Randy120

Yes a bass! I think it is a natural addition for guitar players. The skills overlap in many ways. I doubt my bass skills will ever catch up to my guitar skills. Guitar is still my main instrument. Too late! I just purchased the Ampeg Rocket Bass RB108. I wanted a dedicated bass amp. I have the Boss GT-1 multi-effects pedal so I have plenty of amp modelling and effects,

@Eracer_Team-DougH Yes exploring the low end. There are many new things to figure out for playing and recording.

My new guitar is a bass. We had some sad news here recently. Earcraft Music in Dover, NH is closing after 50 years. Earcraft was a Taylor Preferred Dealer, and it had a wide selection of musical instruments. If I had more money I would have purchased more. As they say in the biz "Everything must go"! I wasn't planning on buying another instrument, but I figured I would buy one more instrument from Earcraft. My first choice was an F-Style Mandolin which was gone by the time I arrived. My second choice was the Yamaha TRBX304 Bass guitar. It was $90 less than the current Sweetwater price so I purchased it. It is a very cool little bass, handsome, with some nice active pickup EQ too. I don't even have a bass amp yet, but I have my eye on the Ampeg Rocket Bass RB-108. I played bass with Rocksmith 2014 on the Xbox Series X with a full surround system. I took the basic bass lessons and my guitar skills had me to 90% note accuracy in a hurry. I had a blast playing along with Lenny Kravitz and the Ramones. I was a little sore after playing. Big bass strings are definitely a challenge. I mainly purchased the bass to add some new sounds to my recordings. Next up an electronic drum kit then we be rocking. LOL!

That's a handsome guitar.

Vinny makes great picks. I personally would not spend $35 on a single pick. I purchased his acoustic and electric sample packs years ago and they are still in service. My V-Picks are all clear; nothing fancy. I think their best feature is they slip less than most other picks I have tried. A pick that stays firmly planted works best. One of the pointed picks is now rounded, other than that the picks are still going strong for 10 years. I recommend V-Picks for anyone. They are not all expensive and they last a long time. V-Picks

I recommend not thinking you will learn fast. You will learn based on your effort. Stay focused on Steve's course. Minimize the temptation to grab every piece of guitar info out there. Steve is enough for the next couple years if you just focus on the course. Say the notes like Steve recommends, it will help in the end. Learn and play songs right away. There is nothing better to learn and encourage you then hearing the sounds coming from the guitar. Don't stare at your hands all the time. It is ok when learning a new form, but not for playing. Pro's look at their hands only during something technical. You should be a strumming chord monster in the next year. Don't stop because you think you are stuck. You are still learning. Move to something else then come back to what you think you couldn't do. You might be surprised. Let it rip. Play with reckless abandon after you learned the basic technique of course. Feel the music and have fun with it!

I don't have the pedal, but I have the Polytune clip-on tuner which is great. I love the fact you can see all 6 strings at the same time. I agree with Eracer_Team-DougH the Polytune pedal or clip-on is hard to beat. Boss makes great pedals including tuners. Peterson has a strong reputation for its tuners also.

@Gary Nelson I think you would be very satisfied with a Player Tele. If I had my way I would buy a USA model, but we are talking several hundred dollars more and then you have to get even more expensive to get a case included.

That is a lot of money for a no name guitar. It looks nice enough, but for that kind of money you have a lot of choices. Epiphone has some great choices in that price range. I just purchased a nice MIM Fender Player Stratocaster for that price. The no return policy should be a red flag especially since you haven't seen the guitar. Good luck with your choice.

I looked at a lot of different guitars before I made my purchase. I even purchased a pretty nice PRS P20E acoustic and returned it because I didn't like the cheap plastic tuners. I wanted to add single coil sound, so I finally decided to just purchase a Fender Player Stratocaster. Of course, I couldn't resist going with the HSS model to add a humbucker. The guitar is beautiful and well put together. I am impressed with this MIM Strat. I was shocked that it didn't even come with a gig bag, but I added a nice modern Fender composite case.

Definitely Loudbox Mini...Get the whole package. Fishman Loudbox Mini BT Songwriter Package with Microphone, Stand & Cable

@SandyB You can add Steve's The Song Hits to give you songs to learn along with the chapters in the L&M Guitar Course.. Play songs early and often.

Rock Hits were definitely Gibson. There was varying quality of the learning material, but the lessons were pretty good. Steve Krenz has The Song Hits which parallels the L&M Guitar Course.

Yeah, sometimes you just have to stop thinking about the chord and start playing it. I have been practicing a new song with some new chords down the neck. I try to play the chord progression I am learning, and I stumble quite a bit. If I try to play along to the video of the song with the artist which is faster I can actually hit the chords fairly clean. Do not fear learning new chords. You will never say to yourself "I wish I didn't learn all these chords". Every chord is a new challenge. Practice and repeat.

Get really close to the fret with your barre. You should use the side of your finger for the barre. You can pull back and down slightly on the neck. Don't squeeze with your thumb.