Shop Keyboard Deals, Financing, and More

Alvarez AF30CE Artist 30 Folk Acoustic-electric Guitar - Natural

Acoustic-electric Guitar with Sapele Back and Sides, Spruce Top, Mahogany Neck, and Techwood Fingerboard - Natural
$329.99

Earn $17 back in Bonus Bucks OR pay $14/month with 24 month financing*

In Stock!

Add to Cart
Notify me about deals

Ask An Expert

Our expertly trained Sales Engineers are ready to help!

What is a Sales Engineer?
Sweetwater Gear Exchange

Have one to sell?
Check out Sweetwater's Gear Exchange!
Learn More

Most Popular Accessories & Related Items

Alvarez AF30CE Artist 30 Folk Acoustic-electric Guitar - Natural
In Stock!
$329.99
Add to Cart
Add to list
Back to navigation

This article was Written By

Our Product Research Team

Get to know them!

Choose Alvarez for Unbeatable, Affordable Quality!

The Alvarez Artist 30CE Folk Acoustic Guitar is a well-crafted, sweet-singing acoustic that’s entry-level in price only! Like all of Alvarez’s artist series, the Artist 30CE gifts players comfortable playing with stylish looks that keep your guitar journey engaging and fun. The Artist 30CE features a slim tapered OM-style body, a favorite for folk and ensemble players as well as singer/songwriters. Resonant back and sides crafted from sapele deliver rich tone that’s great for strumming and fingerstyle while the Artist 30CE’s crown gem is a solid wood top built from Sitka spruce that rivals the sound quality of much pricier acoustics. Sweetwater players love the Artist 30CE’s sound, but especially appreciate its comfortable feel and durable hardware. Player-friendly features include chrome Alvarez tuning machines, a premium bone nut and saddle, spruce bracing, a body cutaway for upper-fret access, and a comfortable mahogany neck with a hybrid “V” to “C” shape for incredible playability up and down the neck.

Curated tonewood selections

Gone are the days of learning on an instrument built from dubious mystery woods that sound like paper mache. The Artist 30CE features exceptional woods that sing with elegant depth. The back and sides are crafted from sapele, a hearty relative of mahogany that’s prized for its warmth and sustain. Paired with that is a true Sitka spruce top complete with a premium semi-gloss finish. Sitka spruce is the guitar world’s premium standard for acoustic guitars; it's known to enhance everything from tone quality to volume and projection, and also responds well to player dynamics. Plus, the sound chamber also features additional sound bracing crafted from spruce for a precision balance of tone. With tonewoods like these, you’ll be ready to practice, perform, and play with confidence that your instrument is cheering you on, never holding you back.

Comfortable design from the neck down

The Artist 30CE is comfortable from the neck down with design features that enhance your playing and ability to lean-in to learning. Comfort is a key factor that speeds up learning and keeps us entertained, and that’s why the Artist 30CE features a premium neck crafted from hardwood mahogany. Not only is mahogany a favored tonewood in the acoustic world, but this neck is also further enhanced with a hybrid soft “V” to “C” shape. Alvarez carefully developed this blended neck profile that gives you ideal anchor space in any position. Toward the headstock, the “V” shape yields a better grip for 6-string open and barre chords; further up, the “C” shape gives hands more room for expression and thinking outside the box.

Ready for the stage

With built-in Alvarez SYS250 electronics, the Artist 30CE is always ready for a gig or a recording. The powerful SYS250 preamp offers straightforward acoustic amplification with a host of added features for tweaking sound to perfection. There's a 3-band EQ for tweaking bass, mids, and treble frequency, a built-in backlit tuner, a volume knob, and a presence slider for fine-tuning the punch of your plugged in tone.

Alvarez AF30CE Artist 30 Folk Acoustic-electric Guitar Features:

  • Light semi-gloss finish yields a premium feel at a great price
  • Folk/orchestra-style guitar with slim tapered body — great for singer/songwriters and students!
  • Body cutaway adds extra access to upper frets
  • Forward-shifted spruce bracing with asymmetric tone bars push the best balance and response from your instrument
  • Solid Sitka spruce top with a satin finish
  • Sapele back and sides with ABS binding and open-pore finish
  • Mahogany neck with hybrid soft “V” to “C” shape for maximum playability up and down the neck
  • Crafted dovetail neck joint enhances tone and vibrational transfer from strings to body
  • Smooth fingerboard with 21 frets crafted from Techwood
  • Quality hardware including chrome Alvarez tuners
  • Bone nut and saddle deliver exceptional resonance and sustain
  • Alvarez SYS250 electronics (designed by B-BAND) EQ with 3-band EQ for dialing in a perfect tone
  • Also features a built-in backlit tuner

Additional Media

Warranty Info

Sweetwater's FREE 2-Year Total Confidence Coverage Warranty

Extra peace of mind at no extra cost.

  • Save money with FREE parts and labor
  • Get back to making music with the industry's fastest turnaround time
  • Fix it the first time with our award-winning, factory-certified Service Department
Learn More about Total Confidence Coverage

Free 2-year Warranty

Sweetwater's 2-year Total Confidence Coverage™ Warranty gives you extra peace of mind at no extra cost.

Learn More about Total Confidence Coverage
Tools Icon

Save money with free parts & labor!

Fast Icon

Get back to making music with the industry's fastest turnaround time.

Award Icon

Fix it the first time with our award-winning, factory-certified Service Department.

Back to navigation

Tech Specs

  • String Type: Steel
  • Number of Strings: 6
  • Left-/Right-handed: Right-handed
  • Body Shape: Folk/OM
  • Back & Sides Wood: Sapele
  • Top Wood: Solid Sitka Spruce
  • Finish: Satin
  • Color: Natural
  • Body Bracing: FST2 Forward Shifted
  • Binding: ABS
  • Neck Wood: Mahogany
  • Neck Shape: Soft V to C
  • Radius: 14.96"
  • Fingerboard Material: Techwood
  • Fingerboard Inlay: ABS Dots
  • Number of Frets: 21
  • Scale Length: 24.8"
  • Nut Width: 1.75"
  • Nut/Saddle Material: Bone/Bone
  • Bridge Material: Techwood
  • Tuning Machines: Alvarez
  • Electronics: Alvarez SYS250 EQ and Tuner
  • Strings: D'Addario, .012-.053
  • Case/Gig Bag: Sold Separately
  • Manufacturer Part Number: AF30CE

What Makes Our Sales Engineers Great?

Sweetwater Sales Engineers are a world-class team of experts dedicated to you. Hand selected from across the globe, each brings a wealth of experience and expertise in the world of music gear to provide you with unparalleled service completely free of charge. Friendly relationships, real trust, and the right gear are only a call or a click away!

Back to navigation

Customer Reviews

Write your review
Rated 4/5

Needs lighter strings.

Good guitar but as an electric player looking for a electric-like playable acoustic, I find the strings have a bit of a high action. I think an adjustment and some lighter strings will fix the problem but not sure how much can be done before it starts buzzing... Guitar sounds great and REALLY stays in tune well. If I can get the action a little faster I'll update with five stars.
Music background: Absolutely no musical talent but I've been playing for 50 years.
Rated 2/5

Alvarez AF 30

I don't like this guitar at all that does not have a very good sound sounds like has a slight Buzz to it the material seem kind of cheap. I'm sending it back within the next couple of days I do not recommend this guitar to anybody
Close Close $2,000 Pick Your PRS Giveaway -- input your email address below to enter or click here to learn more.

See giveaway details & rules or check out our past winners!

Success!

Your email, has been entered to win this giveaway. Good Luck!