Guide: Guitars & Basses

Electric Guitar

Common Mistakes When Buying Your First Electric Guitar

The most common first electric guitar mistakes and how to avoid them: budget for guitar, amp and extras, fit, setup, left-handed and kids options, testing and myths.

Acoustic Guitar

Acoustic Guitar Saddle, Nut, Pins, Tuners and Pickups: What Matters and What It Costs

The small parts of a steel-string acoustic (saddle, nut, bridge pins, tuners, pickup) explained: materials, real tonal effect, lowering the saddle and checking the nut yourself, replacing tuners, retrofit versus factory electronics, and what repairs typically cost.

Acoustic Guitar

Acoustic guitar strings: 80/20 vs. phosphor bronze, gauges, tension and when to change

How 80/20 bronze and phosphor bronze differ, what extra light, light and medium gauges mean in inches and pounds of tension, when coated strings pay off, and how to change strings and check relief, action and intonation afterwards.

Acoustic Guitar

12-String vs. 6-String Acoustic Guitar: Sound, String Tension, Nut Width, Prices and Buying Risks

A 12-string is not just a 6-string with extra strings: octave pairs, a wider neck, roughly 250 lbs of string pull against about 160 lbs and a fussier tuning routine change how it sounds, plays and ages. Includes restringing, relief and action checks and care tips.

Acoustic Guitar

Action, Neck Relief and Truss Rod: Diagnosing Playability on an Acoustic Guitar

How to measure and adjust relief and action, set the truss rod in small steps, check nut and intonation, tell a setup problem from a neck reset case, and what a setup costs (as of Oct. 2026).

Acoustic Guitar

Humidity and Acoustic Guitars: Target Values, Damage, Storage and Used-Buyer Checks

Aim for roughly 45-55 % relative humidity at room temperature (40-60 % is still tolerable). This guide covers the damage on both sides, measuring and calibrating a hygrometer (salt test), using humidifiers, winter and travel, storage and what to ask when buying used.

Acoustic Guitar

Acoustic Guitar Bracing Explained: X-Bracing, Scalloping, V-Class and What to Check

Bracing is the hidden wooden skeleton under the top that holds string tension and shapes tone. This guide covers the main patterns, how brace shaping changes sound and durability, typical age-related faults, how to inspect them, what you can do yourself (watching the top, humidity, string changes) and what repairs cost.

Electric Guitar

Vintage vs. Reissue: Is an Old Electric Guitar Worth It?

What separates vintage originals from reissues, Custom Shop and relic guitars, how modifications and refinishes change value, what serial numbers and certificates can and cannot prove, and which choice fits playing, collecting or investing.

Classical Guitar

Scale Length and Neck Width: Finding the Right Fit for Beginners

Scale length, size, nut width, neck profile and body shape of classical guitars: standard 650 mm sizes, children's sizes from 1/8 to 7/8, a size table, cutaway pros and cons, common wrong purchases and a decision guide.

Electric Guitar

Pickup Types Explained: Single-Coil vs. Humbucker

How single-coils, humbuckers, P-90s and noiseless pickups differ in sound and hum, how switching, pots and capacitors shape tone, active vs. passive, when a swap pays off, costs and myths.

Acoustic Guitar

Buying a Used Acoustic Guitar: Inspection Checklist, Repair Costs and Deal-Breakers

How to inspect a used steel-string acoustic in the right order: neck and truss rod, action, top, bridge, cracks, bracing, plus play test, first care and realistic repair costs (as of Oct. 2026).

Classical Guitar

Nylon vs. Steel Strings: Why Classical Guitars Should Never Be Restrung

Why classical guitars take nylon strings only, what steel strings do to them, how string materials and tension classes differ, how to restring and stretch, change intervals, care and cost per set.