Jay Turser JTA-DS NG

Korean made, solid spruce top, blond flamed maple back and sides, glossy finish, body style is a little smaller than a dreadnaught, good tuners, vine inlay on fretboard, abalone around soundhole. This guitar is gorgeous. I just bought it used off of ebay, added a case for $50. Very well-made instrument.

The sound of this guitar is incredible! I was at the local music store a couple of weeks ago looking for guitars in the $400-600 range. I tried the Taylors, Martins, etc. None of them can compare. I walked around, on most of the guitars just strumming an open E chord, and very few of them even tempted me to take the guitar down and really try it. I was sorely disappointed by the shallow sound of these low-end big brand guitars. This little Jay Turser guitar just rings out. It sounds beautiful fingerpicked, or strummed. And for less than half the price of even the cheapest of those guitars.

I got this guitar used, so it was set up by someone other than the factory. The action is great. It is so easy to play. I have small hands and I have a hard time playing barre chords, but not with this guitar. The action is perfect. No buzz.

Everything seems solid. Finish is good. I don't do much live playing, but I think it would hold up just fine.

Haven't dealt with them.

I've been playing for about two years now. I have another Jay Turser guitar (JTA-DQ). It is a nice guitar, but I'd have to say the sound on the JTA-DS far surpasses that of the DQ. Due, I think, to the solid spruce top. The notes just ring out. If it got lost or stolen, I would definitely try to find another. This guitar is a keeper. I love the beautiful appearance, but I love the sound even more.

The desciptions below of the guitar's physical beauty are not exaggerated. I just bought one used on e-bay -- no electronics. I gave it a complete inspection and it is well made, with a very nice finish and well matched wood.

The tone is bright but not brassy- sounds fantastic for picking but sound does not hold up under HEAVY strumming.

The action is good, but I would say it, as someone below indicated, that it is as smooth as an electric. VERY well made for the price. A bit surprised --

As I said, it is extremely well made for it's class. Very solid. Wish I had something this nice when I was learning.

I've been playing about 25 years. I have a Yamaha FG-1000 (older handmade model), a Washburn DC60, a Ibanez blue daytripper and a Yamaha G-55A Spanish guitar (from way back when). It is really a beautifully made guitar with detailing I could not afford elsewhere. It has an excellent sound -- not sure I would immediately replace it as I have a pile of guitars. I would recommend it without hesitation, though. I think Jay Turser's guitars are sleepers (pricewise) and an up and coming line -- based on the quality I see here.

ALSOME!!!The first time i saw this guitar i didnt want to play it i just wanted to stare at it. this was the most beautiful guitar ive ever seen and it still is. solid spruce top, flame maple back and sides, mahogany neck, gold tuners, rosewood bridge, and rosewood fretboard with GORGEOUS vine inlay and ablone rosette. dreadnought body style. i actually like the grandconcert and jumbo styles better but the dreadnoughts have a way better sound in my opinion.

when i played this guitar for the first time i couldnt belive the wonderful sound. clear full crisp sound. very loud, dont even need a pick. do not hold back on this guitar its the best sound youll ever hear from an acoustic. i have a broken wrist right now and im going crazy from not playing this wonderful-sounding guitar.

the action is like an electric guitar, smooth as butter and the guitar is flawless except for a crack in the wood on the back of the guitar under the finish. other than that the guitar is perfect.

this baby can handle a nuclear war. you have to tune it about every four months if you play alot. im dead serious.

never delt with 'em.

this guitar is the best acoustic EVER.

