Getting real with myself about my next guitar

[Earl49]

I grew up in a bluegrass family, which meant "Martin", period. At one point I owned four of them. I am SO over it now, though. Get the one that speaks to you, and if you truly need to own one with Martin on the headstock, find a used LXM or something like that.

[zoopeda]

Congrats on finding a beaut!

[Greg Rappleye]

Sweet guitar! Good choice!



Greg Rappleye

[MuddyDitch]

Looks like a winner, pick up a Martin T shirt or coffee mug to relieve the GAS.

[sublro]

Larrivees are terrific guitars, and that guitar is every bit the equal of a martin in quality.

if you delve into it, Larrivee as a brand has enough history to get pretty cult-y about. Jean larrivee has innovated and contributed substantially in the acoustic design world and is in the pantheon of successful luthiers who built a brand.

i say get you some larrivee swag and become a larrivee officianado! martin has more than their share already :-)

[Nctom]

Muffinhead, I'm glad for you. I've followed your adventure over this forum and on the Larrivee site and I think you made a good decision. The OM-40 is a fine instrument and will bring you much pleasure. As I mentioned, I have several
Larrivees (although not an OM) and have had several Martins. My only current
Martin, a CEO-7, was bought because it spoke to me, not because it was a Martin. The Larrivees,I feel, we're bought for the same reason. Tom

[Tony Burns]

I think the recognition of the brand -drives alot of us guys becasue we have been told time and time again -want a great guitar buy a Martin -we see some of our idols playing them and every time we open a guitar magazine we see Martins -Taylors and what have you . Your attitude is great -your thinking outside of the box - Women tend not to look at names as much ( as per a Reverb article i just read - My wife would be proud of me for saying that as well )
Larrivee is a great guitar for the money -Yamahas , Takamines - etc. great bang for the buck guitars .
Spending more on a guitar doesnt make you a better guitarist . The reason many top pros are playing Tak's for example -is that their a great guitar for the money .
Yes i do own a Martin , and yes it is a great guitar -but i own many guitars -
many with names most of you have never heard of - and yes they are equally great as well - when a guitar is not great , most of the time it soon has a new owner ( with a couple of exceptions -vintage stuff etc)

[Doxyshusband]

I am glad you bought the Larivee. Played a dread two years ago while at Gruhn's in Nashville. I was astonished at how good it sounded. All the money that day went to get a Gibson for my wife, but I still think about that dread. A guitar feeds your soul through your ears. Let them decide what they want.

As for Martins, we have some in our house. But there is a Takamine here I play more than anything else. It is beyond sweet. Koa and cedar. It doesn't spec at my preference. I like wider nuts, etc. but the sound gives me something none of the others do so I have adapted my fingers to it and now it just thrills me. Many of you would select a different guitar from the stable my wife and I keep, but those are your ears at work, I hope.

I do play them all, but the Tak is always the first grab. And often, that's all I play. I am getting ready to cull and turn some of the others into something further up the flow chart, but I doubt anything I buy will bump this Tak from its special spot with me. Playing is a sensory experience, so let yourself have what you like.

[pgilmor]

Originally Posted by James_E

Go ahead. Get the larrivee. It will be awesome and you will love it. Prediction : you will still want a martin. They have their own thing going on. I bet 6 months from now you will buy a martin anyway.

Truer words were never spoken.

[Sarasin]

If you bought the Martin and Larrivee both and the Larrivee connected with you more, the Martin would just sit there emanating mystique from the lonely corner of your room.

I never bought into name brands, if a guitar speaks to you go with it.

[Acoustigator]

I'm in a similar headspace -- "time for a Martin" -- but at the same time aware of so many other options that are easily as good.

I tried a Larrivee next to a couple of Martins, and they really were comparable in tone and quality.

Larrivee has it's own cachet among serious players -- and is likely to achieve classic status in the future, so I personally wouldn't feel I was compromising anything by choosing one over the Martin.

[lapetrarca]

Originally Posted by j3ffr0

If you want a new Martin the 000-mmv at GC might be in your price range. They really are a pretty good deal especially if you can catch a 15% sale.

I personally like these a lot better than the whole hogs.

Just bought one of these GC exclusives last week if those are the ones you're referring to. It's an exclusive for GC. It's part of the X series line. The GC model designation is X1-000E.

Great little guitar so far.