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hey gang, i don't think i've posted for a year or two or maybe even three how's it going?


i need some recommendations for guitar. this guitar is for me to record with. it needs to have a pick up because my mic err, *picks up* fan noise from my computer, so i would want to just plug that sucker in. it needs to be friendly for a beginner guitar player with small hands
and i don't want an utterly crappy guitar, but don't want to break the bank either. let's put the cap at $600. thoughts?

- juliet

Hey there, Juliet!

Are you thinking Acoustic with pickups, or electric? That will help refine the search.

Hey Juliet - If you're looking for an electric geetar, I highly recommend the VGS SkyCruiser VTC-100 Select 3TSB VG from Evertune. It's the 5th one down on this page:
https://www.evertune.com/evertuned-guitars-for-sale-3/

It will always be in tune, it's truly amazing and it sounds great! I'm not sure about alternate tunings on it, but for standard tuning it's brilliant!

Might be my favorite/best purchase to date.

Hey, thanks Peter and Marc for your replies

Peter - oops, i completely forgot to mention that key detail. honestly, i'll take advice for both acoustic and electric, because i do want both eventually (and hopefully sooner than later). but the first priority is the acoustic guitar that i can plug in for recording.

Marc - wow, that is a cool one, i love the idea of never having to tune it i'll keep that one jotted down, thanks!

i also got a PM last night from a trusted source that acoustics with pickups generally do not generate a great quality of sound in recording, and that a good option would be to buy a mic that fits in the guitar. something like this: http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/LyricPU

if that's the better route, i can just get that and stick it in my applause ovation... thoughts?

if that's the better route, i can just get that and stick it in my applause ovation... thoughts?

Sounds like a no brainer to me.

You could try fashioning a little cupboard for your computer and glue /staple some packing blankets to the inside of it. Put some ventilation holes in it.

A friend of mine had a similar setup where he would leave the cupboard door open but close it for recording vocals and acoustic instruments. It worked fine. Sometimes the extraneous noise isn't as noticeable as you might think, especially on things you aren't going to compress the hell out of.

Just for the heck of it... check out one of these...
most of the big instrument Internet companies carry these;
around $300, but you'll need/want to get a good case?, which is additional

Epiphone EL-00 PRO Acoustic/Electric Guitar
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaHZHVEf-Uo

good luck; and good playing.
hth, cheers.

ed. NOTE: in the video, the guitar is plugged in, using its built-in electronics; plus the use of a stand-alone external mic.
Gives you good-sounding options at a very reasonable price.

Pickups for acoustic guitars are primarily for stage work, because they compromise the sound; whatever's coming off the pickup nearly always needs a lot of massaging to even resemble an acoustic guitar. It can work in a mix, but when your guitar is alone, naked and afraid, it needs the room around it to sound right; room reflections are part of what makes it sound 'acoustic' and no pickup can provide that, by itself.

That said, there are a few pickup systems that are less of a compromise than most. Taylor's Expression system combines several different technologies to represent your guitar's natural sound (including an 'invisible' magnetic pickup under the neck) and it works pretty well; as close to plug and play as it gets, IMO. (and they come that way from the factory) Fishman's Aura pickup/ preamp system does a really decent job as well, but you have to tote along a stompbox anywhere you play and because it uses convolution technology it really does sound like a guitar, just not necessarily your guitar. Prism and B-Band's "condenser" P/U tie for about third, though Prism's multi-sensor approach requires a lot of trial and error, results are superior to the B-band when you get it just right. I have a Baggs Double Barrel installed in my dreadnought; it features an under-saddle piezo and a mini omni condenser mic and requires a stereo cable and separate signal paths/preamps for best results and as you may have already guessed, I STILL prefer a mic, (or three) when I'm recording. Personally, I think you're best off with a quality guitar, a remote for your DAW and a long mic cable, if fan noise is the issue. At least with the Taylor, you have an axe that's worth miking up, and the pickup sound won't hurt your ears. (though knowledgable folks will still be able to tell it's a pickup. There are also some soundhole pickups that are easy enough to self-install/remove, IF your soundhole is standard size and not an oval. Fishman's Rare Earth magnetic/mic combo is among the best sounding, as is the Sunrise soundhole magnetic, if you can find one, but it requires a custom preamp installed within the guitar body or a goofy looking box hanging off your endpin jack.

Given all the great information provided so far unless you want a pick-up for live work do you really need one at all?
You were willing to spend 700 bucks on a guitar with a pick-up in it but would you consider doing a few things to make your studio space usable for recording.
Maybe you don't need to build a cabinet for the computer [ and overheating is a worry there, hence my friend opening and closing the door].
The use of gobos goes back a long way for isolating different sound sources. These can be placed strategically around a computer. Basically a bit of particle board with some absorptive material on one side [or 2] and Bob's ur uncle!
Couple that with a reflexion filter around the mic and you could get decent results with vocals and a variety of acoustic instruments.
Just worth a thought?

it needs to have a pick up because my mic err, *picks up* fan noise from my computer

Replace case fans with quieter ones. They're inexpensive and easy to change out.

Check this out!

http://www.ikmultimedia.com/products/irigacoustic/