17 years old DS wants a new guitar

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My older DC got a nice wooden bass clarinet from my parents as a high school graduation gift because she planned to keep playing in college orchestra. My younger DC is getting a nicer viola for a 16th birthday gift as soon as we feel comfortable test driving some. She also plans to keep playing into college. Both instruments cost well over $4k.

I always laugh when parents drop thousands of dollars on an instrument for a kid the first or second year of ES strings. A newbie player can’t tell the difference and most kids don’t stick with band or strings.

My kids share a used Honda and get our old iPhones. I’m not big on buying them new and flashy stuff. But a good instrument will last the rest of their lives. If the kid has put in the time and effort to become a decent player and plans to keep playing after high school— even recreationally, I have no problem them a nice instrument they will love playing.

The people who question it aren’t musicians. If they were, they’d understand how cherished a good instrument is for someone who is dedicated to it.

[Anonymous]

Tell him you'll pay for half and he can earn the money to pay for the other half.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My older DC got a nice wooden bass clarinet from my parents as a high school graduation gift because she planned to keep playing in college orchestra. My younger DC is getting a nicer viola for a 16th birthday gift as soon as we feel comfortable test driving some. She also plans to keep playing into college. Both instruments cost well over $4k.

I always laugh when parents drop thousands of dollars on an instrument for a kid the first or second year of ES strings. A newbie player can’t tell the difference and most kids don’t stick with band or strings.

My kids share a used Honda and get our old iPhones. I’m not big on buying them new and flashy stuff. But a good instrument will last the rest of their lives. If the kid has put in the time and effort to become a decent player and plans to keep playing after high school— even recreationally, I have no problem them a nice instrument they will love playing.

The people who question it aren’t musicians. If they were, they’d understand how cherished a good instrument is for someone who is dedicated to it.

He has an expensive guitar. He is old enough to work for it and plenty of years as an adult to buy his own.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Martin is an accoustic, the Seagull is an electric, so technically he is correct that those guitars are used for different styles of music. But too bad. It's not relevant for a 17 year old -- whose not paying for it.

And you’re not paying for it either, so why the attitude?

His guitar isn’t that great. If he’s a devoted musician and his parents can afford a great instrument, why shouldn’t he have it?

You have an attitude. Different guitars meet different needs but he could go with a new $500-2K and not 4K or get a job and contribute. He could teach guitar online.

I assume you don’t play an instrument. No $500 guitar will sound good. A cheap guitar is a cheap guitar. Instruments get better as they get more expensive. It’s the reality.

I’ve played instruments since I was 5 and my dad has played them his entire life. My sister went to Juilliard. I know what I’m talking about. He can’t just “go with” a cheaper guitar if he wants good quality.

I have a music kid who has a very nice instrument but if he wants a $4k instrument after a $2k he can pay for it. Someone who plays well can make a cheaper instrument sound good. My kid has about $2k in music gear that is midline. That is good enough.

Yeah, but it can only sound so good.

And to the people saying he has to pay for part of it: i assume you make your kids pay for some of their travel sports, since those are quite expensive, right?

No, my child is in regular sports but we'd never do travel. Music, not sports is his thing. We pay for music and sports. My child has everything they need. They have a lot of what they want. They don't need anything else. At 17, if they wanted a huge upgrade, I'd probably say no as we were getting ready to pay for college or they need to earn part of it. In this case, child can teach guitar online or do something to contribute.

Do you buy everything that your child demands? At what point do you teach them the value of money? Big difference when child has a $2K instrument already. You are making it sound like the child is on a $200 guitar.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My older DC got a nice wooden bass clarinet from my parents as a high school graduation gift because she planned to keep playing in college orchestra. My younger DC is getting a nicer viola for a 16th birthday gift as soon as we feel comfortable test driving some. She also plans to keep playing into college. Both instruments cost well over $4k.

I always laugh when parents drop thousands of dollars on an instrument for a kid the first or second year of ES strings. A newbie player can’t tell the difference and most kids don’t stick with band or strings.

