GSWJ - JP Bought a Guitar on Amazon.... 

It may sound ‘buckety’ but I guarantee if that was a vintage d45 everyone in the comments would be gushing about the amazing ‘vintage’ tone. What a crazy cool $500 guitar, I want one!

I found out that the company that made that guitar is now called "Grote". They have several in their line all around the same price. They mostly have electric guitars, but if you type in acoustic on the search bar, they come up. And your right they do have some of the most beautiful guitars i've seen. See what ya did?! Now i gotta buy one. Lol. ... Thanx for the knowledge brother.😊

I had seen these and I thought "that's going to self destruct in about a week." Who would have thunk it?? Thanks for taking the plunge John. 👍

That's a chinese copy of a Martin D45. It's not built by a student, it was produced in one of maybe dozens of guitar factories in China and it's clear to me that very sophisticated CNC machines and laser cutting tools were used in the production of these guitars. I've bought about 6 of them. It's not for everyone, you lay your money out there and wait, sometimes for a long time. Of the six I purchased one had a minor finish blem and one required cutting a new nut because it had been cut too low creating a buzz. And by the way, that's a solid spruce top and I would guarantee the back and sides are laminate. I've been playing the first one I got for over two years now and love it. As for that 'cheap' sound, that may be due to the laminated back and sides that a white-bread Martin D45 (for $12,300!) doesn't have.

Great review as always. I continue to learn from your reviews JP.

Found your channel accidentally -tried to find the model - not there. I really admire your acoustic technique. A delight to hear you play.

Fantastic show. Thank you. It sounds good! Buckety! Great story

I love your sense of humor about the shirt!! Still the best guitar channel on the Tubes!!

It's nice to see an honest man. And that's from a fellow capebretoner ..It's refreshing thank you for your honesty It would be a great beginner guitar and the person could have it for a livetime.. people spend way too much on guitars before they get serious.

Hugely entertaining and informative as ever!!

I used to own a Chinese OM-28 and played a few other copies, and they are surprisingly an alright guitar. I ended up donating mine to my nieces school. That being said, I bought an authentic Martin OM-21 a few years back, and I can honestly say the copy truly doesn't hold a candle to it. In all terms of quality grain structuring of the tonal woods, quality of parts used, intonation across the fretboard, neck feel, overall balanced tone, dynamic response while strumming, sustain, to overall fit and finish. For the money, you can't go too wrong for a copy I'll agree to a degree, and I have played some cheaper Martin models where I'd admittingly take the copy over it. But, when you find THE Martin guitar that's seemingly made for you, you know its just right and you honestly can't leave the shop without it.

Just found your videos and really enjoy watching. I may know some of your distant relatives living in Lafayette, LA. I"m a long-time guitar player who reached my pinnacle about 25 years ago and never got better. I own a Alvarez Dove (1977), Taylor Big Baby and currently on the prowl for a new one. Looking at Yahama FG830, but when I discovered your videos, it opened up my eyes to many more alternatives, particularly another Alvarez. Thanks and keep em coming!

Hey JP. Great review. Ebay has a bunch of them for about $380 US delivered! Amazing looking instrument. Our former store in Calais Maine sold mostly Asian made guitars, and at first, we concentrated on So Korea, as Samick was putting out the best for the buck, and then they started producing them in Indonesia, and they were great. Then we got Sejung S101s from China, and from there most of the other brands like Washburn, Tak, etc... were all coming from China. The quality from mid 2000s upwards just exploded. I loved it because a new player could get an incredible guitar for under $500. And this guitar is in that same mind frame that even though there isn't a major brand on the headstock, the unit is well made. Appreciate you doing these reviews. BTW: We almost had you play at our store in the late 2000s, but instead you later played at the Celtic Concert series they had in town, and we had a wonderful chat after your show.

It's like it is always IT'S THE PLAYER MAKES THE GUITAR.

Brighter sounding than most dreadnoughts that size. Nice guitar. I have several guitars made in the copy-era that I purchased new in the mid-seventies. Acoustic as well as solid body electrics, they have all been excellent instruments. Two in particular have been played almost daily and a half-century later are still going strong.

