Hi there,
I am looking to buy an acoustic guitar. I already have a Fender Stratocaster MIM. First of all, can you buy a decent acoustic of the same quality as my Stratocaster for 500€?
What guitars do you suggest, to have an idea before going out and try some guitars? Thanks in advance

Taylor (not Mick ) makes some good sounding acoustics for the price you mentioned. Just check them out and trust your ears, maybe you like m.

I think it depends on what kind of acoustic guitar you want.

The best guitar that you can buy for under US$1000 is supposed to be the Seagull S6 Original, made by Godin Guitars in La Patrie, Quebec, Canada. No need to buy a Chinese guitar.

I would suggest that you research the subject. The Seagull S6 Original lists on the manufacturer webpage for $545, but Amazon USA has them for $449.

When I bought mine, my research turned up that it was either the best guitar under $500 or the best under $1000, depending on which article your were reading.

I am not a guitar player, but I purchased mine because it was necessary to have a guitar in the house. The choice was made through online research.

The Godin Guitar webpage and the Seagull S6 webpage have a lot of information.

To find 3rd party articles about "best guitar under $500, or $1000, simply run an online search. I did not use Google but rather the DuckDuckGo search engine.

There are numerous YouTube videos on the subject of these guitars also.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2019-11-19 05:02 by Chacho.

To be fair it's increasingly hard to go wrong with about 500 quid or Euros these days .

There are so many really good all solid wood instruments on the market for not a lot of money.

But find a good bricks and mortar shop to play a few ...don't mail order it.

Every guitar is different and the right one usually chooses you.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2019-11-19 10:21 by Spud.

Most Eastman guitars are straight copies of Martin guitars. No it doesn't come close to the sonics of a real Martin, but at 30% of the price you can't go wrong either.

Mathijs

Epiphone Hummingbird is a great guitar ! It's about 300 Euro's

[www.youtube.com]

First of all, you have to accept you're usually not getting an all-solid wood guitar in that price range. But that's really not a huge problem as there are many guitars in that price range with a solid top and laminated back and sides that sound fantastic. In the higher price range the standard brands are Martin, Taylor and Gibson of course. But in your price range THE brand certainly does not exist.
What I can definitely recommend in this price range(and someone alrewdy mentioned them in this thread) are the Canadian made subbrands of Godin. These brands are "Seagull" and "Art & Lutherie". You can't get anything better for the price.
Otherwise you can't get wrong with buying one of the known middle-class brands either, Yamaha, Takamine, Fender, Epiphone, Guild...
Just look out for a guitar with a solid-wood top. Don't be afraid of Chinese made guitars as they can be really good quality for less of a price.
If you are able to spend some 300€ more then you can already get some all-solid wood models from Guild or Framus.

Anyway, I would recommend just to go into a music store and try them all out. Just look out for a solid-wood top .



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2019-11-19 13:20 by StonedRambler.

My suggestion is that you go to a guitar store and give yourself enough time to sit down and try as many guitars as you want. When you hit the spot(that the one I like)!!! look at the price and decide if you want to buy it. I did that 20 years ago and I bought a Taylor 310 for $900.Since then, I play that guitar every day.
Good luck.
Rockandroll,
Mops

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StonedRambler
First of all, you have to accept you're usually not getting an all-solid wood guitar in that price range. But that's really not a huge problem as there are many guitars in that price range with a solid top and laminated back and sides that sound fantastic. In the higher price range the standard brands are Martin, Taylor and Gibson of course. But in your price range THE brand certainly does not exist.
What I can definitely recommend in this price range(and someone alrewdy mentioned them in this thread) are the Canadian made subbrands of Godin. These brands are "Seagull" and "Art & Lutherie". You can't get anything better for the price.
Otherwise you can't get wrong with buying one of the known middle-class brands either, Yamaha, Takamine, Fender, Epiphone, Guild...
Just look out for a guitar with a solid-wood top. Don't be afraid of Chinese made guitars as they can be really good quality for less of a price.
If you are able to spend some 300€ more then you can already get some all-solid wood models from Guild or Framus.

Anyway, I would recommend just to go into a music store and try them all out. Just look out for a solid-wood top .

+1 on the Canadian made Godin sub-brands.
Bought a Simon & Patrick some years back and still absolutely love it.

I tried a Seagull S6 a few years ago, and it was good - yet there was something lacking for me. "Personality", perhaps? It was solid, but a little off sound-wise for me. One might get a used Ibanez vintage VT 280 round this price range. That's a guitar worth checking out, imo.

The idea must be a steel string acoustic then.

I have an Epiphone John Lennon EJ-160E that I am very pleased with.

Acoustic-electric (built in pickup). Nice, warm sound plugged or unplugged. The Epiphone is a cheaper version of the Gibson model John often used. Think "I Should Have Known Better" or "Norwegian Wood".

BTW, Paul still uses Epiphones and I'm pretty sure price isn't an object for him.

