It’s time for (yet) another instrument purchase. I’d like to get a good acoustic guitar. I am no stranger to buying instruments and I usually am quite picky when I go to get them. Right now I have a Gibson Les Paul Custom electric, a Gibson ES-175. I have a Yamaha Concert Classical Guitar as well. I have a medium range takanime guitar that I would like to upgrade. What say the dopers?
My pipe dream is this guitar…but I plan on being a homeowner one day 
You said “good” acoustic.
A Martin D-18 is a good acoustic.
A Martin D-28 is a great acoustic.
I recently decided that I’d wasted too much time trying to get the sound I wanted out of my '30s Gibson archtop. So I traded it in and went shopping. I’ll admit right off to not being much of a Martin fan and in general find them to be inconsistent. I was looking for something a little closer to hand-made than the large factory guys, but couldn’t quite swing a full custom build.
I was looking for a dreadnought guitar and found that I was most impressed by Collings, Santa Cruz and Huss and Dalton. All of them fantastic in their own ways, beautifully made and with wonderful tone. In the end, I chose a Huss and Dalton DM spruce/mahogany dread. Didn’t know much about the company, but that was the guitar that I just didn’t want to put down, with the Santa Cruz Vintage Artist in close second. Turns out that I have a vague personal connection with H&D as they’re made in Staunton, Virginia, not too far from where I went to college. They got a little shop there in town and make maybe 300 guitars a year. Couldn’t be happier, but any of the three makers in my final pool would have been great choices.
Moving thread from IMHO to Cafe Society.
Another company to consider is Larivee. Wonderful acoustic guitars.
I love Santa Cruz, too.
Nobody else?
I am putting my kids to bed. I will try to offer some thoughts tonight or sometime tomorrow…
I used to want to get a Takamine, until I laid my hands on an Alvarez, at Axe Music… I think it might have been this one, judging by the look of it, but I’m just going by memory…
Anyways, it was one of the absolute nicest-sounding guitars I’d ever played, and I almost impulse-bought it on the spot!
I kind of wish I had bought it, but I’m sure I can wait till next year… it was under $800 Canadian…
If you have an Alvarez dealer near you, see if you can check out the Yairi line; these guitars are second to none.
S^G
How much ya got? 
I play 90% fingerstyle and I have a Taylor 712 that I bought in '92 or thereabouts for a little over $1000. I stopped looking after that until now (looking at getting a classical acoustic electric). At the time it was the bottom or near bottom of the Taylor Grand Auditorium line with spruce top, rosewood back and sides, and ebony fingerboard. It’s my favorite instrument. Taylor now has several lines below that and they’ve totally rejiggered their model numbering system so I don’t know what’s what anymore but they might be worth checking out. I played a Santa Cruz OM when I was looking (couldn’t afford one) and remember it had a distinctive sort of V profile neck that felt great in my hand. The Taylor neck is shallower but still a breeze to play. I also got to liking Lowden guitars.
I’m looking in the 3000$ range. I went out and tried a bunch of guitars today. I tried the Martin Hd-28…I liked it but wasn’t as impressed as I thought I would be. I tried a taylor I really liked…very good for my style. Jazz / classical is my background and the guitar felt like it really accentuated the individual notes like a piano…I don’t know if it’s me but it sounded almost too “nice”
I want that “grand piano sound” and I want “character”…I don’t know what that is exactly but I want it!
Ah, you’re in for some good times. There are a lot of fantastic instruments in that price range, and in my search, I really enjoyed playing a lot of guitars that weren’t what I was looking for, but still very interesting. Don’t rush the process, take your time.
Incidentally, while I was looking, I played an HD-28LSV that was my favorite Martin by far. I wouldn’t figure it to be a good match for the sound I think you’re looking for one way or the other. My guess is that you might find what you’re looking for in a OOO or an OM sized body.
What part of, um, Hell do you live in? The guitar stores there any good?
I went to a Guitar Center on Friday and played a Martin D-35. It was the only guitar I’ve ever strummed that sounded better than my Martin D-16. I’ve played Gibsons, Alvarez, Takamine, and none have matched Martin for their sound. Very nice, mellow, well-rounded tone.
Again, I don’t have much time, but if you are looking at $3000 then Martin and Martin variants (Santa Cruz, Collings, the maker Doc Watson uses that I can’t remember, etc.). You haven’t mentioned Taylor - they are incredibly well made, consistent guitars. If you like the Taylor feel and sound - kinda in-between Martin and Gibson, just like PRS is kinda between Fender and Gibson for electrics…
My favorite line is that Gibson acoustics sound like close-in family harmonies and Martins sound like a choir. I prefer that Gibson type of tone, so I don’t know how much help I will be - I had a gorgeous rosewood Taylor concert sized for over a decade, and traded it for a Gibson J-45 I fell in love with (**Runs with Scissors **- I would disagree with you - a D-18 is a freakin’ great guitar with a mahogany body and a D-28 is one with a rosewood body - just different beasts) I happen to prefer a mahogany-bodied acoustic vs. a rosewood, at least in this case. The biggest problem is really getting to try out the guitar - you have to really live with one for a bit to get a feel for it.
One idea: read “Clapton’s Guitar” by Allen St. John - it is about a steel-string guitar maker out of West Virginia and what all goes into making an acoustic. It gets inside what makes a truly great acoustic truly great - I suspect you would find it inspiring and helpful.
Best of luck,
WordMan
It seems like Martin really beefed up their OO/OOO/OM offerings in the last ten years or so. When I was shopping in the early '90s a Martin OM was practically a museum piece only to be found in vintage shops. A few years ago I played a basic OOO-something and really liked it (for whatever reason I like the sparse aesthetic of the lower end Martins).
Ha! The only music store in town is a combination sewing machine shop / music store. They have high quality sewing machines…but not much for guitar. They do have some nice Ukuleles though.
I usually shop in Saskatoon, but I should make a trip to Edmonton I think before deciding.
I did try the Taylor, and right now it’s my favourite. But this will be a long process.
Make sure to try the R. Taylor line as well if you can.
I attribute this to Clapton’s use of an 000-28 I think for Unplugged.
And I agree; I love a simple Martin, just like I like the spare, unbound neck of a slope-shouldered J-45 with mahogany back and sides and a sunburst finish…The Workhorse indeed. It’s a rhythm box more than a fingerpicker…
I don’t know if you can get them in the States, or what the price range will be like, but I fell in love with a Lakewood guitar - £1400 worth of guitar selling for £1000 on special.
I walked out of the shop with a heavy heart, and haven’t been back, but it was a wonderful instrument. Worth a look if you can find a dealer.
Si
One minor point. Wayne Henderson made Clapton’s guitar in the book. He is from the southwest part of Virginia, not from West Virginia.