Guitar Selection For Large Fingers
gkane wrote:
First of all, a big welcome to the program!! We're glad to have you with us! You are going to love this site. Great instruction and songs, and some really great people! I ask everyone this but could you go over to the Please Introduce Yourself thread and tell us a little about yourself, where you live, what are your musical interests etc. We've all done it and it's painless I promise!
I can probably answer this question better than most because I have really big hands. To answer your question directly, classical guitars have wider necks and are intially much easier to play than steel string acoustics because your fingers won't hurt as much!. But the real question is what kind of music do you want to play? If you want to play modern acoustic music you need a steel string guitar. If you want to play classical, flamenco, or gypsy a nylon stringed guitar is better.
It is a little bit of a myth that people with big hands or fingers can't play a standard sized (neck width) acoustic. They can and do. You may have to make some accomodations like playing a basic A chord differently if there isn't enough room to squeeze three fingers into one fret. But more often than not any problems you encounter with finger size are going to be more related to good hand position and technique.
I own a nice acoustic 6 string that I ordered with a wider (12-string) neck so I could play better fingerstyle. This is more for right hand spacing than for fingering. And the wider neck is harder to play than a regular width guitar. I have to really pay attention to hand position.
So bottom line, don't get too worried about your fingers. You'll do fine. The biggest thing you should consider when getting a guitar for a beginner is to not try to buy an El Cheapo because it will be very hard to play. There are lots of threads on this site about what guitar to buy for a beginner. I would say, plan on spending not less than $300 and try to get a guitar with an adjustable truss rod. This will allow you to adjust the neck to make it play easier!
Sorry for the long reply but hope it helps! Don't sweat the fingers! It's really the least of your worries! Just jump in and have fun. And let us know when you get frustrated and you'll get more help than you can possibly use!!
Good luck and happy playin'. CHeers! :cheer:
What would be the best guitar for a beginner with large (fat) fingers? I heard classical guitars have a wider neck and would probably be best (plus nylon strings), are there any other suggestions?
First of all, a big welcome to the program!! We're glad to have you with us! You are going to love this site. Great instruction and songs, and some really great people! I ask everyone this but could you go over to the Please Introduce Yourself thread and tell us a little about yourself, where you live, what are your musical interests etc. We've all done it and it's painless I promise!
I can probably answer this question better than most because I have really big hands. To answer your question directly, classical guitars have wider necks and are intially much easier to play than steel string acoustics because your fingers won't hurt as much!. But the real question is what kind of music do you want to play? If you want to play modern acoustic music you need a steel string guitar. If you want to play classical, flamenco, or gypsy a nylon stringed guitar is better.
It is a little bit of a myth that people with big hands or fingers can't play a standard sized (neck width) acoustic. They can and do. You may have to make some accomodations like playing a basic A chord differently if there isn't enough room to squeeze three fingers into one fret. But more often than not any problems you encounter with finger size are going to be more related to good hand position and technique.
I own a nice acoustic 6 string that I ordered with a wider (12-string) neck so I could play better fingerstyle. This is more for right hand spacing than for fingering. And the wider neck is harder to play than a regular width guitar. I have to really pay attention to hand position.
So bottom line, don't get too worried about your fingers. You'll do fine. The biggest thing you should consider when getting a guitar for a beginner is to not try to buy an El Cheapo because it will be very hard to play. There are lots of threads on this site about what guitar to buy for a beginner. I would say, plan on spending not less than $300 and try to get a guitar with an adjustable truss rod. This will allow you to adjust the neck to make it play easier!
Sorry for the long reply but hope it helps! Don't sweat the fingers! It's really the least of your worries! Just jump in and have fun. And let us know when you get frustrated and you'll get more help than you can possibly use!!
Good luck and happy playin'. CHeers! :cheer:
BigBear wrote:
BigBear, well said, thanks I picked up some good info from that.gkane wrote:What would be the best guitar for a beginner with large (fat) fingers? I heard classical guitars have a wider neck and would probably be best (plus nylon strings), are there any other suggestions?
