new guitar advice

bobblehat

Hi All,

Will be purchasing a Faith Blood Moon Venus shortly.

Before I take the plunge I'm wondering what else is around that might be similar. eg. spec, size etc. 
Preferably similar looking. Budget £700-£800. 

Obviously try before I buy is not currently an option so any recommendations on reputable online dealers also appreciated .

Cheers

Andy79

Used you could well be into Martin 15 series, the cheaper J45 variants like J15 J35 J29. My favourite of those is the J15  it’s a really good guitar. J45 Studio. Again a very good guitar since I played another one recently 
Eastman. Superb fit and finish and more character and personality, I think, than Faith 
Also Furch but I’ve never played one. Someone else can comment here

Andy79

Apologies. None of the above have the same body shape. I was just focusing on budget. 

mgaw

plenty of other brands, Eastman would do a similar shape, plenty people really like Faith though, buy 2nd hand if you can 

drofluf

I’ve got the same guitar and am really pleased with it. At the time I tried the Taylor, Martin, Alvarez models at a similar price point. For me the Faith was streets ahead. 

bobblehat

Thanks for the replies, will do a bit of research on the Furch and Eastman.

WindmillGuitars

@bobblehat - give me a shout if you want to chat about the Eastman range. Cheers Simon 

richman6100

@bobblehat - I have a Faith Venus (although not the Blood Moon one), a Furch G23-CRC and a couple of Audens. The Faith is very nice and excellent value considering what I paid for it new a few years back. The Furch is superb, but significantly more expensive. The Audens fall in the middle price point between the two and I play them an awful lot. If I was in your position, I'd personally be looking at Auden, new or used.

crunchman

Another recommendation for Furch.  They are superb guitars.

MagicPigDetective

Worth considering  a Taylor 100 series. Less bling than the blood moon, but I find my 114ce very easy to play and it has such a crisp, clear sound. 

GTC

I recently bought an Eastman ACTG-2e lefty travel guitar from a Belgian seller on Reverb. I didn't really need it but I wanted to find out first hand what all the fuss about Eastman was about and left-handed models are very rare. It is superb in sound, playability (out of the box) and build quality with all solid woods (spruce / ovangkol).

The AC222-1ce OV, with the same woods and build, is of similar size and price to the Faith and is certainly worth a look. From my memories of a Faith Naked Venus I would think it could be a far better guitar.

I also have a Furch GNSW2 Grand Nylon guitar - the best crossover guitar I've encountered at just over £1000. If their steel strung models are as good as this then they are worth a look too.

bobblehat

Thanks all.