Thinking About Buying More Guitar Than I Need

[Guitars44me]

Originally Posted by Methos1979

Every guitar I own is technically way 'more guitar than I need'. I could get by with something, anything, that is way less expensive. Any time I have wavered on whether or not to purchase something and then it 'got away', I've regretted it. If you can afford it and will play it, buy it. Especially if it's used and a good price because then you can always sell it down the road.

There it is. Life is short and uncertain too. Play the best you can beg, borrow or even buy, in a pinch! Hahahahha

If you dig it get it. Play it. Grok it. And then keep it or move on.

My 2 cents.

Paul

[swampyankee]

20 years ago I walked into the store, sure that "all I need" was a cutaway Ovation. After playing it not very well, my wife said, "why don't you spend a bit more and see if it's any better". So I picked up a Martin 000C-16GTE and my playing was transformed. Although I felt it was more guitar than I needed - or deserved, my wife said, "just spend the extra money. You play much better on it".
So for the last 20 years, the 000C-16 has been my go-to guitar, and has earned its keep over and over.
Last year I quit a rock n roll band to go back to my acoustic roots. I decided I wanted the full, bass-thumpy sound of a Gibson slope shoulder dread. Really wanted a J45, but ultimately decided it was more guitar than I needed, and picked up a J35. Might I regret not going for broke? Maybe, but the J35 gets close enough to a J45 for me.

[ricfreak]

Restring or rehab....... your choice.

[Mr. Bill]

I think getting a guitar that is "better" than you are, gives you a target to work towards.

[baseball]

Hi Antbar.

I have been up and down economically, but I have been playing for 40 years and I just bought my first 3k guitar, and am probably on the hunt for another.

My only regret now that I own a Martin om28 is that I didn't buy it sooner... I play better on my real martin than on all those "sounds just like a martin" guitars...

"Too much guitar" is a voice from our poverty-mind set. There's just guitars and how we feel about them...and you will be a better guitar player when you have the amazing collings on your belly

[leew3]

Hi my name is Lee and I'm...inclined to join all of the others that encourage you to buy it. All of my guitars are 'more than I need' and each one blesses me in a different way every time I play it. As others have said, if you can afford it-life's too uncertain to let concerns about 'it's too good for me' slow you down.

[jpd]

I am in a career that took a long time to bear fruit, and while I am happy with my income now, I was on poverty wages for many years getting here.



Most of us have been there at least once! With 4 college bound kids, the wife is going to get very upset if you do not talk this thru with her! Good luck, and choose your words wisely, Grasshopper

[swampyankee]

Originally Posted by baseball

Hi Antbar.
"Too much guitar" is a voice from our poverty-mind set.

This. When I look at the price tag on a guitar I really like, I cringe and my mind can't justify spending that much money when there must be a cheaper alternative that is "good enough".

I have only been able to overcome that poverty mind-set a couple of times when it came to buying guitars. But each time I did not regret it, and still have the guitars.

[jaymarsch]

I’ve been in this boat a few times over the past 15 years or so. I own a gorgeous custom made Wingert grand concert that fits me like a glove. But, I played a crossover nylon guitar by Kenny Hill that just spoke to me, so I bought it. Played it for a while and it was perfect for Brazilian jazz tunes but I am really a singer songwriter who loves the steel string sound. I kept the Hill for about 6 years and then sold it for almost what I had paid for it. No regrets on that one.
I bought another steel string guitar a few years back, again, totally seduced by the tone. After playing it for a few months, I discovered that my fretting hand just couldn’t get used to the neck specs so on consignment it went. Again, no regrets.
As some others have said here, only you can decide if it is worth the time and money to explore what this guitar may offer you. I think that it was Bucky Fuller who said that human beings predominantly learn from one method: trial and error. That has sure been my experience. :-)
Let us know what you decide.
Best,
Jayne

[Robin, Wales]

Originally Posted by antbar

You also were spot on forecasting my concern that I was considering the purchase of a guitar that somehow wouldn't be suited to what I ALREADY know and love best, which is strumming and singing. I am a little worried that I won't live up to the guitar technically; my flat picking and fingerpicking are only okay. So those words are very helpful.

