Alvarez-Yairi 5065

Made in Japan by Kazuo Yairi in 1972. Satin finished dreadnought with silver grover tuners. 20 frets, not sure about the neck scale (I'm no luthier, but it seems pretty standard--not especially thick). It's got a solid spruce top with very tight grain and laminate back and sides (I believe Koa). The neck is rosewood (I think), and the fingerboard and bridge are ebony. No electronics on it. Bone nut and saddle, though they are not original. Visually, this is a pretty plain guitar, though the Koa grains are gorgeous, and there is a small strip of roses on a vine (made out of wood--I'm not sure what kind) between the two pieces on back. That's kind of neat.

I play mostly bluegrass music, and it is just terrific for that. Nice, resounding booms, but balanced well with the mids and highs for a solid harmonious hum when strummed. I wish the high E string resounded a little better, but I think the frets may need replacing, and I will be taking it into a Luthier after I get some $$ for it for my birthday (I'm a grad student, so the finances are a little hard to come by ;). Otherwise, though, this is the best sounding guitar I've ever played. The woods have aged nicely, and its got such a beautiful tone I still get giddy (having owned it a year and a half) when I pick it up to play it.

The guitar was given a little work by the fellow who owned it before me, but it could use a bit more. There's nothing seriously wrong with it, but it's kind of dinged up (hey, it's 35 years old!) Like I said, it may need refretting, but a professional luthier will make the true determination regarding that. The action seems just fine to me. It's easy to play and doesn't cramp up my hand when I'm playing bar chords.

I don't know if it would withstand live playing. This one is old, so I wouldn't let it get too beat up. And the body seems fairly thin, but I don't count that against it, because it seems to help with the resonation (as opposed to those acoustics that are so thick that you can't hardly hear them without an amp). Otherwise, it's 35 years old and it's still completely solid, original tuners, original bridge (I think). And the dings tell me it hasn't exactly been babied.

Alvarez is okay. They do a fair (though not stellar) job of keeping their customers happy, though I haven't talked to them about this guitar, yet.

I've been playing for about seven years, and I've owned a number of guitars in that time (four or five, increasing in quality, mostly). Currently this is the only guitar I own. I had three a year ago (a HEAVY Fender acoustic GA-45SCE--decent guitar, but next to no resonation), this one, and an Alvarez-Yairi FY-95 (a solid-wood Masterworks), which was great. Well, I decided to go back to school and was having a kid, so I sold all but this one, which I couldn't part with.

The guy who I bought it from down in Florida described it as "mint" condition, though he exaggerated greatly. It's pretty dinged up and I wasn't too happy when I opened it up, but after playing it, I mostly forgave him, since it sounds SO amazing. I paid $600 for it, plus shipping from FL to WI, but, even with the dings and whatnot, I would do it again. And if it was lost or stolen, I doubt I could find another one, which would be a real shame.

I'm giving this category a 10, because I know there are better guitars out there, but not for anywhere near this money, and I don't believe you'll touch another guitar that sounds this good for under $1500. If I ever decide to move up to the solid-wood Martin category, I'm keeping this guitar, no matter what my wife says.