Love seeing someone else in the space being discussed with a completely different opinion. And I’m not even joking. It just shows guitar building is like climate change.

There are definitely a lot of poor guitars I've seen with excessive corny inlay jobs

@@ATthemusician sick story, it still doesnt mean inlays are hiding anything...

Inlays ARE a flaw. Over the years the wood will stretch/shrink, no matter how careful you may be about providing the optimal conditions for the instrument. The inlays will not stretch/shrink with the wood. This WILL eventually result in gaps around the inlays. Some folks like the aesthetic of inlays and are willing to live with that reality. I personally prefer a fingerboard with no inlays. I think it looks better, and since I’m reading music as I play I’m not relying on inlays to know where I am on the neck. But as always, to each their own!

@@Gk2003m you’re not a carpenter or old enough to have seen gaps form around inlays. Do you understand how many inlays have been in fretboards since the 70s with out a single gap. You have no clue what you’re talking about

You’re for sure the minority there! But guitar stores didn’t get themselves cancelled because of brand new guitars. They got themselves cancelled because of their overly greedy margins on trade ins. Sell u a guitar brand new for 1700 and then a month later will only give you 800 for trading it in- then they put it back out on the shelf for 1500. People remember that treatment, and they start going to FB/Reverb/CL to sell their used stuff next time. Then when it comes time to buy a new guitar - sweetwater didn’t rip me off I’ll use them for new stuff. That’s why guitar stores are endangered species. That and more and more players feeling like no test playing is needed with all the diy info out there on setups etc. i know if i buy a brand new guitar online that it might not have the best setup- but that I’d rather just do the setup myself since it’s so easy. The 1980’s are over. The internet has made services like guitar setups easy to diy. And I don’t need to play a guitar before buying it online bcuz I can do a setup myself or worst case just return it. I’m not trying to invalidate your opinion, sir, just trying to point out the reason why most people don’t care about playing a guitar first before buying. Bcuz setups are easily accessed public info now, and because return policies are so forgiving. And most of us have been beat to death on trades by ridiculous margins by these stores enough times to resent them for it uk?

Fair enough!! I only read truth from you too! I'm old fashion but I won't change. An experienced professional will always be necessary because quality comes with years of practising. Internet shopping has its pros and cons. I am lucky to have a big dealer in my city so I can try an instrument before buying it for a competitive price. You are also right when you up to learn how to fix your instrument, everybody should but not everybody has the proper tools and wishes to deal with it and I am one so I pay. I consider learning music theory and harmony more important instead. Thanks for sharing your opinion sir.

What most seem to think of as mystery, is just a wide range of different components, timber species, design elements, and finishing techniques that may or may not work together in a sympathetic way…. And the more examples we look at, the more years we spend looking, playing and listening to them, the better we become at recognising the innate qualities of an individual guitar, even if we’ve never seen it before… I’ve been playing professionally, teaching, and building the odd guitar since the early 1970s… And I haven’t got it down 100% yet… But I’m pretty good at spotting a good one….

Welll said. I love the like 250 dollar guitars at the shop that sound and play incredibly all knowledge would say otherwise

I wouldn’t have a clue what a guitar would sound like unless I could look at the bracing, measure the thickness of the top and feel how stiff the top was before it was built… and even then I’d probably be wrong 😂

@@matticeverhoeven6539 You’d probably surprise yourself… Leaving ornamentation and aesthetics out of the equation, I’ve found that at least 90% of the time, whether they be commercial companies or individual luthiers, the quality of the construction you can see without peering inside with an endoscope or mirror, or measuring thicknesses etc, tends to mirror the care and attention to detail taken during the design process, where those aspects which affect performance are considered… I know that isn’t always the case.. But it’s very rare in my experience to find a beautifully built guitar that’s been poorly designed.. Although I have found a few that have appeared pretty mediocre, but sounded far better than I expected…

Not sure why Taylors are so popular. The hype.? Those i’ve played have no character, compared to many less expensive guitars. Played many Takamine, low end guitars that are more resonant and chimey.

Sounds like a cool lady!

Oh, and your instrument exemplifies why you have a 3 year wait. Beautiful in every way.