Best Guitar Brands: Newbies, Modern Day Classics, & More!

• October 7, 2016
• PD/JS

There are a few guitar builders that have forged a golden reputation over the last couple centuries. From Martin guitars https://www.martinguitar.com/about/ established in 1833, all the way to newcomers like Kauer guitars, who are carving out a niche for themselves by custom crating beautiful instruments that are borderline works of art. Let's take a look at the BEST GUITAR BRANDS of the past 183 years.

This isn't going to be a history lesson in best guitar brands manufacturing. Our intention is to shine a spotlight on the manufacturers who are delivering the goods. We'll also take a look at how some of the big brands like Fender and Gibson have changed to accommodate modern demands, and [shudders], building to a price point. It's not pretty, but someone has to do it. How they do it speaks volumes about their brand name.

The Bigs: Best Guitar Brands

Most of the big and best guitar brands like Gibson, Fender, and Martin started out as you'd suspect. A luthier with a passion for crafting fine instruments was somehow able to sell enough of those instruments to turn their passion into a profitable, reputable business. Leo Fender, for example, crafted two guitars (and two basses) in the mid 1900's that forever changed the sound of music... the kids were calling it rock n roll, and a new sound requires new instruments. Leo didn't invent electricity. He just perfected it in the form of the stratocaster and telecaster.

There were alternatives. There was a young man named Les Paul who was at the forefront of the recording revolution, he found a manufacturer who would facilitate his bold new ideas for how a guitar should feel and sound. Of course, we're talking about Gibson guitars, who hit a couple of rock n' roll home runs themselves. With models like the ES 335, Les Paul, and the SG Les Paul...which should probably be called the Angus Young!

She Ain't What She Used To Be

To survive in business you must adapt to ever changing markets. All of the big and best guitar brands have made a fundamental change to how they make instruments. They have started building to a price point. The lower lines of these guitars are now made in China, Japan, and Mexico. You can still get a hand crafted instrument, made in America, but it will cost you! Most of these brands have custom guitar shops where they hand craft instruments starting in the $5,000 price range.

Some of the brands make it obvious which line is made overseas. Gibson, for instance bought one of their biggest competitors, Epiphone guitars, back in the 60's and turned them in to their lower line of guitars. So if you get a 'Gibson' guitar, you at least know that it was made in the good old USA! Merica! Fender is much harder to decipher. Take a look at the back of the headstock to find out where it was made. Aaaand, if you happen to stumble upon a USA made Epiphone, you just found yourself an AMAZING guitar. Just don't let your buddy play it...

Prince smashes Captain Kirk's Epiphone on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.

http://www.epiphone.com/News/Features/Features/2013/Kirk-Douglas-The-Epiphone-Interview.aspx

The Newbies

The trend nowadays is to recapture the vibe of a passionate luthier in a humble wood shop pouring his heart and soul into crafting a beautiful instrument. Since the original guitars crafted by Fender and Gibson in the 50's can fetch six figures, that puts them squarely out of the reach of most musicians. You would need a real job to afford a '59 Les Paul... like a real real job! Ooooor you could just land a few great gigs and save up for a guitar from one of the modern day luthiers like Kauer, Ronin, B.A. Fergusen, Myka, B&G, Will Kelly, or Rhoney Guitars. When it comes to custom, hand crafted instruments, these guys are at the top of their game. They may just be building guitars today that will fetch 6 figures 50 years down the road.  

Pro Tip: It's natural to drool over the pictures of these hand crafted instruments. Just don't send them an e-mail asking for an endorsement. Believe me, It's been done to death. These guys put their heart and soul into their craft. If you do the same, you'll mysteriously find yourself with enough money to purchase one of these fine guitars.  

Modern Day Classics

If you reeeeeealy want a '54 strat but don't have Learjet money, check out Jeff Senn, Bill Nash, and Callaham guitars, which went so far as to include wooly mammoth tusk in their search for the ultimate guitar tone. I'm not even kidding here. Callaham strats have ancient Wooly mammoth tusk nuts... mmmmhmmm.

Nash and Senn didn't take it quite that far. Their goal was to put the sound and feel of a 50 something year old guitar into the hands of working musicians. You can expect an amazing sounding, and playing guitar, hand crafted in the USA for $2000-$3000. You may even be able to pay them a little extra to not scratch the paint up with rusty nails and put grotsky gunk all over the tea soaked pickup covers. Idk?

The Best Guitars--Acoustic Style

Can we be honest? Fender has had difficulty in making a decent acoustic guitar. However, Gibson has some great ones! Shoot, even some of their Epiphones are good instruments. Martin has earned a great rep for a reason.

There are relative newcomers that are making some great instruments, as well. Bob Taylor is awesome. Get your hands on an 814 and you'll know what I'm sayin! Larivee guitars are brilliant and always play and sound like a much more expensive guitar. Speaking of much more expensive. If you've got a nice stack of cash just laying around, try wrapping you're greezy little fingers around an Ohlsen guitar... mmmmm. Ohlsen.

It would take all day to list all of the best guitar brands out there. Here's a rando list of honorable mentions in no particular order. All of these companies make amazing guitars and hold themselves to a very high standard:

McPherson
Bluesman
Collings
Duesenberg
Fano

Yeah, get your hands on any instrument by any one of these fine luthiers and you will have a winner! That's it for.... nowwwwait a minute. Stop the presses. I didn't say anything about Gretsch guitars.

Shoot. They are great guitars and a huge part of music history. Play a Gretsch guitar. You'll love it.

So while we have covered the Best Guitar Brands, what do you do after that? Why don't you click below to have our pro's show you how to play one of these guitars. We'd love to have you on the team.