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Puluke
Aloha
USA
36 Posts |
 Posted - 12/21/2011 : 12:22:49 PM
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My wonderful wife wants to give me a new guitar for Christmas! Realizing that it's impossible to choose one without playing it first, we went to the local Guitar Center. Unfortunately, nearly all of their accoustics are dreadnaught styles, and those that aren't are nearly all electrified. Since I'll never play for anyone other than myself and family/friends, there's no need for amplification (right?)
So, I'll start calling smaller shops. I'll want to play anything before buying but to minimize running around, what might I ask for? Any suggestions would be most welcome, whether specific models, brands, styles, woods, characterisitics, etc. Of course I'll have to see what "works" for me, but right now I don't even have a starting point other than 1) don't want a boomy bass, and 2) think I want a wider neck.
After settling on a make/model, what are yout thoughts on buying one online?
Mahalo!
-Bruce
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- Bruce |
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Allen M Cary
Lokahi
USA
158 Posts |
Posted - 12/21/2011 : 1:05:10 PM
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Aloha Bruce,
Make sure you try them in the tunings you like to play. I have a Taylor 612C that is a wonderful and sounds great in every tuning I've tried ( I am not a Taropatch purist). I don't know what sort of $$ you are looking to spend, but Taylors, Martins, Santa Cruz are all great. At lower price points Yamahas and Takamines are well liked. There are so many.
I agree with you about Dreads. In general they are flat picking sound machines, designed to keep up with a banjo for volume. the necks are usually too narrow for most finger pickers. I would look at the OM or concert size models, and since some Slack is up the neck, a cutaway can be nice. That really depends on your style.
As a luthier, I would say get the wood that looks the best to you. There isn't a lot of difference in how they sound that is intrinsic to the wood itself; it is much more a case of what the maker does with the wood. My Taylor is maple B&S with a spruce top. If you are looking at the lower price end, I would suggest that you at least spring for the solid wood top (as opposed to ply)
Happy hunting and welcome GAS (Guitar Acquisition Syndrome).
Aloha,
Allen |
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GuitarVlog
Akahai
USA
60 Posts |
Posted - 12/21/2011 : 3:11:23 PM
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Aloha Bruce,
I'm in the market for a new guitar myself. I could share with you some ideas but I think it's important to first know what your budget is. Also, would your wife be buying it herself or would she buy the guitar after you evaluate it? How knowledgeable is she about guitars? Are you on the islands, the mainland or elsewhere?
Buying online can be a lot cheaper but you'll have to evaluate the guitar after purchasing it. If the guitar is fine and you don't like the way it sounds, then you may have to pay the return shipping. It depends on the retailer's policies. Unless you pay for overnight or 2-day shipping, you'll have to receive the guitar after Christmas. |
- Keo |
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Puluke
Aloha
USA
36 Posts |
Posted - 12/21/2011 : 3:35:27 PM
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| Aloha Allen and Vlog - Mahalos for your responses. I'm in Texas, and will be with my wife when the guitar is bought. As far as price goes, would like to keep it below $1,000 but maybe a little higher if a great deal is found. |
- Bruce |
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fred d
Akahai
USA
60 Posts |
Posted - 12/21/2011 : 3:53:33 PM
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I have been playing and old Washburn nylon string. I adder a tone hole in the upper side and it really opened up with fingers louder than my steel string cordoba. I love the sound of taropatch and concert size or 000 size guitars and nylon are a lot easyer on the fingers |
fred davis |
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thumbstruck
Ahonui
USA
2168 Posts |
Posted - 12/21/2011 : 7:32:20 PM
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| Noeau and a couple others have enjoyed their Seagull guitars. Nice for the price. |
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GuitarVlog
Akahai
USA
60 Posts |
Posted - 12/21/2011 : 8:06:24 PM
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Under $1k, there are a few steel-strings that I like.
The Recording King ROS line has 1-13/16" nuts and 12 frets to its 000 body (which has a larger upper bout). The tops of this line are different grades of Sitka spruce depending on the model. String spacing at the saddle is 2-3/8". The ROS-06 sells for about $250 while the ROS-626 (which is all-solid) sells for $750. These are made in China and the quality control can vary based on my experience. I only recommend them if you know how to set-up your own guitars or if you know a good tech.
