Acoustic guitars are harmonically versatile and have an overall natural soothing tone, especially when compared to its electric counterpart. The modern-day acoustic guitar that we all recognize actually came into existence in the 1800s and was created by a German American immigrant named Christian Frederick Martin.
Acoustic guitars are part of the lute instrument family, which basically means that it’s a plucked string instrument, similar to sitars, ouds, and harps. In music, the acoustic guitar is strongly associated with folk, country, worship, and Latin American music. Although it is not uncommonly used in in rock and even pop, its just not as immediately prominent in these genres when compared to the few that were mentioned earlier.
For rock, its usually applied when musicians play a strip down or acoustic version of their music, or for songs that were written as a ballad, or songs that were written specifically with the acoustic guitar in mind. Compare that with folk or country, the acoustic guitar is actually a must in almost every song.
Best Brands of Acoustic Guitar – Top 10
10. Ibanez
Ibanez is one of three guitar makers in this list that is probably more well for their solid body electric guitars than their acoustic guitars. Originally from Japan, Ibanez started off in 1935 under the name Hoshino Gaki Company but re-branded itself as Ibanez in the 60s to garner mass appeal for markets outside of Japan and Asia. The rebranding actually worked and until today, Ibanez guitars have a great following worldwide and in fact is well known as one of the major guitar producers in the world. Guitar virtuosos like Joe Satriani and Steve Vai are die-hard Ibanez players and have strongly endorsed Ibanez for decades, for both the acoustic and electric range.
The strength of the brand name, the endorsement of extremely well-known guitarists, and the sheer quality of their guitars regardless of their range are probably the appeals of Ibanez. They are available just about anywhere in the world and they cater for just about every level of guitar player, from beginners to pros. The beginner acoustic guitars by Ibanez are still well made and their price tags don’t break the bank. Even the mid-range acoustic guitar models are still kind to your wallet. They play it safe in terms of design and material for the beginner and even mid-range models, but the build quality of the acoustic guitars is commendable. Ibanez’s acoustic guitar range from £75.00 to £709.00. However, over 90% over their guitars fall into the below £500.00 which means they are extremely affordable.
9. Takamine
Takamine is a Japanese guitar brand that started off in 1959 as a family-run instrument workshop based in the town of Sakashita, located at the foot of Mount Takamine. Their highest and most expensive models are manufactured in Sakashita to this very day. The special thing about Takamine acoustic guitars is that they are very well known for their steel-string models and one of the earliest brands to develop the acoustic-electric models that included pre-amps and an equalizer into acoustic guitars. By 1975, the brand was had a global market reach by 1975.
It’s especially popular among folk and country musicians, but it’s not specifically used just musicians from those genres only. With artists like Jon Bon Jovi, Garth Brooks, Blake Shelton, Bruce Springsteen, John Michael Montgomery, Toby Keith, and Don Henley among those who endorse the brand, it’s quite an eclectic mix of artists. Takamine acoustic guitars are modern classics as they do have a rich and good balance of tone, neither too bright nor too warm. Takamine has a knack for producing limited edition guitars on a yearly basis since 1987 and they are normally fitted with the company’s latest pre-amps and hardware. The price of Takamine’s acoustic guitar range from £162.00 to £1,199.00 with a just over 50% over their guitars fall into the below £500.00 category.
8. Fender
Fender is a brand that highly reputed as an electrical guitar manufacturer than acoustic guitar. In fact, Fender electric guitars is basically the definition of an electric guitar. How well has that reputation spilled over to its acoustic counterpart? Not too bad actually. Fender acoustic guitars are beautifully made, playable and versatile and it has been regarded by many pros as being extremely exceptional instruments. For a brand that is well known for premium electric guitars, the Fender acoustics are made for every level of player in which it does have affordable acoustic models. In fact, their acoustic guitar production started in early 60s by Roger Rossmeisl, a luthier initially from Rickenbacker guitars, who literally showed up at Leo Fender’s office and stated that he wanted to build acoustic guitars for Fender. Leo hired him for his self-confidence and cockiness.
