tanglewood?

[Senobi]

Thinking of buying an acoustic, got a work mate saying tanglewood are a good guitar for the money.
Anyone heard of them?
Also there are that many styles of acoustics is it just the sound that differs.

[Simon Barden]

I have a 12-String Tanglewood electro-acoustic, a TW145/12 CE (now discontinued).

It's very nice. The top is solid cedar. The model swapped to a spruce top shortly after I bought mine.



They are certainly very good instruments, but it does depend on the price you pay as to whether it's just good value for money or it's great value for money. I picked mine up online for about half the normal price (including a good case) and it does play and sound as good as much more expensive instruments.

There are quite a few types of acoustic guitar styles, but it's hard to say that the size of guitar has a certain sound to it, as that depends a lot on the body woods and the construction. In general the smaller the body, the less bass and the more mids you'll get, but that's not always a bad thing. Dreadnought-style guitars are good all-rounders, loud and great for strumming and playing round campfires, but some can be a bit 'boomy' for more delicate work.

The slightly smaller body shapes can have a more balanced sound, whilst the small parlours can be quite 'middley' but good for acoustic blues.

Ideally you want an acoustic with a solid top, as this will continue to mellow and sound better over time and in general will resonate a bit more than a laminated top acoustic. Asian manufacture means that solid top guitars are now affordable. The back and sides are less critical, and laminates are often used on even quite high-end guitars, as they do make the guitar stronger.

A cutaway helps with higher fret access, but can detract a bit from the acoustic sound.

You do pay a bit more for an electro-acoustic version compared to the straight acoustic version, but often there are only electro-acoustic models available.

Acoustics are a lot more difficult and time-consuming to set up than electrics, and a lot depends on how well the neck is set into the body. If the neck angle is too shallow, you can easily end up with a guitar that's stuck with a high action for ever. You can file the bottom of the saddle down to lower the action, and you can lower the nut slots and adjust the truss rod. But it's best if you buy a an acoustic that plays well from the start, so the minimum of tweaking needs to be done to its set-up.

So don't expect an acoustic with an 8mm action at the 12th fret to be made playable with a set-up.

You really are best going and trying several out, and go for the one that sounds good and plays well in the store that's within your budget. It's surprising how different individual acoustics of the same make and type can be. So whilst I will say that I know lots of people with Tanglewoods and they are all happy with them, that doesn't mean that they will all be good, just as whilst Yamaha make very good acoustics, some guitars will be better than others of the same model.

If you can go and try some out, take a guitar-playing friend with you, as it pays to hear what they sound like from the front. This can be very different to the sound you hear when playing yourself, and is important if you ever plan to record the guitar.

[Senobi]

Thanks for the info Simon.
Wont be spending to much thought looking second hand but been a lefty not a lot to choose from.
Also saving up for my slim line tele kit atmo.

[RocknRolf]

Hi Senobi,
Lefty here too, combine that with being in Aus and you would almost consider another instrument.
I quite liked the offering of Tanglewood in the 500 dollar range, less so in the 300 to 400 dollar range. But that would be similar for most if not all brands.

I ended up with a Cort solid spruce top that I like, my partner has 1 model up with solid mahogany back and a solid spruce top, really world's apart in terms of sounds and clarity.

In terms of size, I have adreadnought, but after playing for about half an hour I feel my shoulder starting to hurt, making me think of looking for auditorium or parlour in the future.

Good luck, try some things and see what you like.

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