Yamaha F310P Acoustic Guitar For Sale (2024 Update)

I bought this guitar years ago for a few bucks. I bring it everywhere. Its small and takes a beating. The tone has only improved over time.Joe Kyser

I bought this guitar to check out a budget friendly offering from Yamaha. I have to say I was not disappointed! Excellent tone and volume, the top really resonates. The guitar was really well setup right out of the box. It needed about 3/4 of a clockwise truss rod adjustment, no prob. Other than that it didn't need any fret dressing whatsoever. That's really impressive for a Chinese guitar. Heck even one of my Mexican Martins needed fret dressing out of the box! Also intonation was spot on and this also is important in your guitar. Very impressed with this guitar, intermediate/advanced feel but priced at a beginner budget. You won't regret picking one up, I assure you!Big Bone Murphy

There is a point of quality when an instrument reaches when it stops being seen as "better or worse" but rather just a different flavor. This Yamaha has reached that point. You can play it alongside a guitar costing 5x more and it stands up well. Yamaha is also one of those rare companies with a long history of top quality across all kinds of products, and guitars are an area Yamaha knows well. This is just a beautiful guitar through and throughout. You can get beautiful uncompromisingly great studio recordings with this guitar. Hitting the low strings hard with strumming gives a nice deep and rich tone. Also, the hardware / tuners are nice.Scott

I've owned many acoustics over the years, MANY, and this Yamaha is one of the best sounding I've ever owned. Went to GC just to check out a few lower end acoustics to pick up for jamming on, and tried almost every one in the room. Picked this one up last just before I was ready to leave, and immediately was blown away by the sound and playability, brought a couple friends to listen and tell me which one they thought sounded the best, and hands down this won over all of them. It has the tone and warmth of a Martin D34, which I have owned a few, and it plays like a dream. The neck is so sliky smooth, easy to fly up and down with no effort. It has amazing sustain and beautiful tone, I fell in love with it and just couldn't put it down. I didn't expect a guitar of this price range to sound as good as it does, got it home and I couldn't put it down. Played for 4 hours straight, and even after trying to put it down to go to bed at 1am I found myself playing a for a few more minutes before I could actually go to sleep. Love this Yamaha more than any guitar I've bought in the last decade. The best thing about it is, It gave me the desire to pick up playing guitar again, after hardly touching any of my other guitars for almost a year it's the one I want to play more than all of them. Great guitar, wouldn't hesitate to buy another in a different color, if you want something that you won't be able to put down this baby has the sound and feel your looking for.Johnny D

I didn't have high hopes for a guitar in this price point, but it has had rave reviews so I ordered one. When I unboxed it after about 5 hours, the very first thing that I noticed was the build quality. The neck set is absolutely perfect and the guitar is very nicely playable right out of the box. The finish on this guitar is superb. It is a Plain Jane but it's pleasing to the eye as a solid, well built guitar. It tuned up well and I played a couple of sets on it, and after one retune, it sang out quite nicely. The only change I will make to this guitar is changing the nut and the bridge to bone, since the plastic polymer just doesn't sustain like this guitar is capable of doing. The additional 50 dollar investment is well worth it, I would be comfortable playing this guitar anywhere, it's well worth the money, and it's easy to see why the reviews have been so good on it.Taylor W.

I’m impressed by the build and sound quality of this acoustic guitar! Easy to tune and play. I used to play on a Taylor GS mini (Koa) but couldn’t bring it with me when I moved to the UK. I was thinking about buying the same model here but they’re quite expensive and paying for international shipping to bring mine from my home country wouldn’t be cheaper as well. That’s when I saw online reviews of this Yamaha FG800 and decided to give it a shot. PMT shopping experience was very smooth and the delivery was very fast – next day. Couldn’t be happier! Now I have something to play after 6 months after moving. And it’s a good quality guitar.Victor T.

