A Guide to Buying an Acoustic Guitar

Buying an acoustic guitar can be an intimidating, foreign and perplexing event for many people: mostly because it's a unique and rare purchase of a relatively unknown, specialized item that will be used in a highly personalized pursuit of technique and art. More simply put; it's beneficial to have some help from someone with experience when buying a new or used guitar.

I will, as very experienced guitar buyer assist in this adventure with 3 different price points: under $400, under $1,000, and over $1,000. We can also label think of these 3 as: beginner/starter guitar, intermediate/semi-pro guitar, and a professional/lifetime/investment guitar.

Buying a guitar under $400

Seagull S6

The main thing to look for in the starter guitar category is choosing a product from a widely know established manufacturer and company with a good warranty and a proven track-record for quality guitars at a reasonable price. Companies I would recommend in the beginner category are Yamaha, Fender, Seagull, Simon & Patrick, Cort, and Art & Lutherie.

Choose a guitar that looks good, feels comfortable and sounds warm and inviting to play. Ask a salesman to play one or more for you so you can judge the differences for yourself. At this level of quality, your main interest is in a serviceable, playable, and affordable guitar that will get you playing and learning without 'breaking the bank'. Most beginner guitars are manufactured from a plywood type of laminate would and will have a limited tone quality. Simon & Patrick, Seagull, and Art & Lutherie are exceptions to this and get my vote every time as the 'best for the least $$$'.

Buying a guitar under $1,000

Taylor 100 series

My wish as a guitar teacher would be that most students skip to this level from from the start. Learning and playing on a good instrument inspires and responds to the growth of player with each hill of technique and repertoire they climb.

Acoustics in this price range generally have solid wood tops and synthetic ivory bridge saddles and nuts which brings the quality of overall tone way up. The use of tone friendly woods in the construction usually adds to the warmth, clarity, and overall character of the sound. In this category, don't be fooled by the fancy paint jobs, flashy electronic pickups, and intricate inlays and binding that can make a lousy guitar tempting to purchase. Companies like Takamine, Dean, and Fender can be guilty of selling many '3's dressed up as a 9' in this price range.

Companies I would recommend for guitars between $400 and & $1,000 are Taylor, Seagull, Simon & Patrick, Godin, Yamaha, Larivee, and Martin. These companies, in my opinion, build with a traditional tone-first strategy, putting more resources into the tone rather than the bells and whistles.

Buying a guitar over $1,000 

Goodall Concert
Jumbo

Buying a guitar that is over a $1,000 should be seen as an investment;  not only in a item that will hold it's value, but in an instrument that will grow with you as time passes, that will inspire each time your fingers touch the strings, and will invite the guitarist to play just by looking at it. For example: my Goodall Concert Jumbo is very beautiful and inviting to look at, ultra-sensitive to every move of my fingers, generates fantastic tone from every atom and molecule it's made from, and it took me 4 years to save up enough to buy it. In my work as a professional guitarist and teacher I have a good excuse to spend on a quality, hand-built instrument but I would rather save and wait for quality over quantity in every area of my life. 


If you find joy in playing the guitar and see it as a part of your future, my challenge to you would be to invest some time in investigating and researching your options and all the benefits of purchasing an instrument of lasting quality and one that's built for performance and ease of playing while your learning and growing as a player.

I sometimes use this example: we will have no problem in dropping $1,000 - $1,500 on a computer that will be obsolete in 3 to 5 years but will choke at the prospect of spending the same on a guitar that will last a lifetime. Find a good fit for you from the 3 categories and choose wisely.