Thompson vs Merrill - Page 2

hotroad · #16 05-12-2018, 10:17 AM

Preston Thompson is a stellar man. I can say that since I have spent considerable time with him. He is honest. He is direct. He is a perfectionist. He is hard working. He is creative. He is a man to emulate in his person and as a luthier. Speaking of being a luthier, his attention to his guitars and how they are built is second to none. I have been with other high end luthiers and would set Preston as high up as any. No, he has not paid me to say this nor given me a discount on his guitars for this reference.
His guitars are of a caliber higher than most other luthiers in my opinion. I have played several of them and given that he will listen to your every wish and desire in a new guitar, you can trust him to take what you want and build you the best version of that instrument. And by the way, his shop is also very much like him and having been there many times, each person who works on these guitars treats each one like their sacred child.
So go for Preston. Call him. Talk with him and see what you think. Or come to Sisters, Oregon and spend time with him. He loves to give you his time and take you through his shop introducing you to his builders. You would see that what I say is true. He has guitars on the wall that you can play as well so you don't have to totally trust his word, or mine. Highly highly recommended.

johnpublic95 · #17 05-12-2018, 10:38 AM

Circa guitars are beyond amazing in every way .. but finding a Circa guitar in that price range will be quite a challenge.. OM's (used) typically go for about twice your target if I understand your price range? Want to totally confirm what others have said about playing one before the final commitment.. Always Always good advice and any reputable Dealer or Hobbyist will offer a reasonable trial period as standard though almost all will insist on having the check/ credit card in hand before shipping .. Only you can say whether the guitar meets your expectations.. enjoy the search.. what a wonderful hobby/avocation we all share.. good luck ..trust your ears.. Jay

Maryc-k · #18 05-12-2018, 03:02 PM

Jim Merrill is charging well over 6k for an Om-18, unless you are talking about buying a used one. I’ve seen Preston’s new prices, so John’s prices are not that far off. Matt shares space with John and has access to his wood stash. Personally, I think Matt makes a stellar guitar. I traded my Collings traditional for an Arcara.

Erithon · #19 05-12-2018, 04:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OjaiAndrew

Are there any others that you'd consider that make similar guitars (below $5K)?

You'd gotten some excellent suggestions. I'd look into M. J. Franks as well.

OjaiAndrew · #20 05-12-2018, 05:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Erithon

You'd gotten some excellent suggestions. I'd look into M. J. Franks as well.

Thanks for all the great feedback. I have been looking at the used Merrill at Lowe Vintage and am considering it. I did look at the Merrill threads on The Collings forum as well.

Ernesto · #21 05-12-2018, 06:02 PM

I can recommend Preston Thompson. I played one of his OMs next to a Froggy Bottom. They were both great, but I liked the Thompson even more. I am sure Merrill is great too. There were a few reviews of Preston Thompson guitars at Peghead Nation lately:

https://pegheadnation.com/instrument...utaway-custom/

https://pegheadnation.com/instrument...son-00-custom/

https://pegheadnation.com/instrument...ompson-om-eia/

https://pegheadnation.com/instrument...-12eir-custom/

FormerFoodie · #22 05-12-2018, 06:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by johnpublic95

Circa guitars are beyond amazing in every way .. but finding a Circa guitar in that price range will be quite a challenge.. OM's (used) typically go for about twice your target if I understand your price range? Want to totally confirm what others have said about playing one before the final commitment.. Always Always good advice and any reputable Dealer or Hobbyist will offer a reasonable trial period as standard though almost all will insist on having the check/ credit card in hand before shipping .. Only you can say whether the guitar meets your expectations.. enjoy the search.. what a wonderful hobby/avocation we all share.. good luck ..trust your ears..

This response resonates with me the best.

Thompson and Merrills are both going to be great OMs. Between the two, I would go with Thompson. Mainly because some of the stories on Merrills have spooked me.

If I was in the market for a hog OM, I would go with Circa, Franklin, and Borges. Just this year, a used Circa OM and a used Franklin OM were available. If you had the budget, I would seriously take the time to wait until the right used one showed up on the market.

M Sarad · #23 05-12-2018, 11:57 PM

Jim Merrill is building solo these days.

Preston Thomoson has many helpers.

