Simon & Patrick SP6 Spruce

I have owned my S&P6 for a month now, and I'm still grinning from ear to ear!! I've been playing for just over 4 years, and have owned a variety of Tanglewoods, Yamaha's, etc and never got the sound I've been searching for - until now!! This SP6 has a solid spruce top with cherry back and sides, and the sound is absolutely awesome.

The bass is very deep and rich, while the treble rings out like nothing i've heard before! I'm still reeling at how the hell Simon & Patrick have managed to keep the action so low yet with absolutely no buzz?? The neck fits my hand like I was born with it, and is simply a dream to play!

I'm not vastly experienced in this, but everything seems to be in perfect order. The bridge, saddle and nut all seem to be of high quality and, along with the whole guitar, is very well made. I like the finish, looks like a guitar should. Yes, you do have to be careful not to bump it because it will dent and scratch easily.

I've had a few jamms with my friends (all accomplished musicians) and it certainly stood out! They just couldn't believe the sound that comes out of it and I had a bit of trouble prising out of their hands! I also noticed that on comparing the sound to my friends' guitars, it was head and shoulders above the rest (including my mate's Taylor, which I think sounds awful!). I think the SP6 will definately have a long life and stand the test of time.

Not dealt with the company yet, but was told in the shop that it carries a lifetime warrenty.

Should anything happen to this guitar I would be gutted and wouldn't hesitate to buy another one (in fact, I'd sell the family silver to get it!). Every guitar I've owned has never really been for keeps - I've always wanted something better. THIS ONE STAYS!

Handmade in Canada (Quebec) The guitar has a solid spruce top with laminate back and sides. I think the neck is all real wood but i'm not sure it looks kind of like mahogany? Rosewood fingerboard i think. The finish is satin (almost non existent) but I think it looks nicer than heavily lacquered guitars. Sometimes if they are too heavily finished I think they are hiding something. Don't know about the tuners I think it could do with better ones or maybe i should just give them a wee tighten. But for the Price and the fact its made in Canada they are pretty good. Mine came with a Gig bag. I managed to get a deal at Soundcontrol (UK).

The sound is amazing!!! To be honest when i was in the shop I tried a Yamaha FG 700MS and this. Despite not really being able to afford the SP my friend who was with me convinced me to get it (the price difference is like #100). At first when i got it home i was still reeling from my decision. But after about an hour i couldn't keep the grin off my face. It's such a nice guitar. The highs are beautiful and when picked nicely just shine. The balance between the highs,mids and lows is also very nice giving this guitar an overall tone some more expensive guitars would kill for. My only slight complaint is that the bass notes (the E and A string inparticular) can sound a bit flat and not project that much on their own. I fitted new strings but they still sound slightly dull. Bit that is a minor grievance.

The guitar was set up in the shop (at least it had a little tag saying it had been) so I don't know about the factory set-up. In my opinion over the past week that I have had it I believe the action could be raised a little. I think this may alleviate the dull sounding E&A strings. I may consider doing this in the future but not right now. I have to say the spruce top on this guitar is not perfect there are minor flaws in the wood. But seeing as they use 800 yr old timber and trees are living things, every now and then the odd piece of wood wont look as nice as the others. Occasionally the flaws annoy me but their cosmetic and hey we all have them so in a way it just endears me to the guitar more. Nut, Saddle etc. all nicely done.

I think this guitar will easily withstand live playing as long as you treat it with a little respect. Don't go smashing off walls. The finish is thin but that will only help the ageing of the guitar. And if you get things like a hole in it I'm sure it will still sound fine. Strap button on bottom securely fit. At a gig I would hope to have a backup just incase but if i couldn't i'd have every faith in my SP6. However, it might be because i have quite a hard attack on the strings, it does slip slightly out of tune after a good session of playing but only slightly.

Never dealt with them. Emailed to see if i could get some info on what the guitar was made of ie. the neck. But they haven't got back to me. Warranty exists for Canadian and American people but not us Scots. Although that seems to be the case with all North American guitars.

I've been playing for about 5 maybe 6 years. My other equipment is a Fender Strat (a Mexican) and a crappy classical guitar I got when i started. I wish i had seen if I could get more money off the guitar due to the finish but i got like #20 off anyway. Always see if a guitar shop will do you a deal quite often they will. This is a great guitar (my first steel string) for the money its pretty much unbeatable. Obviously some other more expensive guitars sound better and the entry level Martin that i tried (a DX something) sounded better (cost like twice as much though). If it got stolen I'd probably not have the money to replace it so I'd look at the Yamahas again. I'd also just like to say try guitars before you buy even if you are a beginner and can't play just sit down with it feel the neck, look at the finish, see if its comfortable for you to hold. Sometimes guitar shops can be intimidating depending on the staff but just take your time and maybe make a couple of visits to try out the guitar your interested in (as long as it doesn't get sold Lol!) And try the cheaper guitars often they sound great I mean the FG 700MS I tried was brilliant for the money. Finally I am very happy with the SP6 and look forward to it getting older and maturing with me.

