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"Gibsons sound like Gibsons, and Guilds sound like Guilds, and Taylors sound like Taylors, and Martins sound like guitars."

I like that quote. Certainly a hot topic. In my opinion, all of mine sound better than my neighbor's perfectly built, all Koa Taylor. It's a beautiful build but leaves you feeling like it's muted. I never thought about Gibsons much but Gillian Welch and her J-50 sound pretty great. Been thinking I might have to try to build one like that.

The only real experience I have is with my ancient Gibson L-30 and my son's Taylor 314CE. No Martins in the stable so can't comment on my Taylor vs Martin take. I like the Taylor sound, but the routed channel in the lower bout is concerning - I find it hard to believe that isn't going to be a structural issue in the future. My guess is that that channel has a lot to do with the Taylor sound, and it makes me wonder if maybe Taylor configured their sound for immediate gratification while Martin is content with the long haul and natural aging/break-in process?