When a customer has trouble deciding which guitar is right for them we often set up a 'blind test' by playing each guitar behind their back. By removing all the visuals and creating a physical space between the customer and their potential guitar they can focus on how the guitar sounds in the room directed at them rather than under their ears.
Despite the pretty inlays and figured tone-woods guitars are wooden
vessels for transporting sound from your head, heart, fingers and ears. It's an intimate relationship that develops over time which is the reason for removing some of your other senses when it comes time to assess your new instrument. Oftentimes we find the new guitar pleases our ears as well as theirs.
Here are some ideas to think about:
Not all tone-woods are the same, despite your past experiences
a big rosewood guitar may have less volume than a mid-size mahogany
or maple guitar.
Whether your technique is based on strumming or fingerstyle,
looking into your new guitar with the preconceived notion that
the big dreadnought is only for strumming and flat-picking
could greatly limit your artistic choices. The reverse holds
true for that small 12-fret you might restrict to your finger-
style arrangements.
Aesthetics aside, ultimately you want your new guitar to please
your ears and reflect your ideas with the same tonal qualities.
Conversely, you may wish to replicate that special musician's
sound by finding an identical model or modern recreation. With
recording consoles and tens of thousands of dollar's worth of
effects and mastering coloring what you hear (or compressing
it in your downloadable media), you must have faith in what
your ears tell you.
