happyhead.com.au

4 Questions When Buying an Instrument

When buying your musical instrument I recommend that you have several criteria at work. Which selection criteria you give the highest priority to will depend entirely on your values and preferences.

It does help to have a system when shopping for musical instruments. Because, as you know, once you step out with your coin purse, there are a lot of beautiful musical instruments out there begging to borrow your annual rent!

Making a decision happens in stages. Most of us make the mistake of thinking we’re making a decision when we’re only collecting the info.

So begin by asking questions and gathering options. At this stage you don’t have to know what you want. You’re working that out through this process.

And, take your time. There can be quite a gap between the info gathering stage and the decision-making stage.

So that you don’t become overwhelmed with the number of options when buying a musical instrument, pose the following questions to yourself try asking yourself these four questions. Pen and paper can help. Or not. Whatever your style is.

FOUR QUESTIONS TO ASK WHEN BUYING A MUSICAL INSTRUMENT

1. What do I want? Or want something to do?
2. What is my budget?
3. Where can I look for it?
4. Who would know about this?

So to answer these info gathering questions I might come to the following.

1. What do I want? Or want something to do?

I want a synth.

OR I want something that makes the sound of a train.

This level of enquiry opens up possibilities. It may well end up that it IS a synth that does that job. Or perhaps there are other instruments, sample CDs, effects racks that do that better.

Before making a decision, before narrowing down the information, it’s a great idea to open up to the breadth of possibilities first. Don’t go overboard and bamboozle yourself. Just ask a few more questions than you usually would.

Better to be a happy idiot who spent her money well than a miserable smarty who appeared to be more knowledgeable than she was!

2. What is my budget?

Total. To buy it, have it delivered, adjusted for me, installed…..

It’s a bugger to blow all your cash on buying the thing and then not being able to afford to get it out of the box for six months.

Do a little Shopping Brief and keep it in your wallet when you go shopping.

3. Where can I look for it?

Start in shops to see the latest.

Then go searching on music shop and cafe pinboards for second hand.

Look on eBay.

Look in secondhand/for sale sections in local papers.

4. Who would know about this?

Whilst doing the leg work yourself put the word out far and wide. Find out who knows about these things. Contact them and ask them to help you.

If you are a total newbie to buying your instrument you might even consider giving a knowledgeable friend or contact a finder’s fee.

Be clear with the brief - type, features, budget, colour. Everything you would take into consideration if you could bewitch the end of your nose and have it magically appear.

You might find yourself going back and forth. First it’s more important that it does this. Then that. It’s not that you’re having trouble making up your mind. You’re in the process of gathering info. And every new bit changes the picture.

For the next stage see 8 Steps to Making the Decision

Comments are closed.