Acoustic upgrade?

How much are you looking to spend?

The two listed above in the $220 - $280 range. I don't have a problem holding off for a while and spending more, but I wouldn't want to go more that $600.

$600 can buy you a lot of guitar. I'd hold off.

When I get off of work I'll list a few that I recommend.

Now, don't get me wrong, I'd rather spend the <=$300. I won't be averse to spend up to $600 in the near future, but not if I don't have to. I've done some research on the two guitars listed, and it seems that they are both good values. I'd like to get the best "value" for my money. So I guess my follow up question would be... If you are recommending a more expensive guitar than the two listed, why? What will I be getting for the extra $? Any info would be great!

Let's see, you'll get:

Often solid woods all around
Better quality woods
Tusq or Bone or Micarta nut and saddle
better quality tuners
decent electronics
perhaps scalloped bracing
all around better quality build

There isn't anything wrong with your current guitar that isn't really wrong with the ones you mention, besides a solid top.

The Fender GA is solid wood all around, as are the Epiphone Masterbuilts. Breedlove Atlas can be found right around that price and there are several Martins at that price point.

Hi

I started out with a £99 steel string acoustic and like you I wanted to upgrade. Loads of recommendations on here (like S&P, Larrivee etc etc) were around the £350 mark, so I tried them and to be honest it made me realise that my £99 guitar wasn't that bad. Or to put that another way, I could spend an extra £250 but I didn't feel like I was getting a £250 better guitar.

I then tried a Martin (DX1 possibly, what ever is the cheapest in that range) and a Taylor 110. These were more like £500 but seemed a definate step up in sound and these got me interested in upgrading. I ended up with a 314 but thats another story.

From my experience I would go and play a load of guitars and then buy one if you feel it is an improvement over your current instrument and you can afford it. I'd also avoid trying something way above your price range as it will make you overspend compared to your original budget (did I mention that I originally wanted to spend £350 and ended up with a £950 guitar?).

I had an awful lot of fun choosing it mind!

Rich - I never could have seen that coming :lol: (Spending way more than you originally planned) I posted two messages, and I already jumped from $250 up to $600, and I haven't even held one of these guitars yet. :shock: Anyway, after researching Nick's, much appreciated, suggestions. I came up with the following:

Epiphone - DR500M $549.00 (all at musicians friend)
Atlas AD200/SM or 20/SM 499.00/599.00
Blueridge BR-160 579.00
Taylor 110 599.00

It seems the Atlas and Blueridge come set up low with light strings & a gloss finish, which I like, and have some nice aesthetic touches. while the Epi & Taylor are satin finish, and somewhat plain. The two I am most interested in handling would be the Atlas AD200/SM & Blueridge, not that I won't compare them against the Epi & Taylor. And, by the way, if you read the reveiws on any of these, they "sound as good as models 5 times the price", and are "the best guitar in its' price range". Every review! :roll: Any experiences with the above brands and/or models would be appreciated. It was interesting that the Atlas is made in Korea, but QC'd in the USA.

The reviews can get a little funny sometimes. Although everyone's ears are a little different and what sounds good to one may not please another person.
One other guitar to look for, and I'm suggesting it because it's different, is the Guild GAD25 @ $524.95 . It's all solid mahogany so it should give you a good comparison.
I was hoping Rich would answer, you gotta love that story.:D But do go try all price ranges. In the end you're the one who has to be comfortable with what you buy. If it's well cared for the guitar will last a lifetime. So unless you want a room full of guitars, there's no sense in skimping on one.

I like those price ranges. they are all good guitars.

when I went to buy my real (read spendy) acoustic I looked at guitars in three price ranges.
under 500
500-900
and 1000and over.

I found nice differences between the ranges. under 500 wasnt for me.
the 900$ guitar was better than the %00$ guitar.
I ended up with a 1200$ martin electric/acoustric (see my post about 'pics of my girls')

there is a qualitive difference in price ranges.

what you are looking at are fine guitars that have good tones and better than student grade playability.

pick one that fits your hand. compare all of them at the same time.

Epiphone - DR500M $549.00 (all at musicians friend)
Atlas AD200/SM or 20/SM 499.00/599.00
Blueridge BR-160 579.00
Taylor 110 599.00

Interestingly, I've played every one of those guitars. :) (My local GC carries the Epi and Taylor, and a different local shop has the Breedlove and Blueridge lines.)

They are all very good, but they are definitely different from each other. Tone can be very personal, so you really need to play them before buying. Let your ears and hands decide.

This was my experience:

I compared the Epi to a $1500 (used price) Gibson that was in the same room. I liked the Epi better - it had a dark woody tone that seemed very pleasant to my ears. Not that it should matter, but I didn't care for the satin finish - it looked thick and almost milky. The satin finish on a Seagull or Taylor is much nicer (but thinner and probably less durable.)

At first I really liked the Breedlove, but then I realized why - it sounded very much like my $300 Yamaha! (Okay, I've modded the Yamaha with a tusq saddle and slotted bridge, so I guess I can say that my $300 guitar sounds like a $500 guitar!)

I was impressed by the Chinese-made Blueridge guitars that I played. They had excellent clarity from string-to-string, and a rich ringing sustain that I didn't hear in the other similarly-priced models. ("As good as models five times the price!" Okay, NO, not really, but they did seem to be a good relative value to me. But your opinion may differ!) Oh, and some people hate the Blueridge inlays ...

The Taylor is at the opposite end of the spectrum from the Epi - bright and jangly. I like the Taylor necks, too - they seem very comfortable to me. I found a noticeable improvement going from the 110 to the 210 to the 310 ... actually the 314CE was my favorite but way out of my price range. Unfortunately, now that I've played it, it's "the one" I would upgrade to ... buy neither my wallet nor my wife would allow it.

I'd also suggest you look at Seagulls if you can find them near you. They have a slightly wider neck which some don't care for, but the guitars do sound great. I really like their 12-string models as well, and will probably buy one someday.

Last thought, I didn't know squat* when I started looking so I automatically tried all the dreadnought sized guitars. Then a chap in shop gave me a Martin 000? or something like that and I found it much easier to hold. I think its a 'Grand Auditorium' shape. Its not as loud as a dreadnought but my wife really likes that.

Have you thought about buying used? I wish I had. This forum and
http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=17
have good classified sections.

*thinking about it, I don't know much more now either...

Thanks for reminding me How to Buy a used Acoustic Guitar

Took a good long look at the Washburn jumbo acoustics -

http://www.washburn.com/products/acoustics/jumbos/j28.aspx

They are really beautiful and i have read exceptional reviews about them.

Best of luck ,

Rahul

P.S. - Here's the review link.

http://www.music123.com/Washburn-J28SDL-i58442.music

(and music123 will ship it free for you !)

I didn't want to start a new thread, so I'm bringing this one back up. My daughter started voice lessons at my local guitar store. What was my wife thinking?! Anyway, it gave me a half an hour to check out some of the guitars they have. They had a Seagull S+ GT. I had sort of written off Seagull because of some of the reviews that I read. They all said beautiful sound, but I interpreted that they may be fragile. Anyway, I played it while I was waiting. The wider neck was nice for me, and my A chord was much easier. The truly amazing thing for me was that I could easily fret an F chord that would ring. The Seagull also was priced less than MF, which also plays into my decision. Should I be concerned about durability, as compared to the other guitars on my list? Am I giving anything up since the neck is shorter? I haven't found the Breedlove or Blueridge to try yet, but I do have to say that the Seagull was impressive. Anyway, any and all opinions or info would be helpful.