Do your guitars really sound different than each other?

[TennesseeWalker]

yes they do, 'cept maybe for my two h&d dreads.
but, then i put light pb's on one with a stika top and medium 80/20's on the other with adirondak and they are totally different creatures.

[Br1ck]

I have three dreads, and all sound like big guitars. A casual listener may not hear much difference, most reasonably serious players will. It's like the newby who can't tell the difference between a decent import and a Martin D 18. A couple years later, they can. There are people who have six D 28s, all are slightly different, reason enough for the guy who zeroed in on the D 28 sound to want more. I don't think the I want a new guitar bad approach is the way to go about getting one. I'd go shopping once every month or two, see what's out there. Wait for it. One day you'll play something a cut above and realize it and buy it. The very best feeling is after doing this for a good while, you sort of walk out thinking nothing much is that much better than what you've got and sort of quit looking. One day when buying strings, you get hammered by something.

[lowrider]

I think that to the player, they all sound and feel different. To the person sitting there listening, they all sound like accoustic guitars.

Here's Jackson Brown's on stage guitar rack.



All those guitars mean a lot to him, but I doubt that to 99% of the audience, it makes any difference.

[FingahPickah]

3 Dreads, 2 OMs, 1 GA, 1 GC, 1 000 - all distinct, no redundancy

[Robin, Wales]

Originally Posted by Malcolm Kindnes

The sound is mostly in the hands of the player not the instrument. We fool ourselves into thinking differently but the difference in sound between two similar guitars played by the same person is unnoticeable by most people.

I was going to post something very similar to your reply Malcolm. Whatever guitar I play sounds like me playing it. And actually that's a fundamental draw towards acoustic guitar for me. I like the fact that I can, and do, shape the timbre.

Originally Posted by rollypolly

I'm coming to realize the same thing. Most of mine sound pretty similar, and if they don't, I put strings on to make them sound and play alike. Need to thin the herd but looking to buy one more. It's a disease.

I have a sound in my head that I have moved my guitar more towards. If I bought another guitar I would most likely move it towards that timbre too by different string and pick selection.

Like I said, have ones own "sound" is very much part of owning and playing acoustic guitars.

I have the same with mountain dulcimers - I have lots of instruments that are all subtly different. But when I play folks know it is me playing because I have a signature style.

[zmf]

Originally Posted by edward993

2. Feel different, as well. Whether neck, body dimensions, or scale length, yes the differences feel is another reason for another.

I agree that this is more the crux of the matter. Yes, guitars sound different, but in the end, my job is to make them sound like they're producing music. Each guitar needs a different touch to do that.

Maybe we're all searching for that guitar that feels most like an extension of ourselves.

[BluesKing777]

Someone buys ALL the vanilla icecream, but I go for the choc chunk rum raisin and almond surprise! And that is my 1944 Martin 0-17!

But all the different sounding guitars are just so intriguing that I like to try all of them..........


BluesKing777.

[Gordon Currie]

Yes, my guitars sound different from each other. Not drastically, but enough that I have carefully considered which guitar to use on recordings or with others.

At the same time, they all have similarities and probably would sound indistinguishable from each other to a casual and untrained listener.

However, I agree with many posters that the FEEL of the guitar is critical, and that definitely varies even more than tone.

To a certain extent, I can make any guitar sound a certain way by varying my playing. But the feel is something I must react to, and is often the most inspirational aspect.

[kizz]

Originally Posted by TBman

I don't mean the Dread vs the Parlor, I mean similar sized guitars. I'm listening to a few online that I am interested in and I realize that I am drawn to the same tone that I already have. That makes sense, but where's the sense in buying yet another guitar then?

You´ve lost inspiration and need to write some more music...

[campfireplayer]

Originally Posted by Dru Edwards

Sometimes it's those little tonal nuances that bring out the differences in guitars... a little more bass, a little more crispness on the highs, a little more sustain, a little more responsive for fingerpicking, etc.

My guitars all sound different for the same reasons. There's also a difference in volume between them and some play differently because of different necks.

[jaymarsch]

I own 4 guitars made by 2 different luthiers. 2 are the same model and the other 2 are similar in size but different designs and tone woods.
They have different tonal qualities but fall into a range of tone that I prefer. 3 are rosewood back and sides and 1 is mahogany. Tops are 1 cedar, 1 red spruce and 2 German spruce. I would describe the shades of difference as follows:
Guitar 1 - (Adi/Bois de Rose) loads of sustain, very balanced, no scooped mids
Guitar 2 - (German/cocobolo) moderate amount of sustain, deep bass, slightly scooped mids
Guitar 3 - (cedar/EIR) loads of sustain, scooped mids, brilliant trebles
Guitar 4 - (German/mahogany) less sustain, no scooped mids, very balanced

I like having a palette of tones to choose from. If I were a better player, I could probably coax lots of tones from one guitar but I like the variety I get from these instruments even though they still represent the general tone that I like to hear.
So, yes, my guitars do sound different from one another.
Best,
Jayne

[jpd]

Each one of my guitarsenal has it's own sound...and string favorite.

[Mark L]

They all have their own Spirit.

It’s not something that can readily be measured. It’s also something that changes.

[jpd]

Originally Posted by BluesKing777

but I go for the choc chunk rum raisin and almond surprise!


BluesKing777.

That sounds Delicious

[DaveG]

I have a 00-28 and a 00-18 and they sound completely different from each other, which is why I've decided to keep both. And they both sound different than my 000-15 and Larrivee OM-03R. Even my girlfriend, who is not a musician, noticed the difference without me saying anything.

So I have to disagree with the statement that it's all in the players hands. Four different guitars played by the same player and four distinct sounds. And when my duo partner plays them, while they don't sound like me, it's still four completely different sounds.