While it may seem like a very simple thing to do, coming up with the perfect present for someone can be quite a challenge. This is especially the case with people who have a certain hobby they're obsessed with. Especially if that hobby is the guitar. Just imagine how much time and effort they're putting into it, and how specific and complicated things may get with their preferences. This means that you can't just go and buy them strings, pics, or pedals. Every guitar player has their own ways, but there are still plenty of universally important and essential things that come in handy. If you're looking to get something to your axe-wielding friend or a family member, we came up with this very useful brief guide about the best gifts for guitar players.
Contents
- Smartphone Holder for Guitar
- Pick Holder
- Guitar Slide Holder
- Guitar Strap
- Guitar Hanger
- Guitar Capo
- Jammy Guitar
- Guitar Practice Neck
- Automatic Tuner
- String Winder
- Electric String Winder
- E-Bow
- Guitar Seat
- iRig Guitar Audio Interface
- A Gig Bag
- A Pair of Good Headphones
- VOX amPlug 2
- Guitar String Cleaners
- The Guitar Grimoire Book
- Conclusion
There's plenty of different stuff that you can find on this list and we did our best to cover many different preferences, tastes, as well as price ranges. Whether you need a simple and cheap gift, or something really meaningful yet useful for any guitar player, you'll be able to find it here. So let's begin.
Smartphone Holder for Guitar
At this day and age, there's a lot of stuff that we can use our smartphones for. One of the examples is an abundance of tabs, sheet music, as well as guitar lessons that are available online. So it's not that rare to see guitarists using smartphones in their practice routines or jam sessions. With this in mind, it would be a good idea to have a smartphone holder for the guitar that can be attached to its headstock. In some cases, these holders also work like capos.
Pick Holder
Tired of listening to your guitar playing friend about how they're constantly losing their precious guitar picks? It seems to be happening all the time as they just keep dropping these plastic little things. You could buy them guitar picks, but every guitar player is very specific about this and usually has only one type that they use. A great solution here is to get them one of those pick holders that are attached to the guitar body or the headstock. They're specially designed to hold multiple picks at a time and come really in handy both for practices and actual live gigs.
Guitar Slide Holder
There are plenty of ways and techniques that one can play the guitar. If the one you're buying the gift to is into slide guitar, it's always a good idea to get them one of those slide holders that can be attached to guitars, guitar straps, or microphone stands. There are plenty of versions out there, and everything from cheaper to more expensive ones. Instead of holding them in their pockets, which is a very impractical solution for every performing guitar player, they can hold the slide where it suits them more.
Guitar Strap
Of course, it's always a very obvious solution to get them a good old guitar strap. Yeah, some players might be specific about this, but even if you buy a regular one, they'll still find ways to use it, or even keep it as a spare one.
And the choices here are almost endless. Anything from regular cheaper straps, up to fully customized ones made from leather and other expensive materials. They'll always need it, but just make sure whether you're buying one for acoustic or electric guitars.
Read more: Best Guitar Straps
Guitar Hanger
Do you know how obsessed guitar players can be? No matter how many guitars they have, they'll always want more. It's not rare to see them slowly, but surely, using up their much-needed living space for guitar storage. So why not help by getting them one or two of those guitar wall hangers? There are a few different variants, some with shorter and some with longer handles. But they all come in handy and are pretty safe for any type of guitar.
Guitar Capo
A capo is one of the most useful tools guitar player should have in their arsenal. This simple little piece allows you to easily press all of the strings on any fret on your neck, and make it easier to transpose songs for any purpose. It's as simple as that! There are plenty of different capos to choose from, but even the cheaper ones will do fine.
Jammy Guitar
Now, this is an expensive choice and kind of specific. First, Jammy guitar, or Jammy stick, is a MIDI controller that allows you to create any kind of tones with different plugins or specialized digital processors. At the same time, it can also be used as a regular guitar and plugged into an amp or a PA system.
However, one of its best features is that it's very compact and can be taken on the road. If the guitar player that you're buying a gift to just can't go a day with jamming and practicing, then Jammy is the best choice.
Guitar Practice Neck
But if you're looking for a more affordable solution for practice and travel guitars, there are plenty of cheap and compact guitar practice necks. While they're far from the real instrument, these offer a realistic representation of a guitar neck. Practice necks come in handy both for fretting and picking hand. Although not featuring that many frets, you can use it to practice and memorize scales in one position. A very simple and practical, yet powerful piece. Whether on a long car drive, in public transportation, or at a lunch break at work, they'll be able to practice their skills with ease.
Automatic Tuner
No matter if they're beginners, intermediate, or professionals, guitar players will always want to be in tune. But instead of going with those regular boring old guitar tuners (that they probably already own), get them one of those smart automatic tuners, like the Roadie 2. This little gadget features countless different tunings and uses very precise vibration sensors that can tune your guitar just by rotating each tuner individually. What's more, the tuning precision is somewhere around +-2 cents. Now, how cool is that?
