Finding "the one"

[Dave JH]

Originally Posted by musicman1951

I recently made a trip from Albany, NY to The Music Emporium. Despite outward appearances, a wonderful collection of fine instruments and a very nice staff.



I played a bunch of guitars I have been reading about here for quite a while. I find it interesting how quickly I know when a guitar is "not the one." I can usually tell in a few seconds if a guitar speaks to my heart/soul. If it doesn't have that sound (whatever that may be) it whispers quickly, "not me."



I played some fine guitars and recognized them as fine guitars, but never to be my guitar. The Lowden's all wanted to come home with me. I also played a wonderful Bourgeois.



How quickly can you tell if a guitar is "the one," or does such a concept even exist for you?

I visited Carters last year and had a similar experience. I played guitars from Boutique builders that were supposed to be grails but after one strum they quickly went back on the hanger. That included prewar Martins, Thompson’s, Altman, NGC etc.

[Tony Done]

It took me about three bars of fingerpicking an old Maton M300 to realise it was "the one". This was a few years back, and every time I pick it up, my judgement is confirmed. I had a similar experience with a well-used cedar-topped Maton M225 for slide playing, though not quite so dramatic. I'm no longer beguiled by big open sounds and I'm very aware, from a bad experience, that the tone of a new guitar can change with time.

With electrics, it is more case of "OK, I can make this work" rather than "this is 'the one'".

[BoneDigger]

Honestly, I don't think there is such a thing, at least not for me. I go through bouts of love for mahogany, then rosewood, then electric, then maybe back to mahogany, then maybe my 12 string, then maybe a jumbo, then back to rosewood, etc. So, for me anyway, I have to have a wide variety or I get bored.

[big jilm]

There is no “the one”. You pick one you like and make it “the one”.

[LadysSolo]

I knew the first time I strummed a few chords that my Seagull felt great an sounded very good. I decided to think about it, as the store was going out of business, and the owner offered a free gig bag and a 1/2 price strap with it (the guitar was already a good deal and was marked 30% off.) I went back a week later and they still had it, I played it again and bought it. I have never regretted it. It may not be "the one," but it was definitely worth what I paid for it.

[ManyMartinMan]

It’s all about kissing frogs my friend. You do it until you find a prince/princess.

[gitarro]

I will know very quickly upon playing a guitar for the first time whether it is worth it to me to buy and I find my first impressions are usually borne out and surpassed when i have played it longer.

However like someone said here, keeping the guitar is always subject to the vagaries of GAS...

[BluesKing777]

Spilt my coffee, some of you guys are funny!

House full of ones and the last ones and the next? Laughed! Good thing, thanks.

Now, for a long, golden period I could get a guitar I liked with ‘potential’ and my very clever luthier could torture it into being The One...and he has a few times. But he is a victim of his own success currently and working his ***** off just making his 8 day week....including making me a guitar last year thst is another of the Ones!

But in a shop, I can only guess and hope the guitar I am playing works out, but something says to buy it and I really don’t know how good it will be until I have played it for a couple of months with my strings of choice. This is something to do with ergonomics, playability and more than the ‘sound’ that made you buy it.

Luckily, after playing over 50 years, I know I can narrow them down to what I like moments after I try them...and I have quite a few ‘The Ones’ and a couple of ‘The Next Ones’ in progress......

BluesKing777.

[colins]

Keith, I went into TME many years ago to check out one brand of guitar, and came away head over heels for another guitar maker that I had never even heard of prior to that visit. I ended up buying one of his and eleven years later I am still amazed at the quality of that guitar and how well it suits me.

It’s great fun to try out different guitars. To paraphrase someone else’s post – if you kiss enough frogs you’re bound to find a prince/princess. I’m not looking for “the one”, but the more I play the easier it is to make a decision about a guitar in a few minutes.

Anyway my one trip to TME had a huge impact on my guitar knowledge. Lucky you live close to them!

Col

[djg]

Originally Posted by brencat

I can tell within minutes if the guitar is worth buying, based on playability and tone. But I need a good 4 - 6 months with it to determine whether it's a long term keeper. Guitars that I thought were great initially (HD-28, OM-28 Authentic, Collings OM1 Walnut) didn't last a year with me for various different reasons. Meanwhile, a guitar I bought on a whim in 2016... a mint SCGC D/PW, ended up outclassing two great dreads I owned at the time and has since become my all time favorite guitar. To me, it's a combination of playability and tone, where you don't have to fight the instrument to let your music shine.

