The low end Larrivees are very balanced in volume across all strings
more so than other guitars in this price class. I haven't played the
up scale Larrivees. But the build quality and ease of playability of
the low end Larrivees are top notch and second to none. But my style
is more singer/songwriter so I would probably pick out a Martin
in this price range or a Breedlove without electronics (don't like
the Breedlove electronics in the $1k range).
The Larrivees tend to be bright but not as much as the Taylors.
I remember my first time playing Taylors when I was just starting
to play guitar 4 years ago. I was really impressed. But as my
ear developed I couldn't find a use for the bright sound. And I noticed
so many high end used Taylors for sale at the local Guitar Center.
You see other high end used acoustics occasionally for sale but never
in the qantity of the Taylors. I finally asked the manager of the acoustic guitar
department (it's the highest volume acoustic department of all
Guitar Centers in the country) why so many used Taylors. He said
because they are bright and people grow tired of them and trade
them in on Martins and Gibsons. The Taylors play great and the
build quality is top notch but they have the Taylor brightness.
I have a Gibson J-45 which is really nice but it cost a lot. I take
my el cheapo Seagull S6 gloss top to open mic nights now because
drunks would try to pickup my J-45 out of the case to show off their
playing acumen to women at the bar. I had to keep my eye on it
all the time. I've installed an L.R. Baggs active IBeam in my Seagull
and it sounds really good for a cheap guitar. And nobody tries to play it.
So I don't have to worry about it disappearing if I head to the men's
room. It's my beater and open mic guitar now. I actually use it
for recording now also. I've had some compliments on it in fact from
some demos I sent to some notable ears who asked me
how I was getting that "huge" sound. It's the L.R. Baggs and
the chord voicing I was using in combination with the BBE
sonic maximizer, harmonic maximizer, and loudness maximizer
plug ins. If you have a DAW you need to get the BBE SonicSweet.
These plug ins close the gap somewhat between the Seagull and the J-45
on recordings. The Seagull has an earthy sound that works on some
songs. I don't like the sounds of the more expensive Seagulls as much.
Somehow the Seagull S6 GT is a good little guitar. I could not live with
the BBE sonicsweet plugins! I can't recommend them more highly.
Best plugins I've ever bought. I there are some nice Yamaha guitars
in the $200-300 that record nicely but are harder to play. But the
tone is really quite excellent.
I found the Martins in the $1k more to my liking tonally than the low
end Larrivees even though the Larrivees are easier to play and better
build quality in this price range IMO. But remember this is for
singer songwriter style in my case. If I were a better player and
playing instrumental leads I would go for the Larrivee in this range
instead.
The Breedloves have the Taylor quality but not as bright edge. They
sound 2/3'rds of the way between the Gibson and Taylor to my ears.
But in the $1,000 range the Breedloves while very good weren't exciting IMO.
I think this is because the Breedloves in the mid range use okay electronics
but nothing great. Perhaps a Breedlove without the electronics would
be a good choice. You could also add a better aftermarket electronic package.
I have better electronics in my cheap Seagull than what comes in a ~$1K
Breedlove for example.
The high end Breedloves are awesome but beyond my reach. The $4k Breedloves
with murtlewood are the finest balanced (recording) guitars I've ever heard. I like them
better than the Collings even.
I found what sounds best in the store may not sound the best in a mix
or in the application you have in mind. Some guitars that have a subtle
beauty are not immediately apparent until you store recording with them
and use them on different songs.
Oh there are some Taylors I do like. The GS mini is fantastic but travel scale.
The GS Mini has the Taylor build quality but not that bright Taylor edge or
at least not as much. It was only about $50 my than my Seagull and a much better
guitar but I have big hands and didn't want to fight the short scale otherwise
I would have picked the GS Mini over my Seagull.
I don't really get excited by the Martins until the D-18 which really
comes alive but that's over $3k.
In the $400-$500 I like the Seagull the best (except for the GS Mini).
In the $1k price range I like the Martins (or perhaps a Breedlove with
after market electronics). In the $2k - $3k range it has to be the J-45
classic custom or a hand picked Gibson HummingBird. But I'm basing
my preferences on singer songwriter styles again.
If you want to play more leads and finger picking than the Gibson AJ
(Advanced Jumbo) is awesome in the $2,500 range. To beat it
you have to go up to the D-28 IMO.
I like all of the Martin OO's from $2+k up. They are very flexible
guitars sonically more than a dreadnaught IMO. If I could only
only one guitar it would be either a Martin OO model or the
J-45 classic custom.
Hope this helps.
