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Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural
Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String
VS
Playability
73
Sound
85
Build
72
Value
77
Score
77
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Playability
78
Sound
88
Build
94
Value
72
Score
87
FIND IT ON:
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Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural vs Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String Specs Comparison
Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String
General
Brand: Guild Gibson
Year: 2018 2021
Strings: 12 12
Made in: China United States
Series: Westerly Collection Modern Acoustic
Colors: Natural Sunburst
Left-Handed Version: No No
Body
Type: Hollowbody Hollowbody
Body Material: Solid Sitka Spruce Solid Sitka Spruce
Sides Material: Rosewood Mahogany
Back Material: Rosewood Mahogany
Bridge: Rosewood Reverse Belly, Rosewood
Neck
Neck Joint: Set Set
Tuners: Guild G-ShieldCompact Closed Gear Grover Mini Rotomatic
Fretboard: Rosewood Indian Rosewood
Neck Material: African Mahogany Mahogany
Decoration: 5mm Dots - Mother-Of-Pearl Mother of Pearl Dots
Scale Size: 25.5" 24.75"
Shape: Acoustic Guild Westerly Collection Acoustic Slim Taper
Thickness: 1st Fret: 0.787'' (20mm) - 12th Fret: 0.906'' (23mm) 1st Fret: - 12th Fret:
Frets: 20 Medium Nickel Silver 20 Medium Nickel Silver
Fretboard Radius: 16" 12"
Nut: Bone Bone
Nut Width: 47.6mm (1.875'') 47.6mm (1.875'')
Electronics
Pickups: LR Baggs VTC (Preamp / Active)
Hardware
Strap Lock: No No
Hardware Color: Nickel Nickel

Reasons to Get
Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural over Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String

Paint Finish
Poly vs Nitro
Resistant paint that ages well
Scale Length
25.5'' (647.7mm) vs 24.75'' (628.7mm)
Lower action and brighter natural tone
Fretboard Radius
16'' (406.4mm) vs 12'' (304.8mm)
Flatter fretboard makes it easier to play single notes and bend
Value Score
77 vs 72
Better price/quality relationship

Reasons to Get
Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String over Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural

Country of Manufacturing
United States vs China
Built with higher quality standards
Release Year
2021 vs 2018
From a more recent year
Pickups Brand
LR Baggs vs None
Pickups from a renown brand
Paint Finish
Nitro vs Poly
Thin finish that creates aging marks faster
Scale Length
24.75'' (628.7mm) vs 25.5'' (647.7mm)
Easier bending, shorter fret separation and warmer natural tone
Fretboard Radius
12'' (304.8mm) vs 16'' (406.4mm)
Easier to play chords without muting strings
Avg. Weight
4.8lbs (2.2kgs) vs 5.5315lbs (2.5kgs)
Tends to be lighter

Other Key Differences
Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural vs Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String

Back Material
Rosewood vs Mahogany
Different Back Material
Sides Material
Rosewood vs Mahogany
Different Sides Material
Saddle Material
Bone vs Ivory Tusq
Different Saddle Material
Bridge Material
Rosewood vs Reverse Belly, Rosewood
Different Bridge Material

Shared Features
Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural vs Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String

Body Wood
Spruce
Same Body Wood
Neck Wood
Mahogany
Same Neck Wood
Fretboard Wood
Rosewood
Same Fretboard Wood
Headstock
6-6
Same Headstock
Nut Material
Bone
Same Nut Material
Strings
12
Same playing style
Body Type
Hollowbody
Warm tone, lighter and acoustic sound
Switch Positions
0
Same pickups versatility
Volume Knobs
0
Same volume control
Tone Knobs
0
Same tone control
Number of Frets
20
Same maximum octave
Nut Width
1.875'' (47.6mm)
Same string separation at the nut
Bridge
Fixed
Good sustain and needs no set-up
Neck Profile Type
C
Comfortable neck that works for most people
Type of Frets
Medium
You'll feel the fretboard when pressing down the strings

Common Strengths

  • Solid Top Wood
  • Solid Side Wood
  • Solid Back Wood
  • High-Quality Nut
  • Expensive Wood

Common Weaknesses

  • Pickup Alter Switch/Knob
  • Locking Tuners
  • High-Quality Frets
  • Compound Radius Fretboard
  • Luminescent Sidedots
  • Strap Lock
  • 21:1 Tuner Ratio
  • Active/Passive Preamp

Price History Comparison

Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural Prices

SET PRICE ALERT

Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String Prices

SET PRICE ALERT

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Hand Size Comfortability

After taking into account the scale length, nut width, neck profile and fretboard radius, we can conclude that both favor small hands .

Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural:
Big Hands
Small Hands
Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String:
Big Hands
Small Hands

Beginner Friendliness

Both meet 3 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness. This takes into account the type of frets, scale length, nut width, bridge type, fretboard radius, and neck profile to determine the easiest combination for new players. If you're looking for your first guitar to learn how to play, you can't go wrong with either of them.

New Player Friendliness

Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural
  • Easy-to-use bridge
  • Tall frets
  • Comfortable neck
  • Comfortable shape
  • Comfortable fretboard
  • Narrow nut
  • Short scale
  • Soft Strings
  • Locking tuners

New Player Friendliness

Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String
  • Easy-to-use bridge
  • Tall frets
  • Comfortable neck
  • Comfortable shape
  • Comfortable fretboard
  • Narrow nut
  • Short scale
  • Soft Strings
  • Locking tuners

Sound Quality Comparison

The most important thing that will determine the tone of an acoustic guitar is the wood. Let's take a look at the differences between both .

Woods Used in Both

Mahogany wood pattern used for guitar building
Mahogany
Rosewood wood pattern used for guitar building
Rosewood
Spruce wood pattern used for guitar building
Spruce

Mahogany is a fairly rare wood nowadays. It's used mostly for bodies due to its relatively lightweight. Gibson popularized it with their Les Paul guitars during their golden years, so this wood has a lot of good reputation behind it. The most expensive type comes from South America and it's still used by Gibson even today. Find out more about Mahogany.

Rosewood is an almost purple-looking wood that is used mainly for fretboards since it's heavy, rare, and expensive. It's sometimes used on acoustic guitar bodies to create stronger warm tones. Find out more about Rosewood.

Spruce has a light color with tight grain patterns. It's very stiff but relatively light. It's known for producing a well-rounded tone with a broad dynamic range. Find out more about Spruce.

Winner: Tie.

Electronics

The Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String comes with a preamp that allows you to connect it to an amp, unlike its competitor. This allows it to have more versatility and sound quality if you want to record with it or play live.

Winner:Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String.

Final Sound Quality Scores

Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural
Sustain 90
Versatility 80
Tuning Stability 70
Sound 85
Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String
Sustain 95
Versatility 85
Tuning Stability 70
Sound 88

Build Quality Comparison

When it comes to build quality, we like to take into account everything used to build the instrument. This includes materials, hardware and the quality control expected depending on the country where it was built. Let's see how the Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural compares to the Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String.

Country of Origin

The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. The Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural is built in China while the Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String is made in United States.

China has a bad reputation when it comes to building quality. However, times have changed and now respectable brands use China's cheap labor to build good instruments for a lower price. Don't discount a guitar only because it was built in China, but also expect more quality from countries like Korea.

The United States is considered one of the best electric guitar manufacturers in the world. A guitar made in this country is supposed to have world-class quality control. Nowadays, guitars made in other countries can beat some of the ones made in the US, but most of the time, this country offers the best you can get. Of course, that comes at a price.

Winner: Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String

Nut Material

If you want your guitar to stay in tune and sound good, you need a well cut nut. Nut quality can be inconsistent even when comparing two copies of the same model. The best way to make sure you're nut will be well done is by getting a nut made by an expert company like TUSQ or Micarta.

In this case, both have Bone nuts. It's a type of nut found in high-quality instruments. They sound similar to Ivory since they give a lot of sustain and a bright sound (at least when striking open strings). The only problem they can run into is that you may get a bone piece that simply doesn't sound as well as others because that's just how natural materials are.

Fret Material

Most fret wire is made of nickel silver. This material eventually wears down after a lot of use and most instruments end up needing a complete fret replacement. However, some expensive models come with stainless steel frets. This is what you should aim for if you can afford it.

Unfortunately, none of them come with stainless steel frets.

Winner: Tie.

Tuners

Both come with regular tuners. The Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural's are Guild G-ShieldCompact Closed Gear while the Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String's are Grover Mini Rotomatic

Winner: Tie.

