How do you prioritize your choice in acoustic guitar?

ESBlonde · July 2020

Go to a proper shop that is well stocked, start at one end of the rack and work your way along. Play everything (price being irrelevent at this stage). Make a note of what you like in your hands. Go back and retry those that were nice for whatever reason, whittle it down (top end budget might now play a part but don't dismiss so called budget guitars).

Usually by the end of the afternoon you have a favourite, damn it I nearly bought a hummingbird with all that bright colour and bling!

Now ask about the specs your hands and ears have selected.

ToneControl · July 2020

ESBlonde said:

Go to a proper shop that is well stocked, start at one end of the rack and work your way along. Play everything (price being irrelevent at this stage). Make a note of what you like in your hands. Go back and retry those that were nice for whatever reason, whittle it down (top end budget might now play a part but don't dismiss so called budget guitars).
Usually by the end of the afternoon you have a favourite, damn it I nearly bought a hummingbird with all that bright colour and bling!
Now ask about the specs your hands and ears have selected.

and find a quiet spot to try them, facing a wall or a window

crunchman · July 2020

SteveF said:

Weirdly, I went into my last acoustic buying experience thinking I wanted one thing (some kind of cutaway electro like a Taylor 314e or similar) and was fairly sure I disliked dreadnaughts. I then went and tried everything the local shop had in and ended up with a... Martin dreadnaught...

What I did find is that although I found some of the more rounded, smaller bodied cutaways I tried more comfortable to play, the sound just didn’t compare for me. Visually, I love the look of Taylor guitars, but in person I didn’t find one that didn’t sound overly bright and trebly. I am not sure whether the fact the one I bought was a second hand one about 5 years old and it had “opened up” or whatever (I’m not sure if that sort of thing is just hokey or not!) but the sound from the one I ended up with was exactly what I was after. There was a slight trade off with comfort, but I don’t think anyone claims that dreads are the most comfortable acoustics to play.

It's not the age. It's the sound of Taylor guitars.

Some of their newer models are meant to be a bit fuller sounding, but I haven't played them so can't really comment.

MichaelWatts · July 2020

My priorities are scale length and response, ergonomics, aesthetics in that that order.

You can see that in action in some of my videos, this is a good example https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2MzcnOYyrI

Rocker · July 2020

The OP has asked an interesting question. None of his list would even make it to the starting gate in my world.

Can I afford it?
Does it sound good?
Is it playable?

Each question has equal status as I see it.

martin8708 · November 2020

My approach to buying an acoustic guitar is to have an open mind and play just about any guitar I can get my hands on .
I'm sure we all want a pretty guitar , but sometimes it's that beat up mongrel in the corner of the shop is the one that comes to life in your hands . So I try not to get too hung up on wood types .
The price of the guitar just relates to how much damage it does to your bank account , and how much decoration is on the guitar , it does not guarantee a great sounding guitar .
As Warren Buffet says , price is what you pay , value is what you get .
Always take a tuner with you , this is especially true if looking for a nylon string guitar , all it takes is for one string to be slightly out of tune to really fudge the sound .
I'm not a great guitarist , and I'm a bit shy as well , but my simple test of a guitar is
1) Play the Purple Rain chord Bb9 , if it sounds as if Prince has just entered the room , it's a good sign ( yes , I know he didn't play guitar on this track and he is no longer with us ) , I find quite a few guitars struggle with this chord .
2) Play a simple Gmajor chord , do all the notes ring clear and even , does it have good projection ? Does it get louder when you strum harder ? Can you feel the notes against your chest ?
Does the guitar come to life in your hands ?
I'm sure some people will thoroughly disagree with some of the above , but acoustic guitars more than electric guitars/bass's really do need to be played before purchased .

Balrog68 · November 2020

Cranky said

(Please don't tell me that "you gotta play it first." We all know that what matters is the tone and feel while playing, but what about when you choose among several guitars or when you walk into the shop and say "what do you have in ___________ acoustics?")

Tone, Volume and playability are the only thing that matter to me.

