HMM.. Your DS sounds a ALOT like my DS11... Smart, stubborn and thinks he has all the answers.
18 mos ago DS decided he wanted to learn Guitar. We were hesitant, because the interest came from Guitar Hero, which is nothing like playing the real guitar.
At the advice of a friend who is an Ibanez rep, as well as DS's first instructor, we bought an electric guitar. Their reasoning is that so much of what DS wanted to play only sounded right on electric guitar ( Think "Smoke on the Water" on electric vs. "Michael Row the Boat Ashore" on acoustic ). DS would have fizzled out on acoustic.
We started out with a teacher who was not very enthusiastic and very "by the book". Things did not go well, and there were some screaming matches at our house over practice time and listening skills. DS thought he knew it all and did not take direction well from the instructor or me.
FF 3 months and we found a VERY cool instructor who is also teacher at a gifted preschool.. He "gets" DS, and has become a mentor for him. Guitar has become a kind of refuge for DS, and lessons have become his place to chill out and connect with another adult who appreciates him.. and, on top of all of that , DS is really, really good at playing. However, he struggles with the timing of music, so it has increased his ability to pay attention, and it has been extremely rewarding for him when he has to work at something but then succeeds in such a positive way.
I will say that lessons are important. Our instructor talks constantly about guitarists who don't get the basics down and fizzle out because they don't have a good foundation. He also discusses music theory, so that is an added benefit as well.
Just last week DS decided to try and tackle the trumpet in 6th grade, knowing that if he sticks it out until 9th grade, he can play the guitar in the Jazz band at the high school.
So I say, get yourself a good instructor and go for it!
