Suggest a First Acoustic Tenor for 'Up to $700'

[Ed Goist]

Hi All:

I am casually in the market for a decent flat-top acoustic tenor guitar for up to ~$700. My requirements:

* Decent price/resale ratio (as I'll likely upgrade eventually).
* Good playability (nice neck profile, med/lg frets, some fretboard radius).
* Tone that 'sounds like a tenor'.
* Ability to tune either CGDA or GDAE without nut adjustment.

I'm completely open regarding body style and tonewoods, though I think I probably should insist on a solid top (at least).

I'm currently thinking about used examples of the Gibson reissued TG-0 (1960-1974), and the new Blueridge BR-40t. Opinions between these two? Others I should throw in the mix?

Thanks;
Ed

[multidon]

Hey Ed! Gold Tone makes the TG-18 with suggested retail of 738, street price probably much lower. I never saw or played one but by specs it should be nice. Solid sitka top, lam mahogany body, ebony fingerboard, micarta nut and saddle, comes w/bag. They say it's bigger than a Martin and smaller than a Gibson. If you could find one somewhere to look at it might be worth thinking about. Some stores still have the Little Martin tenor. Last time I was at Pittsburgh Guitars (last summer) they had one for 399. Others on the forum say that one needs nut and bridge adjustment to do GDAE. And it's all HPL (I call it Formica!) so nothing to write home about on tone. People do rave about the Blueridge though. I wish i could afford a Fletcher!

[Ed Goist]

Hey Ed! Gold Tone makes the TG-18 with suggested retail of 738, street price probably much lower...snip...Others on the forum say that one needs nut and bridge adjustment to do GDAE...snip...I wish i could afford a Fletcher!

Thanks, Don. I'll have to at least take a look at the Gold Tone. I'm guessing it has a Martin-like radius (~16")?

I've heard conflicting opinions regarding needing a new set-up to go back & forth between CGDA & GDAE. It probably depends on the guitar...I guess I could always live with CGDA and just be play everything up a 4th in key (Blues in C instead of G? )

Those Fletchers are sweet! However; as a fan of GDAE tuning, and as an unabashed lover of slot-heads (though I know they are impractical), I'd have to say that my ultimate tenor guitar might just be the new Breedlove Revival OM-M Tenor. Love the looks of this!

[Charles E.]

Ed, the Breedlove looks nice but with a 24-1/6 inch scale length you will be restricted to GDAE tuning. Normal tenors have a 22-7/8 inch scale length and at that the A string is pretty tight.

[Charles E.]

Ed, I have never played a Goldtone or a Blueridge tenor but here is another tenor on the market in the same range,

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ARIA-AF-Teno...item45fcfca2ba

I have not seen or played one of these either but it is another option.
I have owned a couple of Gibson TG-O's over the years and have found that they are too quiet for my taste. Good luck with your search.

[RRTT]

Ed,
I've had a Blueridge BR-60t for about a year now and like it very much. Good sound & plays very easily. Not sure about the nut and other turnings since I keep mine in C G D A.

[delsbrother]

I guess I don't understand many of your requirements.

Price/resale ratio will always rule out new imports.
Modern playability (including radiused fretboard) ususally rules out vintage.
"Sounds like a tenor" - one of the criticisms against the Breedlove is it doesn't sound tenor enough (due to scale).
Ability to tune without adjusting the nut (?) - if you want the nut to be perfect for the different size strings, this isn't an option. If you can live with some slop, then it isn't really a "requirement".. Just have two nuts!
The Fletchers can be tuned either way, I believe, but definitely out of your price range..

See what I mean?

Tenors are cheap - go to a vintage show and try a few out. Or buy a new import and return it if it's not to your liking. Given what you've said in other threads about how you like your instruments to feel and play, I have a feeling you won't be satisfied with a vintage one - remember they were borne of the Jazz age (or the Kingston Trio era), not exactly a time known for modern neck profiles.

[Martin Jonas]

I am very happy with my Ozark tenor guitar, which sells at GBP229 ($360) including a nice hard case, i.e. only about half your budget. Small body, short scale (21-1/4"), solid spruce top with laminate mahogany back/sides. It comes set up for CGDA but I've restrung it to GDAE without needing a new nut (I can't remember whether I filed the slots a bit wider) and use it extensively for rhythm as well as melody as I can use mandolin fingering on it without difficulty (I have fairly long fingers). Really nice workmanship, thin matt finish, wooden binding and wooden bridge pins, good playability, just an overall nice instrument to look at, feel and play. As usual with short-scale tenors (whether guitar or banjo), the trade-off when tuning in GDAE compared to a longer scale is between ease of fingering for melody and having a slightly floppy G string. I am happy with the sound of the low G, but it does have a weaker bass than a standard scale tenor. I have a number of recordings with the Ozark in my Youtube channel, including these two, which show both the lead and strummed chord tone:

Aura Lee (Love Me Tender)
Es war ein Koenig in Thule

Aura Lee also shows the intonation up the neck, as I play the last repetition of the tune an octave up in seventh position, i.e. on the 12th to 17th (and last) fret.

Unfortunately, I don't think it is available in the US, which is somewhat surprising given that Ozark is normally a brand used to rebatch generic imports for the UK market that are sold under different names in other markets. This one, however, seems to have been made to the importers specifications. Unless there is a US importer, ordering from the UK would eat up most of the price differential to the Gold Tone or Blueridge.

The main competition in the UK market to the Ozark is the Ashbury AT-14 tenor guitar, which is imported to the UK and sold by Hobgoblin. Unlike Ozark (which is the house brand of Stentor, Hobgoblin's main competitor), the Ashbury brand is distributed in the US through Hobgoblin US. They sell the AT-14 at $475, rather more than their UK retail price:

Link

I haven't played this one, but it has generally been well-reviewed. It's a standard tenor scale, 22-7/8", with a solid spruce top and a considerably larger body than the Ozark. Here is a Youtube clip of the Ashbury being played in GDAE tuning:

Link

Martin

[Ed Goist]

Thanks for all the great feedback!

Delsbrother, you ask many valid questions regarding my requirements. Here's a little clarification:

* Decent price/resale ratio means I will not have to spend more than about ~$700 initially, and will not lose more than ~$200 if/when I resell. Actually, because of how I'm defining this, I believe that a good quality import fit right in here (for example: buy for $500, sell for $300+...I'm happy).

* Good playability - This means modern playablity profile and comfort overrides vintage features and tone. (This is like a cardinal instrument rule for me...Oh, and I know others feel strongly otherwise, and I respect that.)

* Tone that 'sounds like a tenor' - My goal with this project is to experience a "typical" tenor guitar tone with the instrument. For example, I had a seller talk me out of a very nice Gibson TG-0 because he described it's tone as very octave mandolin like and unique among tenors.

* Ability to tune either CGDA or GDAE without nut adjustment - I'm hoping for an instrument I can play in either tuning with minimal set-up work. Ballpark intonation would be okay...I think this requirement is pretty much met by having an instrument with standard TG scale (22 7/8")?

Anyways, based on several sparkling recommendations (here, by private message, and on the Tenor Guitar Registry), I've ordered a Blueridge BR-40t with a premium hard-shell case. My research seems to indicate this instrument will meet all of the requirements above.

I'll be sure to report back once I've gotten to know her...Thanks again everyone!

[Eddie Sheehy]

Buy used and you will hold your value, maybe even increase it. Buy new, and as soon as you drive it off the lot kiss 40% goodbye...