Guild the underdog - why?

adorshki

Reverential Member
Joined
Aug 21, 2009
Messages
34,176
Reaction score
6,790
Location
Sillycon Valley CA
bluesypicky said:
adorshki said:
See what I'm getting at? :wink:
No, but I love you. :lol:
Are you saying that folks wanting to buy a brand new Guild today do so by snobism (because they can afford it) and not because they are real "players" giving these guitars the edge in sound and feel?
I tried to word that so it wouldn't sound that way. I'm sayin people who REALLY LOVE guitars know they gotta go look for the Guilds. It probably WAS a bad analogy because Vipers have always been kind of a "status symbol" in my opinion anyway. A few of the people who "can actually drive 'em" could afford 'em when they were new and had ridiculous dealer markups. We didn't let just any Tom Dick or Harry even sit in 'em, just because they were all excited.
What I'm REALLY tryin' to say is Guilds SHOULDN'T be hanging on the wall in a Guitar Center competing for discount sales. Like a car dealership with 40 different colored identical Honda Civics. Next door to a Toyota delaer with 50 different colored identical Corollas. And that's what Guitar Center's all about: discount volume sales.
No slur intended, after all I got a scream of a deal there on my D25. In 1997. :wink:
 

Emilio

Junior Member
Joined
Mar 20, 2011
Messages
29
Reaction score
0
Location
Gothenburg, Sweden
adorshki said:
I used to sell Dodge when the Viper was introduced. VERY FEW of the people who wanted to test drive the car in the car were capable of driving it to its limits, although a few of them were capable of paying for its exclusivity. THOSE folks got to test drive 'em.
See what I'm getting at? :wink:

point taken.
 

adorshki

Reverential Member
Joined
Aug 21, 2009
Messages
34,176
Reaction score
6,790
Location
Sillycon Valley CA
Emilio said:
adorshki said:
I used to sell Dodge when the Viper was introduced. VERY FEW of the people who wanted to test drive the car were capable of driving it to its limits, although a few of them were capable of paying for its exclusivity. THOSE folks got to test drive 'em.
See what I'm getting at? :wink:
point taken.
And I think in the way it was intended. Thanks! :D
 

dreadnut

Gone But Not Forgotten
Gone But Not Forgotten
Joined
Jun 15, 2005
Messages
16,082
Reaction score
6,442
Location
Grand Rapids, MI
Guild Total
2
John, you are so right. I was 22 years old, fresh out of the Navy, and I went to the music store intending to buy a Martin, or maybe a Gibson. I knew the Guild name but I didn't know anything about them. I played all 3 brands, and walked out with my D-25M. It was the nicest looking and sounding mahogany dread of the bunch, and it was $300 brand new, the Gibson was $550 and the Martin was $650. Go figure. She's 35 years old now, has thousands of hours of play time and still going strong :D

Interesting comments over on the Gear Page - lots of misgivings about brands, including the "overbuilt" reputation of Guilds along with a claim of "low quality of late model Westerlies". I have a '76 D-25M and a '98 DV-52 that prove both of those comments wrong :D
 

capnjuan

Gone But Not Forgotten
Gone But Not Forgotten
Joined
Nov 29, 2006
Messages
12,952
Reaction score
4
Location
FL
dreadnut said:
... Interesting comments over on the Gear Page - lots of misgivings about brands, including the "overbuilt" reputation of Guilds along with a claim of "low quality of late model Westerlies". I have a '76 D-25M and a '98 DV-52 that prove both of those comments wrong :D
Hi Marc ... it's web-yack ... 'overbuilt' ... it just gets repeated ... if people read it enough times, they think it must be true because somebody they though knew what they were talking about said so ... 'Susie is a Ho'. They might have been made to be played but they were also built to last. If that means they strike some people as 'overbuilt', so be it ... that's a better impression than flimsy!


@ Al and Pascal: Get a room :wink:
 

littlesongs

Member
Joined
Mar 19, 2009
Messages
764
Reaction score
0
Location
Oregon
If Guild wants to sell new high end guitars to serious players and collectors alike, they should go for it. If Guild wants to sell good playing imports at the mall to folks who like to play for their friends, they should go for it. However, doing both at the same time with the same name on the headstock will confuse the market for years to come.

In spite of the talented David Rawlings, most Epiphones from the 30s, 40s and 50s are undervalued. The Kalamazoo-built models were produced for a dozen years from '57-'69 and many were identical to Gibbons or shared parts. They still fetch sub-Gibby prices. In large part this is because the Epi brand became synonymous with imported junk after 1970.

It took some time for GM to recover from trying to reach downmarket with the Cadillac Cimarron. A Chevy Cavalier with leather buckets and power windows might be functional transportation that salves a poor man's ego, but it hurt the brand. In the long run, a cash-strapped Caddy lover is happier owning a used one until they can afford a new one.

