Any D 40 Fans Here?

[count savage]

What's the word among the 'Guild' on the Guild D-40? Do you feel it competes on even terms with the mahogany Martins or Gibsons? Different, of course, but is it s a great hog? How different than the rosewoods such as the D 50? Not as loud? Warmer, bassier? Curious. Are the Westerlys to be sought out, or are the Tacomas and CTs just as good?

 

[dapmdave]

What's the word among the 'Guild' on the Guild D-40? Do you feel it competes on even terms with the mahogany Martins or Gibsons? Different, of course, but is it s a great hog? How different than the rosewoods such as the D 50? Not as loud? Warmer, bassier? Curious. Are the Westerlys to be sought out, or are the Tacomas and CTs just as good?

I had a '76 D-40 many years ago. It was my first Guild and it was great. Sure wish I could go back in time and grab it.

In my opinion, the D-40 is the best Guild 'hog. On this site, you won't find many who'd place a Gibson (or even a Martin) 'hog above almost any Guild. And justifiably so.

I prefer the Westerlies, but there are others who say the Coronas, Tacomas, and CT Guilds are just as good. I'll leave that one alone!

Dave

 

[killdeer43]

I'm a big fan of the Westerly D40s and the fact that I don't have one right now means that I'm on the prowl for THE one.
I played a friend's years ago and remembered thinking at the time that I should have one, too. Seems rational. :?:

The search continues, :wink:
Joe

 

[killdeer43]

Here's a little something to assist you in your search.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UY3GrNoi-bs

Always interesting to watch/listen to these reviews.

Joe

 

[adorshki]

My Corona '40 is every bit the build quality of my 2 Westerlys. It's a little boomier than the '25. I originally bought it 'cause it's a Richie Havens Signature model. It's still developing its sound. One thing I recently noticed is the bridge is substantially beefier (thicker thus taller)than the other 2, and the saddle's thicker and the neck is a little thicker than the '25's. I cant give any direct comparos to the "other guys". Except for one other buddy, I'm the only Guild owner and everybody always wants to play my guitars instead of theirs when we jam. I usually allow 'em one or two tunes. :mrgreen:

 

[Telenator]

I'm a huge D40C fan and have wanted one of those since I first laid eyes on it back in the 80's. mmmmmmmm, D40C

 

[Scratch]

Lots of hardcore D40 fans here. I bought my 2005 Tacoma-built Richie Havens as NOS three years ago; it quickly became my go-to gigging guitar and trustworthy friend. Reliable, consistent and warm hog sound outperforms every other hog back I've owned. If Saint Peter allowed me to take one guitar into the Promised Land, I'd take 'Woodstock'... :wink:

 

[Dr. Spivey]

Hard to go wrong with a D40. One of the best all around guitars there is, IMO. In all the years and factories, I don't think they built many bad ones. I like the Westerlys, but it's just a matter of personal preference, they're all good.

Most folks say with mahogany, you hear more of the fundamental note and less overtones compared to rosewood, and I would agree with that. Guilds are known for a balanced sound with good note separation, and I'd say the D40 excels in those areas.

In terms of overall quality, Guilds are competitive with anything in their price range, and many above.

Get out and play a few, Count. It's your opinion that matters most.

 

[dogberry]

My D40 is a Tacoma built, and it's a great guitar. Played an open mic today, and it was the best sounding guitar in the place. I've played a couple of Westerly D40's, and they sounded great, a little boomier and more resonant than mine, I'm hoping that when it's older mine sounds like them. A great, all-around guitar. If you can get a Westerly one in good condition, go for it, but don't rule out a Tacoma. I've never played a Corona, but there are folks who have an like them.

 

[bunuel]

Absolutely adore my '80s D-40. Great guitar at any price. But phenomenal for what it ran me. Amazes me what they can still be had for. Tough to beat. Nearly impossible to beat for what they run. I still play every Westerly d-40 I run across & have yet to run across anything close to a dud.

 

[drive-south]

Tacoma and New Hartford D40's have red-spruce tops. The older ones made in Westerly have sitka spruce tops. I believe this gives the newer ones an edge. I've played lots of recent D40's and they have all been pretty great. I think I prefer them overall to their rosewood cousin, the D50. Both are great guitars but the D40 has a certain warmth.

drive-south

 

[alpep]

i have a new hartford one and it is stellar

 

[6L6]

Love my '74 D-40 (bought it new)!