First of all, a big welcome to the program!! We're glad to have you with us! You are going to love this site. Great instruction and songs, and some really great people! I ask everyone this but could you go over to the Please Introduce Yourself thread and tell us a little about yourself, where you live, what are your musical interests etc. We've all done it and it's painless I promise!
I can probably answer this question better than most because I have really big hands. To answer your question directly, classical guitars have wider necks and are intially much easier to play than steel string acoustics because your fingers won't hurt as much!. But the real question is what kind of music do you want to play? If you want to play modern acoustic music you need a steel string guitar. If you want to play classical, flamenco, or gypsy a nylon stringed guitar is better.
It is a little bit of a myth that people with big hands or fingers can't play a standard sized (neck width) acoustic. They can and do. You may have to make some accomodations like playing a basic A chord differently if there isn't enough room to squeeze three fingers into one fret. But more often than not any problems you encounter with finger size are going to be more related to good hand position and technique.
I own a nice acoustic 6 string that I ordered with a wider (12-string) neck so I could play better fingerstyle. This is more for right hand spacing than for fingering. And the wider neck is harder to play than a regular width guitar. I have to really pay attention to hand position.
So bottom line, don't get too worried about your fingers. You'll do fine. The biggest thing you should consider when getting a guitar for a beginner is to not try to buy an El Cheapo because it will be very hard to play. There are lots of threads on this site about what guitar to buy for a beginner. I would say, plan on spending not less than $300 and try to get a guitar with an adjustable truss rod. This will allow you to adjust the neck to make it play easier!
Sorry for the long reply but hope it helps! Don't sweat the fingers! It's really the least of your worries! Just jump in and have fun. And let us know when you get frustrated and you'll get more help than you can possibly use!!
Good luck and happy playin'. CHeers! :cheer:
gkane wrote:
As for best guitar, well you need to have in your mind what kind of music you want to be playing, then you possibly have to consider budget and also your level of commitment. Like anything you get what you pay for , although a few entry level guitars sound ok, as you progress a better guitar can inspire you more. And also it has to feel good to you and sound good to you, so best advice try out a lot of guitars before you make that decision. Good luck
regards
Chas
Welcome to TG mate. AS Bear says, and he should no he has paws not hands, if you have large hands you can compensate with slightly differrent chord shapes for some chords but at the end of the day the correct right hand position will greatly assist.What would be the best guitar for a beginner with large (fat) fingers? I heard classical guitars have a wider neck and would probably be best (plus nylon strings), are there any other suggestions?
As for best guitar, well you need to have in your mind what kind of music you want to be playing, then you possibly have to consider budget and also your level of commitment. Like anything you get what you pay for , although a few entry level guitars sound ok, as you progress a better guitar can inspire you more. And also it has to feel good to you and sound good to you, so best advice try out a lot of guitars before you make that decision. Good luck
regards
Chas
Thanks everyone, appreciate the replies! I ended up getting a used Yamaha G-230 (Classical) at a pawn shop for $40, not bad! Perfect for right now as I start to learn. It has been good learning the entry chords from Neil, and it sounds pretty good. So this will work for now and as I progress, I'll do some upgrading. This Yamaha will most likely stay with me forever, quickly becoming a good friend 
Thanks again! GK
Thanks again! GK
GK, That is a great guitar to start out with. you're going to like it a lot. Take you time and really get to know it. Sit down and just play different notes and listen to how they sound. After a while, it will be very natural for you to play. Just make sure its tuned correctly (a good tuner is highly recommended) and you have good hand position. You'll be jammin in no time.
And don't worry about big fingers. Like Bear, I also have large sized digits and its not really a problem.
And don't worry about big fingers. Like Bear, I also have large sized digits and its not really a problem.
Welcome GK, from N. California. Glad you are with us. Sounds like you made a good choice with your $40 investment. You can learn on the nylon strings and build up your calluses on your fingers and learn the chords & strumming. You'll know when it's time to upgrade your guitar, but you don't have to worry about that now. Have fun. Gary