Larrivee OMV-09 Reviews 
5 / 5 based on 1 reviewsI purchased a Larrivee OMV-09 from E.M. Shorts Guitars in Wichita, KS after many months of searching. I tried Taylor, Martin, Tacoma, Santa Cruz, and Gibson. I wanted a rosewood acoustic, preferably cutaway, with nice appointments. I was very impressed with the entire Larrivee line, and the folks at E.M. Shorts did a good job of helping me find the right guitar for me. Nathan was particularly helpful with the selection process. The first guitar I ordered came with some flaws (shipping induced or factory, I don't know because Nathan returned it before I even had a chance to see it).
The entire Larrivee line are very well built. They are still mostly hand made, utilizing machines for some of the cutting, but still mostly a "human" process. The guitar sings, and has a sparkle to it that I couldn't get from any of the new Martins. I compare it to a well aged Martin, without the wait. The neck is far better to my tastes, and much easier to fret. The fit and finish are superb. I had one pin head sized dimple on the bottom part of the cutaway, which I jokingly pointed out to Nathan as being unacceptable, and he immediatley got on the phone to Larrivee, and they took $150 off the price. For the money I don't think anyone can compete. I also liked the sound of the Taylors, but the price premium that they expect, coupled with machine assembly line and bolt on necks made the Larrivee a bargain by comparison. I like the Tacomas for the money, but side by side with the Larrivee, they pale. The Gibson's never really did anything for me, and the prices are also too high for the quality of the guitar.
I like everything about this guitar. I guess if I had to be picky, I would like something a bit more visible for fret markers, but the micro dots are ok. I could have gone for the OMV-10 with the fancier inlays, but I preferred the flame-maple binding on the 09's.
Outstanding. Even the case is better than any that I have owned before. I currently have 4 guitars (two are Larrivees), and this is by far my favorite.
In my opinion there is no other guitar company making instruments of this quality for the kind of money Larrivee sells them. You can also get them quite a bit below list. Mine listed somewhere around $2600 US, but you can get them for around 1800 without a lot of searching.
Jason Brantley rated this unit
on
2003-11-17.
