Alvarez 5014 Auditorium

Alvarez Model 5014 - Auditorium - DOM 10-22-75
Traded for this guitar about a year ago in 2008 for the purpose of having a "chairside" guitar that I didn't have to worry about dings or scratches and that would provide a sound fairly consistent with my other Japanese acoustics. I own a Taylor 714CE, a Takamine EF-340, an older Ibanez Acoustic and feel I will have rounded out my acoustic wants once I acquire a vintage J200.
I has been sorrowfully cared for in my humble opinion and I have promised her a warm bed, bright strings, and a shiny coat for the rest of her days. I love this little guitar and she loves me back....

This guitar has a resonance all its own. It reaches down and grabs a sweet low tone from the lower bouts and brings the mids to dead flat. The highs are perfectly balanced with the rest of the tone and I can strum,fingerpick or beat this guitar and it gives me back what I expect from a dreadnaught or a jumbo.

The neck is straight as a string and with the adjustable bridge I can use almost any guage string with very little adjustment to get the action exactly where I want it.

I just put some new Grovers on her because the tuners were the only weak link in the entire guitar.... however, they held up for over 30 years so who am I to cuss them. This is a tough little guitar as it has obviously been drug through the mud, the blood, and the beer. But she is as strong as ever and I would and will play her in any gig, anywhere.

I do all my own work except for frets and I'm having the first 6 replaced as we speak. Lot's of "Cowboy Chords" have been played on her for years and they need some new nickel.

I'm also installing an Artec EPP MG "in hole" pick up that I have installed on dozens of acoustic guitars. They are incredible and you can buy them from Bryan @ http://www.acousticpreamp.com for just $34.95
This is the BEST DEAL in the country for quality acoustic pre amps.
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Spruce split top, Mahogany sides and mahogany split back. Nice thin body and thinner neck with pearl circle inlays. Alvarez script on top with chrome tuners. This was made 8/74 with solid top and back. (I have strummed clear into the wood of the sound hole in my youth, so I am certain of this.)

This has a wonderful balanced sound. Great low end for such a slim guitar and a honey sweet sound in the middle. The tuning near the very top is iffy, but the first 15 or so frets are perfectly in tune. Gets better with age.

I love the lighter action and don't like the heavier guitars because it's so easy to get used to. Nothing to complain about. I have adjusted the action a little with adjustable bridge to fit my tastes as I get older.

This guitar took all of the abuse I could dish out as a beginning player and wears it's scars well. I have never had to replace anything and am looking forward to quite a few more years. I have taken this everywhere and it never gets finiky with temperature, or humidity. Everything is shiney and tight after twenty years in my possession. I havn't had to coo over it either. It just is.

Never had to test it.

I couldn't replace this guitar. It would be like trying to replace a good friend. I've been playing for twenty years and this is the only acoustic I have ever owned. I like it better than any I have played. I got it out of my mothers closet way back and haven't set it down since.

Alvarez Model 5014, serial number 1536. Made in Japan. Spruce top (some think solid, others think laminate - regardless, she is a beautiful looking and sounding guitar). She has aged beautifully, with the top taking on a darker spruce color. Gloss finish. The body style is an OM/auditorium. Fairly thin neck with 20 frets, and nice MOP fret markets. Tortoise colored pick guard. I got this off of ebay for about $185. I had a K&K micro pickup installed.

There is something about this guitar - she has such a wonderful sound, very even, with a nice bass response. Sounds great fingerpicked or strummed. For the price, this is an amazing guitar - I love to play it.

I bought this used, so she had some small dings, but she has aged very gracefully - I hope to do half as well! Seems like very high quality wood used. Fit and finish are superb.

Everything seems very durable - it has definitely stood the test of time, as I think this guitar was built in the late 1970's. Finish has held up very well. A very dependable guitar.

Never have had to contact Alvarez - judging by the quality of these older guitars, I don't think they had to be contacted much.

I have played for about 10 years, and love to collect (mostly)Japanese guitars. I don't have many real expensive guitars, other than one local-luthier made guitar (a David Haxton, which is beautiful!), I just like to find a great deal, and the Japanese-made acoustics fall into this category. Regarding the Alvarez, I would be sad if she was stolen, and would definitely try to pick up another one.

Mahogany sides and back, spruce top with ebony finger board. Made in the late seventies in Japan when their quality was at its heigth

I just recently purchased this guitar along with a Tacoma classical electric/acoustic (both with cases) for a rediculously low price from a pawn shop in Laredo, TX. Neither of them had stings that were any good so needless to say I replaced them. And with little or no adjustments neccesary, they both soundrd fantastic in fact a friend and I sat and played them both for about six hours that same day.

The Alvarez did need some adjustment to the nut and i ended up replaceing the saddle for a compensated one. Except for the treble side sounding a little to bright for me (I ssuspect a broken or loose brace) this little guitar does as good if not better then some of my higher priced guitars. I may need to replace the finger oard and frets down the road as the person who owned this little guitar dug gouges in the first position. I may also refinish it as the baxk looks as if it has experienced some water damage. No warpage tha I can see just some ghoasting in the clear coat. Other than those two items that I consider neglect on the part of previous owners, this little guitar is put together beautifully.

