Loved by first-time players
The Best Acoustic Instruments for Your First Year
Every instrument leaves our workshop tuned, with the action checked and the strings settled. Pick a guitar, a ukulele, a violin or a cajon and start playing the day the box arrives.
Benefit
Instruments That Are Easy to Start On
Low action, light-gauge strings and honest tonewoods. We list the body size, scale length and top wood for every model, so a 4/4 guitar never lands on a nine-year-old and a soprano ukulele never lands on someone who wanted a concert.
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Sized for the Player, Not the Shelf
Violins and classical guitars come in 1/4, 1/2, 3/4 and 4/4. Tell us the player's height and age and our size guide points at one option instead of five. Every order ships with a fitting note in the box.
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Hot instruments
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Yamaha F310 Acoustic
Full-size dreadnought, spruce top, 634 mm scale. The safest first guitar for an adult.
£149.00
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Fender CD-60S
Solid spruce top, mahogany back, rolled fretboard edges for softer first chords.
£199.00
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Valencia VC204 4/4
Nylon-string classical, 650 mm scale, kind on fingertips from the very first lesson.
£89.00
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Yamaha CS40 3/4
580 mm scale classical sized for players roughly 130–150 cm tall.
£99.00
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Kala KA-15S Ukulele
Mahogany soprano, 350 mm scale, four strings and a chord under a minute.
£59.00
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Stagg US-30 Concert
Concert body with a longer 380 mm scale for adult hands. Bag included.
£45.00
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Stentor Student I 1/2
Half-size violin outfit with bow, rosin and case. Set up and tuned before dispatch.
£119.00
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Ibanez PCBE12 Bass
Acoustic bass, 810 mm scale, deep enough to hold a room without an amp.
£249.00
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Meinl Headliner Cajon
Birch cajon with fixed snare wires. A full rhythm section you can sit on.
£109.00
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Practice Pad & Sticks
200 mm rubber pad with 5A hickory sticks. Quiet enough for a flat.
£32.00
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Hohner Special 20 in C
Ten-hole diatonic harmonica in C, the key most beginner tutorials assume.
£39.00
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Guitar Starter Kit
Padded gig bag, clip-on tuner, spare string set, strap, capo and six picks.
£45.00
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Find the Instrument That Fits Your Hands
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Care and setup
The Short Guide to Living With an Acoustic Instrument
- Tuning. Use the clip-on tuner on the headstock and tune up to the note, never down onto it. A new set of strings will drift for the first week, so check before every session.
- Changing strings. Swap one string at a time to keep tension on the neck. Steel strings last around three months of daily playing, nylon a little longer.
- Humidity and storage. Keep wooden instruments between 40% and 60% relative humidity, away from radiators and cold outside walls. A case does more for the top than a wall hook.
- When to see a technician. Buzzing frets, a rising action or a lifting bridge are setup jobs, not faults you should play around. Everything we ship is set up and tuned before dispatch.
- Delivery and returns. UK delivery is £4.95, free over £150, and takes 2–4 working days. Guitars, basses and cajons travel double-boxed with corner protection. You may cancel within 14 days of delivery under the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013.