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I was wondering about wood combinations and sizes lately - I think the best sounding guitar I ever played was an all koa d****n***t with an englemann spruce top mahogany neck, built by Morgan guitars a few years back -
it just had that something special!!..... you know
I only had 3K cash in my pocket, and it cost 4k and the store wouldnt finance the rest {they didnt do financing - not bad credit}.
Being an impetuous whelp, I just had to have an acoustic THAT DAY!!
SO I ended up with a Taylor 814ce flame maple/sitka that I eventually grew to despise the sound of - it just never opened up!
In retrospect I should have layed away that beautiful koa guitar, but the experience ended up as a lesson in patience for me instead.
I havent asked a question on OLF in a while,
SO......................

Now what I was wondering was - what is the single nicest sounding guitar YOU have ever played?

Please include the style/materials and any other factors you deem may have contributed to the sound of the instrument.
I estimate that there should be a virtual wealth of experience in having test driven a vast multitude of instruments here at the OLF
and of course not to mention >all of your amazing brilliant finely tuned ears.
Cheers
Charliewood
PS - yes I know that this is a ver subjective question, as with any body style there will be different combos that are exemplary for one sound/ musical style/genre and not another etc etc etc and a million other variables -
But Im just asking for the
ONE ABSOLUTE STAND OUT INSTRUMENT
that resounds within the confines of your memory/mind!charliewood39038.6173611111

Well Charlie, I tell ya for years my Koa topped IRW back and side OM was my favorite, but I just finished a Curly Narra- Carpathian Spruce Small Jumbo for a client in Calif. that has just blown me awayMichaelP39038.6312615741

Picking one of my guitars over the other is kinda like playing favorites with the kids, there would be a certain amount of guilt involved, but what the heck

With each guitar I make, I can hear subtle changes, maybe improvements, maybe just differences in wood and ways, but to this day, my very favorite guitar (sound wise) has been my #2, which is a cedar topped EIR OMFS. The bracing was all Sitka, the bridge plate was paduck, and the neck was a 3 piece mahogany/bloodwood/mahogany. Fretboard and bridge are ebony. Bone nut and saddle.
One thing I tried to do with this guitar was -- not -- over brace it. SO I may have pushed it a little and cut the bracing way back, but since it was my guitar, I didn't worry about it too much. 5 years later and its still holding strong.

NOW, not to play favorites, I really enjoyed the sound of my last dreadnought, the sunburst 12 fretter. It has a Carpathian top and tasmanian black wood back and sides. It sound was very sweet and full, not boomy at all.

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Lance@LuthiersForum.com

It was this one, I'm not kidding, the sound of it just blew me away, it was so sweet and pure. I think the 220 year old Euro top had a lot to do with it and because of the bracing the thin top was able to do its thing with the gut strings. I had just reglued the braces and repaired a crack in the peghead for the museum.

I think we overcomplicate things now.







For modern day guitars a Mahogany/Euro George Lowden 'F' size. Just did everything I want from a guitar, the man's a genius.

I haven't played a Joshua French yet though!

Colin

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I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.

There are just a few guitars that stand out in my mind, not in order of what I consider the best of them...but chronologically.

1. Back in the 70's, a luthier I knew built a guitar for my then teacher. It was a mahogany dreadnought, with what was an amzingly beautiful yet dark spruce top. I'm guessing it might have been euro spruce, since it wa a very old piece of wood originally intended for a cello or violin or the like. It was amazing to play and to hear.

The 2nd was a Lowden I ran across that I should have bought and didn't. Again, mahogany, but with a cedar top.

The 3rd was a 25th anniversary model Martin D-35. It had a killer sitka top on it, and it somehow managed to have that killer pre-war sound to it. I wanted it but was too poor to scrape up even a down-payment at the time. Besides, I was busy saving for tools to build a guitar.

The 4th was a Brazilian/addy OM-45 made by Julius Borges. Good Golly Miss Molly did it sing! This was no doubt, hands down, the best of them.


Don Williams39039.8923726852

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"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."

Lowden 0-38C (Western Red Cedar/Brazilian Rosewood). I've been chasing that sound ever since...

