The company's most iconic dreadnoughts lives again in American-built form—it’s both balanced and a cannon.
Since the 1950’s the Guild name has been synonymous with premium acoustic guitars that embody a rich heritage of USA-made craftsmanship. As the brand celebrates its 70th anniversary in 2023, Guild has released revamped versions of its classic D-40, D-50, and F-40 models in its all-new Standard Series.
The new Standard Series joins Guild’s USA product line just under its flagship 55 and Traditional models. The series offers players a blend of vintage appointments and modern aesthetic. Tailor-made for musicians seeking a contemporary guitar that exudes sophistication while embracing a tasteful simplicity distinct from the company’s premium lineup. Featuring dot neck inlays and unbound headstocks, the series also introduces Guild’s innovative Vintage Gloss finish - an ultra-thin nitrocellulose application with both satin and gloss qualities that highlight the natural beauty of the tonewoods. With an even and smooth texture, the Vintage Gloss is hand-sprayed and gives each guitar a worn-in vintage feel, all the while maintaining a strikingly contemporary and polished look.
The Standard Series not only reintroduces Guild’s legendary D-50, an iconic Spruce and Rosewood dreadnought that once stood as a cornerstone in the company's offerings until its production transitioned to California in 2014 but also resurrects it as the D-50 Standard. This revival fills a crucial Rosewood niche just beneath Guild's flagship D-55.
All Standard Series models feature an East Indian Rosewood bridge and fingerboard, premium 20:1 open-gear tuners, and hand-cut bone nut and saddle. Timeless appointments include a 60s style rosette, tortoiseshell pickguard, white ABS binding, and Guild’s peak logo inlaid on the headstock. All models are hand made in California and include a hand-signed, numbered certificate of authenticity, and ship with a Guild archtop wood case with a built-in Humicase® humidification system.
![Rig Rundown: Billy Strings [2023]](https://www.premierguitar.com/media-library/rig-rundown-billy-strings-2023.jpg?id=34664971&width=600&height=400&quality=85&coordinates=0%2C0%2C200%2C0)
The 814ce has long been considered Taylor Guitars' flagship acoustic-electric guitar thanks to its mix of lush tone, playing comfort and all-purpose musical appeal. Taylor Guitars is thrilled to present the next evolution of this classic model: the Builder's Edition 814ce. With an Adirondack spruce top and ergonomic enhancements, the Builder's Edition 814ce lifts their flagship rosewood Grand Auditorium to a new level of musical sophistication.
Learn More: https://www.taylorguitars.com/guitars...
Ted’s D25C has lived a long and creative life, and has the scars to prove it.
How a used Guild D25C became the keys to the cosmos—and a better life in music.
I should probably name my acoustic guitar. After all, my dog Dolly has a name, and while she’s an old pup, I’ve known that guitar much longer. And like Dolly, that Guild D25C I got in the mid-’90s has given me many gifts.
I bought the guitar after borrowing it from a friend’s music store to play some acoustic radio gigs. I’d always felt awkward on acoustic before, but this ’80s Guild was an immediate joy to play, with a very electric-like, thin-profiled neck and a surprisingly even and ringing tone hampered by just a bit of boominess via its dreadnought body. When the radio gigs were over, I paid $400 for it.
I installed a pickup and then beat the hell out of the guitar, playing some acoustic shows, but mostly letting the instrument’s comfort and playability take me down a rabbit hole from which I’ve never fully emerged. You see, at the same time as I got my D25C, I began chasing the blues of North Mississippi Hill Country. And after logging many trips to be at the feet of R.L. Burnside, Jessie Mae Hemphill, Junior Kimbrough, and others, the pull was irresistible. Burnside’s style was especially magnetic, and I found myself drawn to fingerpicking, slide, and open tunings.
The summer shortly after I got the guitar, I began spending a few days a week at the beach with my Guild, slowly developing my own Burnside-inspired idiosyncratic fingerstyle approach—really delving into slide and playing in open D and G. It was slow going, and the Guild received no mercy. Whether I was on the fretboard or in the water, the guitar spent six hours or more of every beach day unprotected from the baking sun and hot sand.
We all encounter instruments that play a special role in our lives. They inspire us to become better songwriters and players, and maybe even better people.
I had gigs and a day job, so my conversion from rock plectrist to blues yeti was slow. It took three summers of beachy Guild abuse until I felt like I could play the style in public. But along the way I did learn some of the intricacies of primal slide and how to control dynamics and be fleet and nuanced with my fingers. I emerged a different player, and the Guild became a different guitar. After all that time in the sun, it felt and sounded lighter and airier, with a brighter, more balanced palette. Despite all the warnings about exposing guitars to punishing elements, it had gotten better, and the instrument continues to reward me with its comfort and tone.
My Guild taught me that a guitar doesn’t have to be a special instrument to be a special instrument. It’s a humble model that many players I know dismiss in favor of pricier or more boutique 6-strings, but because of when it arrived in my life, it became the keys to the kingdom of my playing style—a kind of blind cave fish approach built on archaic blues and my instinct for psychedelia and improvisation.
We probably all have an instrument like this—an unfancy guitar that nonetheless helped us grow and become ourselves. For me, the benefit of learning a new approach to the instrument on acoustic and then transferring it to the faster, more sonically flexible world of electric guitar was immensely gratifying. But I still love that Guild for itself, and it still yields songs, compositional ideas, and an endless supply of good vibes. And when I’m cranking a Les Paul through a pair of amps in stereo, I can feel the raw DNA of the Guild in what I’m playing.
Instruments that play a special role in our lives inspire us to become better songwriters and players. Maybe even better people, because in formulating a personal approach as a guitarist, we establish a kind of equilibrium that gives us confidence to play and perform, and confidence in our own place in the world.
Sure, guitars are wood and wires—mostly—but when we work to bond with them and play them for all they’re worth, they can be as rewarding, faithful, and inspiring as a good dog. Or a good friend. They take us on journeys within ourselves and in the real world. They create opportunities for learning, adventure, and joy. And who doesn’t want more joy?
Hopefully you have at least one guitar you love as much as I love my battered Guild D25C. And if you don’t, maybe you’ll adopt that instrument soon. Because every guitar can be a door to the cosmos. All you need to do is open it and, to paraphrase Timothy Leary, tune up and turn on!