Guild M-120, Concert Acoustic Guitar - Natural Reviews

I have long wanted a mahogany Guild acoustic and the time was finally right. It's all I hoped it would be; the concert size, build quality, elegant looks and most important sound and playability. The best kind of instrument is one that makes you want to play it, and the M120 is that in spades.
Out of the box the saddle needed a little sanding down but that was it. The action and intonation are perfect and it sounds sweet and defined. I'm more a strummer than a finger picker and the balance between highs and lows is even and balanced. Surprising volume for a concert guitar too. If something were to happen to it I would buy this again in a second.

Nothing better than a guitar that makes you want to play. This is one.
I'm 95% an electric player, but used a Guild/Madeira A20 years ago, (which I believe is a seriously under appreciated guitar BTW). I hadn't touched it for years, brought it out on a whim and it played and sounded so good it gave me the acoustic bug and I remembered my first guitar - a Gibson B25N which was concert size. I also remembered that I had always wanted a Guild mahogany. The M120 is an answer to all - beautiful, flawless fit and finish, light, small and gorgeous sound. Nothing not to like, plays like butter and sounds great. Looks so good I have to put it down once in a while for gazing purposes. But then I have to pick it up and play again.

I've been playing for around 30 years. I've owned a few nice, mid level, acoustics (Larrivee D-09, Taylor 410 CE, and a Breedlove Concerto. I wanted a smaller guitar in the $ range, but it had to be solid wood. I had done a lot of research and comparing different options and landed here. I was not disappointed! This little guy is balanced, slightly compressed, but very responsive. The one thing on the list that I didn't get with this guitar was a satin finish but after I saw it in person I didn't even care. When Sweetwater put it on sale, I knew it was time to go for it. Thanks Sweetwater!

The guitar sounds great and was very comfortable to play right out of the box. It is louder than I expected for a guitar this size. The finish is glossier than the pictures suggest (which I found a little disappointing), but the rosette and headstock inlays look fantastic—as does the overall workmanship. I've had it a few months now and have grown to love it. I'd buy it again if I had to do it over again.

This is overdue - I flip-flopped between the Guild M-20 and M-120. I knew it needed to be smaller than a dreadnought since I am petite and was out of practice, and it had to be a Guild. I played daily for twenty years, but went through a period of major depression after my son passed, where I couldn't take care of myself much less do the things I enjoyed most - playing guitar being one - for ten years. When I was ready, I figured I'd go with the M-120 before diving straight into the deep end.

Even though it's an important, I wouldn't have known it unless I were told. It has that glorious bright, clear tone that is great for songwriting and finger picking. It's been well-played daily for over a year and is as pristine as the day it arrived. The action is perfect. I know I can tune her, put her in the case, and she'll come out in-tune, even if it's a day or a week later.

I have to give a huge thank you to Danny Mosco for helping me at every step. He's definitely the person I want to work with when I buy my next Guild. Thank you, Danny. You made a somewhat emotional process much easier with your knowledge, patience, and kindness.

come on now folks-- between the lovely all solid wood construction, and the flawless fit & finish --- butter like playability and even the nicest cheap case one can ask for what about this cuddleable little piece of sonic art is not to love!--- full disclosure--- I did get this used of craigslist -but it was in perfect shape so I could not pass it up----- always sad when I save enough to not shop sweetwater cause you know these guys rock and always do what's needed to make sure we're happy -- Colten doth rule--- my only question is what could guild possibly do to the M-20 to make it worth a grand more?--- also the electronics are great!!

