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What body size and shape of steel-string acoustic guitar is right for you?
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Size Up Your Next Guitar
These guitars are all great-quality instruments, and each has its own unique benefits. Give some of them a try the next time you go shopping.
Dreadnought
Hohner HW220 ($139 list/$110 street). This guitar’s great tone makes it an excellent choice for a beginner on a budget. www.hohnerusa.com
Washburn WD32SW ($649.90 list/$390 street). The solid sapele sides and back and a solid spruce top produce sparkling trebles and punchy bass. This is one of the least expensive all-solid-wood dreadnoughts around. www.washburn.com
Guild GAD-50 ($899.99 list/$670 street) A solid spruce top and solid rosewood back and sides give it a rich bass and ringing trebles. www.guildguitars.com
Martin D-28 ($2,849 list/$2,149 street) Built with a solid spruce top and solid rosewood back and sides, the complex bass and chiming trebles have made this dreadnought one of the most popular Martins since it was introduced in 1934. www.martinguitar.com
Small Bodies
Daisy Rock Wildwood ($229 list/$159 street) Designed for smaller players, the Wildwood has a comfortably slim
neck and smaller, roughly 000-size body. www.daisyrock.com
Fender GC-12 ($285.70 list/$200 street) Laminate top, back, and sides but slim neck and grand concert body make this an excellent choice for smaller beginners. www.fender.com
Epiphone EL-00 ($582 list/$350 street) Based on the round-shouldered, grand concert Gibsons from the 1930s,
the EL-00’s solid spruce top produces clear trebles and a balanced bass response—perfect for fingerpicking.
www.epiphone.com
Larrivée OM-03 ($1,198 list/$899 street) Fingerpickers will love the sustain on this well-made OM-sized solid spruce and mahogany guitar. www.larrivee.com
Jumbos
Copley CA-66 ($385 list, only available from manufacturer) The attractive maple top and mahogany sides give the CA-66 that nice mellow jumbo tone. www.simbaproducts.com
Epiphone EJ300S ($665 list/$400 street) Solid spruce top, laminated rosewood sides and back, and lots of attitude.
www.epiphone.com
Taylor 314 ($1,538 list/$1,150 street) The all-solid-wood Taylor 314 is an excellent example of the small jumbo shape (sometimes called a grand auditorium) that is becoming more and more popular.
www.taylorguitars.com
Gibson SJ-200 ($4,450 list/$2,900 street) Gibson invented the jumbo in the mid-1930s for singing cowboys like Gene Autry. It’s still the epitome of cowboy cool. www.gibson.com
What Wood It Sound Like?
Spruce, rosewood, cedar, maple—You might wonder, “What does the wood have to do with the sound, anyway?” Along with body size, woods make the biggest contribution to a guitar’s sound.
Solid wood has a fuller, richer tone than laminate (the guitar world’s name for a plywood or veneer), but since laminates are cheaper, they are often used for the tops, backs, and sides of less expensive guitars. Laminates are stiffer and heavier than solid wood, and consequently don’t resonate as much as solid wood. If your budget won’t allow an all-solid-wood guitar, try to get one with a solid top.
Here’s a quick rundown on the most common woods used for guitars and the sounds they produce, so you know what to listen for when you’re shopping for guitars.
Tops
Spruce is the most common top wood and has a clear treble response and a full bass tone.
Cedar has a darker, redder color and a brighter, crisper tone than spruce.
Mahogany has a mellow, dry tone when used as top wood. It also has a strong midrange response.
Back and Sides
Rosewood has a warm, mellow tone with excellent bass response.
Mahogany has a bright, crisp tone. Substitutes like sapele can look and sound very much like mahogany.
Maple has a balanced tone that is neither too bright nor too bass heavy.
Less common tonewoods include: walnut, which has a bassy tone similar to rosewood; koa, which has bright trebles and a clear, defined bass tone; cherry, which is similar in looks and tone to maple; and ovangkol, which has a strong midrange and a clear treble response.
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