Zager ZAD-50CE

all the features you will need to get the job done right

bright full sound. this is the best acoustic guitar I have ever played.

perfect set up still smells like glue...

I will be playing this guitar everyday for at least 30 more years

awsome family owned business with excellent comunication skills!

Overall Rating 10+++

My guitar is beautiful! Fun to play and easy to tune. I've started about one year ago when my grandad gave me one like his. I'm getting better every week.

Sounds better than my friends Martin guitar. Like the deep sound and ability to chord as a beginner.

Everything matched and works easy to tune with the string adjustments and built in tuner.

I have taken good care of it, and it looks like new. It holds its tuning for a long time after the first adjustments with new strings

It has a warranty, but don't know anything about it. I really like their reply when I send them a teaching question.

one year of playing. I just love it and would not buy any other kind

I have a black transparent dreadnought with Grover tuners, raised frets, and hardside case by Zager. It is equipped with built in tuner and pickup system/equalizer.

Sound quality is excellent, with tone that competitive with top end Guild and Martin guitars I have used. Tone is rich, deep, and flexible. Absolutely one of the easiest guitars I have ever picked up.

Prompt delivery and condition was perfect. All joints tight, tuners solid, and finish flawless.

The guitar is great for group sessions, and with the pickup can easily compete for sound quality with anything it comes up against. I've used it for the past 3 years, and it is very stable in various temps/humidity condtions and shows no flaws in any area.

Lifetime warranty, never had to test it to date. I have submitted questions regarding their included video teaching programming and found them to be extraordinarily cooperative and helpful. Seems like they really like to be in the business and show it with service and response times.

I have played since my teens (too long ago to count). I absolutely believe this is an ideal product, which I would replace with another one should it be lost/stolen. Loved it so much, I have since purchased two more exactly like it for my teenage granddaughters. They too love the guitar and its ease of compression on the frets for smaller fingers. The onboard tuner feature makes their use markedly easier, and therefore gets much more playing time that otherwise. I very much support this guitar and its quality of workmanship and tone.

After searching all of my local guitar stores, I was surprised to find just what I was looking for online. This guitar has features that I had not seen before in a full size dreadnought cutaway. It has everything that you would expect from an excellently designed machine, like Solid Spruce top, Rosewood fretboard and bridge, Sealed Grover tuning gears, Mahogany back and sides with Abalone inlay rosette and a clear gloss finish. It also has an onboard electronic tuner that works like it was designed by a guitar player, as well as equalizer and transducer. What really sets this apart is the EZ-Play set-up that gives it the best action that I have ever played. It also came with extra Martin strings a neck adjustment tool and some cool promo stuff and a 100percent money back guarantee. It also has compleate online video support.

My playing style is with Full Major Chords and flatpicking each string or full stroke dampning. The sound that I can now get with my A, F, E , Dm and others that used to end up killing my fingers is now gone, and I mean gone! The way that this guitar stays in tune and the resonation is amazing. It sounds even better than it did on the web demonstration by master luthier, Denny Zager. I have been using Martin strings for years, but not the ones that came on this guitar. I have now re-strung all of my guitars with the same, and they all sound better, but not as good is my Zager.

The set-up is perfect (I have never heard even one buzz) from action so low that it's hard to belive. It did arrive with the Tortoise shell pick guard not totally bonded along the bottom edge (an easy fix), but I couldn't bear to send it back and be without it, even for a few days, so I fixed it myself.

I live in California and leave my guitars outside of the case on stands next to my couch for easy grab and play. When I got the guitar the weather was cold and wet outside, now it is hot and dry. I am lucky enough that inside my home stays very even temped, and my othe guitars have shown no signs of cracking or warping, and I trust that this one will do the same. The price was very good, but this is not a cheap guitar. I was not surprised to find a top strap button missing because of the reviews that I had read before purchase, but again, an easy fix. This has become my main playing guitar, and when I go to play, it goes with me.

Absolutly the best customer service since Polaroid. When I e-mailed a question late in the day, it was answered within the hour. This guitar also comes with a lifetime warranty and with the web support that came with the guitar (like how to care for and even re-string) was an added bonus. When I ordered the guitar by phone it was like talking to a new friend.

