Can't blame anybody for wanting to save a buck GAD

[randall64]

I have a couple of older Guilds that I did not want to take out of the house anymore. I figured I would get a new lower end Guild. I wanted new for some reason cause everything I have is old. When I looked at pricing and reviews it was plainly clear that the GAD series was the best value. You really should be able to get a good guitar under 500 bucks and with the USA ones you just can't. I also was convinced that after playing some and reading reviews the GAD's were very good guitars. I don't like things made overseas either but for my budget it made sense. I meant no offense to any former Guild people from Westerly. I wish things could still be the same also but in the world today if it wasn't for the Asian production, we probably would not have any new Guilds at all. I don't think they would survive selling 2000 dollar guitars. That is just the way of the world today and anyone who takes exception to buying an Asian built guitar,just go look in your driveway. I would bet that you all don't drive to Wallmart in a Ford or Chevy(I do).

 

[Default]

I don't go to Walmart. You could also look at Seagulls, which are Canadian made and have good reputations.
This is the golden age of cheap good guitars, that's for sure!

 

[randall64]

Okay, but we are looking at a Canadian company. Fender a US company. So I think the Asian Guild would be a better choice for the US economy.right?

 

[BobsterMan]

I got me an new Asian Gretsch on sale for $250(Cdn) a couple of years ago. It doesn't boom, but has very even tone and good action. And classic design and a great name, too.

 

[capnjuan]

Hi Randall; buy what you can afford and get on with it. Yes, chances are FMIC Guild/GAD asian profits will offset or subsidize the higher costs of US- produced Guilds so, in this limited sense, I guess Asian is good ... who knows ... but so long as least-cost is the operative driver for US consumer goods, we'll continue to be smothered in off-shore stuff; electronics, PCs, clothes, shoes, on and on. At the risk of sounding too pointed; if you are not in a position to spend $2,000 for a US Guild, then it isn't really an option. So the GAD doesn't generate any 'savings' because, as as practical matter, there is no alternative to measure it against. Enjoy your new guitar ... wherever it comes from :wink: !

 

[Taylor Martin Guild]

You don't need to justify your purchase to anyone!
There are a lot of great looking and sounding guitars coming out of Asia.

I have found myself with a big case of GAS letely and I have bought and sold several different import guitars.

I started with a GAD JF-48.
All soild wood with hog b&s.
It was a very nice guitar and sounded very good.
Mine was Amber Burst which never did grow on me.

I sold it and bought a Recording KInd RD-227.
All solid wood with IRW b&s.
Lots of bling and a good sound.
The GAD was a bit better to me though.

I was at my local guitar shop getting a new saddle made and played a Blueridge BR-63.
Soild Spruce top with laminated s&b.
OM size which I have never owned.
I liked the size and shape and the guitar blew me away with the sound.
I took it home with me.

I was also in the market for an inexpensive 12 string and after looking arounf for a couple of weeks, I decided on a Crafter 12 string.
Dred shape with a soild Spruce top and ply s&b.
This guitar has a great sound and a very easy to play neck.

I have now gone full circle and after selling the Recording King, I bought a very nice used Guild JF-55.

My GAS pains have subsided for now.

What did I learn from all of this?

There are way too many nice guitars out there for me to be able to own them all.

What was the best import of the bunch?

That depends on the day.
They all were good guitars and worth the money.
The GAD JF-48 was the best of the bunch imho.

 

[randall64]

Thats not really my point. I could afford a 2000 guitar if I chose(my wife wouldn't happy). What I'm saying is the practicality of it. It's too big of a spread between comparable models. The guitars themselves are closer in quality than they have ever been. 1000 difference seems like a lot to swallow for the USA stamp. This is just a discussion, I am in favor of US goods as anyone but for the first time I am realizing when it comes to Guild guitars,we are getting ripped off on the American ones. Cheers to Taylor Martin Guild for a post from someone who has had experience with the Asians so he knows what I mean THANKS

 

[capnjuan]

... Cheers to Taylor Martin Guild for a post from someone who has had experience with the Asians so he knows what I mean THANKS

... and for being able to understand what you mean.

 

[chazmo]

Okay, but we are looking at a Canadian company. Fender a US company. So I think the Asian Guild would be a better choice for the US economy.right?

That is a very interesting question... The answer is not clear to me at all.

That said, I agree with TMG... You don't need to justify your purchase to us. Even if many folks around here feel that GADs shouldn't have the Guild label on them, there's no reason you shouldn't compare them with other guitars of the same cost. The whole point is to find a guitar you can enjoy within your price range.

Enjoy, and welcome!

 

[capnjuan]

... The guitars themselves [GADs and front-rank Guilds] are closer in quality than they have ever been .... 1000 difference seems like a lot to swallow for the USA stamp.

Even if many folks around here feel that GADs shouldn't have the Guild label on them, there's no reason you shouldn't compare them with other guitars of the same cost.

Hi Chazmo; you may have missed his point the way I did. He is equating the high-line Guilds w/ GADs; that the quality differential doesn't justify the price differential. You are suggesting he compare GADs with similarly priced guitars ... but that isn't what he's doing. He's comparing GADs to high-line models. Anyway, not that it's that important but the functional equivalence thingie got by me first time and maybe you too. No big deal... CJ

 

[Spectrum13]

My 2 cents... Some great guitars are coming out of China, Japan and Korea. I have one from each as well as 7 Americans. Consider price points as labour, taxes and benefits costs are much higher in the U.S.A. There is the "factory" product vs. "hand crafted" issue too but 90% of discussions tend to concentrate on the 10% difference in tone and quality between Asian and USA with the Asian costing a fraction of American.