ToneControl · November 2020

Inspiration
The more it inspires, the more attractive the guitar is

Mudcrutch · November 2020

ToneControl said:

Cranky said:

ToneControl said:

and if you were to own 10 acoustics, who would want them all to be as identical sounding as possible?

if you had 10 cars, would you not have one 4x4, one sports car, one RV, one luxury saloon, etc.

Yeah that was part of my initial question, not just about buying a guitar but also about why we pick up one of ours but leave the others alone for periods of time. I have four acoustics, two of them I would consider to be properly nice, performance-worthy acoustics, and sometimes I wanna play one of them and I'll ignore the other, and then vice versa other days or stretches of days. And sometimes I'll play a cheap one for days and ignore the rest. So I just think it's interesting like that, how a guitar will speak to you and either suit a given mood or put you in a certain mood.

Electrics are the same for me, but for different reasons. But either way, I'm definitely finding that playing a wider variety of guitars is moving me along as a player in general.

The thing that baffles me is when people have 10 strats or LPs with pretty much the same spec, just different colours

You will never build two guitars that sound exactly the same.
It’s impossible to do.

BahHumbug · November 2020

When it comes to acoustic guitars I primarily play fingerstyle. I'm also small in stature. So if I'm looking at a rack of guitars in a shop, I'd be looking for smallish bodied instruments with string spacing on the wide side. After that its a case of playing them and seeing if they speak to me, feel alive, have that sparkle, however you want to describe it - and feel comfortable and ergonomic.
Any other aesthetics, wood types etc are somewhat of a secondary consideration. Admittedly I probably wouldn't buy a guitar which I thought was ugly, and it is nice to have instruments made of nice woods, but if it was a guitar that 'works' for me, it wouldn't have to be aesthetically perfect.

Andy79 · November 2020

Mudcrutch said:

ToneControl said:

Cranky said:

ToneControl said:

and if you were to own 10 acoustics, who would want them all to be as identical sounding as possible?

if you had 10 cars, would you not have one 4x4, one sports car, one RV, one luxury saloon, etc.

Yeah that was part of my initial question, not just about buying a guitar but also about why we pick up one of ours but leave the others alone for periods of time. I have four acoustics, two of them I would consider to be properly nice, performance-worthy acoustics, and sometimes I wanna play one of them and I'll ignore the other, and then vice versa other days or stretches of days. And sometimes I'll play a cheap one for days and ignore the rest. So I just think it's interesting like that, how a guitar will speak to you and either suit a given mood or put you in a certain mood.

Electrics are the same for me, but for different reasons. But either way, I'm definitely finding that playing a wider variety of guitars is moving me along as a player in general.

The thing that baffles me is when people have 10 strats or LPs with pretty much the same spec, just different colours

You will never build two guitars that sound exactly the same.
It’s impossible to do.

Mudcrutch said:

ToneControl said:

Cranky said:

ToneControl said:

and if you were to own 10 acoustics, who would want them all to be as identical sounding as possible?

if you had 10 cars, would you not have one 4x4, one sports car, one RV, one luxury saloon, etc.

Yeah that was part of my initial question, not just about buying a guitar but also about why we pick up one of ours but leave the others alone for periods of time. I have four acoustics, two of them I would consider to be properly nice, performance-worthy acoustics, and sometimes I wanna play one of them and I'll ignore the other, and then vice versa other days or stretches of days. And sometimes I'll play a cheap one for days and ignore the rest. So I just think it's interesting like that, how a guitar will speak to you and either suit a given mood or put you in a certain mood.

Electrics are the same for me, but for different reasons. But either way, I'm definitely finding that playing a wider variety of guitars is moving me along as a player in general.

The thing that baffles me is when people have 10 strats or LPs with pretty much the same spec, just different colours

You will never build two guitars that sound exactly the same.
It’s impossible to do.

Oh come on.

Cranky · November 2020

Andy79 said:

Mudcrutch said:

ToneControl said:

Cranky said:

ToneControl said:

and if you were to own 10 acoustics, who would want them all to be as identical sounding as possible?

if you had 10 cars, would you not have one 4x4, one sports car, one RV, one luxury saloon, etc.

