# Acoustic / Electric under $300?



## Greg Ellis (Oct 1, 2007)

Am I just dreaming, or are there any decent acoustic-electrics in the under-$300 range?

I have a jam coming up in a couple of month, and perhaps more in the summer.

In addition to my electric rig, I'd like to have an acoustic electric, if I can find one. Something sturdy, easy for me to play (I play an old Tokai strat mostly), and unlikely to suffer too much from a lack of TLC or the occasional bump. 

I considered a straight-up acoustic, but it's not going to work. I need to plug in so I can be heard. We generally mix electric guitars and bass and vocals with keys and drums. We've tried mic'ing acoustics before and it's a non-starter.

Any recommendations?

I've browsed the available models online, and come up with several options in the price range.

I don't know a whole lot about acoustic guitars. The one I have now came from a dumpster 20 years ago, and it plays very much the way you would expect for an instrument with that sort of history.

These are online prices in US$, so in-store in Canada is likely a bit higher (separated into price buckets):

Applause AE128 Super Shallow $199
Epiphone AJ-100CE $169
Ibanez V Series V70CE Dreadnought Cutaway $199
Yamaha F Series FX325 Dreadnought $189
Yamaha FX 335 $199

Fender Classic Design Series CD100CE Dreadnought Cutaway $249
Jasmine by Takamine ES31C Dreadnought $249
Jasmine by Takamine Jasmine Series ES33C Dreadnought $249
Ovation Applause Series AE148 Super Shallow Cutaway $249
Washburn DK20CET Dreadnought $249
Yamaha FX370C F SERIES Cutaway $249

Fender Classic Design Series CD110CE Dreadnought Cutaway $269
Fender Classic Design Series CD60CE Cutaway Dreadnought $269
Norman B15 Brown?

Epiphone AJ-200SCE $299
Fender T-Bucket 300 CE Cutaway $299
Fender CD140SCE $299
Ovation GC057 Celebrity Super Shallow $299
Washburn D140MCIQ $299

Fender Classic Design Series CD110CE Dreadnought Cutaway $341

Norman B18 CW Black 4T ~$449

Any comments on any of these? 

If there are other guitars you might recommend, do you know approx how much they cost?


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## Steve Adams (Dec 31, 2009)

I like beaver creek....top line is 400 bucks nice little guitar.


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## mandoman (Jan 11, 2010)

Another option is to buy used, lots of great used guitars out there for $300


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## Greg Ellis (Oct 1, 2007)

mandoman said:


> Another option is to buy used, lots of great used guitars out there for $300


Really? I almost never see acoustics for sale.

The buy and sell forum here seems to be about 98% electrics - teles, strats, les pauls, etc.

Craigslist has a few, but they're frequently nylon string, or 12 strings, or lacking a pickup, or something else I don't want. I've been watching for a couple of weeks now, and there might have been 2 or 3 guitars I would have considered.


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## mandoman (Jan 11, 2010)

Greg Ellis said:


> Really? I almost never see acoustics for sale.
> 
> The buy and sell forum here seems to be about 98% electrics - teles, strats, les pauls, etc.
> 
> Craigslist has a few, but they're frequently nylon string, or 12 strings, or lacking a pickup, or something else I don't want. I've been watching for a couple of weeks now, and there might have been 2 or 3 guitars I would have considered.



I just googled used guitars and found lots. and in your price range. also most music stores buy and sell used guitars..maybe give that a try.they don't always have them on display because they want to sell the new stock but if you ask you may find.


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## mandoman (Jan 11, 2010)

Lots here.
UsedAcousticGuitars.net


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## Steadfastly (Nov 14, 2008)

Also Kijiji has quite a few in your price range.


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## Chito (Feb 17, 2006)

The thing with buying guitars at this price range, is that you need to be able to try out the guitar yourself before buying it. The consistency and quality of guitars at this price can go from good to bad. So it's best for you to try the guitar and see if it 'speaks' to you. I wouldn't buy one used without seeing and trying out the guitar first.


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## Ship of fools (Nov 17, 2007)

*If you hit*

If you hit the shops you'll find a ton of good used quality acoustic/electric guitars out there especially in the used department but it does take some work to go out and look around and don't be afraid to ask them to hold it for a few days for you so you can go and compare others to the ones you like, most shops don't mind.Ship


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## mandoman (Jan 11, 2010)

Ship of fools said:


> If you hit the shops you'll find a ton of good used quality acoustic/electric guitars out there especially in the used department but it does take some work to go out and look around and don't be afraid to ask them to hold it for a few days for you so you can go and compare others to the ones you like, most shops don't mind.Ship


I know some shops here will even take your name and give you a call when something they think will interest you shows up.


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## Ship of fools (Nov 17, 2007)

*Now thats the type*

Those are the type of shops they use to have, tell them what you are looking for and when something intereseting comes in they give you a call.
Thank goodness we still have a few, hey Mandoman you really should think about that D61SWN on the flea bay, its a great price for a great guitar.Ship


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## mandoman (Jan 11, 2010)

Ship of fools said:


> Those are the type of shops they use to have, tell them what you are looking for and when something intereseting comes in they give you a call.
> Thank goodness we still have a few, hey Mandoman you really should think about that D61SWN on the flea bay, its a great price for a great guitar.Ship


Thanks Ship, but I have enough Guitars. I Mas over mandos only now...LOL and there so many..in saying this I still have a old Gibson on my wish list.


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## Greg Ellis (Oct 1, 2007)

Thanks guys. Yeah, I think you're right - this is going to take some leg-work.

I was at my local store today, and played a number of different guitars.

Some were terrible, some were too tinny for my ears, some were too big for me, some had nasty-high action. One had intonation so bad I couldn't play above the 10th fret or so. So others were very nice, but $599-ish, or $699-ish, and that's just not really in the cards for me right now.

There's one guitar I kept coming back to over and over - a lovely guitar and pretty much exactly what I was looking for.

It's a folk size, with a cutaway, and that feels very comfortable to me. It's got a solid cedar top, and a lovely mellow sound. Not very loud, but extremely sweet and rich. None of that bright "in-your-face-rattle-jangle" that I got from many of the guitars I tried. Somehow, it just felt so much more "alive" and "organic" than anything else I played.










Unfortunately for me, it's a bit north of $400, so not an insta-sale for me. Sounds great, though, feels great. I plugged it in to see how that worked out, and the pickup seems to reproduce the sound and feel of the guitar very nicely. A&L's QI electronics are simple (V-T-B), but the controls have a very wide and useful range.

Now I'm trying to figure out how to come up with the extra dough.

I need to take a trip to Cosmo as well, I guess, and see what they've got kicking around.


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## Marksmith (Aug 13, 2020)

I think you can watch Washburn -HD 20s. its loud and clear.


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## Budda (May 29, 2007)

Why was this bumped???


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## Chito (Feb 17, 2006)

LOL First post and didn't bother to check the date.


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## Greg Ellis (Oct 1, 2007)

LOL. 2010 ! There's a blast from the past.

If anyone is curious...

I found a used Norman B20 Folk with an under-saddle pickup for about $200 on Craigslist in May of that year, and bought it.

Two years later I picked up a Yamaha FG700MS for about $250 new. 

I've still got both of them.


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## Marksmith (Aug 13, 2020)

cool! you are awake


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