Larrivee guitars are rubbish

Tannin

Not worth the paper they are printed on. 

The tops warp, the binding comes off, they are over-braced, the necks are rubbish, and people ask way too much for them, especially second-hand.

Honestly, jokes aside, I have never played a good one. Not even once. Every single none of the no Larrivee guitars I have played didn't make any sound at all. 

(Let me know if this helps, @thomasross20.) ;

thomasross20

Hahaha it was love at first strum the first time I went to pick an acoustic. Spent about 3 hours trying different guitars and had that magic moment with the OM02 I have still got. 

Local dealer says there are some new interesting ones coming in but some are hitting the £3200 mark which is high for a Larrivee, considering resale. Good for them, though - I do rate them. But that price level makes me think twice - for any guitar. The Bhilwara tonewood I just got is stunningly good & different.

Other interesting ones I tried were Auden's, which seemed good value. Breedlove were nice but felt more "electro acoustic" to me - dunno, maybe needed more time. 

Acoustic GAS is deeper and more intimate than electric gas. As @ICBM said once, each acoustic really is different. Learned loads from folk on here and still doing so. 

One stepdaughter moved out with boyfriend so her room had been gutted and painted. There's a single chair in it now and that's my guitar zen room. Still considering selling the electrics (was a different time in my life) to find a super acoustic. 

Anyway, OT... I know I mention Larrivee a lot lol. There's a few guitars I'd really like to try but have had hit & miss with buy before try of late (some just not suited me.. and I got hit with a heavy restocking fee recently for a guitar return). Other Larrivee's, Martin, some Brooks I've never been able to try. I still rate Avalon but the neck on mine was too chunky. 

Anyway. You want to try a Larrivee, feel free to pop in - I'll put the kettle on 

Mellish

Tbh, I've never seen a Larrivee in the flesh. It's one of those brands I wouldn't mind trying. Collings is another. 
Lowden used to be another but I tried some when I bought my OM. Not bad but not for me. And Atkin I didn't like - didn't feel right.

I've spent so long playing American acoustics that they are what I call home.

 

woody

Everything you said,but change larrivee in title to taylor.

thomasross20

Yeah I'm more into the American type acoustic, too. 

See when I read things like "pre war" and "aged tone pack" etc though... My eyes just roll lol. What is this, a power up in some computer game? 

Tannin

Really @woody? Taylor's low-end guitars are competent and reliable but seriously overpriced (for the cost of a 2-series laminate jobby I can buy all-solid, First-World-manufactured instruments of real quality and I don't mean cheap Chinese stuff). But you could certainly do worse, and they are no worse value-for-money-wise than Martin's cheap stuff, probably better. 

Their better quality instruments (3 series and above) are  indeed quality instruments, beautifully finished with the best quality control of any of the US majors (possibly barring Guild), and innovative in ways that the likes of Gibson and Martin can only dream of. 

Do I like the Taylor house sound? Not especially. Of the US majors I like the Guild sound best, the Gibson sound least, and put Taylor and Martin somewhere in the middle. But that's just personal taste. 

Are Taylor guitars reasonably priced? (I'm talking their good stuff here, 3 series and up.) Well by international standards, no. They are dear compared to instruments of equal quality made in other high-cost, high-wage places such as Europe, Australia, South Korea, and Japan. On the other hand, by American standards, they are quite reasonable. Martin, Guild and Gibson charge way, way more comparing like for like. 

And Taylor have by far the best environmental policies of any major US maker. They are a world leader in sustainability and ethical use of resources. 

All in all, you have to give them a pass mark. In fact if I'm marking their end-of-term paper I'll be giving them a solid B+. 

