Larrivee D-03R

Amazing Acoustic sound, deep tone. Great for playing country, folk, rock.

She's a beauty, love the ebony fret board, tuning keys and bridge. Excellent grain of rosewood.

Very sturdy guitar, well made.

N/A

Beautiful guitar, great sounding guitar rivals that of gibson, and martin. For thousands less.

Satin Finish, Dreadnought, Larrivee tuners, regular size neck, came with case and adjustment tool. No electronics. Micro dot fret markers, ebony fret board. Spruce top, and Rosewood back and sides. I have to give the guitar a 7 because it really doesn't have many features. It does have a solid top with fine spruce and ebony fret board which is really nice.

I can't say enough about the sound of the guitar. I made a couple of enhancements to the guitar that really improved the tone. One the original nut and saddle were replaced with bone, second and I didn't believe it would have much effect but I thought I'd give it a try was to change the bridge pins to ebony for the E,A,D strings and horn for G,B,E strings. You know what it works. The tone on the guitar is outstanding. Also playing it a lot helps open the guitar up. I play jazz, pop and folk tunes on it and the guitar sounds great. I like the sound of spruce and rosewood.The action is right on for me, I guess it's a matter of personal taste how high or low you like it to be. At first I didn't like the satin finish and still don't I always liked shinny guitars. So if you can live with a satin finish... Also I can't understand guys paying more money for a beat up old guitar than a brand new one. But that's me. I have to say this is the second Larrivee I owned and am more than statisfied.

Guitar had a slight dip in the fret board, I like a flat fret board and using the Larrivee tool got the fret board to where I prefer. The frets, the fit the finish were all excellent.

The guitar will withstand live planing, it is a very solid professional instrument.

Never dealt with company.

I have been playing for 30 years. I own a Fender Stratocaster, Les Paul Signature, and the Larrivee D-03r. I'd more than likely buy the 05 model the next time because it has a gloss finish. However I got such a deal on the 03r that I couldn't justify paying an extra grand for a gloss top.

I had everything I wanted --- amazing sound and beautiful looks !! some people what a pick up but I mic my guitars onsatge because jacking a acoustic in never does it justice.
For some people they need fancy inlays but I just want beautiful wood, finish and amazing sound and this is it !!

The Case included is really nice also !!

I play a mixture of all music and have always had different guitars for every type and style. This HOWEVER is the first I've ever played that manages every style perfectly --- WOW. It soulded better than every taylor, martin and tak in the store !! Infact it blew them all away - I almost went for the mahonany version but the rosewood just gives it amazing lows (the bass is great)

if there is a better sounding guitar . I've not found it !!! and to be honet I'm never going to look -- I have what I want

the action was about the same as the taylors -- Very good !! and a lot better than the martins which I think are beautiful sounding guitars but they just don't play well !! no faws in the finish, the rosewoods look and smell amazing

this is one well made guitar -- I guess them canadians really know what they are doing although it is kinda early to tell -- I'll keep ya posted

I bought min through the store and registered my warrently online so I have had no need for customer service

I've been playing for about 17 years and this guitar is by far the best Ive ever played. I have a custom made Johnson Resonater - Yamaha Classical - Alvarez Yari and a Gisbon Les Paul but this guitar really takes the cake !!

I would fork out $1100 again anyday of the week !!

just go to your local dealer and put it up against any other guitar in any price range and you'll see what I'm talking about ~!!

This is one of the best sounding guitars I have ever heard. Bought it used off ebay. It's 2 years old and has been played hard by it's previous owner. I put new elixer light/medium strings on it and it sounds beautiful. I played about 50 acoustic guitars before buying this one. I played many Martins, Talors , and a few Gibsons and Tacomas. This guitar plays just as nice as the other brands top of the line models. I played Martin D-28,D-18,D-15,D-28 Marquis and many others. This guitar has great bass response similat to that of a martin, except it has more tone in the bottom end, though not quite as deep. The highs aren't as good as some of the Taylors I played (which also had Elixer strings on them, but this guitar has much better bass than any Taylor I played and also sounds more balanced.

