Okay, I LOVE the sound of acoustic guitar. Don't get me wrong, electric is excellent to the Bill and Ted-th degree, but I'm looking to expand my songwriting potential with a nicer acoustic that the cheap First Act one I've had since 7th grade. Here is my main issue: body width. Mine is a good 4 or 5 inches wide, but what would be the THINNEST possible acoustic guitar that would still give off good sound?

a parlour acoustic i guess?

Well my Malibu is good. Not quite the Martin complexity of overtone, but a nice ring to it, in that vein. And it's body angle makes it way more comfortable than any other I've tried. I'm predominantly a electric player, used to strat comfort levels. My Mali' does fine in the week though. It comes in the best of colours

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No no and no

If you want "acceptable" acoustic sound (you're never going to sound like a Guild Jumbo with one), look for something like a Line 6 Variax acoustic, Gibson songwriter traveller, Ovation shallow bowl or Taylor T-x. All sound far better plugged in, but you can play them and hear them quite well acoustically. All are between about an inch and a half deep and 2 inches and a fraction deep. I had a Variax, but when I performed with it through an amp, it was always noisy (bought it used), so sold it. It was extremely comfortable to play. I'm sure there are others.

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2002 mim Telecaster
Jimmie Vaughan Stratocaster
Mexican HSS Stratocaster
6 non-fender guitars
2 kids (not for sale)
1 wife (uh....no comment)

Definitely try out the Taylor T-5 series. A T-5 classic came into our shop last week, and man, I want it so bad.....

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Kid: "Hey Smokey! Where did you get your name?"
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(former user jimbo612)

Depends on what you mean by a good acoustic sound.

All the ones mentioned by JAck are good enough but remember, generally, the thinner the guitar, the less 'full' it will sound and will tend to give a much more 'trebly' sound.

I have played several shallow bowl guitars and they just don't give you a good acoustic sound in my humble opinion. For me a good acoustic sound is one that lets all the fequencies ring through.

WHy do you want a thin acoustic?

It also depends on your budget and style. I think you mentioned on your previous thread that you have a limited budget...........

IN that case then Ovation, Taylor and Gibson are out....as is to be honest Variax.
The only budget end thinner acoustic I can think of that has a decent sound acoustically are teh Yamaha APX series. THey are roughly 3-4 inches deep but the thing I loved about mine - I had APX 3, 5 and 12 at one point - was that the neck is very similar feeling to an electric. THey are small bodied - grand concert - and very light weight and retail over here, for the 3 series, at about £200-£250 new. PLugged in they do need a decent EQ but for messing around they are great, especially if you get one 2nd hand.

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speak slowly I'm a drummer too!!

And I proudly lack a stick or a kazoo up my arse...........

A Stratacoustic or Telecoustic are only about 2 1/2" deep and have a surprisingly good sound for their slim bodies and both sound absolutely fabulous when amplified.

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'65 Strat,65 Mustang,65 Jaguar,4 more Strats,3 vintage Vox guitars,5 Vox amps,'69 Bassman with a '68 2-15 Bassman cab,36 guitars total-15asst'd amps total,2 vintage '60s Hammond organs & a myriad of effects-with a few rare vintage ones.

It's a tough balance. If you want a good acoustic sound that will project, you need some body depth. The inexpensive, thin, acoustic/electrics never really did it for me. I just found they didn't do either all that well. That's just me though and everyone's entitled to their opinions. I know people who play Martin Backpacker guitars and are happy with them. Some of the Epiphone Masterbuilt Series are pretty nice and not too deep. They're made out of wood, Sitka Spruce tops, mahogany back and sides,not laminates. They start somewhere around $499. Personally, I'd go with an all wood guitar. I've seen lots of problems with the Martin HPL/High Pressure laminate backs too. The HPL back Martins are made in Mexico. Also, Fender was never really a big player in the acoustic guitar arena. They always seemed to lack something that I could never put my finger on.

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Life...... It's sexually transmitted and always fatal

yah the taylor is a little pricey... I'm hoping cash flow will be good the next couple of months (one can dream eh?)

We have a couple of those yamaha's mentioned by pappawookie too, and they're pretty good, epecially for the $.

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Kid: "Hey Smokey! Where did you get your name?"
Smokey the Bear: "Well..."
(former user jimbo612)

+1 Way more.

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Life...... It's sexually transmitted and always fatal

I'd have to agree with the Yamaha APX. All of my HaleAmano songs have been written with mine. Nice sound unplugged and plugged in. It's been probably the most significant guitar I own. Every song I write starts with the APX.

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HaleAmano- House Of Sharks (Now On iTunes)
http://www.reverbnation.com/haleamano
http://www.haleamano.com

A few things:
Uno) I want a thinner body for an acoustic due to my...how to put it...sub-par skills.
Zwei) Honestly, it would STILL sound better than my current acoustic.
Trois) Would a slide still work with a thinner acoustic?

This acoustic is only 3 inches wide Bro:
http://www.fender.com/products/search.p ... 0968400009

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you can save the world with your guitar one love song at a time it's just better, more fun, easier with a fender solid body electric guitar or electric bass guitar.

Don't confuse body depth with ease of play.................just because it 'feels' more like an electric does not make it easier to play and, basically, you can't compare playing an electric and acoustic they are COMPLETELY different animals!!!!

If you look at some of the budget priced Applause shallow bowls (really narrow) they have nasty necks and are pretty uncomfortable to play. A decent, playable neck makes even the widest bodies totally playable. CHeck out high end guitars to confirm this, Taylor, Martin, Gibson etc..............big, fat guitars but great necks 'cancel out' the size of the body. That's why I suggested the Yamahas..........they do have narrower bodies but have great, fast necks and are 'real' guitars.

I have always found that the neck is the main thing with playability in acoustics and that determines whether I go for Dreadnought, Grand Auditorium, JUmbo etc. I have my preferred body style but this matters far less to me in acoustic than it does in electric.

I currently play Freshman acoustics and the two i play are Grand COncert size (closer to parlour size guitar but slightly 'fatter') but my next acoustic aquisition will be a JImmy Moon Dreadnought because the neck is like silk and the tones are gobsmacking.

PLay as many as you can if you don't have a preference and you will instantly notice the difference between the really shallow bodied guitars and the ones with a bit of depth.

BTW a slide wil work with pretty much any guitar but, as has been said, the narrower bodies give much more high end so the slide does tend to 'screech'a bit more especially metal slides so you would be better with a glass one.

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speak slowly I'm a drummer too!!

And I proudly lack a stick or a kazoo up my arse...........

For slide you're going to need a little higher action or the string rattle will sound horrible. A thin body acoustic will always sound pretty weak acoustically. No box, no depth or complexity to the tone. As the previous member said, thinner won't be any easier to play. A little more comfortable, but not easier. The neck and action will determine that.
If you're just going to plug it in to a guitar amp and not an amp designed for acoustic guitar, I wouldn't worry too much about it. All my acoustics are pretty old and all made of solid woods. They were pretty cheap way back. They sound great and sound better as they get older. No electronics. I just mic them if I do anything acoustic when I play out.

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Life...... It's sexually transmitted and always fatal