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Old 08-08-2020, 05:16 PM
ataylor ataylor is offline
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Join Date: Jun 2007
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My recommendation for acoustic is the Baby Taylor. It's a good size for kids and in my experience, the Taylor has better tone and playability than the other 3/4-size acoustics from Martin, Yamaha, and others. The Baby Taylor also comes with a best-in-class gig bag.

Another idea is to go with an electric guitar. The thinner neck size and lighter strings are a little easier for little kids to manage. Fender makes a 3/4 size Squier Mini Strat that is perfect for kids who want to rock.

I ended up getting both of the above for my daughter a couple years ago — the acoustic for her birthday and the electric —in the pink color she fell in love with — for Christmas a few months later. It turns out when you show interest in Dad's hobbies you're more likely to get spoiled!

Both guitars have been fun enough for my daughter that (shhhhhhh) I have a second Mini Strat — this one in Dakota red — waiting under my bed for her six-year-old little brother. I thought I'd start him out on the electric this Christmas and see if he takes to it like his sister. If all goes well we'll have a family band rocking out in the living room before too long!

For a starter amp, I highly recommend the Fender Champion 20 — I got that for my daughter the following Christmas and I have borrowed it a few times for my Telecaster because it sounds way better than I expected at that price point. The Fender tweed and blackface clean tones are surprisingly good and the reverb is convincing enough. There are lots of amp models and effects that kids would enjoy playing around with.

Another option that a friend of mine got for his boy — who I think was a bit younger at the time, maybe four — is the Loog guitar. It's kind of more in the ukulele realm but is kind of a cool take on guitars for kids. Check those out too.
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