Been playnig off and on for about 12 years. I had never played an all solid wood acoustic guitar until a few months ago and decided that I had to have one. I did countless hours of research on the internet and also played about 50 different acoustics. I was very, very impressed with the Larrivee brand. These guitars honestly sounded better to me than any other guitars I played, and then you see the price tag!!!!! These are the best guitars for the money, end of story!

I give it a 7 only because this Canadian-built guitar is not flashy (no abalone inlays, gold hardware, headstock binding, etc.). It's an understated, classy-looking instrument with a satin finish of its solid Canadian spruce top, Canadian maple binding, solid Indian rosewood back and sides, and South American maple neck. The fretboard & bridge are of African ebony. I really like the tortoise-shell pick guard and the fact that it comes with a very nice hard-shell case with the name Larrivee printed in it.

I play all styles of music from country to rock to jazz to new age - everything. This guitar sounds great no matter what I'm playing or how (pick or finger-picking). The sound is balanced from bass to treble, very full with great low end and lots of volume.

One of the easiest-to-play guitars I've ever owned. The neck is thinner (more like an electric) than my other acoustic guitars. No buzz anywhere and very smooth frets. Beautiful satin finish on the all-solid-wood instrument. Very pretty guitar. I've scoured it for flaws, and it is flawless. Very well made.

Being as I've only owned it a couple of weeks, I can't speak to the durability issue, but as well as it appears to be made, I can't imagine that it wouldn't last a lifetime with proper care.

I had to contact the company by e-mail concerning a serial number mix-up, and they returned my e-mail with an answer within 2 hours. Limited life-time warranty.

After playing guitar for 41 years (brands like Hohner, Alvarez, Jay Turser, Spencer, Washburn, Yamaha, etc.), I was determined to buy the best guitar for my money. I'd always wanted a Guild or a Martin, and in more recent years a Taylor, so those were the brands I concentrated on for the next few days at various stores until a salesman suggested a Larrivee (the brand he plays). The moment I strummed it, I knew it was the one. I spent two hours in the place playing what I had narrowed my choices to: a Martin, a Taylor, and a Larrivee (each within $300 of each other, the Larrivee being the least expensive). It quickly became apparent that the Larrivee was superior in action and sound (my opinion) to the other two in that price range. I bought it, put new strings on it, and got goosebumps playing it. Compared to the Martin and Taylor I considered, the Larrivee was louder and had a fuller, more balanced sound from top to bottom than the other two, with particularly good bass. Two days after I bought it, I went to another store and played a Martin and a Taylor (each costing more than twice mine) just to verify my hunch that the Larrivee D03R is as good as any guitar at any price. In my opinion, it is. Sure, it's a plain-Jane when it comes to cosmetics, but that's what I like about it. No flash - all business. I would strongly recommend that anyone considering the "big-name" guitars check out Larrivee. For the money, I feel its the best instrument out there, equal to guitars costing much more.

Basic specs: beautiful satin finish, dreadnaught body, Schaller-style tuners, all solid wood - rosewood back and sides, spruce top, ebony fingerboard, mahogany neck. Very tiny dot inlays. No electronics. Newer make with the tortoise shell pickguard rather than the clear one. Comes with .012 Elixers, which are the worst strings ever made (in my opinion), and it still sounds fantastic! I'm giving it a 10 in features because this has solid rosewood back and sides for about $1000. Great value.

For me, this guitar has the perfect sound. If you want a vibrant, deep, dark, clear tone, then this is your guitar. This is not a bright sounding acoustic, but what do you expect from rosewood? The tone is dark, but certainly not dull - the ebony fretboard helps balance the tone of the instrument. I've had it for a year now, and it just gets better and better. I string it with Dean Markley Alchemy GoldPhos .012s. Great set of acoustic strings.