     I've loved all of he guitars that I've built (heading toward 500
instruments), but I feel a little unomfortable saying that one of mine is
the absolute best that I've ever played when there are so many great
builders whose instruments I've had the priviledge of playing.

    I was able to sit with Phil Keaggy some time ago and had a chance to
play his old Olson. Now I'm a fan of all builders for one reason or another,
but this guitar had the sweetest, warmest tone of all that I've played. The
Cedar top is so played in that some might say it has passed its time of
great tone, but it hasn't seemed to have made it to the peak of tonal
quality that Cedar has been known to exhibit.

    Some Cedar tops open up very quickly and then progressively get
better until they seem to plateau at their point of tonal potential. I've
actually heard a few that seemed to die past that point and would venture
to say that they had reached the length of their tonal lifespan and were
sliding down the backside of that mountain, but Phil's seems to have alot
more life left in it.....and I'd bet that there are few that have been played
as much as his SJ has.

     As far as my guitars go, the best that i've played was an all koa MJ that
I'd built as part of my Creation Series that consisted of 25 guitars all built
from different woods and in different body styles. The Creation Series tag
simply designates that each of the 25 guitars was adorned with my
Creation inlay in its fingerboard. The Koa top offered a unique color to
the tone and a very different level of complexity to the harmonic blanket.
This particular guitar was braced with woods that were carefully chosen
for their resonance relative to that of the top and back plates. Both plates
were braced and voiced with techniques radically different from those
that I use on more typically appoint guitars with more common wood
combinations.

     I loved it and have built another eight almost identical to it for my
personal collection over the years.....only to have them purchased by
customers at a premium price soon after their completion each time. I
currently don't own one of my own guitars because they are usually
picked up by customers within a few weeks of their completion.

Regards,
Kevin Gallagher/Omega Guitars

[QUOTE=WarrenG] Lowden 0-38C (Western Red Cedar/Brazilian Rosewood). I've been chasing that sound ever since...[/QUOTE]

That's the one.

The tone that the cedar top creates when played on that Lowden just makes me melt when I hear it.

It's way out of my price league, but if I ever was given one, I'd probably stop building guitars and burn the one I made. Might as well take away the carrot & stick!!!

It's the combination of Lowden's years of experience, the care he takes into tuning the top and the bracing design that is the magic forumula for me.Sam Price39038.7180439815

[QUOTE=Hesh1956] Colin is that a four piece top?[/QUOTE]

No Hesh it's a 2-piece, and unusually for the time book-matched, but it does have a dark grain line. If you look at the picture of the front you can see it more clearly. When I first took the back off I thought it was too, It was the first thing that jumped out at me, plus the bad 19th century repair on the centre join. I didn't clean the old repair up as it is part of the history of the guitar.

Colin

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I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.

For me, absolute the best feel, tone all of it from builder named John Slobod. He is luthier at Pantheon (Bourgeois)If remember right walnut,addi. Great builder and better guy.

In Healdsburg during 2003 I got the chance to fondle one of Jeff Traugott's fingerstyle beauties and it was pretty great but the best steel string I ever played was one of Sergei de Jonge's guitars that just had "it". I don't remember the wood combination but it was awesome - perfect balance from string to string and it sang.

The best Spanish guitar was some old flamenco guitar in San Antonio that the makers' label had fallen out or never had one. I found it in a pawn shop and at the time I was a broke college student - I should have begged, borrowed or stolen the money to get that one. It was beat to death and sounded like your child's first word. That would have been the best $40.00 I ever spent.

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John Lewis
Wannabe builder owned by 2 crazy dachshunds

Wow I am seeing cedar come up alot here so far!!!
I have always had a bit of an aversion to cedar for some inexplicable reason - but Im realy gonna have to reconsider -especially seeing as Im right in cedar heaven!
Thanks everyone so far, Im glad to hear someone say all koa too - Im really partial to the sound of koa guitars......
Please anyone else? this is very informative - Im really getting alot from this.
Cheers
Charliewood

My all time favorite has been a Julius Borges OM-18 style guitar. It was a
dead ringer for a 1930's Martin OM. Bar frets, French polish finish and
sound to die for. Adirondack spruce and mahogany is it!
I got to borrow this guitar for a week and took as many notes and
measurements as I could. I wound up adjusting my top and back thickness
to try and get closer to the sound of this thing. Thicker top and thinner
back....

