Help me buy a nice acoustic guitar (1 Viewer)

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Lemonzest

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The last thread I made was really fun and I appreciated all the help in guiding me toward the right electric. I ended up getting the Reverend Billy Corgan signature which is great.

https://reverendguitars.com/artists/billy-corgan/

I have played the same acoustic since I was a kid, like 17 years old (Yamaha FG402MS) and I am thinking it is time to upgrade to something better on the acoustic front.

I don't travel with it so I am not looking for any "mini" versions. I would like a high quality guitar with full beautiful sound. I also kind of feel like my current guitar is hard to play (hard to explain) so I want something that is fun and easy to play.

In terms of a budget it is pretty open ended I just don't like owning stuff that costs too much money then it stresses me out if it gets a ding or whatever. I want something I can play and use without fretting (boom pun) about normal wear and tear. I guess for me that would be something under 3k.

Hit me with your recommendations!

@softchewy
@RainmanTrail
@Dix
 
If you’re going for value, check out Eastman. I’ve owned or played about 10 different ones, and they just sound, feel, and look fantastic, especially at the price point. And you can get spectacular deals on used ones, if you don’t mind. Let me know if you want more info on them.
 
I am a pumpkin head and tone chaser. Kinda leaning towards this but haven't done any research.

 
BPTDirector said:
My son would heartily recommend Martin.
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I would heartily agree with this, if you’re looking to spend $2500 or more. In my experience, the sub-$1500 guitars from the big brands (Martin, Taylor, Gibson) are underwhelming. If that’s your price point, I think you can find much better guitars for the same price.

Of course, acoustics can vary more than electrics, even within the same model. You could find a $1000 stunner, or $4000 dud. I highly recommend you go try as many as you can.

As a Canadian, you should try Larrivee. I’ve played a couple brilliant guitars from them.
 
came here to say Martin, I see I've been beat to it multiple times already.
 
Martin or Taylor.

EDIT: Those are expensive, but if you're going to stress about scratches, buy one that already has a few. They age really, really well, often sounding better after forty or fifty years. So in your position, a little character is just what the Dr. ordered.
 
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I have a Taylor and a Martin. It really depends on which tones you prefer. Taylors are brighter, with more crisp cleaner tones while a Martin is deeper with a more throaty tone. Both sound great, but which do you prefer? As far as price points go, there is a big leap in value /quality when you jump up to about the $2300 range or so. You'll get true hardwood tops and nicer fretboards at that price. Anything below that is noticeably of lesser quality, and IMO, most anything above that (with some exceptions) is often just paying for trinkets like pearl inlays or gold plated hardware or ivory bridges, shit like that. That mid level price point where you first get hardwoods is really where the value is. Martin and Taylor both make fantastic guitars. Taylor are CNC cut with machine precision, so each one sounds more or less identical, whereas Martin are all handmade resulting in every guitar being ever so slightly different from the next. I say play them both, see what feels good to you and which tones you prefer.
 
Nice budget! Love Taylor, love Martin, but I'm really impressed with the new Epiphone line. Play them all and see!
 
Your current Yamaha might just feel difficult to play due to setup (action too high, heavy gauge strings)

Lots of options.
Some dreadnought or similar style models you might want to try:

Taylor - 300 series or above - 317 or 717 - (I own a 314ce).
Yamaha - if you can't find an LJ16 or Billy's signature model (LJ16BC), try an LL16 or LL26
Gibson - J45 - (I have a J-185 EC)
Epiphone - Texan US model (made by Gibson in Montana), Masterbilt series is (or was) good for the price (have a Masterbilt DR500)
Martin - D28 / D35 (the originator of the dreadnaught shape)
Guild - D40
 
So, a little story on my son’s Martin. It’s a D28, bought in very used condition , from a pastor in a small town who had misused it , had a repair of a crack on the face and the refinish job was totally botched. Got it for $500. Looks a little rough but sounds freaking awesome. I’ve been in bands for the last 50 years and my guitar buddies all say he got the best deal they’ve ever seen. Get a Martin, you won’t regret it.
 
I am leaning toward Martin since I don't like the Taylor aesthetic. Any specific models to recommend besides the Martin D28?

Gonna get serious about shopping now.
 
Well I only see one recommendation for a Guild above... I was a fiddle player and messed around with guitars for years. The best Bluegrass (local) player had several Martin's but always preferred a Guild. So

Oh and on Price... pretty resonable
Screenshot_20211129-134307_eBay.jpg

Always my favorite sounding guitars, though most in Bluegrass country say Martin or Flop...
 
Steer clear of the $500 range guitars IMO. They're no better than the $200 guitars. If you want to spend more than $200, then spend $2000.
 
Lemonzest said:
I am leaning toward Martin since I don't like the Taylor aesthetic. Any specific models to recommend besides the Martin D28?

