# time to shop for an acoustic..



## david henman (Feb 3, 2006)

...i have three: a made-in japan vantage from the mid-80s, a garrison my girlfriend won in a raffle, and a baby taylor.

all nice guitars. but, none of them 'begs' to be played.

i'd like to find an acoustic that literally makes me weak in the knees.

this is probably a matter of going to a few music stores and playing as many guitars as i can.

the first thing i'd like to find is a fast, slippery neck, the smaller the better.

number two is tone. i once played an ancient martin belonging to greg godovitz. this guitar felt alive.

number three is reliability. my vantage guitar has been mistreated and abused for three decades, but still has great action and has never needed major surgery.


i'd like to play a few canadian made guitars.

ideally, i'll find something locally on craigslist - which is why i need to have an idea of what i'm looking for.

suggestions welcome.


----------



## washburned (Oct 13, 2006)

Sounds to me like a Manzer!


----------



## bagpipe (Sep 19, 2006)

washburned said:


> Sounds to me like a Manzer!


I don't think he wants to sell his car to fund it.


----------



## washburned (Oct 13, 2006)

bagpipe said:


> I don't think he wants to sell his car to fund it.


For a Manzer you take out a second mortgage and keep the car. After the first note you'll never doubt the wisdom. I'm still optimistic about getting one someday.


----------



## bagpipe (Sep 19, 2006)

david henman said:


> this is probably a matter of going to a few music stores and playing as many guitars as i can.


I think this is the key - you have to discover which acoustic sound does it for you. You're lucky, being in Toronto, that you have a local store like the 12th Fret. I'd go there a few times and spend some trying as many guitars as possible. I think when you play "the one" you'll know it. I have both a lower end Taylor and a mid-range Larrivee, and while they're both nice, neither is really a guitar that I couldn't live without.

I think its even tougher with acoustics than electrics. At least with electrics you can try new pickups, or a new pedal, or a different amp to get closer to the sound you hear in your head. With an acoustic you can try new strings ... that's pretty much it!

I've found that there's not much interest on this forum in acoustic guitar. You might have more luck over here:

http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/forums/index.php


----------



## Guitar101 (Jan 19, 2011)

http://www.seagullguitars.com/productmjm6cwgtqII.htm

Here's mine. The beauty of this guitar is probably the pickup/mic built into the guitar. It sounds amazing plugged in and pretty good sitting around a campfire, and, it's Canadian made.


----------



## shoretyus (Jan 6, 2007)

go try this...

http://toronto.kijiji.ca/c-buy-and-...Acoustic-Electric-Cutaway-W0QQAdIdZ282242900#


----------



## washburned (Oct 13, 2006)

shoretyus said:


> go try this...
> 
> http://toronto.kijiji.ca/c-buy-and-...Acoustic-Electric-Cutaway-W0QQAdIdZ282242900#


Actually those aren't bad guitars. A friend of mine had one back in the 80s and regrets replacing it with a Martin D18.


----------



## pattste (Dec 30, 2007)

The Montreal Guitar Show is coming up at the end of the month. If you can visit for a day or two, you'll be able to try dozens of amazing guitars. Otherwise, go to The 12th Fret and Long and McQuade and try everything nice they have. There are some great Canadian guitars (Boucher, Larrivée) but I also remain a fan of the more traditional Martins and Gibsons.

I was lucky to find the acoustic that "makes me weak in the knees" a couple of years ago (Gibson Northern Jumbo, a very rare instrument). May you be as lucky.


----------



## fudb (Dec 8, 2010)

well if a fast neck is number one and tone is number two, I'd guess you'll end up with a Taylor of some type. Breedloves are well worth checking out too, even the Atlas stuff


----------



## david henman (Feb 3, 2006)

...funny you should mention this. i have very fond, albeit vague, memories of a yamaha fg300 that was stolen from me so long ago i can't even recall which decade.



shoretyus said:


> go try this...
> 
> Vintage Yamaha FG450SEC Acoustic Electric Cutaway - City of Toronto Musical Instruments For Sale - Kijiji City of Toronto Canada.


----------



## david henman (Feb 3, 2006)

Guitar101 said:


> Seagull MJM6 CW GT QII
> Here's mine. The beauty of this guitar is probably the pickup/mic built into the guitar. It sounds amazing plugged in and pretty good sitting around a campfire, and, it's Canadian made.


...looks to be in the $700 price range - gotta love that!


----------



## david henman (Feb 3, 2006)

fudb said:


> well if a fast neck is number one and tone is number two, I'd guess you'll end up with a Taylor of some type. Breedloves are well worth checking out too, even the Atlas stuff


...the reason i put tone second is because i mainly want to use it for messing around at home and for songwriting, so it has to be fun to play. i'm not primarily an acoustic player - i use godin acousticasters on stage. all but the bottom of the barrel acoustic guitars sound just fine to me.

i compare them to wines. god forbid i should ever develop a taste for fine (read: expensive) wines.


----------



## bw66 (Dec 17, 2009)

If a comfortable, robust, good-sounding, Canadian-made, affordable guitar is what you are after, then you have more choices today than ever. I ultimately settled on a Simon and Patrick Showcase flame-maple dreadnought for myself. I found it almost a year before I was able to buy it, but fortunately, my music store of choice doesn't have a super-high turnover of guitars in the $750+ range.

S&P Showcase Series


----------



## bw66 (Dec 17, 2009)

Double post!!!


