Guitar buying: Diversification vs Brand Loyalty

[lt20dbl]

I guess I am a Martin style traditionalist. I own three Nice Martins but the guitar I have owned the longest is a Martin style, Collings 12 fret dread. My newest , as of April is a 28 style, 12 fret 000 by Gary Cotten of Grayson, Ky. I am beginning to think that this may be the guitar I have been looking for all my life. Mountain stream clear trebles and bass like controllable thunder. What I have been led to believe a good Martin should sound like. My two Martin Authentics and my 00-28VS take me almost there. The Collings is different but still nice. All have the look that I like.

[Kerbie]

I've spent a few years narrowing things down to Collings and Huss & Dalton. They sound great, good feel, serve me well and have great customer service. Nothing for me to dislike.

[Shades of Blue]

Brand loyalty is not a bad thing, but it sometimes carries a negative connotation. Brand loyalty is actually a great thing in my opinion, and means nothing more than a repeat customer who has developed a rapport and a trust in a company that has treated them well. I for one will always have brand loyalty to PRS guitars because I've met Paul Reed Smith personally, had him sign my guitar, and I've become a believer of what they are doing as a company.

Ah yes, fanboy. This is when it gets hairy because sometimes fanboy-ism carries no other weight than preference and snobbery towards "inferior" products.

[Mycroft]

Originally Posted by troystory92

Hey guys,

After being in this forum for awhile, and seeing sigs with what guitars people own, I was curious about what drives your guitar buying thought process.


For me, I want as many different guitars as I can. Mainly, I want a Taylor, a Martin, a Gibson, and a Guild. I've played all of these brands in stores but want to own a 6 string acoustic from all of them. I believe they are the biggest names in acoustic guitars and think they all became that for a reason. Hopefully, in the end, I would decide which was best for me and perhaps sell the others. Ya know what they say, variety is the spice of life!


On the other hand, I've noticed that some people LOVE one company and end up buying 5 or so of their guitars. This can go for any company that you love. Who needs different necks and nut widths and other variables? Not them! I can appreciate these people for knowing what they like and what they want.

Which one are you and why?

I think that you misapprehend that most builders build with a variety of Nut widths, neck profiles, etc.

I read somewhere that each builder will have a "Philosophy of sound," that being their own idea of what good tone from a guitar actually is. Which is why Taylors sound different from Martins which sound different from Gibsons, etc.

We players also have a "Philosophy of sound:" what we think good tone is. That idea, though, can vary from person to person, depending on experience, style of playing, and the physical ear. We like what we like.

When I was selling my 000-28EC, I showed it to this guy who was a flatpicker with 4 Martin dreads, but was looking for a more comfortable couch guitar for at home and that perhaps he could learn to fingerpick on. But after playing it he exclaimed that "this doesn't sound anything like my D-35." I couldn't help myself but laughed out loud and responded with "Good. It's not suppose to sound like it." Which he took amiss as a comment on his guitar and not an observation that a mid-sized guitar with different bracing is not INTENDED to sound just like his big Dreadnaught. But it was probably more similar than it was different.

I have three guitars built by luthier Roy McAlister. 3 different bodies, two Adirondack over Mahogany, the third European over Brazilian. While each does sound different, each also has a certain quality to the tone that I identify as being a McAlister characteristic.

I do like variety, however, so I do have a varity of styles and builders. Bodys sized from a parlour to a full jumbo baritone. (No Dreads. I find them uncomfortable and tonally unbalanced. OMMV) A resonator. A could of old guitars. Lap steels. I generally like mid-sized guitars, so most orbit around the 000 to 00 type sized. But they do sound different from one another. They do different things. Each I have to play a little differently. Each inspires me a little differently.

Which is a good thing...


TW

[RP]

Originally Posted by Shades of Blue

Brand loyalty is not a bad thing, but it sometimes carries a negative connotation. Brand loyalty is actually a great thing in my opinion, and means nothing more than a repeat customer who has developed a rapport and a trust in a company that has treated them well. I for one will always have brand loyalty to PRS guitars because I've met Paul Reed Smith personally, had him sign my guitar, and I've become a believer of what they are doing as a company...

I agree and also don't see brand loyalty as a bad thing. We often practice it with our automobile purchases and eating establishments because we know what to expect and have enjoyed a certain amount of quality in past sales. It doesn't mean that the brand that we patronize is better than all others, but it is the best choice for me....

[troystory92]

Originally Posted by Mycroft

I think that you misapprehend that most builders build with a variety of Nut widths, neck profiles, etc.

For the big companies out there, like the ones I named, there is a general formula they use for all of their guitars. For example, Taylors generally have a 1 3/4 nut (minus 200 series and down) and that satin neck. This is very consistent due to how Taylor builds their guitars.