Louis
Louis405239038.774537037

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- Louis Freilicher

Oh No! Not another learning experience!

The longest lasting love affair I've had with a guitar has been a plain old Collings D2H / EIR and Sitka. I am still thrilled to own it. I play solo in a coffee house and bluegrass with a group - she is all that. I have bought and sold many through the years - still own others - but I will never get rid of her - she's mine.

But!!! ...this past summer I played a Koa / Cedar C-10 (Collings version of a Gibson L-00). For what she was designed to do - she does it better than any other I've heard. I can't get the sound of that guitar out of my head.

And finally, I haven't heard it - but for looks alone - I can't think of sweeter eye candy than John How's little parlor he recently finished. What a knock out! Would love to play it.

I've been lucky enough to play quite a few handmades (including one of
Kevin's). My answer may throw you guys a bit.

I was the rhythm section leader of my university jazz band for five years
and went through a few instruments. My favorites would be two Gibson
chet atkins solid body acoustics. One nylon string, one steel string,
through a silverface fener vibrolux with a 15" speaker. The guitars were
AMAZING and only $600 each off ebay!

EDIT: I'm changing this. This was the setup I had the most fun
playing.James Orr39038.8604861111

Not including mine

Gigi, by Kathy Wingert, I think it is her E model in BRW, not sure of top, owned by Bert Stegall.

Walker L-OO style, mahogany body, not sure of top, owned by John Thomas.

Mine would have to be a Kevin Ryan Nightingale, EIR and Sitka that I literally stood in line to get to play at a show a year or so ago. That's how good this guitar was...people were 20 deep IN LINE to play it, while $5000 dollar guitars lay on the table just waiting to be picked up.

But it had it all. Tone, sustain, volume, dynamics, comfort, action, etc...that guitar could have played anything, in any style. Kevin Ryan (and Kevin Gallagher) are on my short list of the two builders I'd order from if money were no object.

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Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines.

[QUOTE=James Burkett] Not including mine

"Gigi, by Kathy Wingert, I think it is her E model in BRW, not sure of top, owned by Bert Stegall."


I've played that guitar, and I have to agree with James. I even did a very small repair on her.Jimmie D39039.0110300926

a friend's McIlroy

All I can remember is the cedar top.

the hair stood up on the back of my neck like no other guitar I've ever touched.......

Another doozy was the same guys 76 Lowden 0 (yup, 76, seriel no custom 001) Mahogany Spruce. just really sweet.

So, how many of the above are Lowdens or made by ex Lowden staff?

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I'll probably make my brother Hesh blush and make people here jealous so sorry folks but i have to honestly say once again but the OM-H that Hesh gave me at BobC is truly the finest guitar i've played in my life, this walnut Back and side with one of the finest looking tops has what i would call a " Strong Voice " ! I've played many great guitars over the last 26-27 years now but nothing that i've played before compares to my OM-H, this guitar is schweeeeeet!

Ask Alain and Anthony!

Serge I know exactly what you mean. At the risk of embarrasing him, my SJ made by Don Williams would be in the top 3 of the best guitars I've ever played. I can put that guitar in my hands, close my eyes and play...and just get transported to a different place. It's that magical.

Isn't it cool to own one of the best guitars you've ever put your hands on?

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Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines.

Don Williams39039.570462963

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"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."

[QUOTE=Bill Greene] Serge I know exactly what you mean. At the risk of embarrasing him, my SJ made by Don Williams would be in the top 3 of the best guitars I've ever played. I can put that guitar in my hands, close my eyes and play...and just get transported to a different place. It's that magical.

Isn't it cool to own one of the best guitars you've ever put your hands on?[/QUOTE]

You're so right brother, every time i pick it up to play, i just stare at it for a while with awe and when i play it, i just can't believe it's mine, i relive the emotions that passed through me last july and often think of those who were there...

I also think of John How's signature and let me tell you that it tickles indeed!