Product: Takamine EF-291ME
Price Paid: US $280 used
Submitted
04/16/2005
at
07:11am
by
Tony
Email: fdkoolaid at aol<dot>com
Features
:
10
Some standard stuff here, 20 frets, laminated maple body
transparent black flame, nice! cutaway, standard Tak electronics
FXC artist body style, mahogany neck, rosewood fingerboard.
made in Japan, one strap button - get's an 8, there's not much more to have except solid wood (which would be great!) and tons of
pearl and abalone (which don't do much for me anyway)
Sound
:
10
Has a great bright sound, really project for a small body!
I play a pretty physical fingerstyle, and this sound great when I slap it around and snap the strings into the fretboard!
This is not a rich sounding guitar, you really need a dreadnaught
for that, or a Jumbo if your body can stand the contortions required to play it! This guitar is really made to be plugged in, it seems pretty feedback resistant, electronics give great sound shaping abilities. So in all fairness, taking into consideration what a really top-notch acoustic sounds like, this really only pegs it at about a 7 tops! thats not a bad thing, plug it in and it'll jump up to a solid 8, I see way too many reviews where people dole out the 10's for $300 intermediate guitars, my friend - pick-up a Breedlove for $3,000, or a $5,000 Kevin Ryan, now you're in 9 and 10 territory!
too bad most of us, myself included, can't possibly afford them!
Action, Fit, & Finish
:
10
Don't know, don't care. this guitar was around for 12 years before I bought it, all I know is how it is now, and after much toil - it is smokin' !! action is now very low and comfortable, frets are polished up smooth and shiny, there's no structural cracks or stress points, being all laminated it SHOULD! be holding up well! finish is still smooth and shiny, nice bookmatch on the flamed top, nut and saddle are well made and finished, gonna have to dole out one of those 10's here, haven't laid hands on a more playable guitar ever, and that's what it's all about, who cares how good a Martin D28 sounds if it has stiff high action (which they do) and it's work to play it!
Reliability/Durability
:
10
Yeah, it all seem solid enough, it's been banged up pretty good over the years, no problems whatsoever. yeah I'd play it live without a back up, I'd need a second strap button tho, I hate those country looking tie on ones!
Customer Support
:
10
Takamine customer support is only as good as anyone's, it depends which representative gets your email, I've been lucky.
They told me it was a pretty rare bird, not many imported from Japan,
not that it's valuable or anything, I only paid $280 for it.
Overall Rating
:
10
Been playing for twenty years or so, had way too much stuff to remember it all, what sticks out as GOOD gear is my '91 Strat-Plus
and my Fender Princeton amp. I'm mostly an acoustic player tho.
So anyway this guitar - I wish it had a solid top at least, that make it sound better for sure! don't know that I would change anything else about it, it's certainly a cool looking unit!
I'd not buy it again because there is too much other good stuff out there to try, plus it's like they say, you can never go back, the next one would be totally different from this one, I'd move on.