Yeah that was part of my initial question, not just about buying a guitar but also about why we pick up one of ours but leave the others alone for periods of time. I have four acoustics, two of them I would consider to be properly nice, performance-worthy acoustics, and sometimes I wanna play one of them and I'll ignore the other, and then vice versa other days or stretches of days. And sometimes I'll play a cheap one for days and ignore the rest. So I just think it's interesting like that, how a guitar will speak to you and either suit a given mood or put you in a certain mood.

Electrics are the same for me, but for different reasons. But either way, I'm definitely finding that playing a wider variety of guitars is moving me along as a player in general.

The thing that baffles me is when people have 10 strats or LPs with pretty much the same spec, just different colours

You will never build two guitars that sound exactly the same.
It’s impossible to do.

Mudcrutch said:

ToneControl said:

Cranky said:

ToneControl said:

and if you were to own 10 acoustics, who would want them all to be as identical sounding as possible?

if you had 10 cars, would you not have one 4x4, one sports car, one RV, one luxury saloon, etc.

Yeah that was part of my initial question, not just about buying a guitar but also about why we pick up one of ours but leave the others alone for periods of time. I have four acoustics, two of them I would consider to be properly nice, performance-worthy acoustics, and sometimes I wanna play one of them and I'll ignore the other, and then vice versa other days or stretches of days. And sometimes I'll play a cheap one for days and ignore the rest. So I just think it's interesting like that, how a guitar will speak to you and either suit a given mood or put you in a certain mood.

Electrics are the same for me, but for different reasons. But either way, I'm definitely finding that playing a wider variety of guitars is moving me along as a player in general.

The thing that baffles me is when people have 10 strats or LPs with pretty much the same spec, just different colours

You will never build two guitars that sound exactly the same.
It’s impossible to do.

Oh come on.

Fair point.

Come on, now.

lincolnblue · November 2020

This thread is of interest to me as I am in the market for a new acoustic. The priorities for me are going to be (in no order):
Price - I have a budget and can't stretch it. That means I have to discount some. But I want to spent at the top of it to get the best guitar I can
Aesthetics - I like a guitar to look good so that has to play a part. If it doesn't look good I'm less likely to want to play it
Body shape - I don't have a particular one in mind but don't want a jumbo or concert as I have them already - so looking for OM, Dreadnaught or a J45 shape
Sound / Feel - I would rather buy a guitar that sounds right to me but isn't what I was initially after. It has to feel right in my hands - the neck, the size of the body, the finish etc. Plus it has to emotionally feel right too
Name on Headstock - Yes I am a brand snob (I guess many of us are) so it does feature in one way - although it wouldn't be the deciding factor

sev112 · November 2020

Good thread

1. Price in range - won’t get bought unless I can afford / plan for it
2. what it feels like - won’t get played unless it feels good to play / easy to play
3. what it looks like - want to want to pick it up and play it
4. what it sounds like (last because it is a given and for most guitars from intermediate level up will sound good, but might need modifications because a guitar manufacturer is better at making a guitar sound good than my playing is !)

p90fool · November 2020

Big neck, and sheer volume.

I like loud acoustic guitars, and it's hard to make them loud without making them right.

Heavy bracing, thick tops, goopy finishes and crap wood all conspire to make guitars quieter, but good acoustic guitars go to eleven.

ToneControl · November 2020

Mudcrutch said:

ToneControl said:

Cranky said:

ToneControl said:

and if you were to own 10 acoustics, who would want them all to be as identical sounding as possible?

if you had 10 cars, would you not have one 4x4, one sports car, one RV, one luxury saloon, etc.

Yeah that was part of my initial question, not just about buying a guitar but also about why we pick up one of ours but leave the others alone for periods of time. I have four acoustics, two of them I would consider to be properly nice, performance-worthy acoustics, and sometimes I wanna play one of them and I'll ignore the other, and then vice versa other days or stretches of days. And sometimes I'll play a cheap one for days and ignore the rest. So I just think it's interesting like that, how a guitar will speak to you and either suit a given mood or put you in a certain mood.

