Yamaha AC5R ARE Concert Cutaway Acoustic-electric Guitar - Vintage Natural Reviews

Thanks to my sales rep, Michael, for suggesting this guitar for me. With proper adjusting the knobs, when plugged in, produces a very authentic acoustic guitar sound, which can be very difficult to achieve on most guitars in this price range. Seems like Yamaha guitars are a bit under rated. You can yourself some bucks getting one of these.

What more can a guy say that hasn't already been said about this amazing instrument? Craftsmanship is always my first concern and this thing is pure flawless and just oozes quality. I know my guitars and there simply isn't anything on the market that can compete with the materials and build quality of the AC5R for under $ minimum. Not sure what Yamaha is doing, but I've never heard the almost surround sound projection of the Spruce / Rosewood on this guitar. I saw a previous reviewer use the words "beautifully eerie" and I full agree. Hard to explain but just a very gorgeous unique sound. For a concert body this thing projects incredibly, with no need to back off whatsoever on harder strumming stuff. I could babble all day about this guitar and how pleased I am with it. Definitely an heirloom level guitar that boggles the mind as to how Yamaha can produce these at this price. I also have the Yamaha FSX5 (which is just as incredible) and together I have an amazing acoustic team for the the price of single "big brand" without so much as a spect of drop in quality sound. The AC5R is about as much of a no brainer as there is in the guitar market. Just stop searching and by this guitar, you jut can't beat it.

I love everything about this guitar. I've had it for two years. It's great for finger-picking or banging out chords. The quality is amazing. Buttery smooth playability. As good or better than the Martins and Taylors I've played at a much more affordable price.

A well built guitar in Japan. Plays and sounds great ! Was hesitant about buying a guitar before actually playing it,
but it was just fine, right out of the case. Ryan was a great help. The guitar was well packaged and shipped quickly.
I will continue to buy from Sweetwater. Thanks again !

I decided to try the AC5R based on the great reviews that it has received. And boy were they all correct! This guitar looks and plays beautifully. The attention to detail is second to none. The Japanese custom shop really knocked it out of the park with this one. I compared this to my friends Taylor 414 CE, and it outperformed it in all facets. The only issue I had was the action. It was quite high when I received it, and I decided to have it set up professionally. and now the guitar just sings! I consider it $1600 well spent, and it is definitely a guitar I will be keeping and playing at all my gigs. Such a well made guitar!

I am a long-time professional musician. I have always viewed Yamaha products as high "value" (quality divided by cost equation). This AC5R exceeds my expectations. The unplugged tone and sustain is incredible, even for a concert model size. The build quality and fit-and-finish could not be more perfect. The setup was spot on, right out of the box. I will be using this plugged into a system for solo acoustic gigs. The preamp sound is excellent. I love being able to blend the under saddle pickup with a modeled mic sound….it gives me a more natural acoustic sound.
My sales engineer Chris Lewis deserves a big shout-out for his consultation and support. He has been great, helping me with a number of things in recent years.
In summary, you can't go wrong with this guitar, with Yamaha products, or with Sweetwater!

I needed an acoustic guitar to gig with. I wasn't happy with any of my acoustics plugged in until I tried this one. Really easy to dial in a good plugged in sound. The action was a little high when I got it so I had it set up. Now it plays and sounds great. I run this into a Baggs Venue DI and into a pa. I like to blend the mic with the piezo about 50%. Really happy with this guitar.

This has become my main guitar. Beautiful, high quality finish. Sounds great.

I've owned Martins, Gibsons, and Taylors and none of them , to me, are as great sounding and playing as my Yamaha AC5R.
the tone is incredibly sweet and balanced and the attention to detail is unrivaled. This guitar is an extension of my soul.

Fantastic guitar! Neck, Action, frets all perfect. Sounds great. Thank you Hanna and Derek, Awesome customer service!!