This a fantastic guitar if you're in the market for a small body acoustic. It can be tough finding an all solid wood guitar at decent price point. I have owned a number of other acoustic guitars ranging from Martin, Andrew White, Alvarez, and Epiphone. I have tried all kinds of strings, swapping out nuts and bridge pins, but none of them had the sound I was after. Until I got this Guild M-120. I got a demo model with a flaw in the finish and used the savings to have the techs at Sweetwater do a setup and put a set of nickel strings on. It was perfect right out of the box, exactly the tone I have in my head when I think of acoustic guitar. This is one guitar that won't be leaving my collection

I was missing a small size and all solid mahogany guitar, sounding clearly and loud and with a distinct character.
Quality, playability and looks are my next priorities. The M-120 checked all these boxes.
This guitar is beautifully made and awesome to look at. The gloss finish is flawless. The high quality gig bag is a great addition.
One minor gripe: the tuning machines could have been mounted with more attention, in terms of symmetry. It does not hurt the sound in any way, though.
It's a really great instrument!

A small guitar that in no way sounds thin or tinny. Surprisingly loud for its size. Guild did a great job on this one!

Well made & stays in tune in the heat & humidity of the Deep South. I've played it hard for a couple of weeks and expect it to open up more. If strummed hard it can run out of headroom. Overall I'm pleased. Doesn't everybody need a mahogany guitar?

I received this guitar about 2 weeks ago and can't believe the quality and playability. This pictures on the website do not do it justice. Beautiful figured African mahogany. The short scale (24.5) combined with the 1.7 inch nut with and great C shaped neck make this a very playable guitar. If you are looking for a quality parlor size guitar, this should be on your list. The gig bag is also high quality.

This is another purchase from Ty at Sweetwater and I could not be happier with the service he has given me over the past 5 years.

I "played" (at) guitar over 50 years ago and never had the time between family and work. This last year a friend convinced me to start playing again. I have had several shoulder surgeries and aged hands.I was looking for a smaller guitar with a 1 3/4 in. nut.The M120 seemed to fit the bill. I spoke with Cristin and originally ordered the Guild OM120. I decided that the M120 would fit my needs better and Cristin was great and helped change my order. It was not in stock but when one arrived Cristin sent me pictures and finalized my order and it was delivered within a few days. He was very helpful in leading me through the final setup.The guitar was perfect out of the box and for its size it had nice warm tones and the setup was perfect. The construction was excellent and I could find no flaws. The "gig" bag was more stout than I expected. All in all the transaction was great and the guitar is more than I could ask for given the price.

The sound is beautiful and very clear. It looks amazing and feels even better when you began to hold it and play. I'm in love with this guitar. I've wanted a Guild acoustic for so long and this one is perfect.

This Guild is a little gem. Great value for the price. All solid wood, bone nut and saddle, scalloped bracing, and the best fit and finish I've ever seen in a Chinese-built guitar. The matching of wood grain and the gloss finish rival many if not most American-made guitars. Congrats to Guild on making a solid contribution to the small body mahogany niche in the overall guitar market, as well as for finding a dedicated Asian factory capable of making that happen! The gig bag is handsome and unique, with a big #10 coil zipper holding it closed and thicker than average padding for protection. The bag also features tuck-away shoulder straps which fit me, of all people, and I'm not exactly a delicate little flower!
Many thanks to Sales Engineer Jeff Bohan for his usual excellent service and knowhow.

What a great size guitar. Small body, solid mahogany, bone nut and saddle. What's not to love. Impressive depth for the smaller size. Will love this for years to come.

The Guild M-120 is an excellent all solid wood, African Mahogany orchestra (aka "single 0") sized guitar. There is no other orchestra size, all-solid Mahagony guitar for under $1k on the market. The fretwork, including leveling and polishing were immaculate on the model I got. I've purchased other foreign built guitars in the $800-$1200 price range and all were well built, but needing a little care with fret polishing, Guild was perfect out of the box. The action was a different story. I found the bone saddle needed a lot of shaving, but action is "to taste" so a guitar shipping from factory with high-action is a challenge to pin down because what is "high action" is subjective. The tone of the m120 is resonate and boxy, this is a guitar that loves fingerstyle play and is good to sing over when playing finger style.

