Assuming he doesn't hate slash, reckon with a 13 year old you couldn't go far wrong with this...
Epiphone Slash AFD Les Paul Special-II Performance Pack | Dawsons Music
yeah I saw that
...was going to link it myself
159 quid here:
Epiphone Slash AFD LP Outfit Bundle - Thomann UK
or with a line 6 amp for 214 quid
Epiphone Slash AFD LP Outfit Bundle - Thomann UK
actually looks like there some good bundle deals all round
Guitar Sets - Thomann UK
think if it was me I'd be inclined to spend most of the budget on the guitar and look out for a little second hand amp
never heard of the make....but 115 quid......and good reviews with the look of it
Harley Benton E-35 CH Vintage Series - Thomann UK data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7
red...sunburst or black
available with an amp bundle
Creative Bundle #90 - Thomann UK
....just chucking some ideas in whilst im sitting here drinking tea
https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/gh/joypixels/[email protected]/png/64/2b06.png This. A cracking pack if you can go to £229. Nothing more needed.
Added benefit, it gets him hooked on Les Paul's at an early age data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7
Thanks for the thoughts and guidance. Given your feedback, the wide array of choices, styles, etc available, I think I will have to knock the idea of a surprise on the head. No point in spending a couple of hundred pounds only to risk my son not liking the guitar.
This thread has been really helpful in narrowing the choice of brands down so I really do appreciate your feedback. My sense is that we can spend a nice afternoon/day together selecting a good guitar...
Nothing like the excitement of choosing your first guitar he will probably love it a lot more that way.
Guitars are expensive so knock 25% off your budget when you tell him what he can spend. Then he will appreciate you the more when he convinces you he needs the more expensive guitar.
Go for a coffee before you commit and check the internet prices, most shops will do a price match when presented with a cheaper price. A quick google will list any cheaper prices and there can be quite a difference 50%sometimes. Any good shop should throw in a free strap and strings as they know that there is a good chance you will come back to buy more.
I gotta second the "surprise" thing. It's one thing getting a bike wrapped up on your birthday/xmas, but a guitar is personal thing, and the player needs to have a relationship with it. Get the wrong one, and looks is the least of the problems - if he doesn't get on with the feel of it, it will impact on his ability to play it.
Get an inflatable guitar, blow it up and wrap it for his birthday, then take him to a decent guitar shop (better if you recce it first, and have some prices with you for matching, as mentioned) and spend a morning letting him try out ones. Just be prepared for the inevitable "but dad, THIS one..." at about £300 more than your budget data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7
I'd have to agree with forsaking the surprise element in favour of getting it right. Love the idea of the inflatable for the day though! Same with buying used. You'll get a much better value instrument but also run the risk of buying a lemon.
Something you could look out for used is an amp. I'd suggest the Roland Micro Cube, which you should be able to pick up for around £45 from Ebay/Gumtree. That will give him a decent little practice amp with a few effects that can also run off AA batteries. Also has a headphone socket for your benefit!
Another option if he has a games console is to forego the amp in favour of a copy of the Rocksmith 2014 game. He can then plug his guitar straight into the console with that.
Did a similar thing with my son, he wanted a guitar for Xmas, so I dragged him into town pretending it was for new shoes , he was stoked when we walked into the guitar shop, he was even more stoked to come out with the guitar etc
thanks for all the suggestions. To update, I bought a copy of Rocksmith for Ps3 on AVF (brilliant idea Crocodile) and I also bought a nice but used guitar amp (for my son to open on his birthday on new years eve) on advice of our local music shop. I am sure he will be very pleased when I take him to the shops to buy a guitar. Problem will be that all shops will be shut for Christmas so he will have to wait - and patience is probably not his best attribute!
Hi, I'm a bit late coming onto this thread but I'd like to suggest a couple of things to think about.
Firstly, it might be worth watching this video on how to buy an electric guitar.There are many others around - just search in YouTube and you'll find lots of advice.
For me, the most significant thing that Chappers says in this video is to take along a guitar-playing friend if you don't play.Now, I know that your son already plays the acoustic guitar, but that brings me onto my second point which is this:
Acoustic and electric guitars are different instruments!
OK yes, they are both guitars.They both generally have six strings and a bunch of frets etc yada yada.But they are used for different styles of music, they sound different and most importantly they feel very different to play.The risk that I see is that your son might go and try some electric guitars and expect / want them to feel similar to the acoustic guitars that he's used to playing.The problem with this is that if an electric guitar feels like an acoustic, then it's going to be a really bad electric guitar with a totally wrong setup!This is why taking someone else along who knows about electric guitars was the most significant point from the video in my opinion, and bearing in mind your situation.
I'd definitely second the advice about targetting guitars that are end-of-line and reduced in price - you can get some great bargains like that.I bought a Charvel guitar a few months ago at 50% off the original price, and it's a really, really good guitar - damn near as good as my best guitar which cost me six times as much.Now, that's a matter of taste - other people might not like it so much, and coming from an acoustic guitar an instrument like that is going to feel quite alien, but it's great (and it was made in China, so don't worry about that if the brand is well known).
Do you know which guitar shop you're likely to go to?I would suggest that if you do, post it on this thread a few days before you go, and I or maybe one of the other guys would certainly be happy to have a look at their website to see if we can spot a good deal at that time.The big stores tend to be quite aggressive about pricing and to follow each other in reducing prices whenever something is offered as end-of-line; a small, local store might not be quite so competitive.Also, most of them will give you a discount of maybe 5-10% on the advertised price if you push them, or at least throw in a pack of strings or two.In my view, it's worth travelling to get to one of the big shops because of the pricing issue, and because they will have more guitars in stock.If you care to tell us where you're located, we might be able to point you towards a good shop.
Your purchase of Rocksmith was definitely a great move.I've been playing it solidly for over 2 years and have learnt a huge amount from it.
Lastly, this could well be the most awesome present that you ever get him.I hope that he loves it and will be grateful to you for the rest of his life! data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7