Disclosure.. I am a lifelong drummer so bear that perspective. My first guitar, and as always with ANY purchase I fully examine design, production quality and performance while buying towards the upper scale of those markers. Experienced players and luthiers had nothing but praise for Yamaha craftsmanship out of the box at this price point. I figured the less problems the better for starting out, my chances of progress would be increased by a factor unmeasureable of course and likely not even recognized at my level of cognizance, but valid in any case. Even a raw beginner like me had no trouble hearing that sweet, balanced and rich sound of this guitar, notably its' velvety tonal mix, with no outlying sounds no matter where the fretboard is played. Quality is typical Yamaha, not a weakness in sight. As I have no point of reference, if they had claimed a full setup was done, I cannot see where it wasn't! Tuning and tonal character are great, string height very manageable, that's about my technical limit lol. Tried the amp briefly just to verify function - I won't pretend to have an opinion on the electronic end. The included case seems bulletproof and the fit is perfect. Keep in mind, while researching and comparing on the site, guitars of any note sell as you are browsing, so if your "favorite" shows up in the temperature closet.. don't dally!

There is nothing like the sound of Rosewood...every note has presence and projects including the low end...no more mush on the low E. love this latest acquisition...gigged with it a few days after I got it...it arrived much quicker than expected and was very well packaged as always with Sweetwater! Beautiful craftsmanship on this guitar...love the way it played right out of the box. Sounded sweet thru the FOH sound system the way an acoustic should. Sweetwater Sales and Service is tops in the industry!

I had these guitar for over 3 years now, wow sounds so clear and the quality of the body how it made was excellent! I highly recomend these guitar. Ray E

I have had this for a little over a year now. I own numerous high end Acoustics and Electrics. When I went shopping for a new acoustic I tried atleast a hundred different guitars. This guitar is easily the equivalent of a $3000 - $4000 dollar American made guitar. Every detail about it is perfect. The sound is full on every level. The electronics are amazing. Oh the case is top notch as well. Do not hesitate, you will not regret this purchase.

At 65 I've owned my share of acoustics. Taylor, Martin, Larrivee and more.
The challenge always was to find a guitar that I could afford that was not MPL or that was not bound by plastic.
My AC5R is beautifully bound with real wood. The rosewood is deep like a pool.
The sound can make you cry if you are a good player.
One problem is that it is so beautiful that I make sure I never even leave a finger print on it.
In reality I think that it is better than some American made acoustics.

I've owned my AC5R for about 2 years now and absolutely love it! I purchased the A3R Chinese dreadnought version s few years earlier and while it's also an excellent guitar especially for the money it just doesn't have the soul that my AC5R does. I had been shopping for a better instrument and was considering a $$$ Martin and had played it several times but just didn't fall in love with it. I happened ask the guys at my local guitar store if they had an A5 series and they did! The moment case came open and I strummed the first chord it was like clear clean air pouring out of it. I slept on it and bought it the next day. Overall tone intonation and harmonicas are excellent but the neck is the best part, buttery smooth with the best perfectly level fret job I've ever owned. The action is as low as most of my electrics with no fret buzz.
Anyone considering a acoustic should seek one of these out an play it, to me it's easily the equal of instruments several times it's price.

Beautiful! Fantastic guitar for the price, great acoustically so smooth and balanced but the best was yet to come,played it through a Neunaber Immerse reverb into a Roland JC amp, incredible sound,the pick ups and controls are wonderful, as usual Sweetwater were great, oh as an aside this model has a 2-tone top, the bottom half is darker split precisely down the middle, wasn't sure about that at first, though everyone who has seen it thinks makes it look even better, I'll go with that

For the money, this guitar CAN'T be beat. The fit and finish is phenomenal and rivals that of guitars costing more than twice as much. After owning other more expensive models from the 'big names', I can truly say that this model plays, sounds, and records better than all of the others I've owned. If you have the opportunity to find a demo model like I did, quit reading this review and BUY IT NOW. These guitars are constantly on backorder for a reason.

