How long would it take to learn basic guitar?

Hey, I'm thinking of playing the guitar, I was wondering how long it would take to learn basic riffs and stuff.

To get to the "campfire" level, I'd say it would take you about six months to get the basic cowboy chords down and be able to interchange them quickly. Riffs might take a little longer though. I started on the pentatonic scale early as I was learning the basic chords. I'd recommend that for you as well.

I'd guess anywhere between 3 and 9 months.

It depends really. I managed to start playing basic riffs and solos after about 4 months, up until then it was just strumming chords... But I know people who have been playing for years and still can't play anything more complicated than Time of Your Life by Greenday.

Well, assuming you don't have callouses, it will take time to build some up. Assuming you do, just play some basic chords. I learned on the main chords of the song "Dani California". (G, Dm, Am, I think. Haven't played that song in forever :P) After that, just play some basic riffs ("Iron Man" in E or the basic notes to "Smoke on the Water"). I've been playing a long time ;)

Then again, if you want to get technical, I was a bit of a prodigy. I now play better than people I've been playing half as long as o_O

A couple of months. If you've never played, your fingers are going to really hurt and you haveto wait till your fingers toughen up. Then its all about learning the open chords and moving inbetween them fluidly.

Then theres bar/moveable chord positions which will take a long time. The guitar really is a tough instrument.

I purchased a guitar (acoustic)and a tuner about 3 years ago and without ever having picked one up beforehand, i was playing the intro to "Nothing Else Matters" by the end of that same day. This was after spending a few hours learning how the tuner worked before ever starting to play.

I got bored a week later though so i am no better now than i was 8 hours after starting :|

I probably wouldnt bother getting lessons unless they were free. None of it seemed very hard. I also probably wouldnt spend a ton of time learning to read music either. By the time i half understood what i was looking at i could already do better by "playing by ear".

probably several weeks, a few months maybe.

I purchased a guitar (acoustic)and a tuner about 3 years ago and without ever having picked one up beforehand, i was playing the intro to "Nothing Else Matters" by the end of that same day. This was after spending a few hours learning how the tuner worked before ever starting to play.

I got bored a week later though so i am no better now than i was 8 hours after starting :|

I probably wouldnt bother getting lessons unless they were free. None of it seemed very hard. I also probably wouldnt spend a ton of time learning to read music either. By the time i half understood what i was looking at i could already do better by "playing by ear".

Alter_Echo

It shouldn't take long really. You need to develope calouses which will take time but if you are persistant enoughit wil pay off. I suggest learning easy songs with basic open chords. The first song I learned was In The Aeroplanes Over The Sea. Pretty simple, common chord progression using open chords. You should use this site.All of it is free and covers the basics.

Just don't give up. You're going to hateyour guitarsometimes, but in the end you will be happy you didn't quit.

It's different for each person. One person may get the hang of it in a couple weeks, while you might never get the hang of it at all. Just stay dedicated and you'll eventually get used to it. I suggest howtotuneaguitar.org for tuning your guitar, and ultimate-guitar.com for tabs.

if your a average person couple months, if you pick it up and and it feels good and comes easy 1-2 weeks.

It all depends on you.

[QUOTE="Alter_Echo"]

I purchased a guitar (acoustic)and a tuner about 3 years ago and without ever having picked one up beforehand, i was playing the intro to "Nothing Else Matters" by the end of that same day. This was after spending a few hours learning how the tuner worked before ever starting to play.

I got bored a week later though so i am no better now than i was 8 hours after starting :|

I probably wouldnt bother getting lessons unless they were free. None of it seemed very hard. I also probably wouldnt spend a ton of time learning to read music either. By the time i half understood what i was looking at i could already do better by "playing by ear".

needled24-7

2 minutes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F5QCs3PnQBc

2 minutes.Explode50

Lol nice. No love for the bass makes me sad though. :P

[QUOTE="Explode50"]

2 minutes.LikeHaterade

Lol nice. No love for the bass makes me sad though. :P

;-;

It all depends on the songs, your aptitude for the instrument, and how much time you devote to disciplined practice. You could probably learn to play the main riff from Satisfaction within a few hours of buying your guitar. On the other hand, it could take you years before you're at the level where you can play a song like the Trooper flawlessly from start to finish.

Since you're interested, I'd strongly suggest getting a guitar (and spend at least $200 on a reputable brand like Ibanez). If you're not disciplined enough to spend an hour doing drills every day, that's fine. Just don't expect to be very good.

Please watch this video. I think it will be very helpful.

I'd suggest these two sites:

http://www.justinguitar.com/ (free)

http://www.jamplay.com/ (monthly fee, but great if you want to learn a specific genre)

I'm glad to see Justin getting the recognition that he deserves. His videos have helped me out a lot, and he's put a lot of time into helping others.