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What is your priority when choosing a guitar:is it good sound or comfort of playing?
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01-31-2026 08:09 AM
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I think getting a good sound consistently requires comfort so you can get the most out of your technique.
I have really good vintage archtops. They all sounded way better after a refret and setup.
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Don’t’ forget guitar hold angle, sitting down verses standing. That makes a HUGE difference in comfort. That Jimmy Page guitar hero playing way down low is garbage.
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no priority, for me both are equally important. Sound & comfort!
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I’ve generally found full depth 17” archtops (and jumbo style flattops) uncomfortable. Ditto for the dreadnought size/shape (I had one one for many years that I pretty much gave up on playing). So I most likely would not buy any of those. However I’m willing to accept the gift of an L5 as an experiment to see if I can get used to it
, on the condition that I can sell it if I find it unbearable. Ditto for a pre-war D-28.
I also consider weight. I have a Les Paul that weighs just under 9 lbs, and that’s about the limit of what I can tolerate on a long gig or session. My other guitars are all lighter and noticeably less fatiguing after 2-3 hours of standing on a gig. I wouldn’t buy anything heavier, though I am also willing to accept the gift of an original 57-60 LP for the sake of science.
I have some preferences WRT to neck profile and fingerboard/nut width and radius, and usually don’t consider guitars outside of those. The standard exception for gifts/science applies here as well.
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Comfort. If i dont like playing it, it wont get played.
I find I can get a workable sound out of most common gear
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I have two Forshage "ergonomic" (i.e., "klein-style") guitars - one hollowbody and one solid - that are primarily designed for (seated) comfort, and the design is right on! They also sound fantastic, so "comfort and sound" both win! The hollowbody weighs under 5 lbs, so it's super-easy to play on long gigs standing up, as well!
I have sold wonderful-sounding guitars that were "uncomfortable" for me to play - usually something to do with the neck rather than the body - so I guess comfort is important. If I haven't liked the "sound" of a guitar, but liked the feel, I've explored new pickups or something, and that fixed the problem.
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What good is a comfortable guitar if it doesn't also sound good and vice versa.With the millions of guitars on the market there's zero reason why you can't find a guitar that has both traits.
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If it's uncomfortable, I don't play it much. I have multiple full-depth archtops that mostly live in a closet, because they're too deep to be comfortable for playing, even though they sound very good. These include an Epi ES-175 Premium and a 1953 New York Epiphone. I'm fortunate in having a ~2.5" deep 16" archtop that sounds wonderful to me. Wu got at least one right. I have another Wu that I don't play much. That Super 400 copy sounds very good, but it's so big that I just can't deal with it.
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I usually start at the output jack and work backwards from there.
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True, but we're guitar players, which is the perfect nexus of masochism and irrationality.
Originally Posted by nyc chaz
Last edited by John A.; 01-31-2026 at 07:07 PM.
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If you're gigging, you must have both. Your sound is your calling card, but you can't play consistently well for hours multiple days a week if you're uncomfortable. If you only play for an hour or less a few days a week at home, you might get away with sacrificing comfort for sound. But discomfort means that something about the instrument is not completely compatible with your physical capabilities. It may be size, angulation, weight, shape or other characteristic of any part - neck, body, back, edges, etc (of the guitar, not you). If you play enough with discomfort, it will often lead to physical problems like carpal tunnel compression, back problems, wrist pain, finger issues, and other repetitive use syndromes.
Like John A, my LP is an albatross around my neck. Mine actually weighs 10.5 pounds (it's a 7 string) and has been getting progressively more uncomfortable on 3+ hour gigs for several years even on a 4" strap. I haven't used it on a gig in about 2 years. That's one of the reasons I bnought a Tele that weighed 3 pounds less. I sold the Tele last year and now use a 14" Eastman El Rey that weighs about 5.5 pounds for the same gigs.
I put up with discomfort from a few guitars that played and sounded great (all long gone now) for years, and it was a mistake. I'd post the LP for sale, but there won't be many takers because it's been modded and simplified. It started life as an Epi LP7, but I've been playing "Frankenstein the luthier" for years on it. It's now a poor man's Benny with only a neck PU (EMG), and I filled the bridge rout as well as the extra control holes. If anybody's interested in buying it, PM me. It's a killer all purpose 7 string guitar, but any LP is too heavy for me at this point in my life. My ESP H-207 is also heavy (probably 8.5 to 9), and I haven't gigged with it for years. I bought it over 30 years ago, and it's still gorgeous - very well made, beautiful fit and finish, wonderful tones from 2 Duncan HBs. It's tolerably heavy, but the Tele and the El Rey are much more comfortable for me. I haven't sold it only because it was my first 7 string and I'm nostalgic about it. There were a few others (now all long gone) that I played despite discomfort of various kinds. That was a mistake.
