Spec me an Electro-acoustic. £500 budget!

SidewinderINC · 9 May 2006 at 16:50

Hi all,

ive phased out of computer buying stuff, and back into guitar buying stuff (lasts longer lol) and have decided over this summer i want to buy an electric acoustic, and i have about £500 to spend on it, less if possible!

ive got a few in the shortlist that i want to try out, namely the Yamaha APX and CPX range; the APX5A, APX7A and APX9C (which looks to be the mutts nutts! but also the most expensive at the very top of my budget)

not sure about the CPX range, does anybody know the differences between the APX and CPX?

other than that i have no idea, i'd like it to be a cutaway as i dont like the feel and shape of full bodied acoustics.

can any of the muso's of the forum help me in my quest?

Matt

Sol · 9 May 2006 at 21:24

I bought a Seagull S6+ cedar with cutaway and electronics and it is a really nice guitar. Cost me around £600 if I remember from a local shop but have a look around for better prices closer to your budget. I love cedar too, smells absolutely amazing and it sounds a bit mellower than the usual spruce tops. Only thing that some people can't handle is the wider necks but I have tiny hands and get by. Stays in tune forever too...

Check out the seagulls, simon and patrick, norman, art and luthrie!

Seagulls are handmade in canada and are worth every penny. I had a taylor big baby before that which I also wish I still had, was great for just picking up and playing.

sinister_stu · 9 May 2006 at 22:16

I've got a CPX5, cost me £340 so not quite as much your willing to spend. I would definitely go for something in the CPX range as opposed to the APX range, they're a bit bigger and have, in my opinion, a better sound. Best to go and have a play of a few yourself.

As has been suggested, there are plenty of other guitars to choose from for around £500, so get down to a music shop and have a look. Simon and Patrick make excellent guitars in my, slightly limited, experience.

Sol · 10 May 2006 at 13:10

One more thing forgot to mention...seagull, s&p, norman, and art and luth are all made under the same company so they are all pretty decent instruments in varying price ranges. S&P are more common over here in the UK but Seagulls can be found.

Takamine are highly rated for their Electro capabilities but I've only ever played one that I thought was any good. Yamaha guitars are always rated for their bang for buck so you can't really go wrong...play all the guitars you can!

I played my S6 first and then played about another 10 and came back to the same shop 3 times to play it before I couldn't take it anymore. Had the sweats after playing it, thats how much I liked it heh.

SidewinderINC · 10 May 2006 at 13:20

thanks guys, i'd rather have a smaller bodied guitar, thats why i was edging for the APX if i was going to get a yamaha - at the moment its definately veering towards the APX9C because it has the piezo pickup and a condenser microphone in it.

i havent had a chance to look at those other makes, though i know they do awesome guitars, but i'm not particularly fond of the shape/size of them. will do more research into takamine as i know they do some good ones!

Sic · 10 May 2006 at 13:23

i've got a 12-string takamine semi acoustic. didnt bother posting before because it's a 12-string and has no cutaway, but they're definitely worth looking at as they do some gorgeous-sounding thin-bodied acoustics. unless i was buying a Jumbo Gibson, i wouldn't have any other acoustic.

SidewinderINC · 10 May 2006 at 13:37

just had a look around the takamine website, and i didnt see any that i liked the look of in my price range

same goes for the seagull guitars.

Vonhelmet · 10 May 2006 at 13:46

I've got a Yamaha APX4-12A. When I got it the retail value was about £450. It's quite a nice guitar, but I was gutted last Christmas because the bridge started coming away from the guitar. I've had it fixed (the cheap way - by bolting the bridge back to the soundboard) but it's screwed up the sound quality something chronic. Kinda put me off, so I wouldn't really recommend Yamaha for an electro-acoustic myself! It's probably hardly worth buttons now

sjt269 · 10 May 2006 at 15:04

Apparently Washburn make a few nice ones around that point, along with Seagull and S&P as already mentioned (I believe it's Godin who own both of them, isn't it?). Can't say I've tried any of them though...not yet anyway.

Sol · 10 May 2006 at 19:01

Yeah its Godin that own those brands.

What do you mean that you don't like the shape? There are standards for guitar shape...i.e. Dreadnought, parlour, grand auditorium and pretty much every guitar maker sticks to this shape.

If you want a smaller bodied guitar then get a smaller scale guitar. I don't use the higher frets that often to be overly obsessed about them personally, if you've never had a cutaway I wouldn't be exclusively looking for one. Why are electronics a necessity also? You could always get a cheaper guitar without electrics and mic it, which would give you better results if done properly.

You could always go for Taylor, I really like them as they are very easy to play and sound quite nice...seem to be a love or hate brand tho. Not sure they would fit into your price range either but worth a look.

Your piorities are all wrong anway, fair enough like the look of the guitar but sound should be your priority. There is a reason for most guitars being of the dreadnought shape and size; you get better sound than a smaller instrument.

Do not buy a guitar purely based on looks/reviews of other people. You need to get yourself into as much guitar shops as possible and try some out personally, each guitar has its own individual characteristics.