Gonna get serious about shopping now.
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If you have shortish arms, consider Martin’s 16 series. The concert bodies are slightly smaller, making them a little easier to play.
 
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RainmanTrail said:
Steer clear of the $500 range guitars IMO. They're no better than the $200 guitars. If you want to spend more than $200, then spend $2000.
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For sure. I want to hit that sweet spot between value and quality. I am fine paying more if I can justify it.
 
RainmanTrail said:
Steer clear of the $500 range guitars IMO. They're no better than the $200 guitars. If you want to spend more than $200, then spend $2000.
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Strongly disagree. I have a US made Alvarez that may be the best bang for the buck in acoustic guitars. In fact I have 2 of them. I am in the middle of tracking a song right now using a Martin D28 and my all mahogany American made Alvarez Masterworks MDA66 dreadnought. Picked it up for $400 used and put $100 in having it set up and fret seating and leveling, etc. Plays and sounds at least 95% of that martin for a small fraction of the price. I have a spruce top Alvarez Masterworks parlor guitar in Nashville tuning I like even more. I might get a second one for standard tuning if I can find one in mahogany (I prefer the less bright mahogany tops on my standard tuned six strings).
 
Chicken Rob said:
Strongly disagree. I have a US made Alvarez that may be the best bang for the buck in acoustic guitars. In fact I have 2 of them. I am in the middle of tracking a song right now using a Martin D28 and my all mahogany American made Alvarez Masterworks MDA66 dreadnought. Picked it up for $400 used and put $100 in having it set up and fret seating and leveling, etc. Plays and sounds at least 95% of that martin for a small fraction of the price. I have a spruce top Alvarez Masterworks parlor guitar in Nashville tuning I like even more. I might get a second one for standard tuning if I can find one in mahogany (I prefer the less bright mahogany tops on my standard tuned six strings).
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Good point. It shouldn't be a hard and fast rule. You can definitely find some good deals out there. Especially on the secondary market. The main thing I'm trying to stress is to make sure you get one made from real hardwoods. Although it's also worth trying out various hardwoods to see which sound you like best. They're definitely not all the same.
 
RainmanTrail said:
Good point. It shouldn't be a hard and fast rule. You can definitely find some good deals out there. Especially on the secondary market. The main thing I'm trying to stress is to make sure you get one made from real hardwoods. Although it's also worth trying out various hardwoods to see which sound you like best. They're definitely not all the same.
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Even at full price, those alvarez us made masterbuilt models are below $800 new, built from solid wood, set up well, play well, project well, and sound good. In the hands of a real guitarist, I’m sure the subtleties between the Alvarez and martins are glaring. In the hands of a serious hobbyist, those gaps are pretty small.

I’m a hack guitarist at best. My primary instrument is bass. I have several hand built custom basses from a couple luthiers I think is doing some of the best work out there. These cost a lot of money. Worth every penny to me. I also have a couple basses in the $1k range that are perfectly solid instruments that play and sound great. I have a Chinese import Squier mustang bass with some up graded hardware (pickups, tuning machines) that plays and sounds great. At a gig, or on a record, most listeners couldn’t tell you which bass cost over 10x the other just using their ears. Blindfolded, any serious bass player could tell in a heartbeat from the feel, but any bass player could make either sound great live or recorded. There really is diminishing returns out there.

Of course acoustic instruments are a little different. My ukulele and acoustic guitars are solid instruments. Laminates don’t quite resonate the same in my experience, but the ability to get lower priced solid wood instruments that don’t suck is coming along as manufacturing becomes more sophisticated.

I’m 52, and when I was a teen a non-us made fender was not gonna get you quite the same instrument, and it was noticeable to a kid learning to play. Now a $300 used made in China Squier with $200 in upgrades is an instrument I’d gig with. Things are changing.
 
Chicken Rob said:
(I prefer the less bright mahogany tops on my standard tuned six strings).
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One thing I don't like about nice guitars is how bright they sound. I don't like that twangy ultra bright sound. I am a child of the 90s and grew up with Garbage and Nirvana. Anything specific I should be looking for to have better mids/base without being twangy? I like a full sound not all high end.
 
If you want better low end response, try experimenting with different strings (phosphor bronze; heavier gauge) and heavier gauge picks. Also tweak your right hand position to be more over the sound hole. I have heard, but can’t say from experience, that bone saddles provide more low end response. Mahogany composition also increases low end, at least it seems so to me.
 
I have owned higher end Martins and Taylors, and one Gibson over the years. The best bang for the buck, in my opinion anyway, is actually the PRS Angelus. Absolutely beautiful looking, sounding, and a joy to play. It actually is my favorite acoustic to play for the last few years. Right now they are at Sweetwater for sub $1k.

Definitely play as many different bodies and brands as you can before making a decision, though.
 

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