[cjcokeman]

Hey guys (and gals!!)

Just wanted to say hey and I really look forward to increasing my guitar skills via this website. I've been playing for about a year. My first guitar. . . well I'm afraid to admit it but it was a cheap Johnson Acoustic Dreadnaught. Now that my playing has gotten substantially better from a year ago, I'm ready for a new one. I'm currently on a tight budget so I'm shopping around for the best value. Any ideas are welcome. But anyways... look forward to conversing with you guys in the future. God Bless.

CJ

[allthumbs]

Hi CJ. Welcome. What price range are you looking at?

[cjcokeman]

Anywhere from $200 -$400. Let me guess? You own your own shop right?

[Ultimate Garage Band]

No, he doesn't own his own shop.

But I do.

Even so man, nobody joins a community to be solicited so don't worry about that.

$200 - $400 is a bigger range than you'd think, I mean the range is double the bottom dollar amount. One might expect a difference in between guitars ranging from $2000 - $4000 but one might not expect that much difference between a $200 and $400 guitar. There can be a WORLD of difference at that level! I can think of a variety of makes and models (some of which I'm not even a dealer for ) that would do you very well.

What style of music do you play? Are you a hard strummer? More fingerstyle? Flatpicker? Do you find the Johnson dreadnought comfortable to hold? Are you looking for something smaller?

[allthumbs]

I have just bought a guitar from UGB. He knows his stuff. He will steer you in the right direction for the best bang for the buck guitar.

[cjcokeman]

Just kiddin' before about ownin your own shop. Actually, my Johnson isn't all that bad of a guitar. I primarily strum but I have been getting into some fingerstyle as well. I would like to find a guitar that has better action and a little better sound than my Johnson. You know, a guitar that would let me go to the enxt step. Anything you can recommend would be very helpful. Thanks.

[Clancy]

Hi CJ and welcome.

Glad you've joined us here.

Clancy

[Ultimate Garage Band]

Guitars I carry and am very familiar with and would suggest:

Art & Lutherie Folk model - w/TRIC case < $300

Walden G570 - comes w/a gigbag < $250

I used to carry Blueridge but I don't stock them anymore. Great guitars but I can't compete with musiciansfriend prices. I'd suggest either the BR-43 or the BR-63. Both would be < $400 with a hard shell case.

Washburn F10S - < $200

Models I'm not a dealer for but have some experience with:

Taylor Big Baby Taylor - $400

Alvarez RF8 - < $250 with a hardshell case.

A used Seagull S6+ Folk - < $300 A new one might be around $400.

From the above list I've either owned, sold, or played extensively each model. The Alvarez is the only laminate top model in the group, so that's something to consider. The neck width will be the widest with the Art & Lutherie and Seagull models. Both of them and the Walden have solid cedar tops. The others have solid spruce. Blueridges and Washburns have very thin, fast necks. The Art & Luthery neck is slightly thinner than the Seagull.

One thing to consider, for the time being, to work on trying to set up your Johnson to play a bit better. If you don't want to pay someone to do it, I could give you a few tips.

[cjcokeman]

UGB
Found an Alvarez RD 20 today at a local guitar shop. Brand new with elixir strings, $225. It played pretty well; easy to chord, nice sound. What do ya think? Are you familiar with this model? Thanks for your previous input.

[Jean]

Howdy CJ,
Welcome to the GFB&B Forum

[Ultimate Garage Band]

Well, the R series is the Regent series and that's about bottom of the line for Alvarez but that doesn't translate into bad guitars. The thing that stands out to me about what you played was that it's another dreadnought. None of the models I suggested are dreadnoughts. I find dreads to be the perfect guitar for playing standing up and strumming hard. If you're not doing BOTH of those, you'd probably be better suited to find a smaller, more comfortable guitar to hold on your lap.

[mcollett]

Just went through the same process.
Good luck, that is a wide range of possibilitys and brands.
My question is what is sold in your area?
Mike

[cjcokeman]

Well, Nashville is about 60 miles away and I'm pretty sure you could find anything there you want. But as a matter of fact, I just purchased a Takamine GS330S. I got a chance to play one and I just LOVED it. I read up on some reviews and heard nothing but good things. I hope I made a wise purchase. Thanks.

[Ultimate Garage Band]

I like Take's; the neck profiles are a bit thick for me but I've found them to be good guitars.