After 30 years, I'm buying a new acoustic, here's my shortlist

[Silly Moustache]

Originally Posted by gomespt

So yeah, been playing for 30 years (hobby playing), and all this time my acoustic has been a Yamaha APX-4 I bought new in the 90's. Some other gear (usually electrics or pedals) as in some way stepped in front and I've make due with the APX4. A while back I've actually took the plunge in a new FGX5 but that did not go well (posted here about it).

Slight change in strategy, I've been looking at the 500€ to 750€ range and there's a lot of options. Here's my shortlist for a dreadnought (playing at home, some recording, tag a long in holidays), going to try and try them all, no clear winner on paper, each one has it's little nags (Epis light wood neck, Fender ornate details and tiger pickguard, etc).

- Epiphone Hummingbird or Masterbilt Frontier




- Eastman E1D or E2D



- Guild D140 SB




- Fender PD-220E



Guild and Eastman don't have pickup so I would have the extra expense but could choose a higher quality pickup than the usual Fishman. Fender wasn't on my radar but it popped up on my research and seems fantastic value for money.

What do you think?

As you don't perform, I'm wondering why yuo are even thinking of pick-ups ?

I am not familiar with the Epiphones, why not go for a more basic jumbo (J45 style) or a Blueridge.

Dunno where Guilds or Fenders are made - or by whom.

All I can offer is that Eastmans seem to be the best quality for your Euro at present.

[SFCRetired]

Originally Posted by tsmith28

Personally, after owning 3 different Yamaha FG800's and a couple.FG700S's, I find that these cheap Yamahas get a bit too much hype on the online forums. Yes, they're good guitars for the money...but they feel and sound (in person) very much like an entry level instrument. I have found that the sweet spot for value seekers on a tight budget is currently in the $400-600 price range. At this price, you can find a number of used guitars that are serious instruments and a step above a cheap Yamaha. Some examples include Guild GAD / Westerly models, Eastman E1D, Martin D10E, and a Yamaha LL6. These are all noticeably better than an FG800.

Personally speaking I find most of these budget line guitars, they hype up on forums, get too much love. They are what they are. Budget guitars for people with little money. Nothing more and to make them more is being dishonest.

I played a budget line Guild, maybe around 400 bucks, that was head and shoulders above the Yamaha FG800 line. But it was still a budget guitar and played and sounded like one.

To the fella who is upset about buying a crappy guitar. Well you bought a cheap fender built in Asia. That was your first mistake. DO NOT go by any review you see or read from anyone. I once listened to them myself and quickly learned they aren't being honest or they don't know what a guitar is supposed to play and sound like. And most on line reviews, while they put on a good show, are mostly trying to sell a guitar. You can't know what a guitar sounds like if its not in your lap. I learned it, so will you.

[CooloutAC]

Originally Posted by SFCRetired

Personally speaking I find most of these budget line guitars, they hype up on forums, get too much love. They are what they are. Budget guitars for people with little money. Nothing more and to make them more is being dishonest.

I played a budget line Guild, maybe around 400 bucks, that was head and shoulders above the Yamaha FG800 line. But it was still a budget guitar and played and sounded like one.

To the fella who is upset about buying a crappy guitar. Well you bought a cheap fender built in Asia. That was your first mistake. DO NOT go by any review you see or read from anyone. I once listened to them myself and quickly learned they aren't being honest or they don't know what a guitar is supposed to play and sound like. And most on line reviews, while they put on a good show, are mostly trying to sell a guitar. You can't know what a guitar sounds like if its not in your lap. I learned it, so will you.

Yeah I should of Known better. lesson learned. And its a good point because no guitar sounds the same even if its the same exact model. Every guitar is different because no wood and no environment is the same and you really need to play before you buy. The fact these online guitar companies charge you for setups and charge you to ship the guitar back when returning is a problem for them in this day and age of amazon and walmart. And then when you learn they are all just con men making youtube videos sure makes me want to shop with them even less.

[CooloutAC]

Originally Posted by Silly Moustache

As you don't perform, I'm wondering why yuo are even thinking of pick-ups ?

I am not familiar with the Epiphones, why not go for a more basic jumbo (J45 style) or a Blueridge.

Dunno where Guilds or Fenders are made - or by whom.

All I can offer is that Eastmans seem to be the best quality for your Euro at present.

nowadays you have no choice. It seems these manufacturers are now putting cheap pickups in their guitars just so they have an excuse to jack the prices way up, even though you dont' want them. Then again Taylor is the only manjor manufacturer I see still offering their academy and gs mini low end options with no pickups. But they have still jacked the price up without even offering anything extra lol.

