OM28 sounds like a Taylor 314??? Help

[Bernieman]

Originally Posted by Martinaylor

Thanks for the input! The scenario was this:

I have a well (WELL broken in Taylor 314CE made in 2007. I did not bring it to try guitars. I tried many different models in-store before I was considering purchasing one. Then a smoking' deal came along online and I pulled the trigger on an OM28 because I remembered liking it in the store. I still really really like it, but when I A/B it with my Taylor, they don't seem different enough to justify spending that much $$. My hope was that the difference would become more apparent between the two the more broken in the OM gets. It's not that I don't like it all by itself; it's that since I have the Taylor, I want something that sounds totally different than the Taylor. Otherwise, what's the point of having it. The 000s were also nice in the store. The Ds were great; they just seemed like a different flavor of the same basic classification of guitar (loud, strummer, band guitars).

I have a 614 ce (2006) I bought second-hand, and a Martin D-28 Marquis : they are very different guitars, and I really like it so...I do prefer the Martin somehow, but not that much, and what I really do like more is having them both
If you bought your OM from an online store, maybe you can consider a strait swop with them for a D-28...(but you know what you've got now but not what you'll get...) ?
Otherwise a swop with a second hand dread later on when you are sure you really don't need the OM - if ever so - is an other option : no need to rush, is there ? If you have played other OMs and find out this one is a good one, you're pretty safe I reckon...
I don't buy guitars online usually as I like to make sure that what I get is what I want : guitars are all different, even among same models with same specs...When listenning to reviews on the web, I have often thought that new Martins when recorded straight with no effects did not sound that great, and I agree that they seem expensive. But I can't say much about how they will turn out after a while : not enough experience I'm afraid...I don't know if quality has dropped out a bit or if it's just a question of time. But I do think it's definitely safer to choose...
In all cases, a Martin remains a safe investrment I believe, and will improve from being played...It will remain a lasting trade value too.

I've read somewhere they now set up some new Martins with lighter strings : and if yours is more comfortable to play than a Taylor, maybe it's bet set up a bit too low. Are you sure the strings are new or in good shape ? Martin guitars have long been sold with a rather high action, which is good for trained musicians that play a lot, and not necessarily so for others...They probably would like to beat Taylor now, and sell more guitars, then submit to demand rather than go on with their own way (!?). Maybe medium strings would make you fulfilled in case you now have lights ? Maybe showing it to a luthier for a professional advice could help too...

The Guild I have, I had forgotten to mention is deeper than an OM (it has an OM shape though), and it's a bit wider too I think. At about half the price I would have paid for an OM-18, it's probably (likely) a better value...But I'm not through with willing a genuine OM though...Fot now I enjoy having 3 different back and sides' tone woods (Maple on the Taylor, Mahogany on th Guild and Rosewood on the 3rd one)...That's how I get better at knowing about guitar making and at knowing what I really like the most...That's how we learn : a good test too could be recording both guitars at a short distance, and then at a larger one, see if one maybe better sends the music at a further distance (as long as you hear yourself well enough when playing, most important would be to carry the sound further on (i.e.to audiences). Smaller guitars are supposed to project better I once read..Is it true ?

[colder]

Owning both an HD-28 and an OM-28, they are as different as night and day, owing to the body size and shape. And if you got an 000, it'd be even more different still. And if you got an 000 that was sitka/mahogany or all mahogany, it would be even further away. You have lots of options in Martins, check them out

[IndyHD28]

I would not buy a smaller-than-Dread guitar today without demoing the excellent Modern Deluxe OM and 000. The usual long scale/short scale differentials apply.

One major unpromoted benefit for the 000MD....the 1/4” VTS Adi GE scalloped bracing adhered with protein glue to the VTS Sitka top make it the lightest braced 000-28 Martin in the post-war era. This is a huge advantage over standard 000-28s which are braced like Dreadnoughts.

[Skarsaune]

Originally Posted by ChrisE

Ding! Ding! Ding! We have a winner!

Just send a self addressed stamped envelope and a one-time handling fee of $99.99 and we’ll send you your prize!

Keep an eye on the mailbox, it’ll be there soon 😝.

[Tycobb73]

Look at my sig. Of my collection the 2 that are the farthest apart are the d35 and the 314. I would not call the 314 a bass cannon. Quite the opposite. It's the guitar i pickup the least. Not as much bass and quieter than my dreads. In fact after owning it i now only look at dreads. I keep it around because its the only 1 i have with a cutaway and electronics. It's narrow sound will also probably work good in a crowded band situation. Sounds to me like 1 of your guitars is an outlier from the rest of its type. If you're saying the 314 is a bass cannon i think that's the outlier. I wonder how that sounds against other 314s.

