J&D Jack and Danny Brothers W-160

I bought this Western Dreadnought Acoustic Guitar Modell-No. W-160 about four years ago, maybe 2001 in City Cologne (Koln) in Germany (Deutschland) by Music Store. It was the cheapest acoustic steelstring guitar, this dealer offered. I payed about 111,- EURO without any gigbag, case or other equipment. I bought it new, so I think it was made around year 2000. I don' t know where it was made.

It has 21 frets. It seems to me, it's a solid spruce top, but i may be wrong, perhaps it's only laminated. There are no controls, it's an acoustic dreadnought guitar, without any pickups, preamplification etc.. Body seems to be laminated with dark wood surface with transparent high gloss finish. White plastic bindings at the body and neck. Neck wood unknown, same surface and finish as body. Bodystyle is dreadnought with normal pin bridge (dark wood, seems to me like rosewood). Tuners a noname locked Tuners, chromplated. The Neck is normal for this model, more thin than fat. Material of fingerboard is the same as the bridge, perhaps rosewood or similary. There were as stated above no included acessories. For the paid price, I'm fully satisfied with the given features. The instrument looks much more worthy as I expected, when visiting the dealer.

I'm no professional musician and play only for fun always solo in my little living room picking songs like "Ghostriders in the Sky" etc., Western and Outlaw Songs. For this purpose it suits perfectly to my music style. I use no amps or effects. The W-160 produces a very loud tone, much more louder than my other classical acoustic guitars with nylon strings. I play it at a maximum for about one hour, because it is so loud, that my ears beginn to ache, when I play it longer than this period of one hour. It's easy to tune, I play it with the standard guitar tuning EADGBE, always tuning with a tuning device KORG GA-20.
The sound is very loud, but not noisy and indifferent. It sounds fantastic, I play it not with a plek or fingerpicks, but only with my fingers with shortcut nails. By playing it with plek, fingerpicks or long fingernails it would be even too loud for playing it a longer period as a quarter hour. The sound is very fine and different, basses, mids and trebles well separated, for this price 111,- EUR it sounds if I had payed 300,- EUR or more. Okay it's no 12-String Martin DM-12, but for the beginner who wants to save money it's a damn'good sound! It's always much fun to me, to play this W-160. I would like to test it in direct compare with the cheapest Yamaha dreadnought steelstring guitar, another project for the future: Maybe the Yamaha would be better, I don't know.

It's crafted very exactly, no scratches, glue drops, etc. Fine finish. The price for this guitar is too cheap for this worthy, proper craftmanship. It seems to me, that asian workers with high motivation for ultra low wages made this price possible. I'm pity for this workers and there families. But also much more expansive guitars are crafted under ultralowwage dispositions. This I don't like at this guitar: I have the feeling I profited from the explotation of asian or other third world workers.

It's a solid product, which can stand most any playing situation. Only if you throw it five meters against a brickwall, it will be crashed. All is built very solid, perhaps if I play it for thirty years or more, may be there will be a vintage character but never that this product will crack, I can depend on it, I would use it on a gig without a backup.

Customer support would not be necessary, it seems to me, like this instrument was built for eternity. I treat it very well, so I hope that I never need a Customer Support von J&D.

I play now about 25 years, mostly classical acoustic guitar with nylon strings, about four years ago I bought my first steelstring guitar (the here rated J&D W-160). I own also a Yamaha CG-100 A,
CG-230, CG-235, a Hofner acoustic guitar, a acoustic guitar of the 19th century, two lapsteel-guitars and a Fender Mustang 1968 Japan-Reissue. My amps are a Dean Da-20 Acoustic, a Epiphone Studio 10 S and a vintage Dynacord GV 8/2 (who knows a website about exactly this guitar amp: I googled, but I found nothing about exactly the "Dynacord GV 8/2"). If my W-160 would be stolen, I would buy a much more better dreadnought for an higher price, perhaps a Gibson or Martin, but only because I now have more money than years ago. If I had to save money again, I always will buy the W-160 again!

I love the sound of this guitar and that I did not have to pay very much. I hate that this guitar may be made by exploited, starving Third World workers. Since I bought it, I feel a little bit guilty, because I supported by buying the guitar the explotation in the Third World. With the product himself, I'm fully satisfied.