This Yamaha instrument is well made. Especially for the price point of just under $200.00. I have purchased many Yamaha acoustics over the years and this guitar will not disappoint. No cosmetic flaws on this instrument, with a nice finish and worth checking out. I have been playing for over 40 years and am now retired, and I rate this guitar at 9.5 out of ten. Perfect for my finger style playing. Very full sounding board and visually appealing. Truss adjustment was made to tighten the action a bit to my personal preferred. The frets could use some polishing, as do most of acoustics at this price. I had purchased an identical instrument not too long ago and it also was a gem right out of the box, and decided to keep only one. Very comparable to an Ibanez Artwood instrument. I highly rate this Yamaha and it is definitely worth a look👍CHRISTOPHER

A great guitar for a beginner. The action is good, the intonation is good, and it has a good sound that will keep beginning guitar players playing. Because of the price, it is also good for more experienced guitar players to use as your not afraid of what happens to it guitar.alyd7618

As a beginner, I like the feel, the sound and the look. I have since purchased a Classic CG122MCH from Skip's Music, Elk Grove, CA. I need to register. It's very nice as well!Slammer

This was my beginner guitar and it was decent enough. A humidifier is very important if you want to keep this guitar in good shape. The action tends to slip up around the 12 fret after a while, which is very annoying especially when you're trying to play blues. If you're REALLY into Dylan, this guitar is an ok choice to start with but for anybody else, I highly suggest you get either an electric starter kit or just another company. Yamaha is great at making a lot of things but if you're serious you should buy from a company that knows guitars and nothing more, nothing less.Monterey Purple

I am a professional musician/songwriter (also a Berklee grad-1981). While guitar is not the principal instrument I was trained on (piano/keyboard are my primary), I have been playing guitar on and off since I was a teen back in the 1970s. However, over the last couple of years I've been putting a lot more dedicated practice time on improving my guitar skills for both for songwriting and solo guitar playing. I've been particularly focused mastering the layout of the guitar fretboard so I can put all my harmonic knowledge to work on the instrument, something I wish I did many years ago, but better late than never! I purchased this guitar because I wanted an instrument that was reasonable, easy to play, and enjoyable to listen to. I tried guitars in a variety of price ranges and was surprised at how much more I liked the F335 than guitars 2-3xs more costly. Although this guitar has a laminate rather than solid spruce top, it has a clear yet warm sound that I find really pleasing sonically. The fretboard is also very comfortable and easy to play which adds to the enjoyment of making music with it. I was so impressed with this instrument that I recently also purchased a Yamaha FS800 to use more for fingerstyle playing while using the F335 for flat picking. Those are a nice combination of instruments that cover all my guitar playing needs at this time. Regardless of what level you are playing I highly recommend this (and the FS800) for anyone looking for a very reasonable option that you can use for playing and songwriting.Scott F.

First of all, I own 2 Yamaha Guitars, the F335 being the first one I have owned. For an entry-level dred, you could not ask for a better quality, easy to play right out of the box, althought I would recommend a set-up with any instrument right out of the box with the addition of a bone saddle. Did this with this one and it brought its already rich tone to another level. I only give it 4 stars because I have owned a number of high-end instruments. If you are a brand new player, or one who is in the market just to have a dred to beat around with, look no further. This is the one for you.Chris

I purchased this guitar while it was on sale so can't really complain. There are several QC issues I would expect better from Yamaha even in a cheap imported product. Fit and overall build seems solid but there are odd finish issues that make no sense. At the neck joint there seems to be the remains of a tape line from the body to the neck all around the joint. This neck feels quite thin and comfortable but again, the finish is inconsistent. Just before the headstock, the finish goes from semi-gloss to mat in a very visible way that can also be felt in the hand. As I said in the beginning, cheap guitar, cheap price, hard to complain.Robert

I bought this for my friend that wants to learn how to play the guitar. I chose this for him because it's a nylon string so it wouldn't hurt his fingers which I noticed that most beginners easily gets frustrated when the steel strings hurts their fingers and then stops learning how to play the guitar. The guitar is well made and it looks like that it will last a long time of course with proper care. It's very light weight and compact so it's easy to maintain and store this guitar and also good for traveling.Rome

