Going unplugged but I've never had a decent accoustic - suggestions..?

stickyfiddle

FWIW I’m looking for something to complement my HD28 and a the Atkin Forty Seven (Gibson LG2 done really really well) is my current front runner

McSwaggerty

A few years ago l thought l wanted a Martin Dreadnought.
Bought a D18.  Over the next 2 months l tried really hard to like it.
It was a Martin after all..... What's wrong with me.? 
But eventually sold it and bought a cheaper short scale Eastman
It was the right decision for me. Never been happier. 

ICBM

camf said:

I think it helps the er... less tall players to stretch over a Dreadnought if they’re skinny. Short of stature and a big beer belly must be a complicating factor.  

Well, as you know I do have to admit to being a bit on the thin side .

Neill said:

Th size thing does concern me a bit, I am quite small and must admit I had ruled out dreadnoughts, but I am also skinny so who knows...

At least Dreadnoughts are the most common guitar size. If you can find a way to borrow one - any brand or quality - you’ll know in five minutes.

But definitely don’t rule one out until you do. I love them simply because they sound the best - don’t believe the myth that they’re only for strumming either, a good one is great for fingerstyle as well... that’s why they’re the most popular design.

Colms2005

Santa Cruz OM/PW is a great Swiss Army knife approach. It does everything very well if you can manage the 1”3/4” nut width.

Basher

ICBM said:

At least Dreadnoughts are the most common guitar size. If you can find a way to borrow one - any brand or quality - you’ll know in five minutes.

But definitely don’t rule one out until you do. I love them simply because they sound the best - don’t believe the myth that they’re only for strumming either, a good one is great for fingerstyle as well... that’s why they’re the most popular design.

Despite my suggesting an OM, there be great wisdom here.

Thinking about some of the players I loved, like John Martyn and Bert Jansch, they spent much of their time playing dreadnought-sized acoustics, despite being mainly fingerstyle players. I guess we have so much choice now that we forget that most of the time, particularly in the UK, you just got the best thing you could and got on with it.

 I do find my OM more "comfortable" than my bigger Yamaha L. My new Eastman OO is even more "comfortable" than the OM. However, once I play any of them for a few minutes, I seem to adapt to the size and it becomes far less noticeable. The common factor is that I'm equally terrible on them all and that's the issue I probably need to address, rather than convincing myself that a short scale OOO with the squarer "OM" body shape and mahogany back and sides is what I need to transform my playing!

Moominpapa

ICBM said:

earwighoney said:

I'd never recommend a dread to anyone as a starting point unless they are on the taller side of things. Playing a dread for a short man like myself is like plucking strings on the other side of a wardrobe.

IMO, I'd always recommend an acoustic depending on the size of the player and their budget. 

I'm 5'6" on my tiptoes and I prefer Dreadnoughts to any other style of guitar.

I'm 5' 4". Earlier this year I did buy a Fender parlour acoustic as I was tempted by the idea of the smaller body , but when I compared the sound to my Yamaha FG830 - well, I sold the Fender a couple of days later. I basically gave myself a slap and an instruction to man up and remember that Paul Simon is 5' 3", and he did pretty well with an HD 12-28 back in the day.

Richardrichard

You don't need to spend £1500+ for a decent acoustic, take a look at some of the newer breed like Faith, Sire, Sigma.

In my opinion just like fender/gibson in the electric world, with a lot of Taylor/Martin type stuff much of the money goes on the name and the fact that it's assembled by underpaid undermotivated americans rather than underpaid undermotivated people from the far east.

ICBM

Richardrichard said:

In my opinion just like fender/gibson in the electric world, with a lot of Taylor/Martin type stuff much of the money goes on the name and the fact that it's assembled by underpaid undermotivated americans rather than underpaid undermotivated people from the far east.

Some of their cheaper models are made by Mexicans, who may be a bit better motivated... they're probably (relatively) paid a better wage than their counterparts in the US.

JRgtar

ICBM said:

Don't get built-in electrics unless you *really* need a stage guitar with onboard control. Otherwise, you're always better with a plain acoustic guitar, even if you later want to fit it with a pickup.

Interesting, is this because the inbuilt pickups are not as good as aftermarket options? Appreciate you may be paying a premium then for something that isn’t great.

On another note, and from my own experience, my ‘low-end’ Taylor 114 sounds fantastic and is nicely finished. Owners of more expensive models have commented on it. So much of an acoustic sound comes down to personal preference in my opinon, so don’t ignore the ‘low-end’ models.

darius

Tanglewood - excellent and a whole range to choose from

ICBM

JRgtar said:

Interesting, is this because the inbuilt pickups are not as good as aftermarket options? Appreciate you may be paying a premium then for something that isn’t great.

Yes, you're paying a premium for a system which is usually not as good as you could fit yourself if you had the choice, and which often involves having a big hole cut in the guitar for the preamp box. This is a bad idea, because firstly it can actually affect the acoustic sound of the guitar, and secondly it's usually a unique size which makes replacing or upgrading it in the future difficult - so you're left with a nicely ageing acoustic guitar fitted with an obsolete preamp system. They are also surprisingly prone to failure.

It's much better to get a pure acoustic guitar, and if you need to amplify it, fit it with a simple onboard pickup and an output jack - then run it through an outboard preamp, which can be replaced or upgraded at any time with zero trouble. The only reason I would have onboard electrics is if I was playing gigs where I really needed hands-on control of my own sound - I have, in the past, so I had a guitar like that. I'm glad I don't have it now, because the system - which was pretty good in its day - would now sound very dated.

