What guitar's sound has most surprised you?
 

I know that a lot of us kind of know what to expect from different guitars and surprises are not all that common. I recently purchased this guitar:

http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/f...ght=joel+stehr

I bought it here on the classifieds mainly because I thought it was so darn good looking that the builder would know how to make sound also. I am always astounded when I play this guitar by the amount of low end that this guitar has. It is a very small and comfortable guitar so I play it all the time and it is ridiculous how much this guitar does at the lower register. It might not be for everyone and I am sure some people wouldn't like it as the highs are not super loud but I love the sound. More than anything else it just surprises me that Joel was able to get so much low end out of such a small guitar. I know atleast two other forum members have heard it since I am the third owner but it sounds nothing like you would expect. I have had atleast 5 people play it and they all get surprised. Any other interesting sounding guitars out there to try out?

A Martin 000X1 a friend of mine bought as a beater. Sounds great, outstanding feel, just fun to play.

My new Martin 000-15M. Really quite good.

I would have to say a Martin M36/38... knocked my socks off... not what i was expecting.. Love it..

How do you like your cole clark? I know they sound great plugged in but what does it sound like unplugged?

Hi Fullsmile,

That is a really cool looking guitar... I can see why you were taken with it. That looks like it would really be fun to play.

I think I was most surprised by the Taylor 12-Fret guitar I bought about a year ago -- nice full-spectrum sound for such a small guitar. And very easy on my arthritic finger joints, which was what I was looking for...

- Glenn

This one is on the low end of the quality spectrum, but....
I bought this guitar off CL for 80 bucks. It's a Yamaha FG-331 manufactured from '80-'81.... 000 size, mahogany back and sides, spruce top. I bought it to teach some of my middle school students to play. The thing sounds and plays great! It will be my new camping guitar.

A SCGC 000 12-fret Braz. Blew my mind.

Astounded.
 

Seagull S6 Mahogany Spruce

and now my

Recording King RD-27 Dreadnought.


p.s. The Yamaha FG-331 mentioned above is a great guitar.

I just wanted a comfortable guitar and figured this was it. With the small body and bevel it couldn't be better. Glad you found the same thing.

My latest acquisition. A Taylor GS Mini Ltd Blackwood. I can't believe the power and projection and richness. It still amazes me that it is a laminate.

My Recording King RP-06. I was becoming unsatisfied with the sound I was hearing from small guitars. The RP-06 has made me aware of what small guitars can do. Every time I pick it up I am surprised by the purity of the tone it produces. Very sweet.

I found our 1935 (restored) Gibson Jumbo to be a really good bluegrass guitar -- I often will now choose it instead of our 1935 D-28. The only other old Gibson that I ever found in this class was an old AJ.

Most (not restored) Jumbos are just too raw for good bluegrass rhythm.

If you get to play guitar in wide open traditional bluegrass, then you know the rhythm role is essentially aerobic. You also know that to tell how well a guitar will sound, you must judge it in context. So comparing the guitars by themselves really won't tell you much unless you are very experienced. Nonetheless, here is a comparison of the Jumbo to the Queen of Bluegrass Rhythm, a 1935 D-28.


Let's pick,

-Tom

My biggest surprises were the guitars I found I did not like. Had a chance to get a Collings D2 a while ago, had heard others and liked them, but I just couldn't like the one I looked at. Tried my Bourgeois at the same time and even though it was the first of that brand I ever played, bought in on the spot.

I've wanted a Gibson AJ for a long time, but every time I try one, I just can't pull the trigger. Must not be compatible with my DNA.

The Yamaha FG and L series guitars, without a doubt.

And every Alvarez I've ever tried (and owned) has surprised me.

GS Mini. That little thing leaves a bunch of full-size dreadnoughts in the dust.

I think it was the first time I played a Goodall (parlor) and a Taylor (GS) back-to-back. Somehow, the parlor had a bigger sound.

A Goodall parlor was also one of my biggest surprises. I had one in Macassar and Port Oxford Cedar that just never quite did it for me. I loved the play and look but couldn't quite love the tone. I Love my Goodall KGCC and the other day played a Ziricote that was one of the best sounding guitars I have ever played. I went back a week later to do a trade and purchase but it was gone. It just goes to show how individual tone preference can be. I am sure the other two owners of my Stehr didn't love it like I do or they wouldn't have sold it. Atleast I hope that was the reason and not that they really needed the money.

Sounds better as it ages a little. Absolutely excellent plugged in

Yeah, I think that's one of the really cool things about guitars, some of them just work so much better for some players over others. I used to own a Goodal KCJC and I found that my style of playing had me fighting to make it sound the way I wanted. The friend of mine who has it now wields it effortlessly.

That is what I always find so funny about every one agreeing that a particular guitar is the best ever. A lot of tone comes from the style of whoever is playing it. Some sound best with individual notes played clearly and others only shine when they are really worked roughly with a pick. And again it is all subjective.

The most surprising sounding guitar I have ever experienced was a Goodall cedar/rosewood concert jumbo. It pretty much floored me. I had no idea that a guitar could even sound like that.

Another surprising guitar was one particularly exceptional Hoffman 00 that sounded simply lovely played softly, but then when played harder sounded like there was a second guitar inside that had been switched on. Just amazing.

Ditto on my Taylor 12-fret custom - amazes me every time I play it.

Jack

The first Goodall I ever played really blew me away. It stood out in a roomful of great guitars. Other Goodalls have sounded just as good but after the first one, I was expecting the rich, full tone. The other big surprise has been the Huss & Dalton 00s. They have a much bigger voice than their size suggests. Turns out, they're H&D's best-selling guitars. I completely understand why.

I've played lots of other really nice guitars but the Goodall and H&D 00s are the ones that really caught me off guard, in a good way.

Takamine TF360SBG...it has totally changed my mind about Taks..the quality really does compare with the higher end Taylors and Martins [I have owned several of both] playablity is butter smooth, and the acoustic sound is really unlike any Takamine I have ever played..big,full, with a bass you feel in your ribgage when you play it. They said they designed it to sound like the older Martins, and I believe it. The cool tube pre-amp is as good or better than anything I have used. Really love the dial-in tube sound!

A Breedlove crossover, Passport N200/CMP. I took the chance and bombed. Bone dry sound, whatever nylon brand I put on it. Now with a set of nickel wounds/lights it is one proud sounding guitar. (Tuned to open G, and half stepped down in addition, so little risk for it to fold in on itself.) I'd never recommend it as a nylon stringer, but otherwise...

This is probably the most interesting post so far including mine. Kind of cool. I guess the crossover didn't quite cross.

The Yamaha FG 730S which has been the best ive tried out

and so i bought this guitar which for the money's worth is better

than many other more expensive guitars id say that i tried out :)

Stanford PSD20 and PSRD20.
Not small bodied in size and for SURE not small bodied in tone.
I havent owned any Martins but have tried plenty. I dunno man...the Stanfords pack a WALLOP!!!

I have been playing a Goodall for 3 years now. I still appreciate it as a great guitar every time I sit down with it. But it has become more or less a standard experience for me now, and I sort of forget sometimes that not all guitars sound like this.

That is, until I try out other guitars in shops and find that most of them let me down (I do still LOVE good quality Martins when I play them in shops though, and I also routinely play a Martin 000-15 and a nice classical at home, but those are pretty darn nice sounding guitars too).