Upgrade?

fnpt

I have been spending more time playing my acoustic than my electrics and really enjoying it. I have a Yamaha FG720s which I quite like. It plays nicely with a great low action, has a nice satin slim neck, sounds and looks good.

However, as I seem to be enjoying more and more playing acoustic I wonder if it makes sense to consider upgrading to something that will sound nicer. The obvious candidate for me would be a J45 but will it be worth the extra money in terms of getting a better sound or even playability?

Before you suggest to go out and play and let my ears decide, I must tell you that I live in an island with a couple of guitar shops selling squier and stagg guitars and not much else.

ICBM

fnpt said:

The obvious candidate for me would be a J45 but will it be worth the extra money in terms of getting a better sound or even playability?

Yes to sound; quite likely no to playability - lower- to mid-priced Yamahas are usually pretty decent for that, and if anything Gibsons tend to have more issues!

If you're after a Gibson I would actually suggest buying used - any set-up problems from new will probably have been taken care of, and if for any reason you don't like it you should be able to re-sell it without too much of a loss.

fnpt

My thoughts exactly. What’s a reasonable price for a recent j45?

TINMAN82

ICBM said:

fnpt said:

The obvious candidate for me would be a J45 but will it be worth the extra money in terms of getting a better sound or even playability?

Yes to sound; quite likely no to playability - lower- to mid-priced Yamahas are usually pretty decent for that, and if anything Gibsons tend to have more issues!

If you're after a Gibson I would actually suggest buying used - any set-up problems from new will probably have been taken care of, and if for any reason you don't like it you should be able to re-sell it without too much of a loss.

Don’t completely agree with this. With buying used you also run the risk that it’s being sold on for a reason, which may be that it’s a poor example that doesn’t sound great. I’d sooner buy a new (rather than used) Gibson sight unseen as I could just send it back for a refund if it turned out to be a dog.

Jocko

I had an Epiphone PR 350 S for years, but a couple of years back I decided to go for a Larrivée P-03W. With my increasing size I felt a smaller guitar would be more comfortable to play. I love it. It has a great sound, is easy to play, and at £1K did not require me to sell a kidney.

ICBM

TINMAN82 said:

With buying used you also run the risk that it’s being sold on for a reason, which may be that it’s a poor example that doesn’t sound great. I’d sooner buy a new (rather than used) Gibson sight unseen as I could just send it back for a refund if it turned out to be a dog.

If you buy used from a shop that still applies.

stickyfiddle

Jocko said:

I had an Epiphone PR 350 S for years, but a couple of years back I decided to go for a Larrivée P-03W. With my increasing size I felt a smaller guitar would be more comfortable to play. I love it. It has a great sound, is easy to play, and at £1K did not require me to sell a kidney.

That looks absolutely lovely! 

meltedbuzzbox

Jocko said:

I had an Epiphone PR 350 S for years, but a couple of years back I decided to go for a Larrivée P-03W. With my increasing size I felt a smaller guitar would be more comfortable to play. I love it. It has a great sound, is easy to play, and at £1K did not require me to sell a kidney.

Jocko said:

I had an Epiphone PR 350 S for years, but a couple of years back I decided to go for a Larrivée P-03W. With my increasing size I felt a smaller guitar would be more comfortable to play. I love it. It has a great sound, is easy to play, and at £1K did not require me to sell a kidney.

I love the look of that!

Jocko

It is really tiny (as you can see it joins the body at the 12th fret). Similar to the one on the International Space Station. Sounds amazing though, despite its diminutive size.

fnpt

Peach seems to have the lowest price I can find for a new J45, even lower than Thomann:

http://www.peachguitars.com/guitars/acoustic-guitars/gibson-2018-j-45-standard-vintage-sunburst.htm

Second hand prices don't seem to be much lower than this.

fnpt

Correction: these guys seem to have the lowest price:

https://www.richtonemusic.co.uk/product/gibson_j-45_standard_vintage_sunburst/

Strangefan

If it plays nice and sounds nice plus you get on with it.. Why upgrade? 

fnpt

Strangefan said:

If it plays nice and sounds nice plus you get on with it.. Why upgrade? 

I suppose that I want to get the best sound possible. The Yamaha does sound good but I don't think it compares with the sound you can get from a more refined guitar such as the Gibson.