Lastly, the service from Sweetwater is fantastic. My sales engineer Richard Wittington was very prompt with any questions or concerns I had throughout the entire purchase - he even sent me the high-resolution photos of my own personal guitar after the transaction was completed and they were removed. The guitar was shipped in less than three days to my doorstep with absolutely zero issues. Quit all of your researching, cross-checking, and price comparisons. The Yamaha AC5R and Sweetwater's service are second to none!

I can't imagine any other guitar sounding better. I have played Martins and Taylors that were double the price but did not compare to the sound of my AC5R.

Because of the pandemic, I haven had the opportunity of playing it before buying; I just had watched some videos y reviews about it and all of those were very impressive.
I ordered, and for my surprise it is far better than the videos I had viewed.
Absolutely recommended!!! You wont be disappointed.
By the way, it came very well protected in the box. You made it Sweetwater!!!

I am impressed with the attention to detail of this guitar. It's flawless. Incredibly beautiful woods. Nice weight. Very good setup from the guys at Sweetwater. Very articulate sound and very pleasing to the ears. Well balanced and with very good projection. This guitar will serve very well for years to come. Good job Yamaha. Quality you only find in guitars costing twice as much.

After a couple weeks, I am very impressed with this guitar. Beautiful looks, plays and sounds like a dream.. You see lots of Yamaha pianos and keyboards by big name bands so to me that means Yamaha knows musical instruments. This guitar can hold its own with high end Martins, Gibsons, and Taylors- IMHO.I also have a Taylor 614ce Builders edition that goes for 4 grand and I dare say this Yamaha is right up there close to it. I changed the strings to extra light 80/20. The light guage strings were a bit to stiff for my old fingers. Still booms out great. Great electronics too, I might add. At only $... a month on my Sweetwater card, what a deal!!!

I am a long-time musician, about 50 years. Drums (over 50 years, including professionally prior to non-music career) and keyboards (fewer decades than that). That's where I am coming from. I decided to try learning guitar during this pandemic, as I have always wanted to play.

This guitar is a work of art aesthetically. As to the play I do not feel qualified to say in a way that others can rely on, being new to the instrument, learning; but when I get it right, the sound is excellent.

My previous attempt to learn guitar was short-lived, about 26 years ago, electric - but life got in the way and I had to stop before I got at all far.

I tell you this because the action on this guitar is not easy for me. The electric (stratocaster) was easier. But this may be normal, the nature of the beasts, just an issue of my inexperience with the acoustic. I plan on lighter strings, I'm thinking. When I plug it in (acoustic-electric), I get a hum, with a not-long cable, not high volume. This too may be normal, the need for a "DI" box has been mentioned, though for longer distances, I thought. I'll see.

Sweetwater was knowledgeable and very helpful throughout the decision and purchase. It was not my first dealing with them, but my first in some depth. No complaints, only compliments there. The fact that they went over the guitar, prepped it, to get it ready for me is something greatly appreciated.

One thing that was an issue for me was the necessity of a good case. This guitar comes with an excellent case.

A am very happy with my purchase.

This is hands down the best guitar I have owned in past 10 years. Its a delight to play this beautiful piece of musical instrument. Get this instead of a 2500$ Martin or a Taylor.

by far the best sounding and playing acoustic I have owned..incredible sustain and tone rings forever. I had bought the Tayloy 214 ce deluxe was not happy no hassle return from sweetwater these guys are great ..got this instead was blown away by the craftsmanship and tone .. animal hide glued , all handmade. dove tail joint .. all solid wood just amazing action a joy to stand and play huge sound from the Japan custom shop 5 stars on this one cannot stop playing it ... Awesome.. if your looking for an electric acoustic this is the one....

