The Orangewood sounded best to me. I have a 30 yr old Yamaha FG460S so I love Yamaha. The most important thing is the action of the guitar. If the strings are too high it's unplayable, too low it'll buzz.
As some of the other comments mentioned, beside these guitars, at half of the price of Yamaha FG800, you can find a F310 as well which actually for me it feels amazing. After i played for 2 years (with some pretty big pauses) at a guitar that wasn't mine, i decided to buy my first own one. Since i was still feeling like a beginner, i decided to start with a beginner guitar. And gosh, it took me a long research until i actually bought something. I had a lot of problems with the sentence "Ah, looks like with 50$ more i can buy something that is way more amazing" and so on. At some time i wanted to buy an Epiphone EJ-200CE, which even today i love the way it looks. But at the end, i decided not to go for Seagull, Martin, Taylor, etc. for now. So i just searched AGAIN for the most common guitars, and of course there's always an Yamaha Guitar and a Fender. About Fender CD-60S everyone said that is a good guitar, not the best, and not the worst, a round-all up (or something like this). But on the Yamaha side, a lot of people said that you can't go wrong with a Yamaha guitar. So i fixed my attention on the Yamaha models and gosh there were some problems too, since i didn't know for example: should i or shouldn't i get an electro-acoustic; can you see a big difference between nato (cheaper mahogany) and mahogany ? and etc. After headaches around which model to choose, i chose Yamaha F-310 since it was cheap and for example in the next years if i won't play guitar anymore, at least i didn't spend a lot of money and i'll still have something decent to practice on. At the start, on the internet, it wasn't the best guitar from my point of view but actually after i bought it, i felt very very satisfied. Compared to the other guitar that i was playing on, the action finally was right (until then i didn't know what that was) and everything felt comfortable on my hands and compared to my other guitar is felt very very easy to play on (the bar chords and etc). After 1 week, i changed the strings, and decided to go one time for some better strings instead of the ones that cost 1-2$. After i replaced my strings with some Elixir Phosphor Bronze .12 - .53 (same as yours), holy mother of god, the guitar sounded even a lot better and the material of the strings felt great. In the end i am very satisfied with it, love how it sounds and love how easy is to play on it. Looks like a lot of my comments, go from something simple to a novel :D. EDIT: Said Yamaha FG-310 instead of Yamaha F310
Thanks for sharing! Yeh one thing I didn't mention is that for any of these guitars I would change the strings immediately to Elixir's there's no competition there!
Thanks alot for sharing the confusion, how ever you made a very good convlusion. I have tried many guitars and I end up with Yamaha and Cort. Cort is e little bit too bright. Yamaha sounds more balance. I consider to change the string like your recommendation. Thanks Cheers from Indonesia.
Thanks for your thought.. I was having the same conflict as yours. plan to buy FG-310 or FG800 or FG800 electric acoustic... or buy an electric guitar to start. After reading your comment.. your thought makes sense... "chose Yamaha FG-310 since it was cheap and for example in the next years if i won't play guitar anymore, at least i didn't spend a lot of money"...
I have a Yahama FG800 set up with Martin strings. I highly recommend it. My grandpa has a few $1000+ Martin guitars I grew up around, and was going for that sound. He even loves to play the FG800 now. He always says he can't believe how professional it sounds for its price.
@@kalebdowns4820 A very big factor for me personally is how fast it rusts. I've always preferred elixirs because of the smooth coating allowing your fingers to glide but some prefer the more "raw" feel which a majority dont like. The coating also allows your strings to last longer as again, it prolongs your strings life from your finger sweats
Not a big fan of Fender acoustics but felt it was the most clear when fingerpicking. The Yamaha had the biggest sound (more bottom end) and the Orangewood was the most versatile of the three (finger+flat+strumming). Great video and teaching. That was most impressive.
I'm a lefty - I've got a fender I've had since 1989 - I've put this thing thru hell but I've never liked it - my luthier loves it !! everyone seems to - hell I've accidently thrown a boot with a spur on it and gouged a hole and everything but it still keeps going - but I don't like the damn thing - if that makes sense?
