Guild's new $300 guitar range promises to bring premium tones at a cut price

Guild Guitars has made a serious play for the affordable acoustic guitar market with its all-new 300 Series – conveniently and appropriately priced at $300 apiece.

The four-strong series aims to bottle the tonal magic of more premium-priced Guild builds and deliver that to players with tighter budgets.

Typically, Guild's acoustics surpass the $1k mark, with 2023's top-of-the-line 70th anniversary D-55 priced at $3,899. That isn't its only acoustic to nestle around that price point, making this cent-conscious range all the more intriguing.

The 300 collection is split down the middle, with two models on the dreadnought and OM-styled sides respectively, with solid tops and laminate back and sides prevalent across the board .

They too all match their black tortoiseshell pickguards to their black binding and share the same C-shaped necks, rosewood fingerboards, and rosewood bridges.

Guild-branded Vintage 16 open-gear tuners and open-pore natural satin finishes provide their other commonalities, whilst their headstocks are finished with a Nickel Guild logo.

The company says its open pore finish choice helps deliver “maximum resonance” for a sound that belies its stunted price tag.

In terms of tonewoods, there is a little more diversity. Of its dreadnought models, the D-320 is an all-mahogany affair, while the D-340 adds a spruce top to its mahogany back and sides.

That theme continues to the OM builds, with the OM-320 comprising only mahogany and the OM-340 adding a solid spruce top into the mix.

Guild says its OM shape “will be immediately familiar to players desiring a comfortable, midsized acoustic.”

Talking of Guild’s foray into more affordable territory, Product Manager Nick Breach says: “We are always thrilled to bring the quality and heritage that Guild acoustic guitars are beloved for to a new audience of players. But, for this release, we are especially happy about the opportunity to offer players these attributes at a new level of affordability.”

Head to Guild to learn more about the range.