I would have never recomended buying a guitar sight unseen, until I did it myself with this guitar. I have been playing since the late 60's and have had standing ovations after performing my own tunes. I own analog and digital recording gear as well as 6 other guitars, a banjo and alot of music stuff that I've collected over the years. I can honestly say that if my house was on fire, I would grab my Zager first over my beloved Gibson, Ovation and even my Simon Patric 12 string. I have never written a review before, but I would like to share my good words for anyone that would love a beautiful sounding and looking guitar but can't afford to spend thousands of dollars, to check-out the Zager Guitar website. I bought mine on sale!

I purchased A ZAD-50 dreadnought cut away in black from Dennis Zager on 7-17-07.
The guitar came in three days from ordering and I have played it continully since. It is a beautiful guitar with turquoise around the sound hole. It is African mahohany back and sides with a solid spruce top.
It has an active Fishman pickup with a built in tuner. And uses Grover tuners.

The guitar is light weight compared to my Guild and my Fender acoustics.

The guitar plays really well, fingering is a breeze a little better than my Guild CO-1C
and my Fender DG-31, the sound is bright and crisp and clear.
It fits really well with my finder picking style as well as when I strum with my light pick on fast songs,

The action came from Zager low and easy to play compared to my Guild that I had to take in and have the nut filed down to lower the strings.
The built in tuner is fast and easy to use. I cannot find anything out of order with this guitar.

The finish seems to be as good as my fender DG-31 finish and I/ve had that guitar for seven years and it is fine.
The strap buttons are solid and the ;hardware is strong, I willnot hesitate to use this guitar at live gigs and plan on using it this week.

So far Dennis Zager Jr. has answered my e-mails and even caught and corrected an ordering error before I could tell them about it. This guitar has a life time warranty and if I hadn't been happy with it I could have returned it for a full refund no questions asked. And they would have paid for shipping!

I have a Guild CO-1C and a Fender DG-31. I have had other guitars, an Egmond and an Ibanez maple acoustic and this guitar is as good as any of them in sound and in quality consruction.

I have been playing guitar for 35 years and have been look for a guitar company like Zager guitar for a long time.
I chose this guitar because I wanted that kind of sound that it has which I heard on the web site video and I like black.
I would like to trade my Guild Guitar for two more Zager guitars I want the ZAD-80 CE and I would love to have a ZAD custom Koa if they ever would make one.

I just recently (about a month & a half ago) purchased a Zager
ZAD-50CE Acoustic/Electric guitar, from Zager guitars in the good ol' USA! It is a beautifully crafted cutaway style box with a solid spruce top & what looks like high-quality mahogany back, sides & neck, with very a smoothly finish-sanded rosewood fretboard. I purchased the smaller body (than my Martin D28) for more personal comfort. The mother of pearl style inlay is quite elegant. It has a full 20-fret easily playable neck, with frets that don't create havoc for the fingertips -- a great feature for those beginning guitar!

My ZAD-50CE has a built in tuner, making the task of bringing it to pitch a breeze -- I've often dropped electronic tuners, having to reassemble them before using them. I've even lost one or two. The built-in tuner also makes it impossible to "forget" unless you forgat the guitar :) It has a built-in pick-up with a 3-band equalizer (tone controls) and volume control. All these features use (including the tuner) a single 9-volt battery. There is a small red LED (Light Emitting Diode) to indicate when the battery is low & needs to be changed. Changing it is easier than changing a light bulb!

Don't get me wrong; the Martin is a great sounding flat top, but I must admit, the Zager is so close it is difficult to discern the difference in sound. My Martin is physically larger so the lower tones seem to have more "presence," but otherwise, the sound quality is quite evenly matched... and the Martin's may be exceeded a bit at the mid-upper range. The lower tones are full-bodied & rich, while the mis & uppers are pleasingly bright -- all of them exhibiting full clarity, whether through an amplifier or 'open air.'

For me, there is nothing that I don't like about it!

The playability (sp?) is incredible, to say the least, as I thought my 1979 D28 (Martin) played very easily. The Zager is at least a couple orders of magnitude easier -- and I'm being quite conservative in my estimate. It requires far less pressure to fret for a clean sound than does my Martin.