Korean made acoustic, slightly smaller than a dreadnought; the size is very similar to the Larrivee L-series guitars, with a narrower waist and rounder shoulder and bouts than a dreadnought. Solid spruce top of unknown origin. Laminated flaming maple back and sides. Rosewood finger board and bridge. Mahogany neck. Glossy finish on both the body and the neck. It comes without a pickguard and looks nice without it, but I will add a clear one (ala Larrivee) soon. WBWBW plastic binding on the body and white binding around the neck and head. The abalone sound hole is very cleanly done, as is the vine inlay on the finger board. Mosiac center strip down the back and bottom. The neck is thinner and narrower than a Martin. The nut and saddle are of some kind of faux bone material (ala Tusq). The guitar is surprisingly light weight, closer to the weight of a classic than a dreadnought; this adds to the quality feel of the guitar. The bracing is elongated X Martin style without any fancy scalloping. The bracing is simple and clean, but I couldn't tell if it was sawn or split. Apart from a small drop of glue at the center of the X, the inside construction was impressively clean: not perfect, but nicely clean. Generally, the workmanship was very clean, parts were matched and mated with care and the finish was without any flaws. It is one of the most visually attractive guitars I've ever seen under $1000.
Now for the things that were lacking: The neck is a three piece neck: the heel and the head are glued to the main neck; since even Sigma's have a one piece neck and head, I found this a distraction. (Of course Seagull proudly promote a separate head.) The nut was a millimeter too wide. The back laminate was not made of single sheets: while the outside of the back is made with two matched pieces, the inside of the back has three distinct panels; nevertheless both outside and in were flaming maple. The rosewood bridge is unfinished. The bridge pins are very unimpressive plastic and do not sit in the bridge well. (These will be replace with the first string change.) Upon examining the inside of the guitar with a mirror, I found a very strange sight: a brass screw coming in under the bridge. The bridge has an asymetrical shape and this screw was right where the bridge juts out behind the pins. The only thing I could figure is that it is the anchor screw used to set the bridge position, but then it was never removed. This was the only place inside the guitar that was rough with a chip of wood where the screw entered. The frets were not uniformly shaped; I'm not sure if this was careless attention or careful intention, as the sound and action did not suffer. Lastly, there was a conspicuous absence of a seriel number. I find this most unfortunate as it seems to imply that manufacturer is not concerned with keeping track of, monitoring, or keeping records of its guitars. And from a players view, if the guitar ages well, there is no way of establishing its era. Moreover, I tend to get attached to "my guitar" as much as the model, and without a seriel number it more difficult to positively identify "my guitar." It lacked the touches that identify upper-end guitars: wood or abalone binding, solid back and sides, and ebony finger board, but you rarely get any of those for less than $1000.

The guitar was shipped Fed Ex from NY to Pittsburgh and held its tuning perfectly. The first thing that you hear when you play this guitar is sound and lots of it: overtones, undertones, resonates, sustain, harmonics and bright maple sound. I played this guitar for the first few minutes and was bewildered that so much sound and such complicated sound could come from such a guitar that cost so little. It trades the deep bass sound for a brighter bass sound. It is hard to imagine what this would sound like with solid back and sides, or with a JDL bridge system. I'm looking forward to seeing what quality bridge pins and strings will do. The guitar picks exceptionally well and stums with clean tones. Only with very hard strumming does the sound become too compact, but I have found few guitars with which that is not true. Fortunately, the guitar is loud enough that very hard strumming is not necessary.
Now for the down side: The neck needed to be relaxed a little to eliminate occasional fret buzzing. After adjusting, there still remained a slight buzz with a heavy attack on the high e at the 12th fret, but nowhere else.

The backs were matched a well sufficiently so for flaming maple, which is to say that there seems to be greater variation in "matched" panels. The spruce top is not straight grain across the entire top; the grain curves a bit and opens up a little at the bottom bout. The two sides are matched, but one side was obviously closer to the outside of the tree as it displays a slight variation indicating the beginning of an off-shoot. The rosewood fingerboard was tight w/o cracks. The mahogany grain on the neck appeared tight and straight. The action was quite acceptable for an acoustic. As mentioned above, the neck is narrower than my Sigma (Martin); I found surprisingly nice as the narrow neck made reaching across 5 or 6 frets very comfortable. For some reason, reaching beyond the 14th fret was also surprisingly easy, even on the bass strings. (See "Features" for other comments on fit and finish.)

I've only had this guitar for a couple of weeks, but I hope to have it for several decades. My Sigma is 25 years old and has held up to heavy play. The Turser exhibits far better workmanship, so I'm hoping it will last at least as long. Of course, it is such a beautiful guitar that I don't plan on beating it. (I would/might buy another acoustic Turser for beating on, however (if my wife let me).)

I don't know about Turser's customer support, but Verne at LQ Music did a great job. Upon packing the guitar, he noticed a small dent on the neck behind the fifth fret. It was unfortunately the last JTA-DS he had. So he called me to inform me of the discovery and included a new guitar strap and a couple packs of strings to make up for it. (The nick is only a slight distraction and not a problem.) There was no warranty included, but if it needed repaired, I would pay to get it done, so impressive is the guitar.