Dumodal

I tried their select OM-05 and I liked them, wouldn't pay full price for one but used probably yes, I agree with the Taylor sentiment of Woody, look nice but feels like plastic.

guitarjack66

The only Taylor I have even touched felt incredibly light. I have no idea if that is a good thing or a bad thing. I didn't play it,which was a big favour to the guitar!

woody

Tannin:I've never been overly impressed by any taylor i've owned,A 110 wasnt bad for the money,414 was ok,810 was horrible..Beautifully built,but every time i try one i get the feeling that there are much better guitars at the particular price point..I have yet to try one that i think is a really good guitar and ive tried quite a few..Its the higher end models that i really have a problem with. I find that they are tonally very flat.Much better alternatives out there for my tastes anyway.

lustycourtier

Ive only played one, but it was a pretty special guitar. Built for Marc ford and gifted to a friend of mine. Only thing was output was a mad 9 pin socket

bertie

woody said:

Everything you said,but change larrivee in title to Martin or Cole Clarke

FTFY

 Ive played a couple of Larry's best one was a satin finish in the then Ivor's - with @Jalapeno about 101 years ago (must have been 2006 TBH)  was really loud and responsive...............................

Jalapeno

bertie said:

woody said:

Everything you said,but change larrivee in title to Martin or Cole Clarke

FTFY

 Ive played a couple of Larry's best one was a satin finish in the then Ivor's - with @Jalapeno about 101 years ago (must have been 2006 TBH)  was really loud and responsive...............................

Cripes that was Aeons ago !

bertie

Jalapeno said:

bertie said:

woody said:

Everything you said,but change larrivee in title to Martin or Cole Clarke

FTFY

 Ive played a couple of Larry's best one was a satin finish in the then Ivor's - with @Jalapeno about 101 years ago (must have been 2006 TBH)  was really loud and responsive...............................

Cripes that was Aeons ago !

I dont get out much

also remember we popped into Hobgoblin ?  tried a Blueridge  OM with coated strings, coated in the sweat and dead skin of 1000 previous shoppers

McToot

A mate of mine had one of their USA 'custom shop' Dreads and I loved that so much I pounced on a Canadian made D-03 when one bizarrely was listed for sale less than 5 mins from my house in the wilds of West Sussex. Crazy 'bearclaw' markings on the top and I got it for about £500 IIRC. I don't play it much because I'm more into my electrix, but when I do it blows me away.  

thomasross20

Actually heartening to hear others saying they've tried and liked - I think they just moved to a bigger factory so output is increasing. Hopefully the quality is maintained.

thomasross20

Just got a quote for an OO-03 model with upgraded moon spruce top and up-charge also for reduced scale length - £3200. The prices have really jumped. I got my first one for £650 or so back in the day

TheOtherDennis

thomasross20 said:

back in the day

That's about a month ago at the rate you've been buying them!

ditchboy

Still on the hunt for a nice Larrivee OM hog when funds permit. They truly are superb guitars. 

TheOtherDennis

Well don't forget mine, it's still available...;-)

Sammy

I mostly play electric but can quite honestly say the Larrivee Om I bought from someone on here several years ago, was the best acoustic I have ever owned and is still with me and I have owned several really good acoustics over the many years, incl Martins, Collings, Furch, Sergi and others. When I got the Larrivee I had actually gone to try a Martin OM, then he let me try another top quality model which he was keeping and then the Larrivee to compare. Quite honestly the Larrivee sounded and played far better than the other two, which he even agreed, but said he would sell it to me, if I didn't want to buy the Martin as he needed to let one of them go. Snapped it up and haven't looked at another acoustic since, though might be tempted in the future to buy a Rosewood Larrivee, as mine is Mahogany with Spruce Top. 

Agree with Woody on Taylors, pick anyone up and whilst they are very easy to play, they all seem to have that same Taylor sort of sound, which IMO is very bland. Like marmite you either like it or hate it!

Tannin

Yep, Taylors sound like Taylors. Gibsons sound like Gibsons. Martins sound like Martins. Matons sound like Matons. Guilds sound like Guilds. Lowdens sound like Lowdens. And I presume Larrivees sound like Larrivees. The good makes all have a house sound.