Can a great player make a cheap guitar sound great?

[Bear Davis]

By my personal definition of what sonically sounds great?

No.... just no...

My D-45v sounds great and there is no skill level that will ever make my laminated Yamaha sound "great"

[Steadfastly]

Originally Posted by rwmct

Sometimes they don't even need a guitar. A shovel will do:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9-ltPsbw9g

He gets quite "deep" with that.

[Silly Moustache]

Originally Posted by Toby Walker

I saw this quote and thought about it.

“If you can play you can make anything sound good. It’s not the price its the fingers.”

I’ll agree, but only up to a point. When comparing a cheap quality acoustic guitar to a superbly sounding one with a vastly superior build - in the hands of a great guitarist - that said player is going to sound MUCH better with the latter.

Unless of course you’re trying to capture the sound of the old, acoustic blues.
However, many of those old blues musicians had to play cheap guitars until they could afford better ones.

Skip James and Big Bill Broonzy both upgraded to a Martin, John Jackson went for a Gibson, and Mississippi John Hurt traded his Stella for a Guild.

Right now I have a newly purchased Harmony 1270 - jumbo 12 string waiting for me when I get home. Paid under $600 for it and without a doubt I simply love the sound of a that model. I intend to keep it in an open tuning specifically for playing Slide. I suppose the bottom line is that it’s all in what you seek.

Hi Toby,
I have to agree with you wholeheartedly.
Many buy "vintage" guitars because they want to sound like their childhood heroes but there are also those who are "tone chasers whose ears are attuned to the depth of tonality of a fine instrument.


However, there is a current fashion for small bodied "catalogue" style guitars with Waterloo being at about the top. I have a Waterloo WL-12 and I didn't care for it for the first few months but have grown to appreciate its rather limited tonal capacity , especially for folkie stuff like this :



I also acquired an H1270 via ebay last year, and apart from its elephantine body, I confess that I enjoy its sound more than my Martin D12-20 custom.

[Kitkatjoe]

Originally Posted by Toby Walker

I saw this quote and thought about it.

“If you can play you can make anything sound good. It’s not the price its the fingers.”

I’ll agree, but only up to a point. When comparing a cheap quality acoustic guitar to a superbly sounding one with a vastly superior build - in the hands of a great guitarist - that said player is going to sound MUCH better with the latter.

Unless of course you’re trying to capture the sound of the old, acoustic blues.
However, many of those old blues musicians had to play cheap guitars until they could afford better ones.

Skip James and Big Bill Broonzy both upgraded to a Martin, John Jackson went for a Gibson, and Mississippi John Hurt traded his Stella for a Guild.

Right now I have a newly purchased Harmony 1270 - jumbo 12 string waiting for me when I get home. Paid under $600 for it and without a doubt I simply love the sound of a that model. I intend to keep it in an open tuning specifically for playing Slide. I suppose the bottom line is that it’s all in what you seek.

The player needs a guitar that is stable and stays in tune.

[jfq722]

A great player will max out the capabilities of a cheap guitar - it'll sound as great as it CAN that's for sure.

[Charmed Life Picks]

To the OP: Absolutely. A great player has his own tone, regardless of the instrument.

my two cents,
scott memmer

[Larry Pattis]

Originally Posted by Toby Walker

<<snip>>

I suppose the bottom line is that it’s all in what you seek.

It often relates to genre of music being played with the guitar.

If you're a Blues player you might be seeking a different sound than a Celtic (or other contemporary fingerstyle) player.

[Mr. Jelly]

It depends on what style of music is being played on it and that there isn't another acoustic guitar being played along side it.

[donlyn]

My Epiphone EJ200 certainly classified as dirt cheap, mostly cause it needed a new saddle, nut, strings, and a set-up. Work done, and it still classifies as cheap. Even after I bought a brand new 'Epiphone' hardshell case for it, I would still classify it as cheap. Just for the record, I will define 'cheap' as 3 bills and below. Which is probably in the ballpark of what it cost new back in '94.

Anyway, my point is that I do not have any problem using this instrument in public. It plays and sounds really good on it's own (with whatever help needed from me). And as a bonus, it's a J200, which is a good-looking guitar to begin with. So I certainly think even a decent player can get great results from a cheap guitar.

Don

PS> My use of 'cheap' refers only to price.

[Kitkatjoe]

Originally Posted by Toby Walker

I saw this quote and thought about it.

“If you can play you can make anything sound good. It’s not the price its the fingers.”

I’ll agree, but only up to a point. When comparing a cheap quality acoustic guitar to a superbly sounding one with a vastly superior build - in the hands of a great guitarist - that said player is going to sound MUCH better with the latter.

Unless of course you’re trying to capture the sound of the old, acoustic blues.
However, many of those old blues musicians had to play cheap guitars until they could afford better ones.

Skip James and Big Bill Broonzy both upgraded to a Martin, John Jackson went for a Gibson, and Mississippi John Hurt traded his Stella for a Guild.

Right now I have a newly purchased Harmony 1270 - jumbo 12 string waiting for me when I get home. Paid under $600 for it and without a doubt I simply love the sound of a that model. I intend to keep it in an open tuning specifically for playing Slide. I suppose the bottom line is that it’s all in what you seek.

His style and ability will be there but the guitar needs to be there also. Have you ever witnessed an accomplished pianist play a not so good piano. You knew the pianist was not the problem but the �� was. We could go for days on this but it gets silly. Get the guy a decent guitar please!

[Guitarplayer_PR]

A cheap guitar is NOT necessarily a bad guitar. A bad guitar will sound bad, period. That won't stop a great guitarist from doing great music, but great music and great sound are two different things.