The more instruments you try, the greater the odds of finding the one, but it is pure luck in many cases.

I'd tell some version of this story, although I don't buy all that many guitars. Read a little noise into this generality: It doesn't take all that long to discern that a guitar has certain qualities that appeal to me -- maybe that's brencat's "worth buying," whether I actually buy anything or not. Getting from there to how well a guitar suits me, to something like "the one," takes more time.

My own version of "the one" is not necessarily the best guitar I've ever played and it's not my only guitar. I did a long, multi-city search for a guitar back in the '90s. Ultimately I settled on a particular Santa Cruz OM at a shop not all that far from home -- local-ish, let's say. Something about the guitar grabbed me pretty quickly, but I didn't buy it right away -- I returned twice and was comparing it against alternatives up to the end. I never questioned that purchase much less regretted it, but it took several months before that guitar really started dominating my playing time. I bought that guitar in 1995 and it's still my number one guitar. I've never played anything that made me want to replace it. It suits me. Maybe that makes it "the one." Took a while however. I doubt I'll ever sell it, and I'm not searching for anything better (better-for-me) -- that's just not one of my goals. Still, I have bought other guitars over the years and haven't sworn off the idea that something else might step to the fore someday.

[Kayper]

Originally Posted by musicman1951

I recently made a trip from Albany, NY to The Music Emporium. Despite outward appearances, a wonderful collection of fine instruments and a very nice staff.

I played a bunch of guitars I have been reading about here for quite a while. I find it interesting how quickly I know when a guitar is "not the one." I can usually tell in a few seconds if a guitar speaks to my heart/soul. If it doesn't have that sound (whatever that may be) it whispers quickly, "not me."

I played some fine guitars and recognized them as fine guitars, but never to be my guitar. The Lowden's all wanted to come home with me. I also played a wonderful Bourgeois.

How quickly can you tell if a guitar is "the one," or does such a concept even exist for you?

I used to believe there was a "One". Then I got burned twice by higher end Martins. They were amazing in the store. Once home and being played daily, they were just too big.

But I tried many more guitars, and practiced until I got better. Learned what I was looking for.
Tried a Yamaha 800, fell for it and walked out with it. The cheapest guitar I own and my favorite.

[Mr Bojangles]

They all whisper different things to me, but I'm glad that I don't have to marry just one of them for life.

[RP]

Originally Posted by Kh1967

...I know fairly quickly if I want to take the guitar home but, it does take some time for me to determine if its an actual keeper.

I agree with Kori and others on this. I own some great guitars, but I've yet to maintain a long term relationship. That probably has more to do with me than the guitars in my life.....

[Psfam]

Originally Posted by brencat

I can tell within minutes if the guitar is worth buying, based on playability and tone. But I need a good 4 - 6 months with it to determine whether it's a long term keeper. Guitars that I thought were great initially (HD-28, OM-28 Authentic, Collings OM1 Walnut) didn't last a year with me for various different reasons. Meanwhile, a guitar I bought on a whim in 2016... a mint SCGC D/PW, ended up outclassing two great dreads I owned at the time and has since become my all time favorite guitar. To me, it's a combination of playability and tone, where you don't have to fight the instrument to let your music shine.

The more instruments you try, the greater the odds of finding the one, but it is pure luck in many cases.

That's very interesting and I think I agree. I can tell pretty quickly in a store as I go from one to the next-A beats B, C beats A, C beats D... and one goes home. That is of course impossible with buying online, used, trading. So unfortunately the choice is either to be satisfied with what we have already and do no comparing or to keep hunting for the elusive "one."

I think things change at home though. The environment changes. It is more relaxed and there is time. I still compare, but one leaves the case more than another. It's not all about sound either. For whatever reason, over time one or two stand out. I can try to convince myself I like another which I am "supposed" to like more, but i can't make it happen.

As maddening as the search might seem, I am glad for the variety of tastes which creates this market of searchers so we can buy, sell, and trade. I guess I have accepted this in itself can be a hobby. Too bad shipping costs so much.

[JAMKC]

Originally Posted by Willie Voltaire

I think that, as with any relationship, the player/instrument bond takes time to develop. I liked my Gibson LG2 right off the bat, but it wasn't until many months later that I came to regard it as my "one."

In general, I think we are often too quick to sell off a guitar that doesn't immediately present itself as perfect. We don't invest the time to discover the approach that brings out its best characteristics. I'm guessing that as a result, I've probably let a few "number one" guitars slip through my hands over the years. I try to take a more patient approach these days.

This^^^^ and I still haven't developed enough patience.