This Yamaha classical guitar is sold as a 'student' guitar but it's also a great travel size instrument. It's affordable, stays in tune, intonates well and has a great full body sound even though its a 3/4 size guitar. The nylon strings are easier on the fingers than steel strings and are great for someone just starting out. This one arrived with smooth fret ends and played perfectly right out of the box. Yamaha is one of best quality guitar brands, this one proves it.bascorulesright

This was my first time trying out Musiciansfriend. I must say I wish l had I known about them sooner. I bought a guitar for my daughter's lessons. The guitar came well protected in the box. The shipping was super fast and it arrived on time. The color of the guitar is gorgeous – my daughter loves it. The price too was very good compared to other sites. I also bought a case separately and the foot stool which I am happy with. I will definitely be shopping here for all our instrument needs. To top it all off. I received a purchase follow up call from the team at Musicianfriends. It's important to make sure your customers are happy with their purchase or address any questions or concerns.Noma N

Mine was set up great right out of the box (I did upgrade strings once I played the stock ones). The guitar plays better than my acoustic that was twice as much (open F chord and Dm are easy to finger on this guitar)-the more expensive guitar sounds better for sure, but this Yamaha FD01S is easy on the fingers and sounds decent. Overall, it's a no-frills guitar. Nice finish, very basic ornamentation. Things that matter, like action and sound, are fantastic at this price point. Treble is really gorgeous-very pure, resonation between B and High E is spectacular. Bass is adequate. Barre chords are easy-neck looks really cheap but plays fast. Basic guitar but with a solid top. Good choice-Martman

I bought this guitar to check out a budget friendly offering from Yamaha. I have to say I was not disappointed! Excellent tone and volume, the top really resonates. The guitar was really well setup right out of the box. It needed about 3/4 of a clockwise truss rod adjustment, no prob. Other than that it didn't need any fret dressing whatsoever. That's really impressive for a Chinese guitar. Heck even one of my Mexican Martins needed fret dressing out of the box! Also intonation was spot on and this also is important in your guitar. Very impressed with this guitar, intermediate/advanced feel but priced at a beginner budget. You won't regret picking one up, I assure you!Big Bone Murphy

There is a point of quality when an instrument reaches when it stops being seen as "better or worse" but rather just a different flavor. This Yamaha has reached that point. You can play it alongside a guitar costing 5x more and it stands up well. Yamaha is also one of those rare companies with a long history of top quality across all kinds of products, and guitars are an area Yamaha knows well. This is just a beautiful guitar through and throughout. You can get beautiful uncompromisingly great studio recordings with this guitar. Hitting the low strings hard with strumming gives a nice deep and rich tone. Also, the hardware / tuners are nice.Scott

I've owned many acoustics over the years, MANY, and this Yamaha is one of the best sounding I've ever owned. Went to GC just to check out a few lower end acoustics to pick up for jamming on, and tried almost every one in the room. Picked this one up last just before I was ready to leave, and immediately was blown away by the sound and playability, brought a couple friends to listen and tell me which one they thought sounded the best, and hands down this won over all of them. It has the tone and warmth of a Martin D34, which I have owned a few, and it plays like a dream. The neck is so sliky smooth, easy to fly up and down with no effort. It has amazing sustain and beautiful tone, I fell in love with it and just couldn't put it down. I didn't expect a guitar of this price range to sound as good as it does, got it home and I couldn't put it down. Played for 4 hours straight, and even after trying to put it down to go to bed at 1am I found myself playing a for a few more minutes before I could actually go to sleep. Love this Yamaha more than any guitar I've bought in the last decade. The best thing about it is, It gave me the desire to pick up playing guitar again, after hardly touching any of my other guitars for almost a year it's the one I want to play more than all of them. Great guitar, wouldn't hesitate to buy another in a different color, if you want something that you won't be able to put down this baby has the sound and feel your looking for.Johnny D