But I will still recommend the OP just get a Martin DX2E or a Taylor Academy 10 or 110E depending on his playing style even if he is not going to be plugging in. Because all those other options are garbage when it comes to playability and longevity. I think social media is dominated by people in the industry who want something to compete with Taylor and Martin, but its just not a reality.

I fell for the whole "Martins don't have good playability cause they have high action" Trust me that is a lie. Even if the action ia a whopping 7/64ths on the Martin. It will still play easier then one of those guitars at 6/64th which was my experience. Even on my 20 year old martin that has neck problems lmao. Thats a fact. buttery smooth dressed and crowned and low frets. A level finger board. I've learned with my recent experiment, that action height doesn't mean everything. The guitar itself matters a hell of alot.

[tsmith28]

Originally Posted by SFCRetired

I played a budget line Guild, maybe around 400 bucks, that was head and shoulders above the Yamaha FG800 line. But it was still a budget guitar and played and sounded like one.

Quality tends to increase as you move up in price (which is rather obvious), but in my experience there's a big jump in quality when you move from <$300 guitars up to $400-800... especially if you're considering used instruments. E.g. at one point last year I had a Martin D15M and a cheaper made-in-China Guild D120 at the same time. I'm a Martin fan and really wanted to like the D15M better, but I came to the conclusion that the D120 was right there with it in terms of build quality and tone. Not all budget guitars are junk, and you can occasionally find real gems.

[pjroberts]

Owned and played a lot of dreads and am currently in safe camp with 2 Martins, but I have had 2 D-28 inspired guitars than blew away their inspiration. First was a Santa Cruz D, straight Sitka over Rosewood standard model, really great instrument in tone and build, this was a true demonstration of you get what you pay for. It rivaled my ‘37 Authentic D-28 and had a better neck (I would trade, in a sec). The other was an Eastman 20D, and that was a beautiful instrument that would be on my short list even at the SCGC price point - again, comparing to that same Martin ‘37 Authentic I play today. They do not really sound like other manufacturers, but have their own tone, which is phenomenal.

Eastman‘s are a gift from above, and if you have any regional blockers, save them for cars or drones. I will definitely buy Eastman again and think they have built a great company with great products.

[blakey]

With the exception of the Eastman. They're probably all made in the same factory by the same CNC machines.

[CooloutAC]

Originally Posted by pjroberts

Owned and played a lot of dreads and am currently in safe camp with 2 Martins, but I have had 2 D-28 inspired guitars than blew away their inspiration. First was a Santa Cruz D, straight Sitka over Rosewood standard model, really great instrument in tone and build, this was a true demonstration of you get what you pay for. It rivaled my ‘37 Authentic D-28 and had a better neck (I would trade, in a sec). The other was an Eastman 20D, and that was a beautiful instrument that would be on my short list even at the SCGC price point - again, comparing to that same Martin ‘37 Authentic I play today. They do not really sound like other manufacturers, but have their own tone, which is phenomenal.

Eastman‘s are a gift from above, and if you have any regional blockers, save them for cars or drones. I will definitely buy Eastman again and think they have built a great company with great products.

IMO though, the eastmans have no bass string sound like a Martin. And I have my doubts they are made as well as the Martins, all wood or handmade or not. Although maybe things have changed now that Martins are made in the Mexico factory. I don't know. I doubt it. But you are talking about a 1937 Martin you still play? Is anybody playing 20 year old Eastmans, or even 10 year old ones that never needed work done on it? Because you expect the Martins to last that long with no issues as is the case with mine. I do see alot of people still with the USA made DX1's that are over 20 years old like me, but I'm not sure I have seen anyone posting about their 15 year old Mexican model. Maybe I'm wrong? Or maybe they are afraid of getting shamed?

The poster above shocked me talking about playing on his 20 year old budget Guild guitar. That is quite the testament for Guild. Although I don't like their metallic sound most of the models I heard have. But then again, 20 years ago guitars were made better.

