Buying Acoustic Guitar

  • Thread starter Thread starter Monkey Allen
  • Start date Start date
Garry Sharp said:
Light - was that a $100,000 guitar you posted a link to or am I being stupid?
Click to expand...


That is, indeed, a $100,000 guitar. And I have, indeed, played one. I have a friend who owns the seventh largest Martin deallership in the world, and he got one when they came out.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
 
rpe said:
Do you consider the Martin HD-28 one of their finest or maybe I should ask which model you consider superior (<$5K)?

thanks,

rpe
Click to expand...


An HD-28 would be great if you were playing Bluegrass. I don't, however. But they make many fine guitars, and I would not even begin to say that any of them were "better" than another.

My favorite Martins, overall, are OOO's, OO's, and O's. I tend to favor mahogany back and sides, so I usually like 18's over 28's, and I much prefer old ones. Age makes a difference, and in guitars it is a good one. Probably my favorite Martin ever is a 1911 O-28 we had in the shop many years ago. Amazing guitar.

And the best sounding acoustic I have ever heard is a 1930's Gibson Jumbo (probably an Advanced Jumbo, though we are not really sure) a friend of mine has. The damn thing is like a cannon.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
 
hixmix said:
There is nothing a musician can't like about an HD-28 or HD-35.
Click to expand...

Except of course the fact that they are boomy as all get out. Mind you, for some things, that is what you want, but I much prefer a balenced guitar.

And of course, they are so large that many guys I know develop sholder problems in their right arms from reaching around to play them.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
 
One little story. Every two years, Luthiers Merchentile has a festivle for small shop luthiers. Now, I have been to the last two, and am going to the next one in August, but I have heard some stories about some of the older ones. My favorite is the guy who, six years ago, went into one of the rooms, got up on a chair, and yelled at the top of his lungs, "I'm going to buy the most expensive guitar in the room!"

Well, he did not buy the most expensive guitar in the room. He bought the THREE most expensive guitars in the room, all of which were over $15,000.

Kind of puts the $2000 guitar into perspective. I couldn't make an acoustic that sold for only $2000, myself.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
 
Really I suppose the ideal guitar for me is one that is well made and is articulate. It's the best word I can think of really...articulate in sound for every string at every part of the fretboard. I wanna hear that bass string 'b' note when I strum an open G chord. You want the bass to be articulate, not just a blur of boom. Ya want the treble to be bright but not twangy or harsh.

I was having a look around in a generic music shop today. The top of the range acoustic they had there was worth about $1500 Aus. It was a Fender acoustic that was made in Korea. If I'm spending close to 2 G's I don't want something that is made under inferior/ cheap conditions. I got notihng against Korea or Asian countries. I just know they are used as locations for cheaper production. Times may have changed, however, I'm not up on production locations and their relationship to quality.

Am I wrong to want a guitar made in America?
 
Monkey you are quite a long way out of date thinking that Asian built equals inferior quality, this is far from the case these days. I have a Korean built G&L bass which is every bit as well made as my other two (a US made Fender and a British custom built Manson).

Competition in the guitar world is fierce, and once you move out of the very low budget bracket build quality is something the manufacturers have to be aware of because it's so obvious to a buyer. The Ayers are made in Vietnam.
 
Yeah, like I said, I don't know the ins and outs of global location and its relationship to quality. I'd love to know how, say, Martin churns out its guitars. How much is automated, how much is hand made, are the materials the same in all global locations, do they make, for instance, the D15 in both the US and in other nations around the world; are there ultimately differences in that guitar depending on where they were made; how dedicated are the employees; how well paid are they; why are there overseas production areas if the company was born in America; are the best men on the job outside of America; what's the quality control like outside of the states; what stereotypes should I mythbust?

etc
 
I saw one of those 100,000.00 Martins at the factory last year. It was in a glass case. they had a picture of Stephen Stills checking it out, and playing it. I just wondered why they didn't let me play it. :D :D :D :D :D

and on a side note..........I love my HD28.
 
Monkey Allen said:
And, do you mean the Martin D15? They are a very expensive guitar! zsounds $799US
Click to expand...

Try the martin DX1 i believe is what it is called. I have played them before and they are the best guitars for the money. Cheaper than a D15.
 
