Picking out your first guitar is an exciting step. The right instrument will feel comfortable to hold, sound good to your ears, and inspire you to practice.
The most important thing to remember is to choose a guitar that makes you want to play it.
Treat It Like a Test Drive for Your Hands
The core of a "test drive" is assessing the guitar's energy and responsiveness. As one musician on a forum put it, after playing hundreds of instruments, a truly great one feels like it "inspires you to make music" and "seems to play itself".
When you get your hands on a guitar, focus on these key comfort and quality checks:
What to Check
Why It Matters
Playability & Comfort
The guitar should be a pleasure to hold, not a struggle. A setup with high action (strings too high) can make guitar "torture" to play.
Quality Inspection
Physically inspect for flaws like sharp, protruding frets that can cut your fingers, buzzing sounds when notes are played, or body damage like cracks around the jack plate.
Sound & Resonance
The core of music. As one player notes, "no two guitars sound the same - and that applies to guitars that are exactly the same model".
Neck Width, Scale, and Body Style
These crucial ergonomic factors are about comfort over time. The "try/buy thing might be more important in an area like neck width and overall comfort, or in a body style" you're unfamiliar with.
Electronics (for electrics)
You can't know how the pickups sound until you plug in and test all the controls