I have been playing off and on for 25+ years. I own a Sigma DM-5, a Gibson C-2 (classical), and (used to own) a Westbury electric. I have played Ovations, Seagulls, Yamahas, Ibanezes, Guilds, Alverezes, and some others. Coming to this site was the determining factor regarding buying this guitar. I was not in the market, but when I saw the price and read the reviews here (and got my wife's approval), the decision was a no-brainer. And I am very please I made it. If it were lost or stolen I would grieve its lost and look for another. I like its unique shape and attractive presentation. Its sound is truely remarkable for the cost, and I would love to see a luthier or professional player rate it w/o knowing it was a Turser. I don't like the bridge pins and will replace them asap with Tusq or ebony. I like that it doesn't have a distracting pickguard, but wish it hade a clear pickguard like Larrivee; again, I'll add one asap to keep the appearance clean. I cannot imagining spending the $1000+ for another guitar to match the sound quality, and can't imagine what a solid back and side would do for it. I also wonder what a rosewood model would sound like. If I could have one more thing it would be wood or abalone binding; that would truely elevate the beauty of this guitar. Lastly, the odd shape of the guitar makes a typical dreadnought case a little loose for it; I don't know what to do about that other than buying a Larrivee case for their L-series. Conclusion: This is a great guitar, beautiful and bright. Unless you have something against imports (i.e., pride) save you money for more important things and check out Jay Turser. If you're unsure, buy from someone with a return policy. Peace.

The jta ds is beautiful blonde 6 steel string guitar.It has a solid spruce top,solid maple back and sides.Rosewood neck and bridge,vine inlay on neck.Nice abalone rossette and great tuners

I've had this guitar a few months,I put a set of elixer and brass tone pins.The guitar seems to be sounding more beautiful everyday,I think mostly from the strings,but the spruce top may be seasoning.This guitar sound gorges picked but even better finger picked.classical just sings from this steel string,a friend with a $600.00 takamine classical,picked up the turser,and wouldn't put it down.

great factory set up

well made lifetime warranty

jay turser is great,I have two and a third on the way.I've seen other say they had trouble getting a hold of turser,call them on the phone,they have a web sight.I had one minor set up problem with an acoustic electric,it cost $13.00 to send they pay to send it back,repair and all adjusted.

I played a bunch of guitars on sale for around $300.00 at guitar center,they didn't compair.You have to spend around $600.00 for the bigger name brands so if you dont need a fancy name to pay for check jay turser

Bought new in 2003, Korean made, flame maple back and sides, solid (?) spruce (?) top is 2 pieces joined down the middle, mahogany neck, rosewood fingerbopard with beautiful vine inlay, nice smooth tuners...etc. etc., you know the guitar.

Above average for it's price. The maple provides a crispy upper mid without sounding thin.

Bow in neck was horrible, guitar was unplayable, it needed truss rod and bridge/nut modifications to make it better.
Also a chip in finish on face that should have been repaired.

It seems pretty reliable so far.

It's got a warranty but since it was bought online, the guitar would have to be returned to the original seller, not a local dealer...the options were to get it repaired with no shipping or get a new replacement with more shipping charges. I dont feel like i should pay for a new guitar and get a repaired one that should have never left the store to begin with or pay double shipping to receive a new guitar that i already paid for. Those were the options presented under the warranty.

This can be a great guitar for a beginner/intermediate player looking for something nice that's affordable, IF you have it setup (trussrod/bridge/nut adjustments) to play better.
It definately "looks" better than it plays.

Mine is a 2003, 20 Fret, Solid Spruce top with Mahogany neck and Flame Maple Back and sides. I added a Fishman Passive Undersaddle Transducer to it and run that though an external preamplifier if I decide to go that way. It has a Gloss Finish and I found a Taylor Case at Guitar Center that appears to be a perfect fit. I rated it by the features I would expect on a high end guitar of a similar style (Grand Auditorium), not by how many there were... The inlay, while not perfect perhaps, would require a far closer and specific look to notice the superficial flaws. Again, think of the cost vs value and I believe it hard to really complain and be reasonably.

This guitar is a general purpose guitar leaning toward new age/Country Rock, Fingerstyle playing. I use it primarily with a Dean Markley KAC-60 Acoustic Amplifier, and it has the full range of sound found in any similar type of guitar. There is little NOT TO LIKE with this guitar, as it looks and sounds comparable to a guitar at 3+ times the cost. intrinsic volume, it is definately there. Yu do not need the amplification for most situations as it really sings!!!

Action, fit and finish on my guitar is exceptional. The shop only changed strings on the guitar before they gave it to me, but then they had added the undersaddle transducer so had to remove the old ones anyway... I noticed no serious flaws (actually didn't notice any) but then again I was not as critical as I would have been with a custom built guitar at 10 times the cost.

