what to buy for acoustic guitar?

J

jerberson12

mucis procedure
ive been canvassing a lot of acoustic guitar from ebay to musiciansfriend to zzounds. Now i have 2 options that are good according to reviews and budget (from $100-$200).

1.WAshburn d10S - According to them, it is voted number 1 as best guitar under $500. Is it true that it really sounded like gibson and martin?

2.Yamaha F340 Dreadnought - Ive seen a poll for voting the best brand for acoustic guitar on this forum. Final result yamaha is the 2nd place. i forgot the first place. So i choose this model not too cheap and not too expensive as my second option.

Whats the best guitar for recording?

Advice please?
 
Jerberson, you have asked a question that does not have an answer, and this is why. Guitars are made of wood by humans, and the cheaper they are, the greater the variation between 2 examples of the same model. If you took 20 $200 acoustics of any make, 2/3 of them would suck, and 1 or 2 might actually be pretty good guitars.
As it turns out, the best $200 acoustic I've ever played was a Washburn, and I went through 9 of them to find it. The best acoustic you can buy for under $200 is the one that was made right by pure luck, and it's probably used. Whether you like it or not, research won't help. Go to a huge guitar store, ignore the salesman, and play every cheap acoustic you can find until you find one that doesn't suck. If you're not an expert, take one with you. Rule 2- never buy any guitar you haven't played because you played one "just like it" that you liked. And never buy a cheap guitar on line or by mail, or anything like that.-Richie
 
jerberson12 said:
ive been canvassing a lot of acoustic guitar from ebay to musiciansfriend to zzounds. Now i have 2 options that are good according to reviews and budget (from $100-$200).

1.WAshburn d10S - According to them, it is voted number 1 as best guitar under $500. Is it true that it really sounded like gibson and martin?

2.Yamaha F340 Dreadnought - Ive seen a poll for voting the best brand for acoustic guitar on this forum. Final result yamaha is the 2nd place. i forgot the first place. So i choose this model not too cheap and not too expensive as my second option.

Whats the best guitar for recording?

Advice please?
Click to expand...

No, the Washburn you refer to certainly does NOT sound as good as a Martin or Gibson. If that were the case, they'd be constantly sold out and on backorder at every music store. Don't buy into the hype.

As for the Yamaha's...

Nobody beats the Yamaha's for pure acoustic tone and quality (durability) in the "under $300" price range.... NOBODY!

Next time you ask a question like the last one in your post, try using the search function first. I guarantee most of your questions have been asked and answered hundreds of times here.

Here's a poll you might want to look at that refers to your question, though....

https://homerecording.com/bbs/showt...&highlight=best+acoustic+guitar+for+recording
 
jerberson12 said:

1.WAshburn d10S - According to them, it is voted number 1 as best guitar under $500. Is it true that it really sounded like gibson and martin?
Advice please?
Click to expand...

Only a deaf moron would say that,

Try out the Ibanez AW series. Got a buddy that picked one up and for about $350 it was pretty nice.
 
For what it's worth, I think that in that price range, you can not find a better made guitar than a Yamaha. This is not to say they are great guitars, but nothing in that price range will be, so go for the one which will last, and hold it's value, longer than any others.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
 
Re: Re: what to buy for acoustic guitar?

therage! said:
Try out the Ibanez AW series. Got a buddy that picked one up and for about $350 it was pretty nice.
Click to expand...


I tried to get my friend to hold hoff and save up for one of those....very nice.....but you know how beginners are.....:o The guitar he ended up getting took me forever to setup properly and even pass as something of a guitar soundwise :eek:

I said save up for a better one or go used............

But no, used is abused apparently :confused: Go figure......


Buy a used guitar or save up more money.

There are no guitars in the $100-200 price range.
 
Buying a well used guitar is the way to go. If you really insist buying a new one, check out the seagulls. They're all solid top, well built and inexpensive for what they offer.
 
jeberson12, if you live in San Diego, why don't you drive north to Carlsbad and visit Buffalo Brothers. They Don't sell "cheap" guitars, but you can pick up a Big Baby Taylor or a Larrivee Parlor in the $300 range. These are both very nice guitars--especially the Parlor (all solid wood, great sound and playability). Or, if you can save another $150 from your Christmas money, you can buy a Larrivee OM-1 for $450--a fantastic deal on a solid wood OM--and they sound great.

Any of those three guitars would make you very happy for a long time, and BB has a 100% trade-up policy when you decide to take a step up. I've used it three times myself.


http://www.buffalobrosguitars.com/larrivee.htm
 
I'll second the Larrivee parlor. I just got one recently & I love it. I preferred the sound of the parlor to some of the larger more expensive models & the playability kicks a cheap Yamaha's ass. This is not the guitar you want if you're looking for that big boomy dreadnaught sound though. It has a more midrangey blues tone to it. I have yet to record it or I'd post you a sample. I got mine for about $400 used on ebay with a fishman pickup.
 
yamaha acoustic

I have had a Yamaha acoustic (FG series, i believe) now for about 12 years. I had a fishman matrix system pickup installed years ago.....and I have done extensive recording and live playing with this guitar...It has an amzaing tone in the studio when mic'd up and live through a LR bagg acoustic DI Pre, an Fmr rnc compressor through the house Pa with a bit of reverb sounds amazing....

I have put this guitar through hell, very durable...and I have tried many times to "get a new , more expensive guitar" but I love the sound....great guitar for the price....
 
I second tdukex's suggestion of trying out Buffalo Brothers. They have an awesome selection of quality acoustics at some of the lowest prices.

If you're not in Southern California:

I would normaly not recommend buying a guitar without playing it first, but you could certainly try the Baby Taylor and Larrivée Parlor at a local retailer to see if you like them, then check Buffalo Brothers' prices. Ask your local retailer to match those prices. If they do, great; if they won't you can have Buffalo Brothers mail it to you. I've visited their place and personally would not hesitate ordering from them.

I bought an acoustic last year. The local retailer did agree to match the lowest price and I was able to save $500 on a guitar with a $1800 sticker (I guess they still made a profit...) If you don't ask, you don't get, but you have to do your homework first!
 
i got a used ovation acoustic....




i like it





go find some used ones and play them all until your fingers fall off. try it.






freak
 
jerberson12 said:
Whats the best guitar for recording?
Click to expand...

ok, hate to do this...but I own a Ovation and, while a serviceable live guit, it's the last thing I'd recommend to use for recording.
 
I bought my first (and only) Ovation in '72 (I blame it on the drugs). They sucked then and they suck now. Plastic f*****g junk. Loud and obnoxious.
 
Definately have to agree with a Seagull. I picked up mine about 6 months ago, mahagony back and sides, cedar top. The thing is beautiful and sounds amazing. I think I paid $375 for mine, but you should be able to find their S6 model pretty close to $200 and you'd be very pleased with it.
 
Another vote for seagull, hand made in Canada.

I love mine, I did what Mr Monroe advises and the one I have sounds great (but it really doesn't compare with this guitar which I sat and played for about half an hour at the weekend: :D

http://www.vintageandrareguitars.com/images/p_1297_1.jpg ).

Edit: Do you get Simon & Patrick guitars over there? Similar to seagull, similar price, very nice guitars for the money.
 
Hi
I`m new to this forum and true to form i`m chipping in with advice.
I agree with the Seagul thought but you may cosider Nornan, or Simon & Patrick. Both made by the Seagul co. A bit plainer, bit cheaper but still great guitars.
Happy hunting, Simmo [dj]
 
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