Guild Guitars Worth Every Dime - For Now
Oct 22 '01
The Bottom Line If you want an exceptional guitar that will age gracefully and will sound beautiful from the start,use Guild Guitars.
I am mainly going to be referring to Acoustic guitars for this opinion.
Guild started out as a small shop on Pearl St. In New York in the early 50's. It was started by Alfred Dronge,and George Mann. But it didn't last long before they parted ways and Alfred brought in some else. To make a long story shorter they began making Jazz guitars by spiriting away some of Epiphone's craftsmen . I am not clear if it was during or shortly after a strike at Epiphone.But they began and got some of the hot guitar players in New York to endorse them,and soon Guild guitars were catching on.They moved to Hoboken N.J.,and added Acoustic instruments as well as Solidbody guitars. And then in the early 70's to Westerly R.I. , where they reside to this day.For now. After various changes in ownership through the years,Fender Music Co. took over Guild,and plans to move Guild from Westerly to a huge plant in California.This worries me because Fender is not good about taking over Co's. and keeping them the same as they were before .They tend to cheapen them up and then ultimately do away with them after they stop being good instruments. Look at the Rhodes Piano before it became the Fender Rhodes.Case closed.At any rate they are still producing a great American guitar,in Westerly,R.I. .
The name Guild came from a guy named , Gene Detgen.He was a rep for Epiphone and a partner in a company called, Pacific Music Supply. Al and Gene liked each other and Gene came on board and it was decided that since Pacific Music Supply was going under,and since they needed a name for the new guitars,and since the Amplifier that Pacific made was called the Guild , they could do away with the amp and keep the name for the guitars .
Al died in the early 70's when he crashed his plane into a pond. The Guild Guitar continues as he would have wanted.
Now here is what I think you need to know about Guild Guitars...
The most important is that they have always been deeply committed to making a first class instrument.And while Martin has stolen the show,these guitars are excellent and right up there with anybody making guitars. They use real lacquer as opposed to using the acrylic finishes which look beautiful but keep the tone away as well as the scratches.The Nitros Lacquer the Guild and other fine companies use is much better tone wise. They use really nice woods and even when laminated they are beautifully done . They are built to be played anywhere and to be able to stand up under rigorous conditions. They are built like tanks.And Loud ! They really project well in any situation they are at once powerful and clear.
They can take a camping trip and not need to pampered like Larivee,and some Martins .
They offer quite a range of styles of guitars from a basic acoustic to the extremely fancy and beautiful Jazz guitars they are so well known for. Using only top quality ebony,and maple,and spruce,and mahogany....Etc. Whatever the guitar style they make , it is done with an eye towards quality,playability,and affordability as well.The necks are nice and not too thick with a comfortable radius . Even the lower line guitars,like the D-4 play and sound very nice. Frets are medium and very much in keeping with todays standards.One big thing I like about Guilds is... They STAY IN TUNE! Like no other guitar I have experienced.They are very steady.
The Electronics they use on the acoustics is Fishman and there are a few different ones they use.There are different Pickups used on the electrics too. Many have the sweet sounding DeArmond pickups.Some have regular Humbucking pickups.I am not sure who makes them.
Most Guilds in the lower end do not come with a case,which is true of many makers today.But cases are readily available
but who knows how long that will last.
For the money, a Guild Jazz guitar is about impossible to beat. Dollar for dollar they are better than anyone else.For my money the Guild Guitar is pound for pound the best deal going.Their Jumbo guitars are better by far than the Gibson J200-or J180. More volume,and clarity. The Dreadnaughts in the upper line D-55,D-50,and D-44 and so on... are louder and crisper than Gibson's Square shoulder instruments. Though they are fine they are not as good as Guild.
As I said,they stay in tune...I tune my Guild guitars about once or twice a month and sometimes they have stayed in tune so well I don't have to tune them for longer.And let me make it clear I play almost every day. Whether I play them or not.And this is true with all of them . It is one trademark that made me stick with Guild through the 20 plus years I have been playing them.
I am certain that if you want a guitar with tons of sweet,clean tone,and alot of volume use , Guild. For Now! Let's See What Fender does to them in a few years.Hopefully they will realize how fine of an instrument they are and leave them alone.
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Epinions.com ID:
guildpicker
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Location: Livingston County Michigan
Reviews written: 36
Trusted by: 1 member
About Me:
Guitar picker,and singer/songwriter. In Michigan .... Gotta pick?
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