OM28 sounds like a Taylor 314??? Help

[Martinaylor]

One of the ones which I think is a Martin has way more bass than the other two samples - Guessing that's the HD28. One of the samples has mainly mids with some sparkly highs - Guessing that's the D18. The third has good bass but not as good as the first one, and some mids and highs with no sparkle. I'm guessing that's the Taylor.

[Martinaylor]

Originally Posted by moccaguitar

Hi,

If you want something different in sound, look and feel try a 000-15m.
All mahagony and very nice darker sound - good for picking also for strumming and the smell - so sweet !!

I've played that - Yes you're right, it plays great! Super fun....I just don't enjoy the look of it as much. Eye-of-the-beholder deal goin on....

Thanks for the suggestion though. Who knows, maybe this says 000 is better than OM for me (if not a dread).

[ChrisE]

Originally Posted by Martinaylor

So the Taylor seems to be #3 - it's clearly brighter and more crisp. Then again I've not really heard much of the other two in real life - just going off what "Martin tone" I remember from the D28 I borrowed. The first 2 sound Martin through and through....but I can't totally tell them apart (granted, I'm listening through laptop speakers.

I won't give the answers yet just in case somebody else wants to try.

All I'm going to say it that it's interesting how different ears hear things differently...

I can listen to them through my headphones and tell exactly which one is which, but that's probably only because I'm the one who recorded it.

I'd be interested in finding out what other members hear when they listen.

[Shades of Blue]

I feel like as Martins move more towards forward shifted scalloped bracing, you are going to sacrifice thickness in individual notes for a more responsive top/low end. I think that the articulation and more responsive top on the OM is more akin to the Taylor than perhaps a dread or straight bracing would be.

If I've learned one thing in my acoustic guitar journey, it is that I prefer the D-28's straight bracing to any other Martin I've played. It is punchy, woody, and just keeps getting louder. This is the main reason I think I am preferring the new 717 and 517 Taylors to the more modern Martins.

[Martinaylor]

Originally Posted by ChrisE

I won't give the answers yet just in case somebody else wants to try.

All I'm going to say it that it's interesting how different ears hear things differently...

I can listen to them through my headphones and tell exactly which one is which, but that's probably only because I'm the one who recorded it.

I'd be interested in finding out what other members hear when they listen.

Are they in the same order for each of the samples? I assume they are...but some of it didn't sound that way.

[ChrisE]

Originally Posted by Martinaylor

Are they in the same order for each of the samples? I assume they are...but some of it didn't sound that way.

Same order. It was all recorded in one take using a Tascam DR07. I just hit record at the beginning and hit stop when I was done.

The only editing was cutting out some of the blank space recorded when I switched from one guitar to the next.

[DukeX]

A couple of folks have recommended the 000-15M. I'll add the 000-15SM. Complements my Taylor 324 perfectly.

[Martinaylor]

Although I'm kinda guessing blind - like I said I only know the 314 (and my particular guitar - haven't had much experience with what others or newer ones sound like - mine's from like 2001 or something). The D18 I have almost no experience with. And the HD28 isn't really the same guitar as the D28 I'm familiar with, as far as I understand. I wouldn't be surprised if other's guesses are more accurate

[Skarsaune]

Originally Posted by ChrisE

No. Not at all. They are completely different to me.

<snip>

I just remembered I did a recording of all three for comparison. Can you tell a difference? (Headphones would be helpful).

Agreed they are totally different animals.

I’ll play - D18/314/HD28. iPhone headphones.

[Bernieman]

Originally Posted by Martinaylor

I’ve owned a Taylor 314 for several years now(...)

Borrowed my friend’s D28 a while back though and was like “WOW!!!” Gotta get some Martin tone in my hands. Sold a couple electrics I never play and ended up buying an OM28. It’s a dream as far as playability, but I honestly feel like it sounds just like the Taylor, only not as loud.

Is this because I need to let it break in for some weeks with hard playing? Nothing seems to be wrong with the guitar. Just afraid that if I keep it it will not hold it’s own place in my arsenal since the sound is not different enough. Although I like the looks and playability more than my Taylor....I’m still within the return period.

Thoughts?

