Guild D20 Review (2019): A Finely Crafted Acoustic

Body And Neck:
Hardware:
Sound:
Value:

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Guild is amongst the most highly regarded guitar builders in the industry. When you talk about a Guild guitar, you are talking about craftsmanship at its finest. We are looking at the popular D20 dreadnought acoustic guitar. It's certainly a beautiful guitar, but is there better acoustic guitar's available under $2,000? Let's find out.

Body and Neck

The D20 is a modern replication of the first-ever dreadnought guitar that Guild produced in 1967. The entire body and neck are constructed from solid mahogany that looks and feels as high-end as you'd expect. Mahogany is known for a warm tonal quality, and that compliments the dreadnought body shape perfectly. Guild has gone for a very thin satin finish leaving the D20 looking understated and vintage in tribute to its historic roots.

Rosewood has been used for the (20-fret) fingerboard, staying in tune with the guitar's minimalist image. The look is finished off with a tortoiseshell pickguard and pearl dot inlays. It looks like a high-end guitar without screaming ‘look at me!' Very nice indeed.

Hardware

The bridge, like the fingerboard, is made from rosewood and again stays true to the minimal vintage style of the D20. Combining the rosewood bridge with a bone saddle/nut and Guild's expertise, the D20 has a very nice, comfortable action. It also stays in tune incredibly well no matter what style you are playing, largely thanks to its scalloped X bracing. It's also thanks to its super reliable rosewood bridge and some lovely open-gear, 20:1 ratio tuners. The tuners are also vintage style, so no small detail has been missed in making the D20 look every bit the modern classic that it is.

Sound

The dreadnought body shape is so popular for its wide, deep body that enhances low frequencies to create a beautifully warm tone. The scalloped X bracing also helps increase the airflow, which further enhances the low frequencies.

What you end up with is an extremely balanced tone that's very warm, but not to the extent it becomes muddy at all. The rosewood bridge and fingerboard highlight the D20's harmonic overtones nicely, adding articulation to the warmth. There is plenty of power in the low/mid-range to drive your accompaniment, but what impressed us most is how articulate the D20 is when playing single-note lines (perfect for folky-fingerpicking).

It delivers a bold, classic dreadnought sound with lots of natural resonance from the beautiful mahogany tonewood. Guild has found that sweet spot of warmth and clarity that is a dream to play.

Conclusion

If you are after a high-end dreadnought acoustic guitar, Guild's D20 has it all. As far as pedigree goes, Guild is as widely respected as any guitar builder, and the D20 is one of their most successful models. The solid mahogany body with a satin finish looks reassuringly high-class with some lovely vintage touches.

It's a dream for any singer-songwriter; it has the warmth to accompany any solo performance and the clarity to cut through any mix. Whether you are a country, folk, blues, or pop musician, you won't be disappointed in the tone.

The D20 is a far cry from being a budget guitar, so it's up against models from guitar makers like Taylor and Martin. There may be more popular choices in the price range, but there's a lot to be said for being a little bit different. This guitar won't let you down.

For more info about the Guild D20, click here.

For more acoustic guitars under $2,000, click here.