While there are many types of acoustic guitars available, they mostly break into two groups. Nylon String acoustic guitars are mostly used for classical music, and Steel String acoustic guitars are popular for rock, blues, jazz and other types of music. Click for information on how to Buy Acoustic Guitar, or for Electric Guitar Types. The sound made by nylon string acoustic guitars is softer, and nylon strings are easier on fingers - which makes them the ideal choice for fingerpicking styles of music (such as classical). Steel string acoustic guitars have a more forceful sound, and while steel strings can also be fingerpicked, they are more painful to use for this fingerstyle playing. One thing to note is you should NEVER put steel strings on a guitar built for nylon strings - steel strings have much higher tension and it will cause the neck of the guitar (which was designed for nylon strings with less tension) to bow.

Acoustic guitars are almost always made of wood, and the choice of wood used in making the guitar give it a distinctive tone. Cheaper acoustic guitars are made from cheap plywood (or laminate), while expensive acoustic guitars are made from premium solid wood. Economical hybrids have some parts made of solid wood, and some from cheaper laminates. The different parts of an acoustic guitar that contribute to its sound are the back, sides, top, neck and fingerboard. Most musicians agree that the top wood of an acoustic guitar (the part with the soundhole cut in it) is by far the most important factor in the sound of the acoustic guitar. Spruce is a very popular top, but since white spruce trees are now hard to find in the US, Sitka Spruce is often used. Many cheaper guitars also use Spruce for the top while saving costs by using laminates for the rest of the construction.

The back and sides also play an important role in the sound of an acoustic guitar. Click for information on Acoustic Guitar Parts. Expensive acoustic guitars have premium solid wood for the back and sides, while cheaper guitars may have all or some laminate parts. The shape and size of the guitar body also is an important factor in its sound, and as the back and sides essentially define the body of the acoustic guitar - the combination of size, shape and wood used makes a dramatic impact on the quality of sound. The neck provides tension to the strings, and while a steel bar inside the neck takes most of the stress, the wood used for the neck also affects the sound of the guitar. The fretboard that runs under the strings (and has the frets embedded in it) also contributes to the sound that guitar can make. All acoustic guitars have to be "broken in", the wood has to be seasoned with age to produce its best sound. The guitar top is what provides the resonance, and it tends to take on the characteristics of the music style that is played on that guitar. If your music style is with heavy bass, that guitar will tend to develop a good bass "boom" over time. If you tend to play more treble such as blues notes, that guitar will develop a well defined trebly "twang" as it ages. Note that an acoustic guitar (this instrument is used in every form of music, from Classical to Heavy Metal) can take 5 to 10 years to break in. When you buy a new acoustic guitar, always choose one that sounds good - as it ages, it will sound even better. On the other hand, a lousy sounding acoustic guitar (some call it a GAT) will only sound less bad over time. One trick that guitarists use, is to lean the new acoustic guitar against a stereo (or boom box) that is continously playing the style of music they intend to play with that guitar. The theory goes that the vibrations from the speakers will "break in" the guitar faster. Wether this is true or not is not known, but it is a popular urban legend among guitarists.

Acoustic guitars come in different sizes and scales. The Dreadnaught is the largest and loudest acoustic guitar size (also called the "D" size). The full size acoustic guitar is the normal size. Some manufacturers have an Orchestra Model (OM) size which is a little smaller than full size, other guitar makers use the term Concert Size. The 00 and 000 sizes are smaller and less thicker, which is good for smaller sized guitarists. The Travelling size acoustic guitar is very compact and is meant for portability, although the sound quality leaves a lot to be desired. For small children around 5 years of age there is the 1/2 (half) scale guitar, which is smaller and shorter which makes it suitable for kids. The 3/4 (three quarter) scale guitar is for larger and older kids, which is a little smaller than a 000 size guitar so they can hold it comfortably.

There are variations in the length of the neck scale as well, with shorter scale acoustic guitars having the frets closer together. The guitar neck comes in two types; the "C" neck (rounded back shaped like a C), and the "V" neck (sharper back shaped like <). The neck shape does not affect the sound of the guitar, it is a matter of choice and comfort based on the size of your hands. The width of the fingerboard affects the spacing between the six strings, and should also be considered for comfort based on your hand size and finger length. Fingerboards can vary from 1.5 inches to 2 inches, the wider fingerboards make it easier for fingerstyle playing - as the strings are further apart, making it easier to get your fingers under the string for plucking. Narrower fingerboards are easier to play with a pick, as there is less effort required to strum the strings which are closer together.

Most acoustic guitars have only 12 or 14 playable frets. The shape of the body prevents easy access to the rest of the neck. To get around this limitation, some acoustic guitars have a "Cutaway" where the neck meets the lower body. This allows easier access to the higher frets, but it does affect the amound and quality of sound as the shape of the guitar has changed internally. Since the cutaway allows access to more frets, some of these acoustic cutaway guitars have more frets as well. This affects the playability of the guitar, since its frets are closer together to accomodate the extra frets. Some newer acoustic and acoustic-electric guitars (such as Ovation guitars) have plastic backs with odd bulges. This is supposed to increase the volume and retain the sound quality, but its a matter of opinion and choice. Acoustic-electric guitars have a built in "pickup" microphone, so you can either play it acoustically or plug it into an amplifier (amp) for more volume. There are also add-on acoustic pickups that can be easily added to any acoustic guitar, some are mounted inside the body while others clip onto the soundhole without any installation.

So you are ready to buy your first (or fifteenth) acoustic guitar! But how do you choose the right one? The golden rule when buying a guitar is - you get what you pay for. Start with a realistic budget, read the following information then make a trip to your local guitar store to get an idea about the price ranges. Click the menu top left of page if you want information on buying electric guitar instead of an acoustic guitar.