[CooloutAC]

Originally Posted by tsmith28

Quality tends to increase as you move up in price (which is rather obvious), but in my experience there's a big jump in quality when you move from <$300 guitars up to $400-800... especially if you're considering used instruments. E.g. at one point last year I had a Martin D15M and a cheaper made-in-China Guild D120 at the same time. I'm a Martin fan and really wanted to like the D15M better, but I came to the conclusion that the D120 was right there with it in terms of build quality and tone. Not all budget guitars are junk, and you can occasionally find real gems.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-lndM3l0mU I don't know if they doctored this video bud. But the Guild 120 simply doesn't compare. out of the 3 the guild stood out as being very tinny and chinsy sounding compared to the Martin and Taylor. And its actually quite shocking that Taylor has such a warm sounding guitar. That AD27E actually rivals the Martin 15m. Because what makes the 15 series so appealing is the very warm and bassy but most of all super "smooth" sound. And Taylor definitely achieved it here. wow. But this is also why I don't think Sapele is a replacement for mahogany at all. Even though Martin and Taylor are pushing that. If you listen to that guild you would think it is. But when you listen to the real pieces of mahogany on the taylor and martin you realize the sapele is super compressed, trebly and harsh in comparison to real mahogany. I just got a fender all mahogany guitar for cheap, and it definitely doesn't have that super smooth sound the ad27 and d15 have. big difference. And I bet Martin and Taylor have cornered the market on the good pieces of mahogany and know they are running out. Supposedly its even scarcer than rosewood so Sapele might be the only option in the future to replace mahogany. Which is kind of sad. Even Alamo Music will make the same claims that sapele is a bassy replacement, and maybe that is technically the case on paper, but thats not going to convince peoples ears when its put on a guitar lol.

EDIT: I listened to the vid over again. and I can't believe I'm saying this I like the Taylor out of the three over the Martin . Martin had the warmest bassiest sound of course. Guild the brightest. But the Taylor was right in the middle and on top of that, it was the only one that had good intonation. The Martin and Guild sounded horrible up the neck at the 12th frett lol.

[tsmith28]

Originally Posted by CooloutAC

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-lndM3l0mU I don't know if they doctored this video bud. But the Guild 120 simply doesn't compare. out of the 3 the guild stood out as being very tinny and chinsy sounding compared to the Martin and Taylor.

Yup, I've watched that video before and trust that the Alamo Music guys know their stuff, but I also trust my own ears (and my friend's) in comparing the Guild D120 I owned to the Martin D15M I owned. I'm not going to claim that the Guild was better, but it was shockingly close considering the price difference. In fact, I've owned two of the D120's and three Martin D15 / D15M's (not at the same time). Both D120's compared favorably, with only one of the Martins clearly standing head and shoulders in terms of tone.

[CooloutAC]

Originally Posted by tsmith28

Yup, I've watched that video before and trust that the Alamo Music guys know their stuff, but I also trust my own ears (and my friend's) in comparing the Guild D120 I owned to the Martin D15M I owned. I'm not going to claim that the Guild was better, but it was shockingly close considering the price difference. In fact, I've owned two of the D120's and three Martin D15 / D15M's (not at the same time). Both D120's compared favorably, with only one of the Martins clearly standing head and shoulders in terms of tone.

well I don't trust them myself. lol. But yes I see your point. The Martin and Taylor don't sound $1000 better, thats for sure. But they do sound better. But I've also learned recently there is alot more to buying a guitar than sound and I could only make a final judgement trying them out myself in the store.

But judging from that video, without a using a fret rocker on them. the taylor has the best neck and fret job. lmao. I'm not a really a taylor fan, I'm a bassy Martin guy, but I respect their craftsmanship. But wow that ad27E actually sounds good man, I'm in total shock.

[salvatore1]

Great choices! The only one out of the bunch I've owned is the Eastman. For the cost, it sounded huge and played extremely well.It was really woody and punch sounding, everything a dread should be. I don't quite remember why I let go of it, probably because I prefer OM's but I sure did love that thing.

[bsman]

Eastman fanbois...they're everywhere...

[Fatfingers12]

Originally Posted by bsman

Eastman fanbois...they're everywhere...

Have you ever played one?

[blakey]

A good neck angle from the get go makes such a difference on any guitar.
I've played and owned quite a few Mexican Taylors and Martins and found nearly all very poor quality, except one road series Martin I played in a shop recently that was exceptional. but that success ratio is probably about one in fifty.
I played some eastern import guilds that played marginally better than a garden shed, but I'm there are probably some occasional nice examples of import Guilds that are good. IMO USA Martins and Taylors always sound good but that doesn't mean their geometry will always be spot on - just a better likelyhood.
Very happy with my Eastman. Nice to have all the build quality, playability and an Adi top.