Made in Canada, this guitar is made of solid Spruce top and Red Wild Cherry body. The fretboard is made of Honduras Mahogany and is pretty thin. The machine heads are high quality and are fine adjusting. Oh yeah, the wood has a delightfully robust scent that will fill the room.

In brief, the sound of the S&P 6 Spruce with Wild Cherry sides has incredible sound! After 15 years playing, i've tried many guitars and none, save Martin, can replicate the richness, fullness, and brightness that S&P delivers. It is extremely versatile, whether you're in a mellow mood, jazz mood, folk mood, or whatever, this guitar will be right there with you. It stays in tune all the way up the neck and maintains an even volume over all frequencies.

S&P is handmade in La Patrie and Princeville Quebec, Canada, and as such, care is taken to ensure the highest quality finish. This is a beautiful guitar with understated authority. The action is like butter and there's no buzzing at the higher frets. I've gone over this guitar very carefully and have not been able to identify any flaws either structurally or cosmetically. The craftmanship is next to none.

You can't get any more reliable than this; one word, solid. This is definitely not a backup guitar, unless it's a backup for another S&P.

Oh yeah, there's a lifetime manufacturer's waranty.

I have no regrets about this guitar. This is certainly something i'd buy again. More value that what you pay for.

features as described in the other reviews, mine is equipped with a bband pickup.

The sound is what makes this guitar good. It has a very clear sound, good for all kinds of styles. The bband pickup is good too.

Well, this is were i needed to do a lot of work. The action high, the neck needed adjustment, and towards the body of the guitar the neck was not quite straight (i mean towards de 5th and 6tstring the action was higher then elsewhere.

The satin finish does make the guitar vulnerable. Be prepared to have a few dents and scratches on it after a while, unless you are extremely careful with it. This is the price you pay for the great sound, and it does not affect the guitar as such, just the value if you would want to sell it again.

never dealt with

I have been playing guitar for over 20 years now, but only two years steelstrings. I have not experience with them and are still finding out what i really want from a steelstring. If it were lost i woeld try a lot of guitars and not specifically this one again.
Compared it in the shop with crafters, fenders, and LAG.

I got the SP spruce top a few weeks ago when I was shopping for a guitar, I had a good play through the acoustic ranges and the only two that caught my attention were the Martin brands and these SPs, when I asked about the prices I was shocked to see the SP was cheaper than many Gibsons, Ibanez, and Washburn guitars and was about 150 quid cheaper than the Martin, which was the only competition for sound quality. Needless to say I purchased the SP, and have no regrets. What I like about Godin is they give value for money in the true sense of the word, what your buying here is a very top quality guitar, with money saved on pointless lacquered finishes, the wood quality is excellent, and even the Godin strings they put on were fantastic. Its a basic acoustic, but its sounds as good as any I have played, well worth the ?279 I paid for it.

The sound is supurb, the wood they use to create these things is as good as any. and to increase the sound the makers of this guitar havent went to any great length with the finish. I think its a good move, this guitar will age better and improve with every year. It also sounds great in front of a mike for recording, what i liked about this guitar was the harmonics it gave of when strumming and plicking. Its very full and great for getting into that trance like state, we guitarists look for.

These are hand made guitars, with no elaborate finish as i have mentioned. But it really works, somehow the guitar still looks great its natural and wholesome looking. The people over there in Canada seem a pretty confident bunch though visit there website to see what they do. The fret board is easy to manipulate after a bit adjusting if your used to playing a smaller, or bigger guitar.

One draw back possibly is the durability of it. be carefull not to knock it or you could be facing a few dints. also you may have to tighten the pegs with a screw driver to keep it in tune. depends how hard you play, i like whacking and pulling the strings a lot, so im having to re tune after every good play i have with it. Still though this guitar will give you a good performance on the day, it always sounds great when you havent played for a day, then just pick it up. Its actually quite addictive in that sense. But arnt all guitars.

Ive never had any need to contact them. But there website has all the contact details you will need.

For the sound quality, which is all that matters to me with a guitar its perfect, and fair priced. I cant understand paying about 500 quid for a martin, when this is half the price and sounds as good. Hats of to Godin for being honust about their product.

2005 the year, It was brand new out the box, ?270 from Sound Control in Birmingham (UK).. details are available on the Simon & Patrick web site. Really is a nice looking guitar, very light, nice woods used.

