I actually have both, and play both live and at home regularly. Both great guitars, but markedly different tone. The F50r is rosewood b/s and is warm and full-bodied with lots of sustain, whereas the J200 is maple is not quite as full on the bottom, not quite as loud, not quite as much sustain, but focused, a bit more mids, and extremely well-balanced. Both have excellent playability and feel.
Now, part of the difference could also be that the F50r is older (2005) and perhaps “ opened up” nicely, whereas the J200 is newer (2012) and was hardly ever played when I got it, so us still in the process of opening.
At home and in more acoustic-type gigs, I grab the Guild, but for live, onstage with full band, I usually grab the Gibson. It cuts through the whole band sound without having to turn it up too much.
And I love the bling on both!!!
The build quality on both is outstanding! The Gibson is just a bit lighter, but not enough of a difference to make it a deciding factor. Also, aesthetically speaking, I do a bunch of “ Tribute” shows, and the black J200 works for the Neil Diamond thing. And the F50r that Kristofferson signed works great for the Johnny Cash gigs ( but, honestly, so does the black J200).
Musicians dig both. Audience members... everyone seems to know and recognize Gibson... not so much Guild.
And, for what it’s worth, Gibsons eat strings at about twice the rate as Guilds. I don’t know why, but I can keep stings on the Guilds for a month or two and they sound great, especially after a day or two. On the Gibson, the new strings sound great immediately, but at 3-4 weeks, it’s time to replace. (I use D’Addario Pb 12s.)
That could explain why I’ve never really found a J200 in a store that really sounded “great”. They don’t change strings that often, if ever, in the stores. Knowing that now, I may have misjudged a few in the past.
Just my perspective, hope this helps.
