cant decide on acoustic guitar

[jpmonk91]

epiphone masterbilt:

prs angelus se:

cool prs video:

[Chasstev365]

1. Epiphone is a low end Gibson; never heard of the other brand.

[cutroot]

2. The PRS of course

But, you better have a rich uncle

[Eko]

5. The prs's are SE

so they are not that expensive.

[Buzz Clik]

3. this one

[Eko]

4. Kind of depends.

What are you going to be doing with it? Sitting at home, playing live, playing with other people unplugged, recording, playing bluegrass with others, fingerpicking or pick, recording?. All of those factors are very important. PM me and I can help.

[Jack Bone]

6. I bought a Fender California Acoustic

for my daughter this past Xmas...she loves it & it's affordable


Check it out

http://shop.fender.com/en-US/acoustic-series/california/

[AgerolanAmerican]

7. a thing about guitars, acoustic ones especially

they're very very individual

I've had high-end guitars which were meh at best. And guitars that were barely a full step above the beginner guitars which were masterpieces. It all depends on the factors that went into building that particular guitar. Someone once offered me a straight up trade of a top end Martin (costs thousands) for my mid-grade Takamine (cost me $200) and I said no. Because mine had a magical tone to it (and still does) and the Martin didn't.

Before you buy a guitar, play it - not one of the same model, but the actual guitar you plan to purchase. Don't let a brand name or a model name lead you into buying a guitar that doesn't sound good or feel right.

[oioioi]

8. what he said ^

[Eko]

10. Kind of.

Part of that thousands of dollar martin is that it is all solid wood and will actually sound better the older it gets, the takamine being maybe a solid top with laminate back and sides and a 2-3 piece neck, not so much. That Martin was probably mistreated, either too dry or too wet, bad strings, or extremely low action. That is not to say that between the same models of each, example takamine eg540 and Martin hd28's there wont be a better one of the same model. So playing it is a good thing to do unless you have a good sales person that can let you know.

[AgerolanAmerican]

16. those assumptions are not correct

The Martin in question is owned by my uncle. Barely ever plays it - maybe once every two years - so it's got zero wear and tear. He keeps it in a very expensive case in his closet. He's a multimillionaire and bought it as a bit of a status symbol, so we're not talking a low-end model. Never got wet and never got handled enough to be mistreated.

That trade I mentioned was offered to me 20 years ago when the Martin was nearly brand new, and in the years since I've visited him on occasion and played it. It's still in pristine shape.

It's not a bad guitar per se. There's just nothing special about it.

I still have the Takamine as well. The Takamine has gotten wet - I've played it in the rain. It's been handled and played so much the fingerboard is top to bottom covered in wear spots. There's a dent in it and I've accidentally banged it into things a few times over the years. It's been restringed so many times that I had to replace the tuning pegs from wear as well.

It still has the same magical tone that it had back then.

Whether you compared the two guitars side by side 20 years ago, 10 years ago, or today, the Takamine has always had the superior sound.

I simply lucked out and picked up a masterpiece guitar, and he didn't luck out and got just another guitar off the line which was nothing special.

[Eko]

18. My assumption are correct.

It also depends on what martin he got, does it have a lot of inlay work on the body and neck? That can weigh it down a lot and keep it from resonating. If it is not played much as you said, the top has never really loosened up and keeping it in a case does not keep if from having too much moisture in it, that can actually make it worse, they can trap moisture. You have just said what I did, the guitar was not taken care of. It is entirely possible that your takamine sounded better than the martin when both were new, takamine did a lot of guitars with a very light satin finish so to let the top resonate more than a guitar with a nitro finish (new martin) but if played and taken care of any martin that is thousands of dollars would sound way better than the day it was bought and better than any takamine. Now it is possible (not probable) that you have that actual one in a million guitar, but comparing it to a Martin that was and is not taken care of is incorrect.

[AgerolanAmerican]

21. I may have a one in a million guitar

many experienced musicians have marveled at its sound

Since you seem so have some expertise on the subject, maybe you can help me figure out why it's so special?