Beautiful sound!

Always diverting, John. Guitar obsession is such a joy... I have a friend, luthier & top freelance repairman in New York, who has a 335 and a George Benson Ibanez copy from Zuwei, very pleased with them...skeptical of current acoustics, though.

That thing sounds great!

Very great and beautiful sound !

Absolutely Beautiful ! Sounds very good on this side . Wonderful guitar. 🎼👍

So I've also got one of these zuwei acoustics myself, mine is a OM41 style, same abalone inlay binding around the perimeter, sound hole, fretboard extension, snowflakes on the bridge and fingerboard, same torch on the headstock so I'm confident same factory. I paid less than 350 delivered for mine and overall it's a very decent guitar for the money. Mine came with some BS knockoff trapdoor fishman pickup that I didn't spec when ordered, so removed and built a rosewood patch piece to screw in where the pickup went, and pulled the piezo wire out from under the (bone) saddle and made a rosewood shim that I then CYA glued to the saddle to restore action height. All that said I noticed that the back and sides appear to be some sort of laminate. Although at first glance it may appear to be solid wood, because mine had the pickup in it I got to see a cross section of the wood and internally it is white with 2 outer rosewood brown layers. . . Idk if this is true wood laminate or some variation on martins HPL but I wasn't too happy about that, despite that though the guitar does have solid spruce top, all inlay work is actual block laid abalone, bridge is pre-slotted which even my Mexican martin failed to do. . . Dovetail neck joint, all bone contact points (on mine at least), this is a crazy speced guitar for the price as you stated, even with laminate back and sides. Overall mine sounds and plays pretty great, I prefer it to my Mexican built martin D10E in a lot of ways, it has a lot more mid-upper definition and articulation to the sound that the dreadnought doesn't have, but still it isn't lacking in the lows either, in my head the Zuwei OM sounds like what I'd want the dreadnought to sound like, after EQ and compression, if that makes sense. . . As far as I know Zuwei is a part of the starshine instrument factory over there which also makes Agile and a bunch of those similar brands.

Aliexpress is full of them! Mine is an exact copy of a Martin D-45. It has the trapezoid abalone inlays, and all the Martin markings. Mine was only $320. Mine does not have that "cheap" sound. And yes, the abalone is very thin and one piece per side. It is not individual hand cut pieces. All machine done. If the abalone was all separate pieces, you would see "shrink lines" between the pieces. All the wood pieces are CNC machine cut and fit. The braces may look hand done, but they are not. And the top may be solid spruce, but the sides and back are plywood. I ordered mine with a Cedar top. It smells incredible! Guitar machines are spitting these out by the hundreds! And yes the QC on these can not be beat!

You brighten up my days, love your reviews JP

I just got a Blueridge br280 love you to review one of those J.P love your demos happy picken.

It looks,sounds,and plays great . That's the holy trinity to us guitar players.👍👍

Did you notice at 6:06 the nut is not parallel to the first fret. It is narrower on the first string and wider at the 6th!!

Sounds lovely and warm and powerful to me.

I purchased the same guitar. I also have a 2001 Martin D-45. I was wondering how they compared. The major difference was that the Chinese example has a thick polyurethane finish and not the much thinner lacquer finish found on the Martin guitars. I also found the abalone on the Martin was of a higher quality. I felt that the thicker finish had a detrimental effect on the tone. I did not keep the guitar and after a year sold it for what I had paid. I agree with all else said here. Thanks for sharing your opinion.

I actually bought this same guitar a few years back. The one I order came with a fishman 101 pickup and onboard preamp. I’m a bluegrass flatpicker and man let me tell you, I was absolutely blown away by the quality of this instrument for such a low cost. It provided great tone and volume with pretty impressive playability right out of the box. Unfortunately I ended up leaving it behind the car one day and ran it over… but, certainly an awesome box for the money.

