Need help with an emergency impulse purchase

[etemkin]

Hey Folks. So, my girlfriend of three years and I just split up this week in spectacularly crappy fashion. I was planning on buying my first acoustic sometime this summer, but due to my current emotional state, the time has come to pull the trigger. My problem is that I don't really know what I'm doing, and could use some advice.

 

This is my first acoustic, so I'm somewhat of a fish out of water. But, I've been monitoring this forum for quite some time, and have a few ideas. This is what I want. I want all solid woods. I want something that will cover at least reasonably a wide variety of styles, though given my relative ineptitude I'd place a little bit of a heavier weight on it being able to stand up to heavy strumming rather than bell-like clarity while finger picking. I want an instrument that's easy to play. And, most importantly, I want as much great tone as I can get for the price. I'm aiming to spend less than $900, including a hard case, but I'd be perfectly content to go much cheaper if I was getting a good instrument.

 

So, based on my readings here, this is what I was looking at. Parkwood, Epiphone Masterbilt, Larrivee 03, and maybe Guild GAD or Garrison. With that in mind I went down to GC tonight and played as much as I could. I actually had a fairly quiet acoustic room for a couple hours, which I wasn't expecting, and the selection was decent for what I'm looking for. They had the Parkwood maple jumbo on clearance for $299. That's some great bang for the buck in terms of sound. My only concern is that I have tiny little T-Rex arms, and it's a bit of a strain getting my body around that fat lower bout. They also had the Parkwood mahogany GA for $399. The size of that instrument felt around perfect in my arms, but the sound just wasn't the same, especially when it came to strumming. They had a few Masterbilts too. For $499 they had the rosewood DR and AJ's. I don't think either of them sounded as good as the Parkwood jumbo, but they also had aged strings on, so that might have factored in.

 

I also poked around the high-end room and played some Breedloves that were $7-800. I liked 'em, but it didn't feel to me that they were worth it over the jumbo. They had one GAD in stock, but it had a massive crack in it, so I didn't even bother. They had a used Santa Cruz OM for $1800 that won best guitar of the day award, but I'm not quite ready for that.

 

My problem is that there's nowhere nearby I can play the Larrivees. I went by the Sam Ash that's the only local dealer, and they had a L-05 and a D-03, both in awful condition. I couldn't get any useful impressions from the visit. So, if I were to go Larrivee, I think I'd just order up from Jason at Notable. I've heard so many great things, but I just don't know what I even want. I figure the smaller the better in terms of feel. But, will an OM-03 stand up to heavy strumming? Or am I better off with the L? And I have no idea if I want sapele or rosewood. Any ideas?

 

So, that's my situation. I started this quest with the intent of doing all the research possible and getting the single best guitar possible for me right now. But now I really just want to get something that'll keep me happy and worry about finding the holy grail when I have a bigger budget. So, what would you do? Part of me says that $299 jumbo is just too good of a deal to pass up. But a smaller body just feels better to play. Are there any great GA/GC/OM guitars in that range that can handle a forceful pick well? Should I just take the leap on Larrivee, based on their (and Jason's) sterling reputation? But if I do, which one should I get? Are there other places I should be looking (I'm in the suburbs of LA)? Other things I should be considering? Any advice/recommendations would be appreciated. I'm hoping to purchase something by the end of the weekend.

 

Thanks in advance for the help!

 

ET

[babablowfish]

Sorry about you and your girlfriend. I hope you are both feeling better soon.

 

I own the Parkwood Jumbo; it is a great guitar. I was happy to get it at nearly twice the price you can get it for. That said, IMHO it wouldn't matter if they were giving them away, I wouldn't buy it if I were you. Comfort is a very big factor in choosing the guitar you play.

 

Again, IMHO if you can afford a Larrivee, then go for it. I'll leave it to others more knowledgeable to suggest which model.

[etemkin]

Well, I could play the jumbo. But the smaller body just felt more natural and in my arms. So over the years, comfort really is that big of a deal? Even if I don't have any other acoustics to choose from?

[athomas]

wow $299 for a Parkwood Jumbo. That is a great price. I was playing one for $549 at GC yesterday. Real nice guitar. But you should buy something that you are comfortable with.

So for
Breedlove Atlas series is my second choice. Not manufactured in the US but great guitar.

Then you have a lot of hig end models of Guitars manufacured outside US.
Takamine, Walden, Parkwood, Tangelwood, Washburn. These are the ones I have tried and reccomend.

Guild's I heard are nice too.

You have to try everything out. There is no impulse buying with guitars, especially in that price range.

[Freeman Keller]

I'll add a couple of thoughts. You ask about strumming an OM - imho they are the most versatile body size (and the more or less equivalent GA) - you can strum and fingerpick equally well. The only thing they might not do really well is the boom-chuck of bluegrass rhythym. I like the way they feel in my lap - I almost never play my dreads any more.

Two, I've only played a few Larrivees but all have been very high quality instruments and many people on this forum think that at each price point they are great bargins. I've never dealt with Jason or Notable, but others here think he is one of the best. I think you would be assured of a quality guitar set up perfectly to your specs.

