Art & Lutherie Cedar Top

Satin finish, solid cedar top dred, laminate maple/cherry sides and back, 2005 (I think). While it's a simple, plain guitar, it has a very nice sound-hole inlay and a nice stain/color.

I'm a relatively new player, and this is my first steel string, but I've had it a year and a half now. The sound of this guitar varies greatly with the strings, and I've found that it sounds much louder and warmer and more balanced with Dean Markley alchemy goldphos strings - if you have this guitar, try them, you won't believe the difference. I play folk and blues - I strum and finger pick both, and it sounds good for either use. I've been hunting for an upgrade guitar and have really found it difficult to convince myself that anything I've played up to $800 really sounds markedly better - pretty good for such an inexpensive guitar! It doesn't have a consistently clear sound going up the low-E string, but for an inexpensive guitar it does pretty well. I even tried it against other Godin guitars, like the Seagulls, without feeling that they were vastly different - this is a really nice guitar! I think I really like the mellow sound of the cedar top.

This is a really nicely built guitar - it has not done anything funny, stays in tune, neck hasn't moved.I bought it used and reduced the saddle height very slightly - very easy to play.

I don't play out. The finish is indeed thin, and the cedar mars easily, but I feel like the finish allows the wood to breathe and vibrate easily. In combination with the dark stain, it looks like an old guitar (in a good sense). You just have to realize that cedar is just a very soft wood and deal with it. Otherwise, the build feels very sturdy and durable.

NA

I lucked out buying this used on Ebay - almost got a low-end Washburn, but was interested in this due to the way its sound was described in reviews, and the fact that it was made in North America with sustainable woods. Its sound has definitely improved over time. I can't think of a better guitar for a beginning guitarist or even someone looking to upgrade to a quality instrument with excellent sound and playability. BTW, it seems to me that the Seagull guitars (and others in the Godin family) are worth checking - all the ones I've tried have played beautifully and been impeccably made with beautiful woods.

Cedar top, satin sunrise finish, stencilled rosette.
It's a standard dreadnought.

overall it sounded great compared to others of similar and some of more expensive prices. The sound has improved over the two years i have owned it.
If you are shopping for one, it is most likely to have the best sound for the price range, even when compared to other more expensive guitars.

From out of the box the truss rod was loose and the action quite high.
Probably a friday arvo job. My rating for that; lame.
A mate set it up for me and now its great.

The overall finish is very well done.
The soundboard shows some excellent grain.

It feels and looks strong, the cedar may scratch or bruise fairly easily, in two years mine is still the same as i bought it. The satin finish (hopefully urethane fortifed) looks great but won't resist damage like a stronger gloss type finish would - depending on how you treat your gear.

It stays in tune well, tunes up easy.
I feel mine will be around and reliable for a very long time.

The shop i bought it from would be helpful.

Well worth the money.
I would buy another if i had to replace it.

superb finnish(not that shinny tacky type), huge sound(not too much top or bottom end)& even has a nice smell to it

the sound out of this is amazing imho. I've played on guitars that cost 3 times as much & the A+L is just as good. Yeah thats right ,I'm talkin 'bout matons, gibsons ,martins & ovations. I know it always offends people when you compare the big names to these sort,but just coz yor peice of wood cost a few grand etc etc

was perfect out the box usually guitars at this price are a struggle,but those crazy canadians know what the're doing

well i dont plan on throwing it around or kicking the shit out of it,so it should be okay,
I am a little worried about the intense,dry summer thats about to hit my town(perth,AUS)but im not leaving it in the sun so we'll see

I had a limited budget & looked at getting a low-end washburn or yamaha.The sales guy showed me this brand & I thought he was giving me a pitch to buy something more pricey. I played it thinking I wasnt going to walk out with it but i couldnt think of putting it down to buy a cheap yamaha or ashton.This guitar sounds & looks like it should cost 3 times as much & I managed to get a brand new one out the box & not the one off the shelf(hence the great smell).

I bought it in 2003 second hand. The wood scratches and marks quite easily but this doesn't affect the sound. In fact the sound has definitely improved with age.

Basic features but then what woul dyou expect - it's a simple acoustic guitar!

Lovely balanced tone. It's definitely improved with age.