[rokdog49]

I recommend a Martin 000-18... the "baby D18" or "D18 Lite"
Truthfully, short scale, nice balanced tone with surprising bass and not as scooped in the mids.

[Martinaylor]

Originally Posted by Tycobb73

Look at my sig. Of my collection the 2 that are the farthest apart are the d35 and the 314. I would not call the 314 a bass cannon. Quite the opposite. It's the guitar i pickup the least. Not as much bass and quieter than my dreads. In fact after owning it i now only look at dreads. I keep it around because its the only 1 i have with a cutaway and electronics. It's narrow sound will also probably work good in a crowded band situation. Sounds to me like 1 of your guitars is an outlier from the rest of its type. If you're saying the 314 is a bass cannon i think that's the outlier. I wonder how that sounds against other 314s.

You know it's funny you say that about my 314....I think you're right that it's an outlier. I've never liked any other Taylor I've played. I went to the store the other day and played like 10 Taylors from $800 - $6000 just for kicks, and I didn't like a single one. Same goes for my friend who owns a 314, a 614, and an 814 (Brazilian Rosewood!!). Mine's just a beautiful monster. Every time I've gone to record with my Taylor, me or the AE are always having to jump through hoops to tame the massive bass coming from the guitar. It's not ugly and muddy though - it's well defined bass. My friend that I borrowed the D28 from said he was underwhelmed with that Martin (which he has had for 20 years) because every time he hears my Taylor (we play together weekly) he wishes his D28 had more bass and umph. Said my Taylor just comes alive when it's played. So maybe I've been a Martin guy all along and just never realized my Taylor is an odd-ball among its Taylor family....maybe that's why I feel like the OM sounded similar to my particular Taylor but didn't feel that way with Martins and Taylors in the store. I don't know....every guitar is so unique. If I get some quality, flat-EQ recordings of my guitars sometime, I'll post them to just see what people think. Makes me wonder what people would think the 314 is on a blind test - hehe

[Martinaylor]

Thanks for all the help folks!

After playing the OM again with my Taylor for a combined total of like 5 hours, I finally decided to return the OM. With a guitar this expensive, one really should feel great about owning and playing it. If it was my only guitar, I'd love it, but as it is, I think it's Taylor 314 + (dreadnought? or 000?) for now. I think I'm looking for something which sounds and plays super uniquely as a way of offsetting what I have in the Taylor.

I'll let you know what I get. Once again - much appreciation for the help, everybody!

[Martinaylor]

Just for kicks...

Measured my 2007 314ce today.
Forward shifted X bracing (scalloped). Sapele (which many know is a form of mahogany) back and sides with spruce top. Body: 20" long x 15.5" wide at widest point. 4" deep. This is almost identical to the OM28, which is within an 1/8" - 1/2" of those measurements every which way.
Of course, little difference can sometimes greatly affect tone, but still, these measurements are not vastly different. So then, the main difference would be that the OM I had was not scalloped and that it had RW back and sides. Also the 314 has a cutaway while the OM does not, but I've heard this doesn't affect tone massively for some reason.
Anyways...Essentially, the 314 I have is an OM18 of sorts - like if you did a blind test with a bunch of varieties of Martin OMs from over the years, no one would suspect a Taylor had been thrown into the mix or say "that one sounds like a Taylor but the rest don't at all". I'm not saying it IS a Martin OM, but it is definitely SUPER similar to an OM. That is why I felt they're in the same family of sounds? So if I'm correct (and I am happy to admit it if I'm wrong), this explains why my ears felt they were not really that different. I did hear clear differences (more sparkly here or more middy there, more woody here or more focused there) but these guitars are by no means vastly different.

Hypothesis = a well aged and well played 314 is similar to a "newborn" and hardly played OM28; it is essentially a cousin of the old OM18

Am I crazy?
Please don't be rude and tear me to bits - but tell me if my thinking is off. Or if my ears are not fine-tuned enough to hear these things yet...

This adds to the argument that some of you had that I should buy a dread, since that's what I fell in love with at first anyways.

[Jaden]

Originally Posted by Martinaylor

Just for kicks...

