Gibson vs Martin

these_go211 · Post by **these_go211** » Thu Jul 13, 2006 9:43 am

i tried out the martin DX-12, at least i think that was the model, anyways, it's the 12 string made with the synthetic material. i thought it was awesome sounding and it felt great! and geez, a brand new martin for $550!if it already sounds great i am not concerned with its sound changing over time. damn you, now i want to go buy it

Derrick · Post by **Derrick** » Thu Jul 13, 2006 2:09 pm

The Real MC wrote:"More Than a Feeling" with a piece of crap acoustic guitar.

Pice of crap guitar an a piece of crap song

mikehattem · Post by **mikehattem** » Thu Jul 13, 2006 3:27 pm

paraphrasing: "Gibsons are bright"

If the guy at the store told you that he's an idiot and should be working at Shop-Rite. I would hardly call a J-200 bright. Why do you think they make different models?? All guitars sound different. Some models are supposed to be a bit brighter (maple helps in that case) where some are made to be warm or strong on the low end. "Gibsons are bright"?? what the hell does that mean?? I'm sorry to rant but I go in GC all the time and see people who don't know much about guitars being misled and misinformed by "salesmen" who don't know shit about what they're selling. I've actually sold a couple of guitars for them just by talking to somebody else who was there playing when I was. One guy, obviously confused by the salesman, started talking to me. I helped him pick the "right" guitar for him - not something that cost more, or was way more than he needed. It's a shame really. I've met some cool knowledgeable people that work at the big chains but on the average it's just not good. SFTR.

Mike

snuffinthepunk · Post by **snuffinthepunk** » Thu Jul 13, 2006 5:37 pm

awesome thread. and if you say you are studying acoustic guitars as in learning to play them, nothin wrong with spendin less than 500 on it, there are plenty of decent/good sounding guitars out there for cheap. I don't have the money to spend on anything over 500 bucks right now, but I just got an ibanez acoustic and it sounds just dandy to me, not to mention it's pretty. It's just fine for writing and continuing to hone my skills.

metaphormixer · Post by **metaphormixer** » Thu Jul 13, 2006 6:42 pm

i went through this same conundrum a few months ago, although my playing style is different than yours. i know a lot of this has been covered by other people on this thread, but just to summarize the different tendencies (or stereotypes, depending on how you look at it) of gibsons and martins:

gibsons are typically warmer, boomier sounding guitars (not brighter as that crazy guy at the music store said), and in recent years have shown a lot of variance from model to model, meaning that you can pick up 2 brand-new j-45s or blues kings and they may sound very different from one another.

martins, especially the martins being built these days, are more consistent models, with significantly less duds in the mix. they're middle-range in timbre, not ridiculously bright like taylors often are or quite as dark as a typical gibson. all of this is assuming similar body type, of course. if you compare a 00 model martin and a gibson j-100, the differences in brand tendency will be much more striking than if you compared a j-50 and a d-28.

oh, and no offense to any proud taylor owners, but i should mention that i totally hate every taylor guitar i've ever heard. the guy who said it sounds like a musical embodiment of middle age got it right-on.

alex matson · Post by **alex matson** » Thu Jul 13, 2006 9:02 pm

"oh, and no offense to any proud taylor owners, but i should mention that i totally hate every taylor guitar i've ever heard. the guy who said it sounds like a musical embodiment of middle age got it right-on."

Interesting perceptions. I've never heard a Taylor, but their ads seem to be going for older, sit-around-the-house types. One ad says something about it's easier when your only groupie is your wife; there's a picture of the wife holding up a lighter with an "I love you even if you never had a gig!" face. 'Chuckin' it in? Get a Taylor!' Strange. I remember the old ad Epiphone ad showing some anonymous road warrior walking up an alley, face cloaked by shadows but his guitar brand clearly visible on his case, while clinging to him but looking back at the camera is a sweet young thing. "I can never resist an Epiphone Man!"
But my favorites were the David Burke perfect pitch ads. In the keyboard magazines, the guy who's taken the course and can't contain himself over the result is an angelic choirboy. In the same month, the same version of the ad in the guitar mag, he's got a poodle wig.

riantide · Post by **riantide** » Tue Jul 18, 2006 1:22 pm

Martin vs Gibson?

TAYLOR!!

I've personally tried to record a couple different Martins and Gibsons and none of them were as playable or sounded as good as the two or three Taylors I've tracked. Plus several friends who are way better at this whole recording thing than I am have said the same thing, so there.

It's totally a matter of taste, but I've just found Taylors easier to deal with and much more friendly with a microphone.

my $0.02

;ivlunsdystf · Post by **;ivlunsdystf** » Tue Jul 18, 2006 1:48 pm

riantide wrote:Martin vs Gibson?

