Whether you're a novice or know-it-all, this is an in-depth guide to the care and feeding of an acoustic guitar. This is a revised version that covers just about anything - well, everything - concerning the non-electric.

Chapter titles include The Guitar Through History; It Takes All Kinds (a rundown of the variety of instruments that includes nylon and steel strings; baritones; arch-tops and others); Guitar Sound (referencing the tone, timbre, pitch, volume, balance, sustain, and myriad other tonal qualities); Wood, Finish and Glues; How the Guitar Works; and a list of other subjects.

There is useful information here, and as a reference source, it belongs in your music studio. At the end of the day, however, a guitar is only as good as the musician playing it. So have a read, absorb, then go out and play every acoustic you can lay your hands on. If it sounds right, that's the one for you. It makes no matter if it has an arched or flat top, slick fret inlays, or is made from maple, ash, rosewood, ebony, or papier-mâché. Does it sound musical in your ears? Is it easy to play? That's your instrument.