The unique thing about the Fender acoustic guitar is one particular model called the Fender Acoustasonic that looks like a hybrid of an electric guitar and an acoustic guitar. The Acoustasonic range integrates well-known Fender electric solid body guitar design such as the Stratocaster, Telecaster and even Jazzmaster. Fender acoustic guitars can start from as low as £95.00 to as high as £2,499.00. Around half of Fender’s acoustic guitar models are priced below £500.00. The Acoustasonic models are basically priced around £2,000.00
7. Sigma
Believe it or not, from its inception in 1970, Sigma used to be a guitar line that was owned by Martin as part of its affordable guitar range. After the line was discontinued in 2007, it was bought over by AMI Music Instruments from Germany that relaunched the brand. This time, the guitars are made in China. But because the ‘Sigma’ brand name can’t be used in the U.S., they rebranded the Sigma guitars as ‘Kindred Guitars’ for it to be sold in the U.S. Sigma also mainly focuses on just acoustic instruments such as the acoustic guitars, ukuleles and acoustic basses, and even classical guitars. Currently, Sigma acoustic guitars are produced in Korea.
Sigma acoustic guitars have a very distinct headstock shape that is called a ‘peghead’ and it adopted to all its models. The acoustic guitars are not fully hand made but they have an efficient and reliable factory production line that ensures every guitar that is produced is made with the highest quality. Therefore, it is rare to find used Sigma acoustic guitars because buyers usually buy their guitars and keep them for life. The cheapest Sigma acoustic guitars are as low as £219.00 while the most expensive model is priced at £1,249.00 and 76% of their guitars are priced below £500.00. So it may have a higher than average price for the cheapest guitar in their range but most of their guitars are in the mid-range in terms of affordability.
6. Seagull
Seagull is an acoustic guitar company and brand that hails from La Patrie, Quebec in Canada. It was founded in 1982 and among all the guitars brands in this list, Seagull is probably the one brand with the strongest cult following. Why? Musicians who buy and use Seagull guitars are obsessed by it. All of the brand’s acoustic guitars are hand crafted and it is not surprising since about 1,000 people who live in La Patrie are directly involved in guitar crafting. The term handmade is absolutely not a pun or a joke when it comes to Seagull acoustic guitars. Regardless of whether it is an entry model or their high-end models, you can be rest assured that the Seagull guitars are made with individual attention.
Seagull guitars have a unique headstock shape that sets them apart from any other acoustic guitar design. If you are looking at a guitar from afar, you definitely cannot mistake this guitar when you notice the headstock. Another unique thing about Saegull guitars is that they are built from sustainable resources with energy usage in manufacturing coming only from a hydroelectric power source. Seagull guitars are priced between £489.00 to £1,599.00 with only a couple of models that are priced below £500.00. Seagull guitars may not be overly premium, but most of their guitars do fall in the upper mid-range price.
5. Yamaha
Yamaha is another Japanese brand in the list, but Yamaha is well-known as a manufacturer for an array of music related hardware. From pianos to drum sets and everything in between, this brand basically produces almost every conventional musical hardware under the sun. The extraordinary thing about it though is, they are very good in making almost all of them with reputable quality and this includes their range of acoustic guitars. In fact, they are regarded as having the best choices for beginners and even intermediate guitar players. The list of guitarists that play Yamaha are just as extraordinary with Joe Bonamassa, Chad Kroeger, and Ed Roland just to name a few.
With distributors that are located almost everywhere in the world, Yamaha’s extended reach in terms of being accessible its strongest attribute. It basically means you can almost walk into any music store and find a Yamaha acoustic guitar. It doesn’t even have to be a guitar store because Yamaha guitars could still be displayed in its PA shops and even Yamaha music schools. Yamaha acoustic guitars are catered more for the mid-range and budget range markets. With a strong emphasis on the low mid-range prices and budget range. Their cheapest guitar can be as low as £115.00 while the most expensive is priced at about £1,699.00. About 40% of Yamaha acoustic guitars are priced below £500.00
4. Ortega
Ortega has been around since 1994 but it has a unique concept of introducing German designs to the traditional methods of guitar crafting. Ortega somehow finds a niche market for itself as a guitar that is crafted more towards the classic Spanish guitars. The kind that is often times used for rumba and flamenco, which isn’t a bad thing since there big brands for that niche acoustic guitar category was not almost non-existent in the 90s. Today, Ortega actually diversifies its product range not just to ordinary classical acoustic guitars, but also ukuleles, acoustic basses, and even acoustic guitars of different sizes. That being said, Ortega does seem to have gained a following for players that play more finger picking and have a preference to nylon strings. Thomas Zwijsen, Ben Woods, and Javier Reyes are prominent classical guitar players who use Ortega guitars and even endorses their products.
