What To Do?

jedzep

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Bittersweetly, I passed on my last Guild acoustic, a '70 F20, to help afford a crazy lucky underpriced find... '49 Gibson J50 that needs some work but plays and sounds like...well, you know.

Anyway, Pitt Pastor's line sums it all up. 'GAS is a subtle and brain-weakening disease'...
 

Big-Al

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GAS is a subtle and brain-weakening disease, that's for sure. I've been there."

Me too. I've sold guitars I loved in order to buy guitars I thought I would love even more. I've regretted it every time. It takes a while to develop a full appreciation of the qualities of an instrument. There's no way to be sure from playing it for a few minutes . . . or even a few days.

They're kind of like people . . . Everyone seems normal . . . until you really get to know them. :biggrin-new:
 
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Taylor Martin Guild

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So the Martin D-41 showed up to our weekly Jam last Wednesday.
The owner brought if for my buddy to try out.
The guitar was beautiful and sounded very nice.
The guy also brought a Collings D-2 with him.

We had some fun doing a comparison between the three guitars.
I was quite surprised at how much all three had in common as far as sound goes.
Being that they are all Rosewood Back and sides guitars with Sitka Spruce tops, that shouldn't have surprised me.

I would have been very happy with any of them however I must say that I was very pleased with how well my Guild D-55 held it'd own against these other fantastic guitars.
Not that it surprised me.

The Guild was definitely the Heavy Weight Champ as it was noticeably heavier than the others.
In the end, I'm very happy with my D-55 and I feel privileged to own it.
 

Taylor Martin Guild

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When I first heard about the Martin being for sale, it was said to be a D-45.
That was not right. It turned out being a D-41.
 

Grassdog

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I must say that I was very pleased with how well my Guild D-55 held it'd own against these other fantastic guitars.
Not that it surprised me.

The Guild was definitely the Heavy Weight Champ as it was noticeably heavier than the others.


This is why I've never understood why some folks suggest that lighter builds are preferable. Lighter does not necessarily translate to better tone or better sounding, and tone is what we're really after (I think).
 

PittPastor

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This is why I've never understood why some folks suggest that lighter builds are preferable. Lighter does not necessarily translate to better tone or better sounding, and tone is what we're really after (I think).

I wonder that too. Theoretically, since the sound is coming out of the top mostly, I would think that heavier wood generates more sound. There is probably some sort of a scale that shows volume per thickness, and there is some sweet spot in there... but the wood makes the sound, so trying to minimize how much wood is there seems counter productive to sound at some level.

I guess is depends a little on what you do. If you play mostly standing, and your guitar is plugged into the house PA system, so the tone is somewhat compromised anyway, then maybe a lighter guitar that has a good pickup is what you care about.

If you play seated, and unplugged -- or mic'd -- I'm not sure why weight would matter at all, and tone and natural volume matters more than anything.

Besides, weight is relative. I played my Savoy a lot when I first got it. The first time I picked up my D40C after that, it felt as light as a feather!
 

adorshki

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This is why I've never understood why some folks suggest that lighter builds are preferable. Lighter does not necessarily translate to better tone or better sounding, and tone is what we're really after (I think).

"Lighter" translates to resonance and sustain.
Mass, as in thicker heavier wood, acts as a vibration damper, it absorbs it.
A nice thin top can be muffled by being surrounded by sides that are damping it, even the neck and headstock play a part.
Guild's magic was in being able to get a top to ring nice and loud even in a heavily built body.
I'm sure there's a correlation for relative mass between tops and bodies that still yields great sound, as a opposed to a simple "volume per thickness" scale..it would still depend on what it was attached to.
 

adorshki

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I haven't read the links gjmalcyon posted yet. But, sustain I'll grant you, as that makes sense. No sure resonance is true though. It's like the reeds in a woodwind right? Thinner reeds make a thinner sound.
Reed's equivalent to a top.
What we want from lighter build is body resonance.
Edit: Just read those articles GJ posted myself.
Great stuff, especially about the importance of the box and back vibration (the resonance thing).
Thanks "GJ"!!
Final note:
I realize I may have sounded like I was championing "lighter builds" myself, when actually I do think it's all about the proper relationship of all elements, and I just got a better understanding of what Grassdog meant when he said he didn't understand why some people believe "lighter is preferable".
It's not an absolute truism.
I was just trying to explain what the builders are seeking when they try to use a "light" construction.
 
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twocorgis

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I haven't read the links gjmalcyon posted yet. But, sustain I'll grant you, as that makes sense. No sure resonance is true though. It's like the reeds in a woodwind right? Thinner reeds make a thinner sound.

Dana Bourgeois sums it up very nicely here. The best guitars I own are the lightest builds, and I'm lucky enough to own one of Dana's creations. My '73 D50 is remarkable in that it still sounds pretty good despite being an absolute tank. That's probably a good thing really, because when I was young, I had never heard of a guitar stand or a humidifier, and though it's banged up for sure, there's no cracks at all.
 
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