I spent ages researching for a new guitar, on this site and guitar mag reviews and forums. My previous guitar was a Fender made in Korea DG20S a really rubbish guitar, I have spent 7 years being miserable with it. I narrowed my new guitar down to a Simon & Patrick or a Taylor 110. The Taylor seemed nice but did have buzzing on the top 2 strings. I read as well that the bottom end Taylors are put together by machines. That fact kind off put me off the Taylor.

The Simon & Patrick I originally wanted the Cedar had a nice tone but looks a bit basic. The Spruce looked nicer and sounded much brighter. I eventually asked for a new boxed one to just compare, n the tone out the box was outstanding. Considering it had been shipped from Canada, it was amazing, even the sales clerk commented on how nice it sounded. So maybe the ones on show had been over used or maybe I was lucky.

Anyway I got it home and everyone in my family commented on how nice it sounded. I just assumed it was still in tune it sounded so nice, it actually wasn't, so tuning it up just blew me away more. If a guitar can sound good out of tune then just how good is it?

The action seems just right, although I was thinking of having the top end sllghtly lowered, since having a bad experience with my crummy Fender, which had teribly high action. The sales clerk said the action was spot on and lowering the strings slightly might cause a buzz, so i passed on the idea. Playing it is just so easy, I wish i could go back in time and purchased this 7 years ago. Its like playing an electric guitar. The strings go down with ease, making it a joy to play.

What really pushed me towards the Simon & Patrick was how well they had been put together. There is no buzzing on any frets, you can tell someone has taken alot of time making the guitar sound perfect. As stated before the ?499 Taylor buzzed if the top 2 strings were not fretted with some authority. The Simon & Patrick only needs the softest touch of fingers to fret the notes. Its a real pleasure to play.

The finish of the guitar again is amazing. It really looks like a lot of time has been put into creating it. The canadian wood has such a nice colour and grain to it. The tuning pegs turn smoothly and no friction can be felt when tuning.

Ok i admit I've only had it for a few days, so durability i'm not sure about. The guitar would prob damage if knocked, but most guitars will. Reliability again no comment, havent had it long enough..

Not dealt with

I've been playing guitar for 10 years and looking back now I wish I had made the effort to get a better guitar years ago. This really is a joy to play, I can just see it improving over time. Lets face facts top end guitars like Martins and Taylors are over priced. Its the name you pay for and Takamine and Tanglewood mid price range guitars are made in countries like Korea and China. For ?270 I got a stunning guitar, made with Canadian wood, Hand made (Not Machine built) that plays like a dream and sounds amazing.

Made in 2004, here in the great country of Canada. 22 frets Solid Spruce Top Laminated Cherry back and sides. The finish is a light laquer finish, Satin I guess is the correct term and it's a dreadnaught. A very BASIC guitar.

I currently own a Taylor 410 and I walked into Long and McQuade looking for a back up guitar that was under $500. I tried out some Yamahas, Takamines, Gretsch, and Washburns. I basically tried anything that was under $500. Then I came to the Simon and Patricks and was completely blown away by the sound. It's a rich but balanced sound. It can be a little bright at times but I do strum pretty hard. Since Cherry is a harder wood, combined with the Sold Spruce top to resonates very well. My Taylor has a solid sitka spruce top and Ovangkol sides which is a softer wood. Therefore it has a much warmer sound. which is why I love my S+P, it gives me a brighter sound and there are days where I will prefer that. I read all over the place that the Washburn D10s was the #1 acoustic guitar under $500 so I gave it a shot. I don't know where they got that from because this simple Canadian made, Simon and Patrick, mops the floor with the Washburn d10s and they are about the same price. If this guitar were lost or stolen, I would definately buy another one. You cannot go wrong with the price. Needless to say I picked it up that same day. I was going to use this guitar as a backup only but the more I play it the more I think it might take center stage during a few sets, and remember I have a Taylor as my mainstay, that's how much I am impressed by this guitar.

The set up from the factory was horrible, it was way too high for me. Other than that it is nearly flawless. The finish is really nice, I like the satin finish, it gives it a nice simple, classy look.

I haven't played with it live but I have it seems like it would hold up, with proper care. This thing isn't built like a Taylor so I would be a little more careful with it, the main thing that I am concerned with is the finish, it might be a little more prone to scratching.

Never dealt with them yet.

I have been playing for ten years, mainly settings within a church but really hard rockin' music. It sounds like a guitar that is worth more than 340 CDN. I am quite proud of this purchase, and would recomend this guitar to anyone. Like I said I tried Yamahas, Gretsch, Takamines, and Washburns but nothing compares to this guitar. I still like the feel of my Taylor, especially the neck, but for 340 bucks, this is a great guitar. One happy customer right here!!!

This guitar doesn't have any special features. There is a satin finish which looks a lot nicer than your standard shiny laminate. However, it does have its problems which I will mention further on. It looks quite simple, and basically does what it says on the tin. Solid spruce top, cherry sides back. There is the option of the cedar top but from what I hear the cedar top is easily damaged.

