What Guitar to buy
Guitars come in many different shapes, sizes and of course prices.
There are three main categories of guitar: Steel string, Nylon String and Electric.
Within these categories there are many different levels/qualities of instrument.
How they differ, from one brand and model to another, is down to the construction and the woods used in the guitar.
We will be mainly dealing with Steel and Nylon string guitars.
Firstly let's take a look at a guitar and start putting some names to the different parts of the guitar.
The first category in these guitars are what are known as laminated top guitars. These are the entry level guitars that are popular with students and billpayers alike! These guitars are generally reasonably priced (€100 - €200) and are the perfect way to start off a guitar education but should be replaced with the next level up as soon as the student has developed a good grasp of the fundamentals of guitar playing. Laminated top guitars have a soundboard that is simply made by putting a layer of woodchip/sawdust and glue between two thin layers of actual wood (basically plywood!).This is quite cost effective but doesn't lend itself to a good sounding guitar.
Other negative issues include the quality of the machine heads and the overall finish on the guitar. Generally speaking, machine heads have to take a lot of poundage of pressure (approximately 160 lbs). If we imagine that kind of pressure and that it becomes focused on one very specific point (the machine head), it is apparent that the machine head must be very strong to stand up to that kind of pressure/tension. All machine heads can do this but over the course of time (through tuning etc.) strings can dig into weaker metals ultimately snapping part of the machine head off. On the lesser quality guitars, the "natural" finish will not be as nice as a better instrument, in some cases the guitars have been known to have an orange tinge to the finish!(You know when you been tangoed!)
However, it is still a fantastically cost effective way of starting off guitar education. As the quality of laminated top guitars increase (and prices!) we see that the guitars generally, have a longer life. If we compare the life span of a Brunswick EMT105 with the life span of a Tanglewood TW28SNQ, we'll see a guitar that will need parts replaced in a year or two to a guitar that will last (structurally, not soundwise!) several years. Of course these are the absolute entry level guitars from each company. I should point out that both are fine manufacturers of guitars that do produce a full range of instruments. For longer lasting instruments, one should really expect to pay more. Please see our guitar page for more guitars from these companies. Beginner's guitars generally come as an outfit including bag, strings or/and plecs and even sometimes include a tutor.
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The next level of guitar up is what is known as a solid top instrument. This type of guitar has a soundboard that has an actual (thin) plank of wood as the soundboard, or more specifically 2 thin planks of wood bookmatched together. The grain of this solid top guitar goes straight through the actual top of the instrument.
The reason why the top is so important in guitars is that the top of the instrument is where the sound primarily develops. By having a system where the energy can be efficiently transmitted through the entire unbraced (more on that later!) area of the soundboard, more of the wood of the guitar is involved in the sound.The other part that we don't see is the called the bracing of the guitar. Although there are a few different generic styles of bracing, it's the refinement of the bracing styles that give each individual brand of guitar their unique sound.
As you can see there are different heights of braces and this particular bracing system is from a Cort guitar. The bracing also acts in another way. It re-enforces the guitar top so that the pressure of the strings don't pull the top out of place. However, the top cannot be too heavily supported otherwise it won't resonate. So, as you can see, it is a very tricky business getting it just right! It is essential that the bracing is enough to support the instrument but also to allow the soundboard resonate. That is where the guitar makes differ. A good guitar will generally have the perfect balance between being structurally strong and also resonates well.
The second factor determining a good guitar is the woods that are used as the solid top. There are traditionally two or three woods that are used and they each have their own qualities. Spruce, Cedar and Maple have traditionally been the first choice of Luthiers as the wood of choice for the top. Spruce has, generally, a very vibrant tone, whereas as cedar has a more subdued quality but generally lends itself to a better balanced sound. Maple is more often seen in electric guitars or on the back of acoustic instruments.
Below is a selection
of some of the woods that are used by Austrailian Luthier Joel Knadler.
Not all of
these woods are used on the top!
Generally speaking, the entry level solid tops are cedar and, more often than not, spruce. The entry level solid tops do start at about the €159 for the Encore 402B. However, for a quality solid top, generally speaking, one should look at above the €220 for something like a Cort Earth 70NS or Tanglewood TW28STUSA. As the range goes up we see the woods being used raising in quality and the level of craftsmanship increases. One of the most common combinations of woods in a guitar would be either solid spruce top with laminated mahogany back and sides. This gives a fantastically vibrant sound with a glorious depth to the sound. Some lovely examples of this would be the Cort 100NS or the Tanglewood TW115ST.