What are you music tastes? What styles do you play? Instrument preference do vary accordingly.

One obvious option, which you must have considered since you're in Australia, are Maton guitars. They use native woods and experiment a bit with designs and have a tone which is very unique and characteristic. They should be in pretty much every guitar shop in Australia and there should be plenty to try out.
 
Yeah, I have seen a number of Maton guitars around the place. I'm open to all options really. In terms of style, I want to record a kind of bouncing, bright acoustic sound. More strummed than fingerpicked, not classical stuff, more bluesy, countryish but not exactly country. I want to have the acoustic as the rhythm guitar, an electric bass, brushed snare, acoustic/ electric lead bits. But I really want that acoustic to sound really nice and crsip and articulate in the background. Hard to explain. Good fun thikning about though! I'm so keen to get all the instruments up to scratch. I've spent the last couple of years getting a home studio together.
 
I say, try a Maton first. A dreadnought like the CW-80, and see what you think. They sit really well for rhythm playing in a band context. They have a fairly pronounced midrange tone (though I'm generalizing here, since of course, there are various models).

I tend to think of Martins are being brighter with probably the best articulation (and the most typical 'classic' acoustic guitar sound), and Gibson as being "bluesier" and probably cutting through a mix more.

Other brands worth looking at: Seagull and Larrivee.

At the end of the day, go to the shops, and try as many as you can get your hands on, and see what feels the best to you.
 
Thanks ajikook, I certainly will do that. I contacted a dealer who told me that the $1995Aus Martin D-15, is selling for $1575Aus. I almost choked when I heard it was $400 off the internet price. I have read a fair bit about this guitar and it sounds good. I probably should not be too surprised about the difference between net price and the quote. Internet prices are always jacked up and come down when you contact the dealer. But still, $1575 sounds like my kind of price. Obviously I will have to play the thing first...I bet the dealer doesn't have any in stock atm. In reply, he said, yeah the supplier usually has some on hand. So, might be hard to play it. They'd have to order one in 1st. But would they do that just so someone could test it?
 
It's not likely they'd order one in for you to try, at best you can ask them to call you when one comes in, but that could be eons.

Most shops would do price matching... so you might want to look around, find another shop that has one, and see if it's what you want, then ask them to price match.

Don't think you can go too far wrong with the D-15 though ive never played one, ... but I've played a mahogany Martin OO-15 before, and that was lovely.
 
Yeah, it'd be weird to buy one without having played it first.
 
I am partial to the Gibson J45. But you may want to see what Carvin has to offer. I have one of their DC127's and it is the finest guitar I have ever played, much less purchased at $900 for a custom Koa neckthrough.
 
VesuviusJay said:
I am partial to the Gibson J45. But you may want to see what Carvin has to offer. I have one of their DC127's and it is the finest guitar I have ever played, much less purchased at $900 for a custom Koa neckthrough.
Click to expand...

Isn't the DC127 a solidbody electric?
 
Well yes, but I was merely referring to the quality of Carvin's guitar products. :)
 
Thanks Light (and hixmix). I don't play bluegrass but rather lots of ballads and hymns and classic acoustic rock. I play alot of fingerstyle so volume is important. I wasn't aware that the HD-28 was such a widebody but being a dread I should have guessed it. Anyway, thanks for your opinions, they are very valuable to me. I've played lots of acoustics at music shops (although never an HD-28) and just havn't found the right one yet. I've had a Yamaha since 1980 and a nylon string Alvarez but am looking to "move up" to a finer instrument.

thanks again,

rpe

Light said:
An HD-28 would be great if you were playing Bluegrass. I don't, however. But they make many fine guitars, and I would not even begin to say that any of them were "better" than another.

My favorite Martins, overall, are OOO's, OO's, and O's. I tend to favor mahogany back and sides, so I usually like 18's over 28's, and I much prefer old ones. Age makes a difference, and in guitars it is a good one. Probably my favorite Martin ever is a 1911 O-28 we had in the shop many years ago. Amazing guitar.

And the best sounding acoustic I have ever heard is a 1930's Gibson Jumbo (probably an Advanced Jumbo, though we are not really sure) a friend of mine has. The damn thing is like a cannon.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
Click to expand...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top