Kona KS2NE

Spruce top, rosewood sides and back. Beautiful pearl inlay. Few features on the pick up. Mini Jumbo body. Beautiful finish, very glossy. Suits the rosewood very well. Oval soundhole.

Play just about anything. Guitar suits folk, adult alternative, some jazz, coutry... Sound is sweet, round and full. Amazing for the price (I paid $200 for a new one at trade show). Play it acoustic with mike or through PA. Not a whole lot of feedback that way.

Finish was good out of the box. Action was nearly perfect for me. Change the strings as they are D'addario out of the box (not bad but old and rusty). A little glue around the soundhole area, not bad. Pickup was ok, but the cables were all over the place. I had them secured by tech.

I've had it for a year and I play live with it. Very reliable. I bought as backup but it has become my main guitar. The hardware stays in tune well. Finish looks good still. I have the Kona case made for it ($70 at Kona's website) and it has protected it quite well. Strap buttons are still ok. I have backup but have not used it... I guess I could gig without it.

Just by e-mail. quick responses.

I have played for about 10 years. This is my third acoustic and bought as a backup for a Martin. I bought because it was pretty (high end looking) and electric. I can compare the sound to the Martin and in fact I tend to prefer the feel and sound of my Kona over the Martin. It has a fuller/mellower sound with the action of an eletric (after set up). It has the feel of a very high end guitar with the low price. I wish it had a different pick up system or controls, with more options. If you had around $300 for a guitar, this will be a great choice. I'm glad I took the chance and bought it.

The KS2nE comes with a 3 band eq/pre-amp. The top is solid spruce, the back and sides are rosewood. The neck looks to be Mahagony, not sure. Tuners are very accurate, and shouldnt wear out like the other review I've read. The finish is clear on top of the above woods. The body has a really nice shape called "mini jumbo". Neck thickness is medium. Action is typical, not too high, not to low for an out of the box acoustic.

Without an amp, using Phosphor bronze #10 strings, the sound is rich and full. Through a sound system, no effects, there was no problem, once again, a very rich sound that is fully adjustable. There is feedback if you stand in front of the speakers, but thats normal for any hollow body guitar. I will use this guitar for recording and just hanging out jamming with friends. I have done side by side comparisons, and have found this model to be superior among guitars costing 100"s more, and I'm one critical bastard!

WARNING: This guitar does not come "set up" Strings are loose, and Truss rod (neck rod) MUST be adjusted for the first time after un packing. If you don't know how to adjust a neck for the first time, than either have someone do it for you, or don't buy the guitar, cause you can ruin it if you don't know what you're doing! As far as fit and finish, in general, the guitar is actually beautiful, but looking REALLY close, too close, you'll find some imperfections. My advice is to not waste your time looking so close. If thats whats important to you, than ask Stevie Wonder how his piano looked! Get my point!

This is the dumbest question I will answer. What the hell is the difference between playing live or playing in your kitchen?
The machines will probabaly last longer than the player. The finish is a typical multi layer laquer, or epoxy clear coat. Strap buttons are nothing special, just solidly mounted strap buttons. If you plan on hitting someone with this in a concert, than I would recommend a backup! :)

Company is MM Distributing. Don't expect a problem with these people, unless you used the guitar as a baseball bat! Watch these so called "web retailers" unless they specify full set-up upon delivery! VERY IMPORTANT!!!

Right to the point: Ive been playing electric for 28 years, acoustic, 5 years. I've done side by side sound comparisons with Martin, and other high priced acoustics. There is no way that these other companys can justify the price difference! OK, not crafted to the precision of the $2500 Martin, but lets be real, We're talking $2500 bucks!OK! I personally didn't hear the $2200 dollar difference!
My personal opinion is that; Kona is going to make a very big impression with their grossly under priced guitars in the future. The company is only 2 years old! Save this review, you,ll see! Now maybe they'll hire me! :> I wont leave my email address, cause there are too many crazys out there.

This guitar was simply amazing to look at. While it is no Taylor 912ce, it is beautiful. 5 Peice inlays, medium frets, two tone gold hardware, 4-band pre amp eq, Solid spruce top, rosewood back and sides (book-matched), Mini-jumbo sized with dreadnaught depth. The designers of this guitar really thought it through! Made in China.

Sounds good both acoustically and through the amp. Was a bit too bright when plugged into the hi input but shaped right up after changing to the low. Not too noisey through the amp although it did feedbak well as any other good acoustic would. I liked the shape and feel as well as the tone....not too much to complain about. Alot of bang for the buck.

The overall finish was good. I didn;t like the fact that in a few small areas I saw glue. Other than that the high gloss finish was pretty and flawless. I would probably replace the nut too. It is just an inexpensive plastic one. The top was nice and bookmatched. The bridge is cool too....kinda like Dean's but reverse. The action was okay from the factory but needs to be set up for regular play.

This guitar will play well live although fighting feedback may be a problem. The soundhole is oval. The hardware may need to be replaced down the line but should hold up for about 5 or so years. The strap buttons were placed well and should hold up. Seems to be very dependable.

Called in to verify warranty as it did not have a card attached. The people were very nice and helpful.

I have been playing professionally for about 10 years and have owned dozens of guitars. Thsi guitar is not a high dollar custom shop peice....but it is a good instrument. I would use it in the studio in a heartbeat and think it would do well on stage. Overall, it is great for the price paid. I am happy.