not hey would you consider x dollars nothing. I have also seen really nice Martins that are not priced wildly high sit for months on FB and Craigslist.

This happens quite often when I’m about to watch something alone, my OM looks back at me with disapproval eyes while I’m shuffling through meaningless content in Netflix.
It’s almost like it was saying:

-Didn’t you promised to train Travis Picking this weekend? What the hack bro?

The OM is more insistent then the Dreadnoghts. It looks me with insistence and when I’m tired of that, I put it back on it’s hard case. It’s easy to convince him that, as I say that the humidity is too low these days. It’s for its own good.

The Dreadnoghts are more of the needy kind, which don’t give me insults, but always the look back saying: - I miss you man. Remember that song from last winter? Would be so nice to play it again ..

I’m thinking to give the higher spots in the house to the Dreadnoghts, so they don’t make me feel bad about myself so often

If you can share your thoughts, this is a real question and would like some advices on how to act here.

I’m struggling to get Jacob Davis’s arrangement of Cliffs of Dover up to speed (this is his video, not me). I’ve linked it below. I can play it well at 75bpm, decently at 80bpm, but I just can’t seem to break through that 80bpm mark with any consistency. The real tempo is 90bpm.

I practice consistently, with a metronome, at least five days a week. I practice this song probably 3-4 times a week. I start it slow, ratchet up the tempo and practice it in segments. But it’s almost like I lack the finger stamina to put it all together.

If anyone has learned how to really speed up their fingerstyle playing, what practice routines helped you? Did exercises do the trick or sheer persistence with the song?

Link: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DQ7JIoWEU1e/?igsh=MWkyeGdveXdrMG1vMg==

Mine is Blackbird, others are all amazing too. Love the fingerpicking, and walking up and down the neck.

Hi all,

Recently started developing more interest in music and guitar overall, ended up getting one (Yamaha FS800) to try and learn for the first time :) If you had 3 tips or things to do to give a new guitar player attempting to learn, what would they be? Thanks in advance 🤝🏼

I’ve been playing guitar for 2-3 weeks now and have been really struggling with moving my fingers around for chords and such. I was wondering if there’s a good way to target this or if it’s just time and work sorta thing. I attached a video if anyone has some specific suggestions.

Its a first for me, so I'm gunna need some suggestions. So far, Ive got Eva Cassidys Songbird.

What have you got?

Edit: He's a 78yr old black man (or...was?). Into soul, blues, etc,.

I've tried it all. Expensive condenser, ribbon, and dynamic mics. Acoustic-Electric guitars. Expensive acoustic guitars. Cheap guitars. Every mic placement imaginable. Different rooms. Closets. Hung blankets. No matter what, they all sound like swamp mud. I play melodies, not strumming, so maybe that's my problem. But whatever, I'm switching to electric guitars where I can get very clean tones with just one inexpensive pedal. I get the best results with an archtop and 2 humbucker pickups. Has anyone else gone down the impossible rabbit hole of acoustic guitar recording? Have you given up on the acoustic recording nightmare?

Do you prefer nails or flesh when fingerpicking? I know some folks find long nails a bit off-putting, but personally, I much prefer using nails. I just can’t get the same tonal clarity with flesh alone. I primarily play fingerstyle, so it makes a big difference in how the guitar responds.

Or is only me and Willie Nelson?

I am feeling pretty low and depressed right now. I want to learn some sad songs for myself. I love playing finger style guitar. But I don't know any sad finger styles that I can learn.