SoCalCyclist

I'm 38 years old and want to learn to play guitar. I know nothing about guitar and the only musical instrument I've ever played in my life was a flutophone in 3rd grade.

I don't want to put out much money to start just in case it doesn't work out. I think I want to start with electric and not acoustic.

So, I called my local music shop and the dude said they carry 4 different Fender starter packages priced at:
$199, $249, $299, & $349

He said they didn't have any in stock, just sold the last one the other day, and had no idea when they'd get more in. He was helpful till that last part.

I'm guessing they're probably these:

**** DANG IT! Can't post URL's or pics till 15 posts so I'll just give descriptions I guess. They can all be found at: "squierguitars {dot} com/products/" ****


1)
Model Name Stop Dreaming, Start Playing™ Set: Affinity Strat® HSS with Bullet® 150 DSP Amp
Model Number 030-1610-(Color#) USA
Series Affinity Series
Colors (006) Black,
(025) Metallic Red,
(095) Metallic Blue,
(Polyurethane Finish)
Body Agathis
Neck Maple, C-Shape,
(Polyurethane Finish)
Fingerboard Rosewood, 9.5” Radius (241 mm)
No. of Frets 22 Medium Jumbo
Pickups 2 Single-Coil Pickups (Neck/Mid),
1 Humbucking Pickup (Bridge)
Controls Master Volume,
Tone 1. (Neck Pickup),
Tone 2. (Middle Pickup)
Pickup Switching 5-Position Blade:
Position 1. Bridge Pickup
Position 2. Bridge and Middle Pickup
Position 3. Middle Pickup
Position 4. Middle and Neck Pickup
Position 5. Neck Pickup
Bridge Synchronous Tremolo
Machine Heads Standard Die-Cast Tuners
Hardware Chrome
Pickguard 1-Ply White
Scale Length 25.5” (648 mm)
Width at Nut 1.61” (41 mm)
Unique Features White Dot Position Inlays

Bullet® 150 DSP Features:
"Fender "clean" channel and versatile distortion channel.
"15 digital effects, including reverb, delay/echo, chorus, flanging and tremolo.
"Auxiliary input for playing along with CD or drum machine.
"Headphone output for silent practice.
"15 watts.
"8" speaker.
"Tough textured vinyl exterior.
Strings Fender Super 250L, (.009 to .042) Nickel Plated Steel p/n 073-0250-003
Accessories The Set Includes:
Squier Fat Strat p/n 031-0700,
Fender Bullet® 150 DSP Guitar Amplifier,
Strap,
Electronic Tuner,
Gig Bag,
Cable,
Pick Sampler
Introduced 1/2007



2)
Model Name Stop Dreaming, Start Playing™ Set: Affinity Strat® HSS with G-DEC® Junior Amp
Model Number 030-1620-(Color#) USA
Series Affinity Series
Colors (006) Black,
(025) Metallic Red,
(095) Metallic Blue,
(Polyurethane Finish)
Body Agathis
Neck Maple, C-Shape,
(Polyurethane Finish)
Fingerboard Rosewood, 9.5” Radius (241 mm)
No. of Frets 22 Medium Jumbo
Pickups 2 Single-Coil Pickups (Neck/Mid),
1 Humbucking Pickup (Bridge)
Controls Master Volume,
Tone 1. (Neck Pickup),
Tone 2. (Middle Pickup)
Pickup Switching 5-Position Blade:
Position 1. Bridge Pickup
Position 2. Bridge and Middle Pickup
Position 3. Middle Pickup
Position 4. Middle and Neck Pickup
Position 5. Neck Pickup
Bridge Synchronous Tremolo
Machine Heads Standard Die-Cast Tuners
Hardware Chrome
Pickguard 1-Ply White
Scale Length 25.5” (648 mm)
Width at Nut 1.61” (41 mm)
Unique Features White Dot Position Inlays

G-DEC® Junior Features:
• Built-in E-tuner with LED Indicator.
• 15 watts, 8" Special Design speaker.
• 16 amp types recreate the tones needed to play any style of music.
• 15 special effects presets.
• 15 drum/bass/accompaniment loops, including metronome.
• Key selector knob allows 14 different keys; "Bass Off" may be selected to allow only the drum sounds to be activated.
• Tempo knob allows settings from 30 to 240 bpm.
• Separate controls for guitar volume and backing loop volume
• MIDI connector allows streaming files from a computer and future software upgrades.
• 1/8" AUX in allows jam-along capability with external CD or mp3 player.
• Headphone jack doubles as line output to recording gear or further amplification.
Strings Fender Super 250L, (.009 to .042) Nickel Plated Steel p/n 073-0250-003
Accessories The Set Includes:
Squier Fat Strat p/n 031-0700,
G-DEC® Junior Guitar Amplifier,
Strap,
Gig Bag,
Cable,
Pick Sampler
Introduced 1/2007




3)
Model Name Stop Dreaming, Start Playing™ Set: Affinity Strat® Special with Fender Frontman Amp® 15G
Model Number 030-1605-(Color#)
Series Affinity Series
Colors (006) Black,
(025) Metallic Red,
(095) Metallic Blue,
(Polyurethane Finish)
Body Agathis
Neck Maple, C-Shape,
(Polyurethane Finish)
Fingerboard Rosewood, 9.5” Radius (241 mm)
No. of Frets 22 Medium Jumbo
Pickups 3 Single-Coil Pickups
Controls Master Volume,
Tone 1. (Neck Pickup),
Tone 2. (Middle Pickup)
Pickup Switching 5-Position Blade:
Position 1. Bridge Pickup
Position 2. Bridge and Middle Pickup
Position 3. Middle Pickup
Position 4. Middle and Neck Pickup
Position 5. Neck Pickup
Bridge Synchronous Tremolo
Machine Heads Standard Die-Cast Tuners
Hardware Chrome
Pickguard 1-Ply White
Scale Length 25.5” (648 mm)
Width at Nut 1.61” (41 mm)
Unique Features White Dot Position Inlays
Strings Fender Super 250L, (.009 to .042) Nickel Plated Steel p/n 073-0250-003
Accessories The Set Includes:
Squier Affinity Strat Special p/n ?,
Fender Frontman Amp 15G Guitar Amplifier,
Stereo Headphones,
Instructional DVD,
Chromatic Tuner,
Gig Bag,
Cable,
Guitar Strap,
Pick Sampler
Introduced 4/2007



Are these all junk? Are they good enough to learn on? Recommendations?