The Acoustic Guitar Forum

Go Back   The Acoustic Guitar Forum > General Acoustic Guitar and Amplification Discussion > General Acoustic Guitar Discussion

Reply
 
Thread Tools
  #1  
Old 01-30-2014, 08:45 PM
Jasper64 Jasper64 is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: Georgia
Posts: 493
Default Most INNOVATIVE guitar maker in the last 100 years?

I saw a thread awhile back that asked who people thought was the most influential guitar builder in the last 50 years. People listed Martin to Taylor to Larivee to Olson to you name it. Influential by its nature is as subjective as the type of guitar you prefer. But when it comes to INNOVATION there are only two names who come to mind. The last 50 years is Taylor. The 50 prior to that is Martin. Yes there are a lot of amazing luthiers who have contributed in some way to the journey but those two men revolutionized their time. Fortunately, Bob Taylor is still with us and continues his quest to build the perfect guitar. Does he make the best....that matters what you like but no one can argue against what he has been able to do in just 40 years. That is probably why you always see threads popping up Martin vs Taylor. Two great luthiers.....both GAME CHANGERS!
__________________
Custom Martin D 35
Taylor GS Mini w/ES2 Koa
GPC12PA4 Martin 12 string
[/B]"What does it profit a man to gain (all the greatest guitars in) the world and lose his soul" Paraphrased
Reply With Quote
  #2  
Old 01-30-2014, 08:51 PM
magazine magazine is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: May 2011
Posts: 1,235
Default

Innovative, I'd say Taylor, Mcpherson and rainsong.
__________________

2021 Taylor 114e
2020 Martin 000-18
2020 Martin LXME
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old 01-30-2014, 08:55 PM
fazool's Avatar
fazool fazool is offline
Charter Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: Buffalo, NY
Posts: 16,561
Default

Taylor for changing the manufacturing of guitars.

Ovation for making non-wood acoustic bodies respectable (and paving the way for carbon fiber).
__________________
Fazool "The wand chooses the wizard, Mr. Potter"

000-15 / GC7 / GA3-12 / SB2-C / SB2-Cp / AVC-11MHx / AC-240
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old 01-30-2014, 08:59 PM
jseth jseth is offline
Charter Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Oregon... "Heart of the Valley"...
Posts: 10,831
Default

For acoustic guitars, it HAS to be Bob Taylor... without question...

For ALL guitars, though, I think I'd have to give the nod to Leo Fender, Les Paul and Rickenbacher... for all playing HUGE roles in the development and standardization of the electric guitar... in many ways, the advent of the electric guitar truly changed the face of music forever...
__________________
"He's one of those who knows that life is just a leap of faith.
Spread your arms and hold your breath,
always trust your cape..."

"The Cape" (Guy Clark/Jim Janowsky/Susanna Clark)
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old 01-30-2014, 09:02 PM
EasyEd EasyEd is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jun 2013
Posts: 658
Default

Hey All,

Most innovative? Uh no not Bob Taylor - definitely Richard Hoover.

-Ed-
__________________
...Spent all I had to buy this Martin
An I been richer since I did
Even though I can't afford to change the strings...

from Blaine Larsen's Song "If Merle Would Sing My Song"
Reply With Quote
  #6  
Old 01-30-2014, 09:24 PM
Malty Malty is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Apr 2012
Posts: 612
Default

Leo Fender facilitated the greatest change in the guitar world in centuries and sparked one of the most dramatic changes of the western music world, too. A change that has continued unabated for over a half century and shows no signs of weakening any time soon.
Reply With Quote
  #7  
Old 01-30-2014, 09:30 PM
Guest 1928
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Acoustics - Without Martin's Orchestra Models in 1930, the landscape would be entirely different.

Electric - Fender and the brilliantly simple but stunningly versatile Telecaster.
Reply With Quote
  #8  
Old 01-30-2014, 09:40 PM
AZLiberty AZLiberty is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Arizona
Posts: 7,908
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by fazool View Post
Taylor for changing the manufacturing of guitars.
I'm trying to think of a single thing that Bob Taylor did that others had not done before him.

Taylor was not the first to use CNC.
Taylor was not the first to use UV cured finishes.

Taylor may have been one of the first to start shipping with coated strings, I think they beat Larrivee by about 2 months on that.

Bob Taylor is a great marketer and a very shrewd businessman. However Bob Taylor, Jean Larrivee, Bill Collings and others in this business are all fairly good friends as well as competitors. They have freely shared ideas and innovations.
__________________
Larrivee OM-03RE; O-01
Martin D-35; Guild F-212; Tacoma Roadking
Breedlove American Series C20/SR
Rainsong SFTA-FLE; WS3000; CH-PA
Taylor GA3-12, Guild F-212

https://markhorning.bandcamp.com/music
Reply With Quote
  #9  
Old 01-30-2014, 09:42 PM
Wardo Wardo is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jan 2010
Posts: 1,766
Default

Ovation were certainly innovative during the last 50 years and a lot of people used their guitars.
Reply With Quote
  #10  
Old 01-30-2014, 09:42 PM
Chordchunker Chordchunker is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Arkansas
Posts: 639
Default

Loyd Loar.
Reply With Quote
  #11  
Old 01-30-2014, 09:44 PM
ewalling ewalling is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 20,772
Default

Charlie Kaman - amazing innOvator!
Reply With Quote
  #12  
Old 01-30-2014, 09:51 PM
Athana Athana is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Mar 2013
Posts: 1,547
Default

Better instead to ask who has done the most to improve the guitar.

What has Taylor done..replaced men with machines,to result in a little less cost..(not much less cost mind you),as my father would say in the few English words he knew really well..big deal...
Oh and the bolt on neck for acoustic guitars. None of these things have resulted in an improvement in the instrument.

Incredibly Leo Fender slapping a couple of nicely shaped woods together with a hand wound pickup did achieve the greatest innovation in the guitar ..and that is because one of his guitars through one of his amps miraculously has resulted in something great if not the greatest.
Reply With Quote
  #13  
Old 01-31-2014, 03:57 AM
SpiderTrap SpiderTrap is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Posts: 980
Default on the

On the less expensive side, I would say Yamaha, as they've been building fine acoustics for years, but within the last ten years or so their quality control seems to have improved and so have their instruments. I have 3 and they rival any of the finest names on the market I had years ago I was unhappy with , for one reason or another .
Reply With Quote
  #14  
Old 01-31-2014, 04:48 AM
PaulT PaulT is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Nov 2013
Posts: 63
Default

Taylor.....!
Reply With Quote
  #15  
Old 01-31-2014, 04:54 AM
harvl harvl is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Apr 2010
Posts: 1,726
Default

Paul Bigsby, his solid body guitar was the first true solid body and it was measured by Leo Fender as the prototype for the Fender Broadcaster. His tail piece was the original vibrato tail piece...

Funny story... I was at Thom Bresh's house and he had Merle Travis' Super 400 with the original Bigsby on it. Thom told me when his dad gave it to him he said "If you ever make a clock or something out of this guitar save the tailpiece... it might be worth something..." Imagine making a clock out of Travis' Super 400.... The other guitar there that day was Merle's '38 Martin with the Bigsby neck on it. I have a picture of them leaning against a stump in his back yard... in hindsight that was kind of like parking your Bentley in your pool
__________________
Harvey Leach
Reply With Quote
Reply

  The Acoustic Guitar Forum > General Acoustic Guitar and Amplification Discussion > General Acoustic Guitar Discussion

Thread Tools





All times are GMT -6. The time now is 11:03 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.
Copyright ©2000 - 2022, The Acoustic Guitar Forum
vB Ad Management by =RedTyger=