I take care of all my guitars, and maintain (wipe them down when ever I pick them up or on a monthly basis if I don't. I find my guitar to be highly reliable and very durable so far.

I never had the occasion to need them on either of the Jay Tursers I own.

I did my best to keep from buying this guitar, and ended up going back about 6 times before I finally did because I thought I was over the GAS attacks I had had before. I have several guitars and really didn't need this one, but after playing it, I had to have it regardless of what I tried to do to avoid it. I fell in love with the sound, the ease of play, and all those things that a guitar should have. Add to that the fact asthetically it is a real eye catcher in its elegant grace and beauty, and I believe it is definately a high value vs. cost. I would without hesitation replace this guitar if I could find another one like it, and in fact will buy a second one when I find it just to have a back up. I looked at Martins, Taylors, Seagulls, Larivee's, and several other lines and have not found a cost vs value like the Jay Turser. Contact me for any additional information if you feel so inclined.

New guitar; accoustic slope shoulder-like old gibson J-45; Korean made. Solid spruce top- nicely figured maple back and sodes. Mahogany neck 14 frets- very finely crafted and super easy to use. Nice wood-simile Gotoh type tuners- very accurate and precise. Satin Finish; tree of life on rosewood fingerboard; abalone rosette; rosewood veneer on peghead.

This is for pure accoustic application. Will play through a mike/PA.
The sound is quite amazing. I currently own four Taylors and have owned as many as nine, a D'Angelico New Yorker, several very pricey custom accoustic guitars, an F- styly mandolin and four high quality 5-string banjos plus three quality electric guitars. I have owned a wide variety of instruments over the past 42 years including Martins, Gibsons, Larivee, etc. I state this only to let you know that I am well aquainted with very high quality instruments. With that said, I must say that I am absolutely astounded at the quality of sound of this particular instrument. I purchased this guitar at Encore Music in Albuquerque which is known as a high quality store. I was actually looking to buy a Taylor Cocobolo Ltd. when I was struck by the visual figure of this guitar. It was very tastefully put together- attractive but not gaudy. When I played it, I couldn't believe my ears. I was blown away by the volume, clarity, balance, sustain, and overall voice of this guitar. I took it home and put a set of John Pearse medium phosphor bronze strings (the best!!) on the guitar and it is a CANON!!!! Absolutely astounding.

Set-up was perfect, but was undoubtedly tweaked at Encore Music. Top bookmatched beautifully; fully bound body- intricate and flawless. Again, being used to very high quality, I was impressed. Workmanship better than a Gibson Custom Shop ES-5 I acquired several years ago. I have not noticed any flaws at this point.

Guitar is surprisingly light, which accounts some for it's striking volume/voice. Hardware appears to be first class.Finish appears to be synthetic- will probably last for decades. I would not only not hesitate to use it on a live gig, I am excited at the prospect. Everything about the guitar appears to be substantial.

At present, I have no knowledge regarding the warranty. The owner of Encore Music is a very close friend and I believe he said that there was alifetime warranty on the instrument. Frankly, I don't care. At this price, I'd not only buy it without a warranty, I'd pay a lot more for it than I did.

I've been playing 43 years. I play in pop/rock bands and I play in bluegrass bands. I enjoy playing jazz, Latin and folk/country music. As stated above, I own a good number of very high quality instruments. If it were stolen or lost, I would certainly try to replace it. However, I wonder if I happened to get ahold of a rare guitar- one whose quality of sound far exceeds expectations. Although a maple guitar, I would say that I am as impressed with this instrument perhaps as much as I am with a custom Koa/Cedar Taylor 914 which I own. Sounds ridiculous, but true. I didn't choose it. I noticed the blond color and interesting shape; picked it up without thinking and was absolutely taken aback at the intensity of the sound.
I feel like I have the find of a lifetime. A real gem.

This is a Korean-made guitar, but many models of "big name" guitars are built overseas. It has abalone inlay around the sound hole, with no pick guard, abalone vine inlay on the neck, is fully bound around the body, neck and headstock; has compensated nut, faux wood tuning pegs on gold-tone machine heads. The top is solid spruce. Sides are natural-colored flamed maple. Back is book-matched flamed maple. Neck is thinner and easier to play than either my 1999 Alvarez or my 1976 Hohner - nearly as easy to play as my Strat.