Recording King also has its RO line which has 1-3/4" nuts and 14 frets to its OM body. The tops on this line can be either Sitka or Engelmann spruce. String spacing at the saddle is 2-3/8". I have one of the earlier all-solid models that were first released under the Johnson label. It's a great guitar but it needed a good set-up.
See: http://recordingking.com/guitars_allmodels.html
From my experience, Seagull has very good quality control and a great reputation. The Godin group (under which Seagull is a brand) took good care of me when I had a problem with one of their guitars. These guitars are made in Canada. I liked the Maritime SWS Mini-Jumbo. This has a 1.8" nut width but the string spacing at the saddle is narrower at the saddle than the Recording Kings. I don't remember the exact measurement but it's fine for fingerstyle.
There's also the Maritime SWS Folk which has a smaller classical guitar body. It didn't have enough bass for me but you might hear differently.
See: http://www.seagullguitars.com/productlistingmaritimeseries.htm
There are other options (Yamaha LJ series guitars, Eastman), but these two brands are what I've narrowed my shopping down to because they have models that would fill gaps among what I already have. If you can stretch your budget a bit over $1k, then you can consider guitars from Larrivee.
Fred suggested a nylon-string. I play primarily nylon strings and love them. Just be aware that some pieces work better on nylon and some work better on steel. There's no specific nylon-string model that strikes me as being ideal for slack key. I use a Yamaha CG171SF and a Yamaha C40. I think Ozzie Kotani used a Takamine EC132C (made in Japan). Takamine makes the C132 for about $850 if you don't need electronics or a cutaway. I think the Cordoba C5 and Cordoba GK Studio might do well for slack-key too.
Don't hesitate to buy used even if it is supposed to be a "gift". You get more for your money which can be used for other things ... like yet another guitar!
There! That's my best brain-dump for the night! |
- Keo |
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GuitarVlog
Akahai
USA
60 Posts |
Posted - 12/21/2011 : 8:19:15 PM
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BTW, for the record, if Santa Claus came to me and said, "Vlog, you can have a guitar for Christmas with a retail price of up to $1500. Just ONE guitar and no cash-out or cash-back option!" then I would probably ask for a Seagull Peppino D'Agostino Artist model which has a 1.9" nut width, dread body, cutaway and electronics. I have no problem with wider nuts and I think this model could handle anything I'd throw at it.
I'm hoping my wife might see that last paragraph. (Probably won't happen.) |
- Keo |
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Earl
`Olu`olu
USA
523 Posts |
Posted - 12/22/2011 : 09:15:47 AM
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1) Taylor 2) Seagull
The 214 would be a good choice based on your description. I'm partial to Taylor guitars and the Grand Auditorium 14-series body size. I own several of them from the 114 up to a koa GS, covering street prices from $599 up to $3000. My favorite gigging guitar is a 414ce.
Seagull is what I most often recommend when folks are looking for their first decent guitar or to upgrade from that marginal starter instrument. The only guitar I have ever traveled with and taken to Aloha Camp was my Seagull, and I was quite happy with it for the week. Their necks are 1-3/4" and nicely shaped and they are almost all solid woods. You get a lot of guitar for the money with Seagull / Godin. They have several non-Dreadnought instruments starting at under $400, with the Rustic Mini-Jumbo starting the line. I think enough of the Seagull line that I have two of them -- one S6 is my airline travel guitar, and the other S6 was recently purchased used to convert into a baritone.
After that the Recording King, Takamine, and Epiphone Master series are all rather nice and in your price range.
Just follow the three basic rules when choosing: does it play well for you (good intonation, easy action), does it sound good to you, and does it give you joy. Forget the level of decoration, the brand name and other distractions. One of the best guitars I have ever owned was a $340 Sigma bought in 1985. I have met very few Martin HD-28's that I would trade even up for that one.