Electrics are the same for me, but for different reasons. But either way, I'm definitely finding that playing a wider variety of guitars is moving me along as a player in general.

The thing that baffles me is when people have 10 strats or LPs with pretty much the same spec, just different colours

You will never build two guitars that sound exactly the same.
It’s impossible to do.

so why would you keep the 9 you don't prefer?

Santona1937 · December 2020

My two cents comes down to this: the guitar is a tool, so the only questions are:
does it do what I need it to do? without fuss or needing silly amounts of care, silly amonts of sound engineering
Is it comfortable enough that it lets me do what I need to do?

DavidR · January 2021

This was a really good question in your thread cranky. The spectrum of answers reflects what an interesting instrument the acoustic guitar is. One thing I would add is that it depends on the piece you are playing. I tend to make CD's for family and friends now as I have got older and when I have worked up a repertoire for the next one I will try out each piece on different guitars as I record them. Mainly 4 (dread, OM, resonator, archtop). Then I will produce them with some simple .wav software and listen to them. Simple pieces sound best on archtop sometimes. Blues'y pieces are often good on dread for base. etc. etc. But I wonder if sometimes pieces don't sound best on a particular instrument because of the individual characteristics of the piece and the guitar like harmonics, particular aspects of fingering and the original intentions of the writer. The variation between instruments is sometimes quite marked. They don't all sound best on just one of my guitars. Obviously we can't have an infinite number of guitars and I guess most people have honed things down to a few favourites on their musical journeys. Is this why we all like to try new acoustics and 'treat ourselves' every so often? When we can? I suspect so. One reason anyway! Have any of the answers in your thread influenced your thinking?

ICBM · January 2021

I think I’ve realised I have only two criteria now...

1. Does it sound as good as my Gibson Dove?

2. Does it do something so completely different that it’s worth having both?

Since I’ve never found anything that does 1, and that I’m not bothered about minor nuances of tone as long as it sounds like an acoustic guitar, even 2 is quite restricted. Currently it’s a mahogany-top Vintage with a soundhole pickup I use for overdriven sounds. It’s been a cheap resonator in the past and might be again...

Andy79 · January 2021

ICBM said:

I think I’ve realised I have only two criteria now...

1. Does it sound as good as my Gibson Dove?

2. Does it do something so completely different that it’s worth having both?

Since I’ve never found anything that does 1, and that I’m not bothered about minor nuances of tone as long as it sounds like an acoustic guitar, even 2 is quite restricted. Currently it’s a mahogany-top Vintage with a soundhole pickup I use for overdriven sounds. It’s been a cheap resonator in the past and might be again...

Nearly joined your club. I saw a V300 of Fbook the other day for £30. Missed out on it as I couldn’t collect it in the next 3 seconds. Dam that place. No honour

Im with you on the whole, when you develop a style those minor nuances get soaked up in your playing so a million different guitars don’t really do it and I’ve realised that maple is the the unsung hero of acoustic guitars

However I have my vices and would have a million pre war catalog guitars if I could, all sounding identical

Cranky · January 2021

DavidR said:

This was a really good question in your thread cranky. The spectrum of answers reflects what an interesting instrument the acoustic guitar is. One thing I would add is that it depends on the piece you are playing. I tend to make CD's for family and friends now as I have got older and when I have worked up a repertoire for the next one I will try out each piece on different guitars as I record them. Mainly 4 (dread, OM, resonator, archtop). Then I will produce them with some simple .wav software and listen to them. Simple pieces sound best on archtop sometimes. Blues'y pieces are often good on dread for base. etc. etc. But I wonder if sometimes pieces don't sound best on a particular instrument because of the individual characteristics of the piece and the guitar like harmonics, particular aspects of fingering and the original intentions of the writer. The variation between instruments is sometimes quite marked. They don't all sound best on just one of my guitars. Obviously we can't have an infinite number of guitars and I guess most people have honed things down to a few favourites on their musical journeys. Is this why we all like to try new acoustics and 'treat ourselves' every so often? When we can? I suspect so. One reason anyway! Have any of the answers in your thread influenced your thinking?