I play all styles of music. It sounds great with all. The sound is full and bright. There is a little fret buzz in places, but I think that is because I put on some extra light strings that really go into motion when struck. Heavier strings would eliminate the buzzing I'm sure.

The action is about as good as I've felt on an acoustic (except for my friend's $3,400 Taylor). This is a gorgeous guitar, looking as if it cost many times more than the $218 I paid for it off a TV shopping channel. The MSRP on this thing is about $400, and someone just paid $260 for one on eBay (they'd be mad if they knew they could get one for $218 on the shopping channel's web site). The edges of the frets are slightly rougher than my Alvarez, but certainly not unacceptable. I can't find a single flaw in fit or finish anywhere on this guitar. For the price, it's outstanding.

It is considerably lighter in weight than my other acoustics. I don't know if that's good or bad. The absence of a pickguard obviously would contribute to scratching of the high-gloss finish if one is a wild strummer (which I'm not), but a pick guard would detract from the delicate beauty of the guitar and somewhat deaden the resonance of the top, so its absence is fine with me. The machine heads tune accurately and have a solid feel. The whole guitar seems well put-together.

The guitar is covered by Jay Turser's lifetime warranty, but how long will Jay Turser be around? Who knows? But it doesn't matter. It's not like you're investing $5,000 in this guitar. If it breaks 5 years from now and the company is out of business, you've had your money's worth and more for those 5 years.

I'm 46 years-old and have been playing since I was nine, some of that time professionally. I've owned & played many guitars over the years, and although this is not the best guitar I've ever played, it certainly is a very good guitar and without a doubt the best guitar I've played in it's price range. I'd have no reservations recommending it to anyone. In fact, I ordered a second one last night from the shopping channel website for my 19 year-old daughter who threw a fit when she saw & played my JTA-DS-NG. I'll be selling her Takamine.

At first glance, this blonde flame maple steel-string acoustic looks like a classical guitar, with its round-shoulder, smallish top bout. After perusing a Musician?s Friend catalog, the closest thing to this guitar in looks is the Gibson L-200 Emmy Lou Harris signature guitar. (The Gibson is shallower, headstock not at all the same, and doesn?t come with vine inlay?I?m merely saying the shape is similar.) If that is what Jay Turser is copying, which is how JT is building its rep, all I can say is GREAT choice! And nice execution . . . you get:

white vine pearl inlay
pearl Jay Turser nameplate between 18th and 19th fret
flame maple back and sides
mahogany set neck
rosewood fingerboard with ivory-colored binding
solid spruce top
die cast machines with dark pearlesque-colored tuners
rosewood bridge
abalone rosette
wood inlay in the back spine
limited (original owner) lifetime warranty
natural gloss finish

This guitar is not listed on the JT site, nor have I seen any other specs from the catalog at the store from which I bought it. Nonetheless, I took out a measuring tape and can provide these approximate specs: nut is 1-5/8-11/16 inches wide. It?s a narrower neck than you?d find on a Seagull or Martin Sigma, for instance, but along the lines of an Ovation. The body depth tapers from 4-3/4 inches to 3-7/8 inches at top bout. Twenty frets, 14 to bout, and approx. 24-3/4 inches from nut to pegs.

I?ve owned and played a Suzuki F-90 rosewood and cedar guitar for more than twenty years despite tortuously high strings because it had great tone, projection, and sustain. I didn?t get a whole lot for it in trade, but I didn?t trade away sound quality. The maple gives it a sweet, textured sound, the depth and shape of the body provides fullness, and the tone just chimes out. As I was putting it on its stand the other evening, I noticed that one of the strings was still ringing after the final strum and a walk across the room. I am not particularly fond of ?dipped? finish guitars, but this one has strong resonance. There?s no buzzing at pegs or nut. It just has an I-don?t-know-how-else-to-describe-it great sound. I?d like to hear it with Elixir strings but that would only make it better, I would think. I?d compare its rich sound to Guilds I?ve played in stores.

My Dean Markley Magna (soundhole) pickup has no trouble conveying the full texture of the JTA?s sound even through non-acoustic guitar amps we use at church for praise team. My style of music is praise, country folk, stuff by Stan Rogers, Paul Simon, Ozark Mountain Daredevils, and oldies like ?Hard Rock Candy Mountain,? ?Hard Times,? ?Waltzing Matilda??stuff from the ?Rise Up Singing? book. This guitar works wonders with this material.