I bought this guitar to check out a budget friendly offering from Yamaha. I have to say I was not disappointed! Excellent tone and volume, the top really resonates. The guitar was really well setup right out of the box. It needed about 3/4 of a clockwise truss rod adjustment, no prob. Other than that it didn't need any fret dressing whatsoever. That's really impressive for a Chinese guitar. Heck even one of my Mexican Martins needed fret dressing out of the box! Also intonation was spot on and this also is important in your guitar. Very impressed with this guitar, intermediate/advanced feel but priced at a beginner budget. You won't regret picking one up, I assure you!Big Bone Murphy

There is a point of quality when an instrument reaches when it stops being seen as "better or worse" but rather just a different flavor. This Yamaha has reached that point. You can play it alongside a guitar costing 5x more and it stands up well. Yamaha is also one of those rare companies with a long history of top quality across all kinds of products, and guitars are an area Yamaha knows well. This is just a beautiful guitar through and throughout. You can get beautiful uncompromisingly great studio recordings with this guitar. Hitting the low strings hard with strumming gives a nice deep and rich tone. Also, the hardware / tuners are nice.Scott

I've owned many acoustics over the years, MANY, and this Yamaha is one of the best sounding I've ever owned. Went to GC just to check out a few lower end acoustics to pick up for jamming on, and tried almost every one in the room. Picked this one up last just before I was ready to leave, and immediately was blown away by the sound and playability, brought a couple friends to listen and tell me which one they thought sounded the best, and hands down this won over all of them. It has the tone and warmth of a Martin D34, which I have owned a few, and it plays like a dream. The neck is so sliky smooth, easy to fly up and down with no effort. It has amazing sustain and beautiful tone, I fell in love with it and just couldn't put it down. I didn't expect a guitar of this price range to sound as good as it does, got it home and I couldn't put it down. Played for 4 hours straight, and even after trying to put it down to go to bed at 1am I found myself playing a for a few more minutes before I could actually go to sleep. Love this Yamaha more than any guitar I've bought in the last decade. The best thing about it is, It gave me the desire to pick up playing guitar again, after hardly touching any of my other guitars for almost a year it's the one I want to play more than all of them. Great guitar, wouldn't hesitate to buy another in a different color, if you want something that you won't be able to put down this baby has the sound and feel your looking for.Johnny D

I bought this guitar from a local shop strictly as a worship instrument for Sunday mornings. It absolutely destroyed every other guitar at the music shop +/- 500 in either direction. I still hold that it is likely the best guitar in its price range for the quality of its construction and sound quality. There is virtually not a single flaw this instrument possesses… But can we talk about the electronics? The guitar is super odd… I mean, if you are odd too, it is probably your dream guitar. It has a poor-man's tone wood amp build in. When you turn it on, it runs 90's sounding special effects out the soundhole, which is pretty cool. Here is the problem, the controls are super minimal. So minimal that you can't tell whether this bad boy is on or off. We found out the hard way that when this guitar is plugged in, the battery is always draining, even when the sound system is off. This is not atypical, but it gets weirder. The guitar won't turn off when plugged in, but sometimes needs to be turned on (?) when the batteries are dying. There is no indicator to tell you when it is running low on power, so you might find out on stage halfway through Glorious Day. There is actually no indicator for anything electric on this guitar, except for a sliding piece of plastic that sits under the dials that might be useful if it didn't look like you were supposed to cut it out and throw it away. The whole control setup is just annoying and unnecessarily vague. Long story short, with an electronics upgrade, this guitar would be unbeatable. It has more power than it deserves, almost like the guys a Yamaha are professionally sound-profiling the tops, which is something you would expect only on guitars above the 2000 range.Benjo