Just ordered myself the FG800 with a bundle so I get with it picks, string, guitar bag, and a guide book perfect for me since I’m starting! can’t wait til this Saturday 😁
I thought the fender sounded the best yamaha close second. Fender was brighter and yamaha had better resonance. Could be each better depending on what you play
@@TUC_1 hehe, mă apucase recent pasiunea pentru chitara și m-am uitat la tot felul de chitare acustice....din păcate în ultima perioada nu prea am apucat sa mai exersez foarte mult
Here in the philippines they cost almost 500 dollars. I want to buy a decent guitar but it's hard. I wish they are also priced like this here in my country
I own the orangewood (in the darker finish) and my two buddies own each of the other guitars. It is a lovely guitar but it just sounds so thin (something you might not be able to hear in the video). I love my buddy’s FG800 so much I’m about to go pick one up. In my opinion : 1. FG800 (for resonance, tone, a high end, and that super bass) 2. Fender (all around nice on the high end but not too bassy) 3. Orangewood (great for finger picking but still very thin sounding and feels very travel sized and small when held)
I just received the Yamaha gig maker for a Christmas gift. For $219 for the guitar and everything that came with it this was a steal. I’m 56 years old and found this guitar is perfect for beginners and anyone at any age. Don’t thing twice get the Yamaha!
I just bought my first guitar this summer and i couldn’t be happier with my $135 Orangewood choice! In fact I love it so much I already bought a second more fancy one - great company The gig bags & accessories were super too
The reason the Yamaha sounds more full and with more bass is because of the scalloped bracing inside which rarely happens on cheaper guitars. Scalloped bracing makes a big difference. I figured you didn't know that or you would have said so in the video but I could be wrong. Nice video too.
I've seen a few guitars come and go since 1970, which is when I started playing. But the Yamaha 800 is the first one I've fallen in love with in a long, long time. "Entry level" or not, I' wouldn't feel out-gunned in the company of Martins and Taylors. You're right, it sounds like a much more expensive guitar than it is.
I'll just add my two cents for those who might be deciding on these guitars. I was fortunate enough to play both the Yamaha and Fender for a few days. If you've been learning on a real cheapy guitar, these are both a big step up in quality. If you're just starting and looking for a first guitar, these are both great options. I asked people around me which sounded better and it was pretty mixed results. Personally, I slightly prefer the Yamaha sound but it's subjective. The satin neck does feel nicer too. Both feel great though. Since these guitars are both good beginner guitars and not wildly different from each other, I'd say if they are similar price get the Yamaha. Otherwise pick up whichever you find on a good sale as unless you're an experienced guitarist I'm not sure you'd notice that much difference between the two.
I lent my CD-60S to my nephew for his guitar class in high school. The neck on that guitar after a setup was better than $500+ guitars I've played. Didn't sound the best, but man that neck was so nice to play on. Once I get it back, I'll play with different strings to make it sound good as it is my "campfire" or "couch" guitar :)
My advice is forget all the extras and just think about the guitar. Satin vs gloss is not an issue. Look at the top solid spruce and scalloped is very important. My advice go for the Yamaha
I learned to play on a beat up 10 year old classical guitar strung with steel strings. It was sunk in and the fretboard was curved like a little 'n'. The gap between the strings and fretboard was super high and uneven. I have to say it wasn't easy playing it, especially baring the chords, but that tough love made me a better player when I got the next descent guitar under 200 dollars. It was a Yamaha, it had those blemishes in the finishing, the neck was actually thinner, and it was a huge reduction from the thick necked classical guitar. It sounded really good too.
I bought a Yamaha F335 on sale for $99. Out of the box it is good. It’s great for the money. It became a totally different animal once I put new high end strings on it. Highly recommend and I’ll probably stay with Yamaha when I do upgrade
Saw guitar center was the running their guitar sale so I impulsively bought the fender model in this video and I have to say I'm very happy with my purchase
Alvarez is another name not often mentioned but quality. My 2 favorites are Fender and Yamaha not necessarily in that order. I'm not familiar with Orangewood.
hello! a month later, i finally ordered the Yamaha FG800 today! im so excited after months of waiting ever since last year, it's finally happening :D. im excited for my journey of being a beginner ;D
@@glue1820 go for it dude! my journey.. it had its ups and downs. there was some loss of motivation to keep on improving but it's how it goes. what i have on my mind to keep on striving for improvement is to remember why i want to play. (like playing for my friends, church friends, family, and special events that need some music..) if you have the right time and money (ofc), go buy one for yourself! if u feel that this specific instrument isnt for you, find something else youd like to learn. the best thing i learned through this guitar journey is that i tried and still trying today :)
I have made music for years and wanted to start making my own sounds and have the ability to play on the go. ex: bonfires. However I watched this video and it really motivated me even more to start. Thank you so much for the information!