Around $400 US.


[www.epiphone.com]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2019-11-19 16:22 by Elmo Lewis.

As suggested, do an online search for "best acoustic guitar under 500 euros". You may also want to look at "reverb.com" and "guitar center used guitars" for info on guitar pricing and what you can get for X number of dollars/euros. I grabbed a made in Japan Sigma by Martin DR 35 solid top from Guitar Center a few years ago. It turned out to be a great bargain at $300. The tech at the shop where I take my guitars for work said it sounded better than some of the newer Martin guitars that sold for around $1000.

I also got what appeared to be a brand new MIM Strat HSS from Guitar Center listed as a used guitar a few months ago. When they opened the shipping box at the local Guitar Center - the Strat had been shipped from there from another store - the people who worked at the local Guitar Center inspected the Strat and it was in perfect condition, no marks anywhere to be found on it. They were amazed it was sold for only $379.

So, as noted above, use the web to research guitars and try out various brands in your local music store. Don't be reluctant to look at used guitars unless you are determined to have a brand new instrument. Do get one with a solid top.

Both Martin and Taylor make different models with different price points , that would be my suggestion to visit there websites and get a base line on models and features and specs and go from there . You might be surprised at the quality you can and will get on budget priced models .

IMO, what you should buy depends how serious you are about guitar.

the reason I say so is: "you get what you pay for"

Martin's are the best. The. Best.

Take care of it and it will last you (literally) the rest of your life and sound amazing the entire time.

if you are serious about guitar and/or plan on performing or whatever...spend the money for a quality ax.

that being said: Yamaha makes some good "middle o' the road" price range guitars...I have one, but the action etc. has needed adjustments and some repairs.

my Martin 12-string sounds the same as the day I bought it...awesome.

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stickyfingers101

Martin's are the best. The. Best.

Ever tried a Collins OM model? These are rebuilds of a Martin pre-war OOO/OM model, but then the best of the best woods and craftsmanship. Incredibly expensive, but I don't think I have ever played a better instrument.

Mathijs

Must admit, a Collings "OOO" or "OM" type is my dream acoustic too...

Along with the Froggy Bottom equivalents...but they do tend to be silly money.

Never played an example of either that I wouldn't have killed to own

[Has to be said though , if that legendary Martin name is what floats your boat, they now do some very nice lower cost models in the various sizes which are more than good enough to be a guitar for life.]



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 2019-11-22 12:28 by Spud.

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Mathijs

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stickyfingers101

Martin's are the best. The. Best.

Ever tried a Collins OM model? These are rebuilds of a Martin pre-war OOO/OM model, but then the best of the best woods and craftsmanship. Incredibly expensive, but I don't think I have ever played a better instrument.

Mathijs

I have a hand made BSG guitar (Czech Rep) and I don't think it is any worse than Martin or Taylor. And it doesn't cost fortune.

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Mathijs

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stickyfingers101

Martin's are the best. The. Best.

Ever tried a Collins OM model? These are rebuilds of a Martin pre-war OOO/OM model, but then the best of the best woods and craftsmanship. Incredibly expensive, but I don't think I have ever played a better instrument.

Mathijs

No...but, I guess I'll have to swing by the Guitar Store and hang out for 4-5 hours..."just looking"

sounds amazing...thanks for the tip!

Thanks for all the answers, sorry I didn't have the time to respond earlier. I plan to visit some shops this weekend, but your suggestions, which are greatly appreciated, will help me look for specific brands and models because I have only experience with electric guitars. I will report if I find something good. Thanks again.

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Mathijs

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stickyfingers101

Martin's are the best. The. Best.

Ever tried a Collins OM model? These are rebuilds of a Martin pre-war OOO/OM model, but then the best of the best woods and craftsmanship. Incredibly expensive, but I don't think I have ever played a better instrument.

Mathijs

Collings you mean.

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z

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Mathijs

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stickyfingers101

Martin's are the best. The. Best.

Ever tried a Collins OM model? These are rebuilds of a Martin pre-war OOO/OM model, but then the best of the best woods and craftsmanship. Incredibly expensive, but I don't think I have ever played a better instrument.

Mathijs

Collings you mean.

Where I come from we never pronounce the G.

Mathijs

I'm interested that no one has mentioned Ovation Guitars, is there something i'm missing?

When i first played one I couldn't believe how it made me sound unreal, i was playing an Elvis track with a basic strum pattern and it had never sounded like that before

Stunningly easy action like a greasy pole, slip up, down and it felt like air

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Mathijs

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z

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Mathijs

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stickyfingers101

Martin's are the best. The. Best.

Ever tried a Collins OM model? These are rebuilds of a Martin pre-war OOO/OM model, but then the best of the best woods and craftsmanship. Incredibly expensive, but I don't think I have ever played a better instrument.

Mathijs

Collings you mean.

Where I come from we never pronounce the G.

Mathijs

With or without a G, they are not under 500 €