It is not uncommon for parents to constantly be nagged by their child about getting a distortion pedal, especially if their child is just learning how to play the guitar. The guitar is a great instrument to learn, but it can be difficult. Just when should your child make the move to getting a pedal? Does a person who is just learning how to play the guitar even need one if they are just starting out? Distortion pedals are great to play with, but there isn't a need to get one if you are still learning how to play the guitar.

The reason why new guitarists don't need a distortion pedal is because it could actually prove to be detrimental to their guitar playing skills. Distortion is the noise or cracking/popping that you hear when playing a guitar. How does this relate to a pedal? Well, a pedal makes it possible for you to alter the level of distortion you get from playing your guitar. This might be useful for songs where distortion is required on the chorus but little or no distortion is needed verses. Without a distortion pedal it is impossible to change or vary the amount of distortion throughout a song.

OK, so you know what one is and why they are needed but other than being a lot of fun there really isn't much need for beginner guitarists to have one. Distortion pedals make it easy for anyone with poor playing skills to sound half decent. How is this possible? When you increase the distortion it covers up any misplayed notes or mistakes made by the guitarist. If you have a child who has been nagging you for one, then just remind them that they can still play by plugging a guitar straight into an AMP without a distortion pedal.

As mentioned above, distortion pedals make it easy to cover up mistakes or the lack of skill. This is bad for beginners because it means they might not focus on learning how to play the guitar properly and instead just crank up the distortion to hide their mistakes. It would be much better instead for beginner players to learn how to play first before they bought a distortion pedal. They might be a lot of fun but it is just too easy for beginners to get lazy and forget that they should be learning the basics and fine tuning their skills instead of just messing around and not really learning anything.

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