I didn't hear a bad guitar in the bunch, but like you said, the Yamaha sounds like a more expensive guitar. If clean, crisp balanced sound is the priority Yamaha wins. The Fender has a slightly warmer and muddier tone which might be nice for some songs and the Orangewood just looks nicest hanging on the wall or in a stand. The Orangewood guitar sounds OK, but if you would rather display your guitar than play your guitar Orangewood is definitely the choice for you. It might sound odd, but I know several people, mostly girls, who played pretty basic Yamaha guitars when we were in college, 40 years later they are still playing them. Those things sounded pretty good back then, and just might even sound better now... but 40 years of practice might have helped too. If you aren't planning to go professional the Yamaha 800 series guitars just might sound good enough to last a lifetime.
@@midnight4109 Very true. like in many things, something is so good it becomes the reference standard. And that would be the basic Yamaha. Sure there are going to be cheaper guitars that are almost as good and better guitars that cost more. There are even a few that are around the same price that look better and sound worse. But if someone wants a workhorse of a budget guitar, with a clear sweet sound a Yamaha is a really good bet. I might suggest, that the stock Yamaha can be improved with an upgraded set of strings depending on your taste, but the guitar itself will definitely reward your string choice and playing style more than some others will. I know that Yamahas are mostly considered beginners guitars. but I know more than a few folks who didn't become professional musicians, that learned to pay on Yamahas who still play the same guitar 50 years later and they sound better than when they were new.
I bought the Orangewood as a knock around road guitar, I was pleasantly surprised at the quality and set up. I own Gibsons, Taylor’s, Guilds, and Martins so I needed something for doing open mics or just taking out on a picnic etc… and this guitar more than delivered.
Dave, you’re amazing! Thank you for all you do! I have the Yamaha FGX800ce and it’s amazing! My student has a Fender CD -60 and it is a good guitar as well. Having played the side-by-side I have to say the Yamaha is amazingly balanced and projects better but the Fender is a beast playing acoustic rock like Nirvana/Pearl Jam. That being said, I get more compliments for my Yamaha than I do my much more expensive Taylor, which is crazy because I love playing my Taylor. Now plugged in, nothing I’ve played compares to my Taylor. I should mention my Taylor is only a year old and it’s Koa (gorgeous) it will open up in time. Bottom line, you can’t go wrong with any of these guitars. My advise is that you HAVE to play them. I’ll visit a Guitar Center, play everything in my price range and pick the one that feels right. Like when I chose my Taylor, I intended on buying a different guitar that was twice the price but when I played the Koa I literally smiled from ear to ear it was just so perfect for me. Also, if you intend on playing in a band make sure you consider how the highs and lows are going to sound accompanied. Trust me, it matters!!!! (Edit, I test at GC but I buy from Sweetwater, their customer service is phenomenal)
Yes, several of each acoustic & electric solid bodies here. Yamaha's APX600 is my go to e-acoustic. I enjoy Dave's song tutorials. Clear, as concise as possible for detail, and accurate. Kudos. 👍
FWIW. It is very easy to de gloss the neck of any guitar. It takes about 5 minutes of gentle and careful polishing with a green 3M pad. This can be blended into the gloss sections easily and seemlessly.
If I had the Yamaha and Orangewood at home I probably couldn´t decide.... both sound great in their own way. I was able to compare Alvarez RD8C and the Yamaha FG800 at home and kept the Yamaha. Love it!
Interesting looking through the comments. Lots of opinions about the order of which sounded best, and virtually no consistency. Goes to show that which guitar is best is (within reason) an entirely subjective and personal choice. All of these seem decent, though, for the money. For me, it was the Yamaha. Can't go far wrong with a Yammie.
Hii, I just want to say I love your tutorials! they’re perfect for beginners like me. Could you please do a tutorial for the song Those Eyes - New West? it’s a beautiful song but so underrated.
You absolutely described my old guitar - it'd been in storage, for over 20 years, I finally got it, first thing I did was change the strings and boy, it's sounds like it doesn't work! No sound, and the action is like a mile high... okay, it's a 40 year old guitar and I bought it for $30 back then, but really, I can't do anything with it and it doesn't inspire me to learn.... To my ears, the Yamaha and the Orangewood sounded the best :)
Thank you so much for the advice, especially the last few words. It's the player, not the guitar that makes a great player. I have been looking the wab over and over for reviews. So confusing.
