Yamaha Fg402 Acoustic Guitar For Sale (2024 Update)

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.

When the guitar arrived, I was not disappointed. The "sandburst" finish was fantastic–satin on the body, matte on the neck, which made playing a breeze. The fret work has no issues. The only change I will make is to have a tech file the nut grooves so the action is easier on the first fret; this is not uncommon with new guitars from any manufacturer. Other than that, the guitar is ideal. The bass response makes my fillings rattle (in a good way) and this guitar is loud when I need it to be. An important factor is this FG800 comes with a solid top spruce–this can't be emphasized enough. With laminate tops, you might get lucky with a decent tone, but the odds will be against you. A solid top will bring you closer to the sound you want. I don't believe in "beginner" guitars, which is another term for paying less in case you don't want to play the guitar later. If you're a guitar player, you'll know what you want. The FG800 passes for a quality guitar that will last your lifetime and that of the person you might bequeath it to.Dave

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.

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

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 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

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

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 was looking for a good beginner's guitar, and I wanted something with nylon strings. I did a pretty extensive search in order to find an instrument that was relatively inexpensive yet had some degree of quality. I read reviews on this particular model, and most seemed to be pleased. I was able to purchase one that, I'm guessing, had been returned, and I was very pleased with both the reduced price and the condition/quality of the guitar. The guitar itself has a very beautiful and mellow tone. It stays in tune, only requiring minor adjustments from time-to-time. I would not recommend this for young people or those adults with smaller hands, as the neck is somewhat wider than one might expect. All-in-all a very fine instrument for the price.Swewpa

This is the best beginner/student classical guitar there is bar none. It's full size and the intonation is spot on, the tuners (whilst basic) are fully functional and consistent. The bridge saddle has 3rd string compensation and is set to a low-ish action. Putting a new set of EJ45's opens up the sound considerably (don't play with the crappy strings that are on it). Great second or studio guitar for the experienced player. Stick it in a half decent case and you'll have a fantastic holiday guitar for around £150. The spruce soundboard already sounds good and will improve with age. Buy, play it – chuck it about. – it's very well made and robust. Finish is shiny and cleans with a wipe. Buy it today.Warwick M.

We purchased two of these for my pre-teens, who have been studying guitar in school. Both loved the instruments, which match the model they use in school. Nice, clean, warm sound, and clearly well-made instruments.Amy Beee

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 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 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

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

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

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

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

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 bought this guitar for my 7 years old daughter recently. She loves it. The size is perfect for kids under 10 years old. The build quality is ok. The action is very low which is good for kids' finger but is not good for strumming. Overall it is a great choice for young beginner.Mike

My kids, ages 7-12, are enjoying this. The steel strings are a bit hard on their tender fingers, but you can always change them to nylon if you want. My only real complaint is that when you finger the frets, the pitch isn't always right. I am not a guitarist, but am a professional classical violist, so my ear is well trained. This instrument is fine for my kids who are just messing around on an appropriately sized guitar for the first time, but they won't be winning any competitions with it! I wouldn't expect that for the price! But I do feel like this guitar is a good value for the price. Recommend it for children and beginners. A shoulder strap is not included but would be nice.Viola Mom

First I just want to say Sam Ash did everything in their power to make things right so this review is no reflection on them only the guitar itself. First off this is a cool little guitar if Yamaha wouldn't have done such a bad job with it. Out of the box Intonation was off by a half step and sounded horrible. I had to compensate the saddle with a file and almost file off the whole saddle to the point of leaving just a small breakpoint towards the nut of the guitar. After that intonation was almost there but I could live with it. Strings were rusted so I had to replace strings right out of the box. Fretboard was the driest I had ever seen. It was like it was sitting in a 120 degree warehouse for 2 years. I oiled the fretboard and looks and feels great now. Nut is cut just short of the fret board on each side and leaves a little groove where the nut should have come all the way out to the ends of the fretboard. (Pretty Sad QC yamaha!) Doesn't affect playing just the looks of the guitar. If yamaha would have taken pride in this little guitar it would have been awesome out of the box. After 3 hours of work now have it playable and sounds really nice. I shouldn't have had to do all this work to a guitar. I have other cheaper Yamaha guitars FS650S that came to me in perfect playable shape and cost less so I know Yamaha can do a nice QC job on their cheaper guitars. Yamaha just didn't care about the quality that went into this great little guitar. Not everyone can do all the things I did to this guitar to make it playable so if you can't do what I did above you will hate this guitar. I do have pictures of the filing of the bridge and the nut being too small so if you think this is just a bad eggs review you can ask me for the pictures and I would be more than happy to send or post the bad workmanship.tdegnan

This guitar is awesome because it is beautiful, lightweight, and comes with everything you need to start learning right away. I love the app that you can download when you get this guitar. The lessons are short so you do not have to spend all day playing, and the apps functionality works very well for giving feedback on whether or not you played chords correctly. In the past, I used random YouTube videos to help teach myself how to play guitar. This app is so much better and really allows the learner to go at their own pace. Although I do have experience with learning guitar in the past, I would still consider myself a beginner. The guitar I had learned on previously was more difficult than the Urban Guitar. The fact that the strings are closer to the frets and that there is a cut out to more easily reach the higher frets Are two great factors to consider when purchasing this guitar for somebody who is just learning.LaurenLouise50

This guitar sounds good enough but unless you're a die hard Kieth Urban fan, you can get something better for the same price point. It's very light and honestly feels a bit cheap compared to some of my older (still lower end) guitars. It's easy to tune but doesn't like to hold it as well as others – probably due to the cheaper hardware. It feels good to play but I would do better with a slightly fatter neck due to my wide fingers. The teaching app is a nice touch, but isn't anything more than you can find for free online. One thing to note is if you open the box from the wrong end as I did, you might think they forgot all the accessories. They are hidden in a small box that is extremely hard to see if you open the wrong end.Matrim

While I have only owned the guitar/training package for a little over a month, I am blown away by the quality of the guitar, and workmanship and training design with the training application. Since I was young (now in my mid-30's) I tried picking up learning the guitar every few years, as I was lucky enough to have other guitars in my possession over time. However each time, I tried self-learning, and failed. Partially because of my own reasons, but also because of how the online resources tried to train. The Urban Guitar package has put that concern behind me. First, the guitar is a work of art. It is gorgeous, and also sounds amazing for the price range. Even friends who are career musicians are amazed by how great the guitar sounds! As for the training app, it goes at the perfect pace to allow you to learn about the guitar, and to step through the process. The best thing about the app in my opinion is that it not only speaks in layman terms, but it also feels as if they're right in front of you taking you through it. Overall, this package is great for beginners to pick up the hobby, and is great to learn at any age!Anthony