As I said, I have not owned this guitar very long but if it can the handle the abuse that the previous owners put it through and still catch my practiced attention then it's got to be one tough little hellion, say that may be a good name for it.

none to speak of

Overall I give this guitar about a 9.9995, I may not replace it if it were stolen but I would sorely miss it. Until I have a chance to do some more work to it to get it up to my standards of playability it will be just a stand by guitar, thats not to say that I don't pick it up and play it from time to time just that I have other guitars that I have already rescued that I play more. Considering what I payed for this guitar I think that it is a fantastic value. I ecently took it by a freind of mine that used to sell these guitars when they were new and he told me that this model was a best seller.

Specs are as followed-

Weathered ebony fretboard with pearl circle insets, ebony bridge, woodsy, countryish glossed maple body and neck (neck is SLM or "Slim Profile") with a pretty, woodsy grain to it, marbled, liver-colored pick guard, simple, but austere tea leaf rosette, chrome tuners (bottom washer missing from one tuner) 20 frets, plastic pegs, plastic adjustable bridge setting, custom (after market) pewter frets that I was told give single notes more of a distinctive "shiver"

The skinny on this guitar-

Playability- 10

Overall tone- 9+

Durability- 9+

There is a small crack where the back of the body has come unglued from the "side body". This is probably an age breakdown, but I could have added some damage to the crack myself, since I take this guitar with me nearly everywhere I go. It's been broken like that since I bought it, but the guitar has always played beautifully, so I never fixed it. Maybe someday I will, and likely, I will be amazed by the improvement (maybe then I'll find out what a 5014 really is supposed to sound like!)

You can play this guitar live, through a mic and it sounds real bright.

She's a late 70's Japanese make, my first acoustic guitar, and the one that I still pick up most often. Has been my "go to girl" for about 10 years. This guitar plays every bit as nicely as a Martin in her same class, but at a fraction of the price. I have played for 12 years; I play country, blues, and a lot of folky stuff on her. She's got a nice, bright chorusey sound to her, but her low end is beefy for her small stage model size. I love that she stays in tune well through long campfire singalongs, and she has always seemed to be a good nature guitar (dealing well with shifts in humidity and temperature). This is a guitar that you can get at a reasonable price, used (I'm told that they price at $400-$500 new, but I don't know if I believe that), and you can take this guitar anywhere, with or without a gig bag or case. She's a tough little bird, and she takes 'character dings' with a grin, scarring softly, but beautifully, like an old tree in the woods. Learning to play guitar on her was a real bonus, since her neck has a slim profile, and the action of her strings is very forgiving- not wrist-cramping and fingertip-shredding like some Martins can be. Overall, this is a guitar that a new player will fall in love with as they learn the gift of guitar playing. It was made to sing along with. I hope everyone who owns one is as happy with it as I am with mine!

Overall rating 9+

I was reading the other reviews and a spark went off that made me say something.

First off, the others say they have a laminated top but mine is a solid spruce top with sides that may be laminated. Mine is 1971 and the book value states it should sell for about $400 though most people don?t have a clue as to the sound value and end up selling their ?old? guitar for around $100-$200. I bought mine for about $150 and patted myself on the back for getting a great deal.

The finish on most Alvarez guitars holds up well and this is no exception. I recently finished a 2.5 year trip that was meant to only be 6 months. When I came back and opened the case to the 5014, it was almost in tune. I could have played it for 30 minutes and it would have been more out of tune then when I pulled it out of the case.

For finger playing, I love this little body. I play a lot of folk on it and it works great for that. It doesn?t hold up too well to a hard pick played loud but what it does do it is light years ahead of its cost. It has that tight feel almost exactly like my martin 1954 000-18 (no longer with me) and sounds almost identical but at a fraction of the price. I liked the Martin but this has a little nicer feeling to the action because is it just not as stiff. The same rings true with my other martins verses Alvarez guitars. If you like Martins hard touch you would probably not like this but if you like Taylor guitars action then you would like Alvarez better.

Since I bought it used, I can?t say what it was like from the factory. I know what the new ones are like and their about on average with any other well known guitar maker.

The guitar shows really nice and no one would think anything other then ? Nice guitar.
Everything sits and plays well - all parts - never had to adjust the neck or anything

I am a real Alvarez fan. I have a select group of guitar makers that I like because nothing ever seems to go wrong, they sound great and look great. I like Alvarez among the top 3 Big Names because the action stays to true. I have only had one Alvarez bass that had a problem with a pick up and Alvarez took care of me within 3 days! This is an old guitar but nothing has ever gone wrong with it.

Something else to note is that I took my Alvarez 5060 to the Caribbean on a 2.5 year sailing trip that was interrupted during the summers with trips to the south west USA in Utah, Arizona and California. The guitar went form hot and humid, to airplane to extremely dry to airplane to humid and so on. It never lost its action. I could hear it getting use to the environment but it held together without any change in shape. The last trip that I did like that was in 1993 for 5 years. I took my martin HD28 and the neck had to be reset all the time?. As a comparison. I still have the HD28 and love it but it needs more attention then the Alvarez guitars do.