Here's the label on the inside, it's the only identifying marking. I picked it up used circa 1990 in a small guitar shop in NYC.

[Eko]

22. Slot headstock

classical guitar circa 90's. It's actually a jasmine not a takamine to be pedantic. It was their bargain brand, not that it always matters. It looks like a mahogany back, either that or cedar. It has without a doubt dried out, you can see where the glue holding the label has dried enough to loose its stickiness, get a guitar hydrometer to make sure it has not dried out too much or it may crack the back or top. You can see glue on the brace, something higher end guitars dont have as they would take care not to have enough for it to stick out like that, or at least to wipe it off as glue is really dense and too much of it can kill a guitar from resonating. I am not arguing that your guitar does not sound great, only that a Martin treated well will sound better in almost any situation except for that actual one in a million guitar. Someone getting that is well, one in a million. More pictures and I can give more information.

[Munificence]

23. I hear you on the "Martin"

I've been banging on acoustic guitars pretty much exclusively for 30+ years now. I flat pick old fiddle tunes, bluegrass, hippie grass, The Dead, some gypsies jazz and some Americana. I have a Tak that at one point in my playing I thought was stunningly perfect - for strumming and singing to in a setting such as an "Open Mic" venue. That was 25 years ago and things sure have changed, mainly in my ear and how I hear.

If it's not Collings or Martin then I'm pretty much not interested. That Tak (91 and was a $1200 guitar back then) can not stand up to any of my Martins when it comes to my ear after years of listening.

I play a minimum of 20 hours a week (summer) and a max of 60 hours a week (during winter). I've been playing this often for at least 15 years. That's when I switched over to Martin... and I love the sound of mahogany Martins, especially when they've been strung up and played for 50 years+.

Edit to add: I also change strings every 20-30 hours (weekly) and play with $50 guitar picks. Yep I am a guitar snob. Never thought I could or would be, but for some reason it showed up there and no place else.

[Eko]

24. I have a love hate relationship

to blackberry blossom, love it when I do it, hate it when I hear tony rice do it. For me a good D18, 60's, cant be beat.

In a pawn shop in Odysessa in the fall of '64
The pawn shop man was leavin' he was lockin' up the door
I ran up just in time and I holler'd just through the screen
Hey, man, you got any good guitars in here,
he said "I got this D-18"

So I gave him a hundred dollars and I took that sucker home
I cleaned it up and strung it hit a chord and heard that tone
It was crisp and clean rich and full all a guitar ought to be
I said Thank you, Mr, Martin, you made this D-18 for me

Said Thank you, Mr. Martin, I'm alright
'Cause once again this old guitar helped me through the night
I'm mighty grateful to you, you know how to make 'em right
I said Thank you, Mr. Martin, I'm alright

If I'm feelin' down and worthless and I haven't got a dime
Wonderin' if I spent my life just wastin' my time
I pick up that old guitar some paper and a pen
I say Thank you, Mr. Martin, you saved my life again.

I've written songs about my lovers my family and my friends
My wife my child the old home place and the road that never ends
Heros hobos rock n' roll and a honky tonk queen
I wrote 'em all without exception on my Martin D-18

Now It was made way back In '43 when I was just a kid
I believe it's about the best thing Mr. Martin ever did
It plays real good stays in tune and never treats me mean
Thank God for Mr. Martin and that fine old D-18.

Well there's your Galagher your Gibson your Goya Gretch and Guild
I've played every kind of guitar that them guitar makers build
I' picked on a lot of axes but the best I've ever seen
Is my funky beat up wonderful old Martin D-18.
Author:
Jerry Faires
Version:
Norman Blake and Tony Rice
Discography:
Blake and Rice; Blake and Rice II

[Eko]

19. There is a reason why most vintage guitars are beat to hell.

They sounded good enough in the first place and sounded better the more they were played and that let people value them enough to keep it and pass it on. If you find a good sounding vintage guitar that is not beat up then that is also a one in a million guitar.

