Guild 12 strings new vs old

Spicy Kid · #1 11-11-2019, 03:14 AM

Hello all!

I am new here

I really like the 70s guild guitars but I am looking for a 12 strings guitar.
I really liked the 512 but I cannot find it from the 70s or even 80s (JF55)...
So my options are:
1. 70s 212XL
2. A new 512
3. Just to be patience.

What to do?

Many many thanks for your help!

Spicy Kid · #2 11-11-2019, 03:28 AM

Yes,
The good ones are good as the old?

Brucebubs · #3 11-11-2019, 04:26 AM

If you have the budget for a new Guild F-512 you will not be disappointed.

I think you will find the new ones are as good as the older ones ... they're all good.

Spicy Kid · #4 11-11-2019, 04:39 AM

Thank you!

The 212Xl from the 70s won't be better sounding?

Brucebubs · #5 11-11-2019, 05:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spicy Kid

Thank you!

The 212Xl from the 70s won't be better sounding?

The F-212XL has mahogany back and sides.
The F-512 has rosewood back and sides.
The F-412 now called F-512 Maple has maple back and sides.

I don't know your preference, they are all different but all good.

The older Guild 12-strings used 2 truss rods and had quite thick necks.
In late 2007/early 2008 they changed to a single rod with 2 support bars and created a thinner neck.

You need to play both to know which works best for you.

The cheaper 'made in China' Guild F-2512 is also a rosewood jumbo 12-string that gained a lot of respect too.

Spicy Kid · #6 11-11-2019, 07:10 AM

Thank you.
I liked the rosewood one.

Are there such a differences between the double truss rod and the support rods?

Bill Ashton · #7 11-11-2019, 08:02 AM

Can only speak to the 512...

Older ones sound beautiful, but have a pretty hefty neck (two truss rods). Great string spacing for fingerpicking though...

New Hartford builds have a lovely slim neck (one truss rod, two carbon fiber inserts) and have the same lovely voice, but I found the string spacing difficult for me to fingerpick (so sadly, very sadly, she had to move on).

I cannot speak to the new builds from California, though I would expect them to be similar to New Hartford in all the good ways.

dhockenbury · #8 11-11-2019, 08:11 AM

I have enjoyed my Oxnard built F512 for 3 months now. Very well made, great tone and sound, and not a single problem.

Tony Burns · #9 11-11-2019, 09:06 AM

Id say the new Cordoba's are
about as good as the original
Guild company !

RustyAxe · #10 11-11-2019, 09:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spicy Kid

Thank you!

The 212Xl from the 70s won't be better sounding?

Maybe. The F212xl is my favorite Guild 12-string. Not very expensive here, under $1500 in very good condition, usually, and I've seen 'em for $1000 (needing a little work). I now own a GAD G212itb (dread 12-string, sitka and mahogany, "ice tea burst" top) that I'm pleased with. Chinese import, but still a very nice guitar. I don't play 12's very often, but like to have that arrow in my quiver when I need/want it. Guild makes great guitars, whether in Hoboken or Beijing.

Dondoh · #11 11-11-2019, 09:08 AM

I have a 1992 JF55-12(Guild switched the name for the 512 for a few years) which was built at Westerly, double truss rod. Largish neck. Just on the odd chance that you are in NC you could meet me at a park and play it.
Otherwise, gl with the search.
I think there is a pretty powerful difference between the Chinese and American built 512s. The chinese are fine, but the J55-12 is powerful and angelic.

drive-south · #12 11-11-2019, 09:15 AM

I have 2 Westerly built 12 strings JF30-12 and D25-12. I'd love to get 1 with the thinner neck and single truss rod. That means Tacoma, New Hartford, or Cordoba. The Guild Orpheum series designed by Ren Fergusen would be even more appealing but they are very scarce.

Glennwillow · #13 11-11-2019, 09:31 AM

When I bought my Guild F512 I was looking for a used one because at the time, no new ones were being built. And of course, I preferred to save some money.

I bought a used F512 that was built in 2013 from a fellow AGF-er. It was like new but cost about half of what a new one would have cost if I could have even purchased one.

I decided to keep my eyes open and wait until the right sale came along. I had a 1972 Guild F212 to play, so I wasn't without a 12-string.

This worked out for me very well. The 2013 F512 sounded as good as any older F512 I had played in the past and yet I didn't have to worry about neck resets for quite a while. And the sound from this guitar is wonderful.

Here is the playlist from my YouTube channel of 12-string songs if you are interested in what my F512 sounds like.

Best of luck to you!

- Glenn

martingitdave · #14 11-11-2019, 09:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brucebubs

If you have the budget for a new Guild F-512 you will not be disappointed.

I think you will find the new ones are as good as the older ones ... they're all good.

I bought one of the new Oxnard builds when they came out. Cordoba was trying to get traction with these new models and it was sold to me as "b" stock so they could cut the price by 1/3. I've wanted a F-512 since I learned to play. By the time I could afford a new one, they were out of production. So, like Glenn, I waited. The new ones are great. The only downside, if there is any, is that you'll need to break it in yourself. :-)

jgmaute · #15 11-11-2019, 10:19 AM

I bought a new 1967 Guild f-312 (a small bodied, braz rosewood 12) I played and loved for decades. When it was spending way too much time in the closet and my aging fingers couldn't finger pick it the way they used to, I sold it about five years or so ago on Let's Talk Guild. I noticed there is a 1978 Guild F212XL listed on their for sale thread for $750. It's a player not a princess but I've played this model Guild before and they really sound nice. But then again, you want rosewood. As far as I'm concerned, you just can't beat a Guild 12.

Gone but not forgotten