Yamaha FG-401

1984 model. It was made in Taiwan. Around 21 frets. Solid spruce plastic coated top natrual finish. No pickup. Spruce top and nato backs, sides and neck. Fretboard is bubinga. Natural finish with black pick guard, dreadnaught-type body. Mahogany bridge. Non-locking open tuners. Neck is cumfy, nicely spaced frets. Very large, very sound body. Quality more than quantity in this case, but still a badass deal, and affordable.

I play a rock/blues/soul/metal, it fits my needs as far as acoustics. Very rich, sound carried, bass sound, very good for country, folk, blues, soul, metal acoustic (e.g. Fade to black, Stairway to Heaven...)

Medium-low action. Everything was the way it was supposed to be.

This guitar has been thru so many gigs, still sturdy as ever. The way the guitar was made it would last a life time (trust me, if it can last thru me, it could probably catch fire, not suggesting anything tho). But a few cracks from heavy damage and hit someone with it.

I dont like Yamaha, but I luv this guitar. This guitar has never needed to be repaired. I bought it used so I know nuthin about no warranty.

I would recommend this guitar to any of my friends, or anyone who is a serious acoustic player. Ive been playing for about 4 or 5 yrs (guitar wise) and im a proffesional musician. This is a very melodic, sound carrying, rich sounding guitar. I reccomend if you see this guitar for a affordable price, get it! I luv this guitar!

Laminated spruce top, somewhere around 20 frets. Not much else to say here. No electronics included.

I would describe the sound as bright. Compared to my cousin's jumbo body Gibson from the 60s, it sounds not good. However, it does sound better than a lot of guitars. If it had a solid top, I'm sure the sound would be great.

The action on mine is fantastic, not too low and not to high. No flaws. Feels really nice to play.

Very durable. It is finished and heavily laminated. While this seems to harm the sound, it is good for protection. However, the plastic coating over the pick guard has come undone in the last year.

No dealings.

Been playing this guitar for about eight years, I think. It is a great guitar to learn on, but if you want a better sound, I say go for a solid top.

1997 model made in Yamaha's Taiwan factory. 22 frets, laminated top. No pickup. Spruce top and nato backs, sides and neck. Fretboard is bubinga. Natural finish with black pick guard, dreadnaught-type body. Mahogany bridge. Non-locking open tuners. Rather thick neck. Plastic nut, saddle and bridge pegs. Nothing fancy but still looks good!

Extremely satisfying quality for this entry-level acoustic. Full well-rounded tone with plenty of volume. You can really trash this guitar hard (in a playing sense) and it'll hold together beautifully.

It could have a bit more bass and punch though.

Yamaha has awesome quality. Was set-up beautifully. Good quality finish, hardware and bracing. Almost no fret rattle. However the action, as I've found with all entry level Yamaha acoustics, is very high and makes extended playing and intensive lead work tedious (especially those barre chords!)

Extremely durable. But I had to change the tuning machines because they were open style and I got sand in them when I was playing at the beach. That's the only real drawback. Could have done with another strap button where the neck meets the body. Sadly, the strings start to cut into the bridge at the saddle after a while - not a major problem though. I FULLY DEPEND on this guitar.

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I've been playing pretty full-on for over 5 years. I own an Ibanez RX60 electric, a Laney HC50R amp and a couple of boss pedals.

I'm FULLY satisfied with this guitar (it was my first!). If it were stolen I'd replace it with a slightly more expensive Yamaha with a pickup.

It's rock hard, durable and has a full sound. Definitly value for money - Yamaha wins here for the lower range acoustics. I'll never get rid of it. Even when I get a AUD$5000 Larrivee I'll still keep it. You know, it's the "camp-fire" guitar you take with you wherever you go.

I wish it came with closed tuning machines and an easier action.

If you're starting out, go out and get it now! If you're a pro but you just need a good ol' camp fire guitar - the 401 is it!

Mid 90's Acoustic dreadnought. Spruce Top (Not solid) Nato (lumber grade mahogany) everything else. 20 frets. Made in Japan? Tuners are chrome with plastic metal covered buttons.

One bad feature on mine is that the truss rod is much farther inside the guitar than my other acoustics.

Guitar sounds like what it is, a mid entry level acoustic. My friend has a higher priced Yamaha acoustic with a solid top that sounds much better.

The factory set up had the action painfully high. For a few bucks a local store (Songbird) shaved the nut and saddle.

Only had it a week.

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This is a good mid entry level guitar. There are much worse guitars and much better. For the price I paid who can complain!

If I bought another acoustic it would definetly have a solid spruce top, no nato and fret binding. Also a pickup would with damn cutaway would be nice!

Purchased 1997
Cheap Costing Guitar...not cheap sounding

Played three different of it's kind...chose on the one I fell in love with. Incredible low end, it was the full sound I fell in love with. I've played many other guitars in it's price range and even some upwards of $700, and still like mine better.

Current problems after 4 years of heavy use...intonation problems, and it seems impossible to get any guitar technician to take me seriously when I say I want them to spend some time with it to get it sounding the best...guitar snobs.

Played extremely well when purchased. Even today (4 years later) few complaints. The fingerboard has been marred from playing and is currently grooved below each string. Parts of the frets have been dented (especially close to the head).

