Members Hudman Posted February 12, 2006 Members Posted February 12, 2006 I am in the market to buy a new acoustic guitar. So far I am looking at Larrivee, Guild, Blueridge, Taylor and Martin. It's been a few years since I bought a decent acoustic guitar. I play a wide range of music. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Members Cldplytkmn Posted February 12, 2006 Members Posted February 12, 2006 larrivee -03s for sure martin -15 and -16
Members Hudman Posted February 12, 2006 Author Members Posted February 12, 2006 Originally posted by Cldplytkmn larrivee -03s for suremartin -15 and -16 I keep hearing good stuff about Larrivee. The specs look top notch. Are the Martin 15 and 16 series solid wood?
Members Cldplytkmn Posted February 12, 2006 Members Posted February 12, 2006 yeah they are... -15 is all mahogany or sapele, -16s have solid spruce tops and solid mahogany back and sides... there's also -16r's which have rosewood. The -16s might stretch your budget just a hair though... larrivee makes a great product, and their 'budget' -03s get just as much attention to detail as their 2-3000 dollar guitars... real ebony bridge and fretboard, dovetail neck joint, one piece mahogany neck, maple binding, the list goes on... definitely worth trying a few out.
Members JasmineTea Posted February 12, 2006 Members Posted February 12, 2006 Some of the Martin 16s have micarta board and bridge. But don't let that bother you. I have a D-16GT and I like the micarta. Larrivee certainly is worth looking into. Jeez, what els is good for under a grand?
Members Veee number 2 Posted February 12, 2006 Members Posted February 12, 2006 Tacoma's are excellent in this price range.
Members knockwood Posted February 12, 2006 Members Posted February 12, 2006 Originally posted by Cldplytkmn larrivee -03s for sure martin -15 and -16 What he said. In your range, I'd personally put those three series at the top of my list. I bought a Taylor 310 back in August. If I had it to do over again, for the $ I'd go with something in the Larrivee 03 or Marty 16 series. I also haven't met a 15 series guitar that I haven't liked. It would also be worthwhile to look into the Seagull Artist series. Wonderful gits, IMO. All Seagulls have laminate sides, but I do not consider this to be a drawback. It adds structural stability, does not discernably detract from tone unless you have the hearing of a wolf, and allows Seagull to price their guitars much lower than if all solid. I have a Martin D-1 with laminate sides and I'm completely in love with it (I'd also recommend this model, but Martin discontinued the 1 series). Seagulls also have 1-3/4" nut widths, which may or may not work for you. All above are made in North America. If you're not averse to an Asian-made guitar, take a look at the Guild GAD series and at Blueridge. Incredible values.
Members jackwr Posted February 12, 2006 Members Posted February 12, 2006 Originally posted by Cldplytkmn larrivee -03s for suremartin -15 and -16 +1:thu:
Members Hudman Posted February 12, 2006 Author Members Posted February 12, 2006 Originally posted by knockwood What he said. In your range, I'd personally put those three series at the top of my list. I bought a Taylor 310 back in August. If I had it to do over again, for the $ I'd go with something in the Larrivee 03 or Marty 16 series. I also haven't met a 15 series guitar that I haven't liked. It would also be worthwhile to look into the Seagull Artist series. Wonderful gits, IMO. All Seagulls have laminate sides, but I do not consider this to be a drawback. It adds structural stability, does not discernably detract from tone unless you have the hearing of a wolf, and allows Seagull to price their guitars much lower than if all solid. I have a Martin D-1 with laminate sides and I'm completely in love with it (I'd also recommend this model, but Martin discontinued the 1 series). Seagulls also have 1-3/4" nut widths, which may or may not work for you. All above are made in North America. If you're not averse to an Asian-made guitar, take a look at the Guild GAD series and at Blueridge. Incredible values. Yeah, I had a Seagul S6 for 8 years. It was a great guitar for the money. I have owned Washburn, Fender, Ibanez, Ovation and Gibson acoustics over the years too. I would like to try a brand I never owned before this time. How about the Guilds? They come loaded with features. I'm not sure about buying a Chinese built acoustic in that price range. Anyone own a China made Guild? I would say I am leaning towards a Larrivee at this point.
Members JasmineTea Posted February 12, 2006 Members Posted February 12, 2006 Originally posted by Hudman Anyone own a China made Guild?I would say I am leaning towards a Larrivee at this point. You can't go wrong with the Larri. I played a few of the China-made Guilds. Don't recall the model numbers but one in particular, a jumbo, sounded great. It did'nt have the bass you'd expect from a jumbo, but the tone was very nice.
