got my eye on a guild OM-120, solid African mahogany top and solid African mahogany back and sides. Ive seen a few reviews on YouTube sounds nice seems like a decent price judging by what is on Reverb atm. I believe it's in the westerly collection but not sure where those were made? anyone have any thoughts on them at all?
thoughts on a Guild OM-120?
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fronobulax
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Westerly Collection instruments are made in China. No specific comments. I presume you have seen https://guildguitars.com/g/om-120-in-natural/
Westerly Wood
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I hear Rayk really likes his, he recently got one. he remarked the overtones were remarkable. and great for fingerstyle.
jfilm
Member
I used to own the earlier GAD versions of this guitar (also made in China), the GAD M20 and GAD M120. They were both great, my only quibble was the glossy varnish was a bit thick on them. Looks like the new ones have a 1 3/4 width nut width if that's your preference. I'm pretty sure the GADs had 1 11/16. Anyway, if they are still up to the standard of the GADs, I'd say they are excellent instruments.
jfilm
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Nevermind - just realized I'm talking about the M-120, and you're looking at the OM-120, which I guess is closer in size to an F30, concert size. Well I actually once had the GAD spruce version of this guitar too, and it sounded great. I ended up moving it along because of the 1 3/4 nut width.
UGH i just got back from looking at it, its in rough shape, loose brace inside, Not sure which one, back behind the bridge, he's got a bridge doctor in it he racked the back of the neck on anything and everything he could, little dents all up and down the neck. so i'm passing. on that thought what is the general consensus of the bridge DR, I feel they wipe some of the mid punch out of its character.
i have always considered the Bridge Doctor a weapon of last resort. There are a number of reasons for tops to distort, broken/cracked bridge plates and loose braces being two of the most common. Addressing those issues should be first. I realize that sometimes Bridge Doctors are necessary, but in the case of the guitar you are looking at, gluing the loose brace and verifying the condition of the bridge plate may result in no longer needing a Bridge Doctor.
Note that if a bridge plate is cracked/broken, it can be an expensive and non-trivial to dangerous repair. I am not saying that this guitar has a broken/cracked bridge plate, just bringing up possibilities. In contrast, re-gluing a loose brace is probably the most common repair on an acoustic guitar, and very safe.
In general, adding weight to the top of a guitar will be detrimental. How detrimental is very dependent on the particular guitar (top stiffness and weight, bracing, etc.). Hand builders go to great lengths to minimize top weight (including thickness, bridge material (rosewood/ebony) ) and optimize stiffness, so hanging a 4-5 oz. weight (or whatever a Bridge Doctor weighs) cannot possibly do any good for tone, or more accurately, will cause the top to be less optimally balanced for tone. Factories do the same, just not to the same degree, but the Bridge Doctor will have the same effect, just not as pronounced.
Note that if a bridge plate is cracked/broken, it can be an expensive and non-trivial to dangerous repair. I am not saying that this guitar has a broken/cracked bridge plate, just bringing up possibilities. In contrast, re-gluing a loose brace is probably the most common repair on an acoustic guitar, and very safe.
In general, adding weight to the top of a guitar will be detrimental. How detrimental is very dependent on the particular guitar (top stiffness and weight, bracing, etc.). Hand builders go to great lengths to minimize top weight (including thickness, bridge material (rosewood/ebony) ) and optimize stiffness, so hanging a 4-5 oz. weight (or whatever a Bridge Doctor weighs) cannot possibly do any good for tone, or more accurately, will cause the top to be less optimally balanced for tone. Factories do the same, just not to the same degree, but the Bridge Doctor will have the same effect, just not as pronounced.
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Thank you @kostask that is actually an awesome explanation of the DR. Makes absolute sense. I do a fair amount of my own fixing but didn't wanna deal with this one didn't feel right, like once I got it home and started looking I'd see lots more issues, I wont do neck resets or big repairs myself, but I do a lot of fret, neck, and brace/binding kinda stuff bridge replacements but bulging bellies or serious surgury I let my luthier freind (who is teaching me) take over. Ive never done one of those DR's but have played a couple and they just sounded a bit flat so yep makes sense hearing you explain it .
jfilm
Member
Hey @Recbody, I've had some recent Bridge Doctor experience- if you do a search, you'll see plenty of forum responses to pros and cons of using it (here and elsewhere). I got one in hopes that it would help to lower the action somewhat on a D40 that needs a neck reset. In my case, I don't think it lowered the action much, if at all. But other folks have reported that it does, so I think it depends on underlying issues.
As for the flat sound, I think if the Bridge Doctor's wooden truss post is cranked (tightened) too much, the guitar will start to sound flat (some people have described it as a nasal sound). The point being, it's not supposed to be over tightened, and if the sound gets restricted, it's time to back off and loosen the post.
All that said, I installed a BD and a Mitchel's Platemate to my old D40. I overcranked the hell out of the BD trying to get the action to lower just a bit. Incidentally, I cranked it so much that the wooden post (the piece that sits under the saddle area of the bridge) of the BD actually failed (cracked). Turns out it was over hanging the bridgeplate slightly, and I think this caused it to fail. I wrote to the company and they sent me a new wooden post, which was a stand up thing to do, I thought. I readjusted the connector piece, and reinstalled it. This time, I tightened it just enough to lower some of the belly bulge, not worrying about the action anymore. The guitar sounds great, I think better than before. The Platemate might be adding something too. I think it's worth trying the BD, but I wouldn't use the screw mount on more expensive guitars, personally, and don't expect miracles.
As for the flat sound, I think if the Bridge Doctor's wooden truss post is cranked (tightened) too much, the guitar will start to sound flat (some people have described it as a nasal sound). The point being, it's not supposed to be over tightened, and if the sound gets restricted, it's time to back off and loosen the post.
All that said, I installed a BD and a Mitchel's Platemate to my old D40. I overcranked the hell out of the BD trying to get the action to lower just a bit. Incidentally, I cranked it so much that the wooden post (the piece that sits under the saddle area of the bridge) of the BD actually failed (cracked). Turns out it was over hanging the bridgeplate slightly, and I think this caused it to fail. I wrote to the company and they sent me a new wooden post, which was a stand up thing to do, I thought. I readjusted the connector piece, and reinstalled it. This time, I tightened it just enough to lower some of the belly bulge, not worrying about the action anymore. The guitar sounds great, I think better than before. The Platemate might be adding something too. I think it's worth trying the BD, but I wouldn't use the screw mount on more expensive guitars, personally, and don't expect miracles.