My three by other makers

[RVBASS]

These are my three guitars:

Alembic Series I
Rick Turner Electroline
Benedetto Benny

 

[GGJaguar]

That Benedetto! Meow!

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

Great guitar porn!

Alembics fools around with interesting electronics. What can you tell us about yours?

 

[RVBASS]

Great guitar porn!

Alembics fools around with interesting electronics. What can you tell us about yours?

The Alembic is a cool guitar. Two low impedance single coil pickups with a hum canceling pickup in between, very quiet. Tones are full and clear, easy to get the Garcia Wolf guitar sound from ‘74 if you want to, I like the clarity and kind of 3D sound you can get out of this guitar. Controls are for each pickup: volume, low pass filter, three position Q switch that provides 0/3/6 db boost at the upper threshold of the filter setting. Long scale guitar (25.5”) with a wider neck. Mahogany chambered body core with Peruvian walnut top and back and maple/Purple Heart neck., and rosewood fingerboard.

The Turner is a cool guitar, ash body with maple neck and Blackwood fingerboard. Three fat Turner pickups that are a cross between Strat and Gibson P90 single coil pickups. Volume and tone controls with a variable “blaster” circuit that provides a great boost and warm natural overdrive when dialed up. 25.5” scale and a little wider neck. The neck profile is thicker and C shaped twisted the first fret and tapers to be more flatter and thinner as you move up the neck towards the body, making it very comfortable to play. A really nice guitar.

The Benedetto is the keeper of the three if I had to choose. It has great resonance and projection and can be played like an acoustic guitar. Plugged in it has warmth with clarity and a great tone. The neck is 25” scale, a little wider, nice thickness and C curve, and very comfortable to play. Carved spruce top, mahogany chambered body, mahogany neck with ebony fingerboard. A single Benedetto A6 pickup and volume and tone controls. A beautiful guitar.

So that’s the scoop on these three. They each serve a different purpose, which is nice.

 

[GAD]

That Benedetto! Meow!

Agreed. Damn.

 

[Guildedagain]

Good taste in guitars, when not Guilding.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

. . . They each serve a different purpose, which is nice.

I can tell. The Alembic for tripping, the Turner for speeding, and the Benedetto for cocktails up on A deck.

 

[RVBASS]

Good taste in guitars, when not Guilding.

I’ve been looking to get an acoustic guitar and trying to learn more about Guild acoustics. Can you or others here suggest some Guild acoustic models I should look into? Thanks.

 

[fronobulax]

I’ve been looking to get an acoustic guitar and trying to learn more about Guild acoustics. Can you or others here suggest some Guild acoustic models I should look into? Thanks.

In vintage a D25 is never a bad choice. If you have opinions about body dimensions, tonewood, new vs. used, style of play, ease of sale/return and budget I'm sure we can narrow things down

 

[RVBASS]

In vintage a D25 is never a bad choice. If you have opinions about body dimensions, tonewood, new vs. used, style of play, ease of sale/return and budget I'm sure we can narrow things down

I will check the D25. My first thoughts are Drednaught shape, but I’m not opposed to a cutout. Medium size, although I did see a smaller one with Florentine cutout that looked nice. Spruce top with rosewood sides and back, but I’ve been thinking about koa as well lately. Projects well with medium to light picking style, warm but clear tone, not harsh. Plug in with internal preamp or not. Those are my thoughts so far.

 

[HeyMikey]

All three amazing guitars RV. Those must be a true joy to play.

As far as Guild acoustics go there is a pretty wide variety. It would help if you have some thoughts on what type of music you want to play with it and any restrictions. Will it will be solo vs in a band, preference of size and depth, nut width, with singing or without, yadda, yadda. Anything that will help folks narrow down suggestions.

For example because of shoulder problems I prefer smaller bodies with wider 1-3/4 nut widths for classic rock, and country pop tunes to accompany a voice. So there are a bunch that just don’t work for me but are fantastic guitars that work for others.

 

[RVBASS]

Thanks for the reply, HeyMikey. The type of music will likely be bluegrass and traditional music (i.e., Doc Watson kind of stuff). I was thinking Drednaught size (medium size body), wider rather than narrower nut, and c shaped or possibly shallow D shaped neck curve. I guess what I should do is go try out a variety of acoustic gutars and note the various specs that feel best to me and then see what Guild models incorporate those specs best.

 

[HeyMikey]

I’m not a bluegrass player so hope others chime in, but my guess is you want to start by looking at a D40 mahogany back and a D50 maple or rosewood back. The mahogany and maple may cut through more especially for quick strumming and cross-picking, and the rosewood would have a deeper bass and more sustain. A D25 or D35 might be a less expensive good choice. One with a red spruce/ adirondack top might give you a little more head room than sitka spruce. Some non-dread models with an arched back like an F50 or F40 might be good alternatives. There are other dreadnaught variations, but these should be “relatively” prevalent Guilds on the market.

Most dreads will have a 1-11/16 nut width. However, you should always ask the seller to measure as there can be variation if it is important to you. There are a few with a 1-3/4 nut but they are much less common. Always ask though as there are sometimes exceptions to the standard spec.