Very high action when I bought it so I filed down the bridge and now it plays nicely. (I'd give it a 5 for when it was bought and 7 for now).

The wood marks and scractches very easily. It's a matt finish. It's a good solid guitar though that doesn't go out of tune if you knock it.

Decently made.

No experience

It can't compare to the upper range guitars - the $1000+ acoustics but it compared to budget guitars it's great. Warm, mellow sounding, guitar then has a lovely balanced tone - great for folky, singer songwriter types.

The features are standard. Nothing special, nothing bad

The guitar wasnt too good for strumming, it had a bit of a buzz, but I was just beginning when I bought it.

Not very good finsih, not that pretty of a guitar (at least in my opinion) but it makes up with the sound.

I think either I bought a lemon, or the guitars arent built too well. The top easily snapped when dropped (lightly, and in a somewhat hard case). Even for being dropped, the effects were devastating to the guitar.

The warranty for this guitar isnt much of a warranty. Even after taking it back I was told by the dealer that the company wouldnt do anything about it, and fixing it would cost more than the guitar itsself, if it were even fixable.

Ive been playing for around two years. I own a sigma classical guitar, as well as a fender strat and a rouge mandolin. Mine was ruined, and I m not even considering purchasing anything else from this company (Ive already purchased another). I wouldnt say tehre was much I liked abou the guitar. Ive played several other simaler guitars (Yamaha, Epiphone, Dean, Takamine) and this guitar didnt even compare.

No special features - its a dreadnought, what would you want here. Strait and simple guitar aimed for the sound, not for extra features...that is how it should be. You get a key and a guide

Amazing sound, and you will like it more and more by time. Its loud, but gently, very warm sound for its size. But beware, can be rough too. Definetly not a classical, expected sound, you can feel a bit of exclusivity with it. I prefer folk music, but hey man what this guitar can do with lake of fire or tears in heaven is georgous. nice warm sound with fingerpicking.....maybe lower E and H not as bright as on larger jumbos unless used specific strumming tip - like this.

Action is perfect for me, may be lower on higher frets for someone, but thats suggestional, I like it as it is, for me perfect, easy to play, nice a bit thicker neck than I used to play. Maybe a bit different playability from other guitars - hard to describe - may be also suggestional, you just have to strum right as said above. No flaws in construction found, looks beautiful, no loose, no poor fit. Everything extremely well built, very nice lacquer finish, but easily get scratched. And mine has very nice wooden smell......awesome work.

Hard to say, to be honest, I am afraid about the lacquer finish - thanks to this the guitar sounds great but also may wore off by time - gets scratched really easily. But hey, this baby is not for tramping camping, this one belongs to the nice room with some care. Everithing is solid, if handled right no way to worry about durability. I can handle all playing as you can.

I have a cheaper jumbo and a electric cort M600, needed some fine acoustic guitar to play, and I am really glad I got this one, I can not imagine I got any Epiphone as I wanted before. When I heard this guitar with its unexpected sound and found that my fingers are at home on the frets, there could be no way to leave the shop withnout it. You cant be dissapointed by this guitar, I doubt there is any better in this price range. As it doesn't pretend it's any suberp piece, the more you will be suprised...Now I know at A&L they really know how to make great guitars, but how the price can be so low, thats a mistery... Definetly try one and you will see, I bet it gets your heart.

Hand made in Canada in 2004 my A and L has a black matt lacquer finish. It is constructed with wild cherry laminated sides, a solid cedar top and maple neck and headstock. The laquer finish is very prone to picking up scratches and dings.The rest of the finish is a bit minimalist with stencilled rosette as opposed to wooden inlayed rosettes as you would expect from more expensive guitars

I was trying out a much more expensive Yamaha when shop salesman suggested that I try the A and L. I was immediately taken by the sound (especially the base notes)and high volume produced. Ideal for both picking and strumming although bottom strings can sound a bit tinny when thrashed hard with a plectrum.Stays in tune ok.

Action is low to medium. Not quite as low as my old Epiphone acoustic. Rather than adjust the action I intend to fit extra light(.10 guage)at next string change.No obvious faults apart from laquer finish which I've already mentioned.

