Electric Acoustic or Acoustic?? - Page 3

AeroHudson · April 23rd, 2007

I am a guitar newb. I just starting playing on an old stratocaster loaned to me by a good friend on Tuesday of last week. After playing for a week, learning the 8 primary "cowboy" chords and spending about an hour at guitar center being in awe over the weekend I officially have the bug.

I am researching a future guitar purchase and want to spend from $200 to $300 on a guitar. From what I have read getting a solid top of some type should be a priority and I definitely want an acoustic guitar of some type. The question is should I by an electric acoustic or take the additional money it would take to get one and just get a better quality standard acoustic?

Any other suggestions on the brand of guitar would be helpful as well. My friend has a nice Takimine that is just gorgeous and I have seen some Fender, Ibanez and Ovatiob models that looks and sound pretty darn good.

Thanks in advance for the assistance!!

AeroHudson · #31 April 25th, 2007

Thanks again guys! I am assuming that guitar center can install a pick guard when I buy a guitar, correct?

It's good to know that although a cedar top has a distinctive tone that it does not impact the clarity of the distinct notes being played. Being a newb and only being able to strum a few distinct chords it was hard fro me to tell if sounds were running into each other.

allthumbs · #32 April 25th, 2007

You might want to consider putting that axe on layaway. There is no guarantee that the that guitar won't get sold out from under you. There can be a huge variation of quality in the same brand of guitar. There is no guarantee that the next one they get in will be as good as the one you tried.

D-Dawn · #33 April 25th, 2007

X2 AT- I have bought a few that were "right out of the box" don't make that mistake! Buy the one you play...you could have 100 of the same model and they'd all sound different.

AeroHudson · #34 April 25th, 2007

Good suggestion on play the one I buy! I will absolutely do that when I am ready to make the purchase. On a side note I am very glad that I waited to buy and have not made an "impulse" purchase. As a result I have learned so much about what the guitar selection process should look like and that you have to be careful and select the guitar that is right for you.

Give me a bottom line assessment here...would it be a bad idea for a guitar newb to go with a cedar top? Are they more difficult to care for or any other factors that a newb should shy away from? I may seem very anal here but I just want to make sure I pick a guitar that will last me at least a few years and I can finger pick and strum effectively on the instrument I do get.

I am afraid to spend $300 + and end up making a mistake in the selection. The only definites right now are I want a dreadnought, steel stringed guitar with a solid top of some type.

Again, thanks to everyone for the thoughts and your patience with a beginner. Everyone has been great!

D-Dawn · #35 April 25th, 2007

Quote:

Originally Posted by AeroHudson

Give me a bottom line assessment here...would it be a bad idea for a guitar newb to go with a cedar top? Are they more difficult to care for or any other factors that a newb should shy away from? I may seem very anal here but I just want to make sure I pick a guitar that will last me at least a few years and I can finger pick and strum effectively on the instrument I do get.

I am afraid to spend $300 + and end up making a mistake in the selection. The only definites right now are I want a dreadnought, steel stringed guitar with a solid top of some type.

I don't see any problem with it...I like the sound of a cedar top..and they look Oh So Purty!!

I got lucky. The place I used to buy from would give me 30 days to decide wether I liked the guitar or not...if I didn't, I could trade it in on another.

AeroHudson · #36 April 25th, 2007

Just found a great article on tonewoods and how they differ from one another from an experienced guitar maker. Great read!

http://www.pantheonguitars.com/tonewoods.htm

From the cedar topped perspective, here are the key things I took from it.

- Cedar topped guitars have a bit less projection than their spruce topped cousins.
- The break in period for cedar is shorter than that of spruces.
- Their forte is the bass / bottom end range but can lose a bit of clarity in the higher ranges.
- Cedars tone is lush, somewhat darker but bursting with flavor which is what I may have touched on when I first played one yesterday.

Here is something I don't understand...

- "It has a quickness of sound that exceeds any of the spruces, a higher overtone content, lower fundamental content, and lower stiffness along the grain."

Any thoughts on this? Thanks!

D-Dawn · #37 April 25th, 2007

LoL got me there. I say if it sounds good, play it!

knight46 · #38 April 25th, 2007

Good article AH thanks for the post.

Stratrat · #39 April 25th, 2007

Quote:

Originally Posted by AeroHudson

...Any thoughts on this?

Yep....it sounds like cork-sniffing to me. All that talk about "quickness of sound", "higher overtone content", "lower fundamental content" and the like sounds more like wine tasting than guitar playing. Like D-Dawn said, if the guitar sounds good to you, play it!

AeroHudson · #40 April 25th, 2007

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stratrat

Yep....it sounds like cork-sniffing to me. All that talk about "quickness of sound", "higher overtone content", "lower fundamental content" and the like sounds more like wine tasting than guitar playing. Like D-Dawn said, if the guitar sounds good to you, play it!

More than likley I am just overthinking this a bit which is weird for me because I am all about impulse buying.

Guess I am just a bit concerned about making a mistake on my first guitar purchase.

Good rule of thumb...if it sounds good and it is in my price range buy it!!

TwistedLefty · #41 April 25th, 2007

yeah, you can overthink this stuff way easy, just go with what calls to ya and trust yer intuition.