# Best Way to learn guitar.



## Varjo Ritari (Dec 10, 2010)

Right, where do i start.

Well, Ive got myself an electric guitar, hoping to one day join a furry band for furcon,
also id like to learn as a new hobby.

And im struggling to read tabs, and am not getting them, so here is my question, what is the best way, to learn and play the guitar with tabs? anyone got any help on how to read them? Thanks!


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## Fiesta_Jack (Dec 10, 2010)

Tabs are super-easy-peasy. What aren't you getting about them? The horizontal lines are the strings, the high E (your thinnest string) is the top line, and your low E (thickest string) is your bottom line. The numbers are what fret you'll be holding down. Most guitars have a dot or other design on the third, fifth, seventh, and ninth frets, and a double-dot on the twelfth fret. So a simple tab would read like this:

E------------------
B------------------
G------------------
D------------------
A--0--3--0------0--
E------------3-----

The zeros are open strings (don't hold down any frets). Very simple to read. This is a good start on tabs, but they do get more complex. Usually tabs have a written key to tell you about various techniques used in that particular tab, like sliding, hammer-ons, pull offs, and the like.


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## Varjo Ritari (Dec 10, 2010)

Fiesta_Jack said:


> Tabs are super-easy-peasy. What aren't you getting about them? The horizontal lines are the strings, the high E (your thinnest string) is the top line, and your low E (thickest string) is your bottom line. The numbers are what fret you'll be holding down. Most guitars have a dot or other design on the third, fifth, seventh, and ninth frets, and a double-dot on the twelfth fret. So a simple tab would read like this:
> 
> E------------------
> B------------------
> ...


 
The thing im not getting about them is, when do i strum, pick etc do i do that everytime theyres a set of numbers like
every number going down, is one strum?


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## Cam (Dec 10, 2010)

Varjo Ritari said:


> everytime theyres a set of numbers like
> every number going down, is one strum?



Yes


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## Varjo Ritari (Dec 10, 2010)

Cam said:


> Yes


 
Ok, cheers, I gotta get some more strings though >< my bird chewed on em when i wasnt looking.


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## Fiesta_Jack (Dec 10, 2010)

Yeah, they're read left to right, and each number is a strum.


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## Aden (Dec 10, 2010)

Fiesta_Jack said:


> Yeah, they're read left to right, and each number is a strum.


 
Unless it's a hammer on/pull off/trill/whatever

If I were to give one tip, it would be _don't neglect your picking hand_. So many players come in (me included) and see all these other people doing flashy stuff with their fretting hand, and they want to be just like them. But without solid foundations for _both_ hands working together you'll get nowhere.


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## Phirae (Dec 13, 2010)

Aden said:


> _don't neglect your picking hand_. So many players come in and see all these other people doing flashy stuff with their fretting hand, and they want to be just like them.


The picking hand's really the most important in my opinion.
How else are you supposed to play like a rockstar, over-accenting every move, without it?

Erm...
Don't give up and stop learning a song for over a week, else you'll forget the fine details of the song.
Conversely, don't keep playing for too long, give your hands a rest for a while, and mentally go over the song.


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## ~secret~ (Dec 13, 2010)

Tabs are useful to get you started, but dont neglect your ear. If you do your ability to learn songs wont improve, and you'll be stuck using tabs FOREVER MORE D:

That aside check out Guitar Pro or its freeware alternatives to make the most of tablature.


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## eatitfreakbags (Jan 6, 2011)

you have to use the tabs in combination with listening to the song or it will be much harder to pin down the exact timing and rhythm.  It's good to use something like guitar pro (if you can buy it ) or some other program that can read guitar pro files because of that hearing element.  But dont be too quick to believe any tab you find off of the internet because they are usually full of mistakes.  So if something sounds wrong in the tab, it probably is


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