The best way to describe the way a Larrivee sounds is this - like a Taylor, but much more alive. When I went guitar shopping, I tested some Martins, Taylors, a Takamine, and a couple Larrivees. It has always been my dream to own a Taylor, but none of the Taylors in the store had the sound I was looking for. I narrowed my selection down to a Larrivee D-03 (mahogany back) and a Taylor (same features, I forget the model). The Larrivee sounded much better than the Taylor, but it still wasn't right - the sound was too bright for me. The salesperson then pulled out the D-03R - I liked the regular D-03, so he gave me the rosewood version to fix the brightness. I found my guitar.

The factory setup was nearly perfect - intonation was right, action was comfortable, and everything looked beautiful. The one I bought was fresh out of the shipping box (they're shipped in a hardshell, of course). The store had one on the floor and one in the box. The one in the box had a better sound by blind test, and I really liked how the wood grains looked.

The guitar is as tough as an acoustic can be. I'm nervous to pound on it like a drum, but I've seen other guys do that to Larrivees and they take it like a champ. Pretty good sound when you thump it, by the way.

No experience yet.

I have been playing for over 10 years, and I thought that I finally needed a "real" acoustic guitar. I was tired of playing my cheap acoustic that just could not be intonated correctly. This guitar can handle any acoustic style that you want to play. Wonderful strumming rhythm sound, wonderful clarity for fingerpicking. I generally fingerpick, and this has such a broad range of tones for that style. If I had one complaint, it would be that I would rather it had standerd-sized dot inlays or some other type of inlay, but I honestly don't even notice the inlays. A guitar's sound is what matters, and this guitar has a spectacular sound. This is the perfect guitar for me - I honestly cannot see myself buying another acoustic guitar again. But, if I somehow lost this to some freak accident or something, I would save up for another.

Solid Sitka Spruce Top-Looks great.
Solid Indian Rosewood back and sides.
Maple binding
Solid one piece mahogony neck with a rosewood headstock overlay.
Ebony fret board with Ivroid binding.
Basic rosette-Nothing wild, but rosettes don't produce sound anyway.
Elixer polyweb light gauge strings included, but it will handle medium gauge.
Satin finish. No shine, but it is NOT pourous and does not soak up fingerprints.
For what I paid, this is the best value out there.

-Warm and full with incredible volume. Blew away Martin D-28 in the store.
-Very similar, if not better than a Taylor 710, but less than half the price.
-Responds very well to a light touch when finderpicking, but can also take a beating with heavy strumming. Larrivee in general is the most dynamic guitar I have played accross volume ranges.
-Bass response is on par with a jumbo.
-Best way to describe it is a rich sound with a nice punch on the high end. I was having a real hard time finding a guitar because I had a $1200 budget and $2400 taste. Once I played this guitar, I knew it would be mine.

No flaws and I like the factor action.
We did a little adjusting at Sam Ash.
Stays in tune nicely. I play a lot of open tunes and am retuning constantly.
Adjusting the truss rod is tough. Really hard to do when the strings are on.
I would gladly have paid an extra $150 to get a gloss finish. Other than that, it is a great guitar that focusses on the core sound producing features rather than decorations.
-I was ready to purchase the D-03RE, but the pickups offered by Larrivee don't really do justice to the sound. I will probably add an aftermarket system down the road.

Solid instrument with no signs of weakness.
I write, but don't gig. If I did, I would feel very comfortable with this.

I have been playing recreationally for 25 years. This is the best guitar I have owned. Recently played unplugged with friends using Taylor 410CE and a Martin dreadnought. This guitar blew them away. This was a luxury purchase that I have been looking forward to for years. I literally played hundreds of guitars before choosing this one. I was shopping with the intent to get a guitar that I would keep for the next 30 years. I did give up some decorations and a gloss finish to keep the price under control, but this guitar sounds as good as guitars twice the price. If I lost this guitar, I would glady buy another and would be willing to pay more if I needed to.