The braces are short and fat. Very unorthodox compared to Martin and Gibson, etc... But after some research I've confirmed the bracing on the m120 is actually true to the vintage m20 bracing. The modern USA built m20 has longer, scalloped braces that are a modern voicing. After adjusting the action to the sweet spot it needed, the guitar is amazing and one I play all the time.

This guitar is very easy to play. For reference, my other two acoustics are a Yamaha FG830 and a Taylor 214ce, so those are what I'm comparing to.

The Guild's slightly shorter scale length makes the strings a bit easier to press down, and the wider string spacing means I trip over myself less when doing fast lines. The small body sits comfortably on my lap when I play sitting down. The dynamic response between the strings is even, and the sound has few overtones. The neck feels wider and chunkier than my Yamaha or Taylor but is more comfortable for me, personally. The gig bag is lightweight and well-padded, and it ships with picks and a tool to adjust the truss rod, which are welcome inclusions. I was between this guitar and the similar Martin 00-15, and I'm happy with my choice.

Bought my Guild M120 to take on a retreat last month. First, this thing is BEAUTIFUL, feels COMFORTABLE and serves my purpose as a travel/songwriting guitar. It's NOT a cannon, and lacks low end presence, but hey- it's a small-bodied guitar, so it's not exactly meant to fill a room with jaw-dropping big-sounding tone. It might be a bit overpriced, but to me it's worth it for such a well-made, well-playing instrument.

After narrowing down my search for a small-bodied mahogany guitar to four brands and models, I fell in love with the Guild M-120E Natural guitar. I almost bought a different guitar, but am so glad I waited to find a Guild to try. Found the one I wanted. The Guild has been played daily now for 10 days, and I have loved every minute! Up the fretboard the sound is even better, more mellow, butter-like, like a good chardonnay. Love the size, mahogany woods, lightness, and attention to 1960-s like detail in the guitar. Bar chords are easy, finger-picking is great, and the tuners hold all in tune well. Love my new M-120! Oh, the case is a great fit and easy to carry!

When my new M120 arrived I was delighted to find the overall fit and finish amazing. The fretwork was the best I've found in a guitar under the thousand dollar mark and the solid African Mahagony (top, back and sides) quality wood with high aesthetic. The gig bag also excellent and in the pouch I found a useful owners manual, stickers and a truss rod tool.

A++ Guild.

Then I started playing the guitar. First observation also a positive one, the bone nut was cut very well. This is time consuming to do right, and Guild nailed it. Intonation excellent up the neck. The action a very different story. At the 12th fret on low E the action measured about 1/2" from top of fret to string. That is ridiculously high and the saddle height doesn't grow or shrink in transport, this is just sloppy work at the factory.

I setup my guitars as I always do using C.F. Martin's factory spec which came out to about 2.45mm on low E and 1.65mm on high E. Then I played it for hours. The guitar came strung with D'Addario Light PBs. I decided to change them to La Bella Silk and Steel... Still noticing how incredibly stale the guitar sounded. Just the opposite of rich tone and my expectations here weren't for the boom of a full bodied guitar, just something matching the crispness of my all-solid Alavarez parlor or at least a GS Mini Mahagony. The truth is the Guild M120 is perhaps the worst sounding all-solid wood guitar I've ever played. I wondered why. I put my hand inside the sound hole to feel the braces and made a discovery that still haunts me. The top of this little m120 is way over supported. The braces, which look to be made from plywood are very short about 3/4" and very fat, also about 3/4". So we all agree tone is subjective, but what is not is the Science behind how crushing to the tone it can be if a guitar's top is over supported. The top's vibrations account for probably 75% of the tone on an acoustic. The use of all solid Mahagony for the back and sides completely canceled out on this model, making it's inclusion in the design more a spec checkbox item for guitar retailers to turn into a sales point.

I'm really disgusted with the guitar because for whatever reason Guild designed it to sound muffled. Being a small bodied guitar it needs all the help it can get and other builders understand how to deliver this from their small bodied guitars, for whatever reason guild decided to cripple the m120 with bracing choices I can not respect.