Maybe this has been said already (haven't read much of the thread sorry), but a 314 Taylor is a Grand Auditorium - not an OM - and therefore significantly larger...For instance the lower bout is even wider than a Dreadnought's one, and the body is likely deeper than an OM's...One should buy the guitar one needs : OMs are not designed to be as powerful as possible (dreadnoughts are)...It's more like a comfortable guitar with good projection, that would suit singers who do not sing very loud for instance, a bit like a couch guitar (and more...) while being still reasonably loud for finger style, strumming and all...
They do make an OM-28 with a deeper body (but I think it must be a Custom option only these days)...
I myselr bouge a Guild F-30 coz I thought the Martin 000-18 I once had tried lacked a bit of sound and depth (it turns out the Guild tends to overwhelm my voice a bit though now ), and because the Guild was such a great bargain too (due to very peculiar circumstances)...
Maybe the Deluxe version would suit you more (but they are more expensive)...
This being said I am surprised to read that the OM-28 sounds just like the Taylor 314 : with rosewood back and sides in place of sapele, and a dovetail neck joint, you must get things you didn't have on the Taylor (it has a bolt-on neck)...But if you had the Taylor for quite a few years, yes it's right that good guitars do improve with time...Maybe you have not yet felt the very taste of a good oM and of what's it's all about...Ti would come pretty soon if so I would figure out...Some guitars feel kind of quite ordinary till you end up loving them so much you won't be able to do without...

But maybe you should have got a D-28 instead, or maybe too you didn't get that much of a good one if you didn't play others before buying or if you ordered it from an online shop : impossible to tell without listenning to it...

[Martinaylor]

Originally Posted by Bernieman

Maybe this has been said already (haven't read much of the thread sorry), but a 314 Taylor is a Grand Auditorium - not an OM - and therefore significantly larger...For instance the lower bout is even wider than a Dreadnought's one, and the body is likely deeper than an OM's...One should buy the guitar one needs : OMs are not designed to be as powerful as possible (dreadnoughts are)...It's more like a comfortable guitar with good projection, that would suit singers who do not sing very loud for instance, a bit like a couch guitar (and more...) while being still reasonably loud for finger style, strumming and all...
They do make an OM-28 with a deeper body (but I think it must be a Custom option only these days)...
I myselr bouge a Guild F-30 coz I thought the Martin 000-18 I once had tried lacked a bit of sound and depth (it turns out the Guild tends to overwhelm my voice a bit though now ), and because the Guild was such a great bargain too (due to very peculiar circumstances)...
Maybe the Deluxe version would suit you more (but they are more expensive)...
This being said I am surprised to read that the OM-28 sounds just like the Taylor 314 : with rosewood back and sides in place of sapele, and a dovetail neck joint, you must get things you didn't have on the Taylor (it has a bolt-on neck)...But if you had the Taylor for quite a few years, yes it's right that good guitars do improve with time...Maybe you have not yet felt the very taste of a good oM and of what's it's all about...Ti would come pretty soon if so I would figure out...Some guitars feel kind of quite ordinary till you end up loving them so much you won't be able to do without...

But maybe you should have got a D-28 instead, or maybe too you didn't get that much of a good one if you didn't play others before buying or if you ordered it from an online shop : impossible to tell without listenning to it...

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).

[Bear Davis]

Martinaylor-

I agree that if the D28 is what appealed to you then that is what you should go for.

That being said, I would recommend getting a used D28 Marquis. You can find them for about the same price as a new D28 and they are louder, fuller, deeper than a standard D28.

[Jaden]

If you’re finding your Taylor 314 that similar to a Martin OM-28, and it sounds like you’re very happy with your Taylor, I would without hesitation go for a V brace update, and that should make a difference, and for size, try out the new Grand Pacific for contrast.

[ChrisE]

Originally Posted by Skarsaune

Agreed they are totally different animals.



I’ll play - D18/314/HD28. iPhone headphones.

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!

[Bernieman]

About the blindfold test - Martins vs Taylor, one thing I can say is that it's not obvious to make a difference for sure between the 3 guitars, nor to say I really like one better than the others, at least through an attempt with my computer alone...The feeling you get from different guitars appears to be more distinct than the tone itself when recorded I reckon...It really takes too to be very cautious at each make's and model's features to identify them it seems...Sounds like they are all good.