String Winder
String replacement is one of those extremely boring and mind-numbing things every guitar player has to do. However, there's always a solution that will make things easier. While it's a very simple and cheap product (essentially two pieces of plastic put together), a regular string winder can come in handy and save guitar players precious time when restringing their instruments.
Electric String Winder
There are also electric string winders that make things ultra-fast. Resembling electric screwdrivers, you just place them on tuners and press the button! These are used by all the technicians of professional guitarists.
E-Bow
Now, this peculiar gadget called E-Bow is one of the most addictive "toys" for guitar players of any genre. The idea here was to produce previously unheard-of sounds on the guitar. As its name would suggest, this is an electronic bow that makes any metal string vibrate, just enough to keep it on that "infinite" sustain. It also has an additional switch for that feedback kind of tone.
The only problem with the E-Bow is that guitar players get so hooked on it, to the point where they'd rather spend the whole day just playing around instead of doing anything else. In our opinion, this is the perfect gift.
Guitar Seat
While it might be completely against all the informal rules of rock 'n' roll, proper seating is a pretty serious and important thing for anyone who's remotely serious about guitar. Most of their practice time, guitarists will remain seated, so why not make it easier for them?
For instance, there's this great chair with ergonomic design and a very comfy backrest by Gator Frameworks. In addition, the chair is completely collapsible, easy to transport, and has a fold-out guitar stand. Yeah, it may not be as exciting as some other stuff we mentioned. But whether they're full-blown pros or are just beginners who are looking for ways on how to teach themselves guitar, they'll be grateful for such a gift.
iRig Guitar Audio Interface
Every guitar player, with any level of skills, will always like to experiment with different tones and record audio of their playing. While regular sound cards might not always be practical, there's a piece like iRig by IK Multimedia that provide usage of effects plugins, amp simulation, and use of recording software on a smartphone or a tablet.
There are a few different versions, but the iRig 2 is a pretty useful and cheap one that we would recommend. You can also use it with software like Guitar Rig or Tonebridge.
A Gig Bag
Just like any of the essential equipment, a guitar player always needs a solid gig bag. This is usually not the thing guitarists are very specific about, and most of the choices out there will be more than enough. The only thing you'll need to think about is whether you're buying a gig bag for an acoustic or an electric guitar, as they're fairly different. Other than that, just make sure to have as many pockets and compartments as possible.
A Pair of Good Headphones
Hey, all guitar players like to blast some heavy riffs on high volume settings. That's all great, but those around them would probably prefer to take some rest from all this loud noise. So the best idea would be to get them a solid pair of headphones.
While it's probably impractical (and expensive) to get them real studio headphones, as this is very specific equipment with a lot of individual preferences, getting them quality hi-fi or semi-pro monitor headphones is always a good idea. Not only will they be able to play guitar, but they'll also get the chance to try out their mixing skills. For this purpose, we'd recommend something like AKG K240.
VOX amPlug 2
Speaking of headphones, there are a few great headphone guitar amps that are a great solution for practice sessions. For example, Vox has a few good pieces, like their AP2AC amPlug 2. This little piece is pretty simple to use – just plug it into your guitar, plug the headphones in it, and you're good to go!
What's more, there are a few different models, each replicating different types of Vox amplifiers. These amPlugs are not expensive and are a very practical gift for anyone who wants to jam or practice without upsetting their neighbors all the time.
Guitar String Cleaners
You know how guitarists constantly complain about their strings breaking, or just going dull after some use? Well, getting them one of the string cleaning and string care products will definitely help them prolong the life of their strings. With regular use of stuff like Music Nomad's String Fuel Cleaner, they'll manage to preserve the feel and sound of new strings for longer periods. This is something every guitar player should always keep in their gig bag.
The Guitar Grimoire Book
You can buy guitar players all sorts of gear, but there's one gift that will never get spoiled, broken, or taken away from them. And that's knowledge. If you're looking for the perfect book for a beginner guitarist, you should look no further than "The Guitar Grimoire" by Adam Kadmon.
This book covers all the essential music theory principles and gives enough knowledge that can later be applied in practice. Then moving further, the student will get acquainted with different guitar techniques, exercises, and various different chord progressions and scales that are used in modern music today. This is one of the most useful guitar books of all time.
Conclusion
Look, like we said – it's not that easy to choose the perfect present for someone. Especially if we're talking about guitar players who can be somewhat picky. However, what we mentioned here are all pretty useful and universal things that can come in handy for anyone. Of course, you should always be aware of their level of playing, a few of their preferences, and would probably not buy a beginner's gift to a pro. Nonetheless, you can't go wrong with most of the things on the list. Just be sure to set your budget, and you'll be able to come up with something.