I got a Fender GDEC for Xmas !!

Birddog · #1 December 28th, 2007

Wife bought me the GDEC . This machine is awesome - the book that comes with it is pretty short though . I would assume it is usually purchased by more experienced players than I am .
which brings me to another question. I have looked locally for a studio that teaches guitar . There is one just uptown from me that offers one on one time at $20 per HALF HOUR. , I asked more about it . 15 minutes of what the teacher wants done , if thats is satisfactory , the other 15 minutes is mine to work on a song I want to learn .Classes need to be bought beforehand (on a prepaid monthly basis).
There is another guy who has an ad in the paper about teaching guitar from his home at $20 per 1 FULL HOUR. I haven't called him yet.
Obviously each rates are for a storefront vs a home (overhead vs basically none)
What questions should I ask before signing up or what should I look for in a teacher? I am saying I am a green beginner . What should I go into my first class knowing ? Thanks guys

allthumbs · #2 December 28th, 2007

Set your own goals and ask the teacher how he is going to get you there. Some teachers have set course material that can be very frustrating if you have specific goals that won't be addressed.

Birddog · #3 December 29th, 2007

I guess thats where the problem is right now - I don't have a set goal other than I'd like to be able to play for my own relaxation and entertainment. I'd like to be able to play along with songs I like or when my son gets better at his (new)drums , be able to play something with him . I'm not looking to start a band . I might be making the concept of guitar playing more difficult to play in my mind than in real life . I'm sure once I get it , I'll have it and go back and say -well that was easier than I thought. But then again ,maybe not.

starsailor · #4 December 29th, 2007

[quote=Birddog;185321] I don't have a set goal other than I'd like to be able to play for my own relaxation and entertainment. I'd like to be able to play along with songs I like or when my son gets better at his (new)drums , be able to play something with him .

Hi Birddog nice present, You said you didn't have a set goal but you have really as in all aspects of life we set our goals as we go along and when we reach them we make new goals, so your first goals to aim for
are.
1)Play for my own relaxation and entertainment
2)To be able to play along with songs I like
3)Play songs with my son playing drums (this is a great goal, if you practice together sometimes you'll probably both achieve more and get a lot out of the experience)

Those 3 goals should keep you busy for a while.

On the subject of Teachers, it could be best to check them both out and have a chat as allthumbs said, see if you like them, tell them you're pretty new to guitar, what kind of music you like and about the goals above, I don't think they'll expect too much to start with, sometimes it's harder for a teacher to teach a person with a bit of experience as people can develop bad habits which have to be undone to make progress.

Good luck and that is a great present.

Cheers

Chris

Birddog · #5 December 29th, 2007

I called the guy in town who teaches out of his home - after a short but to the point conversation ,I will be starting my first lesson with him next Sunday - a full hour of one on one time. Pay as I go, $20 cash which with my sometimes erratic maintenance work schedule should work great for me. No fussy rules about prepaying a months time and calling so many hours if I have to cancel and no makeup lessons if I don't call in time. This guy works a regular job , understands family and work(and emergencies happen) that come first. So my time slot unless something doesn't work out is noon on Sundays - he says in a months time he should have me learning 7 chords ,some finger speed and agility excercises and working up the neck with chord progressions and then into some lead licks as I progress. No pressure ,lots of fun. He's into the same music I am so this should work out fine. I'll let you all know how I do and as I go.

Aunt Doty · #6 December 30th, 2007

Sounds like you found something to fit your needs. Good luck with the lessons!

doug russell · #7 December 30th, 2007

I love the Gdec it's a wonderful tool for any guitarist.
I'm glad you've found a guitar tutor that suits you (that's important as far as I'm concerned) I started playing about 9 years ago. I used to shut myself in the bedroom for hours upon end just learning chords and how to change chord shapes. After about a year, thats all I knew how to do, and I was frustrated and in a rut. Then I bumped in a agency temp at work who turned out to be a classically trained guitar tutor. He offered to give me lessons for £8 an hour. He asked me what did I want from the lessons, explained there was no getting away from music theory. He used to come round my house for a couple of hours at a time, and he still only wanted £8 for the full duration. I would push £16 into his hand. I had lessons off him for 2 years, and found him a massive help. He even arranged my first public appearance at a jam club, and played along side me.
He was only half my age but the knowledge he gave me was really valueble and to this day I still class him as my big influence.
So a good guitar tutor is a must.

felixdcat · #8 December 30th, 2007

This is a little off-topic.

But, are teachers ok with having just one or two lessons in a month or so... I'm thinking about getting a first live lesson, and maybe having it once a month or so.