I use it quite a bit in recording. It is one of my most favorite guitars for using with male vocal.

see above

I own about 60 Guitars and have been playing (for real) for about 28 years. (dinked around for another12 before that) I'd buy it again if I had to and would gladly pay up to about $400 or maybe more but that probably would not be the case since I could probably find one for around $200

this guitar was made in mid 70's, i bought if of a friend for $150. i recently had the action lowered, and it sounds in credible.

the sound is great

i just had to have the back braces re-glued, which i'm sure just comes with age. i mentioned i had the action lowered. It has the adjustable bridge, so it worked out great

i'm sure it would be a grat guitar on stage, i hope someday to put a pick-up on it and play in front of an audience

overall it is the best guitar i've played so far

My guitar was made in Japan during the mid to late '70s' (serial no.: 11652, tag no.: 61239) and distributed by St. Louis Music Supply Co.. The guitar has 20 fret and a spruce urethane finished laminated top, Mahogany urethane finished back and sides, and an ebony bridge w/ plastic bridge pins. The saddle is adjustable chrome w/plastic non-compensated insert. The tuners are covered and chrome finished. The neck is walnut matt finished w/ ebony fret board and walnut figured squared-off head stock, the truss rod adjustment cover has gold embossed the letters "SLM" to designate SLIM . The guitar came with an embossed black vinyl lined card board case.

This has been my go-to guitar since the day I bought it new from a local mall music store. I was playing this guitar for my cousin's wedding where I met the woman I married 25 years ago. I was drawn to this guitar due to it's rich almost chorus like sound which suite my folksy rhythm and finger style playing technique. What I like is that there is something about this guitar's sound that is more than the sum of it's parts. What I don't like is the adjustable non-compensated bridge though the intonation is right-on.

The instrument played fine right out of the box or should I say it played better than my abilities at the time. The slim neck was a big plus when it came to my developing skills. The top/bottom binding, pick grad, and rosette are ornate for the price played. The guitar had no flaws when new.

I have player this guitar for hours at writer's rounds and guitar circles. After near 30 years it has a few character cracks and dings but has never need a neck reset or tuner replaced. I had the frets pressed down about 6 months ago when my daughter (she's 22 now) started playing and noticed some sharp edges on the treble side of the neck.

Never needed support. I still have the original warranty registraton never turned it in.

I have recently seen a Model 5014 (Stnd Neck) in my favorite pawn shop. It was missing the low E string and bridge pin and had a price tag of $399.00 (I'm sure they would take something less).

I've been playing acoustic and electric guitar for 40 years. My first guitar was a Gibson ES125TD w/Gibson Amp (Head & 2 Cabs w/ 2 tens in each). I have a 1968 Hofner President acoustic arch top w/ Florentine Cut-away, a Hohner acoustic (Auditorium size Martin D45 copy), a Seagull S6 Custom (one of the first and hand made according to e-mail from Seagull), a Peavey Reactor AX, Peavey Bandit 65, mandolin, lap top slide, ........

I have never seen another with this model number. She was made wonderfully in Japan. Bought in 1982, She has 20 frets, MOP dot inlaid position markers, rosewood fretboard, Natural finished body. Looks like a burl or koa laminate on the face of the tuning head. Unmarked chrome tuners. Faux tortoise shell trussrod coverplate with Alvarez logo ingraved in gold, with the letters SLM ingraved in the same manner and positioned on that plate parallel to the top nut. I am giving this guitar an 8 for features, but based soley on her beauty. She is an extraordinarily rich looking little auditorium guitar.

As my primary instrument, I have played this girl for 23 years now, with no end in sight. A lovely, range of tones, with emphasis on the bright highs and midranges, but surprisingly full lower tone (considering her size). All styles from bluegrass to American and English Folk, Rhythmic Rock and blues, and flat out Country. Sound nearly rivals a Yairi. Honestly. I sometimes use a Dean Markley "in the hole" pickup, but this can sometimes sound tinny, and I prefer to play her into an external mic if at all possible.

I play a bit forcefully by nature. The action is so delicate on her, that it took me quite a while to learn the control I needed to develop in order for her to truly shine.

She has played dependably live for many years now, with only one incident: the original top nut broke in half spontaneously in the middle of a song ("Tangled up in Blue," actually. It's funny how you remember those things.) many years ago. Although the guitar was second-hand, the folks at Alvarez were so kind as to send me, FREE OF CHARGE, an assortment of nuts: just to make sure I got the right one! Never another problem.

One incident only (as noted). Alvarez could not have been nicer, or more helpful to me.

I have been playing semi-pro for 30+ years, and in all sorts of situations. I also play a Gretsch Syncromatic electric, and a Yamaha FS340 acoustic, and a vintage Kay Crest archtop (for slide work only).
I don't think I could find one of these to replace her if she were stolen, but I sure would try! I hate to sound sappy, but I really have an almost romantic relationship with her. She has a name, even: Rose. She's the best little acoustic ever!