Hello. I just reactivated this account, it looks like I was last active some 12 years ago.
Anyway, (this will be long), at the time I first joined AGF, I had just bought a Taylor T5 that I still have. I had had a Finnish Landola DL-38 as my acoustic for a long time already then (it is made in 1991). The Landola sat in its case for a long time only to be retuned every now and then. I played electrics, and for the last ten years, mostly bass which was a new venture for me.
Fast forward to last July. There was a Martin D-28 on the local Facebook Marketplace, selling close to what I was ready to pay for one. I hesitated for a while and the seller dropped the price to where I believe he still was happy, and where I definitely could justify the acquisition. The Martin is from 2010 and I loved its playability and sound right from the start. I said to myself "starter guitars should be like this, a joy to play!" I had somehow convinced myself that the relatively cheap Landola I had had since the 1990s was inaquate.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/163451...posted-public/
Now, this week, there was a local cat who was looking for a D-28 to buy. We basically agreed on the price, but I told him I need to evaluate my willingness to part with mine. So I started playing the D-28 and the Landola alternately, just to be sure. The clarity to the matter was soon resolved - I did not sell the Martin. It is just an inspirational guitar for me. It "sounds like on the record" as its sound on modern rock and country songs is so ubiquitous.
But, I also re-evaluated the Landola. Compared to the Martin, its neck is more radiused-like, and the back profile is a bit chunkier. But, even though when I started on steel-string and on the Landola, I had some difficulty with its neck and my left hand was tiring on the neck - it was no fault of the neck but my hand stamina. Now that I have played bass quite regularly for 10 years, I have developed my hands in a different way and the Landola neck feels only "different", not "unsuitable".
The Landola sound is very bold and projective. I can play it louder then the Martin before the strings rattle too hard. The sound, otherwise, is surprisingly quite similar to the Martin. I would say they complement each other nicely.
So, I now have two excellent acoustics, even though I originally thought I could let the Landola go. Looking at the market, the DL series seems to be a rare bird. There was one DL-34 on a local board for a few days and it was gone before I got the seller to show it to me. The DL-38 is the flagship of the series, with impeccable tonewoods - spruce top and Brazilian rosewood sides and back. The neck is mahogany. Almost 30 years have gone by since its manufacture, and you can't get Brazilian rosewood and high-gloss lacquer finishes for the kind of money I paid for the guitar back then. It's a keeper, with new, rekindled love from me.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/163451...posted-public/