What do you like in a guitar? Is it the curve of the body as it nestles into your torso or the deep throb of the bass sound as it reverberates in your chest? Is it the action — the feel of the tension of the strings on your left hand as you reach for the sounds to complete your aural vision? Are the strings light and buttery or springy with resistance, allowing you to aggressively, percussively wrench bigger sound? Do you love the sensuous touch of an ebony fingerboard? Or maybe it’s the look of the instrument, some agile and slim, some imposing with ornate inlay patterns on the neck and headstock?

Are there certain woods that create tones that please you? Sweet spruce tops and rosewood sides and back, or a more forward mahogany, or even curly maple for sides and a carved one-piece back?