Guitar Lessons - Guitar Tricks Reviews

by 2 Many Guitars

Some instructors spend too much time talking about theory and other things mixed right in with the middle of the song instruction, irrelevant to actually learning the song, and then fly way to rapidly though the chords, progressions and riffs, making learning difficult and multiple rewinds and replays necessary. (Example; Behind Blue Eyes by Mark Olesky. )

There is no way to mark or loop song sub-sections, so it is hunt and guess tryin to find the section you want to repeat without wasting time listening to the irrelevant taking and or parts you already know again and again . The theory may be interesting , but should come in separate sections, NOT in the middle of trying to learn to play a part of the song. Songs should be broken down into smaller sections for learning , or have ability to mark and loop sub-sections so you can repeat as needed.

On the plus side, transcriptions and techniques are generally good, except for songs with multiple guitars in the original . “Just play guitar 1” is a cop out. There are usually very good ways of combining multiple parts for solo.

by Taredrunner

I watched a bunch of the videos and found the program to be very helpful but found it not to be worth the cost for me.

What I found frustrating was first the free trial sign up. I like apps that allow a sign up through the apple store because cancellation is simple as subscriptions can all be found in one place. Guitar tricks doesn’t allow that. Maybe they have their reasons but when i eventually went to cancel on their website they made it difficult. When you go to cancel, you need to select 1 of 4 options of why you want to cancel but only one option actually leads you to cancellation. Then you still have to read the small print (not in the pull down menu) that says “there’s nothing you can do”.

These steps to make a cancellation are a bad practice. Clearly if someone is truly cancelling they probably don’t care about your final opinion so they make it this difficult to try and keep you signed up.

by AdhesiveWolf

The interface is a little old (so are the videos) and somewhat confusing.
1) It would be way easier to have all lessons listed for a given category with tabs that open right there to show individual videos within each lesson.
2) There’s no kind of marker to see what videos you’ve completed or where you left off.
3) Every time you go full screen in a video, you’re forced to exit full screen just to hit next again and re-enter full screen. No auto play feature or “next” button there on screen.
4) Why do you need a “begin” page right after you click a lesson. It just feels like I’m going down level after level and it’s so complicated for no reason.

by Smart Herez

It’s a shame GuitarLessons with excellent content is almost unusable. GuitarLessons ’s buttons (back button etc) when in a lesson frequently become unresponsive . The video control buttons disappear randomly. And there is no way to play the videos in landscape mode, which is basic stuff! I am using iPhone 6 with latest iOS. All in all GuitarLessons quality does grave injustice to the awesome content. At the minimum, the unresponsive buttons, disappearing video controls (pause, forward/rewind, no skip back 10 seconds!) and lack of landscape mode video must be fixed on priority. Eventually GuitarLessons must rewritten by some quality/experienced app developers and experts in mobile app user interface/experience . The great content in GuitarLessons deserves better software for presenting it! Had it not been for the awesome content, I would have given it 1 star.

by New Jarjar

There is no doubt the content I encountered so far and the teachers are great. I enjoy the lessons and practices and try to use GuitarLessons on the iPad everyday. I even dropped fender play because guitar tricks is so much better.

But, the user interface and experience on iPad is lacking. 1. It’s really important for me to keep track of where I was and my progress as well as history of usage. While this is available on desktop and web, it’s not on mobile. The need to keep going back and forth from app to website to look at progress and history so I can jump back to a section or continue where I was is the reason I only gave 3 stars.

I prefer to use the iPad for everything and I’m sure the future is in mobile, so please make the UX friendlier and easier.

by Frostiface

I am loving this program for learning guitar however I am frustrated with GuitarLessons and so I wanted to provide some feedback. I am having a hard time with the navigation. When I finish a series I don’t know how to get to the next one. Also if i close GuitarLessons and return I can’t figure out where I left off. I see the history but it isn’t linked back to lessons so it is not very useful. There is also no way to save favorite lessons like I can on my computer. If these abilities mentioned above are present they are hard to find or understand. There are also some really great features in GuitarLessons as far as how the screen is split so you can see the words, music, and teacher. Thanks for a great learning program and I look forward to an improved app as I intend to continue with this program for a while.

by Shellerfoot

I am a beginner- I learned more in a week of using Guitar Tricks than I did in two weeks of apps that listen to you play. The instructions are excellent- well presented and easy to understand. My 12 year old and I are learning together- me on a nylon string acoustic and him on an electric and the lessons are well suited to both of us. The only thing that keeps me from putting a 5 is that GuitarLessons could use options for some of the things available on the full website such as the tools and being able to mark lessons as complete. It would also be a great feature if the music sheets would scroll down with the songs as they are played - songs that are copyrighted can’t be printed which means it is impossible to play along without memorizing the song.

by Mark-strat

Guitar Tricks is packed with beginner, intermediate, and advanced lessons. Tons of tools, practice videos, info on gear and types of music and artists. The instructors are top notch!!!
GuitarLessons is easy to use, intuitive, has everything the website has in an easy to use package. I have not encountered any technical problems with GuitarLessons . I like guitar tricks because they stay true to the songs they teach, the don't "dumb down" the songs, slow them down, or abbreviate them - they teach the authentic version of the song. They do offer some simplified versions, but label them as such.