@@Ohkano Absolutely...Every single person on earth has sinned and fallen short of the love of God but He still loves each and every one of us. It doesn't matter who you are and what you've done, He still loves you and we're all equal in His sight. I do encourage you, though, to give Him a chance. He will completely transform you and bring you peace that you can't get anywhere else. Life is so hectic and it's easy to neglect the fact that we do need Him. So, please don't ever hesitate to talk to Him because He's right there with you ♡
I've been playing for almost 6 years and still got my old Squier Strat (Roxy i call her) and an acoustic that cost me around 35 USD... In theory i am a professional but work is little and frankly i would save for guitars like these if i had a constant job and payment, but it is true that the guitar is not the greatest factor that determines good tone, it is the guitarist' playing... I play Clapton bluesbreakers on that old Strat and that guitar has great history... Greetings man
These are all good guitars, but I am partial to the Orangewood. I own an Orangewood Echo and it is the best playing guitar I have ever owned, and I have owned Gibson, Martin, Yamaha, Takamine, and Ovation. The guitar just feels GOOD, intonation and action are amazing. It turns heads everywhere I go, even among pros. I use it for Bluegrass, Country , and Gospel and it fills those needs perfectly.
There are so many who buy a more expensive guitar, take a few lessons, put the instrument in the closet in its case, and eventually sell it cheap before they move on with their lives. The resale on name guitars is often half what a new one would cost and many times looks and sounds like brand new. A slightly smaller guitar is more manageable for many of us. You're not limited to these 3 models by any means although I would agree that they are 3 of the best names around.
Each of the guitars are best in some techniques.. I loved Yamaha for both fingerpicking and strumming I loved the Fender for strumming I loved the orangewood for flatpicking and strumming. It totally depends upon your preference. if focus more on fingerpicking you can take Yamaha. :)
If you understand the building process; some beginning guitar over time begin to sound better. That is because the wood is drying out in just the right way to make the wood resistant to cracking. The problem is you are taking a risk the guitar will not antic correctly. I tend to buy a cheap beginner guitar that is not made of laminate. If I buy a laminate guitar I tend to tune it slightly higher. PS...You can tell a guitar is not been aged correctly and it sounds wet...
FWIW, I picked up a Harley Benton D-120CE for about $120 (including shipping) and am pleased with the decision. I think the sound is generally comparable to these guitars but it comes with the electronics that these don't have.
Of these, the Orangewood one is my choice... I have a black Fender CD-60S for years, but I am not content with it at all, I play it rarely... The strings are far too hard for me and it sounds too... Tin? Anyway, I'd still prefer a Yamaha CX40II over that Orangewood... 🤔
Thank you for this video. I like the amount detail you gave when describing each one. Finding information about getting into guitar playing can be a little confusing sometimes. I've been wanting to play the guitar for quite a while now and I'll hopefully be able to get one of these for Christmas.
I would go for the Orangewood. It has the best tonal balance, it has good full sound and it's bright without ringing and the sounds are not interfering with each other. The Yamaha sounds choked. Somebody is strangling the sound across the whole range. It's loud but the lack of brightness and cleanness of sounds is so disappointing. The Fender is somewhere between the two. It's comparatively quiet though, but the most notable thing is that you lose the sound of the mid range (poor balance) and like the Yamaha, it's not very clean. About 12 years ago, I bought an Art & Lutherie (by Godin) as a budget guitar and it was remarkably similar in sound to the Orangewood. I tried about 10 budget guitars from famous makers like Fender, Yamaha, Martin and Epiphone ... most were made overseas ... and all those suffered the same issues as the Fender & Yamaha ... stifled and choked ... wanting to let a good sound come out but couldn't! For giggles, I even tried a $1000 CDN guitar and it sounded like the A&L but I would have been paying for the name and better adornments.
saw a used Breedlove online, wesnt to play it ended up trying a $500 Yamaha and couldnt put it down. Played and sounded better than all the Gibson, Taylor Guilds at more than double the price. This thing just rings, resonates. Live itGive Yamaha a try if youre looking.
These are in the USA where their inflated dollar along with makes the more affordable than in ROW. For decent performing beginner guitars at a more affordable price point, particularly in Asia or India, look at Cort or Yamaha. Cort AD810 or AF510, or Yamaha F310. They' do the job capably and will serve well for the first few years until able to play well enough to pragmatically validate spending more for superior tone and possibly, feel. Yamaha don't offer a beginner Concert or Parlor body in those price point segments.
Thanks for the guitar comparisons. I purchased a guitar about 15 years ago. I never learned to play it, but I am really inspired to do so now. Your comment about using a starter to get used to the guitar makes sense. Mine is a Jay Turser JTA-67N/G. Curious to know how you would rate it to the 3 compared?
Here's a tip for sticky glossy necks - use 400grit wet sandpaper or cloth and gently wipe back of the neck in direction of strings. Just the surface. That is how i made my old guitar playable again.