This guitar is my only choice for playing live. VERY dependable for any application. I've dropped this thing so many times that I no longer cringe when it happens.

Very Dependable/Likable/Durable/Consistant

I have a question for all you other FG-401 owners. Looking for the perfect string set for this guitar. I've tried many brands and gauges without being as satisfied as what came with the guitar. What are you using? Email me please.

Features? We're talking about an entry-level guitar, here, not a new Ferrari. A cutaway would be nice. But, like I said...

I play it all, and i have to say, this axe sounds pretty good. This guitar is about 8 years old, so it doesn't produce the glowing highs anymore, but the overall sond is pretty warm and never dull.

My action is great...this was my first acoustic after playing a Les Paul for 5 years beforehand, and i never fealt a difference as far as action. nice and low for the solos, not to mention easy on the finers.

Live playing....why not? i had this thing in a doorless storage shed for 2 years in the hot Tucson ummers, and it sounded just as good after i brought it out as it did when it went in. The strap button on the butt of the instrument (the only one on the thing) just recently came out, but a little glue should fix it up right quick. My finish is awful, but the fact that i had a lot of stickers on it at one time couldn't have helped the cause. note to self: don't repeat that mistake again!

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A solid entry-level guitar. no frills, but no flaws. pick one up if you're low on funds, or are looking for the most bang for the buck

20 Fret dreadnought-great accustic guitar

I ran production in a pretty big studio in Nashville for a few years and we had a few studio accustics sitting around. Everyone would bring in their $2000 Taylors and Martins and I'd shove this guitar in their hand and they couldn't believe what had just happened. Best sound, deep and full, of almost any accustic I've heard or played

Action is perfect, I've played all the way from old timin; Bluegrass to some Rock sets on it and the only action problem comes from the fact its not a cut away

It's all good- I bet I can name 2 or 3 albums you own right now that this guitar was played on.

Never used them

Playing for 18 years. Engineered in Nashville for 5 years and recorded 7 top 25 artist. I use it now in my own studio.- I had to Steal it from Nashville!!!!!!-They'll get over it

this is a twenty fret dreadnought style, made in the early 90's. features? it's an acoustic, whaddya want it to do, make breakfast? seriously, it does fine, the tuners and the bridge perform their function. internal electronics might be nice, but i like my dean markley pickup in it, so im not bothered by that.

this guitar has great, great sound. the tone is big, punchy and bright, it sounds like a little orchestra. it stumbles ever so slightly for fingerpicked stuff, but not nearly as much as a fender or an ovation <ovation, ha> this should work well for any style, except classical of course. very good folk guitar. remember though, bronze strings make all the difference.

the action is just perfect on mine. you will need to adjust it once a year or so. the intonation is dead on, the finish is fine.

i got this guitar as a gift when i was a young lad, and in the intervening 10 odd years or so this poor instrument has suffered through every possible humiliation you can think of, including being dropped, kicked, stept on, nearly buried in mud once <i will not explain :)> locked in a hot trunk and nearly burned up in my old apartment. the end result? the tone is a bit warmer. and a few hairline scratches on the back side. some wear on the neck, but hey, i played it basically daily for ten years, and the frets are still fine and dandy.

bottom line, if you hurt this guitar, you are abusing it, cut it out. its built to last.

couldn't tell ya. never needed them.

i have a fair amount of gear. fender tele, an old kramer, a classical <unidentifiable>, and im still collecting, but i have never felt the need to replace this guitar. honestly, i have played martins and taylors that have superior sound in some ways, and i would trade it for a couple of martins i can think of, but nothing else. for the price, it IS the best value you can get. take care of it and it will take care of you.

a real beauty.

Don't know about the year, 20 frets.
Pretty average acoustic guitar, I'd say even pretty cheap.
Doesn't have any special features.

The sound is not that good. It's doin' fine while playing open chords / simple folk songs, but not much more than that. I really can't understand how one can say it's better than Ovation, even unplugged. But than again - it's okay for open chords and simple things and sometimes more than that.

The guitar came from the factory in a good condition.
Anyway the playability is REALLY suck, except for open chords, which sound great. But that's a HARD guitar to play.

I'll never use it for live playing, it's just not good enough.

Been playing for 3 years. I also own a Les Paul Studio and a Fender Princeton 65 amp. I didn't compare it to anything when buying, it was my first guitar and I was new in all this music stuff. Soon I'm gonna sell it and buy a brand new Ovation ELITE. Hahuha.

Basic, no-frills acoustic guitar, but everything is solid and very well made.

I played every acoustic in my price range, and this was the best sounding, by far. It was also far cheaper than many. I love the tone this guitar has.

I've had this guitar for six years now, and I have not had to make any major changes. The intonation was great, the fretwork was great, the hardware is still functioning perfectly.

I have used this guitar without a backup since I bought it. It's been on the road without a case many times. It seems almost bulletproof.

I've never had a problem, so I've never contacted Yamaha.

I've been playing bass guitar and guitar for over 20 years, but I had always played electrics. In the mid-90s, I decided to pick up an inexpensive acoustic. This guitar sounds wonderful, is incredibly durable, and was inexpensive. It was perfect for my needs, and it's still going strong today.