I’ve said for a long while that craftsmen are craftsmen the world over. I’ve got several MIC guitars. They hold their own quite well.

Bought a guitar with similar bling (but cedar topped 12 fret slot head triple O) from Aliexpress a few years ago. The seller customized it with my b-day date as the serial number engraved on back of headstock, and placed my surname engraved in abalone on last fret for around $300. Last year the bridge exploded into several pieces while I was playing. I took it to Dale's Instrument Repair in Jax, FL, and he created a new bridge . Additionally, I added an Ivory saddle handmade by Bob Colosi. Also added the tonewood amp system to . Though it doesn't project as loudly as the Martin 12 frets I've played, it is a very sweet sounding and beautiful piece of art none-the-less.

I've seen similar inlay headstock work on earlier models of Recording King guitars (made in China as well)...it could be the same people making that guitar...they sound great...thanks for the video.

Wow! You got the jackpot on this one Sir!

Wow! That is a beautiful guitar!

It sparkles on the high end I like it.

To my ears, the tone is awesome!

Wow!!! heading to Amazon now;)

I have to disagree with the idea that this is a student built guitar. There are many factories in China producing instruments like this one here. The "bucket" sound you refer to or the "cheapness" in the sound is a result of mass production techniques. As for the inlays, the routing for the abalone decorations, headstock and fret board are done by CNC while the inlays themselves are cut by laser. They're then laid out and glued into the guitar before being sanded flush. A guitar like this is probably sold under multiple brand names as the factories reband the guitars as per the customer's order. They have the finishing and production down to a science and can produce anything from a budget guitar to something that can rival the best produced in any mass production guitar factory in the world. I deal with some of these factories and depending on what you want to spend you can get a guitar spec'd out to almost any price point. Great channel and great player. Good to see a fellow Maritimer doing so well for themself. Keep up the great work.

Still for sale? Just found this video and am intrigued. Thanks, Roger

I love your guit-airs.

I hope to get few gigs in before I check it out when I change strings.

Thanky Again...I believe that is what is happening...I remember I bought a Grand Suzuki 40yrs ago similar inlays on the side cost about a thousand dollars but I guess this is better better 🤔💯✍️🧡

I own a Larrivee L28 i bought new in1979,love it ,as you always say a cannon. Your review made me buy a Yamaha FGX5 and WOW am I not sorry A super guitar for a very reasonable price. Love your reviews. Any plans to be playing in the St. Andrews, OR St. Stephen N.B. area this year???

I think that sacrificed one of liberace's suits!!

Love the Sobeys bag.

Good to hear John give a shout to Eastman. My E1d and e1om are top draw guitars for very little cash.

Reminds me of my Blueridge BR-183 (original logo version - so very rare) .... a new one runs about $2200 .... Mine has so many abalone and mother of pearl inlays and binding it's ridiculous! Blueridge is complete quality through and through. Martin and Gibson be jealous!

Nice story! Heck, I'd buy it just for the bling.

I recall seeing these around. I think they were made in batches and it’s just between waves of these. I’ve seen quite a few of these with a fake Martin label on them. Zuwie just happens to have a line of these without the fake Martin logo on it. As for students going to work for Eastman? Eastman has their own guild and school they train in house. So this is likely something like ex factory workers for Cort China.

they're factory made, but the fine work follows the improvement in CNC or laser cutting tools and the ability to do almost all of the work with parts that are ready to drop in. As in, the abalam is novel and probably not very deep (assuming it's abalam and not some kind of vivid celluloid that looks like it), but the inlay for it in the neck and peghead follows a CNC laser cutter and CNC.) the reason the workmanship looks so good is the human element of cutting, fitting and filling back the small errors is gone. So is all of the labor from it. Why they will go to this much trouble to make almost nothing for margin is up to them - but they do. Same with indonesia. if they figure out the clear strong bottom and crisp top and mids with just the right overtones, we're in big trouble! What happens with some share of the solid wood guitars like that (they might be laminated) is if they come with huge sound brand new, the bracing is usually a little light to get it and movement that you'd see on a 20 year old guitar will be there in year two. I had a cort gold that had pau ferro (I think) back and sides and it was brutally good, but it was also very radically braced and developed a belly quickly. I sold it because I play an acoustic once a month and if you play that seldom, you can't get one out every 12 times and go "gad....the string action is has made playing this finger crossfit".

