Cheapish 12 String Acoustic

I've got an old Martin D18 high-strung (no, it's not stressed out) . . . and that blended with a 6 string outperforms a 12 by a country mile and then some. 12 strings tend to sound like mush.

But as for cheap? Ever tried out one of those Seagull 12s? They sound pretty good for the money. and for ones that actually work, there's the Guild and the D28-12

My buddy Will Kimbrough brings a Recording King Dirty 30 12 string to the studio and it does the job. I think of the "budget" brands they are really nice. But if you were thinking $6-800 like a Taylor 150 you might find a used Guild JF30 in that range (if you want a Jumbo) or a D25-12 or D212 (if you want a dreadnaught) or F112 or F212 (if you want a concert size).

I use an old Seagull S12. Cheap and sounds pretty ok!

I'd grab one of those cheap Martins. They sound quite good.

It doesn't matter, just get the cheapest one, it still sounds better than any other "less expensive" brand like Seagull.

I know it’s not as desirable as a higher quality Martin or Taylor would be, but I’m telling you, those cheap Martin sounds damn good, better than any other off brand 12 strings I’ve come across. My friend has a Bedell 12 string that sounds pretty good, but it’s pricey and still not as good as the Taylor’s or Martin’s.

Firstly, much respect to your knowledge of guitars.

In the tele world I have tried a lot of different neck configurations, to find our what i like, so i know what you mean regarding finger boards impact on tone.

I am not an expert on richlite in any sense, I only have one guitar with richlite and that is a Martin D16. I really like the sound of it, to the point that i almost never think about it being synthetic. I got it for half price and use it primarily for gigging. At this price point they would be using some type of wood they stained dark and like to call "rosewood". Overall, ebony is my preferred option and I wouldn't be happy with richlite on a $5000.00 or even $1500.00 dollar guitar.

So only Roger/Jim Mcguinn at this point?

Slightly off topic - but every time I think my electric 12 string is going to work on a song it takes about 2 mins of playing and back in the case it goes. Not really sure why I still have it.

Kind of belongs in the same category as my Wah Pedal.

And THAT is why I never bought an electric 12 string. Very esoteric usages. Even the acoustic will most likely be used sparingly. But yeah - I’m just getting to a point after 20 years of doing this that I can hear a demo of something and go “that would never work for me...been down that road.”

I have three of them. A 12 string strat, a Rick 620/12 and a Gretsch 6120 double-neck.

The 12$ Strat sounds ok if it's the only thing in the mix. Blend it with anything else and it disappears.

The Ricky sounds ok on its own but shines in a mix!

The Gretsch really works when you let the 6 neck drone whilst playing the 12.

I wish I had the patience when playing lead that Mike Campbell does.  He never overplays.  His leads are spectacular and excruciatingly difficult in their simplicity.   He and J. J. Cale piss me off to no end.  🤣