Buyer's remorse: I bought the wrong type of guitar.

[The Bard Rocks]

Originally Posted by LakewoodM32Fan

My personal strategy is to bring my current guitar(s) with me when I audition new ones. Because depending on what the store setup is, they could have a sweet sounding room designed to make their guitars sound great...in which case it will make yours sound great too. A/B the heck out of the guitars. Does the prospective new one do what your current one does, only better? Or does it give a tonally different flavor altogether, one that is complementary to the one you already have? Play a lot on it. A good dealer won't try to hurry you to decide in a few minutes. Unless you're a seasoned vet (and even then, maybe not) you won't really know how you bond with the instrument right away. But you should be able to try it out in the store for a decent amount of time (or spread it out over a few days).

And if it doesn't absolutely do something for you in the store, chances are it won't at home.

Good advice.

It is also instructive to realize that we change too. What we liked a while ago may not be what we liked today, in terms of sound, playability, or appearance. Musical tastes and abilities evolve, so it becomes a continual search with plateaus in-between. Some of us change very little and some change a lot, but we all change over time.

[leew3]

As you can see, you're in good company here. You have gained hard won wisdom and taken the risk of sharing it with us. Thank you for your openness. You are wise also to note looking for a guitar 'at this point in my life'. I played a dread for 30 years as I didn't really know there were other options. I have 8 relatively high end acoustics and the one Taylor GS is as close as I've got to a dread now. Keep at finding the right one for you and take your time.

[SkipII]

Stop.

Seriously, stop.

What you are experiencing is not just about the guitar. It is a phenomenon, essentially a paradox of choice, where we put too much research into a decision and then immediately regret the decision once made. Another example of this is when we read every spec on a smart TV and then as soon as we finally buy it, we fret about whether it is the best one.

I appreciate that the guitar might feel unsatisfying because it simply does not sound good, or its basic design (travel guitar) doesn't fit your playing style, but I do suggest this mental exercise is part of it.

You will have many here say there is no "perfect guitar" for you or anyone else.

I decided on our second date that I wanted to be married to that girl, and that marriage has now been going for 44 years.

I can only suggest to see if you can get all this research out of your head and NOT play every guitar you can in your price range, but play a few of the body style that best suits you. Don't evaluate them, just play them. Believe it or not, you will need to limit your choices to enjoy your choice. Good luck.

[cheer tunes]

Thanks for your honestly, I've been right there with you It's not a particularly good feeling but you will work through it. I found it comforting to write a ditty about it... It helped a lot of people, I'll post it for you.

[Dru Edwards]

Hey Hawkeye_gurl, great post and we've all been there before. You are correct, you should play as many guitars as you can get your hands on because you never know what might be a surprise and what you might buy.

I hope you find a great guitar soon. The thing is, if you pick it up in a store and it's in your price range you need to be that specific guitar right there.

[jschmitz54]

Only playing for 2+ years and I have bought seven guitars and sold three. Some I sold within a month of purchasing. It’s the learning curve. Put a hold on too much research and go play guitars. One will will appeal to you and you’ll just have to have it. That may not last either but trying and owning different guitars is half the fun.

[JBCROTTY]

Originally Posted by SkipII

It is a phenomenon......where we put too much research into a decision and then immediately regret the decision once made.

You will have many here say there is no "perfect guitar" for you or anyone else.

I agree with this. You are putting too much pressure on yourself. There is no perfect guitar - stop looking for it. There are many choices that you will be satisfied with, but only if you allow yourself to be satisfied.

Its just a guitar. You will find and play many that you like. If you make a mistake its no big deal - sell it and move on. Enjoy the process and realize perfection is a fruitless pursuit.

[Jengstrom]

There is an old saying in the trumpet world (and maybe here too): Test drive as many as you can, and the right one will find you, not the other way around. Those of you who have the option of testing many instruments before choosing are truly blessed. The rest of us have to get lucky, or just choose the best of a few options.

John

[LakewoodM32Fan]

Originally Posted by The Bard Rocks

Good advice.

It is also instructive to realize that we change too. What we liked a while ago may not be what we liked today, in terms of sound, playability, or appearance. Musical tastes and abilities evolve, so it becomes a continual search with plateaus in-between. Some of us change very little and some change a lot, but we all change over time.

Great advice. Several years ago I would have told you I was a solid Taylor sound guy (Lakewood sound Taylor-y and I owned another Lakewood and a Taylor 914ce v class) and that it would be unlikely I’d ever own or play a Martin, or other vintage voiced guitar.