by Cray992

I had just been essentially doing warm up exercises and dabbling with various guitar apps. It was not until I started with GuitarTricks I expanded my playing by an order of magnitude. I was basically just trying to exercise my fingers and toughen up my finger tips on my fretting hand. I didn’t not want to pickup any bad habits. It was not until this I began picking cords and building a base. The more I am learning the more I am wanting to play. I feel by the time I finish the beginner courses I will have a solid foundation. From there I can pick up other guitar tabs and other theories.

by Shizay

This is my 2nd go around trying to learn guitar. My 1st was in-person lessons 15 years ago and I was just not mature enough for them to sink in. Fast forward to present day and being stuck at home during a pandemic, I decided to give guitar another shot. GuitarLessons was well reviewed so it was the first I tried. I love it! The lessons are structured in a way that let you learn at the most basic level but feel accomplished if you actually do the practice between lessons. I can’t recommend this highly enough. I feel like I might actually be able to play when I’m done here. The song selection from real artists is fantastic as well, they’ve included a huge library! You should definitely go through the trial period. GuitarLessons will speak for itself from there. Once the trial is over, it’s reasonably priced and well worth the money.

by Shane_J

When I was in my twenties, I taught 10+ people how to fly a helicopter, from zero experience to a private, commercial, instrument, instructor, etc. rating, using a structured program. Works almost every time.

When I tried taking guitar lessons (3 different instructors) in my advanced years, the instructors had no plan, no structure, no stated goals. I spent a good portion of each lesson watching them display their talents. Then another third of the lesson sitting and watching them decide what they wanted me to practice for the next lesson. It just didn’t work for my mindset.

I’m sold on this program. I think they are doing it the right way.

by Bendhippiechick

I’ve never picked up a guitar before and have decided to learn. I love how GuitarLessons breaks everything down for you! It’s helpful to have the visual along with the instruction. My favorite part is that they even break down how to strum. If you’ve never done it before, all of this stuff is unknown. So, to have someone there to teach you all of the techniques is extremely helpful! I’ve now mastered quite a few chords and I’ve also been able to play along with a couple of the songs that they teach! Thank you for the awesome instruction on so many levels!

by Diamondnuggets

Listen if your like me, which is , I need to know how things work Before I do anything, then this is for you, yes you could jump into songs and they have easy modes on that, BUT they’ll say things like sus4 , Barr , power chords.. etc I need to know what that is completely to understand what I’m doing, their beginner stages goes into that in detail, does it take a while .. yes .. is it sometimes boring .. yes. But you’ll understand why they go into detail later on.. and it’s def worth it..I don’t like to rush into the next lesson.. I need to have the chords sounding almost perfect before I go on..oh and tons of songs to learn.. love GuitarLessons

by DiCasparro

I am a beginner and have taken lessons from two different instructors, who were in my mind, real good. When people told me to go on-line for lessons, I had the impression of a young dud in a garage teaching me what he knows to earn some extra money for beer. This is not the case with GuitarTricks—it’s structured, well organized, has a jam track for most lessons to practice with, and I can binge lesson when I have a lot of time. These folks have guitar lessons nailed, I have no questions after each lesson and I feel progress with each lesson. It’s propelled my guitar success and gratification with playing.

by Musecrafter1

I’ve been playing guitar for over 35 years and in that time I’ve sought out numerous instructors, none of whom were particularly good. I decided to give Guitar Tricks (which is anything but a “trick”) a try. To my delight I have found it to be very informative and covers such a breadth of topics, very easy to use, and very flexible. Even at the monthly subscription rate (vs the annual rate) it is still a screaming deal. I said I’d never have an app that was subscription based but this is different given that it is an ongoing instruction app. So very glad I signed up. My playing and understanding has definitely increased and I look forward to using GuitarLessons daily. Good job!

by Deldots

I’m 47 and have been playing off and on since jr. high. GuitarTricks is the most helpful thing I have ever found to advance me as a player. The lessons are in depth and amazing! Every thing is broken down and taught extremely effectively. You can even loop a portion of a lesson until you got it down. Having the jam tracks to all the great songs on the site is awesome! No more do I learn bits and pieces of songs I go through each lesson within a song and then jam to the backing track. The backing tracks are fantastic quality. Kudos GuitarTricks! And thank you, you have me more excited to pick up my guitar than ever! I also go through the lessons when I’m not near my guitar they are so good

by Bluesrockman

I’ve had Guitar Tricks for about three years and it has really improved my skills and song learning. I’ve tried a few others but I believe that the song library and versatility along with the top notch instructors make this the best. If you want to approach learning songs the right way, this is GuitarLessons for you. I record on a multitrack so learning all guitar parts are crucial and this does it. Also it teaches all types of skills and techniques which I really need. I usually use it at home on my desktop but when away from home this keeps me practicing. Guitar Tricks is constantly adding new material, instructors, and songs. This is a 5 star all the way.