Amazing guitar. Straight up. Craftsmanship is second to none (MIJ, of course), sound is perfect for me. The ARE treatment supposedly takes the "harshness" of mids and highs from newer wood out of the final product. I was torn between Martins (GPC series), Taylors (3-414 series) and Gibsons (American Eagle or Songwriter), but was beyond happy with my Yamaha. Quality is easily (if US-made) that of a 2.5-3k guitar. Neck's fantastic, a bit deeper in the body, but just as comfortable. Feels AND sounds amazing.

The mic modeling is amazing - have yet to plug into a venue to see how it works (they use a Neumann U 67 or Royer R-122) but that's a great way to get a different voice out of the guitar. The pickups use 2xAA's by the way.

As always, Bart Amburn and his team at Sweetwater is the sole reason I would buy a guitar online (and even then, only through Sweetwater!). The guitar came protected and packaged well, and I got my bag of candy. Only gripe is that I'd like some more bit-o-honeys in my candy packs in the future :P

I purchased this guitar back in December and it showed up in early January, i was impressed when I saw the case! and that was before i even opened it and saw what was inside. I can only say that I was floored by the quality of the guitar immediately. I have been playing this guitar non stop since then. I have been gigging with this guitar, I play it at home, and when Ive let my gigging Brothers play it, I had to pry it from their hands. Yes, this guitar is THAT GOOD!!! and MORE!!! Everything about it is 5 Stars, there are no buzzes, fret rattles, and EVERY note ANYWHERE on the neck, rings fat and clear. The nut and saddle are PERFECTLY cut ! Its just unreal how GREAT this guitar is in EVERY way. The electronics are superb and they actually WORK ! Now, I have to admit that Ive never really cared for Elixir strings, but they sound Awesome!! So now Im going to keep using them. So, if You want a seriously Great guitar, Look no further and give the Folks at Sweetwater a call as they have really stepped up to the plate in their customer service, i cant compliment my Rep Jared Kalish enough ! So, spend the coin and be stunned by just how awesome this guitar is !! Yamaha has always built good stuff and Ive owned a lot of their instruments over the years, and I was always Happy , But this one is a real Jewel and You should try one out. They Sound and Play just Beautifully and pretty much blow away anything else that costs a stupid amount of $$$$$$ I wont say names, because All you have to do is play one of these, and You will NEVER spend too much again on the other ones. Oh Yeah, Ive been gigging and Playing a long time, so I do know what is what when it comes to this, and I don't give praise unless its due, and in this case, its due. Happy Playing Brothers and Sisters !!

Received the AC5R. As is usual with Yamaha made in Japan, Workmanship is flawless. The tone is booming out of a smaller bodied axe. Unplugged it sings and Im still experimenting with the electronics but man the options are endless.

Had to wait month and a half or so since these are hand made in Japan but it was worth the wait. And getting a solid wood, especially Rosewood back and sides, guitar for this price is, well impossible. I highly recommend getting on the waiting list for this.

I've played a lot of acoustic guitars over the years, mostly cheapos, but pretty good cheapos. Finally, I bought a Martin dreadnought cutaway. Nice appointments, good sound. Sadly, after performing with it for quite a while I realized it did not respond well to my way of playing, and I found it uncomfortable to play. I tried a Taylor recently and liked it, but it cost $3500. I was already aware of this line of guitars by Yamaha, so I just took a shot. Long story short, I just LOVE this guitar. I felt attached to it immediately. Easy to play, sounds great, looks great, can go head-to-head with much pricier guitars. Next I'm going for the dreadnought. I like Martins and I like Taylors, but for me this is the one.

