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Frankly this is not an area I have much experience in but I know a few of you gents have spent a fair bit of time with acoustic guitars.
I’m playing my sister down the aisle at her wedding in a month or so and I’m thinking a new acoustic with electrics in it is easier than retrofitting my somewhat average existing acoustic or getting a mic, preamp etc and dealing with wind noise (it’s at a beachfront property outdoors). I have a 10” alto powered speaker to play through and the wedding is only 40 people so it’s small enough that I think that’ll work, if not they have some larger speakers for later on which I could pinch.
It’s a fingerpicked tune normally played on a nylon stringed guitar but it seems to sound ok on a steel string acoustic.

If you were looking for an acoustic with electrics for under $1k (preferably well under), what would you look for?
My existing lowish end Ibanez artwood feels nice because the neck is slim, sort of a thin D shape much like my esp/Ltd electric guitars (but not wizard thin), it sounds pretty average though. A lot of acoustics I have picked up in the past have more of a baseball bat feel.
Has anyone played one of these Crafters? I’m in Auckland or I’d ask to try it out, it seems to tick a few boxes and be the right price. https://www.trademe.co.nz/music-instrum ... 729944.htm

Any thoughts would be much appreciated

I had a Crafter and, for the money, it was pretty good. I have never used it amplified though! Also, the neck was far from slim. You should check out the Godin family, i.e. Seagull, Simon & Patrick, Art & Lutherie... they all make some very good guitars around your price range. Isn't there a Rockshop in Auckland with a lot of acoustic guitars?

I have only ever tried 2 Crafters and both their necks were kinda similar. I think Music Planet stock them, perhaps you can check one out in the store?

I forgot about music planet, definitely worth a look I reckon - it looks like they have some of the same series in stock.
Normally I try to look second hand first but there’s stuff all around acoustic wise, the time of year probably doesn’t help.

I’d go for a used Maton
I sold my old EM325C for about $800 with Maton Hardcase. Loved it and had it for about 5 years only sold it to buy a Martin

KNNZ wrote:I’d go for a used Maton
I sold my old EM325C for about $800 with Maton Hardcase. Loved it and had it for about 5 years only sold it to buy a Martin

Something like this would be perfect I reckon, there just doesn’t seem to be much around on the used market.

That's becuase they are bloody good and people buy them and play them.

If I were you I'd buy a sound hole pickup and slap it in for the wedding. Will work just fine.

bbrunskill wrote: If I were you I'd buy a sound hole pickup and slap it in for the wedding. Will work just fine.

This is what I originally thought but there were a lot of options and then I slid into new guitar territory...

I might go to the acoustic shop and have a look tomorrow anyway, then I’ll have a better idea if my acoustic is average or I just need more practice fingerpicking.
Have you got any recommendations for a soundhole pickup? I don’t even know where to start, it seems like you can spend anywhere from ~150 to ~500

A used Maton is a good idea, or better still a used Cole Clark--which sometimes squeak in under $1k. Other things to look out for are:

Guild GAD series guitars
Top of the range Waldens
Epiphone Masterbuild


These are all solid wood guitar builds, made very well in China. They are great guitars, despite not being too expensive.

There's also a really nice Martin D17 on TM I think, for about $1.3k, which is a solid bargain.

Almost any old acoustic can sound great once you get an L.R Baggs Anthem pickup installed in it. I think they're about $400

mop wrote:

bbrunskill wrote: If I were you I'd buy a sound hole pickup and slap it in for the wedding. Will work just fine.

This is what I originally thought but there were a lot of options and then I slid into new guitar territory...

I might go to the acoustic shop and have a look tomorrow anyway, then I’ll have a better idea if my acoustic is average or I just need more practice fingerpicking.
Have you got any recommendations for a soundhole pickup? I don’t even know where to start, it seems like you can spend anywhere from ~150 to ~500

I have the LR Baggs M1 in one guitar. It works really well and sounds pretty good. About $200 from memory, but there's also a Fishman (think it's called the Neo) for more like $150 which I've heard used and that sounded good too

mop wrote:

KNNZ wrote:I’d go for a used Maton
I sold my old EM325C for about $800 with Maton Hardcase. Loved it and had it for about 5 years only sold it to buy a Martin

Something like this would be perfect I reckon, there just doesn’t seem to be much around on the used market.

I walked into Music Planet this morning intending to buy a new Martin LX1E and ended up walking out with a traded in Maton EMD.
For a Mini Acoustic I can't believe how good this thing sounds plugged in...and half the price of a new one. Matons are great guitars!

JohnG wrote:

mop wrote:

KNNZ wrote:I’d go for a used Maton
I sold my old EM325C for about $800 with Maton Hardcase. Loved it and had it for about 5 years only sold it to buy a Martin

Something like this would be perfect I reckon, there just doesn’t seem to be much around on the used market.

I walked into Music Planet this morning intending to buy a new Martin LX1E and ended up walking out with a traded in Maton EMD.
For a Mini Acoustic I can't believe how good this thing sounds plugged in...and half the price of a new one. Matons are great guitars!

which Music Planet is that? They trade in guitars?

KNNZ wrote:

JohnG wrote:

mop wrote:
Something like this would be perfect I reckon, there just doesn’t seem to be much around on the used market.

I walked into Music Planet this morning intending to buy a new Martin LX1E and ended up walking out with a traded in Maton EMD.
For a Mini Acoustic I can't believe how good this thing sounds plugged in...and half the price of a new one. Matons are great guitars!

which Music Planet is that? They trade in guitars?

It was Music Planet Takapuna. I was surprised too! Not sure if it was a one off thing.

bbrunskill wrote:

mop wrote:

bbrunskill wrote: If I were you I'd buy a sound hole pickup and slap it in for the wedding. Will work just fine.

This is what I originally thought but there were a lot of options and then I slid into new guitar territory...

I might go to the acoustic shop and have a look tomorrow anyway, then I’ll have a better idea if my acoustic is average or I just need more practice fingerpicking.
Have you got any recommendations for a soundhole pickup? I don’t even know where to start, it seems like you can spend anywhere from ~150 to ~500

I have the LR Baggs M1 in one guitar. It works really well and sounds pretty good. About $200 from memory, but there's also a Fishman (think it's called the Neo) for more like $150 which I've heard used and that sounded good too

Did some reading and ended up ordering the LR M1 and their para DI box when rockshop were having their sale. They’ve managed to send me the active M1A version by mistake, I assume the active version doesn’t make any sense given I’ll have the para DI between the guitar and speaker anyway? I’d have thought the preamp in the DI was better than what they put in the pickup?

Unless the M1A has any significant advantages I think I’ll send it back for the passive M1. Dangling the cable out of the sound hole with the passive M1 was the plan and removing the pickup when not using it, the M1A comes with a endpin jack that needs installing which isn’t that hard but it seems unnecessary for the odd time it will be used...

I think the A version is worth having anyway. It plugs in to any DI and sounds decent with no extra gear. I once flew into queenstown to play a wedding gig and forgot my Para DI - the M1a sounded fine into a super shitty random PA because it had the preamp built in