by IPA Dave

I knew nothing about guitar a year and a half ago, but I always thought it would be something I would want to learn someday. So finally, after deciding that I spent too many winter evenings watching Netflix, I bit the bullet on a $200 guitar and bought the gt app. I Worked through all the lessons in fundamental 1 and 2 in 6-8 months. i have been playing songs ever since and learning more each day. Guitar tricks continues to offer song lessons at easy to advanced levels so I know that as I improve, I will never get bored. After a year I decided I liked playing so much I bought a $2,000 Taylor guitar which I love. I will tackle the advanced fundamentals when I decide on a direction. But meanwhile, I’m having too much fun learning songs. I get a little better every day.

by UnaZarzaEnLlamas

For a total beginner like me, it was kinda difficult to find the perfect guitar lessons that fit my needs. I have tried other apps good for structure and practice, but they lack the theory I needed to complement my knowledge, so I could get to know what I was actually doing with my guitar. To play notes and chords just to play them makes no sense to any guitar player who wants to become guitar savvy in the long run.
But then I found a Guitar Tricks, I was doubtful at first and reluctantly paid for the first month of subscription, just to get a taste of it, and the combination of both theory and practice have worked out just fine for me. GuitarLessons is very resourceful and helpful to get your started.
It’s been week one so far and I’m enjoying the way the instructors handle the levels of teaching and difficulty. They don’t rush you out to get to do anything you are not comfortable with.
Week one and I have learnt a few simple chords and rhythms, and also the importance of taking good care of my gear.
So far, I can say that lessons with Ms. McCormick have kept me in touch and motivated to learn to play and love this instrument.
Most likely I’m looking forward to renew for another month to keep falling in love with it, and who knows, maybe a year.

Keep up the good work, guys. Totally worth it.

by Routerman-KS

The new App now has fixed windows that can’t be adjusted. You can make the video section window full screen but the tablature is isolated to the small bottom third of the screen and you can’t resize it, like before. You have to replay the video over and over again to understand what you can’t see in the tablature section, or pause the video, move the tablature around to see the noted, then unpause to follow along. The windows on the screen need to be adjustable again. Why do app developers keep refreshing the look of an App and breaking things that used to work fine?

by ..Ronbo..

I really want to rate higher because I’m loving the Guitar Tricks content, but using GuitarLessons is extremely frustrating.

The back-arrow in upper left is virtually unusable on my iPhone touch; that alone makes it pretty much unusable. The Jam Station has no navigational controls to go back or control your position (it’s a learning app!), and it renders askew and unusable much of the time anyway. Then, the sound can’t play when the screen is locked, meaning I have to manually futz with my device settings to disable the lock, and drastically shorten my battery life, making it useless for extended practice.

I could go on. I paid a lot of money to have full member access, and while I really like the content, I feel that as a company you have drastically underestimated the role of the mobile device in something so inherently portable as learning a guitar.

by Jeffitz

No fast forward, rewind, or scrubbing through the jam tracks? There isn’t even a simple way to stop and start over from the beginning, you’re forced to listen to the entire track before you can start over? Super frustrating.

Screen formatting on iPads seems a bit off in places. Things are cut off on the screen. Come on.

Biggest problem. There really needs to be a way of bookmarking where one is in the countless core learning system and song lessons. It’s very easy to forget where you left off and looking in the history is not convenient nor entirely effective. Good new is that there is a ton of great content, bad news is that there doesn’t seem to be a way of organizing it in a way that is useful to the user in the way of favoriting lessons or bookmarking. I seem to be spending a silly amount of time trying to find things I want to easily return to.

The low rating is because these seem like app fundamentals to me. Focus seems to be on the website (where all these functions exist), but GuitarLessons , which I would prefer to use, lags substantially.

by Lespikit

Some instructors talk way too much, especially with the advanced Learn How to Play songs. When teaching a phrase, why not play the notes as a slow musical phrase instead of singularly reciting the position or name if each note out of the phrase context? It’s really frustrating. I don’t think advanced players need as much hand holding.

Also why can’t I search for a single song (mobile app) without scrolling through the lists?

On the bright side, I’ve learned many more difficult songs with you guys than I ever did ruining my old records! Just wish you could get those private lesson costs down for long time users. Keep up the good work, I’m still a paying customer!

by Keith's IPad 4G

GuitarLessons is great for easy access to good content. I like the instructors level of detail and pace for each level. GuitarLessons gets ongoing improvements which is good. I use it almost every day and they keep adding content which is key.
Update : Nov 2018 > still using Guitar Tricks daily and am starting to use courses for different styles which GT provides. I've see no other online sites that have the level of video training for beginners through to advanced. Lastly GT's content covers many genres. Always best quality for each and every lesson.

by Riptide8

Guitar Tricks, their organized approach, small bite lessons (typically 5-minutes), and tracking system is phenomenal. Better than anything else out there.

I can’t understand the few reviews that are at all negative (most are very favorable). I think some people just like to criticize because it makes them feel in control, powerful, and good despite their miserable lives. If they could do better, then why don’t they? Hard to do better than Guitar Tricks, in my view.

Guitar Tricks is outstanding and I highly recommend.