What was your first instrument purchase?

I'm sure many of us were assigned an instrument in school, or had our parents sign us up for lessons of some kind, but what was the first instrument you purchased or sought out for yourself?

My first was the Casio PT-30. I asked my parents to buy it for me when I was a wee little tike. My first purchase with my own money, was a Roland Juno 106.

Still love the Juno 106. Such a great synthesizer for learning subtractive synthesis. The Casio was a lot of fun too, and was my intro to sequencing.

What was your first?

First bought for me was an acoustic classical guitar from Mexico. My mom crossed the border and went Christmas shopping with a friend in Juarez. It wasn't built super well but she had to sell her blood a couple of times to afford it whatever it's price was. It's unplayable these days but I still have it's corpse in a storage shed.

Never did any lessons except for 1, way after I was already well versed on playing. I paid 20 bucks for a guy in Alpine, TX to give me a lesson and I was so disappointed in the whole thing I never went back. I was hoping he would teach me something I hadn't already taught myself. Lessons are worthless in my opinion. They can teach you theory and fancy words for techniques but they can't make you a musician if you weren't born with it in you. With very few exceptions, the best players of any instrument are self trained. There are SOME virtuoso's out there they have classical training but it's not common.

The first instrument that was given specifically to me and not rented through school was the http://equipboard.com/items/casio-sk-1 that my folks got me for x-mas in 2nd or 3rd grade. I learned basic chord theory dickering with this little toy while I was studying viola and violin in school. I loved it dearly until someone gave me a bigger Yamaha kids keyboard.

My 1st gear purchase that I selected myself was a used MIJ Squier strat, black with a white pickguard and rosewood fingerboard. I purchased it from the little brother of the best sax player in Jr High jazzband around 1992 with some of my own paltry funds and some money my dad gave me on the grounds that I join the jazzband (since I had just quit orchestra). Dad also bought me a chord encyclopedia at the time, explained the modes to me (he had taught me a major and minor scale by then, so it was a short step to getting all those scale variations) and told me I could figure it out or quit, but that any time I wanted to take lessons he would split the cost with me if I could find a reputable teacher with a classical or jazz guitar background (good luck with that in the 'burbs, I coulda found a guy in Philly proper, but if I was going to Philly it was about punk rock -which we called grunge then- and getting into trouble, not jazz lessons).

Well, I really bonded with that great beginner strat and kept it until the early 2000s (even though I got plenty of other guitars, I still played her). It was the best student guitar I've ever played. Those Japanese squiers were just fabulous. After I got mine a bunch of other kids saw me playing it at school events and got their parents to buy them squire strats, but theirs were new Korean models and really sucked. Most of them got discouraged and quit. I would like to pretend my musical family, diligence and talent is what kept me at it, but I suspect the fact that my 1st guitar was built to a very high standard o quality had a lot to do with it too.

Anyway, I kept that strat until 'one foggy christmas eve' I heard that a good friend's 12 year-old son, Clifton, was learning guitar and needed an electric that wasn't a struggle. His mom was perpetually short of cash like we all are and around that time I had bought 2 more strats... so I slapped a bow on her and gave my squier to Cliff for x-mas and he's still playing it down in Memphis as far as I know. I sort of wish I had kept it for my little boy, Lucian, but I was over a decade from fatherhood then. Who knew? Anyway, I have plenty of great electrics, when he's ready he can pick one or I will trade one of mine for anything his heart desires :-) No entry-level guitars for Lu!

Anyway, that's my story.

Ohh this is a good one. Ok I grew up playing classical piano, so I'm not gonna count the shitty piano we were renting :P

After I quit piano lessons, I went straight into keyboards, synths and drum machines. The Roland MC-303 Groovebox was my first foray into the world of synthesis. I didn't own one, my friend did, and he let me borrow it and I didn't leave my room for days.

http://images.equipboard.com/uploads/item/image/5622/roland-mc-303-groovebox-s.jpg

My parents were really supportive of my music habits, so they graciously bought me a Roland JP-8000 and Boss Dr. Groove DR-202 that I asked them for (I later sold the JP-8000... really wish I still had it today). I hooked them both up to my PC and used Cakewalk to make some tunes :) That's also when I fell in love with my first software synth, the Audio Simulation Dream Station - loved that thing.

http://images.equipboard.com/uploads/item/image/465/roland-jp-8000-synthesizer-s.jpg

Years later I got into guitar, and the first one I ever bought was an Ibanez Artwood acoustic, don't quite remember the model.

Man, trip down memory lane!

aww hell, the JP8000 and 8080 were so great!