[Eko]

20. Now there is what is called

a Martin lawsuit takamine from the 80's that has a very good reputation, yours could be one of those. Although the lawsuit was over the logo looking like a Martin logo I have played a couple and was really really impressed. They were from the 80's so possibly yours was from then. Comparing an 80's martin and a really good takamine is not so fair though, very few of the 80's martins sound awesome for some reason.

[Fronkonsteen]

12. No two pieces of wood are the same

Set a max price, then try every guitar you can get your hands on that's at that price or below it. Try music stores, pawn shops, thrift stores, and if there's a music school nearby, check their bulletin board for sale notices. The dusty no-name guitar hiding in the corner may have a sound that inspires you.

[Eko]

14. a sound that inspires you.

And really that is it. Sometimes I do everything I can to fit the needs of someone looking for a guitar and they choose something that is totally opposite from what I recommend and does not fit the needs they have told me. When faced with that situation I tell them that its right if it is going to make them want to play more and that if Jimi Hendrix asked me if he should burn his guitar at the Monterrey pop festival I would have told him no, worked for him quite well though.

[Iggo]

31. I feel the same about my Harmony as you do about your Takamine.

Bought it new for a hundred bucks 30 years ago, but it feels like it knows me, ya know?

I recently gave it a makeover of sorts: New machines, expensive strings, oiled the fretboard, and I gave it an elbow grease spit-shine all over. Really brightened up the tone, and now it sounds better (to me) than some of the 1000 dollar units I was fucking around with at GC.

[panader0]

9. I bought a Martin about 6 months ago. DX something.

A cheaper one, by Martin standards. It is acoustic/electric. I love it. It has a back and neck
of HPL (high pressure laminate). At first I noticed that the tone was not as warm as real wood,
but here in the high desert, the climate can be harsh. I also have a 1939 Martin 0017 mahogany
model, but the climate eventually cracked the back. The HPL will last in dry climates.
I also have a Yamaha, an Epiphone, an Ibanez and a few more, including classical guitars, and
two electrics including a Gibson ES-335 like BB King's Lucille. The lack of "warmth" was somewhat
improved by heavier strings in the Martin. I would recommend it. Unless you have more money than I do,
then get what you can afford.

[Eko]

11. How bad was the crack?

They can almost always be fixed by cleating it.

[panader0]

13. Not so bad.

Still playable. It's the guitar I learned on. I bought it in '68 in Hawaii, took it to Oregon for a bit. and when I moved to Az
the dry climate just did a job on it. Still a fine guitar. My sweetheart. I just don't play it much anymore.
I have a knockabout Ibanez that I bought at the swap meet that I don't worry about. The new Martin has
a hard shell case with a humidifier bag.

[Eko]

15. If you want to send me some pictures of it

I can get a estimate for how much it would be to fix it. Use a guitar humidifier from now on if you can, you got some history.

[panader0]

17. There are no decent luthiers in my area.

Maybe I'll take you up on your offer.

[jpmonk91]

25. thanks everybody

I will let yall know what I get the guitar

[Ed Suspicious]

26. I've played the masterbilt and loved it.

[redstateblues]

27. Had and sold the PRS Angelus

Good electronics-didn't like the way it played. Epiphone is probably better quality

[fizzgig]

28. i bought my husband an art and lutherie our first jewmas together

he's been playing since he was a young teen and said it was the best acoustic he'd ever played.

[Hoyt]

29. Buy used. Use EBay to establish a price. If you want something else down the road - which ypu

likely will if you like guitar -- you can sell it close to what you paid. Buying new at stores like Guitar Center gives you 30 days to try it out. There are cheap guitars that sound great for some music. But, as a rule of thumb, don't go cheaper than you have too. No matter what, a well setup cheap guitar is better than no guitar. Good luck.

[Scootaloo]

30. Just get a banjo, then

[jpmonk91]

32. I got my guitar!

I got a Taylor 314ce