Pickups: Passive Or Active

There has always been a debate about which type of pickups is better. I think it all comes to your personal preference, but there are some advantages and disadvantages of both of them.

Passive pickups are magnets which directly send the signal from the string, through the wood, into the pickup and into the amplifier. That creates the most organic, natural sound you can get. They are also the more popular type of pickups as many guitarists prefer to use them, because adjusting their volume knob allows them to produce multiple sounds without having to go and adjust the gain and treble on the amp. The disadvantage of passive pickups is their feedback, especially when you introduce gain. You can also get problems with intonation due to a magnetic pull on the strings, but if your pickups are decent quality you shouldn't have a problem. Players such as Jimi Hendrix, Jeff Beck, Eddie Van Halen and Angus Young all used passive pickups.

Active pickups are powered by a completely separate battery stored in the guitar which enables much higher output and clarity of the sound. They were first introduced for Jazz and clean players, but now they attract many metal players due to the hotter output. Metal players such as Kirk Hammett use active pickups as they allow them to push their amps near their limits while keeping the tight clarity of the sound. The problem with active pickups is that you would have to replace the 9v battery every time it starts to fade and also you have to be pretty good to sound good with active pickups as they pick up more mistakes so that could really piss you off.

I personally prefer using passive pickups because I like the ability to change my tone with the volume knobs and overall prefer the sound. It just gives you more freedom and possibilities when playing live, because believe me you do not want to go and mess with the amp in the middle of a live show. You will look like a retard or at least like someone who has no idea what they're doing.

Plectrums (picks)

You probably think this is completely irrelevant and not important. Trust me, it makes a difference. Choosing the wrong pick for the wrong song could ruin your performance. If you're good enough it might not change that much, but you should always be trying to match your pick to the song you're playing.

For playing pretty classical things or chords you should definitely use soft, bendy plectrums. They will make you sound smoother and generally nicer, whereas a hard, thick pick would just not work as well. 
For shredding and fast playing in general, you should use thick picks or the very small thick picks if you find them more comfortable and easier to play with, which some people do. The thick picks don't bend so you have more control over what you're playing which you will need when you reach super speed. Soft, thin picks will not allow you to play as fast without making mistakes and sounding clean.

If you play bass guitar, you need to get a bass pick. They're wider than normal picks and are easier to play bass with.

The brand of the pick doesn't really matter as long as you feel comfortable playing it.

Easy Tabs: Guitar Pro

Guitar Pro is my favourite guitar program as it is very easy to use and get tabs for. The tabs are not only easy to see, but the program also plays it for you and shows you where you are so you don't get lost. It shows you all the parts that are in the song. One of the cool features this program offers is the slowing down of the song. that's really useful if you're learning a very fast bit that's hard to make out. You can also turn the volume down on all the parts individually so for example if you're learning the lead guitar part you can turn it off and replace it.

I use Guitar Pro 5, but there is a newer one which I never bothered getting.

Getting tabs for this is very easy. You can just go on the internet and download them directly or do what i did. Download a file called 60000 tabs uploaded by auron. It will pretty much give you all the tabs there are for every band. You will occasionally not be able to find a tab but that's very rare.

This program is not free, although there are ways of getting it free pretty easily, but that would be illegal. You can download the program and find a license key on the internet. 

With this guitar program I learned really a lot of songs and is very, very useful. It is definitely worth getting if you're a guitar or bass player.

If you don't want to spend the money or do it the illegal way(which of course you shouldn't), you can just use songster which is not quite the same, but it does play the song for you which can help if you have to learn a song and you don't know it that well.

Good Guitarists To Look Up To

Being one of the best isn't just about your speed or technique. I know a lot of great guitarists who are absolutely pro and could easily be in any good band, but they don't have what it takes to be considered one of the best. To achieve that you need your own original feel and sound and these are the guitarists who have that:

Slash: I really love the emotion in his playing. He achieved it with hours of hard work which not everyone has the time or patience to do. Learn his solos as they will definitely improve the emotion in your playing.

Ritchie Blackmore: His classical riffs and sound are absolutely unique. You should definitely check him out.

Joe Satriani: Pure class. One of the best guitarists out there. Look him up on YouTube as he can teach you a lot. Don't start learning any of his stuff if you're not advanced, because you will fail and it will be a waste of time.

Steve Vai: You can learn many useful exercises from him. One of my favourites. The emotion and feeling in his playing is unreal. Listen to ''Tender Surrender'' and ''For The Love Of God''.

Kirk Hammett: Definitely worth checking out. Very melodic solos. Not all are fast. You will definitely find something for yourself. Uses a lot of wah wah which is pretty much his signature thing.

B.B King: He says he plays whatever he likes. Well he's a genius and there's no question about it. The people who were writing music for him said it was near impossible as it was too complex. His guitar sings. He is the icon of Blues and his complex vibrato and bends are now part of every rock guitarists repertoire.

Carlos Santana: Its hard not to recognize his bluesy latin influenced tone. Brilliant guitarist.

Jimi Page: Another one of my favourites. Brilliant solos and ideas. Probably the only famous guitarists who can play with a violin bow.

Eddie Van Halen: I couldn't believe I was actually hearing it when I first heard ''Eruption''. It's actually easier if it sounds if you give it the right amount of time. He definitely left his mark in rock history.

