Hi Folks,

Some fascinating material here - thanks to all contributors, and particularly to Willie-o, PoppaGator and John Hardly, for some useful facts and illuminating opinions.   Now here's my two-pennorth.

While gigging in ceilidh bands that usually had no bass player (and pretty ropey amplification), I found my Gibson LG-0, though great for song accompaniment, didn't really cut the mustard.   A Dreadnought style Takamine proved to be much more helpful (both unamplified in rehearsals, and amplified at gigs.) But when my regular band acquired a bass player, both the sound of the instrument and the playing techniques developed over the years no longer felt appropriate.

As regards technique – at first it was simply a matter of trying to avoid doubling the bass lines an octave higher. But gradually I began finding a few useful fill-ins (mixing chords with short single-note phrases) which seemed to complement rather than compete with what the bass player was doing. (NB this is still work in progress – I'm not pretending to be any sort of expert, and would welcome further advice from people with more knowledge and experience.)

As regards the choice of instruments – that's such a personal thing that advice in general terms may not be helpful. However, for what it's worth, here are a few thoughts. Dreadnoughts are great for acoustic jamming– they really cut through the massed fiddles, accordions, banjos etc. In the right hands, a good one also sounds great in quieter surroundings - but sometimes they seem harsh and overbearing. If you still want a big guitar, why not try a round-shouldered jumbo? - a good Gibson J-45 or an O-series Lowden still has plenty of power, but produces a distinctly mellower sound.

Alternatively, you could try a mini-jumbo – one of the modern versions of the old Gibson Nick Lucas for example, or one from the Lowden F-series. I don't know whether it's their round shoulders, or the slightly greater body depth, but guitars of this type seem to me to have a richer, fuller sound that guitars with the Martin OM body size and shape. (Nothing against the OM design though – my pub-session guitar is a Sigma OM copy which cuts through the mix splendidly, though it lacks the subtlety of my beloved Lowden.)

But when all's said and done, choosing a guitar is like falling in love - advice from outsiders, however well-meaning, is mostly irrelevant. Sometimes you see a guitar and it says "play me". After you've been playing it for a while, it says "buy me", and you do – regardless of previous preferences about brand names, body shapes, or varieties of timber.

To Guest Orangeslice, I can only say, trust your own ears and your own feelings, and go for it!

Wassail!