Gibsons are inconsistent from my experience. Not sure of nut width and stuff but they all have (or are trying to accomplish) a certain sound. Deeper than a Taylor

Guilds are SOLID, I love em. They don't have the Taylor playability but their sound is phenomenal, imo. Known for jumbo 12 strings. (I like their dreads)

Martins remind me of a perfect mix of Guild and Taylor. They're the dread kings. Excellent playability with a great full range. For some reason, I don;t love them. I think you have to pay A Lot of money to get a good one.

So yea, when you talk about boutiques and single luthiers, the variability is huge. But generally, you can pick out characteristics of guitars that companies try to be consistent in.

[muscmp]

neither one. i buy based upon what sounds good to me as well as a collection that includes a variety of woods and body styles. i have martins, taylors and gibsons. they have adirondack, englemann, mahogany, sitka and rosewood. i have dreadnoughts, 000, 00, and GC body styles.

play music!

[TBman]

Back in July Sam Ash by me had started carrying a few more Guilds which I happily took for a test drive. A couple of them were used and I took one home with me. Brand familiarity got my attention but the sound and quality made the sale. This is the first time in my life that I've owned more than one guitar from the same manufacturer.

[Lauren710]

I go with whatever sounds and feels best to me; the individual guitars I have, I got after playing them and loving how they sounded/felt. Seems I got lucky with my J-45 on the first try, given Gibson's variability. I like the idea of having several different options as far as both sound and aesthetics.

As I acquire more I'll probably be a little more specific about exactly what I want - something with a smaller body, a Martin of my own (my dad will want his back eventually), and a carbon fiber acoustic are definitely on my eventual to-find list - but I'm not particularly loyal to any brand (aside from definitely wanting to find "my" Martin, because those are the guitars and the sound I grew up with!).

[merlin666]

All guitars I have bought in the last 15 years or so were built in New Hartford CT. IMHO they simply have the best team of builders in the U.S. that have names and faces and they consistently crank out high quality instruments that sound great and are easy to play. Brands of course include Ovation and Guild.

[Mycroft]

Originally Posted by troystory92

For the big companies out there, like the ones I named, there is a general formula they use for all of their guitars. For example, Taylors generally have a 1 3/4 nut (minus 200 series and down) and that satin neck. This is very consistent due to how Taylor builds their guitars.

Gibsons are inconsistent from my experience. Not sure of nut width and stuff but they all have (or are trying to accomplish) a certain sound. Deeper than a Taylor

Guilds are SOLID, I love em. They don't have the Taylor playability but their sound is phenomenal, imo. Known for jumbo 12 strings. (I like their dreads)

Martins remind me of a perfect mix of Guild and Taylor. They're the dread kings. Excellent playability with a great full range. For some reason, I don;t love them. I think you have to pay A Lot of money to get a good one.

So yea, when you talk about boutiques and single luthiers, the variability is huge. But generally, you can pick out characteristics of guitars that companies try to be consistent in.

I don't think that you quite followed what I was saying in my response. I was not talking about variable nuts or necks after the first sentence.

[DukeX]

I have some brand loyalty, but it is based on price/performance not the headstock. I have owned four Larrivees (currently only one), and my next purchase will probably be another Larrivee (03 or 40 L-body).

[devellis]

I have brand preferences based on experience but I wouldn't consider it "loyalty." My preference is based on liking what certain companies (e.g., Collings, Huss & Dalton, Bourgeois, Goodall) offer in their guitars, not on any romanticized sentiment toward the company per se.

Kurt Vonnegut coined the term "granfalloon," meaning a group of people who share a false identity based on some classification. From that, arose the concept of the "granfalloon technique," a way of marketing that exploits people's desire to belong. Wikipedia defines it this way:

The granfalloon technique is a method of persuasion in which individuals are encouraged to identify with a particular granfalloon or social group. The pressure to identify with a group is meant as a method of securing the individual's loyalty and commitment through adoption of the group's symbols, rituals, and beliefs.

I think true "brand loyalty," as opposed to brand preference, smacks of a granfalloon, and I can completely understand why companies would do everything they can to promote the concept.

I also think that when we speak casually of "brand loyalty" we usually mean brand preference, that is, favoring the products of a specific company based on our actual experiences with their products, not a bond to some abstract concept of "Company A" that inspires true loyalty. But there certainly may be exceptions.

[Bear Davis]

Owning one brand would be like eating at one restaurant for the rest of your life.

No thanks!

[fatt-dad]

my Mercedes has 322,000 miles. It runs great. I drive about and wonder. . . What will my next car be? I try to imagine myself in a Suburu, Toyota, Nissan, SUV, etc. I can't afford a new Mercedes!

It's all I want though. . . I've morphed into some brand loyalty that's foreign to me!

Yes, I own a Martin, Gibson and Taylor. I won't part with any of them. Two of them have a more prominent back story; however. So, they are with me for the broader context.

I bought my OM-28A for the simple reason, I wanted it! (Well I played it first and knew right then.)

I never even considered Huss and Dalton (they are great!). I just wanted a top shelf Martin that, "Fit" my style - right there next to my 914 and L-1, which also fit my style.

f-d