I purposely purchased one that ended up with a slightly flawed sanding (below the finish), and it was clearly advertised as such. There are several available with minor flaws at discounted prices, but I would have still been very satisfied had I paid 3 times the amount I paid!

Very durable; well-built. High gloss durable finish. Strap button is quite solid. It has great quality sealed Grover tuners -- very easy to use! It can easily stand alone or accompany other instruments as lead or backup!

The warranty is a lifetime one, in writing. They were quite friendly, helpful & from a 30-year Coast Guard vet, above & beyond the call of duty! In fact, when they did not have the particular guitar I had chosen, available, they offered me a more costly one (with close to the same features), AAAND... they threw in a hard shell case (Martin) that was NOT originally included ALL for the same price (without even increasing the flat shipping rate). The value is easily TRIPLE that of what I paid!

Granted, I may be a novice to some: but I've played guitar, banjo, autoharp, mandolin, mandola and a bit of fiddle since starting in the early 1980's, and I know good sound. But it does not take much experience to compare the playing ease of the Zager against others. Looking back, had I owned a Zager when starting, it would have allowed me to enjoy learning to play the guitar much more. And practicing would not have seemed so arduous. Doc Watson is one of my favorite artists, and I'm quite partial to his styles of music & playing -- the Zager excells in the presentation of these kinds of playing & sounds, whether simple folk, jazz or bluegrass. I use it to play the older traditional hymns in the retirement homes & the sound is more than sufficient for such a venue. They enjoy it very much. Price stated below included shipping.

I ordered the guitar, got it within a couple of days. And, it arrived IN TUNE!

Not sure where made - I'll guess in Nebraska where they're located, but, it plays exactly like they said it would so it didn't matter to me.

Go to their website if you want to see what I got and the frets and the electronics, etc...

This area is looking for features, etc....and I'm not really the guy to answer that question.

It has 3 slides for Eq/balance/etc...and tuner....and that's really all I needed it for to do open mic nights.

I'm a folk guy and have played some outdoors by the water and, it sounds real good.

I

Action - as advertised - LOW. Easy to play.

Bar Chords are easy.

Finish - fine - not something I'm really taking note of but it's all black and it looked great when I got it.

I havent noticed any heavy wear and tear and I play just about every day.

I got the guitar in like March of 2006 and sounds great and stays in tune.

I don't have a backup in general and don't play like a pro- musician; so i cant say. i do know that it sounds good when it's plugged in. I got it for open mic nights....it's all black...I need to learn Johnny Cash songs now.

Strap buttons are solid....they only install the strap button at the bottom of the guitar and it acts as the plug in for your cable.

The company is small and I have NEVER ended up in a situation where they didn't respond within 24 hours.

If they don't respond within 4 hours that's a surprise.

They're communication is excellent. Before you buy and after you buy.

And htey are nice ppl.

For what I paid and what it does and when I played other guitars in Guitar Center....I got a high end value buying the zager.

I'd do it again.

This isn't a guitar with a ton of features but what the guitar has is what I wanted and I like it very much. I've attached a list from the manufacturers website.

- EZ-Play Modified
- Full size Dreadnought
- Venetian Cutaway Design
- Solid Spruce Top
- Mahogany Back & Sides
- Rosewood Bridge
- Rosewood Fret-Board
- Gloss Finish
- Built in Transducer
- Onboard Equalizer
- Onboard Electronic Tuner
- Scalloped X-bracing
- Hand carved custom nut
- Hand carved custom saddle
- Hand filed frets
- Sealed Grover Tuning Gears
- Abalone inlay rosette
- Tortoise shell pick guard
- Genuine "Martin" Strings
- 100% money back guarantee
- Lifetime warranty

I played a lot of guitars (Martin, Taylor, etc.) before I ordered the Zager. I didn't get to hear the Zager except on the Internet but I was confident that I could send it back, with all shipping fees refunded if I didn't like it. The Zager didn't dissappoint. There is a WOW factor with the sound. The tone is so smooth, so deep, so rich, so bright, so balanced. I love it. It makes an ordinary chord sound inspired. I've done a sound comparison with my friend's Martins and it is hard to say which sounds better, and I got it for 1/2 of the cost of the least expensive Martin that I liked.

