I need your opinion on these guitars.
 

Hi guys,

Plan to upgrade my acoustic guitar soon.
What are your thoughts on these models below and which one would you pick?
I play both fingerstyle and strumming.

1) Martin D10E (Sitka / Sapele)
2) Martin D10E (All Sapele)
3) Martin 00010E (All Sapele)
4) Martin 000X1AE
5) Taylor 114e
6) Taylor 214e
7) Taylor Academy 12e

Thank you so much for all your input!

The Guild...

I need your opinion on these guitars.
 

What he said. Or even better an all solid Eastman! To be honest will get a lot more guitar for your money if you steal clear of the entry level Martin and Taylor guitars. You are paying a lot for that badge. If however you are determined to go for one of the aforementioned instruments then the 000X1AE would be my choice. 000 is a great body shape for picking and strumming, and with the Sitka top arguably a little more versatile than an all Sapele Martin.

Of those, I'd pick the Taylor 114e. That said, I agree with others. For the $ spent for one of those, you could get a better guitar that is all solid wood -- back and sides, not just the top. Yamaha AC3M comes to mind. The Martin's plugged in do not sound so good in my opinion and you end up spending more $ trying to get a decent tone plugged in.

Although there is likely a cost to the badge, there’s also a trust to put in that badge. If you’re upgrading to this type of guitar, it’s quite possible that you haven’t a wealth of experience and need to trust that you’re getting a good guitar. I own a Taylor 114e (admittedly from when they were all solid wood) that I’ll never part with. It’s a great guitar. I liked it better than the 214 that I compared it to. I just bought a Martin DX (DXAE?) that I like quite a bit. Very different tone, extremely playable, after a setup.

You’ll see this a million times: Go play them. To your question, the dreadnaughts are bigger, and I believe they’ll have a wider nut than the Taylors. That’s worth trying out to see if it works for you. The taylors are typically brighter, often with a thinner neck. The OOO Martins are great, smaller bodies than the D’s, clearly, but I have less experience with them.

In that price range, I wouldn’t skip over the aforementioned Guild, and I would check out Yamaha as well. (Although that may be what you’re upgrading from. My main guitars are a Yamaha LL6 and 712, just to qualify my other comments).

In that group I would lean toward the 114e and the OOOX for fingerstyle and strumming. But play as many of them as you can.

Make that a million and on times :)
If you give your general location perhaps folks can suggest where to go and sample some guitars


In the price range of the guitars mentioned I would consider an Import such as an Eastman, blueridge, and of course a Yamaha. The Yamaha LL16 series are all solid wood and well made.

Happy hunting

I may have missed it but what guitar do you have now? Only then can we take a shot of whether that really is an upgrade. On the other hand, "upgrade" is subjective and like others have said, if at all possible, go play the guitars live and see which one speaks to you and feels right in your hands and body.

Haha! That'd be my recommendation. :D

I tend not to like this price range. I'm not sure you get a lot more guitar than the $300 range, but that's just me.

I much prefer a used instrument in terms of bang for the buck - especially when budgets are tight. You can get a lot more instrument for your money if you can find a used guitar you like.

In this price range...me too.
While your current guitar may have been much less expensive, what you're looking at are "entry level" guitars. They are good guitars, but you can do better buying used at this price point.
As an aside, my Eastman E 10 00 was in this range new. Adirondack Spruce and Mahogany...beautiful build and tone and it plays as easy as any of the ones you're considering. Anyway, good luck!

In that range, if you’re playing unplugged, Alvarez MF66 or one of the other Masterworks offerings.
If plugged in, Takamine Pro Series in the NEX body.

All of the above mentioned guitars are also good guitars at good prices.
I have mostly dreads, but I rarely recommend them to others, as I am both “economy sized” and have a really long torso.
Thus I’m very comfortable playing a Dread while seated.
Like it’s been said above, try some guitars.
As many as you can lay hands on.
What I like, may or may not float your boat.

+1 on the Taylor 114.

Taylor 214e...

Play as many as you can.
Try not to get caught up in a specific brand.
Used = bigger bang for the buck. (There are very nice used ones out there)
If you're unsure, just keep trying guitars and get back to the forum on specifics.
Don't be in a hurry.

Buying used is not for everyone. Although all of my current acoustics were bought used, I'm not overly fussy about pristine condition and there are plenty of great used guitars available, it takes a base of guitar knowledge and workings to evaluate existing and potential issues. Folks who don't have that base can eliminate some risk and hassle by buying new. OTOH, a savvy friend could easily bridge that knowledge gap.