help me find my first Guild!

[skeets1640]

ok so i just recently sold my martin 000-18. I purchased it from my brother five years ago and it has been the only acoustic i have owned. After five years of playing it i realized i just didnt love it. I recently sold it on ebay. So i am in search of finding a new acoustic. I am looking to find something $900 or under. i have been checking out several guilds and the one that has garnered the most attention is the d-25 for its decent price and great things i hear about it. i am leaning towards buying and older one form the 70's or 80's, but i have also been checking out others such as the newer dv-4's. i am leaning towards the older d-25's because of the sound of aged wood and that fact that i just love a guitar that has a little soul and hails from my favorite era of music the 70's. i am saying this but haven't got to physically play one yet because there are none in the area. i have played a friends westerly dv-4 which i did like. The style of music i play goes from the doobie brothers to buck owens.

So at this price range what do you guys think would be the best fit? Thank you in advance for your help.

 

[killdeer43]

Welcome Skeets.

I think you'd be pretty satisfied, as many of us are, to find an older D-25. I'd recommend one with an arched back because the deeper body projects a sound that is truly impressive.
They're on eBay a lot so good luck in your search. Go get 'em!

Take care and watch out for the GAS! :lol:

Joe

 

[southernGuild]

Dv4's sound great,.those who have them are happy from what i have read. but IF I were in your shoes, I would be looking at a d25 too, They are renown by folks here for many good reasons and are likely to hold their value years from now. getting one of these is getting a greart piece of Guild history and a great musical companion that has already served well for years and likely to take on many many more. If you want a 70s instrument.with some soul, you are looking in the right place with a d25. I too am hoping to find one such creature, when I am ready. Good luck in your decision and in the finding of it! Southern :wink:

 

[dreadnut]

+1 on the D-25 program!

 

[stclrob]

First, welcome!

Second, if you want a 'hog, a D25 is awesome.

 

[skeets1640]

thanks for the reassurance guys. I'm going to try and find one at the guitar show in Chilicothe OH next week if I don't have any luck there I might have to go the Ebay route which I'm always skeptical of, but I'm sure if your careful there are good honest sellers out there.

 

[Graham]

Hey Skeets, also consider the DV-52. Great rosewood dread, best bang for the buck in many opinions and there's one for sale in Ohio on Ebay from one of our regulars.

 

[skeets1640]

Thanks besides the small crack that looks ver appealing. Also what do you guys think of the D-15m? Would this one be worth it if I could get it for around $500? http://columbus.craigslist.org/msg/1342425323.html Let me knows guys i'm on the prowl lol just want to make the correct choice. Like I said I play classic rock and country.

 

[Graham]

The D-15 is similar to a D-25 with fewer appointments. From what I've heard, very nice sounding/playing guitars.

 

[killdeer43]

Also what do you guys think of the D-15m? Would this one be worth it if I could get it for around $500?

I like my D-15 just fine. It has a very mellow, almost muted sound compared to the brighter voice of, say, my D-35. The all-mahogany construction seems to do that. Nice for quiet finger picking and strumming, later in the evening....when you're starting to nod off, perhaps. :wink:

Joe

 

[Ridgemont]

Thanks besides the small crack that looks ver appealing. Also what do you guys think of the D-15m? Would this one be worth it if I could get it for around $500? http://columbus.craigslist.org/msg/1342425323.html Let me knows guys i'm on the prowl lol just want to make the correct choice. Like I said I play classic rock and country.

Hey Skeets,

Welcome to the forum. I believe the D15 has a mahogany top, which will sound more compressed than the spruce tops of the D25 and DV4. Although I am aware that there are some D25s with mahogany tops. I am a huge fan of a hog top and plan to get one someday...maybe tomorrow...or now! :lol: The GAS gets to you quick. I can vouch for the D25. I just got one last weekend and haven't put it down. Mine has an archback which really creates a loud boom in the bass. There are several on ebay at decent prices which have been ranging between $500-700. I have been following all of them.

I do have a question though. What was wrong with the OOO-18? Other than it being a Martin? :lol: If that body size speaks to you and feels good, I have played some F30s that are fantastic. The ones I played were a little out of your price range, but you may be able to find some for <$900. Also (I may get lynched for saying this) the GAD 30 models are pretty good instruments for the money. I love mine for both the playability and sound. Just a thought, but if you want a dread then D25 all the way!

By the way, I sent you a pm

-Ridgemont

 

[evenkeel]

First welcome to the group. As you've already heard the D25 you're thinking about has lots of fans. In the price range your talking about, $900 and under you've got lots of other options in the Guild family. A mid 70's D35 like mine can be had for well under that figure. In the bang for the buck category the D35 is a winner.

 

[killdeer43]

A mid 70's D35 like mine can be had for well under that figure. In the bang for the buck category the D35 is a winner.

I'll echo those sentiments.

Joe

 

[skeets1640]

I'll keep that in mind. Ya i'm not sure if i would like the hog top or not I'll have to go play one to find out. Ridgemont as far as the martin 000-18 its not that it was a bad guitar by any means, I just wasn't in love with it. i owned it for five years and wasn't in love with it so I figured it was time to go and give a guild a try. Maybe i'm just not a fan of the small body it just had to dull of a sound for me, didnt sound crisp and lacked some bass because of the small body. It sounded decent overall if i had the money to keep it and still buy a guild I would have but I don't so its gone.

 

[skeets1640]

I really want to hold off until the guitar show not this weekend but the next but this guitar is calling my name what do you guys think? http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... K:MEWAX:IT

 

[Graham]

what do you guys think? http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... K:MEWAX:IT

Honestly? If you're getting into that kind of money, you can get a rosewood backed Guild dread.

Just my opinion. Better value.

 

[skeets1640]

thanks man noted. What would the rosewood back and sides do for me sound wise compared to the hog. thank you and Cheers!

 

[Ridgemont]

I really want to hold off until the guitar show not this weekend but the next but this guitar is calling my name what do you guys think? http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... K:MEWAX:IT

I would hold off. I have seen nice '70s D25s go last week for $600. Way better condition than that one. Just my $ 0.02

-Ridge

 

[Graham]

thanks man noted. What would the rosewood back and sides do for me sound wise compared to the hog. thank you and Cheers!

I'm starting to understand the subtleties myself.

The mahogany will give you a more mellow, some say dry tone. The rosewood will give you a very deep bass, full sounding.

I'm going with my two guitars here, an F-47CE (mahogany) and a GF-60 (rosewood) same size and general shape, the 47 has a cutaway. The tone of the GF is fuller, richer, more pronounced and more sustain. The 47 is a great finger picking guitar, the 60 is both a great finger picking and a great strumming guitar.

I had a DV-52 and 2 D-25s, one all hog, one hog/spruce. I never really bonded with either, but always loved the DV-52 until I switched body shapes.

If it were me, and I know it isn't, I would put the DV-52 miles ahead of any D-25. The DV-52 puts you right up there with the D-50 and D-55, but for less $$$.

 

[Ridgemont]

thanks man noted. What would the rosewood back and sides do for me sound wise compared to the hog. thank you and Cheers!

I have always found rosewood to be the most well rounded tonewood in terms of sound. It has a wide vocal range, meaning that it has a deep full bass and bright trebles. Mahogany, on the other hand, has a lot of midrange. Its vocal spectrum tends to be more focused than rosewood. I prefer the midrange of mahogany. To me, it has a dry woodsy tone that goes great with the blues.