One day I was in the acoustic room... lusting after the new Taylors. I saw a Yamaha AC3R hanging on the wall. I picked it up and played it and was inspired to play for about a half hour before putting it down. After l got through playing I looked inside and was taken aback by the words "Made in China". Was this some sort of aberration? How could this be? Clearly there had been some sort of mistake among the Gods of the guitar universe. I had played the USA made Taylor guitars which were very good guitars but this Chinese Yamaha was great. The AC3R was just as playable, tone-full as its more expensive counterparts (to the tune of thousands of dollars).
After some research I found out that also makes the YAMAHA AC5R which is the top of the AC series line. So I ordered one from Sweetwater Sound and waited for two months (Yes, you will possibly have to wait that long).
The AC5R is made in HAMAMATSU JAPAN which is Yamaha headquarters. The AC5R is essentially a custom shop model made with selected materials. The guitar has perfect snowflake inlays on the ebony fretboard that have a nice multicolored shine.There is wood binding/purfling around the headstock. The back of the neck has a comfortable matte finish.The open geared tuners are very smooth and hold tune very well. The frets are perfect with wood binding that is beveled for comfort. The amber finish is poly, but it has been applied very thin so that you can see the slight ripples of the grain in the torrified spruce top.The tone that radiates from the scalloped braced top is impressive for a small bodied guitar. The pickup system is amazing.The hardshell case is very nice as well.
I think a good instrument should inspire a musician to play. I have owned many instruments over the years including a Yamaha SG2000 and a Yamaha SA2000. Both were made in Japan and as good if not better than the Gibson guitars that I love. After a change of strings I have already bonded with my new AC5R, now it feels like my guitar. It was worth the wait, and definitely better than a comparably priced Taylor. Buy one before the price goes up.

Great feedback and service. The guitar is perfect. Delivery was right on time.
Could not be more delighted with Sweetwater. I'll be back.

Yamaha has thrown down the gauntlet to all other manufacturers of acoustic guitars. I received my AC5R almost 2 weeks ago. I was expecting a nice guitar. I was actually shocked to receive such a magnificent instrument. Photographs simply do not capture the total understated refined elegance, beauty and craftsmanship of the Yamaha. The fit and finish is absolutely perfect. Inside and out are flawless. You should always do your own research before you buy a new guitar, but I don't think you can get more bang for your buck. Be prepared to WAIT if you decide to buy an AC5R, but patience is a virtue.
I am old school, (actually I am prehistoric school) and it was time to retire my 50 year old Yamaha. My fear was that a new guitar could not match the aged, clear beautiful tones of this old workhorse. The Torrefaction process has aged the soundboard to the quality of 50 year old spruce. Lows, highs, midrange, fingerpicking or strumming, the Yamaha sings out. After watching many videos on PLEQing I had Sweetwater PLEQ mine. WOW! $200.00 well spent. Watch some videos on the process and consider having your guitar PLEQed. Makes old hands and fingers feel young again. I could ramble all day about the virtues of the AC5 series from Yamaha. SOLID wood top, sides and bottom.Ebony fretboard, Mahogany neck, GOTOH vintage tuners, SRT2 electronics, etc. Do your research, and at least put this beauty on your radar. P.S. Even the case is shockingly beautiful! but it weighs about 800 pounds! :)

Just as a frame of reference, I gig about 6 times a month and am a typical gearhead, always searching for the Golden Tone. My guitars include some great gigging instruments; Martin GPCPA1, Taylor 612ce, Gibson Custom J45, Martin OMJM and a few others.

I did not really give Yamahas a thought one way or another. Had a 335 copy when I was in college that was superb but that was it. I'm 57 now. I saw these on a NAMM YouTube video and was intrigued by what looked to be a great package at a stupid price. Took a loooooooong time to get one becasue of the rosewood and the CITES regulations. Got the guitar Friday and spent the weekend with it. Here are my thoughts:

BUILD: Better fit and finish than my Gibson or GPCPA1. On par with the Taylor and the OMJM, which is to say it's very, very good. The level of detail, especially the wood binding, is excellent and it was hard to find anything to nit pick about. the aged spruce top has lots of silkin, frets are clean, inside immaculate. It is truly a thing of beauty to hold in your hands. My only criticism is the open back tuners, which look great, feel a little thin to me.