Birddog · #9 December 30th, 2007

Being a beginner myself and old enough to know that I need practice often enough to learn so it stays with me, I think it would be a good idea to have as much practice as you can handle in order to move forward at a reasonable pace. Once a week is probably the norm , I don't watch much tv so I could use a couple times a week just to not be bored but if you only have time or money for once a month - thats all you get.
I didn't think it was off topic at all .
I had a college instructor (who was always like a grandfather figure to most of the class)that said something the very first day of class and it always stuck with me- There is nothing wrong with asking a question even if you think you know the answer ,someone else might have the same question and just be too embarrassed to ask it.

Birddog · #10 December 30th, 2007

I told him I got it - he didn't know what it was at first but after I explained it a little , he thought it sounded pretty cool .

starsailor · #11 December 30th, 2007

Good luck with the lessons Birddog, sounds like a pretty cool Teacher

Fulltone · #12 December 31st, 2007

Birddog, It sounds perfect for you and any situation you may encounter. I fully think that you will benefit more from your "average joe type player" (I don't mean that offensive, it is ment as a compliment to those who teach because they want to not because it is a job.

I had that whole experience of taking lessons at a guitar shop. It was a NIGHTMARE. It was an out and out waste of time and money. I worked my work and school schedule for a month of the crap and it didn't do me one bit of good. All the guy was concerned with was padding his own ego and making me feel like an idiot. At the time I didn't know it was a rip off but I paid $25.00 per half hour (which wasn't really a true half hour) because he always cut my time 5-10 minutes either way. He would either stand and talk to fellow coworkers or girls, then would about five minutes before my time was up would be like see ya next week. It got to the point of frustration the first 5-10 he was actually supposed to be doing one on one it was more like his personal show off time. Then my last 5 minutes was practice this, bye. Totalling 15 minutes of crap. Although I didn't complain because I paid in advance and it wouldn't have done me any good anyway.

Good score, Birddog, I wished I would have had that. Now I can play pretty decent but I get on this site to learn more things and to keep improving my abilities.

starsailor · #13 December 31st, 2007

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fulltone

Birddog, It sounds perfect for you and any situation you may encounter. I fully think that you will benefit more from your "average joe type player" (I don't mean that offensive, it is ment as a compliment to those who teach because they want to not because it is a job.

I had that whole experience of taking lessons at a guitar shop. It was a NIGHTMARE. It was an out and out waste of time and money. I worked my work and school schedule for a month of the crap and it didn't do me one bit of good. All the guy was concerned with was padding his own ego and making me feel like an idiot. At the time I didn't know it was a rip off but I paid $25.00 per half hour (which wasn't really a true half hour) because he always cut my time 5-10 minutes either way. He would either stand and talk to fellow coworkers or girls, then would about five minutes before my time was up would be like see ya next week. It got to the point of frustration the first 5-10 he was actually supposed to be doing one on one it was more like his personal show off time. Then my last 5 minutes was practice this, bye. Totalling 15 minutes of crap. Although I didn't complain because I paid in advance and it wouldn't have done me any good anyway.

Good score, Birddog, I wished I would have had that. Now I can play pretty decent but I get on this site to learn more things and to keep improving my abilities.

I hope you told everyone you could how bad he was Fulltone, Teachers like that shouldn't be working, they've forgotten the golden rule a Teachers job is to share their knowledge not to show pupils how brilliant they are, sounds like a right idiot, pretty sad really, glad it all worked out ok for you, Teachers like that can put people off for life.

Fulltone · #14 December 31st, 2007

Starsailor, you are exactly right and yes I told everyone I could.

I now for FREE up to my abilities teach others. 1. Because it is a good feeling to see others improve. 2 It helps me by forcing me to keep improving as some of the guys I help want to know more which makes me also want to know more.

I always live by "Don't give up no matter what". and another one "Try, Try, Try, Try and Try Again and it will soon come to those who are patient".

I still make mistakes but hey that is the fun of playing, if it was a job no one would do it. I know there are a lot of guys and gals that do it for a living but I believe that is because they still know how to make it fun.

Noodler · #15 January 2nd, 2008

The GDEC is the best thing you could have gotten. (I loooove mine

) It has a built-in chromatic tuner, so there's no excuse not to play at concert pitch. The backing tracks are great to give you a sense of rhythm. You've got a band on call, so playing along with your son will be helped. Some of the presets are well-known songs (eg Smoke =Smoke on the Water). But you can find all that you need to know for yourself at my G-DEC.com - Home (If I screwed up the link google mygdec forum). There is a comprehensive guide to the GDEC on there called going deeper. The main thing is that you can always just restore the factory settings, so get in there and tweak! In other words you won't break it. Most of the presets are too full-on, so play around with some sounds and save them into the U00 to U49 spots.

Any questions about the GDEC, feel free to PM me.