Where to start with this… Out of the box, once tuned the guitar feels like a quality product. The fitted Elixir strings (I'm guessing a 0.12 brass or bronze set) give the guitar a very bright, clear tone, exactly what I wanted. It is a bright sounding instrument, so others may want to experiment with other string sets. The action is good and low, although compared to the guitar I was playing the fretboard is very flat, not much of a camber at all, a minor complaint which may not apply to everyone and I got used to it quickly. The neck itself is comfortable with a slightly matte finish which I find aids playability, somehow. The design is conservative with small inlays and a transparent scratchplate; I may replace the scratchplate with something more interesting one day but not while it's so new. All in all, a great, solid instrument for its price bracket. Oh yeah, it's also got this on board soucery which applies reverb and chorus through the body of the guitar. These effects are awesome but their real benefit is to make you want to play for longer, simply because you sound better. These effects also apply to the line out; this is also a fully-fledged electro-acoustic. The only drawback here is that the preamp lacks any kind of equaliser, but who cares about that when any amp or sound desk has these functions? That all makes this guitar an all-rounder. A solid acoustic instrument with on board tricks for busking or practicing (your buddies will be jealous if you're having an unplugged jam on the beach, too) as well as being the electro-acoustic you want if you're gigging. I swear, I am not being paid by Yamaha. Check it out on YouTube – some great demos of this guitar on there.Adam W.

Really awesome guitar for beginners. The action was a bit high for me but it was easily adjustable. Been using this guitar to play in Central Park and it has great resonance and sound. Definitely a great quality acoustic guitar for someone starting out and doesn't want to break the bank. And the guys at Sam Ash were super helpful helping me pick it out!HUNTER

I'm a beggining player, and so I went into the store not knowing anything about guitars. I was instantly helped by an employee, and was drawn to this guitar. It is great quality and sounds wonderful. The kit is really useful and saved me some money. Defiently would recommend this guitar to beginner and novice players alike, and will defiently be coming back to this store!Christian

A very good starter pack. Through time, the the strap and soft guitar case will be upgraded to a strap of personal choice and a hard case for better protection during transport, but, they are fine for now. The guitar itself is of very good quality and could easily last a lifetime with proper care. The tuner is a necessary piece of equipment and the extra set of strings is a welcome idea. I believe this purchase represents the higher-end of an entry-level guitar package. One note about Guitar Center. We took the guitar to Guitar Center for tuning, fully expecting to pay a fee. Overall, the feeling of the store is that of the old style family owned business. It was refreshing. The staff won't steer you toward the "slower" moving stock like big-box stores are now doing. The kids were "blown-away" with the comprehensive array of instruments and of the staff encouraging them to "give it a whirl" even though they knew a sale wouldn't be made that day. We weren't charged for the tuning and we left with the staff encouraging us to "come back anytime". We plan to… In just an hour or so, Guitar Center established themselves as the retailer of choice for any further purchases of instruments or repairs. I believe we made a good choice selecting the Yamaha Starter Pack and with Guitar Center handling the transaction.Stan

At first I was going to say it's a great guitar for the price, but that really doesn't do this thing justice. It's just a great guitar. It has a great sound, it feels good in your hands, it's easy to hold and to play. I can't fault this guitar at all. The action was a bit high out of the box, but the tech at Guitar Center gave it a great set-up and now it's very easy to play. I'm planning to give this one to my daughter, but I would happily keep this myself. I have only been playing guitar for a few weeks, but even I can make this thing sound good!Todd

There is a place in my project studio for FS800: 48 years ago I sold Yamaha Guitars and found them excellent. When the group "America" presented a acoustic sound (Horse with No Name; Ventura Highway; Tin Man . . . et al) the solid rhythms of Yamaha solid top guitars proved Ideal. Through the years I have experimented with various genres as a singer songwriter; now a days I have returned to folk and "heavy on" acoustic guitar sounds. To complement my more expensive guitars I needed something that could deliver the solid rhythms I fondly recall. Now the Yamaha FS800 excels for finger styles as well: I layer tracks this guitar is a breeze to play and its character naturally stands out in the mix. I cannot see a beginner or a more advanced guitarist going wrong with The Yamaha FS800. JHajarhill

Perfect couch and campfire guitar. Sustains and project very well with a surprisingly round warm sound. Gorgeous burst finish much nicer in person. String spacing is slightly narrower than standard, make note. Bridge saddle needed to be shaved down for lower action. Neck and frets were perfect otherwise. Tuning very stable. A set of 11-52 will be next string change. Love playing this thing, and exploring alternate tunings! It seems Yamaha's reputation is true.Greg

