From Acoustic to Electric
- Thread starter hensel11
- Start date
I don’t think you need to think of it as “switching from” acoustic to electric.
I think the better approach is to think of it as adding electric.
Acoustic is great, and there’s no reason to not continue playing it as you pick up the electric guitar.
I think the better approach is to think of it as adding electric.
Acoustic is great, and there’s no reason to not continue playing it as you pick up the electric guitar.
Last edited:
RVA
Ambassador
Welcome hensel11 !! Yoir skills with an acoustic will serve you well with an electric. Did any electric guitar strike your fancy yet?Hi All,
I am not professional player, I just play with my free time or gathering with friends. I have been playing with my acoustic for 3 years now, thinking of switching to electric.
eSGEe
Ferengi Ambassador of Trade
Hi! Welcome! Enjoy!
Kerry Brown
Ambassador of the Great Northern Bar Jams
The only advice I can give is persevere. At first you'll probably grip the neck too hard and pull the strings sharp, especially barre chords. Once you get the hang of it you can easily switch back and forth.
This was my hardest thing to adjust to. Playing 12s on my acoustic i kinda developed a death grip... and could get away with it. Had to really unlearn some habits and develop a light touch.
ivan H
Ambassador of Tubes & Grooves
Welcome to TTR hensel11. Some good advice has been posted regarding progressing onto electric. A bit of trivia in the vein of what DonP said: In the early days of ACDC, Malcolm Young wrote on a nylon strung (classical) acoustic. His reasoning, if it didn't sound good on a cheap acoustic, it wasn't good. Don't stop playing your acoustic when you take up electric. Let us know if there's any particular type electric your looking for. Cheers
Col Mustard
Ambassador of Perseverance
Welcome to the Tone Rooms!
lots of us play both, as you can tell.
I'll echo what's been said here by some of my colleagues: playing acoustic can give
you a habit of squeezing the instrument too hard... especially if your acoustic has never
been set up properly by a luthier.
If you switch over to electric, you may find yourself throwing the instrument sharp because
of excessive pressure from your fingers. I had to work myself through this, and teach myself
to play all over again. I had to force myself to keep my thumb behind the neck, but this was
very worth it. Once I practiced this left hand technique, my playing took off like a bird of prey.
You play electric with a much more relaxed hand, and that frees you from the cramped and
locked hand position of the chunka chunka chunka acoustic player. (which is what I was...)
So I will also recommend that you take some lessons at an intermediate level, or what ever level
you are comfortable with.
A good instructor can bring your music to a take-off point...
Then if you practice what you learn, you may fly.
I am someone who never did that... and I paid the price for a long time.
Learning from a good instructor can help you unlearn some bad habits that plague
the self taught guitarist, and hold you back like weights on your wrists.
I also recommend that you get your acoustic guitar set up by the best luthier you can afford.
Then you can take advantage of learning to play with a relaxed hand, Once you've played a
well setup guitar, you'll wonder why you waited so long to get that done.
If you buy an electric, that's one of the first things you should do: Take it to the best luthier
you can find and pay him what he needs to set your guitar up. This will enhance your
electric guitar experience more than almost anything else.
Many of us have learned how to do the basic setup steps on an electric. All the adjusting
screws are there for us to turn. But I like to have a pro setup job done first, and then I can
usually keep the instrument in fighting trim after that.
Now for one of our unwritten rules around here:
PICTURES, OR IT
NEVER HAPPENED
lots of us play both, as you can tell.
I'll echo what's been said here by some of my colleagues: playing acoustic can give
you a habit of squeezing the instrument too hard... especially if your acoustic has never
been set up properly by a luthier.
If you switch over to electric, you may find yourself throwing the instrument sharp because
of excessive pressure from your fingers. I had to work myself through this, and teach myself
to play all over again. I had to force myself to keep my thumb behind the neck, but this was
very worth it. Once I practiced this left hand technique, my playing took off like a bird of prey.
You play electric with a much more relaxed hand, and that frees you from the cramped and
locked hand position of the chunka chunka chunka acoustic player. (which is what I was...)
So I will also recommend that you take some lessons at an intermediate level, or what ever level
you are comfortable with.
A good instructor can bring your music to a take-off point...
Then if you practice what you learn, you may fly.
I am someone who never did that... and I paid the price for a long time.
Learning from a good instructor can help you unlearn some bad habits that plague
the self taught guitarist, and hold you back like weights on your wrists.
I also recommend that you get your acoustic guitar set up by the best luthier you can afford.
Then you can take advantage of learning to play with a relaxed hand, Once you've played a
well setup guitar, you'll wonder why you waited so long to get that done.
If you buy an electric, that's one of the first things you should do: Take it to the best luthier
you can find and pay him what he needs to set your guitar up. This will enhance your
electric guitar experience more than almost anything else.
Many of us have learned how to do the basic setup steps on an electric. All the adjusting
screws are there for us to turn. But I like to have a pro setup job done first, and then I can
usually keep the instrument in fighting trim after that.
Now for one of our unwritten rules around here:
PICTURES, OR IT
NEVER HAPPENED
CabanaBoy
Ambassador of Electric Mayhem
Hi All,
I am not professional player, I just play with my free time or gathering with friends. I have been playing with my acoustic for 3 years now, thinking of switching to electric.
Cool deal, man - welcome aboard...
