UPDATE: My Soul at war over Martin HD-28 or Taylor 717BE, NEW WHB wins!

[Corbis 12]

Reposting this here for Taylor/ GP/717 fans

My soul had been at war over the choice between a Martin HD-28, and Taylor 717 BE for over a month.

Bought the 717 unseen about a month ago, (was fascinated, had to order to play one, partly based on recommendations from this site, but had 30-45 days to decide) and took it back almost daily to play against a HD-28 I liked/loved that I just happen to play as an afterthought as they unboxed my Taylor.

Played both against each other for hours, days, even weeks, bugging every person who walked by for their opinion and comments.

The Martin had lighter gauge strings, was easier to play and had that Martin bottom end, and of course I have not one bad thing to say about it (who knows, it might be my next guitar), but...

The 717 just continues to blow me away everyday. It has an incredible sweet sound everywhere I touch it, and the even intonation with the compound carve neck is the best I have ever played. Still has the elixirs on it, but going to put the Santa Cruz mid tension phosphor bronze strings on it next.

The Martin HD-28 no longer calls me, for now, but I know one day I might have to have one.......

pic with my 5 year old 322

[Strumming Fool]

That's quite a testimonial for a "new kid on the block", especially when pitted against the venerable HD-28 (my first "real" guitar). Sounds as if they're both great guitars, but your preference should be king at this time! Enjoy!

[madx2]

Congrats to you.  It sounds like you have found your keeper.

Just to show that we are all different, I had the opposite experience.  I bought a 717 BE but it didn't have the bass I was looking for.  I have a 2013 DN7 and it wasn't different enough for me to keep it.  I sent it back and swapped it for a 2018 HD-28V.  It has the sound I have been looking for and just love it.

 Vive la difference

[Corbis 12]

I was you every other second about the bass!! It could have gone either way, and I would have been happy, no way to lose here.

Been playing guitar for about 40 years, and have owned many Taylors and Martins through the years, grand concerts, ooo's, om's but never dreadnaughts. Always been a Taylor fan, so wanted to try these new sizes.

The V bracing threw me for days, trying to figure out what is was doing differently. It does seem to grab some of the low end, but I love what it does to the rest of the guitar.

If anybody else wants to illuminate me on the V bracing thing, go ahead, what love to hear your thoughts.

[zeebow]

that’s awesome. the grand pacifics get a lot of love. i agree, the V class robs a lot of bass. haven’t found a GA body V class that speaks to me, but i think i am fortunate to own some amazing grand concert x braces cocobolo guitars that i will never, ever part with.

haven’t tried a V class grand concert yet. the grand pacifics are a tad too big for me. a 327might give more warmth, although it will most likely be more mellow as well, relative to the 717

[jklemm18]

I absolutely love my 717 BE (no electronics).  When i got it I sold my 310 and 000-15m.  Every time i pick it up i smile. I had Nickel Bronze strings on it for a while but just switched to Didarrio PB's at first I thought it sounded horrible but after a couple of days its great.  I think I will stick with these strings.  Between this and my mini hog i feel i have my bases covered.  (Would love a 712 someday though)

[xtremearmor]

Congrats first off!  No wrong choice that's for sure.  What struck me was you saying the hd-28 was easier to play.  Who'd have thought that???  I think Martin has upped their game in that respect, but is it really just about the string gauge?

[Corbis 12]

The Martin was easier to play then older Martins I've had, and I like their new necks a lot. (are they new?)

The HD-28 has a slightly shorter scale length (24.4 vs 24.5 for the 717), so not sure how to take that into consideration, or if it even makes a difference.  The lighter gauge strings on the Martin made it hard to get an "apples to "apples" compare. Even with the lighter gauge strings, it still had more bass than the Taylor, but fell in love with the 717.

[madx2]

About the Martin being easier to play...

The action of my new HD-28V was higher than what I was used to with my Taylor.  After about a month I still wasn't getting used to it so I had the action lowered to that of my DN7. Made all the difference in the world. 

[GP517]

I was you every other second about the bass!! It could have gone either way, and I would have been happy, no way to lose here.

Been playing guitar for about 40 years, and have owned many Taylors and Martins through the years, grand concerts, ooo's, om's but never dreadnaughts. Always been a Taylor fan, so wanted to try these new sizes.

The V bracing threw me for days, trying to figure out what is was doing differently. It does seem to grab some of the low end, but I love what it does to the rest of the guitar.

If anybody else wants to illuminate me on the V bracing thing, go ahead, what love to hear your thoughts.

Congratulations on a beautiful guitar! I took delivery of a 517 BE last March, and my experience is that the V-class bracing needs considerable playing time to start to open up. I began to hear a more sophisticated tone after about a month, and at six months I was starting to get noticeably more bass and clearer trebles. At 9 months, I am absolutely in love with this instrument! My perception is that the V-class bracing is very sensitive to input. Although I love the warm, woody tone I was getting with the micarta saddle, I decided to try a MacNicol bone saddle a couple of weeks ago. I immediately noticed a bump up in overall volume and the bass was definitely more prominent. I then conducted a test where I swapped the micarta and bone saddles back and forth using the same set of strings, and comparing the tone of each. To my ear, the bone saddle turned my very good GP 517 into an even more amazing tone monster. If you eventually decide that you would like a bit more bass, I would certainly recommend giving a bone saddle a try.

[Corbis 12]

Great suggestion, thx!

[AmericanEagle]

You can’t go wrong with a Taylor. I have 2, and if I had the money I’d buy another.

[Corbis 12]

Ok so this weird thing happens. I take my Taylor 717e BE in to have the strings changed, and to play against the Martin HD-28 one last time, one final check before I have to keep one or can exchange.

So this new 717 WHB is sitting there (I've only played mine), and I pick it up to play against the HD-28, thinking I'll get a better sound with the newer strings (mine are a month old), and therefore a better comparison.

WOW. The 717 WHB (with no electronics) sounded so much better than my month old 717e. I immediately took back to the guitar tech, and we were both astounded at the difference.

We switched the strings on my older 717, but STILL the 717 WHB sounded sooo much better.  We, and everyone in the store were just blown away by the difference. The tech thought that the newer guitar just had a better voiced top, as the older one's grain was more spaced apart (he had been told that closer grain sounds better). I'm wondering if the e2 pickup inside is doing something bad or blocking sounds waves with the new V bracing.

I loved the look of my older 717, not a huge fan of the WHB, but I switched and I think I finally found a keeper.

You really have to play different models of the same guitar to find the one perfect for you.

[Strumming Fool]

Well I'm a sucker for a nice burst, so I'm kind of glad you made the change. You can always have a nice after market pickup system installed if you like. Not a fan of the ES2 anyway..

[TaylorGirl]

I'm not typically a fan of bursts, but that burst is down right classy.  Beautiful!