Advice on Parlour Guitars

[stevie2sticks]

Hi, I hoped someone could offer advice to a beginner please.   I am considering the purchase of a Parlour Guitar. I am taken  back by the numbers of this type of guitar on offer, hence making a purchase difficult. I don't want a project as I do not have the type of skills to sort this out. New or second hand? Mahogany or laminate or Spruce? Washburn, Skylark, Seagull?

any help will be appreciated.

kind regards
Steve

[davey]

A bit of information would help us give you the best advice.

What kind of music you intend to play, do you want to play fingerstyle or with a plectrum & how much do you want to spend ?

Cheers

Davey

[stevie2sticks]

Hi Davey. I like finger picking and the use of a slide. I guess £400 would be my top end.

Kind regards and thanks
Steve

[davey]

Is there a decent shop near you ? I'd try and decide what neck profile and nut width suits your hands. A comfortable and well set up instrument is really important.

Fingerpickers tend to like a slightly wider nut width than strummers, 1 3/4 inches is popular. I like a reasonable spacing at the bridge too, about 2 1/4.

[stevie2sticks]

Thanks Davey, good info.

[davey]

Another thing worth considering is scale length , i.e. distance between the nut and bridge. Short scale is about 24 3/4 and long scale 25 1/2 or thereabouts. Short scale feels a little looser and easier to play with bare fingers but doesn't strum well. Longer scale feels a bit tighter but consequently may be a bit louder. Your fingers may be stronger than mine but I've always gone for short scale by preference.

I think there's a fair bit of choice in your price bracket. I've always thought the Recording KIng, Vintage, Epiphone and Ozark ranges are good value. A good guitar will feel alive when you play it and make your belly vibrate.

Where do you live ? Maybe someone can recommend a good shop. If you're near Manchester I can tell you where to look.

[stevie2sticks]

Hi Dave, I have short slightly webbed fingers, my fingers are not particularly strong. I will read up the specs on guitars more carefully and select some with short scales to look at. I had focused on the wood in construction and not thought about scale length as well. I live on the Isle of Man and choice is limited. When I come over on the ferry on my way to Pocklington I will call in at Promenade in Morecambe and try as many as I can. Good advices thanks.
Steve

[5slide]

Hi Steve, I recently bought a Washburn parlour that I'm very pleased with. It's the R320swrk, it is made of all solid wood, spruce top and rosewood back and sides. The nut width is very wide for a steel string guitar (48mm) which makes it great for finger picking and slide. It looks fantastic too, though that is of course a matter of opinion. I think the tone is great for slide, it has a very old-timey sound with a nice growl and just seems to be made for slide playing (think Blind Willie Johnson). The neck is a very sharp V which I personally like though it did take some getting used too, again that's just personal preference.

Another nice parlour I tried recently was the Tanglewood TW40, it sounded lovely, it had a more modern tone compared to the washburn, bright and sweet but I didn't get to try a slide with it.

Anyway, hope this helps.

Here is a video of my washburn so you can hear how it sounds with a slide:

[Bob Stockton]

If you're coming to Pocklington I should hold fire on a purchase untill afterwards - I think that you'll get some great advice face to face with a few parlours to try ( I'll probably have 2 there - as long as I don't drop any in the next coupla weeks ).
I've learnt a lot about what I thought I liked and what I *really* did like in a guitar at blues week and pocklington.

Bob

[gaucho]

Love the look of those little Washburns. 5slide's vid sounds good too!

[Matt]

I got a Recording King ROS-16, it was only £240 and it sounds beautiful, and has a nice fairly wide nut and v-profile neck. Sounds great for slide and fingerpicking, with lovely bass as well as singing high notes.

[myk]

I would recommend the Washburn as well, I have the R301, neck can seem a bit wide but they are great for finger picking and slide.

myk

[5slide]

Oct 28, 2013 12:50:15 GMT gaucho said:

Love the look of those little Washburns. 5slide's vid sounds good too!

Thanks, they sure are pretty little guitars.

[oldpicker]

If you are thinking of a short scale instrument how about a Taylor GS Mini? There's one advertised in Tin Can Alley. I bought one recently, the mahogany version and fitted the ES-Go pickup. It's a really lovely guitar!

[oldpicker]

Have a look at the Music Radar website musicradar.com and their article '25 best budget guitars'. Not all are parlour-size but several are. It makes interesting reading!