Acoustic Guitar Choice

epictring

Hey guys, so I'm looking at either the Breedlove C250/SBe or a Ibanez EW20ZWENT (exotic wood series)

Any opinions on which is better? I'm having a bad time deciding!

Gearhead

a Tak!

DaFiz

Gearhead wrote: a Tak!

What he said 8). Recently chose a Takamine myself after years of being an Ibanez lover.

The write-ups say the Breedlove is made in Korea and that would do it for me, I really don't like that zebra wood finish on the Ibanez, but that's personal.
play them both and decide which one brings out the magic in your fingertips. That's the real decider. ?

http://www.twooldhippies.com/premium/breedlove/breedlove-passport-plus-c250-sbe-12-acoustic-guitar
http://www.google.com/products/catalog?client=safari&rls=en&q=Ibanez+EW20ZWENT&oe=UTF-8&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=shop&cid=16766597254135871463&sa=X&ei=9nwsTuL4OYnYmAXF2N2RAg&ved=0CBwQ8wIwAA#ps-sellers

chris77

My Ibanez ew20wne is a bit dissapointing, to put it mildly. Thin, trebly tone. Tried all kinds of fixes - different string guages, brands and types as well as a different saddle. Set the action high, set it low, settled somewhere in the middle. Still crap. The preamp is also a bit temperamental. Really pretty guitar, but that's where it ends. Maybe mine's a dud, I don't know, but don't buy one until you play it. The Breedlove should be better by a mile imo.

Keira-WitherKay

chris77 wrote: My Ibanez ew20wne is a bit dissapointing, to put it mildly. Thin, trebly tone. Tried all kinds of fixes - different string guages, brands and types as well as a different saddle. Set the action high, set it low, settled somewhere in the middle. Still crap. The preamp is also a bit temperamental. Really pretty guitar, but that's where it ends. Maybe mine's a dud, I don't know, but don't buy one until you play it. The Breedlove should be better by a mile imo.

well i must say when it comes to acoustics there's no fix for bad tone . So pick the one that gives you the sound you like , cos you can fix a high action or change a nut if it's not allowing the strings to slip smoothly but bad or thin tone can't be fixed so buy with tone in mind . Most else can be fixed .

racman

Keira WitherKay wrote:
chris77 wrote: My Ibanez ew20wne is a bit dissapointing, to put it mildly. Thin, trebly tone. Tried all kinds of fixes - different string guages, brands and types as well as a different saddle. Set the action high, set it low, settled somewhere in the middle. Still crap. The preamp is also a bit temperamental. Really pretty guitar, but that's where it ends. Maybe mine's a dud, I don't know, but don't buy one until you play it. The Breedlove should be better by a mile imo.
well i must say when it comes to acoustics there's no fix for bad tone . So pick the one that gives you the sound you like , cos you can fix a high action or change a nut if it's not allowing the strings to slip smoothly but bad or thin tone can't be fixed so buy with tone in mind . Most else can be fixed .

+100 ?

Bob-Dubery

Don't buy one of those exotic wood Ibbies without playing it first. I'm not saying the sound is bad BUT they're sufficiently different from the tried and tested topwoods (spruce, cedar) that they are likely to sound different - and you may or may not like the sound. I also think that the woods for the EWs are also chosen with one eye on an unusual appearance and not on tone. I'm not saying they sound BAD, but they probably will sound DIFFERENT and you should play them to understand what you are getting tonally.

Another reason for playing the guitars first is to see how the tone works for what you want to play. See Keira's post - the tone of an acoustic is pretty much fixed. Different woods and shapes make for different tones, and the tones work better for some players and some styles than others.

I have heard some ibbies sounding very good plugged in lately. However I also hear (from techs) that the electronics don't last.

Unless your situation is such that you can't get to stores and play instruments, I'd advocate working to a budget instead and seeing what you can get for that amount. As always, do not overlook a well cared for second hand instrument.