The set up is great.
This is the easiest to play acoustic guitar that I've ever picked up in the 15 years I've been playing. It is similar to the easy action of an electric guitar. I can't do full bends as easily as on an electric but other than that it's just as easy.

I haven't had it more than a month, so this isn't a category I'm ready to comment on. The number rating reflects my hopes rather than my experience.

I've sent a few emails with questions that have been promptly,courteously, thoroughly answered. That plus their money back if unsatified with guitar and lifetime guarantee make me feel confident in my purchase.

If it were stolen or lost, I would buy it again.
My guitar friends think I scored. I definitely do too. I've been playing it a lot and it keeps pulling me back to play more.

Beautiful inlay,spruce top, mahogany black,easy to use built in electronics, quality fret board

Sound is big and clean. Sounds as good as or better then guitars costing 3x4 times as much.

Beautiful black finish, looks great with all the accents,If there is a flaw in the finish, I still haven't found it.

Had this guitar for approx 2 yrs and still holding up like new. Never failed me yet

Always answered email A.S.A.P both before and after I purchased there product. They seem to always be willing to help with any questions.

Very happy with this guitar. Its easy playing. great sound. You certainly get your monies worth. If I had to, I would purchase from Zager again...

SPRUCE TOP , MOHOGANY SIDES, FISHMAN ELECTRONICS ,BEAUTIFUL INLAY
AROUND SOUND HOLE . FROM THE HEARTLAND OF NEBRASKA , GROVER TUNERS,
MARTIN STRINGS, EASILY THE THE BEST INSTRUMENT , FEATURES-WISE I'VE
EVER OWNED,VERY FEW FRILLS ,ENTRY LEVEL, BUT OUT PERFORMS MOST INSTRUMENTS I'VE PLAYED UNDER A GRAND !!!

ACOUSTIC - ELECTRIC , SOUNDS AMAZING EITHER WAY YOU APPROACH IT !AS A
SINGER-SONGWRITER WITH NEARLY 400 ORIGINAL TUNES, THIS BAD BOY SINGS
WITH AN ARTICULATION AND CRARITY UNRIVALED. I PLAY VARIOUS FORM OF ROCK ,BLUES ,& FOLK , AND THIS INSTRUMENT MAJESTICALLY RISES TO ALL
OCCASSIONS.

NEVER HAVE I HAD AN INSTRUMENT SET UP WITH SUCH ATTENTION TO DETAIL.
THE ACTION IS QUITE SUPERIOR AND THE FINISH IS JOHNNY CASH BLACK .
BECAUSE OF FINANCES AVAILABLE AT CHRISTMAS TIME, I SOUGHT OUT A DISCOUNTED MODEL WITH A COUPLE BLEMISHES, THESE AER MINISCULE IN CONTRAST TO THE HIGH QUALITY FEATURES , ACTION, OVER-ALL VALUE, &
BELL - LIKE QUALITY OF TONE THIS AMAZING INSTRUMENT DELIVERS !

THIS INSTRUMENT HAS BEEN ROAD TESTED BY MYSELF IN OVER 50 OPEN - MICS
THROUGHOUT CINCINATI & NORTHERN KY.IT PLAYS WELL, HANDLES NICE,AND
ARTICULATES WITH THE BEST OF THEM, VERY DEPENDABLE , NO BACK - UP
NECESSARY .
S

EVERY QUESTION I'VE POSED HAS BEEN ADDRESSED PROMPTLY & EFFICIENTLY
BY THE CO. WARRANTED FOR LIFE, AS A TRUE QUALITY INSTRUMENT SHOULD BE,
MONEY BACK GARANTEE, IF YOU'RE NOT THRILLED, COME ON , IT DOESN'T GET
ANY BETTER THAN THAT !!

GREATEST INVESTMENT I'VE EVER MADE IN MYSELF ! BEEN PLAYING SINCE 1972
AND IF I HAD THE MONEY, I'D BUY ANOTHER ONE. BEST TONE, PLAYABILITY,&
ARTICULATION I'VE EVER PLAYED.HECK WITH ONLY 2 BASIC MODELS YOU CAN'T
GO WRONG.!!!