Hi everyone,
This is my very first post and I am not one to normally use forums or social media so if I am posting in the wrong place I apologize. Please just let me know and I'll do my best to not make the same mistake again.
I wanted to get some opinions on whether or not I should purchase a Guild DV52 that I currently have the option of buying.
First my background.. I started playing guitar about 8 years ago. Was given a cheap guitar and I quickly realized I wanted to upgrade. I was regularly going into my local GC playing guitars trying to figure out the best bang for the $400 I had to spend. The manager was really cool to me. He happened to be a Martin fan and really pushed my towards a Martin DX1 which at the time was still being made in America. Basically Martin's cheapest guitar or one of their cheapest. Had a price of $499 which was out of my price range. Believe it or not, he dropped 25% off and sold it to me at $350 before tax which I still feel was a good price for that guitar. I took it into a local luthier who also happened to be a certified Martin repair person and he lowered the action and put in a bone bridge for me. For me, being a new guitar player, I was very satisfied and honestly the action on that guitar after it was adjusted was phenomenal. Unfortunately it was dropped by a roommate about 5 years ago during a time when I was trying to finish at uni and I went from playing everyday to not at all. The guitar sat in my closet for years until my lovely girlfriend took it in last year and had it repaired by the same Martin tech who adjusted it initially. I started playing daily again almost immediately. Well.. sadly the same girlfriend also dropped (more like fell down a couple stair while holding it) the guitar about 2 months ago. It has since been repaired again but really doesn't sound the same anymore and has some buzzing issues it did not have prior to this last drop.
I really am sorry for the length of this post and appreciate anyone still with me
So while my guitar was being repaired the second time, a friend let me borrow a Guild DV52 nat. The guitar is actually his friend's but the guy apparently has 12 guitars and the DV52 is his "cheapest". He actually used it as a classroom guitar for years (he is a teacher) which shows how attached he is to this amazing instrument. In other words, he doesn't care about this guitar that much. He was more than fine with me borrowing his guitar even though I did not know him personally.
The DV52 has had a repair done to the headstock. The repair job looks to have been done by a very skilled luthier. It also has some pretty minor cosmetic blemishes and a little of the finish has chipped away around the sound hole. My understanding of the DV52 is that it was purely an acoustic instrument and this one also has some pretty fancy looking pick-up equipment that has been added. So other than the headstock crack which has been repaired and some minor blemishes, the body and top are in fantastic condition and the guitar sounds incredible. My only issue with it is the action isn't great (much better on my cheap martin even) but I feel this can likely be resolved by my awesome local luthier. I honestly love the sound of this DV52. It kind of blows me away every time I pick it up. So rich, so deep, so pretty and pleasant. I jokingly asked my buddy to tell his friend that I would take it off his hands for $600 and to my surprise the guy seemed to be up for it. I have not gotten a final word yet but it seems like a very good chance that he would be willing to sell it.
So finally, and again I am sorry for how long this post is, but in your opinions is $600 for a DV52 with some pretty minor cosmetic issues and that has a pick-up installed and has had a repair to the headstock seem like a fair price?
When I get home from school (yes I am back at uni again pursuing a second degree) I will post some pictures of the pick-up and repair job etc. But in the meantime I would greatly appreciate hearing your opinions about this. Thanks very much everyone!
This is my very first post and I am not one to normally use forums or social media so if I am posting in the wrong place I apologize. Please just let me know and I'll do my best to not make the same mistake again.
I wanted to get some opinions on whether or not I should purchase a Guild DV52 that I currently have the option of buying.
First my background.. I started playing guitar about 8 years ago. Was given a cheap guitar and I quickly realized I wanted to upgrade. I was regularly going into my local GC playing guitars trying to figure out the best bang for the $400 I had to spend. The manager was really cool to me. He happened to be a Martin fan and really pushed my towards a Martin DX1 which at the time was still being made in America. Basically Martin's cheapest guitar or one of their cheapest. Had a price of $499 which was out of my price range. Believe it or not, he dropped 25% off and sold it to me at $350 before tax which I still feel was a good price for that guitar. I took it into a local luthier who also happened to be a certified Martin repair person and he lowered the action and put in a bone bridge for me. For me, being a new guitar player, I was very satisfied and honestly the action on that guitar after it was adjusted was phenomenal. Unfortunately it was dropped by a roommate about 5 years ago during a time when I was trying to finish at uni and I went from playing everyday to not at all. The guitar sat in my closet for years until my lovely girlfriend took it in last year and had it repaired by the same Martin tech who adjusted it initially. I started playing daily again almost immediately. Well.. sadly the same girlfriend also dropped (more like fell down a couple stair while holding it) the guitar about 2 months ago. It has since been repaired again but really doesn't sound the same anymore and has some buzzing issues it did not have prior to this last drop.
I really am sorry for the length of this post and appreciate anyone still with me
So while my guitar was being repaired the second time, a friend let me borrow a Guild DV52 nat. The guitar is actually his friend's but the guy apparently has 12 guitars and the DV52 is his "cheapest". He actually used it as a classroom guitar for years (he is a teacher) which shows how attached he is to this amazing instrument. In other words, he doesn't care about this guitar that much. He was more than fine with me borrowing his guitar even though I did not know him personally.
The DV52 has had a repair done to the headstock. The repair job looks to have been done by a very skilled luthier. It also has some pretty minor cosmetic blemishes and a little of the finish has chipped away around the sound hole. My understanding of the DV52 is that it was purely an acoustic instrument and this one also has some pretty fancy looking pick-up equipment that has been added. So other than the headstock crack which has been repaired and some minor blemishes, the body and top are in fantastic condition and the guitar sounds incredible. My only issue with it is the action isn't great (much better on my cheap martin even) but I feel this can likely be resolved by my awesome local luthier. I honestly love the sound of this DV52. It kind of blows me away every time I pick it up. So rich, so deep, so pretty and pleasant. I jokingly asked my buddy to tell his friend that I would take it off his hands for $600 and to my surprise the guy seemed to be up for it. I have not gotten a final word yet but it seems like a very good chance that he would be willing to sell it.
So finally, and again I am sorry for how long this post is, but in your opinions is $600 for a DV52 with some pretty minor cosmetic issues and that has a pick-up installed and has had a repair to the headstock seem like a fair price?
When I get home from school (yes I am back at uni again pursuing a second degree) I will post some pictures of the pick-up and repair job etc. But in the meantime I would greatly appreciate hearing your opinions about this. Thanks very much everyone!