How many is too many? Too few?

[ChalkLitIScream]

Im more than happy with 2.
One beater or couch guitar, and then one high end guitar that I will always baby.

In the future when Ive got enough cash, I can see myself getting 2 high end instruments that would compliment eachother. A small body 12 fretter, and maybe a GA-sized Fan fret guitar? Depending on whether Id need a beater would let me get a 3rd...


Im the type of guy that will spend all my time on the best, and neglect everything else, so I dont see myself spending money on gutiars and not playing them (enough).

[Cool555]

12 is too many...and 2 is too few.

I have 6 relatively inexpensive guitars and I enjoy the variety of tone woods top that these guitars provide. “Variety is the spice of life!”

The top woods are: Monkeypod (Trembesi), Koa, Sapele, Spruce, Carbon Composite.

I do have my favourites and try my best to play all 6 on rotation. After sometime of not playing a particular guitar, I play it and I’m amazed by how beautiful it sounds. It feels like I’m playing a new guitar. Not sure if this happens to anyone else?

[Bear Davis]

Unfortunately I love playing a wide variety of styles and techniques so I am burdened with needing several guitars.

In no particular order I need:

- Strummer, Jumbo or Dread (Long scale, standard action with some relief.)
- Flat picker, Jumbo or Dread (Long scale, low action, little to no relief)
- Finger Stylist, OM-ish (Short scale, straight neck)
- Baritone steel string (30" scale)
- Classical Baritone (670mm+ C to C)
- Crossover (670mm)
- 12 String, Jumbo or Dread (Low action, slight relief)

[BrunoBlack]

I know 0 is too few, but I still haven’t tested the upper limit.

[lt20dbl]

This question is like asking, "how long is a piece of string?"

[perttime]

I have just one acoustic guitar now. I've been thinking that having a second one, a little smaller, would be nice. The other day, I had some time to waste in town, so dropped by at a music store and tried a couple of guitars. A Takamine and a PRS. Fine guitars certainly, but their sounds didn't please me like the sound of my large guitar does....

Perhaps there's no substitute for cubic inches (in guitars)?

[musicman1951]

Surely part of the answer has to do with your personality. I am a favorites guy. In all of my collections I inevitably end up with one favorite.

My Lowden is my current favorite. I have a truly lovely martin, but I only play it about one every two months. I play my classical even less over the past two years. I don't advocate it as a policy - I think it's actually not the best (the classical feels a little strange now) - it's just the way I roll.

Some people love variety and play all their instruments frequently. They should have a pile of guitars. For me, that would be a waste.

[RP]

Originally Posted by lt20dbl

This question is like asking, "how long is a piece of string?"

I agree and obviously didn't make my OP very clear. I don't really care how many guitars anyone has or why they chose to own that many (or that few). I'm curious as to why (seemingly recently) we have these competing trends to acquire guitars on one hand and on the other hand dispose of guitars to get to the lowest number. One of the obvious goals of minimizing is often financial liquidity, but aside from that there seems to be an unstated ascetic goal involved.

Over the past ten years, I've been on both sides of these competing trends and ultimately succumbed to the lure of owning and playing nice (to me anyhow) guitars. I live a fairly simple life and enjoy owing the Taylors in my possession. They're great to play, sound really nice to my ears and are easy on the eye. I've long been a Taylor fan (got my first in 2006), but have to admit very superficially that Andy Powers' entry and increased use of wood binding sealed the deal for me.

[lt20dbl]

Perhaps collectively, there are competing trends but everybody is different. I have disposed of two good guitars for one great one and then realized that I needed to add a good, functional but less valuable one. I tend to gift these latter types to others after a time. After that, I added a few more great guitars, feeling no temptation to replace the more pedestrian examples. Right now, I have five. All very nice and have decided that it's worth the possible financial loss to play only guitars that I love. Someday, I will have to part with all of them but for now, I want to enjoy them. I don't feel like I need another but you never know. All the ones I have now, are keepers after 45 years of owning guitars.
So that is my story. No two are exactly alike, I would guess. No right answer.

[Kh1967]

There is a trend toward minimalism. Lots of books, blogs, even tv shows on the topic:

"Minimalism is the intentional promotion of the things we most value and the removal of anything that distracts us from it. It requires a conscious decision because it is a countercultural lifestyle that stands against the culture of overconsumption that surrounds us.

The world we live in is not friendly to the pursuit of minimalism. Its tendencies and relentless advertising campaigns call us to acquire more, better, faster, and newer. The journey of finding simplicity requires consistent inspiration."

Yet, minimalism is a broadly defined term and looks like/feels like different to different people. For some, that might mean one guitar, for others, the number could be far greater.

So....still no real answer, just an observation and thought on the topic. :-)

[oldwasichu]

No such thing as too many. So long as you can afford them, they all meet a specific need/want, and they all get played. My two cents.

[RP]

Originally Posted by Kh1967

...So....still no real answer, just an observation and thought on the topic. :-)

I didn't figure there'd be an answer - just wanted to hear thoughts and observations...

[Trevor B.]

Depends entirely on whose point of view. To the guitar player it's almost always too few. To the guitar players spouse it's almost always too many.

[raysachs]

To quote a recent meme from some source I'm not too sure of, if you have guitars that "spark joy", keep them. If you have some that don't spark joy, move on from them Once you have only guitars that spark joy, you have the right number.

At the moment that number is one acoustic and three electrics for me. This is periodically subject to revision. I've been a one acoustic guy for the vast majority of my playing life, so that probably won't change. When I've had two I always found myself reaching for one and no keeping the other, But three is the very top end of the number of electrics I've ever happily owned, so that may stay the same or come down, but I seriously doubt it'll go up. When I have too many of anything, it becomes a mental burden rather than a pleasure. I've been there with guitars, bicycles, camera gear, skis, a few other things. I've gotten to the point of recognizing the symptoms and when they hit, getting rid of stuff feels REALLY liberating.

My bottom line is always whether I grab something organically, because it's just what I feel like playing / using in the moment, or whether I'm grabbing something out of a sense of obligation because I'd spent the time and money acquiring and setting it up. If I'm just grabbing a guitar (or anything else) because I feel like I SHOULD, rather than because I just freaking WANT TO, that one's ready for the chopping block. I don't act rashly - I give stuff time to grow on me again, to make a comeback, but after a period of time, I know. And I sell...

-Ray

[gfirob]

I began to feel uncomfortable with the number of guitars I had and gave two Martins to my son (a D28 and a 12 fret 0028) both of which were not getting played. They were weighing me down psychically. Now I have one of each species and I play them all:

Rosewood Martin OM
Vintage single-cone National
Vintage ladder braced Kalamazoo
Telecaster
Vintage Slope shouldered dread
Vintage Acoustic lap slide guitar

Also, space begins to be an issue, for the guitars and the cases.