|
|
#1
02-13-2021, 03:14 PM
|
|||
|
|||
A good fingerstyle guitar ?
I have owned guitars on and off from teenage to thirty. Then bought a nylon
and later on a dread, low grade. Bought my first solid wood (Taylor 510) on my very fiftieth birthday... Then turned to firgerstyle. I now own a nice herd of mid range fingerstyle guitars. I play almost every single day for my own pleasure and still learn new things here and there. I could honestly qualify as an intermediate fingerstyle player I guess. In the last five years or so, I used to hear my guitars as too clear ("cristal") tone as the Yamaha LS-16 ARE I once owned, too bassy as Gibson J-100 and Taylor GS-5 I also owned for a time or boxy ladder bracing of a Gibson Lg-0, etc. In the meanwhile I learned what guitar specs I needed to be comfortable. I also took private lessons two years ago to het rid of bad technical habits : Should have done that well before, but... Now, I am going a step further and began to learn to separate voicings (bass vs mid vs melody). And I can now face another aspect of music as should my guitar be stronger on the bass side, makes room for the mids or leave the highs yell the melody ? So guys, I wonder what you look for as a good fingerstyle guitar and why ? Does one guitar has it all, or you need more than one ? Many Thanks !
__________________
Needed some nylons, a wide range of acoustics and some weirdos to be happy... 
|
|
#2
02-13-2021, 03:33 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
I've always been more keen to fingerstyle type of playing and have experimented with many guitars. Like you, I also have a Taylor 510 (1 11/16 nut, 2 1/8 spacing) which worked great for me for a while, until I discovered the benefits of wider nuts and string spacing.
This led to a very impulse-filled purchase of a used Recording King ROS-06 (1 13/16 nut, 2 5/16 spacing). The wider neck, nut and string spacing made an immediate difference in note fingering for me and the smaller, more mid-focused concert-000 body really helps individual notes ring out--- which I find very pleasing for fingerstyle. My recent acquisition, my Larrivee L-03R (1 3/4 nut, 2 1/4 spacing), has proven to be an excellent all-arounder for both fingerstyle and strumming. I like to look at it almost as almost like a deep-body 000 style guitar. I think I recall reading somewhere that the L body shape found its roots in classical guitar styling. It has *just* enough bass to provide a warm feel while also being extremely well balanced to help project singular mid and high notes. As much as people flaunt tonewood, I don't really have a preference in mahogany or rosewood, but I have to say the spruce top and rosewood back and sides of my Larrivee work very well for everything I've thrown at it. In short I've found my "good" fingerstyle guitar has to have at least 1 3/4 nut, with 2 1/4 spacing and not have overwhelming bass which can muddy more delicate finger styling, and the L-03/R is a great middle-ground. Last edited by Mezner; 02-13-2021 at 03:41 PM.
|
|
#3
02-13-2021, 03:34 PM
|
||||
|
||||
|
I like a short scale, but with as full-bodied a sound as possible. I chose a 000-28.
__________________
McNally Custom Dread Adi/Hog, McNally Custom OM Cedar/Walnut 000-28 Lowden S32J Guild F-512e (Spruce/Rosewood)
|
|
#4
02-13-2021, 04:06 PM
|
||||
|
||||
|
Not sure that body shape, scale length, nut width and all that really matter too much. You see good finger style players using all kinds of guitars. That's really a personal preference. I only play finger style and prefer smaller bodies, short scales, 1-3/4" nut and 12-fret. But that may not work for someone else.
I think the main thing to look for in a guitar for finger style is one that is lightly built and responsive. Of my current guitars, I'd put my Waterloo and Breedlove at the top of that category.
|
|
#5
02-13-2021, 04:07 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Much of the answer depends on your budget.
|
|
#7
02-13-2021, 04:31 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Quote:
The trick for me was discover what works best for me and what does not. I suspect this is true for just about anyone. Quote:
|
|
#8
02-13-2021, 06:11 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
You know, this is going to sound worthless, but I have happily played blues fingerpicking on every guitar in my signature. They sound a little different but are fine. My teacher who can play any Guitar he wants teaches me on a dread and sounds great.
__________________
2017 Martin HD 28 VTS 2018 Gibson Southern Jumbo 1993 Guild JF 30 Gibson Nick Lucas L 100 Maple Quantity and quality of my guitars should not be seen as indicative of the quality of my playing ability
|
|
#9
02-13-2021, 06:22 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
The choice depends partly on whether you play fingerstyle with or without fingerpicks, and on which digits. If you play with a thumbpick, for example, that will accentuate the bass, so a guitar with a strong bass is not needed.
I play without picks, so a guitar with a strong bass isn't overpowering unless I want it to be. Hope that makes sense.
|
|
#10
02-13-2021, 06:46 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Jeez, not really sure how to answer that. For me, I love cedar over rosewood, OM/000 or GC size, 1 3/4" nut, 2 1/4" spacing, generally speaking. Problem is I have and have played others that were nowhere close to those specs, but still great for fingerstyle. You really have to go play them to know.
One thing I've learned over the years is it takes a good, long while to really zero in on what works and what doesn't. Often times I have to actually own (or at least have in my possession) a guitar for a while before I really start to know it. I'm probably not alone in this, as evidence by the number of guitars in the classified section.
|
|
#11
02-13-2021, 06:59 PM
|
|||
|
|||
"So guys, I wonder what you look for as a good fingerstyle guitar and why ?
Does one guitar has it all, or you need more than one ? mawmow" Comfort, short scale, Mahogany b/s, inexpensive. As I've grown older and gone through the G.A.S. attacks I've found the need for higher end, expensive acoustics to fade. Not that I don't like them, just that I don't need them. I'm content to play my different styles on small, low to mid-priced varieties. I find one guitar does not do it all! YMMV 
|
|
#12
02-13-2021, 06:59 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Quote:
|
|
#13
02-13-2021, 07:30 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
One guitar that I would recommend looking for as a very good fingerstyle guitar is a Larrivee C-03R TE. It's a 12 fret model with a 25.5" scale that's fun to play. It has great note separation with sparkling highs but also has a strong bass and mids. You hear all of the notes, and it is loud. It was co-designed Jean Larrivee along with Tommy Emmanuel who knows a little bit about fingerstyle guitar. I would recommend taking a look at one.
|
|
#14
02-13-2021, 07:39 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
1 and 3/4 nut, or wider. Neck can be thin or fat, but I don’t get along with a neck with “wide shoulders” Small scale or regular scale is fine. I can abide a dreadnaught, but prefer other sizes (00, 000, OM, or jumbo). My guitars feature various back and side woods: (mahogany, walnut, rosewood) and also various tops (Port Orford cedar, Engelmann, Sitka, German). So the specific woods are not much important to me. The overall tonal qualities from the combination of woods, size, scale length, and manufacturer is the only thing I pay much attention to.
|
|
#15
02-13-2021, 07:51 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Similar to the first response, I have a Larrivee LV-03R which I find does really well for fingerstyle and strumming. Mine is about 14 years old and has a very warm and round tone to it. I may just love the tone because it's what I'm used too.
I've listened to the following video through some Yamaha monitors and the sound and feel seems pretty accurate to my LV03R so hopefully you can get an idea of the tone the Larrivees bring. https://youtu.be/x5Wj61kSXR4 What kind of music do you like to play? And do you plan on recording? I have very little experience with recoding but some guitars might be easier to record than others?
|
