What design aspect stops you from considering an Acoustic Guitar? puts

[Trinity13]

In regards to the numerous responses from "the sound is all that matters crew"....For one, I personally thought that criteria was a given.....I just couldn't see buying a guitar that sounds bad but on the other hand I am in the 2 part camp. If I'm spending considerable money and I know it sounds great, I also want it to be pleasing to the eye. That doesn't mean blingy and flawless and beautiful because I think worn in Martin D-28's are beautiful. But for me, these things are a work of art, and If I am going to be reaching for it every day I also want it to look a certain way. Which in my case is a pretty wide range. There's plenty out there to get your sound and pretty much the look you want without having to compromise

ymmv, imho

[kcnbys]

Venetian Cutaways
Barn Door Electronics
Black Pickguards
Double Pickguards
Clear Pickguards
Quilted Wood Tops
Ugly Bridges (Tanglewood comes to mind)
Ornate Inlays
Overly Large Rosettes
Colored Paint Jobs (other than most sunbursts)

[Shades of Blue]

Originally Posted by Trinity13

In regards to the numerous responses from "the sound is all that matters crew"....For one, I personally thought that criteria was a given.....I just couldn't see buying a guitar that sounds bad but on the other hand I am in the 2 part camp. If I'm spending considerable money and I know it sounds great, I also want it to be pleasing to the eye. That doesn't mean blingy and flawless and beautiful because I think worn in Martin D-28's are beautiful. But for me, these things are a work of art, and If I am going to be reaching for it every day I also want it to look a certain way. Which in my case is a pretty wide range. There's plenty out there to get your sound and pretty much the look you want without having to compromise

ymmv, imho

The look is what draws me in. The sound is what convinces me to stay...

[LadysSolo]

1) Larger than parlor
2) Electronics (especially barn door)
3) Cutaways
4) Excessive "bling"
5) poor sound
And what "Shades of Blue" said above - "the look is what draws me in, the sound is what convinces me to stay..."

[gitarro]

1. Barn door electronics
2. Ivoroid or boltaron or tortois or clearly plastic binding
3. No purfling lines
4. Painted woods
5. Any type of pickguard other than a clear one
6. Sprayed on sunbursts
7. A non adjustable neck where the relief cannot be adjusted
8.laminated top or back.
9.any nut width narrower than 1.75 inches
10. Any guitar where there has been no individual voicing applied to at least the top

[Lillis]

Well I thought it was Breedlove’s Asymmetrical Head stock until I recently bought My USA sunlight model. I love everything else about the guitar so much that the headstock is growing on me too. Don’t think I would’ve bought it if it had the lightning bolt bridge though.

[mdhttr]

Road-worn models - the guitar equivalent of taking a perfectly good pair of jeans and ripping holes in them, then charging twice as much. I'd much rather wear them in myself, thank you.

[roylor4]

Barn door electronics
Slotted headstock (sorry, Andy )
Bigger than 000/OM
Nut widths less than 1.75"
Super thin necks

I prefer guitars w/simple appointments but would buy one with bling if it sounded good. I don't care for a cutaway, but again would overlook it if the guitar sounded good. I wouldn't ignore a guitar with good electronics in it, but barndoor UST's sound horrible to me and would never buy one with same.

I like both 12 and 14 fret guitars too.

[Bridgepin]

Double pick guard

Cheap inlay work ( no mother of toilet seat )

Cutaways

No volute on the back of the head stock...I've learned to deal with it

Small body guitars

Plastic nut or saddle

Plastic bridgepins.....But willing to change out

[mr. beaumont]

I'm a "never say never" guy on just about everything..

except cutaway dreadnaughts. Yuck.

[ljguitar]

Originally Posted by Silly Moustache

…What are YOUR pet hates ?

Hi SM

Not hates exactly but certainly disqualifies from me owning/playing them.

• Nut less than ¾"…
• High action which cannot be adjusted low enough for my 70 yr old hands…
• Tight sound, with less than adequate sustain…
• Poor projection/too small a voice…

[TokyoNeko]

Quick disclaimer: The list below is what I would consider for primaries/keepers/"babies", not necessarily for secondary/beaters/stage/travel/etc.

Non-Starters:

• Slotted headstock
• Any size other than OM/000/00
• Any top other than Engelmann spruce
• Laminate top/back (I don't consider double tops from custom luthiers to be "laminate.")
• Cutaway
• Slope shoulders
• Scale length outside of 24.5~25.5"
• Nut width outside of 1.68~1.75"
• Barn-door electronics and undersaddle pickup

Serious Demerits:

• Superfluous bling
• Non-rosewood back/sides (I have yet to find a mahogany guitar that really speaks to me long-term.)
• Pickguards

[TBman]

One more - a heel stack or whatever you call it. The kiss of death for me.

[Trinity13]

^^^^ curious, what's a heel stack

[_zedagive]

Here's my top10 list of deal breakers:
1. Sunburst
2. Larger than a 00
3. Electronic controls on the outside of the guitar
4. Not 1.75" nut
5. Longer than 25.4" scale
6. Has pickguard that cannot be removed without having "2-tone" top.
7. Has a lot of bling
8. Signed on the top by whomever
9. Laminate
10. Has "Martin" on the headstock (because of value, not necessarily quality)