Had a Tacoma D-40BJ for awhile, but realized my ear prefers Engleman spruce over Adi for the top, so I sold it.

You can't go wrong with ANY Guild guitar!

6

 

[Willy]

I have an early '70s D40 that's the one Guild I've never been able to part with. It's very rare that I hear an instrument that sounds better to my ears and even rarer to find one that's as much fun to play. Joe Fusaro was the repair department supervisor at the time and he had modified this one for himself before it left the plant. It has the standard D40 headstock but has an ebony fretboard with D55 block inlays and wider frets, also an ebony bridge with custom inlays. The sunburst finish on it was referred to as a D55TV sunburst if I remember right - same as Tommy Smothers' D55.

I traded an amp (I don't remember what it was) to Joe for the guitar in 1976 and it had already seen a lot of use and occasional abuse. It's comfortable like an old pair of jeans, by no means a pristine instrument but hard to put down.

The few guitars I've played that sounded better to me were either other Guilds or custom instruments priced well above Martins and Gibsons. I'm a huge fan of Mahogany guitars, especially Guilds.

What's really cool is how many people there are who feel the same way about their own Guild. They really each have their own personality.

Here's a quick pic - I'll leave a link since I can't seem to get it to display in the post using the "Img" button (I welcome advice if you can point me to how do do this)

Willy

http://img3.imageshack.us/i/p1300148rl2.jpg/

 

[gmcdeadhead]

i have a 1990 westerly guild d-40 , fantastic, the best guilds came out of westerly , i think.

 

[killdeer43]

i have a 1990 westerly guild d-40 , fantastic, the best guilds came out of westerly , i think.

I don't think you'll find very many people here who will argue that point with you. For sure, I won't be one of 'em. :wink:

Stay in tune,
Joe

 

[Taylor Martin Guild]

I will argue the point.
The only thing that a Westerly has on my Tacoma, is a few years of aging.
I do agree that the 2 Westerly Guilds that I have owned were great guitars but not any better than my current Tacoma built D-55.

 

[lone eskimo]

I'm kinda new here though I've been reading for some time... Anyhow- I have a mid 70's Westerley D-40C as well as a D-35 from the same era. Both great guitars. I have several really nice guitars as well including a Martin D-28, a rare Mahogany top Taylor 314ce, and a Larrivee 0M-03 to name a few. I play in a duo right now and use the Guild D-40C the most.

This may be one of the best swiss-army guitars out there. Very well balanced, and excels at everything. It strums like a tornado (no compression here), flatpicks like a D-18, and fingerpicks beautifully. I also solo alot and the Florentine cutaway gives me better access than any of my Venetians. I take all my guitars to a great luthier down here near Charlotte. His name is Craig Landau and he is well respected around here. I never saw his staff over- react to any of my guitars until I brought the D-40C in. They went the extra mile setting it up and even buffed it up no charge. They could tell when a real sweetie comes thru the door...

I played a few new Hartford Guilds at the NAMM show recently and I wasn't quite knocked out-though time will tell. Sorry-but these are not the same instruments as the older ones. Same with Martin. The new 28's can be great- but they don't look or feel like my '75...

Just sayin'

Mike

 

[Russell Letson]

As I've posted before, I've been playing a '65 D-40 since I bought it new in 1967. It's not the guitar I take to gigs (that honor usually goes to a Goodall Standard), but it spends plenty of time out on a stand in the living room, where it gets used for everything from swing to slack key. I've played every generation of D-40 from every factory over the last 40-plus years and have found them quite consistent, aside from a slump decade or two starting around 1970, when overbuilding and -finishing produced a muffled sound--an opinion not much shared hereabouts, I know. Both the Corona and Tacoma factories produced D-40s that sounded like my '65 to me, with the Tacomas in particular having the characteristic Guild sound (slightly nasal and not as boomy as, say, a Martin). Build quality of the Tacomas also struck me as excellent. I haven't come across samples from the new factory yet, but if they keep to the design formula there's no reason they shouldn't retain the Guild character.

 

[Pike]

I have a second version '98 D40 that sounds quite a bit better than the '76 I had and better too than my '87 Martin D16M spruce/mahogany.