The type of music that you are interested in dictates some of the specifications of your new guitar. If you are into classical music or want to play with your fingers instead of a pick (finger picking), you will probably want an acoustic guitar with nylon strings. Rock, blues, country, and jazz music would probably prefer a steel string acoustic guitar.

All normal acoustic guitars are made of wood. The cheaper acoustic guitars are made of laminate material (plywood) or from multiple pieces of wood glued together. Naturally, these do not sound as good as the higher end guitars, which are made from premium wood and have a solid top, sides and back. There are many parts of an acoustic guitar that may be made from different woods. The top or soundboard (where the sound hole is) is the most important material since it gives the distinctive "sound" to that guitar. The back and sides are also important, natural solid wood will sound better than plywood, since it doesn't muffle the music. The neck and finger board also contribute to the distinctive sound of each guitar. There are several types of wood used to make guitars, with different combinations used for the top, back and sides, neck and fingerboard. Click to view Acoustic Guitar Types for more details on guitar wood used. In between the cheap guitars and the high end acoustic guitars, some manufacturers offer economical options such as solid spruce tops with laminate sides and backs, or laminate tops and sides with solid backs, and so on. Ultimately it comes down choosing what sounds good and is in your price range. One unwritten (and untested) rule with acoustic guitars is: the lighter the acoustic guitar, the better the sound.

Always TRY out the guitar before buying it. Try as many guitars as you want to, even if they are outside your budget (so you get an idea of what to look for in your price range). Even if you can't play yet - just sit down and hold the guitar to see if it is comfortable. Acoustic guitars come in different sizes (thickness) and scale (length). The largest (and loudest) acoustic guitar size is called the Dreadnaught (D size). If you are a medium or small sized person, you may have difficulty holding this size comfortably. The full size acoustic guitar is the normal size. Some manufacturers have an Orchestra Model (OM) size which is a little smaller than full size. The 00 and 000 sizes are smaller and less thicker, useful if your arms are shorter than most people. The Travelling size acoustic guitar is very small and meant for portability, although their sound quality leaves a lot to be desired. For small kids around 5 years of age there is the 1/2 (half) scale guitar, which is smaller and shorter so kids can handle it. The 3/4 (three quarter) scale guitar is for larger and older kids, which is a little smaller than a 000 size guitar so they can hold it comfortably.

Another factor to consider is the shape of the guitar neck. There are two main types of neck shapes, the V neck and the C neck. The V neck is, obviously, shaped like a V (or rather a sideways < ) and tends to make the neck feel thicker - if you have short fingers (as I do) then avoid the V necks. The C neck has more circular neck shaped like a C which allows smaller hands a more comfortable grip. Comfort is everything, if your hand is not comfortable, you're not going to be happy playing that like guitar. Another factor to consider is the width of the fretboard, which affects the spacing between the six strings. Fretboards can vary from 1.5 inches to 2 inches. If you have fat fingers, you will want a wider fretboard, if you have small hands you may find a smaller fretboard more comfortable. The wider fretboards are also preferred for fingerpicking, and likewise the narrower fretboards are preferred for playing with a pick. On most acoustic guitars you can only reach 12 frets, some have a "cutaway" in the body that lets you reach a couple more frets. Note that cutaways change the internal shape of the guitar and you do sacrifice some sound quality. There is no big benefit in reaching those two extra frets.

Sound, of course, is what it's all about. If you don't play yet, ask the salesperson to play the guitar for you so you can hear how it sounds. While it is true that an acoustic guitar "gets better with age" - a bad sounding guitar will just get less bad sounding. What you want is a good sounding guitar that will sound even better with age! And note here, it takes 5 to 10 years for a guitar to "age" so for all practical purposes - just pick a guitar that already sounds good. Another factor to apply the comfort factor is the "action" of the guitar. Note that guitars are usually shipped in a box and "set up" by the store. Mostly they do a good job - but sometimes they do screw up and a badly setup guitar is going to give you years of grief. The problem is the saddle, the part where the strings come out of the bridge (before the sound hole), the saddle raises the strings. If the strings are too high (HIGH action), the guitar is difficult to play as one has to press down very hard. If the strings are too low (LOW action), the strings will rattle against the frets. The saddle is a piece of plastic that has to be shaved down to size, if it is cut too low there is no way to un-cut it - and you are stuck with too low an action. So the stores play it safe and keep the action very high, which also is not good. The best bet is to find a guitar with the right "feel" on the action, that is, when you press down on a string at a fret it is comfortable; and picking all the strings (one at a time without pressing on a fret) does not make any rattling sounds.

The guitar is a beautiful instrument and comes in a high gloss finish, and is very delicate. The neck of the guitar should be straight when you look along the strings, not bowed at all. Check the cosmetics and workmanship of the guitar, make sure there are no visible cracks in the body or scratches that may indicate it was dropped at the store by some half witted customer. You do NOT want to buy a damaged guitar. Check the finish on the guitar, high price acoustic guitars will obviously be flawless, but lower priced units may have ugly spots. The most important piece of workmanship to check is the frets. Run your finger down both sides of the neck, the frets are metal pieces that are glued into grooves along the neck, and their edges should be exactly flush with the edge of the neck - NOT sticking out or coming short. Granted, you get what you pay for, but badly installed frets are not good in any price range.

Sometimes finding cosmetic ugly spots, or minor scratches, can help you haggle a better price for the guitar. In a store, you NEVER pay the "LIST" price - always whine, if you have children wave their pictures at the salesperson while bemoaning the high cost of diapers. On high end acoustic guitars, you can expect a discount upto 30% off the list price (that is, for a $10,000 guitar you would pay $7,000). Lower priced acoustic guitars will give you less of a discount, but never pay full LIST price, nonetheless.