Value is an individual thing for each player and each manufacturer. Bottom line is how you bond with the instrument. Will you keep it or replace it with something "better" which is also subjective. I get hung up on the Mojo aspect too much myself and fight to be rational. Sometimes I loose. The GAD $500 Guild fits the bill and saved you $1500, great! HOWEVER you do have a few U.S.A. built super mojo guitars at home. You win, enjoy.

 

[randall64]

This is an interesting discussion. It seems we really feel the same way about things. My Westerly D40,in my mind, is the best guitar I've ever played but it took me awhile to get there. I had to go down Yamaha,then Epiphone road first. One thing we can probably all agree on is that the beginner has a lot more opportunity to get a lot better quality instrument than we could. A lot more guitars in a lot more hands. That's a good thing.

 

[chazmo]

... The guitars themselves [GADs and front-rank Guilds] are closer in quality than they have ever been .... 1000 difference seems like a lot to swallow for the USA stamp.

Even if many folks around here feel that GADs shouldn't have the Guild label on them, there's no reason you shouldn't compare them with other guitars of the same cost.

Hi Chazmo; you may have missed his point the way I did. He is equating the high-line Guilds w/ GADs; that the quality differential doesn't justify the price differential. You are suggesting he compare GADs with similarly priced guitars ... but that isn't what he's doing. He's comparing GADs to high-line models. Anyway, not that it's that important but the functional equivalence thingie got by me first time and maybe you too. No big deal... CJ

CJ, I think it did, and I responded incorrectly. But in any case it's cool. I think some of the GADs are terrific guitars.

If the point was to say that Guild, as a brand, wouldn't have survived with only the higher-end models, I think that's likely true. After all, FMIC calls the shots, and clearly they felt the GADs (and now DVs from Ensenada) needed to be made offshore to keep the brand going. It's actually a moot point.

If the point of all this is to say that a thousand bucks in price difference isn't worth it... well, that's totally subjective, and I don't accept it (personally). I see this argument all the time with higher-end brands and hand-mades. The GAD line by itself would not have drawn me into the Guild fold a few years ago. It was simply the existence of the F-512 that did that. Am I a typical customer? I don't know. I am certainly a "traditional" customer that came to the brand because of what my ears told me.

Anyway, I contend that a broader product line is best. Guild really has that now, whether you like the fact that FMIC went to Asian production or not. I really think this is what randall was trying to say.

 

[Appalachian Blues]

Hi Randall, I just made a deal on a GAD F-212E and it is an incredible guitar and value. Whether we like it or not, we have over the years transformed into a global marketplace. Buy American has suffered due to the big killer called greed. Greedy CEO's/Fat Cat WallStreeter's/and bought and paid for politicians, for instance, have sucked billions of US dollars from our pockets and invested them into foreign interests. I could afford a US made Guild back in the 70's when I bought my D-40. My wages them weren't the best but at least I could afford a very well-made, excellent sounding guitar and know I got more than my money's worth.
My feelings on buying this GAD are this; I'm helping a local dealer who offered me a product that was well-made, sounds great and I will cherish and take care of for as long as I live. I traded and sold items that I can live without to buy it because it was worth it.

 

[count savage]

Just to enter the fray (and avoid working), I think Guild (or Fender-Guild) was brilliant for staying in the marketplace with the GAD series. For one, they are selling guitars that they might not have. Secondly, they are exposing people to the Guild brand. It's very likely someone who buys a GAD may end up buying an American-made Guild down the line, so it's developing brand loyalty. Now, I have not bought an Asian acoustic, but the last two electric guitars I bought were both made in China, a Kramer Focus and a First Act, and they have straighter necks than any old Gibsons and Fenders I've owned, and I've had essentially every major electric guitar model at one time or another. Also would point out that in my estimation, and a lot of guitarist's estimation, Richard Thompson is one of the great living acoustic-rock guitarists and songwriters. Acoustics, he plays custom Lowdens now. But he does own both an Eastman and a Peerless, which I think are produced overseas. In fact, he raves about the quality of the Peerless (made in Korea) on his website. As to the discussion whether a $500 Asian GAD is going to offer the same bang that a $1500-$2000 American made Guild will, it's all in the eyes and ears of the beholder. It all depends on how it sounds and how it plays. And that varies from guitar to guitar, and from player to player. To judge from what I've read here, it's very possible that a GAD can not only compete soundwise but maybe from time to time surpass and American made. That said, I wanted and bought a Tacoma F 512 and that's what I wanted and have not regretted it.

 

[chazzan]

When I was younger age 12 to 20 I couldn't afford a well made American guitar, so I played lots of imports that did not sound bad. If it were not for imports I could't have afforded to have a guitar or three!

At age 20 I bought a BEAT American made Fender- it sounded and felt like and played TO ME IMO like a real guitar! At 20 I also had a vintage guitar store in the college town I lived in- after that I could never go back to imports. I would take a beat up American guitar for the price of a new import and often one beat up American guitar for TWO beautiful imports.

bottom line......... you get what you pay for!

IMO again American Guilds ar the real deal, but the imports are nice for what they are.