A bit, yes. I'm a little more comfortable with myself as a player now, so I have a deeper apprecation for the suggestions that are in line with "harmonics" and "feel" and "notes hitting your chest". I've also found that, depite what I previously thought, I need a somewhat thicker neck because of elbow and forearm inflammation.

I'm now less interested in tonewoods, so long as they're solid wood . . . although my ears perk up lately when I hear "all mahogany" or "solid cedar top," mainly because I've never played either of those.

I'm also still largely a dreadnought guy, but I'm starting to branch out, just got a cheap little 00 just to get a feel. I can see myself grabbing a nicer version of a concert or parlor size guitar someday.

My dream acoustic is still a Gibson Hummingbird, despite the fact that I've only played one once at a shop. Luckily I don't really care about cost! I'm just trying to be disciplined and stop acquiring any new gear until I get some work done and meet some goals.

Matthutch · January 2021

Really interesting thread! I've been thinking about this a lot as I'm hoping to get a new guitar this year. My sole acoustic is a cedar topped Simon and Patrick dreadnought that I've had for 15 years. It's a wonderful guitar and I love it. But, I'm playing a lot more bluegrass and am feeling the need for something with a tighter, more focussed sound.

That would lead me to thinking about something with either D18 or D28 specs (whether its a Martin or not) but I really want to just wander into as many shops as possible and try stuff out. Even with the Martins I'd imagine different D18s & D28s sound different. I guess all we can do is have a starting point of what we think we want and take it from there.

stickyfiddle · January 2021

ICBM said:

I think I’ve realised I have only two criteria now...

1. Does it sound as good as my Gibson Dove?

2. Does it do something so completely different that it’s worth having both?

Since I’ve never found anything that does 1, and that I’m not bothered about minor nuances of tone as long as it sounds like an acoustic guitar, even 2 is quite restricted. Currently it’s a mahogany-top Vintage with a soundhole pickup I use for overdriven sounds. It’s been a cheap resonator in the past and might be again...

I'm pretty much the same but replace Dove with HD28 (as I already did myself..!)

I just got a bit of inheritance, so I'm looking at the Atkin range of small Gibson-alikes. The Forty Seven looks very interesting, and definitely a different vibe from the Martin dread.

Andy79 · January 2021

stickyfiddle said:

ICBM said:

I think I’ve realised I have only two criteria now...

1. Does it sound as good as my Gibson Dove?

2. Does it do something so completely different that it’s worth having both?

Since I’ve never found anything that does 1, and that I’m not bothered about minor nuances of tone as long as it sounds like an acoustic guitar, even 2 is quite restricted. Currently it’s a mahogany-top Vintage with a soundhole pickup I use for overdriven sounds. It’s been a cheap resonator in the past and might be again...

I'm pretty much the same but replace Dove with HD28 (as I already did myself..!)

I just got a bit of inheritance, so I'm looking at the Atkin range of small Gibson-alikes. The Forty Seven looks very interesting, and definitely a different vibe from the Martin dread.

Just wait for @ICBM opinion on Atkins....

ICBM · January 2021

Andy79 said:

Just wait for @ICBM opinion on Atkins....

To be fair, Atkin. It's the only one I've played - perhaps others are better.

But on that basis I would certainly not even consider one. And I've played some duff Gibsons too!

earwighoney · January 2021

stickyfiddle said:

I just got a bit of inheritance, so I'm looking at the Atkin range of small Gibson-alikes. The Forty Seven looks very interesting, and definitely a different vibe from the Martin dread.

Often overlooked but I think the Martin CEO-7 is an interesting take on the Gibson 00-14. somewhere between a Martin and Gibson in character, but it works.

Also the new Gibson LG-2 reissue looks amazing though,

https://www.gibson.com/Guitar/ACCDYV983/50s-LG-2/Vintage-Sunburst

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How do you prioritize your choice in acoustic guitar?

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