If you are looking for unique features, Ortega acoustic guitars fall right into that category. They adopt a 12-hole bridge system that ensures comfortable playing and changing strings are made just as easy. Each and every one of Ortega’s acoustic guitars are made of solid wood, meaning there are not laminated or layered wood. Another distinct feature of the Ortega acoustic guitars is that is has a heel-to-body connection done on the 14th fret. This means that you can solo on Malaguena all the way down to the highest possible frets comfortably.
3. Tanglewood
Tanglewood guitars was founded in 1988 and was based in London and if there is anything unique about the acoustic guitars, it’s definitely the satin finish. They are regarded and the UK’s best selling acoustic guitar brand, which is truly a monumental feat. They only started distributing their acoustic guitars to the U.S. in 2005 and has received sales awards from MI Pro Trade magazine from three straight years from 2007 to 2009. Although designed in the UK, the guitars themselves are produced in China with a few models. They do have a specific guitar series called the Tanglewood MasterDesign that incorporates the design from a master luthier from Sweden named Michael Sanden.
It has a wide array of finishes and the guitars build to feel silky smooth when you grip it in your hands. It’s more common to find Japanese or Asian guitar brands that build guitars for the lower mid-range and budget markets. Tanglewood is probably the exception to this rule as it caters most of its acoustic guitar range in a very competitive and affordable sales price. The cheapest Tanglewood acoustic guitar is £99.00, and its most high-end guitar is priced at about £1,199.00. Only a select few models are priced above £500.00. This is not a bad deal for quality acoustic guitars.
2. Taylor
Taylor guitars are probably one of the few that had created a distinct innovation towards the industry by being the pioneer in precision manufacturing of guitars using computer mills. Taylor was established in 1974 as a guitar company and to this very day, is still a regarded as some of the finest guitar makers in the world. With their focus primarily on acoustic guitars, they have created instruments that have great tone and quality and a sound that is instantly their own. For some, the Taylor acoustic guitars have a unique sonic identity that is regarded as the best in class in terms of intonation and sustain. Taylor guitars are made in a combination of both modern and traditional hand-crafted guitar making techniques at factories located in Mexico and California.
Several artists that use Taylor guitars are Prince, Jason Mraz, Zac Brown and coincidentally, another famous Taylor, which is Taylor Swift. A truly diverse group of musicians and musical genres utilize the sound of their guitars. Taylor’s acoustic guitar price ranges from £359.00 to £7,199.00 with almost of their models falling under the £1,000.00 mark while the rest are above it. Nonetheless, Taylor guitars are regarded as premium acoustic guitars.
1. Martin
Martin guitars are created by C.F. Martin & Company, which was founded in 1833 in New York City. If the name sounds familiar, it was because the C.F. Martin that started the guitar company was also the same C.F. Martin that made the very first acoustic guitar. This means that the company has been around for over 180 years. It also means that the shape or image of the acoustic guitar that we all know and love, called the dreadnaught, originated from Martin guitars. So, Martin acoustic guitars is basically the progenitor of every other acoustic guitar. That’s truly a mind-blowing fact.
Martin acoustic guitars are premium, and you won’t actually find a Martin acoustic guitar that can be regarded as a budget guitar. The legacy, the name, the prestige, and the reputation of Martin guitars are what makes them premium. It does not mean that just because you are a beginner, you can’t use Martin guitars, it’s just that you probably need to have to have a slightly deeper pocket to buy one. The late Chris Cornell and Ed Sheeran are a couple of examples of artists that use Martin guitars and currently Gred Koch is the brand ambassador for Martin guitars. The cheapest Martin guitar is priced at £275.00 and guess what, their most expensive model is about £9,500.00. Only about 20% of their guitar range is priced below £500.00
Best Brands of Acoustic Guitar – Buying Guide
Size
This is a pretty straightforward factor to consider when buying an acoustic guitar, especially if you are a beginner. What is important is the ratio of size between the guitar and your own physical frame. If you are a person who has a smaller body frame or maybe shorter arm length, then a smaller sized acoustic guitar should be a more ideal choice, especially if you are a beginner. Intermediate players would find that moving from one guitar size to another would not be much of an issue but still, there is always a specific size that is ideal for a person, so for the sake of being able to comfortable hold the guitar for long practice sessions, pick a size that is suitable to your own body frame. The guitar sizes are generally divided into quarters. Which means a guitar could be ¼, 2/4, ¾ or 4/4 from the standard size. The 4/4 size means it is the normal one full sized adult acoustic guitar. Every brand has their own variation of these sizes so it should not be a problem to look for options as long as you made up your mind on which guitar size you’d want.
