PricePaid: 200 GBP (S/H)
Purchased From: N/A
Model Year: 1985Features: [7]
This guitar is a deep bodied electro acoustic with a Venetian cutaway. It's got a solid spruce top and rosewood sides and back along with rosewood fingerboard.
A Barcus Berry piezo pickup is fitted under the saddle. There's a simple volume and tone control fitted which isn't active. Sadly it's not got an endpin jack but a socket drilled into the side of the guitar - cheesy.
The guitar was made in Japan and has 21 frets. It has a bound neck and headstock and Schaller type machines. It stays in tune fine. Sounds: [8]
When played acoustically, the guitar's tone is actually quite thin and weak for it's size and is a disappointment. I use Martin 11 guage sets of strings, so that accounts for some of it, but not all of it.
When amplified, the sound is excellent. The pickup is very even and delivers a great clean sound into my Fender Twin. There is no feedback unless the volume is really loud - I play with a drummer so we're not talking wine-bar volume here. I've never had any feedback problems Action, Fit & Finish: [8]
I bought this used and have set it up myself. I don't know how it came from the factory, but I've got it set up really sweet.
As a used guitar it's got dings and scratches but the fret markers are well finished and a good indication of what it was like new Reliability & Durability: [8]
The wood on the guitar is quite plain looking. The lack of active pre-amp is due to it's age. If you're just going to play acoustically, I'd probably keep looking, but for stage work I can't fault it tonally. Overall Rating: [8]
You'll have to spend a lot more to get something better for live gigs. The cutaway makes it look a bit different too. | 
Tanglewood
