How to pick the best guitar case

It's way too easy to buy the wrong guitar case. Don't make that mistake.

Above is the case that is 100% correct for most guitar players, a polyfoam case. There are 3 reasons why it's the best case for most people:

1. Lightweight
2. Toughest
3. Most shock resistant

The only thing bad about the case is that it's not approved for air travel as it doesn't have TSA locks on it. If you plan on flying with your guitar, a molded flight case is required.

Things guitar players forget about when buying a case

Sure, you can go cheap and just get a padded gig bag. And yes, they work for most guitarists. But when you're ready for the good stuff, you go for the full size case.

The first thing guitar players don't take into consideration with a case is weight. While you probably won't be lugging around your case all that often, you will be pulling it in and out of a car periodically, and even at home you will be lifting and stacking it when putting it into storage. Weight absolutely matters here. You want light, because otherwise you're going to feel that strain every time you pick up the case with the guitar in it.

Hard guitar cases are not as tough as most think they are. It's easy to think, "Yes, this hard case will protect my guitar better than a padded gig bag would." Don't be so sure. It's not the hardness of the exterior that protects the guitar but rather the padding on the inside. Padding on gig bags when fit snugly to the guitar actually protect it better. Padding on polyfoam cases is just as good as padded gig bags with the added protection of an extra tough exterior.

Shock resistance is the major downfall of hard guitar cases, because aside from flight cases, they barely have any. The worst of the worst is the tweed case. Oh sure, they look awesome, no doubt about that. But they have awful shock resistance.

Think of it this way: If a guitar case is dropped on its corner (which does sometimes happen when unloading it out of a car or even a closet,) the guitar will get a big jolt if its in a tweed case or other traditional hard case. It will get somewhat of a jolt in a padded gig bag, and the least amount of jolt in the polyfoam case.

Those jolts, as in shocks, that the guitar is subjected to can break solder connections, wreck tuners or even crack a neck.

In the end, the best 2 cases for regular use are padded gig bags and polyfoam cases. When you need something for air travel, get the flight case.

Published 2018 May 14