Acoustic advice/education - good all rounder.

crunchman · May 2021

Lewy said:

crunchman said:

Most Martins are 25.4", but the OM is 24.9". The OM doesn't have quite so much high end snap and sounds a bit warmer.

OMs are 25.4" too. 0, 00 and 000 shapes are 24.9

Sorry. Brain freeze. Got OM and OOO mized up.

Lewy · May 2021

crunchman said:

Lewy said:

crunchman said:

Most Martins are 25.4", but the OM is 24.9". The OM doesn't have quite so much high end snap and sounds a bit warmer.

OMs are 25.4" too. 0, 00 and 000 shapes are 24.9

Sorry. Brain freeze. Got OM and OOO mized up.

It's interesting through because in my experience of OMs, the body shape and longer scale actually add up to less than the sum of their parts. I've had a couple of OMs (a Martin and a Collings) and after a while kind of got frustrated with them, always wishing they had more of something, either the playability of a short scale or the grunt of a dread.

ToneControl · May 2021

Lewy said:

crunchman said:

Lewy said:

crunchman said:

Most Martins are 25.4", but the OM is 24.9". The OM doesn't have quite so much high end snap and sounds a bit warmer.

OMs are 25.4" too. 0, 00 and 000 shapes are 24.9

Sorry. Brain freeze. Got OM and OOO mized up.

It's interesting through because in my experience of OMs, the body shape and longer scale actually add up to less than the sum of their parts. I've had a couple of OMs (a Martin and a Collings) and after a while kind of got frustrated with them, always wishing they had more of something, either the playability of a short scale or the grunt of a dread.

I had some OMs. Larrivee and Bourgeois
I thought the sound was not as complete as a Jumbo or Dread.

I believe that OMs are popular to mic up for recordings

brojangles · May 2021

I agree with everyone who's said HD28 or J45.

A responsive 28 type dread with scalloped bracing will work fine for fingerstyle and you can still strum it. J45 has the shorter scale and they're nice to look at.

OMs always feel weird to me with the long scale and the smaller body.

Haych · May 2021

brojangles said:

I agree with everyone who's said HD28 or J45.

A responsive 28 type dread with scalloped bracing will work fine for fingerstyle and you can still strum it. J45 has the shorter scale and they're nice to look at.

OMs always feel weird to me with the long scale and the smaller body.

Will have to try both when the time comes. I think the Martin HD28, new at least, is quite a bit more than the J45, that could be a deciding factor but will see when closer to the actual time.

I'm almost toying with the idea of giving up electric altogether, selling all the guitars, amps and effects and throwing the resulting cash towards a decent acoustic.

Part of me reckons I'd be happier but part of me also reckons I'd regret it and end up buying it all over again.

ToneControl · May 2021

Haych said:

brojangles said:

I agree with everyone who's said HD28 or J45.

A responsive 28 type dread with scalloped bracing will work fine for fingerstyle and you can still strum it. J45 has the shorter scale and they're nice to look at.

OMs always feel weird to me with the long scale and the smaller body.

Will have to try both when the time comes. I think the Martin HD28, new at least, is quite a bit more than the J45, that could be a deciding factor but will see when closer to the actual time.

I'm almost toying with the idea of giving up electric altogether, selling all the guitars, amps and effects and throwing the resulting cash towards a decent acoustic.

Part of me reckons I'd be happier but part of me also reckons I'd regret it and end up buying it all over again.

would be a mistake
I have played almost entirely acoustic for 2-3 years, now back on mostly electric

Moe_Zambeek · May 2021

Tannin said:

DavidR said:

Don't assume US instruments are best as might be implied by the overall content of this thread.

Absolutely! There are excellent instruments made in many different places. I see that there is a Takamine EF340S for sale in the classifieds here at present for a very reasonable price. Made in Japan Takamines are lovely guitars. Earlier I said that an auditorium / 808 / 000 / concert body would be more of an all-rounder than a dreadnought. Well, sure, but a Japanese-made mahogany Takamine dred ... yep. I'd have one.

(Disclaimer: I haven't played this particular Takamine model and don't know the seller. Make your own judgements.)

Takamine seller is *very* reputable

That particular guitar is basically a D-18, spruce top (thermo) and mahogany back and sides. Good strummer, decent fingerpicker if your fingers are well exercised. Has a beefy neck though, inspired I guess by early Martins.

I would agree that Taks are worth looking at, though not at new retail prices. I personally love the P7D with the asymetrical neck but hard to come by these days.

I like Matons as well - the 808s are a slightly smaller body and seem to be decent all rounders, though a bit rougher in the finishing than Martin or Taylor et al. I ultimately decided they were just a tad expensive for what you got.

I also like L'arrivees - though the ones I have tried have all been a bit lighter in the bass and low mids than other makers. Willie Watson certainly gets everything he needs from his L'arrivee OM though.

Last year I sold off a Martin 00-16 - all mahogany. It was actually OK for strumming but you had to stay your hand a bit or it would compress and choke. Lighter pick and lighter touch required, but it was very easy to play - modern neck profile, 1 11/16s nut and shorter scale.

@Tannin - can you expand on your thoughts about Cole Clark? I find them strangely compelling yet at the same time absolutely hideous to look at!

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Acoustic advice/education - good all rounder.

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