What guitar brands have you tried to like/love but end up selling?
 

This isn’t meant to bash guitars. There are certain brands I try and try and end up having the same issue. For me it’s Larrivee and Martin. I love the way Larrivees are constructed but the tone just never moves me. I love Martins tradition but nearly every Martin I’ve ever owned has a binding shrinkage.

I guess you could throw Lowdens in there. They sound amazing but just absolutely don’t work with my style of guitar playing.

Same here. Sometimes you hold, feel and play a guitar, and it just feels right. I never got that with various Martins and Larrivees. Please keep in mind that's a personal choice as I consider both to be great brands - just not for me...

So what is to your tastes then?

I’ve found something to like about virtually every guitar I’ve ever purchased. Some “feel” better too me or just resonate with me in special ways, and those are the ones that have remained as the basis of what I play and keep.

If you had written this post a year ago I would have replied: “Taylor guitars,” but after sitting down in a couple of different music stores and playing some of the new Taylor Grand Pacific models in the past few months I need to be removed from the “Officially Indifferent To Taylor Guitars” list.

Those Grand Pacific models are definitely a game changer for Taylor, at least so far as I’m concerned.


Wade Hampton Miller

As said before not bashing...All personal

Tried to like Martins
Tried to like Taylors
Tried to like Epiphone but I do have a P339Pro-P90
Tried to like Seagull
Tried to like Eastman
and a bunch more... I'm still trying different Brands :)

Trying to Like Breedlove at the moment :)

I have tried many Taylors wanting to like them and other than my GS Mini Mahogany, none have done anything for me. Same for Eastman, I have owned 2 and neither stayed long. But I have also tried many Martins and Gibsons that left me kind of "mehhh" too. So I think it's more the individual guitar than it is the brand. Sometimes you pick up a guitar and it seems it was built for you, and I suspect that can happen with any make.

But what do I know?

I had a GS mini and sold it. After getting into Martins I couldn't really enjoy Taylor at all. I had the same experience. Played a 317 for 30 minutes at a music store and thought it sounded great. Definitely changed my mind on them.

For me, I've yet to find a Gibson that feels good to me. I don't know if it's the necks or the sound, they just haven't done much for me. Maybe I haven't tried a good one yet.

I’ve found I really love huss and dalton and bourgeois. Fit and finish is awesome, I like their traditional look and sound yet they have a modern design under the hood (bolt on neck for easy resets in the future, the finish they use is extremely durable and doesn’t “craze” or develop stains from sweat). Their necks feel really good in my hand as well. I feel like they have their own tone but definitely lean towards the traditional tone of Martin. Basically improving on Martin guitars. And they can be had used in the same general ballpark of used Martins.

No experience with Lowden, but I feel the same about both Martin and Larrivee...It drives me mad, because I really want to like them.

I admit I have pretty limited experience with Larrivee, but the ones I played were dreads, and they were dull... Really dull... This has been the case with every one I have played, and strings were not the issue...

When it comes to Martin, I can't get on with them until we reach the $3k and up range. At that range they get much better, but still dont have what I want when compared to others in the same range.

Breedlove...Just no.

Same with Takamine. Nope.

For me it wold have to be modern Gibsons. Apart from the poor finish/presentation, the tone simply des't rach me.

Taylors don't attract me either - just don't like their shapes (by which i mean they don't look like pre-war designs - which is my thing).

I'm right there with you on Bourgeois guitars! My Slope D is the stuff, in my opinion and will hang with just about anything I've played! My d-41 is amazing too, but I'm already seeing that I like the Bourgeois finish MUCH better. It wasn't cleaned at the shop it was at and was obviously played quite a bit and it already has a cloudy spot in the lower bout where your forearm goes. No one would notice it except me, but it still irks me that the finish is so easy to get messed up. I still think Taylor has the toughest and most durable finish of the current builders.

Well, I never have gotten along very well with Taylors (though haven't played the new ones) and Collings. Love my 000-18 and am hoping to start a love relationship with my Fairbanks that is currently in transit!
scott

Well this was a case of me as opposed to anything wrong with the guitars. About a dozen or so years ago, I purchased a fabulous Kenny Hill Crossover Nylon. I was learning some Brazilian Jazz tunes and I just wanted that sound of nylon with more of a steel string edge. Over time, I realized that I just wasn't playing it very much. That guitar, as beautiful as it was, just didn't speak to me like my steel stringed guitars. The guitar sold in 5 days and I was happy it found a new home.

I have always wanted to love Breedlove guitars since I really like their overall design and visual aesthetic but in most cases, the tone just leaves me wanting for something else. Fine guitars just not for my ears. I have shopped for them over the years but have never taken one home.

Best,
Jayne

Everything. Gibson, Martin, Taylor, Collings, Washburn, Bourgeois, Alvarez, Takamine, Larrivee, Avalon, Ovation - again, everything. Everything I don't have was bought then sold. It has NOTHING to do with the brand. It is guitar specific and shouldn't be confused with "I don't like that brand because I didn't like one or two of their guitars...." If everyone would purchase guitars they like, instead of jumping on "brands" they want to try, all would be more content with their purchases. These types of threads almost always get into, or too close to, brand bashing.