txbumper57
Enlightened Member
As the title states I has the chance to play a new Oxnard D55 today at my local Mom and pop shop. I was in there to get a thorough evaluation done on a Guild that just showed up at my doorstep last night and had some time to kill so I gave it a whirl. Granted I tried to go into the experience with as open of a mind as possible.
First off the guitar seemed a bit smaller than my New Hartford made D55's. It was almost like it was a 7/8's version of the previous D55's in size and feel. I was not the only one who noticed this as my friend who works at the store said that was the first thing he noticed when it came out of the box. Next to other Dreads in the display you could even see the difference in width and length of the body. The neck was also smaller in width and profile than my New Hartford models which made it feel extremely cramped to play. If I had to guess I would say the nut width was closer to 1.68" like an electric model where as my NH models are all 1.72" and wider. The string spacing also felt considerably more narrow as well when fingerpicking. The tone was extremely thin sounding and no where near as full as what I have come to expect from a Guild D55 of any era. It sounded more like half of a D55 to be honest. It mostly reminded me of that Bright Tinny sound that Taylors are known for so that was extremely disappointing coming from a Guild Flagship model. There was no depth to the tone at all. Could just be that it is new and needs some playtime but even new my other D55's had much more of a Rich tone to them.
Now on to fit and finish! The sides were of a Beautifully figured rosewood but the back pieces were kind of Blah in their appearance and even had a completely different color to them. The top looked nice and had some silking to it. However there were some finish issues that I think were unacceptable for a $3500+ guitar to leave the factory with. There was a considerable notch in the side of the ebony bridge wing. The Nitro finish was much thicker than any of my other D55's including my Corona Models. Also there was already finish crackling along the entire fretboard extension where it meets the top along both sides from the neck joint to the soundhole. There was also a small but noticeable amount of run out in the top.
Overall I was extremely disappointed with that representation of a D55. It felt more like a replica of a nice guitar than an actual quality made guitar in my hands. I found the tone considerably lacking and there was no "wow" factor at all in any aspect of the guitar. To me it sounded and felt pretty cheap. I went in hoping for the best and after a few minutes all of my hopes for a new beginning were dashed. Hopefully this guitar is just an isolated incident but my heart tells me otherwise.
TX
First off the guitar seemed a bit smaller than my New Hartford made D55's. It was almost like it was a 7/8's version of the previous D55's in size and feel. I was not the only one who noticed this as my friend who works at the store said that was the first thing he noticed when it came out of the box. Next to other Dreads in the display you could even see the difference in width and length of the body. The neck was also smaller in width and profile than my New Hartford models which made it feel extremely cramped to play. If I had to guess I would say the nut width was closer to 1.68" like an electric model where as my NH models are all 1.72" and wider. The string spacing also felt considerably more narrow as well when fingerpicking. The tone was extremely thin sounding and no where near as full as what I have come to expect from a Guild D55 of any era. It sounded more like half of a D55 to be honest. It mostly reminded me of that Bright Tinny sound that Taylors are known for so that was extremely disappointing coming from a Guild Flagship model. There was no depth to the tone at all. Could just be that it is new and needs some playtime but even new my other D55's had much more of a Rich tone to them.
Now on to fit and finish! The sides were of a Beautifully figured rosewood but the back pieces were kind of Blah in their appearance and even had a completely different color to them. The top looked nice and had some silking to it. However there were some finish issues that I think were unacceptable for a $3500+ guitar to leave the factory with. There was a considerable notch in the side of the ebony bridge wing. The Nitro finish was much thicker than any of my other D55's including my Corona Models. Also there was already finish crackling along the entire fretboard extension where it meets the top along both sides from the neck joint to the soundhole. There was also a small but noticeable amount of run out in the top.
Overall I was extremely disappointed with that representation of a D55. It felt more like a replica of a nice guitar than an actual quality made guitar in my hands. I found the tone considerably lacking and there was no "wow" factor at all in any aspect of the guitar. To me it sounded and felt pretty cheap. I went in hoping for the best and after a few minutes all of my hopes for a new beginning were dashed. Hopefully this guitar is just an isolated incident but my heart tells me otherwise.
TX