MapleManiac Posted June 20, 2010 Share Posted June 20, 2010 On this forum the most raved about model seems to be the J45 TV. On the Martin forum it seems to be the D18 GE and/or Authentic. What do they have in common? Mahogany / Adirondack. Best combo on planet Earth? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wonderful remark Posted June 20, 2010 Share Posted June 20, 2010 i prefer sitka over adi.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MapleManiac Posted June 20, 2010 Author Share Posted June 20, 2010 i prefer sitka over adi.. The plot thickens Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guth Posted June 20, 2010 Share Posted June 20, 2010 MM, Don't forget that a number of the earlier J-45 TVs feature sitka tops. I agree that Mahogany/Adirondack can make for a great sounding guitar. (I actually used to own a D-18 GE.) However, I'm of the opinion that there is no silver bullet in the world of guitars. I no longer own any Adi-topped guitars. That's not to say that I don't like them, because I do, some of them a lot. I purchased the particular guitars that I currently own because of their tone and responsiveness — that's main reason why I chose them. I consider the fact that they're all sitka topped to be more of a coincidence than a preference. I certainly wouldn't rule out owning another guitar featuring adirondack spruce in the future. I happen to think that when it comes to building a great guitar it's not as simple as what type of pieces of wood are involved. To me, a great acoustic guitar is one of those things that falls into the category of "the whole is greater than the sum of its parts". All the best, Guth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murph Posted June 20, 2010 Share Posted June 20, 2010 The plot thickens even more...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgwoods Posted June 20, 2010 Share Posted June 20, 2010 The D18 and J45 are the two mainstay instruments from two of the great US guitar makers. Before there was TVs and GEs the plain model had a long run as the company's big seller. Now that we are in the niche marketing age they have split them into several models but as much as anything it is just another way to keep a popular guitar popular. I like sitka tops better. I think they give better tone for most situations. Given all that I am looking hard at a Guild F-40 which is an adi- mahogany guitar. I have to get some playing time with one if I can find it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deadgrateful Posted June 20, 2010 Share Posted June 20, 2010 I also happen to believe that Sitka or European Spruce gives a nicer tone for the early life of a guitar. Then Addi really comes into it's own after several years of playing and ageing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flinx Posted June 20, 2010 Share Posted June 20, 2010 I can't help it - but Red Spruce and Rosewood have always been the combination that punches my ticket. If I'm sampling new guitars, virtually every time, the ones I like the most end up being some combination of these woods. The two together suit my ear and my playing style. Give me Brazilian, Madagascar, and even good old EIR, mate it with a well-broken-in Red Spruce top, and I'm in seventh heaven. I love the piano-like sustain and overtones, even when flatpicking, which makes me something of an oddball, I suppose. Flinx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guth Posted June 20, 2010 Share Posted June 20, 2010 Flinx, Nice post. Nothing odd about following your heart/gut. I've had an interesting journey with acoustic guitars over the years. I've come to prefer guitars with a punchy response, good solid fundamentals and not too many overtones that are dry and woody sounding as opposed to overly lush sounding. I no longer define this by the wood types involved, I now have multiple guitars that pretty much tend to share most of these characteristics, yet still manage to sound quite a bit different from each other. I bought my first really good guitar back in 1991. It was a Gibson J-30. While it was not the most lively nor responsive guitar, I was quite fond of its tone. I hung on to that guitar for a long time and it tended to work well for my style of playing. I added a Collings OM2H (my first rosewood guitar) to the mix. Back when I bought the OM I went with a 1 3/4" nut width which was considered a special order at the time. I really grew to like the feel of it, in turn the 1 11/16" nut on the J-30 began to feel a bit cramped to my left-hand (which is ultimately why I sold it). Over the years, in no specific order, I've owned some other Gibsons including a J-50 and a J-35 (both Bozeman built models) another Collings (a rosewood CJ), a Goodall (a rosewood Concert Jumbo), the D-18 GE previously mentioned, a Weber (a sapelle Small Jumbo), and a National Delphi. I might have left a guitar or two out of the mix. But regardless, I've seen a fair number of instruments come and go. I can't even remember what specific species of spruce was used for the soundboards on all of these guitars. I put much more stock into the tone rather than the woods used. However, as a result of owning so many different guitars, I have experienced a lot of different wood combinations. The funny thing is that for a while, for whatever reason (more than likely the influence of online guitar forums had something to do with it), I started to find myself more attracted to those guitars that were much more complex/lush sounding with lots of overtones. As a result I seemed to spend most of my time in various alternate tunings playing primarily music that would be hard to classify other than "new age instrumental". Not that there is anything wrong with that, but that's not quite at the root of what I feel tugging at me on the inside (musically speaking). I tend to get more enjoyment out of playing stuff that is a bit more roots/blues-based in nature. As a result, the guitars that I currently own all share some common attributes that tend to work well with my style of playing. I still own the Collings OM as I have quite a sentimental attachment to that guitar and the National Delphi which provides a playing experience that no wood box will ever come close to. The guitar that I tend to play the most these days is my J-45 TV and I just recently I added an Advanced Jumbo to the mix. The woods used in the build just doesn't matter that much to me as long as the tone that I'm looking for is there and the guitars that I currently own all fulfill those requirements for me quite handily. That's kind of a long-winded explanation of how I've come full circle in the world of acoustic guitars and with Gibson acoustics in particular. Satisfying your own musical vision can be a very rewarding experience. Sometimes following your heart is easier said than done. All the best, Guth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dem00n Posted June 20, 2010 Share Posted June 20, 2010 ^^ Thats...alot...alot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guth Posted June 20, 2010 Share Posted June 20, 2010 ^^ True, that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mojogood Posted June 21, 2010 Share Posted June 21, 2010 I can't help it - but Red Spruce and Rosewood have always been the combination that punches my ticket. That's my fav combo too. My OM-28 Marquis improved greatly after 2 years of playing, and has continued to get better & better each year. I also had a D-28 Marquis that was super, but not as easy to fingerpick. I like sitka just fine, but the red spruce just seems more alive to me, and also has more volume when played with a light touch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigKahune Posted June 21, 2010 Share Posted June 21, 2010 I like spruce and maple. I also like spuce and rosewood. As a matter of fact, I like adi and just about anything. That can lead to owning a lot of guitars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
modoc_333 Posted June 21, 2010 Share Posted June 21, 2010 could it also be that they do better reissues of the hog guitars? historically, people like the RW better, and pay more for it. maybe they just can't get the same quality RW these days, and can't hit the tone as well as they can with the mahogany ones. ??????????? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zombywoof Posted June 21, 2010 Share Posted June 21, 2010 The guitar I have spent the most time with recently has a steel body covered with Duco paint. If the majority of the folks here played 1950s J-200s they would be raving about the virtues of maple. If they loved old Stella branded Oscar Schmidts they would be singing the praises of birch all day long. A good guitar is a good guitar but what defines a good guitar is a very subjective thing. The way I see it though is size of the box, bracing, bridge plate and the like have a heck of alot more to do with a guitar's sound than what wood it is made of. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onewilyfool Posted June 21, 2010 Share Posted June 21, 2010 Tone wise, I think Mahogany and Sitka are the best combo. But there are duds in every category. Just over time, I'm attracted to that sound. HOWEVER, Houduran Mahogany is all but dissappeared. I always liked the appearance and tight grain, AND the smell.....ahh. They are using so many substitutes now Sapele, and those wild grained mahoganies, I'm not sure it tonally they are the same, but they don't have that nice grain, and smell.....I guess I'm just old school....lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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