The sound is the best thing about this guitar. The features arn't special, but totally makes up for it in sound. On comparing this guitar with all the other guitars in its price range, this guitar sounded the best by far. The cedar sounded more mellow, the spruce is more of a punchier sound. Guitar withstands is very loud, especially if you are facing the soundhole.

The guitar was not set up. The action was horrendous. But once it was set up it was very good. However bar chords were a little more harder high up the fretboard. Small problems with the finish were that where the neck joins to the body there is a small small gap. owever, this does not compromise the sturdiness of the guitar.

Seems very sturdy. The satin finish looks good, but won't last long. Where the guitar stand touched the back of the guitar, it has smudged the finish and made a little shiny mark. The tuners are good. Stayed fine for weeks

Havent used it yet

My first guitar, I love it. Best guitar in its price range, which many will agree.

This is a s&p6 with spruce top, natural colour. The wood is not finished with glossy stuff, which makes it a very beautiful instrument for me. I actually spent money I needed for something else because this guitar stole my heart. I played it in the shop, in Belgium, and couldn't believe my ears. I've been playing for sixteen years almost every day and had some low budget guitars (area & Motion) and two Fenders. The Fenders were really great. I thought, until I heart this Simon&Patrick, that Fender was the only company that could make good sounding Folk guitars that are affordable. Gibson and Martin, for example, could never do this. This Simon&Patrick guitar beats the Gibsons and the Martins in every way. I payed 558 euro for it and the sound, to my personal opinion, is much better than the average Gibson. But the Gibson costs at least 1200 euro. So this guitar (Simon&Patrick is a division of Godin, the biggest guitar maker in Canada) is for me, who is an advanced player, almost heaven. The sound cannot be beaten. Probably this is because of the spruced finish. Anyway, I am very very proud of my Simon&Patrick that sounds even better than my Fenders. And they were my favourites in the past. Perfect material!!

I combine several music styles in my guitar playing. I like country music, I like gospel, I like Elvis and Roy Orbison, I like Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings, I like Johnny Cash. I also like to use my fingers instead of a guitar pick. Sometimes I use a pick but I don't need one. I like to do several special things with my right hand with the chords (don't know the word for that in English, sorry). So I kind of play anything I like myself. I also sang and performed several times, using the Fender acoustic Newporter. So my style is divided. Country-music is brilliant. But an Elvis tune can never be avoided, I'm a big fan. My voice resemles Waylon Jennings' voice the most, so I also do some of his tunes.
About the guitar: it's sound is really very rich and bright. As I said before, it feels like playing an improved (!) Gibson. And I've played Gibsons!!! It's my favourite guitar in the collection, though I would want to miss the Fenders either. Top!

I was also surprised looking at the finishing inside the guitar. No glue rests or anything. It just all looks great. The spruce, non glossy wood really is very beatiful to me too. No remarks whatsoever. Perfect.

I am sure this guitar will withstand a gig, and even lifetime gigs. But since I don't have the guitar for a long time I cannot really judge this. It looks very well manufactured though. Hand made in Quebec. I would dare to to a gig with only this guitar as my orchestra... LOL Really fine material

Never had to deal with the company and hope I never will, cause my guitar will be falling apart then:-)))) But I'm very sure it won't.
The shop I bought it in calls "Muziek & Visie" and is located in Antwerp, Belgium. I bought my twelve string Fender there and also my Motion and two solid cases. So the customer-friendly ratus must be good eh....

This guitar is, in my opinion, the best price/quality acoustic folk guitar anyone can buy. And I'm from Belgium and don't have any connection with the firm whatsoever. Buy it! You won't be dissapointed.

This is a 2001 model. the features are the same as stated in other reviews. The neck appears to be maple not mahogany. The grain structure of the neck appears to be the same as the seagull and art & lutherie guitars I've looked at, which use maple necks.

I do like the sound of this guitar. The sound is balanced, not too much bass or treble. I'm still a beginner, so I have relatively light strings on the guitar. I think the sound will be even better when I move up to light strings.

This is where the guitar really shines. I haven't found any flaws on the outside or inside of the guitar. I am especially impressed with the inside of the guitar body, no glue drips or imperfections on the inside. Both the top and bottom appear to bookmatched very well. The set-up on this guitar suits me extremely well and makes the guitar a joy to play.

I just play this guitar at home. The thin finish on the guitar should be fine for the type of playing I do. I did accidently bump the guitar and it has a slight ding on the top.

I have been playing for about one year. I had been playing a cheap ovation, which I sold so I could buy the S&P. If the guitar was lost or stolen I would probably buy the same guitar or I might opt for the less expensive A&L cedar top. I really like about the easy playability of thsi guitar.