When it comes to acoustic guitars (of the steel-strung variety), there are hundreds of different styles. If we were to include classical guitars, there’d be even more. However, they all fall into similar categories. If you own, or are thinking of buying, an acoustic guitar, it’s likely to fall into one of these categories:
The “Dreadnought”: This is one of the most common styles. If you were to picture an acoustic guitar in your mind, the chances are that you’d picture this one. It gets its (slightly strange) name from the type of warship of the same name, due to the wedged appearance of the guitar. It was originally produced by Martin Guitars, but the style has since been adopted by many guitar manufacturers.
The “Grand Concert”: This is still a steel-strung guitar, but its shape is much more similar to a traditional classical guitar. It’s usually a lot smaller than a standard acoustic guitar, and due to this, if you have a child who’s learning the instrument, this may be the style to choose.
The “Grand Auditorium”: This could easily be mistaken for a Grand Concert; however, it’s of a larger size, so the volume and bass of the music is increased (or improved, depending on how you look at it). It’s probably slightly too large for a child to use, but would suit most adults perfectly.
Finally, the “Jumbo” style: This is again similar to the Grand Concert and the Grand Auditorium styles. However, it’s even bigger. This leads to much more bass and generally a more balanced tone. Due to its large size, it can be rather difficult to play. Therefore, it’s not recommended for beginners. If you’re a more experienced guitarist, however, and you’re looking for a new sound to improve your acoustic cover songs, it’s very worthwhile trying out this style in the music shop.