TAYLOR!!

I've personally tried to record a couple different Martins and Gibsons and none of them were as playable or sounded as good as the two or three Taylors I've tracked. Plus several friends who are way better at this whole recording thing than I am have said the same thing, so there.

It's totally a matter of taste, but I've just found Taylors easier to deal with and much more friendly with a microphone.

my $0.02

That's funny, I was thinking the exact same thing as I read this thread.

KennyLusk · Post by **KennyLusk** » Wed Jul 19, 2006 12:20 pm

Tatertot wrote:
riantide wrote:Martin vs Gibson?

TAYLOR!!

I've personally tried to record a couple different Martins and Gibsons and none of them were as playable or sounded as good as the two or three Taylors I've tracked. Plus several friends who are way better at this whole recording thing than I am have said the same thing, so there.

It's totally a matter of taste, but I've just found Taylors easier to deal with and much more friendly with a microphone.

my $0.02
That's funny, I was thinking the exact same thing as I read this thread.

Taste is everything, you're right. And that's why it's so important to get out there and hear and feel the differences for yourself. It's so important. Heck I've known guys that absolutely preferred a $179 chinese acoustic over any $600+ model he played. You just never know.

tsw · Post by **tsw** » Wed Jul 19, 2006 1:52 pm

KennyLusk wrote: Taste is everything, you're right. And that's why it's so important to get out there and hear and feel the differences for yourself. It's so important. Heck I've known guys that absolutely preferred a $179 chinese acoustic over any $600+ model he played. You just never know.

Elliott Smith was one such guy. For whatever that's worth.

With a Martin, you can hear each string sounding distinctly when you strum. With a Gibson, they smear together more, and the chord sounds like one voice. Which do you prefer?

Another thing I'm surprised no one has said: smaller bodied guitars typically record better. They don't give you the same smiley-face EQ curve rush when you sit around and play them, but when you record you know why you made the choice. I just got a Martin OM-28V, and I'm pretty damn happy.

That said, seems like all the cool kids are playing Gibsons these days. And I've always wanted to be cool...

hammertime · Post by **hammertime** » Wed Jul 19, 2006 3:29 pm

Okay, I just spent the weekend up in Oregon, and I borrowed my uncle's 1957 Martin (it's an O series). I spent the whole weekend playing this guitar, and couldn't help comparing it to my Taylor. My Taylor 612-C is a decent enough instrument. It has that famous loudness curve (all highs and lows) that gives you instant gratification, and guarantees that a bunch of people will walk out of the music store with it. The Martin, though, kicks the Taylor's ass up and down, and sideways. The more I play this guitar, the more I like it. It has more definition in the lower strings -- you can hear more of the mid harmonics that give the guitar a certain percussive character, which was utterly lacking in the Taylor, which was ironic because it's supposed to be a fingerpicking guitar. I don't think my uncle's getting this one back (ha ha- from my cold dead hands).

KennyLusk · Post by **KennyLusk** » Wed Jul 19, 2006 4:41 pm

Be careful playing the Martin OM series and auditorium model guitars man. The more you play them, the more you realize they are some of THE most balanced acoustic's ever made. Dangerous.

Like ajb said, they're outstanding for recording purposes for that very reason - each note is heard so succinctly as to allow the listener or audience a unique experience. And my experience has been that when you add just a touch of elop compression through quality 12AT7 tubes, the edge and midrange presence becomes so beautifully enhanced in a orange/yellow sort of colored way that the instrument comes alive in ways we don't hear much of today. Just my opinion.

inverseroom · Post by **inverseroom** » Wed Jul 19, 2006 4:52 pm

ajb wrote:With a Gibson, they smear together more, and the chord sounds like one voice.

Wow, not mine.

tsw · Post by **tsw** » Thu Jul 20, 2006 7:41 am

inverseroom wrote:
ajb wrote:With a Gibson, they smear together more, and the chord sounds like one voice.
Wow, not mine.

YOU'RE WRONG!

Just kidding. After I wrote that I thought, "What a dumb generalization to make." It's just true in my limited experience.

One thing I will stand by, though: smaller bodies record better. Or at least record easier. Less need for EQ and stuff.

alex matson · Post by **alex matson** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 9:20 pm

Well...after playing a bunch of them..the one that really grabbed me in the not-so-expensive category turned out to be an Epiphone EJ-160E John Lennon.
Solid spruce top, beautiful guitar....mostly black...personally stamped with a digital recreation of John's signature! It's like we've been hanging out.

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