Amazing!

There are still zuwei guitars all over Amazon. The have their own store. Haven't found THAT guitar yet, but I'm still looking .

JP, recently found you on YT. Thanks for the knowledge, enthusiasm and candour. I know you appreciate VFM. Have you tried Fender Paramount acoustics? All solid wood, bone nuts and saddles, hard cases. I think they may be a loss leader to get people to view Fender acoustics as more than beginner models. I would love to hear thoughts. Andy, Norfolk, England

Good content!! You should try Tyma guitars next. They are inexpensive but great craftmanship .

had to have one, ordered it today, thanks for the video !!

Looks and sounds great! I bought an OM45 clone that is almost as ornate (no tree of life) for $400. At that price I was willing to take the risk. It plays well and sounds very good.

Buckety. Good way to explain it. 👍

I found them on amazon and I purchaced 1... I am waiting on it to arrive.... but i was wondering about the nut & saddle material that urs came with ... BTW... I just found ur channel ... & I LOVE IT ...

Amazon doesn't carry Martin knockoffs any longer due to Martin's litigation, but you can buy them from China directly or thru eBay still. I don't see anything wrong with them as long as no one tries to pass them off as Martins.

I have a Zuwei 000-45 12 feet. I found it at a Pawn shop. 450 bucks. Had a 70 Dollar set up. It's killer.

I have had a similar experience with a Sevillana acoustic guitar, also out of China. It it amazing for the cost.

The over the top "blingage" strikes me the same way relic'ing does. It's posing as what it's target haver would like to see in their mirror, or when the turn on the light in their music room. $500 worth of Yamaha or Alvarez is for playing hand hearing.

My wife wouldn’t mind me having that guitar as an art piece in our family room. ( I usually keep a nice looking but not Martin quality guitar there to have handy). I’m only listening through headphones but it does sound like an inexpensive guitar. But what a look. Your theory? Sure it could be possible…. And while I would prefer all my guitars were made in North America, I own or have owned many fine Chinese made guitars. At one time I owned a Martin 00, 000, a Gibson L00, AND purchased Eastman 00 and 000 guitars of similar wood and finish. I was AMAZED how well the Eastmans compared. I kept them all for six months or more. So well in fact I sold the Gibson and kept the Eastman copy. I agree with you: there are excellent Eastman, Breedlove, Yamaha guitars, even the inspired by Gibson Epiphone that I would buy instead of a Martin or Gibson at the same price level. Don’t get me wrong, American made Martins and Breedloves are still my favorites. Thank you for an excellent video

The Zuwei guitars truly are decent for the money they cost. I played professionally for over 35 years, I only recently retired... But when I started out at 18, I had "nothing but the best"... Gretsches and a beautiful '53 Standel amp, etc. After a while, a lot of that gorgeous equipment somehow grew legs and seemingly walked away from various gigs I was playing around the country. Insurance money replaced it with OTHER "best of the best" that also was either eventually stolen or ended up falling apart from use. So I vowed about 25 years ago to find and play NOTHING but the best cheap sh*t that I could get my hands on. I've exclusively played Telecaster-like guitars that I've built myself, and through used Peavey amplifiers I've picked up in Pawn shops. I own a couple of Chinee made "custom" acoustics that we're done to my specifications (one even has a "Bigsby" peghead.) And I don't think I've got in the whole shooting match what it would currently cost me to replace my original set of gear at today's prices. That's an absolutely beautiful dreadnought... I might contact Zuwei and ask if they could build me a "45" with the traditional inlays in the fingerboard and a "Bigsby" headstock!

Would love to see a few Taylors and Takamine reviewed. Thanks for the great content.

13:15 respect to the luthiers of the world 👏

I’d absolutely love to have one! Sound alone!

