3 YEARS ago I did this video talking about this very same subject and whilst I forget the exact motivation for the video at the time I am pretty sure I would be saying something similar to what I have just been observing - and felt compelled to tell you.
OK - So guitar shops, especially big online stores who provide you seemingly endless choices of guitars under £200 all share one thing in common. Most of the brands they are showing you are all from similar factories - often with poor or non existent human welfare standards - and has anyone even checked into it?
I have - I do. The truth is pretty grim and many of the factories supplying brand names you know and love are using factories exposing workers to untold dangers - carcinogens and poor working conditions.
Best Cheap Acoustic Guitars Under $200 [ 2021 Affordable Guitar Guide ]
The supposed choice you receive is no more than a color change, a variation in body shape, a brand name on the headstock but this is all smoke and mirrors.
You may as well forget the descriptions and recommendations - merely content on a page to try and make one guitar sound more interesting than another. They are all much of a muchness - in terms of quality - feel - sound - Its next to impossible to differentiate one from another. Thats the TRUTH - whether you want to hear the truth or no - thats the reality.
Every single guitar I sell is setup to perfection. If you had your guitar setup privately at Richards Guitars in our workshop it would cost you £85 - but when you buy a guitar - its FREE.
Best Acoustic Guitars Under £200
As well as the FREE setup worth £85 - ensuring your guitar plays to perfection - You can return the guitar in 6 and 12 months to have it reset!
Guitar shops do not want you to know HOW important a setup is. If they let you know this crucial fact you would soon realise how utterly pointless it is scrolling through page after page of acoustic guitars under £200 when NONE of them are setup pre sale - and if they SAY they do - they are most likely lying - because if they DID, they would be shouting it from the hill tops! Its a very expensive, time-consuming process, which high volume retailers do not have the resources to provide - so they dont mention it whilst appearing to offer you lots of choice.
If you want to test my advice, ask any other store you visit, how many of the guitar brands they are recommending actually MAKE the guitar they are selling? You will soon find out that probably NONE of them do. So to give you a sample.... Ibanez, Tanglewood, Sigma, Fender - all brand names you THINK would make guitars - but dont ACTUALLY make them in this case. They out source to what are called OEM manufacturers like Cort guitars who will produce the guitar with their brand name - and ship it to them - for them to pass on to dealers - who pass them on to you - the guitarist looking for the best acoustic guitar under £200!
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But think about it? How on Earth can a brand name, who has a large marketing budget, guitar endorsements to fund, who is having to pay an external manufacturer to produce their guitars and have them shipped to them - be as economical to produce and supply as a manufacturer who is selling their brand direct to the distributor or retailer? In simple terms - any manufacturer using an OEM producer will have to sell the guitar at a higher price than the OEM manufacturer selling their own brand direct.
OK - So the simple question therefore is how many manufacturers who produce OEM guitars also supply their guitars direct? Well I deal with both of the highest profile examples - Cort guitars and Fujigen guitars. Fujigen are made in Japan and renowned for their high end guitars and Cort guitars are the Worlds largest manufacturer in the mid price market.
Cort have technologies that most brands could only dream of and have put brands like Tanglewood guitars, Ibanez guitars, Fender guitars on the map when it comes to providing players affordable acoustic guitars - but ultimately the way to get most bang for your buck is.... to buy a CORT!!!
Acoustic Guitars Under $200
So now we have TWO vital pieces of advice that will save you so much pain and heart ache - as well as money.
What is the point of buying your first acoustic guitar under £200 only to then have to upgrade 6 months later because the guitar you have bought plays like a cheese grater?
The Cort Earth 60M has just been launched for 2023 and is INCREDIBLE and comes complete with our FREE professional setup (worth £85) as well as a 6 and 12 month check and reset at our workshop totally free of charge.
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I guarantee you that my ONE offering of a solid topped Cort acoustic guitar under £200 will play better than any other guitar you could buy elsewhere - will sound fantastic and be of the highest specification your budget can afford.
So? You want me to give you 50 other body shapes, colors, or brands to browse? I can't - because they are not my recommendation - for the reasons highlighted above - but should you wish to buy a more expensive guitar or a brand of lesser quality - we can of course have that guitar setup for you to a professional level for £85
Here is the Cort EARTH60M With its solid mahogany top this is an incredible guitar and with our professional setup included this is literally second to none...
Amazon.com: Epiphone Masterbilt J200 Jumbo Acoustic Electric, Aged Vintage Sunburst Gloss
I started selling guitars at the ripe ol' age of 22. If you are wondering - I am now 50 .... oh my..... One of the brands that impressed be in the early days was Tanglewood and it wasn't long befo...
I know many people who viist this page will want an answer - fast! So for you guys I will give you my top recommendations at the top of the page. If however you want to know more - please d...
For me - there is no difference between personal and business life - It is all my life. Interconnected and therefore highly personal. Every guitar I sell (EVERY) is one I can tell you the backstory - about the people who make them - the ethos of the brand and how they align with my own - they are a genuine personal recommendations based on 28 years in the industry.
The Best Acoustic Guitars In 2021 For Any Budget
With the industry dominated by marketing, hype, and blinkered brand loyalty - retailers focus on what they get asked for - with little effort in raising awareness of guitars that are better than the one you asked about. This leads to a lot of poor buying decisions!
Here is a quick introduction to the brands I often refer to as my babies but really you could simply refer to them as benchmarks. Check the prices - check the specs - check the quality and back story - and find me a brand that does it better - or even close. The fact is you cant buy a bad guitar from Richards Guitars - you will only find the best - set up to your personal requirements.
I have the honour and privilege to be Englands exclusive dealer for Dowina guitars. A completely unique approach to guitar building that blends passion, art and craft producing the most inspiring and wondrous acoustic guitars that represent so much more than the materials they are made from.
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I introduced Furch to to the UK over 20 years ago - with my good friend Keith Twine who has since retired.
At the time I was a leading supplier of brands such as Gibson, Martin & Taylor. Experiencing Furch guitars made me realize there is what you know and what you should know. Just because you DON'T - doesn't mean it doesn't exist!
What does all this mean? Forget what you think you know and open your mind to the possibility that you can find better - and we will guarantee you an experience you will never forget - with help from Furch and my other personal finds from over the decades.
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With an incredible Back story - A Truly Brtiish yet global brand utilising the shared skills of the Gordon Smith Team in England and a small boutique workshop in China - The result? Unbelievable quality that far surpasses that of recognised mass produced brands at the same price.
Originally known for their extraordinary quality, hand made arch tops - produced by violin makers - as their reputation spread they developed into the World of electric and acoustic guitar production which continue to be made by hand.
Eastman have now become a hugely dominant force in the Guitar World producing the best in class in any guitar genre they opt to focus on.
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I first became entwined with Gordon Smith in 1995 when I began selling
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