Measured my 2007 314ce today.
Forward shifted X bracing (scalloped). Sapele (which many know is a form of mahogany) back and sides with spruce top. Body: 20" long x 15.5" wide at widest point. 4" deep. This is almost identical to the OM28, which is within an 1/8" - 1/2" of those measurements every which way.
Of course, little difference can sometimes greatly affect tone, but still, these measurements are not vastly different. So then, the main difference would be that the OM I had was not scalloped and that it had RW back and sides. Also the 314 has a cutaway while the OM does not, but I've heard this doesn't affect tone massively for some reason.
Anyways...Essentially, the 314 I have is an OM18 of sorts - like if you did a blind test with a bunch of varieties of Martin OMs from over the years, no one would suspect a Taylor had been thrown into the mix or say "that one sounds like a Taylor but the rest don't at all". I'm not saying it IS a Martin OM, but it is definitely SUPER similar to an OM. That is why I felt they're in the same family of sounds? So if I'm correct (and I am happy to admit it if I'm wrong), this explains why my ears felt they were not really that different. I did hear clear differences (more sparkly here or more middy there, more woody here or more focused there) but these guitars are by no means vastly different.

Hypothesis = a well aged and well played 314 is similar to a "newborn" and hardly played OM28; it is essentially a cousin of the old OM18

Am I crazy?
Please don't be rude and tear me to bits - but tell me if my thinking is off. Or if my ears are not fine-tuned enough to hear these things yet...

This adds to the argument that some of you had that I should buy a dread, since that's what I fell in love with at first anyways.

Ok, as far as dimensions between these two guitars go, the 314 has a lower bout width of 16” and depth of body at the endpin of 4 5/8”. The OM has a lower bout width fully 1 inch less and as well the depth of body is 1/2” less at 4 1/8” - in acoustic guitar dimensions these are significant differences. Also, the OM has 1/4” scalloped bracing.

[IndyHD28]

Originally Posted by Martinaylor

Sapele (which many know is a form of mahogany)

Point of order....I guess forums in general consider Sapele to be the “poor man’s mahogany” because it’s reddish in color and builders like Taylor use it on lower end mass produced guitars but it is nothing like “Genuine Mahogany” (Swietenia genus). For starters, Sapele is found in Africa, not South America. More importantly, it’s physical characteristics are vastly different. For example, it’s Janka Hardness is 1410 versus 900–that’s a 56% increase, a vastly important difference. In this physical property, Sapele is closer to softer Rosewoods than it is to Mahogany, which may explain its tendency toward producing modest overtones.

It is possible to make excellent high end guitars with Sapele back and sides if one surrounds it with high end materials and building techniques. One current example is the Martin OMSS-2019 which utilizes red spruce top and braces with Hot Hide Glue construction throughout to get there.

[MUSICAL HOBO]

I'm also considering an 000 Martin in the new modern deluxe series, but after playing a dread for so long I'm not sure the 000 is the sound I'm looking for.
while researching the 000 Martins I came across the 0000 M 36, which seem to be a nice sonic transition for someone coming from a larger guitar, in your case a GA body. I don't have the specs for the M 36 handy, but would think it would be closer in body size to your Taylor and might have the tone your looking for.

[IndyHD28]

Originally Posted by MUSICAL HOBO

I'm also considering an 000 Martin in the new modern deluxe series, but after playing a dread for so long I'm not sure the 000 is the sound I'm looking for.

I bought a 000-28MD this year specifically to upgrade the smaller-than-dread guitar in my lineup. I love the lower tension strings and the sound is wonderful. But this guitar complements my two Martin dreads. It definitely has a lower ceiling if you have a heavy attack with a pick. If you are replacing the Dread as your only guitar, the OM with the same long scale as your dread may be a better choice.

[Bernieman]

Originally Posted by Jaden

Ok, as far as dimensions between these two guitars go, the 314 has a lower bout width of 16” and depth of body at the endpin of 4 5/8”. The OM has a lower bout width fully 1 inch less and as well the depth of body is 1/2” less at 4 1/8” - in acoustic guitar dimensions these are significant differences. Also, the OM has 1/4” scalloped bracing.

These figures look much more accurate to me, and I think too that OMs (at least new ones) do have scalloped bracing...Strange that yours doesn't...Did you buy it new Martinaylor ?

[Martinaylor]

Yes, it was new.

I may just be mistaken. I am just learning more about guitars after playing for 20 years.

I went and tried a bunch of guitars at the local store yesterday. Very telling. So glad I took everyone's advice on that.

The 000-28 I LOVE. The OM28 would have been cool if it was my only guitar. I also love the J45 and D28/HD28 for different reasons. I guess I need to just narrow down what my next purchase should be, then put the others off for some years from now.