The wood combinations become a little more specialist and geographical factors come into play wih the woods at the higher end of the solid top market. For example, Canada has a tradition of fine woods and excellence in guitar construction. A desirable combination in guitars, I'm sure you'll agree. The Seagull guitar company produces the S6+ Cedar for example using a solid Cedar top with laminated wild cherry sides.
The next level of guitar to consider is the instrument range of All Solid Guitars. These guitars, as the name suggests, have solid tops, back and sides. They are without a doubt the pinnacle of guitar making. They not only sound amazing when they come out of the box, but they improve each and every time they are played. The all solid range is not cheap however. They generally start at about the €400 mark. And even then, there are not many brands worth talking about at that mark. One of the exceptions would be the All Solid Tanglewood TW115AS.
Generally speaking, guitar makers start introducing tops made from European spruce above the entry level all-solid. One particular type of European Spruce is Engelmann Spruce. Traditionally this is one of the most desirable types of spruce to have on a guitar. Through the vibrant qualities of this wood, it brings many guitars to life. It is however more expensive than its mass produced counterpart Sitka Spruce. Generally speaking, Englemann Spruce guitars kick in at about the €550-€600 range. Generally speaking however, an all solid guitar is an instrument for life.
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Caveat Emptor
The secret to finding a good all-solid instrument is to shop around. The guitar market is absolutely littered with well known makes that can and are overpriced. It is well known that certain brands will charge more for a guitar because of the name that's on the headstock. Although many of these companies put a well deserved price tag on their higher end guitars (€1,200+), their middle priced guitars can have an element of "brand buying" moreso than genuine value for money. Buyers who travel away from the beaten track can be well-rewarded. Lesser known guitar-making companies incorporate some fantastic factors into their instruments that better known makers may do at more severe prices.
Faith are one company who use Engelmann Spruce in their all-solid instruments. Surprisingly, these guitars are very reasonably priced using very high quality materials. The reason? Due to Faith being such a young company, it would be futile to try and compete with the likes of Taylor, Fender, Martin et al at the prices that they charge. They got together with world reknowned Patrick James Eggle, who took a look at their guitars and made some fantastic changes to their approach to the construction of guitars. They fall nicely into the category of shopping around! Due to their youth they have yet to grace the pages of any of the guitar almanacs such as the Blue Book but for the people who have bought them, it is only a matter of time!
Crafter are another company who due to their relative unknown status can provide amazing sounding instruments at very attractive prices. However, they have been making instruments for a few years now and a generation of guitarists has grown up with crafter guitars and of course some of those guitarists are now playing on the world stage. Katie Melua being one of these players.
Finally, one or two last things to be aware of. When a guitar company issues a particular model of guitar endorsed by a particular artist, the chances are the artist has never even set eyes on the guitar being mass produced in their name. Shocking, I know, but such is the world of product endorsement. The guitars that are being played by the artist on stage and in the studio will have been carefully crafted by a team of guitar experts that takes them several weeks to produce, modify and tweak. The guitar that the average person can buy off the shelf in a shop is generally mass produced with several hundred of the guitars being run off a week without the same care and attention, parts and accessories or expertise.
And finally, (the last part of the rant!), If you are going to buy a second hand guitar, there are a few things to be taken into account.
First of all, make sure that the guitar you are buying is coming from a reliable source. Sometimes, by accident, people buy instruments that were stolen from hardworking musicians. If you suspect anything, you should immediately notify the relevant authorities. Instruments are the tools of a musicians livelihood. Without them, musicians cannot earn a living. It has the same effect as burning down an office worker's place of business or stealing a taxi driver's car. It is important to make life as hard as possible for criminals who would destroy someone's livelihood without batting an eyelid.
Secondly, make sure you get a trained eye to look over the guitar. Sometimes there are a few things to look out for when purchasing a guitar. Is the neck warped? Is the action too high? If the action is high, could it be taken down? These are some of the things to consider and unless you know what to look out for, only buy second hand guitars from guitar dealers.