Do any of your guitars sound better when not directly compared to another guitar?

[bufflehead]

When I'm playing my Martin 000-15m it sounds like the only guitar I would ever need. But then when I switch to my Martin Custom D, I'm blown away by the greater depth of sound. Likewise, when I move from the dreadnought to the 000, the smaller guitar sounds a bit thin.

Solved this problem by leaving the 000-15m in the bungalow and housing the Custom D in the cabin. Now each guitar rules its own roost.

[Steve DeRosa]

No, but my singing sounds better when not directly compared to another singer who can actually sing...

[jw3571]

I've noticed the same thing, individually each guitar sounds incredible. You start comparing to other guitars and it brings out all kinds of interesting aspects.

[egordon99]

All my guitars sound wimpy after I play my Baby Grand piano.

I never A/B/C/D/E/F/G guitars I already own. Nothing good ever comes of it.

[alnico5]

I just play the one I own.

[whvick]

Originally Posted by 3fingers

This is an interesting subject and I have wondered what impact it has on guitar purchases. Is your purchase impacted by the order you try guitars in a store?

You make a great point. How does one effect the other when shopping?
In optical sales it is a killer to have a patient who cannot make up their mind.
One technique to help with decision making is to put out three frames. If they are having problems deciding you show them an OK frame. Then you show them a dog...one you know will not look good. Then you show them one that you know will look great on them. Frequently they will immediately decide for the good frame.
If in the store you play a bad guitar, the next descent one will sound great.
And another point. There is a face for every frame and a frame for every face, but not every frame for every face. We could extrapolate that to guitars also.

[TBman]

Except for when I bought my Alvarez 00 and Seagull Folk I always try to get a guitar that brings something to the table my other guitars don't have. Sometimes its a vertical improvement, other times its horizontal, just as good, but different. For example, my J-45 vs Avalon vs Martin. Apples and oranges. Also, my Larrivee is different, an OM and has its own space in my guitar world. It can't compete with my dreads for sustain (except the J45) and I use it for tunes that fit its tone.

Most of us have to balance budget with tonal desires. A G45 is going to be a little less in the volume department compared to the 814, but playing different kinds of music on each will make each one shine in its own way.

[CASD57]

Originally Posted by aeisen93

My Gibson G-45 sounds pretty good when I play it by itself.



But if I play my Taylor 814ce, and then go back to the Gibson, the Gibson sounds very thin. However, if I then play the Gibson alone for 15 minutes, it sounds very good again!



What is going on haha? Do any of your guitars sound better or worse after comparing them to another one? (I think the Gibson sounds pretty good being that it's one third the price of the Taylor...)

I do this with location, my Seagull sound great behind my desk and I take out into the opening of my living room and it sounds thin and harsh, I've got rid of more then one guitar due to this.... And probably a mistake, dang it!! I need to start over trying guitars out in my living instead of my office [emoji1787][emoji1787]

[takamineGD93]

Eastman ed2 (and ed1) sounded great in the store. I was about to buy one. But there was a blueridge 160X (with all the bling). I compared them for half an hour and couldn't longer buy the eastman.
The Blueridge had a complexity the eastman just didn't have. I didn't notice it before I AB it with something else.

[mawmow]

I am an intermediate fingerstyle player.
I do own quite a nice herd of low to mid-range solid wood acoustics and I would
not say one is that better than another : I would adjust my appreciation to my
expectations about the guitar on a particular style or repertoire.
I frequently play two different guitars in the same session without any negative
thought other than "Does it suit this tune well or not?".
I frequently compared two or even three guitars while building my herd and
my thoughs have always been "Is this guitar sounding that different from the
others that I want it in ?"
I have to mention I also had a period of strings trials and still often have to try
two or three sets of strings on any new guitar I get.
So, to me, it is not a matter of better or not but does it sound different or not.

[musicman1951]

I suspect some of it is how fussy your ear might be. I don't prefer thin/bright guitar sounds. It doesn't matter how long I play a guitar I don't prefer, I still don't like it.

Isn't the very definition of "better" totally dependent on a comparison?

[llew]

Originally Posted by Rev Roy

Yep. I was wondering the same thing...then I realized the OP is playing a G-45, which is a thin-body entry level Gibson. We’re not talking J-45.

OP, it’s been said many times on this forum but is worth repeating: Comparison is the enemy of contentment.

Yes it is and it seems every time I close one case and open another it happens automatically. Like cruise control? I guess it's human nature at some level to do so? And as long as I'm "comparing" to something I already own it may be acceptable?

[Silurian]

They don't sound better or worse, just different. Which is precisely the reason I bought them in the first place.

[Goodallboy]

Isn’t this exactly what happens when playing guitars off the rack? It’s how we decide what we like.

Until recently I only had one acoustic guitar because I had found the sound I wanted. No other was needed. A travel guitar was purchased but solely for travel, I thought, until the tone blew me away, but that’s another story.

I have several electric guitars and some aren’t played a lot, simply because they aren’t as “good” as some of the others. If you have multiple acoustic guitars, you likely have some that aren’t that great. Like some of my electrics, they don’t do it for you.

Playing them by themselves and not comparing them, won’t change that.