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Post by matt on Mar 10, 2014 8:07:33 GMT -6
I have decided to add another guitar to my harem, to use in the studio. I went shopping yesterday and gravitated toward the Martins I saw: D-18, D-28, D-35. I had the luxury of meeting a really good folk stylist who was happy to play the hell out of all three while I critically listened. The problem is - and it's always a problem - I couldn't decide. I thought that they all sounded pretty good, my fave being the D-28. They seemed pretty balanced tone-wise. Not super-huge, but pleasant to listen to, and any of them would record pretty easily, IMHO. He thought that, being new, all of them sounded "tight" and advised me to look for a "good" example from the '70s or so on the used market, to find one that had been "opened up" due to years of playing. Normally I am all in for used gear but the chance of finding the perfect oldish D-28 or whichever locally is pretty much zero, so I would be looking to find one through a reliable dealer. I am a bit sketch on buying without trying on this.
My local retail market is dominated by Martin and Taylor for guitars in the 1.5-3K USD price range. I don't think I could go too wrong on a Martin dreadnaught but I ask all of my fellow RGO acoustic players to provide input on what they would do if they were looking for a new (or used) 6 string to record with. Budget is $2500, give or take. I am open to any suggestion: brand, body type, woods, etc, with the goal of finding something I can record with for (hopefully) years to come.
Only Taylor is off the table for me. They are a fine brand but my 614ce more than takes care of the bright side of things and I am looking for a richer, more harmonically complex tone.
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Post by mobeach on Mar 10, 2014 16:24:15 GMT -6
What genre's of music will you be playing with it? Takamine, Gibson or Martin will cover just about everything.
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Post by matt on Mar 10, 2014 16:54:44 GMT -6
What genre's of music will you be playing with it? Takamine, Gibson or Martin will cover just about everything. Mostly Zeppelin-tinged strumming parts. Some finger style but nothing complex, and possibly some alternate tuning stuff. |
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Post by Deleted on Mar 10, 2014 17:10:46 GMT -6
I had a Taylor 710 but would not buy Taylor again. Gibson has a dark sound and Martin seems to have a signature gutty tone. Of all the ones in that range, I really like the tone of Breedlove guitars. They have a punchy sound to me. My second choice would be a Martin but if have to be picky and then a cheaper Yamaha as they stay open so well when you bang on them. Good luck on the hunt.
One trick I used to get to my place if preference is taking a zoom h4n and recording the ones I played to hear what the mic hears and not the player.
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Post by matt on Mar 10, 2014 17:35:58 GMT -6
I had a Taylor 710 but would not buy Taylor again. Gibson has a dark sound and Martin seems to have a signature gutty tone. Of all the ones in that range, I really like the tone of Breedlove guitars. They have a punchy sound to me. My second choice would be a Martin but if have to be picky and then a cheaper Yamaha as they stay open so well when you bang on them. Good luck on the hunt. One trick I used to get to my place if preference is taking a zoom h4n and recording the ones I played to hear what the mic hears and not the player. GC carries Breedlove, I think, I'll check them out. My tactic when shopping worked to perfection yesterday: hang out until a good player wanders by, chat him/her up, and ask to hear some playing. I tell them why, too: that I am going to record with it and want to hear it from the mic's "perspective". Works every time. But the Zoom thing is a great idea, thanks, I've always wanted a reasonable excuse to buy one. |
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Post by mobeach on Mar 10, 2014 17:48:31 GMT -6
Have you heard Blueridge?
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Post by jeromemason on Mar 10, 2014 18:00:08 GMT -6
Have you heard Blueridge? Right there..... that's the same guitar I have and it's just like a Martin, love that guitar. Paid about $700 for it brand new for a little music store in town. What's pretty cool is that if what you're playing calls for something just a little less bassy or boomy you can take a few moon gels and put them behind the bridge and it'll even out really nice. Great guitar. My all time favorite acoustic though is a J-45, those are pretty hard to beat if you've got the 3k for one. |
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Post by Martin John Butler on Mar 10, 2014 18:34:16 GMT -6
Oh man, if you like the Jimmy Page acoustic sounds, look nowhere else but Martin. I believe he also used very light strings, and I prefer 13's, but my Martin sounds so much like his, that when I'm working with students, it's sometime hard to tell which one is me and which is his.
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Post by matt on Mar 10, 2014 18:53:46 GMT -6
Oh man, if you like the Jimmy Page acoustic sounds, look nowhere else but Martin. I believe he also used very light strings, and I prefer 13's, but my Martin sounds so much like his, that when I'm working with students, it's sometime hard to tell which one is me and which is his. Martin, you own a D-41, yes? I noticed that the different D-series guitars I heard yesterday all had different bracing. I thought that the D-35 had very low action - too low, ironically, too much like an electric. I kept rotating back to the D-28, although the player I worked with did not like it all that much, comparing it to his inherited 28. I suppose a 40-year-old instrument in good condition would sound "bigger" than an unplayed factory-fresh guitar. But this doesn't bother me all that much since I would immediately start playing the heck out of it, and then there's the warranty that comes with a new guitar. So, my question is: what do I get by upping my budget, other than more elaborate inlays/purfling, etc? Better tone woods? Lighter, more resonant construction? That elusive mojo that results from the builders massaging on their hi-end instruments? I was at the Mandolin Bros site earlier, and saw some nice options. Since I cannot visit their showroom, would you purchase one from them without trying it out first? I hesitate to do this for the obvious reasons, but all I have here in Phoenix is GCs and a Sam Ash. And a local place called Bizarre Guitar. Gonna visit them soon, just to see what they have. But I envy you all who are in NYC, Nashville, and LA. Phoenix may be big, but not musically-speaking. |
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Post by Martin John Butler on Mar 10, 2014 20:51:00 GMT -6
Hi Matt, I'll try to help in any way I can. There's an urban legend about Mandoline Bros. that happens to be true. When Paul McCartney needed his original Hofner bass repaired, he sent someone all the way from England, to Mandoline Bros., with instructions to never let it out of his site. The main technician there went to high school with my drummer, so we have long term connections there. They are high priced, but they seem to get the best pieces. I would take a long look at the D-16 series before jumping to a higher price bracket. As for the D-41, the inlays and decoration are a only a small part of the difference. Mine has an Adirondack Spruce top,and custom design forward bracings found in no other Martin. When I did my last album, I used a friend's D-28 and another friend's Vintage reissue D-35. Listening to them alone, they sounded beautiful, but when played next to my Turbo, they weren't as good on any single level, projection, balance, volume, tone, sustain, playing ease, etc. I have played a couple of D-16's that were just so much better than average, I would have been happy to use them without reservation, but you'd have to get lucky to find a special one. Try to overlook the obnoxious poetry here: mandoweb.com/Instruments/Martin-D41A+Turbo%2c+Mandolin+Brothers%2fMartin+Custom/2613 |
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Post by matt on Mar 10, 2014 21:40:39 GMT -6
Thanks Martin, I appreciate it. And I've been looking at that guitar all day. What a piece! I've pretty much settled on Martin, now it's up to finding one. I'll look at the D-16. Of course, they offer more than one model: D-16s |
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Post by Martin John Butler on Mar 11, 2014 20:32:08 GMT -6
You got the right one, I can feel it from here.
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Post by matt on Mar 11, 2014 21:58:17 GMT -6
You got the right one, I can feel it from here. Yep, an HD-28, heading my way: 2010 HD-28Thanks again for your input Martin, I value it highly. |
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Post by Martin John Butler on Mar 11, 2014 22:01:46 GMT -6
My pleasure Matt, can't wait for you to have it in hand.
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