Purchased new in 1999 for $990CAN after playing about 10 Larivees (all D03 but not all Rosewood)at several music stores in my area ( I always try out all available examples before I buy). Already own a couple of Takamines for stage/live use - this guitar was intended for studio mic'd and home use. There are no "features" to speak of, its simply a bare bones Dreadnought style acoustic that to me represented amazing value.

Although I play out quite a bit, usually in R&B bands, the only pro use I've put this axe to is a live radio show backing up a local female singer who didn't want to play piano for the tune. The CD the station gave me sounded great, the guitar was miked with an AKG style and had a full and clear tone that recalled my Martin D28 sound - I really wasn't expecting it to sound so smooth. I've since used it for both finger and plectrum studio gigs and it hasn't disappointed.

The factory set-up (with Mediums) was OK but had a low E buzz around the 3rd fret. One qick neck adjustment fixed the problem - and that brings up my only complaint about the instrument, the location of the truss nut (well inside the body, a real pain the first time you have to apply the tool provided).
Materials are OK, I've even started to like the small imperfections in the fingerboad Rosewood, and although the guitar feels light (compared to my Martins and Taks) in 6 years I've seen no sign of build problems.

This guitar won't be gigged, although I'm tempted to get another Larivee with piezo and a cutaway. In every respect I think the hardware and materials will last a long time. My brother has a much older Larivee model that was just refretted and partially refinished and it looks and plays beautifully.

Never spoken with the factory (regretably not a comment I can make about CF Martin) but their reputation from their days in central Canada is AAA. Even my Music store buddies who don't sell the product speak highly of it.

Been playing for over 35yrs., mainly electric, and own 12 guitars, three amps, two keyboards, innumerable effects and a buch of harmonicas and percussion stuff. I would absolutely replace this with another Larivee. I should add that I think this line compares sonically (if not cosmetically)with Martins and Taylors that cost twice the Larivee tag. I have since been impressed with other Canadian buiders - Godin/Seagull and Garrison - also check them out !

Made in Vancouver, BC 2005. Rosewood sides and back. Very plain, nothing fancy at all. NOTHING. the rosette is just paint. the fret dots are just little specs. It is nothing close to eye candy to someone who is not a guitarist. Sure you can go buy a different guitar for half the price and just looks stunning. but when it sounds like crap at the end of the day you are not satisfied.

Its rich, full and bright. Chords just sing. THEY JUST SING. i tried a whole bunch of other acoustics and this one just soundeed the best when playing chords. thats what stands out most of this guitar.

The entire guitar is jut faltless. I looked at every binding, every nook and cranny and there is nothing at all wrong with it. IT is prefect.

I dunno if i would take it

I still have not been able to get over how well it says in tune. Every time i pick it up and play it i am just amazed. I owe a high end strat and tele and with all the fancy tuning systems on those they dont even cut it close to how well this baby stays in tune.

I was looking for quality with a nice full size body and a great neck I bought this one. No extras here and that was ok by me it is just a recording guitar. I looked at different brand and prices I wanted to stay under $1000.00 and wanted this one to be new.

I looked at Taylor's, Martin's Breedlove's and Gibson's I went with this one, WOW it was a lot better over all round tone from mid's to low's to high's some of the other brands had more of one or two tones better but over all I felt this one had the best of all three I felt it would be a great recording guitar. For Pop Rock to picking styles

The set-up is ok I am very very very pickie about action and neck with perfect setup in the bow. I have seen more and more acoustic with poor action I want the strings strieght! Gibson and Taylor need to work on this!!! Its hard to find one with all the above. I would say that this one needs better action. My biggest problem is POOR Q.C. with ALL acoustic's brands in this price rang.

Its new I just bought and it good right now

No need

I have been playing guitar over 20 years LOTS of gigs and studio work along with teaching and guitar tech and working at different music stores. I feel the overall rating is based on the price. I may or may not buy again why it all about what your into at the time. Thats what musicians do buy and sell buy and sell and look back at all the great ones that you let go!