TONE/PLAYABILITY: The unplugged tone is somewhere between my Martin and my Taylor. It's not as bright as the Taylor or as deep as the GPCPA1. That said, it's surprisingly deep for a smaller sized body. Yamaha says they've tweaked their bracing, all I know is it has a unique sound that hits the sweet spot unplugged.
The action was surprisingly low right out of the case. When I get a new guitar the first thing I do is have my local guitar tech lower the action because I like to play up and down the neck. This is the first guitar I did not take to him. While that's good for me, some folks may think the action is too low for them and, as we all know, it's much easier to lower the action then raise it so I'm a bit surprised it came this low from the factory.
Plugged in it reminds me of the Fishman Aura system in my Martin GPCPA1. The preamp, however, is much, much simpler and easier to dial in on the fly. While the Aura offers a stunning array of tonal options, you really have to dive down pretty deep to fine tune it and, with only two buttons, it is not always quick and easy. For instance, both systems have a Feedback Buster in them. With the Aura it takes several clicks and you need the instrument howling for the system to search and destroy the offending frequency. With the Yamaha you just tap one button at the first whiff of feedback and it disappears. By far the best system I've tried.
There are four, unlabled buttons on the top of the bout. One is for volume, one for bass (tap it and it eliminates feedback), one is treble and the other blends the pickup with the two mic models. There is no on board tuner and no midrange adjustment. Since I run through a pedal board that's not an issue but it may be important to you that there's no way to dial out the mids.
Overall I found the sound of the guitar very natural. Maybe not as woody as the Martin but definitely more natural than the Gibson and the Taylor, and I like the sound of them plugged in.
VALUE: This is where the Yamaha really shines. This guitar punches way out of it's weight/price class. ...this guitar easily holds its own against my guitars costing a thousand dollars more. Easily. This may be the best bang-for-the buck pro series acoustic electric on the market. It's even cheaper than comparable Takamines, which sound fantastic for the money.

CONCLUSION: I expected this guitar to be good but, at this price point, it's much better than that. it would be a worthy consideration at the $2,500 level where many of my other guitars reside. You really do get more than you pay for. I'm sure the other Yamahas in this line are every bit as good as the AC5R. If you're looking for a high-end gigging guitar with zero compromises get one of these and take the extra grand you'll save and get more stuff!!!

By the way, Brandon and the folks at Sweetwater were great. I badgered them every couple of weeks asking for an update on when these guitars were going to clear customs. They were always patient with my impatience. Finally, Brandon called me late on a Tuesday afternoon and said the guitar was finally in and I might have it by Friday. I did not want it sitting in a frozen warehouse over the weekend and when I said as much to Brandon he made sure it arrived on time. Got it Friday morning. Cheers.

I tried the Taylors and Martins around the same price or higher, and they were not even close. This is a great guitar. Excellent sustain, beautiful sound, very easy to play. Simply ideal.

I own two Taylors and an Alvarez Yairi, and this is far superior to the Taylors . . . okay, I already said that. But really, give Yamaha a try side by side with the big names in guitars, and I think you'll be surprised.

Right now, its a phenomenal guitar. I also have a modern Gibson acoustic purchased around roughly the same price range, and the Yamaha is lightyears ahead in both quality and sound.

The only reason I took half a star off is because I had to take out the bridge and sand it down due to being excessively high, and causing fret buzz. It took about 10 minutes and 2 tries to get it right, but now it play like butter.

I really like this guitar. The playability is the best I have ever had. I own some of the best guitars made and this guitar is as good as the ones costing much more. I really like the smaller body and the onboard electronics. The tone is very even and smooth.

First off, this guitar is beautifully finished. The pictures don't do it justice in terms of how rich and deep the finish is on this guitar. Compared to a similar Martin or Taylor, it is much heavier and feels more stable in my opinion. I own an older model hand-made Yamaha (LL10) that was popular in the 1980's, that I love. But, I was in the market for a Martin or Taylor cutaway and researched both those brands extensively. After playing the Martin OMC at a local guitar store, I just wasn't that impressed with it. The guitar seemed very light physically and sounded weak to me. I thought the Taylor 314CE sounded better, but they have a new bracing system that runs the price up about five hundred dollars on a newer model. You can still buy a like-new used Taylor 314 for about the same price as this Yamaha, but the newer model is more in the two thousand dollar range. I played a couple of other Yamahas at the local store and they were cheaper models, but still had the heavy feel and deeper tone like my other Yamaha. I bought the AC5R without having played it, because I could not find this guitar in stock anywhere near me.