There are a fair number of players who have made a career out of flatpicking, strumming and singing with 00 bodied guitars. Have a look at Tim O'Brien playing his 0018 Martin as an example.

The Collins is very expensive, and it could be a wonderful lifetime instrument for you. But it does seem quite a change, in one jump, from what you are used to playing. Perhaps you could test the waters by buying a very cheap (under $300) second hand 00 size guitar and see how you go with it before committing to a big spend that you really don't sound so sure about.

[TwangGang]

You don't mention if you have actually played the guitar in question although I would assume you have in order to determine that you like it. But 00s have a certain sound that doesn't appeal to me that much.

Collings are very well built, quality guitars (I own two of them), but in a brief search on the net it seems these 002Hs go for over $5K. You mention owning four other guitars, maybe one or two of those should be moved on to partially fund the new acquisition?

With a full time job and four kids (and all their activities) how much time are you going to have to alter and expand your playing to suit this guitar? I'm just not sure that your playing will change that much just because you bought an expensive guitar.

As to the "better buy it now before it disappears forever" train of thought - that just doesn't hold any water. Collings will be making these for years to come - this isn't that last one available.

[RP]

If most us bought guitars that were commensurate with our playing abilities then guitar stores would have a whole lot more high-end guitars hanging on their walls and Yamaha wouldn't be able to produce enough sub-$200 models...

[antbar]

Hi everyone.

A little update. So after reading and considering the advice on this forum and balancing it against my own reality, I went out browsing last week with the specific intent of seeing if I could be made to forget the charms of that beautiful Collings by playing something that made me feel the same way.

When I spoke to my wife about the 002H, she made it plain that she supported me completely, but that in her view we just couldn’t in good conscience afford to spend $5000 on a single item. It was a wonderful conversation, despite the less than ideal outcome, and I thought, “well, perhaps this is an opportunity to explore my needs and desires more thoroughly.”

After all, I found this guitar VERY early in my search and hadn’t done much intensive comparison shopping at all—many years have passed since I spent hours in music stores every week. It seemed that this particular Collings had some dwell time in the store and could wait a few weeks if my monomania refused to subside. I decided it was worth the risk.

So I poked around several local stores and played a thousand Taylors and Breedloves and so forth until I finally found a brand new D-28 (Martins of any age/size/type are fairly scarce in my local retail market, which seems to be true in many places). Whatever the thing was in the Collings that made me so excited was at least 90% present in the D-28 (which incidentally was what I had set out to find and play when I found the Collings). It was alive in the same way and shared some of the loud tonality and note separation of the Collings.

So again, balancing all the considerations, I tore into my pedal stash and made a quick $1200 on Reverb. When my lovely bride saw how intent I was on my wrapping and shipping, she went and brought me a couple of hundred dollars in cash from one of her pin money stashes and told me that although she wasn’t ready to buy into the idea that a guitar could ever quite be worth $5K, I should look at the money as her blessing to proceed however I wanted.

It’s my intent to shop a little further and see what else I can unearth, but I suspect I’ll own a D-28 sometime this month. I suspect many of you who are deeper in the weeds than I am will be surprised that a guy panting about an 00 would go this direction, but I will say that I don’t think I’ll pull the trigger until I’ve played an OM or an 00 Martin, as well.

That purpley brown rosewood, man.

My sincere thanks to everyone here. I’ll let you know how it turns out.

[antbar]

D-28 purchased. I’m thrilled with it. I had to go out of town immediately after buying it, so it’s humidifying in its case in my absence.

I found out that the Collings that started all this sold just the other day… bittersweet.

Thanks again, everyone.

[SingingSparrow]

Originally Posted by antbar

D-28 purchased. I’m thrilled with it. I had to go out of town immediately after buying it, so it’s humidifying in its case in my absence.

I found out that the Collings that started all this sold just the other day… bittersweet.

Thanks again, everyone.

Hey Ant. I am glad the search is over and you have a guitar that thrills you in your hands. D-28s are incredible guitars. I hope you enjoy yours for years to come and that it will be your trusted companion through time. Congratulations!