After producing great guitars for almost 60 years, the folks at Guild should know this kind of stuff.

Emilio said:
I just find it quite sad.

Me too.

Since you are from Sweden, I'm curious about your perspective on something related to the discussion.

The original Levin guitars were built until 1978. Although the brand is not well known, they are very well regarded by players. Like Guilds, the instruments were factory built and criminally undervalued for years. Now that the original examples are sought after, the market is being flooded with imports bearing the Levin name with little to tie them to the past.

Hagstrom sourced parts from other companies and some models were made in Italy, but the brand was always firmly associated with Sweden. Like Burns and other quality European marques, the guitars have continued to have a cult following since the end of production in 1981. Like Burns, the Hagstrom name has been revived for an import line.

Here we are in 2011 with two highly regarded Swedish manufacturers that seem on the surface to have returned, but have no connection beyond the superficial to the instruments that built the brand. In my opinion, somebody bought a trademark and is steadily diminishing the reputation of a half century of craftsmanship for some quick cash.

As someone who can be proud of those domestic makers for their consistent craftsmanship, how do you feel about the "new" Levin and Hagstrom?
 

CA-35

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 14, 2011
Messages
2,111
Reaction score
19
Location
South Florida
Re:
Think McDonalds, Burger King, Wendys in hamburger/fast food.

No ruckus. Its all good and you have extremely valid points. However, the above statement reinforces my claim that gross sales do not equate with product superiority. You could not give me for free any of those 3 hamburgers. But thats me. I dont follow the line at chow time...I have half a brain on a good day. I'm not saying that Martins and Gibsons are crap. I'd kill for a D-45 or a J-200. Are they better? No. Just different.

I'm saying that MOST people are mindless sheep. Not you or I of course. Fair wind and a following sea my friend.
 

capnjuan

Gone But Not Forgotten
Gone But Not Forgotten
Joined
Nov 29, 2006
Messages
12,952
Reaction score
4
Location
FL
adorshki said:
bluesypicky said:
capnjuan said:
@ Al and Pascal: Get a room :wink:
Actually... now that you mention Susie...... The plan may change. :lol:
Hmmph. NOW I see how you are. MEN are such....men. :lol:
P: you might want to reconsider ... Meet Susie ...

drag-queen-folsom-street-2.jpg
 

adorshki

Reverential Member
Joined
Aug 21, 2009
Messages
34,176
Reaction score
6,790
Location
Sillycon Valley CA
capnjuan said:
adorshki said:
Actually... now that you mention Susie...... The plan may change. :lol:
Hmmph. NOW I see how you are. MEN are such....men. :lol:
P: you might want to reconsider ... Meet Susie ...
drag-queen-folsom-street-2.jpg
[/quote]
Hmmph. He can HAVE her!!!
No Decent girl would be caught dead dressed like that. All in red. :evil:
 

bluesypicky

Enlightened Member
Joined
Sep 8, 2009
Messages
7,763
Reaction score
394
Location
Jupiter, FL.
AAAAAAAHHHH!!!!!!!!!!
You probably heard my barfing from your house John.....
Al?... :lol:
 

capnjuan

Gone But Not Forgotten
Gone But Not Forgotten
Joined
Nov 29, 2006
Messages
12,952
Reaction score
4
Location
FL
It's a pic with strong content for sure but, like Guilds, Susie was made to be played. I'm not sure I want to get into the underdog thingie or not.

But I am glad the Martinis think Guilds are crap guitars ... if the word gets out, it'll be good-bye to reasonable prices.

Yes Pascal; I did hear the agony all the way down here in the Gardens. :wink:
 

adorshki

Reverential Member
Joined
Aug 21, 2009
Messages
34,176
Reaction score
6,790
Location
Sillycon Valley CA
capnjuan said:
It's a pic with strong content for sure but, like Guilds, Susie was made to be played. I'm not sure I want to get into the underdog thingie or not.
Hey, she may be easy but at least she's sleazy, right?
Oops, gotta run...feel a lyric comin' on!~
 

F30

Senior Member
Gold Supporting
Joined
Aug 26, 2010
Messages
1,452
Reaction score
905
Location
East of Nashville
I don't know about the rest of the New Hartford Guild Line but I couldn't be happier with my F30R "Standard".
So far everyone I've shown it to loves it.
"...I didn't know Guild was still making Guitars..."
"...Is this a Custom built Guild..."
"...This guitar sounds so much better than my Taylor..."
I guess all we can do is expose people to the magic of a great Guild acoustic....They'll come around - even if it's just a few.
I did. Sold my Gibson and Martin, and now I'm looking for another Guild :mrgreen:
 
Top