The guitar has a nice sized, but slimmer body than a traditional dreadnaught. But again, it feels solid. I do hear a little vibration if I butt my hand against the neck, although the neck feels very solid against the body. The guitar sustains notes and holds its tone really well. For a cutaway, it really projects, even unplugged. Like I said, it's very solid and much heavier than many similar guitars I looked at. For me, the setup on the action was a little high for my taste. It's not terrible, and part of it might be the strings that came on it, but I felt it was a little high right out of the box. But, the guitar is tight and needs a lot of breaking in. One thing that is really amazing is the sustain on the notes. I put my tuner beside this guitar and it lays dead on the green light for as long as the note plays. You won't have any issues getting this guitar in tune and keeping it there.

Okay, I took a star off and I'm going to say why. This may sound picky, but having the entire electronics exposed in this guitar just bothers me for some reason. The pick-up system is great and I love that it's not just a pickup, but has some controls actually on the guitar. But, I'm an IT guy and it is just strange seeing a fairly large computer control board just mounted in the sound hole with no cover on it at all. The wires are also just hanging freely off it. Couldn't they encase the electronics in an attractive plastic container and tie the wires into the body so they aren't just hanging off the control board freely? Lord knows what happens if something were to spill into this guitar. It would most likely fry the electronics. I would never play this guitar outside if there were any chance of it getting wet inside. Maybe they are all like that, I don't know, but it just seems like a simple thing to encase and make water proof and less likely to have a wire pull loose.

Love the look and sound of the guitar, I just wish they had paid a little more attention to protecting the electronics.

Ordered with Set Up and TUSQ End Pins. The "Luthiers" apparently don't have any pencil awls to make the end pins fit in guitar. They are sticking up quite a bit and my palm rubs on them when playing. Fairly uncomfortable...or maybe just strange. They seem like they will jump out of the guitar. I will now need to take to a real luthier to have them fitted better. More money out of my pocket. Guitar is beautiful and sounds nice. Just don't pay for a set up as it will be half assed. Salesman Thomas Bradley was nice. Asked me my favorite candy. I said Chocolate, no chocolate sent. Not a big deal, but it goes to a Salespersons word.
FedEx lost guitar for 10 days, eventually found on back of trailer somewhere during 30 degree temp fluctuations. Took 3 days off to accept delivery on the days I was told it would be delivered. Never arrived. Tried to change delivery location since I could no longer take off for delivery and FedEx said needed Sweetwater to authorize. I asked Salesman to contact FedEx to authorize it, but that never happened. Supposed to be signed for by an adult at OUR address, but FedEx allowed someone else to sign for the guitar and it was left at my front door. First time shopping with Sweetwater and not sure if I will again. The delivery excuses were that they are busy as if this season is a surprise to anyone. Salesman was good and kept in touch as much as expected, maybe more. Nice guy and can't say anything bad about him really. I just think Sweetwater should contract shipping with another company. FedEx has been garbage for a decade or more. Hell, USPS is better. Also bought the Fishman Loudbox Mini. It arrived when expected and is nice. You can look at another review about end pins for a photo. Almost exactly the same issue.

Cosmetically the guitar is indeed beautiful. Playable ? _ not so much. The action at the 12th fret is over a quarter of an inch off of the fretboard. The bridge pins are all sticking out over an eighth of an inch which looks and feels ridiculous. I have requested some smaller replacement pins to be sent to me...we will see what happens. Not my best purchase and I am still considering simply returning it.