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Best Acoustic For The Cash...


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Should be able to get quite a spiffy guitar for $350, the way companies have been pricing their wares lately. For half that you can get quite a good Yamaha, so I'd imagine for $350, going up the Yamaha scale of guit-boxes you should be able to find something quite nice.

I'm not much of an expert when it comes to buying an acoustic-- I bought a Guild for almost a grand, and a Yamaha for about a tenth that, which is holding up and playing just fine after 3 years' usage. Another friend bought a Yamaha that was a bit pricier, and he loves it so much that he's not even interested in buying something 'nicer' now that he can afford to.

However-- don't take that as a recommendation of one over another. Rather, my limited experience shopping for acoustics has mostly led me to Yamaha, and I've been out of the loop so I don't know much about what else is out there.

Greg

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Quite ironic...

my current acoustic is a yamaha...

aI have no clue what model it is as the label was worn off (by me) after using is as an ashtray years ago... ...

either way.. it's a bit beat (although it has some serious sentimental value).........

yamaha is a somewhat cryptic company...

any models I am to be aware of my northern friend B)

(I'm from just south of the lake ontario)...... and I've been known to visit your great lands......

:D:D

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Theres a line I've seen for sale called "Waldren" that are pretty good for the price. I tried a couple out and was impressed with the fit and finish. And the ones I tried had good initial setup. Too many new acoustics need their action adjusted these days.

I've played acoustic guitar for many years and have owned quite a few in that price range. I've had a Yamaki, Takamine, Yamaha, Ovation and a few Fenders. I didn't like the neck shape on the Fender F-35 (GF bought it for me) but otherwise, it was a good guitar for the price. I still have my Fender Gemini II, been over 20 years now, and I wouldn't part with it. I found alot of Fender acoustics that were made in Japan back in the 70's and 80's to be good quality guitars. That was back in the day when quality materials were still around. In all that time I've had to adjust the truss rod and dress the frets only once. And that guitar has A LOT of miles on it. :D

Edited by Southpa
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man, if you don't mind "alternative" stuff, go with an Ovation.

try one out thoug. It's a love/hate thing!

You'll either hate or love those :D

i just LOVE mine even compared to guitars 2x its price... Probably just me lol (inlanely low action... at least now that i removed a few shims) =D

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I was looking at acoustics a while back and played several. Seagull has some nice ones, cedar tops and satin finish. Yamaha and Takamine are always a given. I've had a couple of Ovations and loved them. I had an Alvarez (not Yairi) 20 years ago or so that a buddy still has. Ibanez has some really interesting stuff (I got a closeout AEF30TBK for $319). The Taylor Big Baby is an excellent value. The biggest surprise was a $99 Squier I tried out just for laughs. It had a big round sound, a nice neck, and for a C-note, I almost took one home.

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Right now I'm playing a Fender DG-20ce. I got very lucky with this one. Found it at a pawn shop in CRAPPY condition. Stuff caked all over it and strings that sounded 3 years old. The action's a little high, but that's the way I need it for my style. Not too hard to remedy if I need to anyway. Something about it had the x factor going on, and I just felt like it would sound good with some new strings, and removing what seemed to be 1/8" of tape residue mixed with beer from the entire soundboard. Plugged in it'll stay with just about any acoustic I've ever heard, except the new Taylors with the Expression pickups. Wound up gettin it for $125, took it home, gave it some TLC. I've never found anything below a grand that can keep up with this thing. Moral of the story is, don't buy a guitar just because it's a model that somebody else likes or just because you like the wood. Buy the specific guitar that you like. That could mean playing a LOT to find that one, but it's worth the hassle.