Price
In terms of price, there is nothing wrong with buying a guitar in the budget range as some brands like Ibanez and Tanglewood do make good quality budget friendly guitars. For the sake of bang for your buck, it is preferable if you make the guitar price and the main parameter in deciding which guitar to buy before you consider the other factors listed in this buying guide. You’d be surprised that you’d still end up with good selection of acoustic guitars in terms of size, shape, playability, sound and even tone on a decent budget.
Normally, the materials, build quality and warranty are what creates this massive gap in price between budget guitars and the really expensive models. Of course, there is no harm in buying the expensive range of guitars like those from Martin or Taylor, or the higher end models of Yamaha and Fender because at the end of the day, what you end buying is greatly affected by how much you actually have at your disposal.
Sound
A guitar’s sound is really subjective since it is directly associated to its physical properties. Most prominently is the type of material that the guitar is made form, the size, and the shape. Larger acoustic guitars tend to have a louder or bigger sound because they have a larger cavity that creates more resonance in the air as well as on the guitar body. But a guitar does not have to be big to sound big.
These days, even smaller guitars like ¾ sized acoustic guitars are already fitted with built in microphones that you can plug in to a speaker or mixer to make them sound bigger when you need it to. It’s more important that you actually test the guitars before buying and ensure that the sound is not actually ‘bad’. This is normally caused by faulty build and manufacturing issues. The best thing to do is to test how the guitar sounds like and check for any defects before you leave the store with your brand new guitar.
Playability
Don’t be fooled by just the look of an acoustic guitar because let’s be honest, they all do look the same at first glance, even the pro models. However, bear in mind that beginner level acoustic guitars tend to be less robust and are not as easy to play as a higher-end model. Playability is defined by whether or not the guitar is easy to play and the ‘ease of playing’ is determined by the ease of movement and amount of pressure applied to the guitar strings on a fretboard from your fingers.
The less strain or pressure needed to form the chords, the easier it is to play the guitar. This ‘ease of playing’ is greatly affected by a little something called ‘action’. Action is referred to as the height at which the strings sit from the fingerboard. The higher the action, the more difficult it is to play the guitar. The lower the action, the easier it is to press on the strings and make pleasantly audible chord sounds from anywhere on the fretboard. This means that on entry level guitars, the action is normally higher than mid-range or high-end acoustic guitars. Guitars with great playability are guitars that that lower action.
Build quality
Debate always comes about when it comes to deciding if handmade or factory made acoustic have better build quality. Handmade guitars usually are more expensive seen as they are built and put together by artisans, or more accurately luthiers, who put a lot of attention on the construction of every single guitar they make.
Based on that, its is pretty understandable if handmade guitars are more expensive since they each get individual attention from the craftsman that made them. The price is relative to the the cost for all the hours and labor that was spent to build them. That does not mean factory made guitars are low quality, they are still very much quality products, and they technically still involve some human craftsmanship to some degree, especially in terms of the quality control. In fact, being factory made by reputable brands is still reliable compared to some off the shelf guitars with knock off brand names
Tone
An acoustic guitar’s tone is subjective to the listener or guitar player themselves. Whichever tone that really moves you should be your preference. To be honest, there is really no right or wrong answer in this category. Acoustic guitar tones are normally defined as either bright or warm, and anywhere in between. If you like the warmer sounding guitars, then go for mahogany.
If brighter sounding guitars are more your thing, then maple should be an excellent choice. An easy way to assess what type of tone you can expect from a guitar is to find out the type of material, size, shape of the guitar sound that you specifically like. From identifying these elements, you can narrow down your search of guitars that would most likely meet the type of tone you are looking for.
So, if you like the sound of Ben Woods playing ‘Malaguena’ on an Ortega guitar but you can’t afford the exact same model, just pinpoint his tone, and find out the guitar material, size, and shape. You might surprise yourself by finding out that Ibanez might have a guitar with a very specification to have a similar tone.