First instrument was a violin, God knows who made those things but it was a beautiful violin that, at my elementary school age, put me straight to sleep. I really do regret not practising, I have a host of instruments that I want to play, and I've only gotten good on one so far, but I digress!

So, the first guitar I actually got for myself was not "bought", it was found. Our church pastors were moving to a new venue after the old one sort started problems due to sharing with some white folks (We're mostly latinos). So, the people who volunteer in church most spent an entire day cleaning this pile of shit that was a church once, and only just occupied by some others. So, I went into the nursery and lo' and behold, I found this one: http://images.equipboard.com/uploads/gear_photo/image/2614/xl_r5Ssq5L.jpg

It was much different before, but I grabbed him, threw him in my mum's car, and have been using him these past few years. Unfortunately, he's been abused, so I've been looking into buying a new guitar, then putting money into repairing him.

Appropriately, he's been dubbed "Virgil", after the poet himself, specifically from Dante's tale.

"Before mine eyes did one present himself, Who seemed from long-continued silence hoarse."

I haven't met too many boy guitars, but I think yours is a Virgil for sure!

My 1st instrument was an acoustic brunswick guitar (I don't remember anything about the guitar, it's already broke almost 10 years ago). My dad bought it for me.

My 1st real instrument was a Rockwell (local, Indonesian brand) bass guitar, RB-32 series with J-Bass PU. Made 2009, my late grandpa gave me as a present for my 17th birthday on 2010. It's definitely not a great bass, but I'll always keep it with me no matter what happen for an emotional reason.

My 1st purchase with my own money was my 2004 MIJ Fender Precision Bass Sting Signature. It's a secondhand and not on the great condition (especially with the PU wnd the bridge) but, it's still gave me a goosebumps I met her for the 1st time.

My shi*tty line 6 amp

What was everyone's 1st serious guitar? I'll start! when I was 15 I got a 60s guild Starfire 1 for jazzband. It was in the cool, greenish guild burst and had a single guild humbucker at the neck. It was actually a bear to play and had feedback issues, but for a while I loved her!

My first serious guitar purchase was a Schecter Diamond Series S-1 which I still have and love, with no much knowledge I upgraded its "treble" microphone for a Seymour Duncan Invader at first but then the past year I placed back its original Duncan Designed, which I like more though it may result kinda "voiced".

is your schecter one of the Korean ones? those were nice guitars if a little "nu-metal" looking. The invader is a ridiculous sounding humbucker to my ear, but they were very popular when I was younger. Everyone put them in the bridges of their fat strats back then. I'm not sure I would class the Schecter Diamonds as a serious guitar though. They are phenomenal student guitars like the similar early-90s washburns. I guess that's open to interpretation. I was just thinking of guitars that are vintage or high end. That first purchase that you cleared your savings account out to make so you could step up your game!

What about serious amp/effects purchases? My 1st amp came to me through my family for cheap even though it was a legit 60s Fender Princeton Reverb, but when I was 18 (I think) I invested in my first big amp head and cabs, a channel switching Marshall 800 that didn't do it for me at all and a 70s or 80s straight front Marshall 4x10 with the tan grille that I used off and on for a good 15 years (I liked it so much I bought another straight and a slant a few years later in the classic 80s black/white/black that I used on stage with fender heads for 2 bands... the split channel 800 went out pretty quickly for a 2204 single channel, a plexi RI, a 900SLX, Laney GH50L among other things, but I was so into 4x10 cabs for awhile). Well, prior to that there was the ac30 solid state from the 70s. What was I thinking? She lasted a whole week before going back for the Marshall. Then I borrowed a cab for a bit til I could afford that first 4x10. I slung a lot of Lattes t starbucks and stamped a lot of hands at nightclub/venue doors to afford that stuff. Ah the memories!

If you're not a guitarist, what was your 1st serious synth, bass, drum kit etc?

Yes, indeed, is one of the Korean ones (indeed very nice guitars even though its nu-metal looking). Sorry about the term, I told "serious" in a way that was just relative… to my life! But I was 19 and had a Texas before that, so the "step up" and clearing of my savings account still makes its point about it! The other first "serious" purchase that I still love and use is my Vox AC30CC2 as an affordable answer to what I ended up needing through the years to feel comfortable about my setup: amps with nice playing dynamics and an FX loop. And about effects my first one was a Voodoo Lab Analog Chorus which I finally sold/traded just a few years ago.