Both are wonderful

I have had my Merrill since 2002.

drbluegrass · #24 05-13-2018, 04:04 PM

I would add Bourgeois to your choices. Especially their Aged Tone offerings. I've owned and/or played some of the finest sounding guitars made (including a couple of monster sounding Altmans) and, IMHO, many of the Bourgeois models can go toe to toe with about anything I've heard. I currently own a custom Bourgeois Vintage D AT Braz with AT braces. I haven't played anything sounding better and very few guitars sounding as good.

I've been so impressed with my new Bourgeois I'm going to be owning a Bourgeois AT 18 style guitar very soon. I find it interesting that companies like Bourgeois and Santa Cruz are often overlooked in favor of "one man shop" guitars that sometimes don't sound any better...at least to my ears. Don't get me wrong...I've not played every "one man shop" or high end guitar. Some might just sound better, I don't know. But Dana is really on his game and is turning out some truly outstanding guitars...FWIW. Do yourself a huge favor and at least check them out, especially the Aged Tone models. You might just be surprised by what you hear.

stevecuss · #25 05-13-2018, 05:32 PM

+1 to this below. Dana is one of the most experienced and innovative vintage Martin tone chasers around.

Quote:

Originally Posted by drbluegrass

I would add Bourgeois to your choices. Especially their Aged Tone offerings. I've owned and/or played some of the finest sounding guitars made (including a couple of monster sounding Altmans) and, IMHO, many of the Bourgeois models can go toe to toe with about anything I've heard. I currently own a custom Bourgeois Vintage D AT Braz with AT braces. I haven't played anything sounding better and very few guitars sounding as good.

I've been so impressed with my new Bourgeois I'm going to be owning a Bourgeois AT 18 style guitar very soon. I find it interesting that companies like Bourgeois and Santa Cruz are often overlooked in favor of "one man shop" guitars that sometimes don't sound any better...at least to my ears. Don't get me wrong...I've not played every "one man shop" or high end guitar. Some might just sound better, I don't know. But Dana is really on his game and is turning out some truly outstanding guitars...FWIW. Do yourself a huge favor and at least check them out, especially the Aged Tone models. You might just be surprised by what you hear.

drbluegrass · #26 06-09-2018, 07:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Maryc-k

Consider John Slobad (Circa Guitars) or Matt Arcara.

I know this thread is about a month old but I recently read somewhere on the forums that Matt Arcara is not currently making guitars?? Don't know if anyone can confirm that?

guitarman68 · #27 10-17-2018, 02:01 PM

Just found it, but I want to contribute:
Got my first Merrill four years ago. It's an used OM 18 and it is the most impressive guitar I ever had. I had many over the years. When I opened the box and plucked one string I just could not believe: Resonant, full, deep and incredible fast - never heard that sound before. So I went to my local dealer - same impression for him.
After that I hunted the www for Merrril guitars and bought a OM 28 amazon rosewood at Tonewood Guitars - best OM 28 I ever had. I sold my Martin OM 28 authentic 1931. Then I bought a C-18 - superior to my 40s D 18.
Guitar friends heard the sound of my Merrills, so one of them looked for a Merrill 0M 18. I found him one here in Germany - same experience.
Incredible guitars. And I never had an issue with them. Mine are from 2002, 2007, 2014 - all eras.
Best,
Guitarman68

rokdog49 · #28 10-17-2018, 02:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ManyMartinMan

My .02 cents is never buy a guitar over $2,500 (and way below that for most people) that you haven't taken the time to touch, play and evaluate in person prior to laying down your money. This is a guitar YOU have to like. The information about build issues that have been known about for many years is but one of the factors you have to consider.

For me that number would be $1500.

antsdmb · #29 10-17-2018, 08:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by drbluegrass

I know this thread is about a month old but I recently read somewhere on the forums that Matt Arcara is not currently making guitars?? Don't know if anyone can confirm that?

There’s a build thread over on the umgf showing him mid build right now, so that would be news to me.

justonwo · #30 10-17-2018, 10:02 PM

You aren’t likely to find a used Circa OM-18 any time soon. I haven’t seen one in ages. If you do, it’ll cost you about $8k used give or take. I would like to play Preston Thompson and Jim Merrill guitars at some point. Haven’t run across any yet.