Grateful Dead Music Forum

I was just wondering what y'alls favorite was, acoustic or electric? My favorite has to be acoustic because in my opinion acoustic guitars have a better sound.

Do we have to choose? I love both. I play electric way more than acoustic because of the band, but who doesn't love the campfire feeling and the time-gone-past feeling of picking up your acoustic just for shits and giggles? Everytime I pick up my acoustic I get a wave of emotion that "I'm gonna do something right now", I don't know why. But I love electric because of the grittiness to it and all the different sounds that I can make with the guitar/pedals/amp. Not to mention you can get really loud, which is just a primal thing in all of us, I think.

Currently I am playing a Flatiron Festival F mandolin and a Martin D-18 acoustic guitar the majority of the time. I also have a Fender Nashville Power Telecaster but it rarely will see the light of day.

I spent many years hauling the electric gear around, with the acoustic I like having no setup time.

I also have a Fender Nashville Power Telecaster but it rarely will see the light of day.

Then can I have it? Cuz, I'd play it all the time!

depends what i'm doing. i usually prefer acoustic. if i'm jamming w/ my buddy we'll usually stick to acoustic, maybe using an electric w/ some pedals. if i'm jamming w/ more people (bass, drums, etc., etc.) its gotta be electric or i can't even hear myself playing.

my electric collects dust.
im only break it out when jamming with other elctric instruments

my electric collects dust

Same here but in this case BOTH my electrics collect dust. Good thing their not real great. One's a First Act and that looks like a Les Paul and the other is a Harmoney and that one if I'm going to be playing electric is the one I go for first, and that one looks like a Strat. I also have two acoustics and they are a cheap Harmoney learners guitar and a real nice Ibanez Performance guitar. The latter is my pride and joy.

I'm acoustic as well. Playing electric doesn't really appeal to me much. Sometimes I'd like to have one to play along with Jerry and the boys, but it seems like such a pain in the ass. Guitar, pickups, amps, tubes, pedals, etc. etc. all these bits affect your sound. I'm just not into all that work (and $$) to get the sound I want. I just want to pickup and play.

I had to leave my amp and electric at my apartment in Montreal :(

I miss the loudness and thickness of tone that comes with amplified instruments but playing acoustic day to day has definitely rekindled my enthusiasm about it.

I find it helps to switch back and forth between acoustic and electric to keep your ears and hands interested.

Also, the majority of the time I write/attempt songs on my acoustic first because I can get a better feel for the chords and progressions and such, less modulation of tone.

That being said, I love both equally the same! Except when everyone's plugged in, then I love to get those tubes pumpin'

Gotta say I love my strat through my Marshall amplifier. I like being able to manipulate the sound and tone to my mood. But usually, I pick up the acoustic first, get warmed up and then switch it up and go electric.

At the moment(for the last 2-3 years) I am playing acousitc all the time, and getting out the electric on a Saturday night for a romp around to cut loose.

I love the electic, and I definately have more technical ability then on acoustic, but there is a certain feeling of nostalgia when jamming acoustically that doesn't happen for me on electric. Unfortunately, I'm in high school, and 'jamming' is still going down into someones's basement and cranking it up to deafening levels, and seeing who can play faster, so I don't often get to play acoustic with people as much as I'd like to.

I don't care too much for the acoustic just because it seems so much harder to play than the electric. I love the sound but after dusting it of recently it's almost like an entirely different instrument...just hard to get use to. Plus I hate having that fat ass body between me and the strings. Throws off my muscle memory completely when trying to play.What is cool about it is I think of stuff on the acoustic I don't do or try on the electric and vice versa.

I prefer the acoustic. I travel a lot and it's just easier to bring the guitar than lug around amps, etc. Since i travel, I never get a chance to play in bands, etc, so there's no need to compete for "who can be the loudest." I enjoy a nice peaceful acoustic jam. Even when I jam with old friends, it's usually one person on acoustic and one on electric, so the sound levels don't get out of control.

Now when I get a chance to play bass, it's different. Gotta plug in and let the bombs drop.

Electric definately... I've never really got into the whole acoustic thing. One day I hope too. But for now I just need all my 22 frets, low action, volume and tone control, and general smoothness.