Members Rada Posted February 12, 2006 Members Posted February 12, 2006 Seagull Artist Series Simon & Patrick Showcase Series (SC Series) Also These are all coming out in all solid wood this year and also come with AER electronics so there's no cutting on the side And, of course, my favorite......the Norman ST68 Great guitar for under $900 Larrivee 03 series are really great guitars as well And a brand new guitar maker(to me...they've been around since the 80's) that I stumbled across at NAMM was Stonebridge I was very impressed
Members mrlucky7 Posted February 12, 2006 Members Posted February 12, 2006 You got great replies ! Seagull artist (1.8" nut width), Simon & Patrick SC, Norman ST-68 (both 1 3/4" nut width) and the Larrivee D-03 or D-03R (1 11/16" nut width)....any of those are great guitars for the money and within your budget.
Members Call me Ishmael Posted February 12, 2006 Members Posted February 12, 2006 Originally posted by Hudman I keep hearing good stuff about Larrivee. The specs look top notch. Are the Martin 15 and 16 series solid wood? http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Guitar/Acoustic?sku=514735 15 is solid wood. What wood is in question. Sapele or Mahogany. But I believe these are good instruments in either case. I love mine.
Members Hudman Posted February 12, 2006 Author Members Posted February 12, 2006 Originally posted by mrlucky7 You got great replies ! Seagull artist (1.8" nut width), Simon & Patrick SC, Norman ST-68 (both 1 3/4" nut width) and the Larrivee D-03 or D-03R (1 11/16" nut width)....any of those are great guitars for the money and within your budget. Typical Canadian! (just kidding) I visit Canada fairly often since I live in the Detroit area - great country. Hard to argue with the craftmanship of our brothers to the north. My $300.00 Seagull was better than most $600.00 guitars. I will check out the Simon & Patrick and Norman ST-68. Thanks for the replies fellas. This is the most civil forum on Harmony-Central (IMO).
Members JasmineTea Posted February 12, 2006 Members Posted February 12, 2006 Originally posted by Rada And a brand new guitar maker(to me...they've been around since the 80's) that I stumbled across at NAMM was Stonebridge I was very impressed That looks interesting. What kind of prices are we talking? Say, for the OM?
Members knockwood Posted February 12, 2006 Members Posted February 12, 2006 I'd agree you really can't go wrong with a Larrivee... even if Rada has a personal beef with their personnel... I've played a few of the Chinese Guilds and liked them quite a lot, although if I were shopping today I'd still take a harder look at Larrivee and Martin. Guild has some new OMs out that look very interesting, but I haven't run into one up close yet.
Members JasmineTea Posted February 12, 2006 Members Posted February 12, 2006 Originally posted by Call me Ishmael 15 is solid wood. What wood is in question. Sapele or Mahogany. But I believe these are good instruments in either case. I love mine. Sapele sorta gets a bad rap. But from what I've read, it's just another type of mahogany. Good stuff IMO.
Members Rada Posted February 12, 2006 Members Posted February 12, 2006 Originally posted by JasmineTea That looks interesting. What kind of prices are we talking? Say, for the OM? Yeah, their OM was great......very loud and full, balanced, not too bright and extremely comfortable I'm not sure how much it'll go for on the market......I just have the dealer cost sheet, and I forgot if he said he wanted it doubled or if it was some funky percent I really do need to start taking notes when I go to NAMM But that Bluegrass 34-SR is what I played and it's what I want
Members DonK Posted February 12, 2006 Members Posted February 12, 2006 Martin 15 & 16 and Larry 03 as others have said. I would add Tacoma to the mix; don't know what the post-Fender ones are like, but the pre-Fenders ones are very good. My DR-20 is an amazing instrument for what I paid for it.
Members Cldplytkmn Posted February 12, 2006 Members Posted February 12, 2006 Originally posted by Hudman Thanks for the replies fellas. This is the most civil forum on Harmony-Central (IMO). we get called all sorts of things, but the last thing some folks would call us is civil... haha... yeah don't be afraid of sapele... larrivee is going to start using it, and many other builders use it... its by no means inferior, just different.
Members kwakatak Posted February 12, 2006 Members Posted February 12, 2006 I've looked at a bunch of different brands at or above that price range. I liked both Larrivees and Martins because of the workmanship and tone, though IMO the Larrivee came out slightly ahead because the rosewood upgrade was still less than $900.
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.