I purchased this guitar for my 11 year old daughter. I wanted to find a quality instrument that is smaller in size, easy to play, and stays in tune. I have owned other Yamaha guitars before, and they are a great guitar for the price. The Yamaha FG JR1 did not disappoint! The guitar is easy to play, stays in tune and it sounds pretty good for a small guitar. The strings do feel a little heavy for a beginner. I would definitely recommend changing the strings to a lighter gauge for a beginning player. I recommend the Ernie Ball Earthwood Silk and Steel Extra Soft 10-50. They’re a great string for tender young fingers.Jimmy

I bought the Yamaha JR2 for my daughter as a Christmas present and I was surprised. I didn't expect it to be that good because of its price but WOW!!! The resonance is unbelievable given that it's not made from solid wood and the neck is so comfortable, perfect for kids who are learning. This is my third guitar from Better Music and they never disappoint me. The guitars are well set up and the packaging is unbelievable every time. It just shows how much they value their customers and that's why I keep coming back. I don't usually leave reviews but I appreciate what these guys are doing. Keep up the good work!Marvin B.

I bought this on the 7th birthday of one of my twin girl. I was on a tight budget of around $100 and then I thought to speak to one of the representatives at SamAsh. After having a talk with him I was convinced to get a good guitar to start even though I have to stretch my budget. Since my family is a newbie in musical instruments i am happy that my girl is interested in learning music. She is very happy and we are thinking to take her to few lessons. It's well-made and offers a good tone. Great buy!!Preeti

Overall: So, I have owned this guitar for several months now. It is without a doubt a very good sounding guitar, it's up there with my Gibson's and Martins. Strumming or finger picking it just sounds amazing. I did not love the string spacing, so I replaced the nut with a bit wider spacing for my style of playing. The whole point about me taking the plunge on this guitar was that it was all solid woods, ebony fingerboard and bridge, and one of Yamahas absolute best acoustics available. I have no regrets buying this guitar at all. My friends are amazed at the beauty and sound of this very well-built guitar. The electronics do a good job plugged into the PA for playing live, and it will amaze you how good it sounds unplugged all by itself. I never thought I would buy anything but Martin or Gibson's…. this changed my mind completely. if you're thinking about one of these just buy one!! My honest opinion is the price will go up on these as the solid woods and craftsmanship are stunning.Michael

I’ve had my A3M for three years now. I still look at mahogany wood grain in awe. This guitar has a nice rounded tone that can compete with Taylor and Martin guitars made from mahogany. Plugged into an acoustic amp sounds even better. I notice the price point has increased $100 (not sure of due to inflation) which shows that it is a respected instrument. I spent months spinning around for a acoustic guitar and I was truly pleased with the Yamaha A3M. I think it can keep up with Martin and Taylor on stage as a reliable gig machine.bryan nuñez

Overall: So, I have owned this guitar for several months now. It is without a doubt a very good sounding guitar, it's up there with my Gibson's and Martins. Strumming or finger picking it just sounds amazing. I did not love the string spacing, so I replaced the nut with a bit wider spacing for my style of playing. The whole point about me taking the plunge on this guitar was that it was all solid woods, ebony fingerboard and bridge, and one of Yamahas absolute best acoustics available. I have no regrets buying this guitar at all. My friends are amazed at the beauty and sound of this very well-built guitar. The electronics do a good job plugged into the PA for playing live, and it will amaze you how good it sounds unplugged all by itself. I never thought I would buy anything but Martin or Gibson's…. this changed my mind completely. if you're thinking about one of these just buy one!! My honest opinion is the price will go up on these as the solid woods and craftsmanship are stunning.Michael

I’ve had my A3M for three years now. I still look at mahogany wood grain in awe. This guitar has a nice rounded tone that can compete with Taylor and Martin guitars made from mahogany. Plugged into an acoustic amp sounds even better. I notice the price point has increased $100 (not sure of due to inflation) which shows that it is a respected instrument. I spent months spinning around for a acoustic guitar and I was truly pleased with the Yamaha A3M. I think it can keep up with Martin and Taylor on stage as a reliable gig machine.bryan nuñez