Today only my original Lakewood remains (it’s my first acoustic and a bespoke instrument with lots of sentimental value) but you can see from my signature how my tastes have changed.

[geewhiz]

My goal has never been to find the perfect guitar, acoustic or electric. I'm sure there are guitars out there that are very close to perfect for me, and certainly better tools for certain things than the ones I own.

But in my own case - and with recognition that everyone is different - I have tried to find a "good" or (darn good) instrument and then just focus on playing the crap out of it. I focus my energies on advancing as a player and musician, and I try not to expend energy and time on obsessing over minute details like neck carve, top bracing, wood choices, etc.

Obviously we all need to get in the ball park of understanding what the right instrument is for our application and go from there. I'm not suggesting that anyone buys the first guitar off the rack.

But in my own case, I get FAR more satisfaction and reward from becoming a better player and learning new things, versus knowing that I've found some specification/instrument that meets my needs exactly.

If you look around there are many iconic players of both acoustic and electric instruments that took this path. They chose to use a rather garden variety and/or used instrument (or had no choice) and that instrument became identified with the player.

[brandall10]

[delete - not really adding anything to the discussion]

[Dbone]

Onward and upward. You aren’t the first, and you won’t be the last. Look on the bright side. You’ll possibly have a travel guitar too if you end up keeping it ;-0...and a pseudo legit reason to buy a new guitar, which is also always fun ;-0

Best wishes

[Methos1979]

As most have already said, been there, done that. You may think you know what you want but no amount of research is going to truly help until it's in your hands. And even then there is a time factor. When you're new, you don't know enough to even know what it is you will like in a guitar.

I spent 8 years buying/selling/trading used guitars until I finally zeroed in on just what I wanted in a guitar. And guess what? It couldn't be farther from what I thought it was that I wanted in a guitar! I was convinced that what I wanted - no, needed - was a small body, spruce over rosewood guitar. The one thing I was absolutely sure about back then was that I was a rosewood over mahogany guy and I absolutely could not, would not be able to play a dread size guitar.

Fast forward 8 years and just this past December I literally stumbled upon a guitar online that was everything in a guitar that I thought I could never love. But something just kept whispering in my ear to give it a try. It was also my first new guitar. I took a leap of faith and bought it and now I can't put it down 9 months later. It's a Martin 12-fret all-mahogany dread. The exact opposite of what I thought I wanted in the beginning.

You said that you know you want a new guitar. If I could give you one piece of advice it is to buy used guitars here on AGF in great condition. That way you can try out a guitar for weeks or months and then sell or trade for something different without losing money. That's what I did. Always buying/selling/trading used and slowly I found out - oftentimes surprisingly - what I wanted in a guitar. When you buy new you lose out on resale.

[pszy22]

What exactly is it you don't like? The way it looks? The way it plays? The way is sounds?

Not much you can do if you don't like the way it looks. If you are having a problem with the way it plays or sounds, before you do anything else, you would be well off to describe what it is you don't like. That are things you can do to the guitar you have that makes a big difference with regards to the way it plays and sounds.

Perhaps you could get some suggestions here how to modify what you have more to your liking.

Just a thought.

[Silly Moustache]

Hi Hawkeye_gurl,

As is obvious now - we've all done it. some of us just keep buying the wrong guitars, and some-of us finally learn.
Some of buy a guitar which seems fine in the stotr, bring it home, and hate it. (as recently as 2016, I did that.

Then it got damaged by a student and made more difficult to sell, so I just hung it on the wall...until one day, I took t down and it had blossomed - I really like it now.

It is a truism that a brand new guitar is at its worst tonally. You and your environment - radios, TVs, stereos, screaming people, barking dogs, all contribute to opening up a guitar - and, of course, playing the thing.

You need to breathe life into a new guitar.

I started playing in about '68, and made mistakes until about '75, then made another BIG mistake in a 1996, but it taught me that no matter how good the guitar might be, if the neck doesn't fit my hands - it is no good for me.

I had to look on ebay to find this Dreadnought "junior" and get an idea of the cost and level, and some detail - it has a 24" scale which is VERY small. - but , that doesn't mean that is is no good.

It has a sapele back and sides - I had an OM style guitar with sapele and it was a very good guitar.

I'm not going to tell you what to do, but sit and pay that thing a little more, put some new strings on it perhaps, If it really doesn't feel right - talk to the dealer -assuming you bought it from a dealer - maybe it still in as new condition, he'll take it back against ,naturally, a more expensive purchase.

As already said, don't beat yourself up - it happens to us all, and look , we're all still here - in love with guitars!

Let us know what happens.