One thing you'll find which is very annoying is that it's now quite difficult to buy a cutaway acoustic without fitted electrics - there seems to be an assumption that the two things go together.

Dominic

To me nothing sounds as nice as a Lowden .......almost Grand  Piano like in clarity 
I hate the fuzzy boom of a Martin
Taylor is a great compromise and I find them very easy to play

Andy79

Original 50s (fat neck) or 60s (thinner) J45?
lightweight, lively, punchy, full rich tone with thudding bass. Cool looking too

JRgtar

ICBM said:

JRgtar said:

Interesting, is this because the inbuilt pickups are not as good as aftermarket options? Appreciate you may be paying a premium then for something that isn’t great.

Yes, you're paying a premium for a system which is usually not as good as you could fit yourself if you had the choice, and which often involves having a big hole cut in the guitar for the preamp box. This is a bad idea, because firstly it can actually affect the acoustic sound of the guitar, and secondly it's usually a unique size which makes replacing or upgrading it in the future difficult - so you're left with a nicely ageing acoustic guitar fitted with an obsolete preamp system. They are also surprisingly prone to failure.

It's much better to get a pure acoustic guitar, and if you need to amplify it, fit it with a simple onboard pickup and an output jack - then run it through an outboard preamp, which can be replaced or upgraded at any time with zero trouble. The only reason I would have onboard electrics is if I was playing gigs where I really needed hands-on control of my own sound - I have, in the past, so I had a guitar like that. I'm glad I don't have it now, because the system - which was pretty good in its day - would now sound very dated.

One thing you'll find which is very annoying is that it's now quite difficult to buy a cutaway acoustic without fitted electrics - there seems to be an assumption that the two things go together.

Thanks, really useful answer, it’s appreciated. I also know what you mean about the cutaway and pickup always included thing, very true.

I found my acoustic, loved the sound, but was slightly concerned I’d made an error not getting one with a pickup, but the logic you use makes me think otherwise. 

BingMan

Guess it all depends on how you define 'decent'
The tone of an acoustic is incredible subjective so these topics always turn into what other members like... which isn't to say that you'll like the same thing.

I'd start by listening to what sort of music you like, and find out what artists you admire plays what.
Of course, "you can play anything on anything", as they say... but it's a starting point and maybe will give your search some direction and focus.

I could list all the top builders going... but we don't have much to go off without some idea of budget, or types of music you like to play

Do you play blues? Country? Bluegrass? Fingerstyle? Slide? OASIS?!
Is £1000 where your head is at? £2000? £3000? £10,000? pre-war Martin d28 money?!

think If anyone is going to really be able to point you in the right direction we're going to need some more to go off!

meltedbuzzbox

BingMan said:

Guess it all depends on how you define 'decent'
The tone of an acoustic is incredible subjective so these topics always turn into what other members like... which isn't to say that you'll like the same thing.

I'd start by listening to what sort of music you like, and find out what artists you admire plays what.
Of course, "you can play anything on anything", as they say... but it's a starting point and maybe will give your search some direction and focus.

I could list all the top builders going... but we don't have much to go off without some idea of budget, or types of music you like to play

Do you play blues? Country? Bluegrass? Fingerstyle? Slide? OASIS?!
Is £1000 where your head is at? £2000? £3000? £10,000? pre-war Martin d28 money?!

think If anyone is going to really be able to point you in the right direction we're going to need some more to go off!

You can't pick a guitar based on type of music you play. Unless you have a real desire to sound like a carbon copy of someone else. The notes dictate what the music is, not the guitar

Jalapeno

As mid budget guitars go, Faith  & Breedlove taking some beating.  Sure a Martin if you can afford it as it is a lifer investment.

meltedbuzzbox

Jalapeno said:

As mid budget guitars go, Faith  & Breedlove taking some beating.  Sure a Martin if you can afford it as it is a lifer investment.

I was a happy faith player for years. Totally agree that in their price range they are really nice.

Breedlove... I played the top end model that they had in coda. It had more bass than a bazooka. It dominated everything, it even managed to drown out @impmann trying to play a guitar on the otherside of the room. Absolutely mental thing.

I have to say though, there was a massive difference between the martin I bought and the faith I traded in.
To be fair the price reflected that too

drofluf

meltedbuzzbox said:

Jalapeno said:

As mid budget guitars go, Faith  & Breedlove taking some beating.  Sure a Martin if you can afford it as it is a lifer investment.

I was a happy faith player for years. Totally agree that in their price range they are really nice.

Breedlove... I played the top end model that they had in coda. It had more bass than a bazooka. It dominated everything, it even managed to drown out @impmann trying to play a guitar on the otherside of the room. Absolutely mental thing.

I have to say though, there was a massive difference between the martin I bought and the faith I traded in.
To be fair the price reflected that too

Never played a Breedlove but agree 100% with the rest. Was totally happy with my Faith before I got my Martin but they’re different price brackets. 

But as @BingMan said you need to at least specify a budget. 

Snags

If you're not worried about the name on the headstock, currently have no acoustic at all, and want to just get something that works for a reasonable price then based on a combination of personal experience and observation around the local open mic circuit, it's worth considering Faith, Furch, Eastman, Yamaha, Guild, Tanglewood.

Budget-wise new that's likely to start around £500-ish and rise to as many thousands as you want to throw at it.