Overall: So, I have owned this guitar for several months now. It is without a doubt a very good sounding guitar, it's up there with my Gibson's and Martins. Strumming or finger picking it just sounds amazing. I did not love the string spacing, so I replaced the nut with a bit wider spacing for my style of playing. The whole point about me taking the plunge on this guitar was that it was all solid woods, ebony fingerboard and bridge, and one of Yamahas absolute best acoustics available. I have no regrets buying this guitar at all. My friends are amazed at the beauty and sound of this very well-built guitar. The electronics do a good job plugged into the PA for playing live, and it will amaze you how good it sounds unplugged all by itself. I never thought I would buy anything but Martin or Gibson's…. this changed my mind completely. if you're thinking about one of these just buy one!! My honest opinion is the price will go up on these as the solid woods and craftsmanship are stunning.Michael

I’ve had my A3M for three years now. I still look at mahogany wood grain in awe. This guitar has a nice rounded tone that can compete with Taylor and Martin guitars made from mahogany. Plugged into an acoustic amp sounds even better. I notice the price point has increased $100 (not sure of due to inflation) which shows that it is a respected instrument. I spent months spinning around for a acoustic guitar and I was truly pleased with the Yamaha A3M. I think it can keep up with Martin and Taylor on stage as a reliable gig machine.bryan nuñez

I mostly play for my own amusement, but I've been at it for about 40 years. The FS5/FSX5 is a well built, nice looking, and easy playing guitar. Setup was about perfect out of the box… I might take it down just a touch at the bridge, but it was definitely in the ballpark. The neck feels comfortable, and I have had no issues with buzzes or rattles anywhere on the neck. Tuners are smooth and accurate. Out of the box, the guitar sounds very full and open, with good balance between the strings. The sustain and volume are also both pretty good. The guitar responds pretty well to dynamics, and you can dig in a bit before it starts to hit the ceiling. I've played some that have a little more dynamic range, but the FSX5 hangs. Offers pretty good clarity for fingerstyle, and I have no problem bringing out the notes I want to emphasize. I am really happy with how it sounds with strummed chords…rich, yet clear and punchy. The aesthetics are low-key, but still classy and elegant. The A.R.E aged top under the satin finish is a lovely warm orange-gold, and the simple black binding with smaller white inner bands frames it nicely. The ebony pickguard is a nice touch.. much richer look than simple plastic. The electronics get the job done. I like about an 80% mic blend, and a bit of a bass cut. I run it through a Fishman Platinum EQ and Preamp… and would recommend a good preamp to get the most out of this pickup system… you can dial in a good tone without one, but you'll get the best results with a preamp. Overall, I think Yamaha made some great decisions with this guitar. Although some of the basic fab work is done in China, the finishing touches fall under the auspices of the Japanese craftsman. They used quality materials for the build (bone nut and saddle, ebony bridge), but otherwise kept the "bling" to a minimum, and concentrated on delivering quality in the sound and feel. This is a players guitar, and the price is right for what it is.Vognell

I have played guitar for 50 years and owned many fine instruments; I currently own four Martins. This is the first upper level Yamaha I've seen "in person" and I was curious. I have to say that, other than a similar appearance, this is an ENTIRELY DIFFERENT ANIMAL from the lower level Yamaha acoustic guitars. These are made in the Yamaha Custom Shop in Hammamatsu, Japan, and are all-solid-wood and crafted to a very high standard from the best materials. The sound is crisp, rich, and deep. I think this guitar is very close to Martin's newer D-18 (one of my all-time favorites) at HALF the price! Unfortunately these are very seldom in stock but, with GC's generous return policy, it's well worth the risk.C J Camp