I can't prove that my herniated discs are from this, but it certainly didn't help. If you're uncomfortable, your body is trying to tell you something. Ignore it at your peril.Last edited by nevershouldhavesoldit; 01-31-2026 at 01:19 PM.
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If you don't have both, you should not have bought that guitar.
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I have 5 Archtops all slightly different shapes and sizes. The most comfortable happens to sound the best of the bunch and that's my L4CES. The placement of the waist, the smaller upper bout puts it in a just right playing position. You results may vary depending on your body shape and size.
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^^^^^ This! Originally Posted by JazzNote
A great sounding guitar that is not comfortable is a deal killer.
A wonderfully comfortable guitar that doesn't hit it out of the ballpark soundwise, is also a deal killer.
Comfort goes beyond ergonomics or dimensions. It also includes things like string tension and even cosmetics. To perform in public, I have to be confident in both my playing and my appearance. It may sound vain (or even somewhat insecure), but a pink guitar would not be comfortable for me. That said, it is all about my perception of myself. At one point, I used a Flying V on jazz gigs (it wasn't pink though
).
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Ten years of the ‘68 hand crusher doesn’t seem to be a dealbreaker. I guess I’m a tone guy?
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There are advantages to being a piano player. See guitar, play guitar.
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The last time I prioritized sound and ignored comfort, I ended up regretting it. I used to think I liked big archtops, I've since re-discovered that 16" size works better for me, and a slimmer neck.
All guitars are a trade-off, the trick is to find the one that the down sides don't bother you.
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Then again, Oscar Peterson had a Bosendorfer grand shipped to every concert venue he played anywhere in the world. And we think we have trouble finding gig bags for our big guitars...... Originally Posted by 2bornot2bop
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An Imperial Grand no less!!! 290 cm long and 97 keys! Originally Posted by nevershouldhavesoldit
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I play an old Strat I ordered new from Fender 38 years ago; a new model with the first Lace sensors that had not appeared at the dealers yet, so it was ordered with feel unplayed, sound unheard, sight unseen. It was a wonderful "choice". Originally Posted by kris
Those that perform know well that sound means two things; what is heard by the audience and what you hear on stage. When your sound out front is just right it may sound kind of dull and thud-like to yourself because of amp placement, masking from other instruments, and general environment elevated noise floor. Musical discrimination of pitch and chord type recognition both enjoy increased intelligibility when the sound you hear is a crispy treble tone, so it's tempting to adjust up. It takes a while to learn how to hear it on stage and not do that.
For those whose straps are a source of discomfort you might try running it out over the corner of your shoulder. This is close to the way the old straps were tied to the head behind the nut.
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Playability
playability
playability
comfort
sound
Why sound last? Plug damn near anything into a good tube amp or a polytone, and it'll get the job done. But if I can't play what I hear...
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I have accepted that some guitars are vibey, cool, great sounding and worth the labor for the lack of comfort. Others might play effortlessly but have limited sound. Some one trick ponies, some mega versatile...etc. On occasion, there are those who have it all for the gig at hand or for the current musical life-cycle I am in. I have really paired down this past year to just under 30 instruments that I really love. Some, like archtops or stock vintage tele types are not very comfortable overall - they can hurt ribs or under the forearm. But again, it's worth the labor. As a direct answer, I say both sound and comfort are of equal relevance for me, but vibe and spirit, for short term use, is probably most relevant.
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Not entirely unrelated. I definitely play better and enjoy it more when the guitar feels like an extension of my hands and not a foreign object.
When I encounter a new guitar, even hanging up in GC, the first thing I do is put my hand around the neck. If it doesn't feel good, I don't care how it sounds.
If it does feel good, then I'm very intersted in how it sounds and, to some extent, how it might be made to sound better.
Just today, I practiced a few hours with my Yamaha Pacifica 012 (cheapest electric they make afaik). It doesn't sound quite as good as my Comins GCS-1, but the neck feels terrific in my hand.
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Comfort, but even more so lately. I had neck surgery in November and found that afterwards I need a completely different body position to play more than a couple songs. My Tacoma archtop fits that sweet spot very nicely, but I think my '89 Ibanez AS100 will be going on the market soon. Weight is too much standing and I can't get comfortable sitting with it. The older I get the more comfort wins out.
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