Quote:
Originally Posted by wolverinewolfweiselpigeon
So for the past 6 months I've had my boss' Martin D16 on indefinite loan, and I'm feeling like I should give it back soon. The problem is that after playing such a good guitar for so long, going back to one of my shitty knock-offs will be nearly impossible, so I'm wanting to sell one of them and save up money to buy a good guitar. I'm pretty in love with Martins at this point, but they're super expensive.
So I guess my question is, should I really spend the money on a Martin (I'm looking at D18's and haven't found anything under $1,200), or is there a comparable brand out there that I just haven't heard of? I don't want to settle, but if there's something almost as good out there that will save me money I would really like to know about it.
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Go down to a shop, name a price a smidgens under your budget, and ask them to advise you on guitars around that price range.
Do *NOT* buy anything until you've had at least 3 guitars there, right in front of you, on floor stands, to do A/B comparisons with. Acoustic guitars are very finicky on build quality and you want to pick the one with the voice you like, not just some random "good" guitar.
When I bought my Breedlove (A brand I recommend you at least try), I had 5 acoustic guitars around me on stands and STILL walked out of the shop to check the other guitar shop in town, before I came back and bought the breedlove.
Any music shop worth your business should have no problems letting you do this. If they refuse to let you try at least a couple guitars at a time, walk out of the shop and buy somewhere else. A few bucks here or there is well worth the right guitar, and the right help in finding it.
I wouldn't go by internet recommendations. The acoustic guitar is a pretty standardised instrument, not much changes in terms of design, it all comes down to build quality. And like I said, acoustics are more finicky than electrics in this regard.