I just looked at the schecter and it not the guitar I thought it was LOL. Not "nu metal" at all. Its the model that looks just like the 80s Gibson ES335S "firebrand", which is a neat shape. My buddy has a 335S deluxe in silverburst. Cool axe, but hes beat it to hell over the years. Hes the same guy who blew up my 1962 AC30 when I lent it to him.

So what do you use the FX loop for on your ac30? My 2 don't have them. My HC30 does, but its not very useful for much because Voxes don't generate a lot of drive before the phase inverter and when I do generate my rive that way I wind up overloading modulations and delays I put in the loop :-( I pretty much just use it for Leslie simulation as my old Ibanez Flanger does a pretty good clean leslie sound in the effects loop as long as I keep the channel level low enough not to clip the flanger.

My first instrument purchase was a Epiphone Les Paul Special II starter pack like 10 years ago I think? Maybe less but something around that. I no longer have have that guitar, I loved it at the time and want to buy a new one to mod the shit out of really. I think it was made from a mahogany plywood body (weird but I guess price cutting?) and a Mahogany neck, I presume its a 3 piece. Typical shit electronics and all that. I replaced it with my Ibanez art120 limited edition silverburst, I love it though I haven't cleaned it in 5 years I've had it, covered in this green gunk around the frets and bridge saddles, gunna need to start cleaning it, the neck has never been trued and is stil perfect, intonation has only been adjusted once a few years ago by me and is still spot on. I love it, excellent guitar, mahogany body with a maple cap and a mahogany neck :)

My first serious guitar is my Epiphone Les Paul Custom Pro. Fricking amazing, extremely resonant and heavy! Sustains for ever gets awesome feedback when sustaining with high gain too. No longer have the probuckers in there anymore (they're amazing pickups and wish they was savable :( I was alittle rough stripping it out. They had these clips on and really cheap cable and yea, its just dead, cables are now far too short (fuck you Epiphone) If I could buy them I would. so a set of 59's or a jb and 59n combo will go in, probably the jb set and then coil tap and phase wiring. Tjat is my first serious guitar and I now have a Ibanez Rgr320ex (rgr420ex) just gotta finish paying for it :D if I have the tuning problems with the Edge 3 I'm gunna get a Lo-pro edge tremolo for it and putting either a dimazio super distortion and 36th anniversary in the neck or the duncan distortion set

Currently I go from the send to a Strymon Mobius, then a TC Electronic Spark Mini Booster and finally Strymon's TimeLine and BigSky. I like using the saturation from the preamp and being able to put some delay after it to add some dimension for heavier instances and also being able to momentary boost my volume to accentuate through the mix in some parts, being those two the more peculiar reasons for this setup apart from the general cleaner response that modulation and spatial effects has through this. I understand that an old AC30 drives more from the power amp stage and therefore an FX loop is something that just makes more sense since these Chinese series.

Why don't you just open the probuckers up, cut the original leads and replace them with some nice solid core, clothcovered wire? Then you only need a set of pots. Fuck the pushpulls and stuff, just get some good CTS or Bourns 500Ks and 2 Sprague or Mallory .047 caps? If you do all the pushpulls you can't wire the tone pots and caps up 50s style and you are losing some of the Gibson mojo. If you ahd 2 Gibbies I would say wire one up 50s and one up with all the bells and whistles, but given that you have the one go with vintage spec, man. So in short order a spool of white and black 50s fender wire, .057 caps (I tend to use mallories anymore because I have a lot around and they sound better than stock) and 4 decent 500K pots and just get it done man. Your total cost going the basic route, replacing the pots and caps and wire but keeping the pickups you like will be LOW. Seeing that you just put a downpayment on an Ibanez you should go cheap anyway. Aslo, don't sink a lot of money into a guitar with poor trade/resale.

Either that or just fuck the RG, get your money back. Take the money and all your busted guitars and any effects/amps, whatever you don't use (or bought becaue you wanted or needed something NOW instead of getting something you loved once you had the money) and plop it all down as trade on a used LP Studio or LP "classic 1960" from the heyday of those models, which was late 80s thru late 90s. Bingo, done. You will be happy as a pig in shit. Honest. And pigs apparently love to be in shit, okay?

EDIT: Also the Les Paul studio doublecuts are still affordable. They are amazing guitars. I am flirting with buying one. Came close at the last Philly guitarshow. If you don't mind a wraparound bridge then they are really amazing guitars for the cost which is around $800 to $1k. Plus they used to be worth less but have been appreciating steadily for the last 5 years or so, rising faster than 90s singlecut studios. You will have fantastic resale if you decide to trade up again. But you aren't gonna do this, are you? You should though.