David Gilmour: He is my favourite. Every noise he make with his guitar has beauty in it. He is no shredder and is very underrated, but his solos are genius. He can play many other instruments like the drums, bass and banjo.

Jimi Hendrix: Considered the best by almost everyone. Just look at his freedom. Absolutely unique tone. Shame he did so much drugs, but the music would probably have never been created if not for them.

This list is supposed to give you something to look up and influence you. Learn some solos by the guitarists as it should increase your repertoire.

Choosing The Right Guitar

Choosing a guitar is really fun. You get to go to all the shops, play all the guitars you want, talk to the shop clerks and all that. It's not easy though, especially if you don't have enough money to buy the guitar you really want. Don't focus on buying the cheapest guitar you can find. In fact that is the worst thing you can do, because if you buy a guitar you don't enjoy playing, because it goes out of tune or is uncomfortable to hold or anything of that sort, it will most likely end up in your closet and you'll never play it. I know many people who have made that mistake. I'm one of them. I wanted a second guitar to play with my dad and I didn't really take my time with the choosing and bought a £200 Ibanez Gio. The strings are quite a distance above the neck, it goes out of tune easily. It's a disaster. Ibanez is not a bad brand, but some of their guitars are terrible so don't just rely on the brand

If you've never bought a guitar before and you don't know if you're going to keep playing for a long time I suggest you buy an acoustic guitar, because If you buy an electric guitar, you will also need to buy an amplifier, leads and other gear. Trust me, that is expensive stuff and you don't want to be spending that kind of money and never play. 

Before you decide which guitar you want, play as many guitars as you can get your hands on. Go to a shop and play everything there. Don't mind the people working there who are giving you dirty looks and want you to leave. You have the right to take your time and play as long as you want. Ask your friends what they think is good and what they would buy. 

Is you have the money and want to buy a good guitar that will last you, look for a good brand. Gibson and Fender are the leading brands and I have to say, they're dam good. Ibanez and Jackson are also pretty good. You can get good guitars made by other brands, but they are the most reliable. Epiphone copies Gibson guitars, but don't be fooled. They are not Gibson just like Squier are not Fender. I have a £700 Gibson SG and I absolutely love it. If you choose Gibson or Fender you are guaranteed to get your moneys worth. You will also need to buy picks, a case and a strap if you like to stand.

Look at the guitar and decide if it's well made. Check if the strings are the right distance from the neck(the smaller the distance the less pressure required to play), look at the frets and check if they're more or less right etc. Bring someone experienced with you. It will make it much easier.

Strings

Choosing the right guitar strings is more important than you think. First of all you need to know that there are different strings for acoustic and electric guitars. They come in different gauges/thicknesses. 

If you are a beginner choose thin strings as they are much easier to play. If you find it hard to play your guitar you might want to consider buying thiner strings. If you're fingers are strong and you can play any guitar with any strings there is no reason why you shouldn't try thick strings which are good for playing heavier stuff. The thinnest you can get is probably 0.008 gauge, but I find them too thin. If you're only starting choose 0.009 or 0.010. Most rock guitarists would use 0.011s which aren't too thin or too thick. 

For playing classical stuff I recommend you use thick strings as they will definitely make the sound quality richer. For shredding and fast playing use thinner strings as they will allow you to move around the neck faster, because less pressure is needed to create sound. 

It's really up to you what strings you choose. You need to see for yourself and decide what suits you. It takes experience. Don't be afraid to try new brands or thicknesses. That's what they're there for! 

You should replace your strings often (I do it every month). With age your strings will begin to go out of tune very easily and might even break (I got hit in the eye once. not nice). Some strings will last longer than others depending on the brand, but they're also more expensive. Change your strings whenever you feel you need to.

You should also clean your strings regularly as dust may make it harder to play faster things. Clean strings are just smoother and nicer to play. To clean them use a soft cloth and just swipe over them and under them (if possible). 

Find Somebody To Play With

It is very important that you have someone to jam with or someone to assist you. If you're a beginner you should team up with somebody better than you as it will be easer for you to play with such a person because they have more control and experience so even if you mess up on the timing or something of that sort, they will slow down and wait for you. It is a great way to improve your musicianship and understanding of other players. There isn't a better feeling than that when you are playing with someone you know very well and you completely understand each other and can both change the speed at the same time. There is just something about knowing the person for a long time that creates a bond between you that will allows you to communicate without actually speaking.

If you are more advanced you might want to consider forming a band. It would be a good experience to play with real people instead of a backing track. Make sure they are about the same level as you are, because you don't want someone to be a lot better than everyone else and wanting to play songs that are impossible for you to play at that stage. Also you've got to like the people you play with. You will spend many hours with them and the last thing you want is someone annoying being there. Playing with a band would definitely improve your timing. When you begin covering songs start with backing tracks and then try playing just by yourself and see hoe you sound there will always be something to improve on. Find people that are into the same type of music as you are, because you don't want to have to learn a song you don't like and wont enjoy playing. 

If you're advanced and have time you could help out someone who is not as good as you and teach them a few things. Teaching is good as it forces you to analyze your playing style and techniques which cause you to find out a lot about yourself. This can sometimes be very helpful, for example when you find that on a certain riff you should start on an upstroke instead of a downstroke.