Also, do not get suckered in by a guitar salesman. It is kind of like buying a car except, uh, not.
As a former guitar saleman, I have to tell you that Johnny C's advice is....
...dead on balls accurate.

One of the things I hated about the music store gig was how many of the guys I wound up working with who would sell the most expensive thing they could ram down a customer's throat just to pump their paycheck for the week.
There are some good guitar salesmen; I'd like to think I was one. My goal was to get a customer the sound THEY wanted at the price they wanted to spend.
I'll admit that sometimes that is a challenge. I'd get kids who were 12-13 years old coming in with their mom who wanted to spend $100 on a guitar and an amp that was loud enough to gig with, and they would get testy when you tried to explain that trying to get that was a bit like trying to buy a new car for $2000. It's a pleasant thought, but it's not reality-based.
Judge the advice the salespeople give you against each other, and remember that your friends that play aren't always the most impartial sources of information.
In the biz we used to talk about guys with their "expert friend". A customer would come in and demand a B.C. Rich Warlock, because their neighbor's headbangin' cousin told them that was the best guitar ever...and we would ask them what kind of music they wanted to play.
" I wanna sound like Eric Clapton...."
Then you spend the next 3 hours explaining WHY the Warlock is not the best choice for the Clapton tone....
True story, I had a guy come in to my store and buy a Mesa Boogie Triple Rectifier (A reall badass high end heavy sounding amp). He walked up to me and said, I want a Triple Rectifier and a cab (That was about $3000, then).
Six months later, the guy comes back, and sells me his rig in trade for a Marshall TSL (Triple Super Lead, another "screamin' " amp). I asked what was wrong with the Boogie, as he was about to take a bath on it...Since trade ins rarely net you even half of what you paid for the item. He told me, "I just want the Marshall". I shrugged, and he gave me about $1000 on top of the trade in for the head and cab.
3 months later, he's back. And want's to sell his amp and get me to order a Soldano custom head for him...and sell me the Marshall.
I told him the head was going to take awhile to get, and asked him "What are you looking for? What do you want to sound like?" and stood my ground until he started talking...
He looked at me, and said, "I've tried the two amps that everyone told me were the best, and I didn't like them. I want to sound like Nirvana..."
He bought $5500 worth of Deadly distortion...I walked him to the pedal case, and showed him...
...The Boss DS-1.
It's a $39.00 stomp box that Cobain used to record with.
$39.00.
I sold him that and a '65 Fender Twin Reverb. Grand Total about $1100. Tax Included

That guy wound up buying like 5 guitars from me after that, but never looked at another amp again.
The point to this whole monologue is: Picking a guitar salesman is a bit like picking a doctor or a dentist. This is a person that you should build a relationship with, and don't just grab the first guy you meet. Check around. See from your friends, not what they bought, but who they bought it from, how they were treated, and wheter or not they felt like they got good service. If they had problems, find out how and how long it took for the salesperson to resolve them.
Find the salesguy who is willing to give you some time and some real answers. Find out about the instrument you are interested in from the manufacturer, and ask the salesguy questions that you already know the answer to, test him. Make sure he (or she) isn't full of crap.
Also, if the salesperson says "I don't know" that's not a bad thing as long as the next thing they say is "But I'll find out for you." I used to hammer my salespeople to check catalogs or call the manufacturer if they ever were asked a question they couldn't answer. You can't know everyting, but you can try to learn it.
My last rant for the day:
Remember, once you reach just a bit past the really cheap, entry-level stuff, it stops being about which is "Better".
I used to respond to customers who would ask me what the "best guitar" was with this question:
Which is better a Porche 911 or a Mini-Van?
Think about it for a second...
(insert "Jeopardy!" Theme)
95% of people say the Porche right away.
The follow up question is then:
What happens when you want to move a Sofa? Take your Kids on Vacation?
It's not about which is "better", it's about what you want to DO with it...
Eric Clapton, Steve Vai, Eddie Van Halen, Billy Corgan, Chet Atkins, Ottmar Leibert, and John 5 all play "guitar", but the things they are trying to accomplish with the instrument are pretty radically different, and their grea reflects that. Can I say that Clapton's Strat is better that Ottmar's Classical?
Guitars and amps are to guitarists what paintbrushes are to painters. You might use one for the fine details, and a different one for painting a wide blue sky. Guitarists wind up being the same way; finding different tools for their different styles and sounds.
If anybody's got questions about stuff, I'll be happy to give impartial advice....
Peace and Happy New Year