----------



## Ship of fools (Nov 17, 2007)

whats wrong with good wine like a fine guitar, there are many to be had thats for sure and I would look at the used section of the world, so many great guitars out there right now that it makes me sick that I retired and reduced the herd down to only 7.
Or you can hunt around I hear tell that someone has made a guitar and you can record with also, haven't found out who it was that made it but I am sure once I do to post it here.ship


----------



## Stephen W. (Jun 7, 2006)

I believe you're thinking of the Ovation iDea, worlds first mp3 recording guitar.
Ovation iDea, world's first mp3-recording guitar | DVICE


----------



## fenderman79 (Apr 16, 2010)

I was in 12th Fret last week and saw this new guitar called a MapleTree. It's a completely solid wood, handmade guitar. It looked beautiful and sounded amazing. 12th Fret is very discriminating when it comes to what guitars they put on the floor, but it's all about what fits you...tone, playability and fit/size.
For $1100. - I'm sold! Only about $60K less then a Manzer.


----------



## mrmatt1972 (Apr 3, 2008)

Depending on your budget and prefered style (fingerstyle, pick, some of each) the choices are many, especially in the sub 1000 dollar range. You'll need to go out and play a few, lucky guy!

If your looking at Canadian made (or at least Canadian founded guitar manufacturers), Larrivee is hard to beat for playability. Normans have faster necks than Seagulls typically do.


----------



## Mike MacLeod (Nov 27, 2006)

I don't quite get the "fast neck" thing. Some of the fastest and cleanest players I've ever worked with are the bluegrass guys and they always look for tone long before they worry about a neck - and they have BIG ears. ...... But .... everybody's got to "shoot their own dog"!
I have yet to see a factory guitar that will match the best of the shop-built guitars. Ted Thompson, Linda Manzer, Judy Threet, Grit Laskin, Mario Proulx, Mark Beneteau, etc etc. Canada is rife with these folks. It seems as if every town has a world class builder. We are very fortunate in this country. Visit the Montreal Guitar Show to get a glimmering of what I'm talking about.


----------



## jimsz (Apr 17, 2009)

I rented a variety of acoustics from L&M and finally settled on a Martin. They seem to have a brighter, crisper tone than the others. Try renting especially if you're going to drop some coin on a nice one.


----------



## david henman (Feb 3, 2006)

...i know exactly what you're talking about, mike, but i ain't one of those guys. listening to old, and young, bluegrass pickers is a humbling experience, even more so than beck/vai/malmsteem/gatton/gill et al.

i mainly use my acoustics for writing, messing around, vocal practice etc. i'm a fender guy, can't navigate my was around a les paul baseball bat neck. so a fast, easy comfortable neck is what i enjoy. too bad ernie ball/musicman don't manufacture acoustics.



Mike MacLeod said:


> I don't quite get the "fast neck" thing. Some of the fastest and cleanest players I've ever worked with are the bluegrass guys and they always look for tone long before they worry about a neck - and they have BIG ears. ...... But .... everybody's got to "shoot their own dog"!
> I have yet to see a factory guitar that will match the best of the shop-built guitars. Ted Thompson, Linda Manzer, Judy Threet, Grit Laskin, Mario Proulx, Mark Beneteau, etc etc. Canada is rife with these folks. It seems as if every town has a world class builder. We are very fortunate in this country. Visit the Montreal Guitar Show to get a glimmering of what I'm talking about.


----------



## david henman (Feb 3, 2006)

...evidently, guild makes some nice acoustics with thin necks.


----------



## hollowbody (Jan 15, 2008)

david henman said:


> ...evidently, guild makes some nice acoustics with thin necks.


I was actually just going to mention Guild. I don't know about the thin neck, the neck on my DV52 doesn't strike me as thin, but it's a fantastic guitar with a great sound and rugged as hell. I'd pick this over any Gibson, Martin or Taylor.


----------



## Furtz (Nov 27, 2010)

My main guitar since the early eighties has been a really nice '79 hardtail Strat with a very slim neck. I love it.
The closest acoustic neck-wise that could find is a Blueridge 163ce. Nice slim neck, small body, and mighty fine sound for the buck. 
I think you can pick them up now for about a grand. The headstock inlay is a bit overdone, but otherwise........


----------



## david henman (Feb 3, 2006)

...huge thanks for this! i'm on it...




Furtz said:


> My main guitar since the early eighties has been a really nice '79 hardtail Strat with a very slim neck. I love it.
> The closest acoustic neck-wise that could find is a Blueridge 163ce. Nice slim neck, small body, and mighty fine sound for the buck.
> I think you can pick them up now for about a grand. The headstock inlay is a bit overdone, but otherwise........


----------



## CSBen (Mar 1, 2011)

David - I think an important thing that you shouldn't forget to consider is whether or not it'll be played as a picking or finger played guitar. Some OM type guitars will not react as well to being played with a pick.

I had a Taylor 416ce that I sold last year to fund another purchase. Thought it was perfect medium priced guitar to both styles of playing. Sounded pretty damm good too when plugged in.

Next up for myself is a Larrivee OM bodied though. Played a few and let me tell ya, they are great sounding and playing guitars (perhaps you would have prefered to see that as "playing and sounding" guitars though!).

Good luck in your search!

B


----------



## Guest (Aug 6, 2011)

david henman said:


> ...evidently, guild makes some nice acoustics with thin necks.


I've got a USA and a China Guild and the necks on both are super slim.


----------