My kids share a used Honda and get our old iPhones. I’m not big on buying them new and flashy stuff. But a good instrument will last the rest of their lives. If the kid has put in the time and effort to become a decent player and plans to keep playing after high school— even recreationally, I have no problem them a nice instrument they will love playing.

The people who question it aren’t musicians. If they were, they’d understand how cherished a good instrument is for someone who is dedicated to it.

He has an expensive guitar. He is old enough to work for it and plenty of years as an adult to buy his own.

Again, do you pay for your kids’ hobbies? Sports, dance, etc.?

Why are you valuing his hobby less than what your kids do?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Martin is an accoustic, the Seagull is an electric, so technically he is correct that those guitars are used for different styles of music. But too bad. It's not relevant for a 17 year old -- whose not paying for it.

And you’re not paying for it either, so why the attitude?

His guitar isn’t that great. If he’s a devoted musician and his parents can afford a great instrument, why shouldn’t he have it?

You have an attitude. Different guitars meet different needs but he could go with a new $500-2K and not 4K or get a job and contribute. He could teach guitar online.

I assume you don’t play an instrument. No $500 guitar will sound good. A cheap guitar is a cheap guitar. Instruments get better as they get more expensive. It’s the reality.

I’ve played instruments since I was 5 and my dad has played them his entire life. My sister went to Juilliard. I know what I’m talking about. He can’t just “go with” a cheaper guitar if he wants good quality.

I have a music kid who has a very nice instrument but if he wants a $4k instrument after a $2k he can pay for it. Someone who plays well can make a cheaper instrument sound good. My kid has about $2k in music gear that is midline. That is good enough.

Yeah, but it can only sound so good.

And to the people saying he has to pay for part of it: i assume you make your kids pay for some of their travel sports, since those are quite expensive, right?

No, my child is in regular sports but we'd never do travel. Music, not sports is his thing. We pay for music and sports. My child has everything they need. They have a lot of what they want. They don't need anything else. At 17, if they wanted a huge upgrade, I'd probably say no as we were getting ready to pay for college or they need to earn part of it. In this case, child can teach guitar online or do something to contribute.

Do you buy everything that your child demands? At what point do you teach them the value of money? Big difference when child has a $2K instrument already. You are making it sound like the child is on a $200 guitar.

I know guitars. The one he has is crap.

If I were confident my kid was committed to something, then yes — I’d pay for a high quality instrument. My dad did it for me and I have been grateful ever since.

[Anonymous]

My family purchased several expensive instruments for me when I was in high school. I was first chair and practiced every day. I still have them and play them occasionally. They are in great condition and sound decent even though decades old. If you can afford it, I think it's a good purchase and a great reward for his dedication.

[Anonymous]

OP, I play guitar, and I am very impressed with your son’s dedication. If you can afford it, buy it.

I spend ~$5,000 a year on travel lacrosse and I have no problem with that because DS loves it and is dedicated to it (does rebounder and ground balls every day, etc.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My older DC got a nice wooden bass clarinet from my parents as a high school graduation gift because she planned to keep playing in college orchestra. My younger DC is getting a nicer viola for a 16th birthday gift as soon as we feel comfortable test driving some. She also plans to keep playing into college. Both instruments cost well over $4k.

I always laugh when parents drop thousands of dollars on an instrument for a kid the first or second year of ES strings. A newbie player can’t tell the difference and most kids don’t stick with band or strings.

My kids share a used Honda and get our old iPhones. I’m not big on buying them new and flashy stuff. But a good instrument will last the rest of their lives. If the kid has put in the time and effort to become a decent player and plans to keep playing after high school— even recreationally, I have no problem them a nice instrument they will love playing.

The people who question it aren’t musicians. If they were, they’d understand how cherished a good instrument is for someone who is dedicated to it.

He has an expensive guitar. He is old enough to work for it and plenty of years as an adult to buy his own.

Again, do you pay for your kids’ hobbies? Sports, dance, etc.?

Why are you valuing his hobby less than what your kids do?

