New acoustic time: what am I looking for?

Musical_Mystery_Tour

Theoretically yes it should, but acoustics are strange beasts; the best-sounding acoustic I have is a cheap one made from wafer-thin wood and that is what makes it sing.

thomasross20

Nice one! 8)

DavidR

All totes subjective the tone thing 'innit. So you find an instrument which sounds great new and then it ages away from your perceived perfect tone. 

Or your ears change!

On specific question Thomas. Laminates age. As to improve......................? Up to you!

:-)

deejayen

The aforementioned maple Guild jumbos have laminated backs which are pressed to form an arch.  They have solid maple sides.  Mine is 30+ years old, and although I never heard it when it was new, it seems to respond like an all-solid wood guitar which has been played a lot.

guitarjack66

I've got a 15 year old cheap  laminate that sounds great. Beauty/tone is in the eye of the beholder. Just take a look at those reliced guitars for evidence. 

thomasross20

DavidR said:

All totes subjective the tone thing 'innit. So you find an instrument which sounds great new and then it ages away from your perceived perfect tone. 

Or your ears change!

On specific question Thomas. Laminates age. As to improve......................? Up to you!

:-)

My problem now is they age and sound better if they're played so having too many means no one will achieve its ultimate potential. 

The ToneRite I got WORKS. 

But looking to offload. Hence the L05 sale and potentially electrics soon, too.

jw_H-535

Get to a good shop and try some acoustics. Acoustics vary a lot, I tried many Martins before finding my number Om21 in a small private shop in London, Maybe consider a Atkin aswell, vintage Martin style with our the high end Martin price. 

Christeafur

https://www.glennsguitars.com/2013-patrick-james-eggle-kanuga-1999/

12 fret slope shoulder slotted headstock and sunburst…no idea what she sounds like but I’m gonna guess with the bridge being set back that bit more she’ll have a lot of punch…

bermudianbrit

definitely still on the hunt .

p90fool

bermudianbrit said:

 However, what I’d like is a cannon of an acoustic to do that big strumming thing and some bluegrass picking as well – I’m a fan of Billy Strings and Molly Tuttle and all of those pickers.

 

I’ve recently had the chance to play a friend’s Gibson SJ200 and absolutely loved it – it was big and bold but also bright in a way that appealed to me. I then played a Gibson J45 studio and a Martin D35 in a shop. The Gibson J45 studio had the really nice bright thing but wasn’t as loud as I would have preferred. The D35 was really, really dark in comparison and (I know this is heresy) I didn’t rate it as highly! The other problem with the J45 studio was that the neck was really, really small. I found it mildly uncomfortable.

A Gibson J-35 answers all of those questions, you should find one for about a grand. Really loud, bright, capable of delicacy and a big-ish neck.