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Post by ninworks on Sept 13, 2020 6:00:09 GMT -5
I am not an acoustic guitar aficionado. I play electrics 99% of the time. I have an 83 Guild D40 cutaway acoustic I bought from my BIL 25 years ago. It's the only steel stringed acoustic I have ever had. It gives me a lot of grief due to my being a wimp when it comes to the heavier gauged strings even though I'm using light gauges. It has a 25-5/8" scale length. I'm thinking that may be some of the problem with the stiffness of the action. It also can sound a bit thin when recording it unless I'm very careful with my microphone selection. Even then it's not as big as I would like for flat-picking and strumming stuff.
I think I would like to get a dreadnought-sized acoustic with a bigger sound. Something along the lines of a shorter scaled Martin or Gibson. I have done a little research and was looking at a Gibson J50 or Martin of some kind. I wouldn't have any objections to other brands as long as it sounds big, has the shorter scale length, and fits my budget. I don't want to spend a ton of money since acoustics are not my main thing but I'd be willing to spend $3k or so on so. Any recommendations?
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Post by Peegoo 🏁 on Sept 13, 2020 20:59:21 GMT -5
Gibson and Martin are the go-tos for shorter-scale large bodied acoustics. Also check out the Taylor 510; it was a fairly recent addition to their catalog based on customer demand, but it's discontinued; however you can still find them out there. They do sound nice and big. And they look great too. www.taylorguitars.com/guitars/acoustic/510e
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Post by Lefty Rev on Sept 14, 2020 13:28:03 GMT -5
Far be it from me to contradict Peegoo/Geno, but depending on how much bass and warmth you want, a Taylor may not get you there (although it will certainly play easy).
Gibson makes several short scale (24.75") acoustics; along with the J-50 is the J-45, and you could look for a used or NOS J-35; they also make some less expensive new J models with Walnut back and sides, but I don't know what their bass/warmth quotient will be.
Martin dreadnoughts are typically 25.4" scale length, so just a little shorter than your Guild. But most Martins these days are set up very well and play as easily as a Taylor (or can quickly be set up that way by a competent tech). A D-18 (Mahogany b&s) will give you nice bass, a D-28 (Rosewood) even more. Those are Standard Series models, though, and pricey (along the lines of a Gibson J-45).
You could check out a Martin 15 Series (Mahogany TOP, b&s) which will be a bit more warm, and I also find them to be perfectly articulate in spite of the hog top. I recently picked up a DSS-15M StreetMaster that has wonderful warmth and bass (again, all hog body); the *worn* aesthetics won't be for everyone, but it's even less than other 15 Series models; I got mine from Maury's Music for under $1,300 (with a soft gig bag).
Good luck with your search. Nothing can replace getting a guitar in your hands and hearing it with your own ears...
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Post by ninworks on Sept 14, 2020 14:51:20 GMT -5
I talked with my Sweetwater sales engineer today and he told me, if I'm willing to make the trip, I can audition as many different models as I would like in their showroom. It's about a 6-1/2 hour drive from where I live. I have an old friend who lives in Indiana just east of Chicago that I would like to see. I could make it a good road trip and buy the guitar I really want by comparing it to a number of different makes and models.
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Post by Peegoo 🏁 on Sept 14, 2020 15:25:42 GMT -5
That is a good plan!
Always play before you buy--especially an acoustic guitar.
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Post by Peegoo 🏁 on Sept 14, 2020 15:32:17 GMT -5
Far be it from me to contradict Peegoo/Geno, but depending on how much bass and warmth you want, a Taylor may not get you there (although it will certainly play easy). No offense taken Here's the thing about Taylors: they used to be regarded by many as fingerpickers because they often sounded plinky with a weak low end. But Taylor has been making several models for more than a few years now that do get boomy when you want them to. And onboard electronics makes even their plinky models such as the orchestra-sized guitars get as boomy as you like.
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Post by FlyonNylon on Sept 14, 2020 22:40:28 GMT -5
If you want a big-sounding dreadnought for less than $3k and can deal with the 25.4" scale, the Martin D-18 is about as good as it gets for flat-picking and strumming. Same likely goes for the D-28; I have a rosewood b/s Yamaha in concert-size and bought a D-18 to compliment but likely would've gotten the D-28 otherwise. The Martin rings like a bell, has perfect intonation, and likes to be played. What more can you ask?
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Post by HenryJ on Sept 15, 2020 7:01:20 GMT -5
About 25 years ago my younger brother came into some money and got a Martin D-28 with it. When I drove up there to visit him, he let play it for a while. I was impressed by how easily it played while sounding great. The only tradeoff was the price of the guitar. Since then, I have considered the D-28 the Holy Grail of acoustic guitars.
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Post by hushnel on Sept 24, 2020 11:17:32 GMT -5
Dreads are the most popular, it’s what we hear and grew up with. I’ve discovered over the years that I prefer the sounds of smaller bodied guitars and classicals. To my ears the dreads sound like the mid freqs are scooped. All bass and gangly highs. The oversized bodies seem a bit more sensitive to feedback. My largest bodied acoustic is a 00015S, it’s solid mahogany and manages to keep a nice balance of warmth and volume, still less volume than a Dread but what I prefer in harmonic response, and the wider nut.
I know I’m out of sync with the opinions of my peers, I really like the voicing of parlor guitars even my CSF1M Yamaha sounds better to me than the majority of Drednoughts. The shorter scale lengths also make them easier on the fingers. The Yamaha comes with transducers but no plastic EQ box punched into the mahogany side. I’d rather use the Para Acoustic DI than compromise a stylishly bent side with a hacked out square hole. Just never got used to it. I certainly wouldn’t spend thousands on an acoustic with a plastic EQ box inserted into the side. I’m not criticizing others, we all get to spend our cash the way we want, and I’ve seen those onboard EQs used to great effect, just not my cup of tea “o)
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Post by ninworks on Sept 24, 2020 14:00:02 GMT -5
If I can find what I want I would rather get one without any electronics. Many of them don't sound very good anyway. If I want to go acoustic-electric I'll buy a guitar that's made for that instead of trying to make a real acoustic do the job. It's hard to beat the sound of the acoustic-electric guitars these days. They sound terrible unplugged but marvelous plugged in. I'm not playing out anymore anyway. If I do by some weird coincidence my Guild has a K&K pickup in it that sounds pretty good. I would just use it.
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