Here is the list of features that were considered when choosing the winner in the Features subcategory:

Strengths & Weaknesses
Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural
  • Expensive Wood
  • Bone Nut
  • Bone Saddle
  • Solid Top Wood
  • Solid Side Wood
  • Solid Back Wood
  • Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
  • No Locking Tuners
  • Made in China
  • No Top Brand Pickups
  • No Electronics
  • No Compound Radius Fretboard
  • No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
  • No Strap Lock
Strengths & Weaknesses
Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String
  • Made in United States
  • Expensive Wood
  • Bone Nut
  • Top Brand Pickups
  • Electronics
  • Ivory Tusq Saddle
  • Solid Top Wood
  • Solid Side Wood
  • Solid Back Wood
  • Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
  • No Locking Tuners
  • No Compound Radius Fretboard
  • No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
  • No Strap Lock

Final Build Quality Scores

Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural
Quality of materials 86
Features 65
Quality Control 65
Build Quality 72
Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String
Quality of materials 96
Features 85
Quality Control 100
Build Quality 94

Playability Comparison

Let's now compare their playability. Bear in mind that the instrument will feel different depending on your hand size and play style. That's why you should always test before buying. But if you can't or want a second opinion on it, we can still take a look at each of the important measurements of the instrument for you. This way, we can predict how easy a guitar might be to play, or how different it will feel compared to the other.

Remember that, even though the difference might seem small, every inch counts when it comes to feeling of the instrument in your hands. Any variation can completely change how comfortable a guitar feels in your hands.

Nut Width

Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural Nut Width
Both Guitars Have The Same Nut Width

The nut width will affect the separation between strings at the nut. In this comparison, both have a nut width of 47.6mm (1.875'').

This is within the most common range of nut widths for a 12-string guitar. It offers a good balance of string separation at the nut. It's the size that most guitarists prefer as it gives them just enough space to play open chords without muting the strings, but without spreading the strings too wide and making bar chords difficult to perform.

Scale Length

Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural's Scale Length
Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural's Scale Length
Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String's Scale Length
Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String's Scale Length

The scale length is one of the things that influences playability the most. This is the distance between the nut and the bridge and will affect everything from low action allowance, difficulty to perform bends, fret separation, and even tone.

The Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural has the longest scale: 25.5". The Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String is only 24.75" long. This is a 0.75'' (19.1mm) scale length difference.

This longer scale means that the strings need more tension to get in tune. This is good if you want to avoid fret buzz, which can happen when the strings are too loose and touch the frets while vibrating. This is especially important when playing in lower tunings. This will also let you reduce the gap between fretboard and strings (low action) to make them easier to press down. However, this higher tension will also make it harder to perform bends and vibratos as the strings will feel stiffer.

This also means that the frets have a longer separation between each other, so this will make it harder for people with smaller hands when playing some chord positions.

Another characteristic of a longer scale is that it makes the guitar sound 'snappier' or brighter. This is due to the extra separation between harmonics and overtones produced by the tension. This influences tone more than any other factor (except the pickups).

Lastly, remember that you can also affect the tension of the strings by changing your string gauge. You can use a thicker gauge for more tension and a lighter one for less tension.

Neck Profile

Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural Neck Profile
Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural's neck profile
Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String Neck Profile
Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String's neck profile

No single neck shape is better than others. However, most people tend to prefer a thinner necks because it doesn't get in their way when playing fast and most hand sizes can adapt to it pretty well. However, some people still prefer thicker necks for a better grip, especially if they have big hands.

Both the Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural and the Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String have a C-shaped neck. This is what you'll find in most modern guitars. Most people feel like the thickness of a C neck is simply the less intrusive one for playing fast, while at the same time allowing you to grab the neck easily for resting if you want to.

Fretboard Radius

Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural Fingerboard Radius
Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural's Fingerboard radius
Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String Fingerboard Radius
Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String's Fingerboard radius

Most guitar fretboards are not flat; they usually have a curve or arc across their width. A curved fretboard will make it easier to perform chords without muting strings, while a flatter one will make it easier to play single notes, which is good for bending and soloing in general. The best fretboards have a compound radius that varies across the fingerboard, but they're not common since they take a lot more work to build.

In this case, the Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String's fingerboard radius is smaller, which means it's more curved than the Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural's. This extra arc will make playing chords easier in this model. You won't be as likely to mute the strings, especially if you have big hands. However, playing single notes and bending will be easier on the Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural.

Still, both tend to favor soloing over chords, so if you're looking for a guitar for playing rhythm, you might want something else with a radius closer to a Stratocaster's 9.5''.

Fret Size

Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural and Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String Frets Size
Both have a similar Medium fret size

Both have a Medium fret size. If you like feeling the fretboard when you play, but also appreciate some easiness to press down the frets, this size offers a good balance for that.

Final Playability Scores

Guild F-1512 Jumbo 12 String Natural
Bending & Vibrato Ease 75
Chord Playability 65
Solo Playability 80
Playability 73
Gibson J-45 Standard 12-String
Bending & Vibrato Ease 85
Chord Playability 70
Solo Playability 80
Playability 78