Three, sapele has a mahogany type sound - people call it "dry, woody, bluesy", where rosewood is usually thought of as being more complex. If your choice is solid wood there will be a difference - usually for laminates it is more cosmetic. I have both sapele/hog and rosewood guitars - frankly I think you would like either. There are a few Larrys in these sound clips but you could also listen to some other rosewood vs sapele/hog guitars. You might also listen to OM sized guitar against the equivalent wood in a dread or jumbo. Maple tends to be a little bright sounding, but the size of the jumbo can compensate for that.

http://www.thepodium.com/t-soundsamples.aspx

Parkwood, Epi, Guilds, Breedloves and Larrys all have their advocates on this forum (as do Taylors, Martins and many many others). I happen to believe that we are in a time of wonderful guitars at very reasonable prices and I think that you could be happy with any one of them. If you like the Martin sound, Blueridge is catching a lot of attention as a similar sound at 1/4 the price. Some people think the headstocks are butt ugly, but you can't see the headstock when you are playing LOL

http://www.maurysmusic.com/blueridge_vs__martin

A singer songwriter friend just went thru a painful separation (they were building their dream house together). He bought two new guitars - a Carvin six string and a Guild 12 and has been writing some of his best songs lately. I think it has been incredible therapy.

Good luck

[guitarist21]

It sounds like you've done your homework and these guys all have some great advice. All the guitars you mention are great guitars.

An OM-sized or -styled guitar is never going to deliver the sound you got from the Parkwood jumbo. I love my OM-style Epiphone Masterbilt EF-500R and it performs fairly well under heavy picking, but when I need the "bigger" guitar sound, I usually switch to my Washburn Dread. In your case, I would look for a Larrivee D03, if you can afford it. Larrivees are also great guitars to buy used, and as Freeman alluded to, Jason at Notable Guitars is a pleasure to deal with. I also think checking out Epiphone Masterbilt dreads (the DR and AJ guitars) in greater detail might be worth it too. Epiphone Masterbilts are great guitars.

Good luck!

Ellen

[etemkin]

Thanks for the advice! I just spent my lunch break listening to as many of those sound samples as I can and I've decided I want a Goodall But, while I'm waiting for that, I at least have a much better idea of the difference between mahogany and rosewood. I can't decide which I like better, but I at least have a frame of reference.

The more I think about it, the more I think I should get a larger-bodied guitar now. I know I'll be adding to my collection later, and when I start looking further up the food chain, I think that's where I'll find my OM's and GA's. But, I figure you have to have a dread, jumbo, or something for simple strumming. Given my abilities now, maybe that's the way to go? Or maybe the Larrivee L-03 as a compromise?

I'm gonna aim to do more shopping around this weekend sometime and then weigh my options. Hopefully I'll have something picked out by Sunday.

[TXTooMuch]

Have fun with selecting.

[streetknight]

You owe it to yourself to check out a Blueridge. B-140 or B-160 from what you said you were looking for. Think they're in the $700 range.

Honestly I liked the sound of the BR40 which has laminate back and sides, but that's just me. These are wonderful instruments though.

Good Luck

[etemkin]

I forgot to mention this earlier, but I just can't handle the Blueridge headstock...the gaudiness...the improperly positioned tuning machines. No matter how good a value the guitar, after a few years, that would drive me to distraction. Same goes for Seagull.

[babablowfish]

I forgot to mention this earlier, but I just can't handle the Blueridge headstock...the gaudiness...the improperly positioned tuning machines. No matter how good a value the guitar, after a few years, that would drive me to distraction. Same goes for Seagull.

 

 

I understand. The visual component is very important. I won't consider a Seagull for the same reason.

[streetknight]

I understand the visual aspect, but I appreciate the sound more. I'd be willing to bet if you went to a shop and they blindfolded you and let you play 10 guitars, the Blueridge would be in the top 3 at least.

You guys are just missing out

[babablowfish]

Hey, I love the sound of a Blueridge. I don't even mind the headstock, wacky though it is and would gladly buy one if I was in need of a new guitar. At the same time, I know that it is the whole package that makes a guitar special. I personally would not own a guitar that I found visually jarring; I'm just too obsessive-compulsive.

[rjoxyz]

I have both an L-03 mahogany and an OM-03R. I believe the L body is extremely versatile. It can sound as big as a dread, but the wider neck makes for easier fingerpicking. It is in its element, with or without pick. It is also very comfortable in comparison to a dread or jumbo.

The OM has a full resonant rosewood tone, but does not stand up to heavy strumming as well as the L. Part of that is due to a very low action, as the OM was specifically set up for fingerstyle.

If I could have only one guitar in the sub-$1000 range, it would be the L-03.

[etemkin]

Thanks for the info. It seems that I won't be able to buy anything this weekend, though. It's looking like a change of scenery is in order, so I think I'll be moving up to San Francisco in a month or two. So, I think I'll just hold off for now and deal with my electric for a few more weeks. I'll be getting a place up there with my brother, and he has a craptastic laminate Ibanez dread that I'll be able to play for now. When I get sick of that, I'll pick my search back up. I also emailed Jason at Notable to get his thoughts. He seems like a class guy. Maybe I'll actually be able to find some Larrivees to try up in SF and can do business with him in a few months. Thanks again to everyone for all your help. You've given me some great ideas.