It doesn’t matter how cheap the guitar is, it’s how good the player is. A good guitar player can make a 50 dollar guitar sound good but a bad guitar player with a 1000 dollar guitar sounds bad.
@@balleralert8 I was procrastinating really hard on it and I ordered the Yamaha it just has a lighter sound that I really like it’s just my preference tho
Wow what a coincident, I just bought a Yamaha FG 800 for Two Hundred two weeks ago,.. And I’ve got to tell you Dave, it sounds perfect for the price and especially when I started playing with it for about three minutes. I also tried the Fender you preformed on video, nice, however the Yamaha won out overall. Thanks for the vid, youRock!
@@nhatle8320 ah, sorry to hear... That’s because it’s a very popular Guitar. The dealer at Guitar Center told me that he gets a lot of sales from customers so, not to worry, they’ll be back on the market again. Maybe around the holidays, just be on the lookout for them, good luck.
Excellent review and presentation. I chose the Fender 60s for my recent purchase after trying it against the Yamaha in store. It was a comfort and a tone thing. ..also...I own two great stratocasters. All these guitars sound great and some of the differences might partially be string differences. Something I believe is they all will improve with age because of the solid tops, playing and aclimitisation. They all sound very "fresh" straight out of the box in reviews. Suggestion...a few open string strumms at the start of a comparison tells me a lot about the full tone of the guitar.
I upgraded for the first time after 3 years of playing on a 20+ year old Epiphone Dreadnaught we happened to have. I felt like I had mastered that one and wanted a different tone/element.
Just starting out and have to get my own guitar (my sister won’t let me use hers very often) and I’m in love with the sound and look of the Orangewood. Definitely getting that one thank you for making an unbiased comparison :)
The Orangewood Austen right now (3 Dec 2020) is $166 shipped to your door in the USA, a holiday sale. It's got the right wood but no frills, no gold hardware, no fancy mother of pearl, no binding. But that stuff doesn't make it sound better. I have a Yamaha FG730S which is basically a fancier version of the FG800 and it's a great guitar, I love old 70's and 80's Yamaha's a lot too. Orangewood offers a lot of guitar for the money though. The only down side is you can't play one at a shop! I have small hands and I really want to feel a guitar first. I will end up getting an Orangewood some model or another eventually, probably on sale, they are just too nice and reasonably priced.
I'm learning to play guitar during quarantine abd my brother gifted me the yamaha fg800 on my birthday, so I'm really happy to see it here! I wanted to ask you two questions, first, what was the song in the fingerpicking test? Also, I wanted to ask you recomendations of which songs I should learn next. Currently I dont know many, but probably my favorite one is blackbird by the beatles (learned it thanks to you, great video too btw!), so if you could recomend something that is also focused in arpegios and fingerpicking but is not super complex I think that would be perfect! Anyways, thanks for all the videos and tutorials you make! You are probably my favorite youtuber that does guitar tutorials, you breakdown the songs, show slowly what to do, repeat it multiple times, show the tabs, and always sound patient and also positive (like you are rooting for me? Or maybe thats my imagination lol), so thank you so much, and keep doing what you do; because no one else is, and we need you! Take care!
It's called Bloom by the paper kites :) I have a lesson on YT for it :) so that's a great one to learn :) and answers both of your questions! Dirty Paws by Of Monsters and men is a good picking riff too :) I am definitely rooting for you!
I want to start learning to play guitar I don’t know which guitar to buy but looking at this video and looking thru the comment people seem to really like the Yamaha thanks my friend for this very well made video and to the people giving advice 👍
Hi Dave am new sub and total rookie guitar player just turned 67 in october and have always wanted to learn to play...all 3 guitars are nice but am leaning towards the Orangewood for my first purchase.
Love the whole concept of the Orangewood. Including a decent gig bag is not a small thing. Unfortunately, being left handed they only offer 2 models, both nice but always out of stock anytime I check. How often are they restocked? Really want the Orangewood Morgan or Oliver but if we're talking months wait time I'll have to go with the yamaha or fender because it seems better to have a guitar I can actually purchase and play lol.
This is playable guitar range that anyone can start off with. Doesn't matter if you have a martin or a yamaha f310, both will sound like crap if you aren't practicing enough. Practicing is what counts. Yesterday, i went to a store and tried out the cort ad810($130) and a prs ($700) and the sound quality of prs sounded a tiny bit better but its not worth an extra $570. The cort has a laminated body which means i don't have to worry about the climate anymore. It has a rich sounding tone. I think I'll get the cort instead. And practice 40 hours a day lol