The action is much to my liking. It was very likely set up by the store, which usually optimizes playability and intonation as much as possible. Not quite as smooth or fast as my electric guitar, but on par and terrific for an acoustic. Tuners are very nice and the guitar really stays in tune?especially with changing weather in Chicago of late. The neck is narrow and may be tricky for big hands or thicker fingers for finger picking; great for quick chord changes?

I see no obvious flaws in the fit of parts and the finish; no glue abuse, no rough edges, smooth polished frets. The inlay work is spectacular, very smooth. The rosette is terrific as is the back spine inlay. The gloss finish smooths over these features so there is no texture to them. There are little dark spots along the binding lines that could have been cleaned up I suppose before the finish made them permanent features, but those are nitpicking. At this price range, the workmanship is excellent.

Compared to my Larrivee twelve-string, I must admit that the JT suffers in a very subtle way, as if it were a photo taken with soft focus, while the Larrivee is in sharp focus. Come to think of it, though, the Gibson guitars I?ve played in stores have that same soft-focus look?

I get a very good vibe about this guitar in terms of durability. I didn?t bother with a pickguard due to the thickness of the gloss finish. I don?t really strum at an angle that hits the guitar body and if it does get a little nicked up, that just adds character to it. I really plan on keeping this guitar for the long run. The tuners are very smooth, no slipping. The reliability remains to be seen?I?ll report any problems here, but my advise is don?t hold your breath waiting.

I?ve read a lot of these Harmony Central reviews and wonder what the heck is this category really about? If you have to go to the manufacturer, more than likely something?s gone wrong. But you usually take it to the store first. So let?s start there:

You can find me at Perrys Music in Villa Park, Illinois, most Wednesday evenings, waiting for my son to finish his bass lessons. In actuality, I?ve been shopping for this guitar for over a year, noodling weekly on various Deans, Seagulls (along with Arts & Luthier and Norman subsidiaries), new and used Corts, used Martin Sigmas, Ovations, Takemine, and the occasional used Alvarez or Guild that floats through. I?m sure they?re glad I finally bought a guitar, but they?ve never pressured me or made me feel like a dweeb.

Of course, I?ve recommended various guitars to several customers and friends who are very happy with their purchases, and with Perrys? selection of affordable guitars and service. Along with the limited lifetime warranty from Jay Turser, I have a lifetime adjustment guarantee from the store (twice a year they will change strings that I buy and adjust the neck and intonation for free). I?m so pleased with this purchase and with the store that I?m planning on using my Guitar Center credit card for guitar picks!

If you take a look at the other reviews in this area, Jay Turser is pretty well-known as a ?knock-off? company but one of the first order: JT guitars come very well recommended at this site. The JTA DS-NG compared very favorably with the guitars mentioned above and despite my comparison to a Gibson signature guitar, is an original design. Building a solid reputation for offering affordable, quality guitars assures me that Jay Turser will be around for a long time to come and provide support if needed. BTW, Jay Turser is building some very nice original designs of electric guitars as well.

It was my birthday and the time had come to make a decision to buy a replacement for the Suzuki. I wanted to keep the price under $300, if possible?I?m sending kids to college and contributing to my church?s building campaign; some day I?ll get to really indulge myself. With the beautiful appointments of the vine inlay and flame maple sides, I have a wonderful guitar that I?m won?t be afraid to play wherever I go. (What would a Larrivee or a Martin with a vine inlay cost? Would it ever leave the house?) I actually feel like I have indulged myself! If it were lost or stolen, I could afford to replace it and would readily do so.

I could have pushed my limit another $100 or so and bought a Seagull S-6 dreadnought (at Perrys) with built-in pickup or a Martin 000XM-1 at Guitar Center. I liked them for sound and their wider necks. Both of those guitars would probably have greater trade-in value sometime down the line, but I?m probably not going to be tempted to trade this guitar. It holds it own in terms of sound against any of the brands I?ve mentioned, especially those in that $200-$600 range. Remember, I already own a Larrivee 12-string, I?ve been playing for thirty years, so I think I should know great guitar sound?

A note about my numerical ratings: I rated this guitar according to a fairly long and comprehensive survey of what?s available in the $200-$600 price range, with an awareness of the great values and quality that Gibson, Guild, Tacoma, Larrivee, and Martin make available. They are more expensive, however. If you insist on including the whole universe of acoustic guitars, then drop the ratings a point if you must. As for your hand-made custom guitar, I think you pay so much for something like that that there?s no point in reviewing it for the average guitar player anyway; nonetheless, I held off on 10s except for features. I mean really, people, what else could you want in terms of features?