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chunky monkey
Ha`aha`a
USA
1022 Posts |
Posted - 12/22/2011 : 1:28:16 PM
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| Don't necessarily eliminate a good used rig. You can get a decent Taylor 314ce for $1000. All solid wood, 1 3/4 neck, cutaway with expression system. |
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guitar yogi
Akahai
Kiribati
67 Posts |
Posted - 12/22/2011 : 1:29:56 PM
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| I'd have to agree with most of the other folks on here, I really like Taylor and Takamine guitars. But my original suggestion is to check out your local craigslist for bargains on used guitars. One advantage to craigslist over ebay is that you can try out the guitar before buying one. I also think that lightly used instruments from "distressed" sellers can be a real deal sometimes. You also might want to go to websites like harmony central and read all the reviews that you can. Your local library probably has lots of old guitar magazines with reviews in them as well. But remember that tone and playability are always more important than brand name. Good luck in your quest! |
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Puluke
Aloha
USA
36 Posts |
Posted - 12/23/2011 : 09:24:47 AM
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I had wondered if some guitars are going to be "better" in some tunings than others; guess the answer to that is yes. At this point, though, everything I know is in G Taro Patch. That'll change in time, but for now a new guitar will have to be leap of faith in that regard.
What about electrification -- does it provide any meaningful benefit other than being louder? What about unplugged...for example, does an unplugged 314ce come up short compared to a GA3?
I'd also like it to be something that allows room for growth, to allow for the time when I can actually put a guitar's full potential to use. Maybe a Taylor 300 instead of a 100 or 200, or other similar step up?
As always, it's great to have this forum and its members to rely on as a resource. Over the last few months I've not only posted questions but have also read older postings and replies, and found all to be very helpful. Thanks for sharing the sense of community and putting up with a newbie! |
- Bruce |
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Russell Letson
`Olu`olu
USA
504 Posts |
Posted - 12/23/2011 : 3:04:13 PM
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Acquiring a guitar is a lot like buying footwear--it's very personal and requires a lot of trying-on (or, in this case, trying-out). Don't be in a hurry, and pay attention to what your ears and hands tell you. If you're unsure of your judgment, find a guitar-savvy friend willing to listen with you and play *for* you. Be patient.
As far as brands and models, the $1000 price ceiling gives plenty of room to maneuver--I've played OM-, 000-, and 00-size instruments from Breedlove, Eastman, Blueridge, and Recording King that I would be quite happy to play fingerstyle on. The Guild GAD line has gotten some good reactions as well. And even though the last thing I need is yet another guitar, I keep thinking about the Taylor GS Mini, which is a very tempting travel-friendly guitar that sounds like a real guitar and has a street price of $500. (It's actually bigger than several old parlor guitars I have, and I played some slack-key on one last summer. Sounded just fine.) And that doesn't even include used, which is where the real surprises lurk.
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GuitarVlog
Akahai
USA
60 Posts |
Posted - 12/23/2011 : 3:12:25 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by Russell Letson
Acquiring a guitar is a lot like buying footwear
I always likened it to dating.
quote:
Originally posted by Russell Letson
I keep thinking about the Taylor GS Mini, ...
Best Buy was blowing those out for $375 since Black Friday. Curious to find out how competitive the retail market was, I even got Zzounds to price-beat them at $365. Some Best Buy stores might still have them at that price.
I didn't buy one though. The neck is 1-11/16" and I found it difficult for fingerstyle. The tone is really nice though. If they had built them with 1-3/4" I would have one today. |
- Keo |
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Earl
`Olu`olu
USA
523 Posts |
Posted - 12/24/2011 : 10:24:43 AM
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Used is a great idea too. A used Taylor 314 would be an excellent choice. I just saw a used 214 in the Boise Craigslist for $500, with hard case. That's about half of the new price.
Speaking of the GS Mini, I had a used one for a few months, and enjoyed it. I sold it to someone with very small hands and short arms. It sounded good and played well. The short scale takes some getting used to, as does the slightly narrower neck. You almost have to use a strap to keep the Mini in the right position. I also found that the soundhole pickup got in the way of my fingertips sometimes, since it falls right where my fingers want to be.
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Bijou
Akahai
USA
51 Posts |
Posted - 12/29/2011 : 9:55:21 PM
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| Check out the Froggy Bottom. Nice sounds |
Judy |
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Suggestions on guitars and features?