Thank you very much for your review and your channel. I appreciate your review on this guitar. I recently gave my Ventura guitar to a friend of mine that I’ve had since I was 16, 46 years ago. I would love purchasing your (Zquria) guitar. Thank you have a good day and thank you for your channel Dave RappNvegas

Looks like a recording king head stock. I have a rd-328 and it sounds better than my d-28 by far. I will say this 15 years ago had a Martin hd-28 that was a little better than the recording king.

Yup... That "No Name" Guitar is a Winner for me ! Reckon it would have/has a great Bluesy Tone ???? I would keep it simply for it's own individual Tone. Agreed the Guitar is a beautiful instrument, but 'Tone' always wins with me 🤠 (Tks John)

Nice Cosmonauta! That watch is too cool

I have this guitar & it sounds lovely. Which strings are you using on this?

Ive seen this exact same model recently I thought it was made of plastic or something, but wow man it just sounds fantastic! Stupid question but is there a truss rod in it? I must check these out..

Now THAT is a sweet looking acoustic...

Amazon probably got a letter from Martin...hence the reason this guitar is not on Amazon no more... Anyway... what a Beauty !! And Gr8 review !! 🎯

I have an earlier made one from some years ago. Holds up just fine. The thing plays better with time. I'm going to change the tuners somewhere down the road. But other than that there is nothing to do. Love mine 😊 Paid more than that as a direct order through Ali-Baba. As it was being built I had photo updates showing the progress and the luthier. No student for me. Middle age man who knew what he was doing. Sent my desired features and decorations and 6 months later it was in my hand 😀

Hey JP what are your thoughts on the higher end Seagull guitars? Made in Canada and they look great for the money, thought?

You found a Diamond in the rough👍👍👍

I love that buckety sound. Would it help to use a sound hole cover

I just used mine for kindling.

But the Abalone is mostly decals. Check out China Guitar Sceptic he'll let you know how to tell. But it does sound good!

Hi there. Long time fan and follower of your videos. I have a question. Three years ago you talked about Taylor Guitar and a problem you had with a presentation and was explaining how some of the companies are now making great guitars. Can you tell me what you think of Seagull Artist line of Guitars. I have owned a seagull 12 string since 1989. Wondered what you thought of the Godin Guitars.

Zuwei is a Chinese producer of budget guitars sold under multiple brand names and through multiple online channels. Google Translate gives pronunciation as zoo way language as Chinese (Simplified) meaning as Organizing Committie.

Subscribed!

Reminds me of the guitar George Strait played on Codigo. Beautiful guitar for sure.

I found several including a Koa one even more ornate. All in that $450-500US range

I'll take it!

I went to see a local guitar seller the other week and walked out with an all solid guitar with Engelmann spruce top and mahogany back and sides with an Ir bags anthem system and hard shell case for around 800 bucks..a Chinese company makes them under the name Mayson..plays and sounds fantastic..ever heard of this brand?

I have two of these, very similar, great road guitars or small club guitars. Mine actually say Martin on the headstock even. They don’t sound as good as my Breedlove or Taylor…but they are close

It sounds fine and is beautiful

I've got one it's over five years old. Yours sounds OK to me and for the price and looks what more would you want?

Hi John, how come you never reviewing takamine models?

So cool

Is it sold? I tend to think some Martin Silks would lose some of that "buckety' tone..l would love to buy this from you!

Hi, J.P. You’ve said many times that you like K&K pickups. I have a Larrivee guitar that came with an L.R. Baggs Anthem that is excellent. I’ve recently purchased a slightly used Yairi FYM66HD, and I’m looking to have a pickup installed. If your recording equipment allows, could you do a video demo of the K&K pickup on one or more of your guitars?

I looked up Zuwei Guitars and man I saw a semi hollow telecaster guitar with the inlays for $234 US as long as the neck is straight it will be good Ill change the electronics if needed

Your humor is underrated 😂

It's got that jangly sound. Did you list it somewhere?

Sweet!👍

Great guitar