Query failed: connection to localhost:9312 failed (errno=111, msg=Connection refused). Upgrade? - Acoustics Discussions on The Fretboard
UNPLANNED DOWNTIME: 12th Oct 23:45

Upgrade?

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fnptfnpt Frets: 698
I have been spending more time playing my acoustic than my electrics and really enjoying it. I have a Yamaha FG720s which I quite like. It plays nicely with a great low action, has a nice satin slim neck, sounds and looks good.

However, as I seem to be enjoying more and more playing acoustic I wonder if it makes sense to consider upgrading to something that will sound nicer. The obvious candidate for me would be a J45 but will it be worth the extra money in terms of getting a better sound or even playability?

Before you suggest to go out and play and let my ears decide, I must tell you that I live in an island with a couple of guitar shops selling squier and stagg guitars and not much else.


____
"You don't know what you've got till the whole thing's gone. The days are dark and the road is long."
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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 69426
    fnpt said:

    The obvious candidate for me would be a J45 but will it be worth the extra money in terms of getting a better sound or even playability?
    Yes to sound; quite likely no to playability - lower- to mid-priced Yamahas are usually pretty decent for that, and if anything Gibsons tend to have more issues!

    If you're after a Gibson I would actually suggest buying used - any set-up problems from new will probably have been taken care of, and if for any reason you don't like it you should be able to re-sell it without too much of a loss.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • fnptfnpt Frets: 698
    My thoughts exactly. What’s a reasonable price for a recent j45?
    ____
    "You don't know what you've got till the whole thing's gone. The days are dark and the road is long."
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  • TINMAN82TINMAN82 Frets: 1844
    edited September 2018
    ICBM said:
    fnpt said:

    The obvious candidate for me would be a J45 but will it be worth the extra money in terms of getting a better sound or even playability?
    Yes to sound; quite likely no to playability - lower- to mid-priced Yamahas are usually pretty decent for that, and if anything Gibsons tend to have more issues!

    If you're after a Gibson I would actually suggest buying used - any set-up problems from new will probably have been taken care of, and if for any reason you don't like it you should be able to re-sell it without too much of a loss.
    Don’t completely agree with this. With buying used you also run the risk that it’s being sold on for a reason, which may be that it’s a poor example that doesn’t sound great. I’d sooner buy a new (rather than used) Gibson sight unseen as I could just send it back for a refund if it turned out to be a dog.
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  • JockoJocko Frets: 24
    edited September 2018
    I had an Epiphone PR 350 S for years, but a couple of years back I decided to go for a Larrivée P-03W. With my increasing size I felt a smaller guitar would be more comfortable to play. I love it. It has a great sound, is easy to play, and at £1K did not require me to sell a kidney.


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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 69426
    TINMAN82 said:

    With buying used you also run the risk that it’s being sold on for a reason, which may be that it’s a poor example that doesn’t sound great. I’d sooner buy a new (rather than used) Gibson sight unseen as I could just send it back for a refund if it turned out to be a dog.
    If you buy used from a shop that still applies.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • Jocko said:
    I had an Epiphone PR 350 S for years, but a couple of years back I decided to go for a Larrivée P-03W. With my increasing size I felt a smaller guitar would be more comfortable to play. I love it. It has a great sound, is easy to play, and at £1K did not require me to sell a kidney.


    That looks absolutely lovely! 
    The Assumptions - UAE party band for all your rock & soul desires
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  • Jocko said:
    I had an Epiphone PR 350 S for years, but a couple of years back I decided to go for a Larrivée P-03W. With my increasing size I felt a smaller guitar would be more comfortable to play. I love it. It has a great sound, is easy to play, and at £1K did not require me to sell a kidney.


    Jocko said:
    I had an Epiphone PR 350 S for years, but a couple of years back I decided to go for a Larrivée P-03W. With my increasing size I felt a smaller guitar would be more comfortable to play. I love it. It has a great sound, is easy to play, and at £1K did not require me to sell a kidney.


    I love the look of that!
    The Bigsby was the first successful design of what is now called a whammy bar or tremolo arm, although vibrato is the technically correct term for the musical effect it produces. In standard usage, tremolo is a rapid fluctuation of the volume of a note, while vibrato is a fluctuation in pitch. The origin of this nonstandard usage of the term by electric guitarists is attributed to Leo Fender, who also used the term “vibrato” to refer to what is really a tremolo effect.
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  • JockoJocko Frets: 24
    It is really tiny (as you can see it joins the body at the 12th fret). Similar to the one on the International Space Station. Sounds amazing though, despite its diminutive size.
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  • fnptfnpt Frets: 698
    Peach seems to have the lowest price I can find for a new J45, even lower than Thomann:


    Second hand prices don't seem to be much lower than this.

    ____
    "You don't know what you've got till the whole thing's gone. The days are dark and the road is long."
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  • fnptfnpt Frets: 698
    Correction: these guys seem to have the lowest price:


    ____
    "You don't know what you've got till the whole thing's gone. The days are dark and the road is long."
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  • If it plays nice and sounds nice plus you get on with it.. Why upgrade? 
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  • fnptfnpt Frets: 698
    If it plays nice and sounds nice plus you get on with it.. Why upgrade? 
    I suppose that I want to get the best sound possible. The Yamaha does sound good but I don't think it compares with the sound you can get from a more refined guitar such as the Gibson.
    ____
    "You don't know what you've got till the whole thing's gone. The days are dark and the road is long."
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