The Do It All Dread

[nashsnazzy]

Hey Gang, I'm looking for a dread with a cutaway and 1 3/4" nut. I would like to use this guitar as a "do it all" axe that I can tote around. I'm eye balling a Martin DCPA4 and a Taylor 320ce or 310ce. I typically favor Sitka and 'hog guitars but I'm open to an all 'hog model.

The Martin I played REALLY jumped and had a lot of headroom but it sounded thin when travis picking. I haven't been able to find a Taylor 310/320 dread in town in a LONG time to evaluate. Should I consider any others?

[Bridgepin]

I don't think I would like to say try this one or that one, I will say try to play as many guitars you can and when you hit the right one you will know, you won't want to put it down

[billder99]

The Taylor 320 is a spectacularly good guitar, the best of the mid-market all hog guitars in my opinion. You really can't do better short of moving to Santa Cruz, Bourgeois, etc..

As for "Do It All"... take the time to try some carbon fiber (CF) guitars. I turned my nose up at them for a long time. One day, I realized I needed one simply from the durability perspective... a guitar to take on the boat, take camping, to beach parties, and to travel in a hot car up and down Baja. The big SURPRISE... I am coming to love the tone, and the playability is outstanding. Mine is a Rainsong WS1000 model, not a dread but it has a huge voice. The amazing thing is the perfect balance across the strings, combined with incredible sustain and very little overtones (think Collings maple). In this case, "balance" does not mean less... you get more of everything... treble, mids, bass. At first it sounds a bit sterile without the lushness and warmth of overtones... more and more, I find the crystalline clarity to be an asset, especially when playing with other people... I honestly don't think anything projects better than CF. Tone, playability, projection, flatpick or fingerstyle, amplifies and records exceptionally well, super impact resistant and scratch proof, completely resistant to humidity, heat, and cold. That is truly "Do It All".

I still love wood, emotionally more than CF. It is more aesthetically beautiful than CF can ever be... it is warm in tone, and organic in feel and temperament, and it smells wonderful... wood is less a precision tool, more of a friend. I am very happy to have both.

[picassov7]

Why not give a new D18 or D15 Custom a try!

[Halcyon/Tinker]

Personally, I'd stay away from all mahogany if you want a 'do it all' dread. Mahogany topped guitars tend to be more of a 'niche' sound to my ears, great for bluesy kinda stuff but maybe not as good for other stuff.

YMMV...

[Wade Hampton]

Originally Posted by Halcyon/Tinker

Personally, I'd stay away from all mahogany if you want a 'do it all' dread. Mahogany topped guitars tend to be more of a 'niche' sound to my ears, great for bluesy kinda stuff but maybe not as good for other stuff.

YMMV...

You said it before I could. Mahogany-topped guitars can sound wonderful, but they're simply not as versatile as spruce-topped guitars, or have as many tone colors available to them.


whm

[Dru Edwards]

Like mentioned above, I'd stick with a Sitka top given what you're looking for. If you could get a used D-18 and then add electronics you'd have a great dread in the upper of your price range.

[llew]

Prior to reading your entire post (just the "Do It All Dread") like several others here, the D-18 popped into my head. You won't find one with a cutaway (unless you have it built) but it's about as good a sitka/mahogany dread at it's price point you're likely to find in my opinion. Take that and a couple of bucks and you can maybe get a cup of coffee somewhere? Best of luck!

[Oldguy64]

If you don't care about the name on the headstock...
Try an Alvarez MD70ce. Or an MD60ce.
Only real diff between them is the rosewood back and sides on the 70 vs the mahogany on the 60.

[NitroBobby]

I have always considered the Godin dreads as "do it all". Many of them are available with a cutaway and the Seagulls have the wider nut width. They aren't boomy and are usually very well balanced.

The spruce topped ones are really versatile. The cedar topped ones are pretty versatile too, unless you need to drive them hard. They might be a bit more oriented to fingerstyle, but they can still handle everything else just fine.

[sbeirnes]

Check out some of the Taylor DN series guitars. The DN3 and DN4 are nice.

Also, any of the Martin standard series are great. I personally love D35's the best.

[teletaylor]

I'll throw in my two cents but I like the Gibson Songwriter series for what you describe.

[Sasquatchman]

Don't ignore Breedlove either. They make some really good all-rounders imho.

[flaggerphil]

The 320 is a fantastic guitar. That's the one I'd go for.

[devellis]

I really don't think any dread is a do-it-all guitar, unless, of course, you define "all" as "the things a dread can do." Dreads can be pretty versatile, however. I think it's important, though, to say more clearly what you want it to do. Then I think people can give you better guidance.