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i've been selling two brands for the last four years as entry to itermediate level instruments. one is arbor and the other is woods. they're both full size dreadnaughts, they both have solid tops, sealed tuners and generally come out of the box ready to play with little or no tweaking. and they're both well under your budget. i get them from my two major distibutors and have no idea if you can get them straight from the manufacturer. do a google search and see if you can or check with your local guitar shop. chances are they get some of their instruments and accessories from one or the other of my distributors.

by the way, i've got a takemine that i paid nearly a grand for to gig with and it still can't match my 20+ year old yamaha fg 335 II for tone or volume. and no, it's not for sale. sorry. :D

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I bought a DG-20 from a drunk in a music store that was bothering the salespersons trying get some bucks for it and leave. I told the owner to give me a set of Darcos/medium bronze and threw them on in about three minutes, a new record, I believe. Three chords and a three-octave later, I gave the guy $70.00 and he left. That is the best $70.00 I have ever spent. Beat to hell, looks like crap and plays like an Epi Emperor. Nice neck. I haven't a clue who makes Fender's accoustics for them but they do a good job. Almost as good as (you don't wanna hear this) Yamaha. For under $500.00, I would look at both the Fender and the Yamaha. Forget Epiphone, Washburn, Ovation (like $500.00 will get much) or the cheaper Taylors. Buy the most you can afford and take it home over a weekend before you pay them for it.

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I bought a DG-20 from a drunk in a music store that was bothering the salespersons trying get some bucks for it and leave. I told the owner to give me a set of Darcos/medium bronze and threw them on in about three minutes, a new record, I believe. Three chords and a three-octave later, I gave the guy $70.00 and he left. That is the best $70.00 I have ever spent. Beat to hell, looks like crap and plays like an Epi Emperor. Nice neck. I haven't a clue who makes Fender's accoustics for them but they do a good job. Almost as good as (you don't wanna hear this) Yamaha. For under $500.00, I would look at both the Fender and the Yamaha. Forget Epiphone, Washburn, Ovation (like $500.00 will get much) or the cheaper Taylors. Buy the most you can afford and take it home over a weekend before you pay them for it.

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I would suggest hitting the pawn shops and see what you can find there. With acoustics, the more they're played the better they sound. Sooooo.....If you can find one that you like that's already broken in, you should be able to get a pretty good deal on it. Just make sure it has a solid wood soundboard and preferably a solid wood body not laminate or NATO (read: plywood) Play as many as your fingers will stand until you find the one that says BUY ME!!!!

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I would suggest hitting the pawn shops and see what you can find there.  With acoustics, the more they're played the better they sound.  Sooooo.....If you can find one that you like that's already broken in, you should be able to get a pretty good deal on it.  Just make sure it has a solid wood soundboard and preferably a solid wood body not laminate or NATO (read: plywood)  Play as many as your fingers will stand until you find the one that says BUY ME!!!!

THat's some good advice :D

thanks I have not bought it yes.......... but they just put up a new "Guitar Center" here in Syracuse so I'll be checking a few guit-fiddles out on lunch tuesday :D

thanks

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get a bc rich eagle acoustic or a thinline mockingbird :D

Right, because their guitars just ooze quality! :D

I've played everything from entry level Epiphones to $3000 Taylors (and found it odd that the 614 sounded better than all of its higher priced siblings), and I still love my Tacoma DM-9. Nothing in the sub-1000 price range sounds even close, and many guitars that cost 2-4 times as much don't sound nearly as good. They can be found used/on ebay for the price you're looking to pay.

They were recently bough by Fender, so I'm not sure what the future holds for them, but their past guitars were awesome.

Remember the Alamo, and God Bless Texas...

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Try everything in your price range out. There is no perfect guitar, except the one YOU find. We are all going to agree on some and disagree on lots more.

Try out Yamahas. They are affordable and they do make good quality acoustics. I have tried about 3-4 yamaha acoustics and they are good guitars for the price.

Edited by sepultura999
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Hope the pawn shops in Syracuse work differently than the ones in Ottawa. Around here there's no such thing as a pawn shop prize, because almost everything is overpriced or worthless... or both. Pawn shops here seem to only exist because there are actually people here that believe a pawn shop is a place for a bargain; however in these parts it's actually probably the quickest way to scam yourself out of some money.

Greg

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Greg, you are so right. I live in Toronto and in Toronto there's a whole street of pawn shops, and every single one of them has maybe one to four guitars. all of them are garbage. There was a store here called the Richmond trading post and it had about 50+ guitars, most of them 60s japanese stuff, ranging from 50-100 bucks. Yes it is particle board, however not bad to start a fret repair on, or put it on ebay and im sure it'll sell since these types of guitars are going up.

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