Product: Takamine EF417S New Yorker
Price Paid: UNKNOWN
Submitted
06/17/2007
at
01:30am
by
scatter
Email: rharvey110 at frontiernet<dot>net
Features
:
9
Parlor guitar gloss finish, bear claw sitka spruce top and koa back and sides,ebony fingerboard, mahogany neck. Slothead guitar with good tuners,came with case, made in Japan , 2005 or 2006. All solid wood. Takamine standard electronics all inside the guitar, no volume control. No a lot of extras
Sound
:
No Opinion
the sound from the sitka and koa is slightly woody with a nice ring. A light touch sets of a rich blend of sound with overtones and sustain enough for me. Individual strings on all frets sound strong. It just sings all over the fingerboard. Bass notes have a lot of character, not a deep bass sound, but rich and balances well with the other strings. Midrange is really really good. Trebles have taken a while to get where they are; have has the guitar for 6 months and play every day for about 30 minutes. It has a balanced sound when used with a mic and sounds good through my small tube amp.
Action, Fit, & Finish
:
9
The action was fairly low, played easily on all strings all the way up the fingerboard. Bookmathching was flawless. I could find not one place where the fitting and finish were not perfect. This guitar was one of the very best I played as far as action. I think it came from Japan this way. Takamine's site does "brag" about their fretwork.
I don't especially like the velcro strap that holds the battery in. It is inside the guitar and is not as well thought out as one would hope for
Reliability/Durability
:
10
The guitar seems very well made. The finish is urethane but very thin, I'm glad since I own a satin/nitrocellulose finish guitar that does not like the slightest moisture or fingernail tap. Takamine's reputation for plug and play says enough. I would use this guitar without a backup
Customer Support
:
No Opinion
No idea on customer support.
Overall Rating
:
9
I have been playing for over 35 years. own a cedar top dreadnought , a hollow body electric, just gave away a nice classical. I would replace this guitar if it were lost , or stolen. I love the sound. I guess its the parlor size along with the materials, but the sound just seems to float up and around me when I play. Even with a two string chord, the sustain holds while the sound goes through a progression that I think is great...makes me want to just listen. It is still opening up, at first it was not loud enough and sounded a little tinny compared to what it is now. I compared it to Larrivees and Tacomas. If it were a little cheaper I would say it was a fantastic value
