Resonator guitar for a learner

[John]

I'm an old guy with a lot of time to kill and am thinking of buying a guitar. I'm a blues fan, Howling Wolf, Lightning Hopkins etc and am tempted to buy a resonator guitar. I don't want to spend a load of money in case I can't learn so would like some advice on what to start with. My grandson has a guitar which I find difficult because I have fat and stubby fingers. Is a resonator suitable and how would you rate the Ozark Spider Resonator Model 3515 which I could afford at £220.
Thanks,
John.

[Michael Messer]

Hi John,

Welcome to our forum.

The Ozark is a good guitar for the price. As a beginners instrument to get the feel of playing blues & slide guitar, you will be fine with the Ozark. The only choice you really need to make is that a spider bridge resophonic guitar is based on a Dobro, which is generally not such a bluesy instrument as a biscuit bridge guitar, which is based on a National. I would advise you to have a play of both types. There are no rules....if you like the spider then that is the one for you!

Keep in touch and why not become a forum member and communicate with like-minded old geezers playing slide guitar :-)

Shine On,
Michael.

[snakehips]

Hi there !

How much of a beginner are you ? Have you been playing on a regular guitar already ?
I'm not sure playing a resonator guitar is 100% advisable for a first guitar - although a cool idea. With absolutely NO disrespect to Michael, I just wonder if a regular non-reso acoustic would be a better guitar to start on. My reasoning is :

I understand not wanting to spend huge amounts on a guitar (yet) - in case you just can't get along with it. Some beginners buy a really cheap guitar for that reason - say around £ 100. My problem with that is that that sort of guitar will usually be so badly put together (string set-up - string height/action etc etc) that they are quite often very difficult to play (for anyone). This is not ideal for a beginner. For the sort of money you were wanting to spend, you could get a half decent acoustic - eg. a Yamaha (but there are other good brands).
However, I think a large chunk of money in most budget of resos goes into the resonator metal parts, and therefore less time/money into the neck/playability.
ie. for the same money, you may get a much more playable standard acoustic than a resonator. I think you will learn faster and enjoy more this way. Later you can buy a half decent resonator (or even a 2nd hand good one).

2nd reason - as a beginner, most find they get sore fingers initially, while they develop some hard skin on their left hand fingeers (fretting hand). A resonator guitar really needs bigger strings to sound half decent, thus will be even tougher on a beginners fingers !. Of course, you could just start learning on thinner strings for a reso, and get beefier strings later.

To a certain extent, its like learning to drive in a Ferrari F40, when perhaps a Ford Focus might be a better idea to start off with. Well, maybe not !!!!!!!!

I don't think either way is terribly wrong actually, its just I think you may flourish easier and faster on a wooden regular acoustic first.

Lightnin Hopkins stuff would sound and feel better on a regular acoustic too !

Good luck to you though.

Again, no disrespect to Michael's advice at all. I can't even believe it myself, me a resonator lover, advising someone NOT to buy a resonator just yet !!! Tsk Tsk !!

[Michael Messer]

Hi Snakehips,

I am not offended by your comments at all. The purpose of this forum is to share knowledge and discuss music, guitars and whatever else comes along. Hopefully this is not like some forums where the administrator holds court and has the last word ...(whoops!!!)

A £250 acoustic (if you buy the right one) is often a better quality instrument than a £250 resophonic guitar. The only problem is that the flattop acoustic is not a resophonic guitar! There are thousands of very happy people playing resophonic guitars that cost less than £300. If they are set up properly and with a bit of TLC they do sound pretty convincing.

Not everybody can afford a genuine National or Dobro. I have never owned a new National Reso-Phonic guitar, the only guitars I own with the National logo on the headstock were made in the 1920s & 30s and are what I rather facetiously call 'real Nationals'. (Not true I know, but that is a similar viewpoint to yours and £250 resophonic guitars). The difference between an Encore Stratocaster that costs £125 including amp & case and a 1962 sunburst Fender Stratocaster is enormous, but....the Encore is perfectly playable and adequate to learn on.

So my advice to John is to go and buy the Ozark and get started....and most of all.....have fun and ENJOY!

Shine On
Michael.

[rickS]

John, if you'd prefer a biscuit-type reso to the spider-type, for close to your budget (£235 -normal price £285) there's a company called signet offering the Ozark 3515E wood-body cutaway - haven't played this particular one, but my experience is that biscuit-resos are generally a better all-round instrument than spiders(ie are suited to more playing styles),so it might be worth checking out?

Good huntin,

Rick

[Deleted]

Looks like you gotta 'go for it' John! I initially had trouble fretting chords (which I suspect you feel you may have trouble with) but after starting with 'open' tunings (D & G) I found I could manage to fret what I needed to. Ted Hawkins played with a leather glove on his 'fretboard' hand & he was brilliant. Best of luck.

[Deleted]

John...ask yourself why you want a resonator rather than a regular acoustic guitar. I've seen too many people buy them because of the image and ego trip..."..look at me I'm a real blues player", and then find they just don''t get on with them. I've seen too many of these types at open mic. sessions, strumming three chord songs on a reso when it would have sounded better on a £100 acoustic..."All the gear and no idea". There's a variety of reasons why people don't get on with reso guitars: they can be VERY heavy and prove too much of a physical challenge, the coverplate bridge guard can be difficult to cope with for beginners, and the sound...well if you are learning guitar, and want to go through strumming, basic rhythm, lead, fingerpicking and so on, to some ears it might sound better on a regular acoustic. A reso guitar will give you that characteristic bark, and can sound awfully brutal..a bit like learning on a cranked-up electric...fun at first, then by degrees intimidating and dispiriting because you can't tame it easily. A regular acoustic will give you loads more flexibility, stick a soundhole pickup in it, buy a little practice amp..and you can sound like Lightnin' Hopkins or Elmore James.

If you really MUST have resonator, then by all means get one, they ARE great for blues and slide, just be aware of what you are getting into. For a beginner, ease of playability - a decently low action, lightish strings and a comfortable neck are very important if you aren't going to be put off in the first few weeks. If you are jumping straight in with slide, the action is a different issue, but most slide players are pretty decent players of regular style guitar too.