I am a beginner that likes folk and classic rock and I am looking for an acoustic relatively cheap. Also, since I don't know a lot about the construction and condition of guitars, where is a good place to shop for quality used pieces?

I usually go to my local guitar shop. Where I frequent, they always have used gear for a good price. You can also go to local pawn shops. Unfortunately you often find duds in pawn shops, but every once in a while you can find a gem.

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RK

2007 Fender Highway 1
2012 American Deluxe
2015 MIM Dave Murray HHH
2010 Fender Blacktop
1987 Fender Avalon Acoustic
2012 Marshall DSL 15 watt head

You don't have to go used. Epiphone makes some great acoustic guitars that are very reasonably priced.

Go try a few out and see which ones feel and sound the best to you.

I tell you one thing...I recently went out looking for a cheap acoustic guitar with a friend of mine. He did not want to spend a lot of money on one, so he ended up getting a new Ibanez. It was a starter pack. It sounded as good as the $500 guitars we were looking at. In fact, from what we concluded from our adventure, until you hit the $500-$1000 dollar range, all the others are pretty much the same.

I liked the Epiphone PR150 and thought it sounded a bit better:

http://guitars.musiciansfriend.com/prod ... sku=512457

I also liked the Epiphone LE Hummingbird.



http://guitars.musiciansfriend.com/prod ... sku=581430

These are just the ones I liked and are fairly inexpensive and will keep you interested in playing.

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RK

2007 Fender Highway 1
2012 American Deluxe
2015 MIM Dave Murray HHH
2010 Fender Blacktop
1987 Fender Avalon Acoustic
2012 Marshall DSL 15 watt head

agreed. rkreisher has it right. this is truly a golden age for entry level guitars. There was nothing of remotely this kind of quality at the lower price ranges when I started out.

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I'm not an expert, but I play one on the internet.

A Martin D1. You will not go far wrong with a Martin

Tom

If you're serious about buying an acoustic guitar and not giving up, you absolutely must spend $500 or more to avoid future disappointment. There are plenty of good guitars in the $300 range (go below that and you're asking for trouble), but five bills will get you a guitar that you can play for years.

Make sure you look for instruments that aren't made of plywood and are manufactured by a reputable dealers. Any name you don't immediately recognize will either be rubbish or a fantastic instrument worth more than my annual salary. Good options in the range I mentioned above are Seagull, Norman, Epiphone, some Corts, some Takamines, and a few thousand others. Play lots of guitars, pick the one you like, and always buy the best instrument you can possibly afford.