I teach my kids the value of money. This child has a $2K guitar. That is reasonable. My child has what they need to do their hobbies. Yes, I pay for sports, private sport lesson, music lessons and more but my child is much younger. My child has a very good instrument especially for his age and I wouldn't replace it upon demand (nor would mine even ask). If he was 17 and wanted it I would tell him to teach his instrument online to earn at least part or all of it. At 17, my focus is paying fully for college and graduate school as that is far more important in life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Martin is an accoustic, the Seagull is an electric, so technically he is correct that those guitars are used for different styles of music. But too bad. It's not relevant for a 17 year old -- whose not paying for it.

And you’re not paying for it either, so why the attitude?

His guitar isn’t that great. If he’s a devoted musician and his parents can afford a great instrument, why shouldn’t he have it?

You have an attitude. Different guitars meet different needs but he could go with a new $500-2K and not 4K or get a job and contribute. He could teach guitar online.

I assume you don’t play an instrument. No $500 guitar will sound good. A cheap guitar is a cheap guitar. Instruments get better as they get more expensive. It’s the reality.

I’ve played instruments since I was 5 and my dad has played them his entire life. My sister went to Juilliard. I know what I’m talking about. He can’t just “go with” a cheaper guitar if he wants good quality.

I have a music kid who has a very nice instrument but if he wants a $4k instrument after a $2k he can pay for it. Someone who plays well can make a cheaper instrument sound good. My kid has about $2k in music gear that is midline. That is good enough.

Yeah, but it can only sound so good.

And to the people saying he has to pay for part of it: i assume you make your kids pay for some of their travel sports, since those are quite expensive, right?

No, my child is in regular sports but we'd never do travel. Music, not sports is his thing. We pay for music and sports. My child has everything they need. They have a lot of what they want. They don't need anything else. At 17, if they wanted a huge upgrade, I'd probably say no as we were getting ready to pay for college or they need to earn part of it. In this case, child can teach guitar online or do something to contribute.

Do you buy everything that your child demands? At what point do you teach them the value of money? Big difference when child has a $2K instrument already. You are making it sound like the child is on a $200 guitar.

I know guitars. The one he has is crap.

If I were confident my kid was committed to something, then yes — I’d pay for a high quality instrument. My dad did it for me and I have been grateful ever since.

Then, he can sell it and get something else with that money. Or, go teach and make some money to buy more. A $2K instrument isn't crap and it may not have been the best choice but it was the one he made.

[Anonymous]

OP here. The guitar he really wanted is the 1950 Martin D-28 guitar that his guitar instructor has and that one goes for 25K. His instructor recommended that he should get the 2019 or 2020 Martin D-28 for around 5K. His instructor let him use the 1950 Martin D-28 a few times and DS just couldn't put it down. He said that the sound on that 1950 Martin guitar is amazing.

He only has two hobbies, soccer and guitar. He can play soccer (3 years varsity soccer) and guitar all day long if I do not stop him. His plan is to keep both guitars. He'll practices with the Seagull for a majority of the times. He will play the Martin only when he masters a particular piece since he wants to keep the Martin in good condition.

Btw, he did say to me that a "high end quality" guitar means everything to a musician. The sound and "resonant" quality, according to him, on the Martin D-28 is about twenty times better than the Seagull.

[Anonymous]

My dh is learning guitar later in life and says he wishes he had picked it up in HS when he had more time to practice.

I would say if your kid is generally helpful around the house and as kind/respectful as a teenager can be, I would get him the guitar. It sounds like he works hard on his craft AND is also active with soccer. It’s not like he’s sled don’t the money on drugs or alcohol or a daily Starbucks habit.

[Anonymous]

Sled don’t= spending

[Anonymous]

I would simply buy a used one at this point. Martins are fantastic and get better with age. So that's not an issue. He will continue to change and adopt new things.

What if he decides classical style is something to pursue? Or Flamenco style?

Neither the Martin or the Seagull will be appropriate. Then it's off to Ramirez, Hauser or a classic Brazilian Rosewood. Then the electrics and Mandolins and Cavalquinhos.

Spend 2K on a used Martin and start a guitar fund with the excess where he will be able to contribute as well.

I know a number of professional guitar players around the world and they have, over the years, collected roomsful.

[Anonymous]

OP if he is a serious musician he may well need this guitar. IF you can afford it buy it.