I mostly play for my own amusement, but I've been at it for about 40 years. The FS5/FSX5 is a well built, nice looking, and easy playing guitar. Setup was about perfect out of the box… I might take it down just a touch at the bridge, but it was definitely in the ballpark. The neck feels comfortable, and I have had no issues with buzzes or rattles anywhere on the neck. Tuners are smooth and accurate. Out of the box, the guitar sounds very full and open, with good balance between the strings. The sustain and volume are also both pretty good. The guitar responds pretty well to dynamics, and you can dig in a bit before it starts to hit the ceiling. I've played some that have a little more dynamic range, but the FSX5 hangs. Offers pretty good clarity for fingerstyle, and I have no problem bringing out the notes I want to emphasize. I am really happy with how it sounds with strummed chords…rich, yet clear and punchy. The aesthetics are low-key, but still classy and elegant. The A.R.E aged top under the satin finish is a lovely warm orange-gold, and the simple black binding with smaller white inner bands frames it nicely. The ebony pickguard is a nice touch.. much richer look than simple plastic. The electronics get the job done. I like about an 80% mic blend, and a bit of a bass cut. I run it through a Fishman Platinum EQ and Preamp… and would recommend a good preamp to get the most out of this pickup system… you can dial in a good tone without one, but you'll get the best results with a preamp. Overall, I think Yamaha made some great decisions with this guitar. Although some of the basic fab work is done in China, the finishing touches fall under the auspices of the Japanese craftsman. They used quality materials for the build (bone nut and saddle, ebony bridge), but otherwise kept the "bling" to a minimum, and concentrated on delivering quality in the sound and feel. This is a players guitar, and the price is right for what it is.Vognell

This is the first upper tier Yamaha that I have owned and I'm very impressed. My first Yamaha was a FG200 bought in the Summer of 1973. This guitar looks similar to lower-end Yamaha guitars, but is actually a COMPLETELY DIFFERENT BEAST! It is simple but beautiful, well-crafted, smooth-playing, and sounds really quite nice. The sound is deep and rich in the bass, strong and clear in the treble, and has a nice, strong mid-range. The satin finish is very thin and allows the guitar to "open up" it's tone rather quickly. It's an excellent instrument but not very expensive for a great workhorse and will work well for any kind of acoustic music. It is very close to a D-18 but HALF the price. I think you'll love it!C J Camp

I'm a semi-pro. I've played in various bands, solos and duos for 40+ years. My main gigging guitar has been an Alvarez Yiari for the past 30 years. I finally decided to upgrade the old technology pickups in that guitar and when I started discussing it with my luthier, I decided that the project would require too much plugging of old holes in the guitar and so I decided to purchase a new guitar. I had looked at new acoustics for several years and most of the guitarists I'm around are playing Taylors. Many of the older Taylors have an amplified sound that has too much treble in my opinion, although my rhythm guitarist in my current band has a couple of newer high-end Taylors which sound great! However, they were well beyond my budget for a stage guitar which can get knocked around. My new Yamaha A3R is good looking and is solid rosewood back and sides with a sitka spruce top. It has a rich sound unamplified, Plugging it in, I noticed a world of difference between it and my old Yiari. The A3R has beautiful tone plugged in! I especially like the two mic models and the blending switch between mic and piezo. I will predominantly use the mic setting for my acoustic duo and will blend in more piezo in my playing in the full band. I think the piezo will help cut the mix a little bit more. We go from ballads to rockers so with the turn of a single dial, I'll be able to better adjust the output of the guitar based on the type of song we're playing. I was concerned that the A3R would be more difficult to play compared to my Yiari and it is slightly harder to play leads on but it came with Elixir 12s and I usually play 11s. I do plan to take the A3R in to have the action lowered slightly after I've worn out this set of strings and then I feel there will be minimal difference in playablility between my two guitars. Hopefully, this guitar will hold up well. I plan to have it for a long, long time!BB Wolf

Love this guitar! Was a little worried at first thought it might be too tinny but once the strings got broken in it sounds nice and crisp. Stays in tune. Intonation is good out of the box. Can't beat the electronics. Love the look and feel! Might switch out the nut and saddle when it's time to switch out the strings. People have said this guitar punches above its weight and now I see why.Jeff