Positively4thSt
Junior Member
My new M-20 arrived last Friday (august 19th), and I brought her to Toronto as carry-on luggage Saturday the 20th. I played her almost nonstop all week as my wife visited with her family. I am absolutely impressed with this guitar! She is VERY responsive and alive! The fit, finish, setup and feel was perfect out of the box! I'm coaxing great tones out of her whether I play softly with my fingers or driving her hard with a flat pick. She sustains notes forever! I've been playing guitar for 33 years and this is the first small body guitar that's tripped my trigger. I have 3 other acoustics (all dreads) in my stable, an HD-28V (banjo killer) a D-18V (awesome), and a custom built all Koa D-18GE (unreal). My new M-20 holds its own vs. the dreads despite the smaller body (albeit a different tonal spectrum). The bass rumbles in my chest, the mids are punchy & nice, the highs very clear & angelic. FWIW, the tone came VERY alive (to my ears) after swapping the coated strings it was shipped with to PB 13/56's (Martin sp4200). No disrespect if you enjoy coated strings, but this guitar should NOT be used with coated strings IMHO (YMMV). She is alive, vibrant, & sustains notes FOREVER!! The PB's helped in this regard IMHO.
Now that I'm back in Southern Cal, I should mention how easy it was to travel with her & how cool the airline was. We flew AirCanada on an Airbus 321. The case fit perfectly in the overhead, and when they called for passengers with special boarding needs I walked up and asked if I could attempt to place her in the overhead, but I also said I'm happy to gate check if necessary (arriving & departing). The gate gal tagged it for gate check just in case, but it fit snug as a bug on a diagonal, literally a perfect fit. I've been traveling with a mandolin the last few years just to get my string jones off, but the M-20 is the travel guitar solution. I will also play her in the regular rotation for sure. I played her a minimum of 4 hours every day since last Saturday, & I'm really diggin it big time. She has a BIG sound! It's also changed my vocal approach it seems (fewer hounds baying in the neighborhood). I love this guitar ALOT!! <3
I have the shaded top, and the burst is beautiful (screaming mojo). I think the new M-20 is the the best value on the market today. Truly an outstanding guitar! Well balanced, crisp, punchy, and plays like butter. Great job Guild! Thank you for building such a fine guitar! I love her <3 PS: I have number 26 .
Now that I'm back in Southern Cal, I should mention how easy it was to travel with her & how cool the airline was. We flew AirCanada on an Airbus 321. The case fit perfectly in the overhead, and when they called for passengers with special boarding needs I walked up and asked if I could attempt to place her in the overhead, but I also said I'm happy to gate check if necessary (arriving & departing). The gate gal tagged it for gate check just in case, but it fit snug as a bug on a diagonal, literally a perfect fit. I've been traveling with a mandolin the last few years just to get my string jones off, but the M-20 is the travel guitar solution. I will also play her in the regular rotation for sure. I played her a minimum of 4 hours every day since last Saturday, & I'm really diggin it big time. She has a BIG sound! It's also changed my vocal approach it seems (fewer hounds baying in the neighborhood). I love this guitar ALOT!! <3
I have the shaded top, and the burst is beautiful (screaming mojo). I think the new M-20 is the the best value on the market today. Truly an outstanding guitar! Well balanced, crisp, punchy, and plays like butter. Great job Guild! Thank you for building such a fine guitar! I love her <3 PS: I have number 26 .
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