Help me pick an acoustic-electric guitar (600 usd top)

[locus_coeruleus]

Hey. I've been reading the forums for quite some time, then dropped everything related to making or playing music for med school. Long story short is I graduated and visiting New York. I want to get me an acoustic-electric but, since I've never owned one (always one electrics), I'm quite lost.

Here's what I have in mind
- 600 usd at most
- Cutaway
- Looking for a sort of "crispy" sound, closer to an electric guitar than to an acoustic one. I guess this is mostly achieve by metal strings and not nylon ones, but I guess there's gotta be more to This son may serve as an example:



I did do some research of my own, and came across these, but I just can't quite tell the differences or if there is one standing out more than the rest as I don't really know much about materials and whatnot:

Yamaha A1M Acoustic Electric Guitar | SamAsh
http://www.samash.com/acoustic-elect...ar-s034208xx-p
Takamine GD93CE-NAT Acoustic-Electric Guitar | SamAsh
Yamaha FSX730C Acoustic-Electric Guitar | SamAsh


As a side note, is there a whole lotta difference in sound/resonance between these 2 body shapes?:

Yamaha A1M Acoustic Electric Guitar | SamAsh
http://www.samash.com/acoustic-elect...itar-yac1mxxxx

 

[ArsMemoria]

That album has one of my favorite acoustic guitar sounds. Love it from front to back. Would also love to hear some input on this.

 

[Delitzsch]

First off, if you're buying this to record then just get straight acoustic guitar. No piezo or other electronic stuff. It sounds like shit compared to an acoustic guitar with a mic in front of it. Even for live, acoustic guitar and mic are the best way to go. Acoustic guitars are the most fickle when it comes to sound. Definitely play it before you pay for it. A great sounding acoustic guitar is truly a work of skillful artistry.

 

[mickrich]

I have a Yamaha Compass CPX15N and it sounds amazing under a mic.
It has none of the ringy midrange that most acoustics have (even some expensive ones)
Generally stay away from Martin x series which horribly ring in the mids and Takamine G series which do the same.
From my experience in the studio (and I owned a guitar shop for 10 years), Yamahas are the best at pretty much every price range until you start hitting €2K+.
My advice is to go to a guitar shop and play an expensive guitar first and REALLY listen to the tone, especially the mids, then try some cheaper alternatives to see which is closest to the really good one you tested.

 

[Delitzsch]

Same here. I have a Yamaha and it can hold it's own with the expensive ones.

 

[SimonSez]

Check out the Epiphone Masterbilt series. I was making the same decision as you a year ago and after trying out a ton of acoustic guitars it became my favorite. My old Yamaha still gets some use though but the Epiphone sounds more crisp and has tighter bass.

 

[mva801]

I've been shopping a lot for acoustics lately and the only ones I seem to not hate are the $1,000+ Martins. To me they have the best blend of playability and sound. I'm gonna give a few yamahas a go though. I just bought new monitors so I'm def not gonna spend $1,200 on an acoustic right meow.

 

[KillFrenzy]

I'd strongly recommend a used Takamine EF-340SC. I use mine on a weekly basis for recording with multiple players and it always sounds good. Very versatile, bright sounding with mids (thats very important), controlled bass and no honkiness.
Some considerations, since it's your first acoustic and I don't know your level of expertise recording them:
- Spend your time find the right guitar if you can. Even two guitars of the same model may sound different.
- Mic positioning is CRUCIAL. A good starting point is aiming for the 12th fret and quite close (+/- 5 inches)
- And you can throw everything on the garbage if you don't choose the right strings. My guitar works best (for my taste) with Elixirs Nanoweb 0.11 in standard tuning.
- Pick materials and thickness also change the sound a lot
- Playing tehcnique is a major factor too. The exact same configuration can sound widely different depending on the player.

I hope it helps!

 

[KillFrenzy]

Dunno if you are still looking for a guitar and if you can stretch your budget a little, but there is a Takamine EF-360SC on Massdrop for $799. If I lived in the US, I'd get one for sure