Yamaha FS720S

I've had this guitar for six months, so time for a review! Attractive gloss black finish with white/black binding. Neck has satin black finish. Has a slightly smaller body than a dreadnaught- just under 15 inches across the lower bout, but the same depth and over all length. Quite comfy to hold on to a body this size. Tuners are Yamaha's usual very good quality, found on the FG7xx series, etc. It has a solid wood spruce top, (which improves with age) and laminated sides and back. No electronics. Made in Indonesia in 2007. Due to it's smaller size , this guitar will float around in a standard dreadnaught case, so stuff a towel or something soft beside it to keep it from shifting around!

I play a mix of older rock stuff and folk. Flat picking and some fingerpicking too. I like this guitar especially for flat picking and finger picking , because it has bright and distinct sound. The bass is subdued compared to my full size dreadnaught, but that's due to it's somewhat smaller overall size. Mostly, I'd describe the terrific sound as sweet.

Often guitars are sold with the strings set too high, but this guitar was spot on.
I've had several low to mid level Yamaha's among the guitars I've owned, they are always high quality. This one is no exception, with no finish flaws. The nut and saddle are correctly set up. The body binding is perfect. No gaps at the neck/body junction, no blobs or excess in the clear finish. Inside the braces are neatly cut, no glue is visible. Fretwires don't catch on your hand. Nice Yamaha insignia on the headstock in "Pearloid", which looks like abalone. Black plastic (vs metal) strap buttons are probably OK for casual use. Besides the buttons, it's pretty near perfect.

The Yamaha's I've had in the past have all stood up to a lot of playing, and this one seems to be built to the same high standards. The plastic strap buttons are inexpensively replaced, so if you play a lot standing up, do that. The tuners are consistent and smooth, and the finish is quite rugged , I have accidentally banged the guitar on a wooden table and it's none the worse. It would easily survive live playing. Gig without backup? That depends more on the gig than the guitar, doesn't it?

I'm an intermediate player, and I've had several other acoustics such as Yamaha's, Godin's (Godin makes Seagull, Art & Lutherie, and Norman.), Takamine and a Larrivee as well. Besides this Yamaha, I presently own a Norman 6 string and and Seagull 12 string,
The Yamaha feels "right" in your arms, and puts out a bright sound. I bought it for fingerpicking use, but it would be great as an only gutar. My favorite feature is it's sound followed by it's size. My least favorite thing are the plastic strap buttons, but they don't bother me enough to replace them, so this is a minor quibble.