Warranty
All of the brands highlighted here have reliable and mature warranties for their products. Even when they are bought from local dealers or online resellers. Martin, Ibanez, Seagull, Sigma and Takamine has a limited lifetime warranty for their acoustic guitars that are purchases from authorized dealers. Fender has a limited warranty period for up to two years while Tanglewood and Yamaha offer up to twelve months warranty.
Taylor and Ortega on the other hand has limited warranty covering only twelve months as well, and the conditions vary from one country of purchase to another. The similarities of all these warranties are that they only cover manufacturing defects, also valid for the original purchaser of the guitar. The downside is that all shipping costs are borne by the guitar owner to ship the guitars to and from the designated service and repair centers.
Not to worry though, the full details of each brands warranties are outlined in their respective websites or from the local dealers and resellers that officially sell these acoustic guitars. Whether its lifetime or just a year, do take note that all these brands provide some kind of product warranty.
Shape
The conventional shape of acoustic guitars is the dreadnaught. A variation of this shape is that some may come with a lower body cutaway for easy access to those bottom frets. Other rather distinct acoustic guitar shapes are the jumbo shaped guitars, parlor, grand auditorium and classical. There is not much variation in the general shape of the guitar body, but they only apply slight differences on each shape like different tuning heads and scale length. Some extreme shapes are like the Fender Acoustasonic; which looks more like an electric guitar than the conventional acoustic guitar. Again, it’s all down to personal preference but this should not be much of an issue since the basic shape of the vast majority of acoustic guitars still embody the well-known dreadnaught guitar shape.
Materials
Acoustic guitars a primarily made from wood and the selection of tone wood that are suitable to make this instrument includes cedar, koa, mahogany, maple, spruce, rosewood and nyato (Asian mahogany). The actual guitar frames are normally made from hardwood and softwood is utilized for the guitar body. Some materials are more expensive than others. For example, maple is more expensive than mahogany, but it can’t be presumed that a maple guitar will sound better than a mahogany guitar since it has been mentioned earlier when describing the guitar tone and sound that those are personal preference. But do bear in mind that some types of wood are not really suitable for guitar making and these usually sound really bad. In that sense, a safe bet is to always stick to the conventional tone wood materials and the guitars would definitely sound okay.
Best Brands of Acoustic Guitar – FAQs
What are the best brands of acoustic guitars?
This list basically covers all almost all the best and most recognizable acoustic guitar brands in the world. They are all great and have a great list of qualities.
What are the top 10 acoustic guitars?
This is a very user dependent answer because every person has a different preference for their favorite guitar. Some look highly on the brand name’s reputation, some just want a quality budget guitar while others may just want a guitar suited for their size. The deciding factor for a person’s top 10 choice is all that and everything in between, so its best to go through the buying guide discussed earlier to determine the ideal to 10 for oneself.
What is the most popular acoustic guitar brand?
In terms of popularity, Martin and Taylor are the most popular choice for premium and high-end guitars, while Tanglewood and Ibanez are popular for the more budget conscious.
What are the top 10 guitar brands?
Of course, the top 10 guitar brands are Ibanez, Takamine, Fender, Sigma, Seagull, Yamaha, Ortega, Tanglewood, Taylor and Martin. But these are specifically for acoustic guitars which is coincidentally the 10 brands mentioned in this list. As for electric guitars, the top 10 brands are Gibson, Fender, PRS, G&L, Rickenbacker, Ibanez, ESP, Jackson, Schecter and Epiphone.
What is the best quality guitar brand?
The brand with the best guitar quality is hands-down, Martin guitars.
Is Fender better than Yamaha?
Fenders are more renowned to have better quality electric guitars as opposed to Yamaha, who actually produce better quality acoustic guitars.
Are Yamaha guitars good quality?
Yamaha guitars have extremely good quality in term of build and even tone, and it is not even a premium brand for acoustic guitars.
What is the best sounding Martin acoustic guitar?
The Martin D-15M is highly regarded as one of their best sounding guitars overall which is rated highly by every type of guitar user. A second choice would be the Martin 000 – 15M which is also highly rated and sounds just as good.
Conclusion
At the end of the day, any one of these brands are worth the money when purchase. It all boils down to personal preference and personal preference could include multiple factors that have been discussed in the buying guide. There is a guitar for just about anybody especially from the brands that have been highlighted in this list, so hopefully, this article could help you make the perfect choice for the acoustic guitar of your dreams.