Definately a guitar to keep in a hard case when not in use to avoid against scratches and dents especially in the presence of children.
So far the fickle atmospheric conditions in the West of Scotland have not caused the cedar hard top to expand or contract (probably the hard case has helped here also).The loud volume of this guitar makes it ideal for unamplified gigs.

Guitar comes with life time warranty. As yet I haven't had to put it to the test

I have played guitar for 15 years. This is one of the best souding guitars I have played.Its certainly miles ahead of my old Epiphone 6 string and Yamaha 12 string. If it were ever lost / stolen then yes I would definately buy another.

This Canadian made guitar (BC to be specific) is made right at home where I live. This guitar is made from solid top cedar and has 21 frets. The dreadnought has chrome-enclosed tuners that keep dust and dirt out and looks very attractive. Stings included are Godin strings.

Not much bass eminates from this guitar. I find the mid and high tones resonate and often overpower the lows. The sound is not as crisp as I would like it to be, sometimes it sounds muffled when strumming.

The action is low to mid. I find it easy to play. There were no flaws that I could see. Every corner and curve were seamless. Good construction.

I've had this guitar for about 11 months and so far I've been satisfied with it's reliability. It can't take much physical abuse due to the type of wood it's made of (I guess I should've expected that). I knocked it gently on the side of my coffee table and put a dent on it already, along with a few scratches here and there from normal usage. It doesn't take much to put a mark on the soundboard, that's for sure.

This A&L Cedar is my first guitar. I've played for almost a year now. From the first day I purchased this guitar, I've been looking at other guitars, moreso for cutaway styles. This guitar is okay for beginners but for guitar enthusiasts, look elsewhere.

I have a cherry finish Art & Luthrie guitar. For the money, it is a great guitar. I recently switched to DaDario light strings. Within 2 weeks, my neck now has a bend in it. It is in the shop now being "adjusted". No this doesn't mean it's kneecaps are being busted...
I love the sound from this guitar. I can play it soft for those romantic evenings with the missus, or take a hard pick and ream on it for those loud 5am ending parties.

After 2 years, it needs adjusting. Is this normal, I would think so.

The features on this guitar is pretty much bottom of the barrel, BUT they put the money where it counts: A solid wood top and very reliable tuners. My guitar came with the most hideous orange stain imaginable and the soundhole rosette is stencilled on, but who the hell cares? It stays in tune and it sounds good. The intonation seems somewhat off, thought. It could be the bridge. I've stopped tuning with an electronic tuner. I tune the A string to a tuning fork and use my ear to tune the rest of the strings. Case not included in price. The 8 rating is overall for the price range. If I had to rate everything except the soundboard and tuners, it would be 1.

I lost my acoustic some years back and really missed it. Due to financial constraints, I only had CAN$250 to get a new axe. I spent close to a year checking out cheapo acoustics at instrument dealers and pawnshops. I must have checked out a good 50 guitars during that year and this guitar is the best sounding one I played, new or used, at $250 or less. The bass was the fullest and cleanest I came across, which was important to me because I like Maybelle Carter-style flatpicking. It doesn't have much projection and although I don't play live, I wouldn't recommend this to a working musician. I would recommend this for non-professional playing of country, folk, old-time music, although it works fine (to my ears) when I play along with Led Zep acoustic tunes. I've had this guitar for 8 months now and I still can't believe how good it sounds for the money I paid. I tried out a few A&L cherry wood models and they sound just as good. One cedar model I tried was totally dead tonewise, so beware.

The action is relatively low with almost no buzzing, even with a capo. However, there is something stiff about the overall feel of this guitar. Even with light gauge strings, this guitar feels like it is strung with heavy gauge. Sometimes you get weird squeaks at the bridge when you retune.

Take good care of this guitar because it feels light and flimsy and it barely has any finish on it. The tuners feel solid and I sense that they would last, but other than that, let's just say I don't harbour dreams of handing this down to my grandchildren.

N/A

By a stroke of luck, this guitar was marked down $90 just because it had the wrong label inside. But even at full price I would have bought this guitar, because really there's nothing else on the market at this price that has such a full-bodied sound. There is no cheapo Yamaha or Seagull or Applause with the bass response of this guitar. Unfortunately, it's not the most comfortable guitar to play, but I've learned to live with it.