AC Recommends: Desert Island Guitars

Our staff are obsessive about acoustic guitars, and it's always fascinating to find out the instruments that tick the boxes for them. In this edition of AC Recommends, our team picks out the one guitar they would choose if they could only have one - a hard decision indeed!

Ben - Repair Tech

Life situations that only allow you to have one guitar are extremely hard when you’re a compulsive buyer of instruments. But after some thought on what my desert island guitar would be, I think it would be a Gibson LG2. It’s size and sound would be a perfect companion for those long tropical days. Yep, an LG2 and a margarita in hand would do the trick!

Dan - Social Media / Sales

If I had to choose just one guitar it would be the Martin D-18. There are three main reasons I love this model - it sounds fabulous, it's great value and it's iconic. My favourite sounding tonewood combination is spruce / mahogany and the D-18 is the quintessential example of how good these timbers can sound. I describe the tone of the D-18 as warm and woody with great clarity and plenty of bass due to it's dreadnought body size. Of all the iconic dreadnoughts from Martin, the D-18 is one of the most affordable. It comes standard with forward-shifted scalloped bracing - a feature that is usually reserved for Martin's high-end models. The D-18 has featured on so many classic recordings over the years there are too many to count. If the D-18 is good enough for Hank Williams, Elvis Presley and Paul Simon... it's good enough for me.

Dennis - Sales

If I could have just one guitar, it'd be the Martin Authentic 00-17 1931. With the timeless slotted tuners, a comfortable 00-body and rosewood fretboard, it's the all-mahogany guitar that all others are inspired by, made to the original 1931 specs. With beautiful, sweet fundamentals that react to the most subtle dunamics of fingerpicking, it's the ideal companion for decades of songwriting.

Josh - Demos / Sales

With so many guitars and tonal possibilities available it can be very difficult or even confusing to decide what is the right guitar for you. I constantly tell folks who come into the store that there is no right or wrong answer to this question. Over the years I have come to love the OM (Orchestral Model) shape. I still feel the creators of this shape, Martin, make some of the finest examples of this guitar. As well as being a comfortable instrument to sit with, the OM shape always surprises folks with how much sound seems to pour out of an instrument of that size. At the turn of the 20th century, the OM was the loudest and largest sized acoustic guitar you could buy. It's remarkable to think that for all of the vast global changes over the last 120 years, the OM has remained much the same as it was when it was first introduced. The OM was right from the get go, and we're all very grateful for this!

Hamish - Sales

Whilst this is a very difficult decision for a compulsive buyer, If I were stuck on an island I think I’d take a Martin 0-18. One of very few small-bodied guitars to still have a sweet tone for strumming, yet punchy enough for fingerstyle and single note playing. Being such a small comfortable size I could very happily play this all day by the fire. Martin have really perfected the difficult task on this one, making such a small-body guitar sound rich, loud and punchy. So it's an 0-18 for me!

Ryan - Manager

I think a desert-island guitar should be something that works in any situation - on the couch, playing live, on weekend trips... Something that sounds great, is easy to play, and doesn't break your heart when it gets knocked from it's stand. It's actually hard to find something that ticks all those boxes but still inspires you when you strum that first chord, but one guitar jumps to mind immediately - the humble Taylor GS Mini.

Few guitars are as playable, approachable and downright fun as the GS Mini, and there's tonal options for every palette (Spruce / Rosewood for me, thanks!). They always sound great, with a crisp, even tone and surprising volume. There's a reason why they're the bestselling guitar in the world!