The Best Acoustic Guitars

The top, or soundboard, does most of the singing. Guitar Player explains that a solid top is one continuous piece of wood, which typically brings more volume, sustain and harmonic complexity, and can improve with age. Laminate is thin layers glued together: less resonant, but more tolerant of humidity changes and knocks.

That gives a simple ladder. Under $300, look for a solid top with laminate back and sides, as on the Fender CD-60S, Yamaha FG800 and Fender CP-60S; Guitar Player calls that pairing the sensible compromise. Closer to $700, the top itself gets finer: the Yamaha LL6 ARE uses a solid Engelmann spruce top treated with Yamaha's A.R.E. process, over rosewood back and sides.

Guitar Player describes spruce as bright, clear and punchy with a wide dynamic range, and darker tops such as mahogany as woodier, with a warmer midrange. Five of the six guitars here use spruce, and the Taylor GS Mini Mahogany is the mahogany voice. Cedar, another common top, is warmer still, though none of the guitars here uses it.

Don't overthink it, though. University of Rock's advice is not to obsess over tonewoods, and it is sound. Comfort and a good setup change how a guitar sounds in your hands more than the species of its top.

Guitar Player sums up the shapes well. A dreadnought is loud with strong bass, ideal for strumming. An auditorium shape is more balanced and articulate, good for fingerstyle. A parlor is small and punchy, with less bass and plenty of clarity, suited to blues and home recording. Smaller players, the guide adds, may never get comfortable on the biggest bodies.

In this list, the Fender CD-60S and the Yamaha FG800, FGX800C and LL6 ARE are full-size dreadnoughts. The Fender CP-60S is a true parlor with a 24.75-inch scale, and the Taylor GS Mini is the most compact, with a 23 1/2-inch scale.

Only if you will play through a PA or amp, or want to record by plugging straight in. Guitar Player's view is that home players who don't record can do without, though a factory-fitted pickup has little downside. Two guitars here have one.

The Yamaha FGX800C's SYSTEM66 preamp includes a built-in tuner and three-band EQ, a useful combination for a first gigging guitar. The Yamaha LL6 ARE's SRT Zero Impact pickup is passive, with no preamp cut into the side, so tone shaping happens at the amp or PA.

Solid woods react more to humidity than laminate. Guitar Player recommends humidifying solid-wood guitars, preferably with a purpose-made soundhole or case humidifier rather than a damp sponge. Guitar Center's advice is simpler still: keep the guitar in a case with a humidifier, and never leave it in a car.

Budget for a setup, too. Guitar Player notes that mid- and low-priced acoustics are less likely to arrive with a thorough setup, and that adjusting the action, nut and saddle can transform how easily chords ring out.

A well-set-up acoustic rewards slow listening. If you love fingerpicked steel strings in open tunings, our slack-key guitar recordings make a gentle companion to practice.

• The safe default: Fender CD-60S, a solid-top dreadnought for about $230.
• The classic alternative: Yamaha FG800, the same idea for about $50 more.
• Plugging in on a budget: Yamaha FGX800C, the FG800's sibling with a cutaway and preamp.
• Small body, small budget: Fender CP-60S parlor.
• Travel, sofa or smaller hands: Taylor GS Mini Mahogany.
• One guitar to keep for years: Yamaha LL6 ARE, a treated solid Engelmann spruce top with a pickup.