Yamaki AY331S

I bought the guitar, new, the Spring of 1972, in Victoria, BC, Canada. However, I had seen that guitar hanging on the guitar shop?s presentation wall for at least 6 months. The vendor was the Martin dealer for Victoria and had several Martin samples on display along with many high-end Ramerez (sp?) Classical guitars. The shop was called Olde Town Strings and couldn?t have been bigger than 400 sq./ft.

20 frets, a solid Yellow Cedar top, rosewood finger-board, ribbon-grain Mahogany sides and back ? full Dreadnought body. Bridge is a fixed piece of white plastic into a rosewood saddle. Bought it with a faultless case and the guitar came with a hex wrench marked Yamaki and a 6 page "owner's manual".

It?s most incredible feature is the instrument's voice. When it was new, it sounded better than a 20 year old Martin. Once I figured out how to play it (I am talking about using specialized techniques to bring out the sounds), I even marvel the most die-hard Martin enthusiast.

I have been able to play any style I want. I played rock for a lot of years, but, after a life-changing motor vehicle accident, I have focused on acoustic blues and have found the one make and model of string that brings on my ?baby?s? voice. I started using various strings, mostly what was on the ?wall?, but, it wasn?t until I looked at the Owners Manual, they suggest a ?low Tension? string.

To me, that means a 525lb to 575lb string tension. That puts the Martin, and many other, mediums that are 625lb strings, a no-no. In my opinion, the correct string for my baby, John Pearse Bronze-Phosphor Lights. They cost a little more but well worth the investment. With the right strings, playing in the ?sweet spot? of 50%~70% relative humidity, playing outdoors, I can finger-pick (no picks) something like ?Blackbird? and someone 50 ft away will feel the notes on their skin.

My Yamaki has rich fat lows, penetrating mid-ranges, and piercing highs and with the Pearse strings, I only have to change the strings out once a week, rather than once every 3 days with other brands. I know, I AM anal about my instrument?s voice, but, when I stand up and perform, the audience remembers the voice of the guitar, rather than my mediocre human voice.

One other thing. I can pitch (you likely have all done this of the ?dotted? frets, lightly touch the string, not hard enough to make contact with the fret) this guitar at 7 points, between the 20th fret and the bridge, plus can pitch every fret, for all strings, down the entire neck.

The only problem I have was when I moved from a Dessert climate to a Coastal climate where the top behind the saddle started to lift a big. Some shaving of the bridge was nessecary to bring it back into tune, but it changed the intonation. That has caused me to tune the guitar to which ever key the next song was going to be in. Other than that it?s been great.

I have found that, between changing the pick firmness, reflex and where, up and down the neck, I can get, at least, 11 different ?voices? on the guitar.

Given that this a slab top, rather than a one-piece top (instead of the top being split and folded open to make a one-piece top, this instrument is cut from the heart of a single block of 30 year old Yellow Cedar.

As I said earlier, there is some bowing, below the saddle, but, not enough to make it unplayable. Fit and finish was, and continues to be, superb. It is my understanding that the reason Yamaki stopped making guitars was that they were so good, that these hand-made guitars ran out of 30 year aged Cedar in the early '70s. They then had to resort to ?jobber? Spruce, which put them in direct conflict with Yamaha. In my experience, the Yellow Cedar tops have a far superior voice than the Spruce tops. Unfortunately, because of the ?price-point?, the people that bought them new didn?t know what they actually had. They saw a brand name of strings and had no idea that they might have needed to use a string of lesser tension.

I was married for 25 years and this guitar has been with longer than any woman has. I am now to the point that I won't let anyone else play it. I have one small flaw in the finish, but, that is on the "south-side" of the sound hole where I have "strummed" through the finish and into the wood. Not as bad a Richie Havens' guitar at Woodstock, but, there is a groove cut into the wood. Black pick guard shows lots of sweeping marks, but they are easily filled by Martin Guitar Polish.

I have applied the Martin Guitar Polish every third time I change the string, about once a month or less.

There is no customer support, but, what customer support does one need when every guitar maker wants to work on it, measure it, take the specs, in order to try an duplicate ?perfection?.

I started, at the age of 12, with a Suzuki 6 string, so I have been playing guitar for 40 years. My other guitars are a early Gibson Bass, a 1966 Yamaha Jazz electric, plus I have 20, some odd, other instruments as my musical training was primarily in a Classical Environment. Not Classical music, but rather, the student, instructor, mentor relationship that went on for 15 years. I am a multi-instrumentalist who?s only exclusions are double reed instruments. In other words, I only don?t play, Oboe, Bassoon and English Horn. My primary Orchestral instrument is French Horn, but, as a result on the accident, I mentioned earlier, I spend almost all of my time playing my Yamaki..

I bought my Yamaki 6 string back in 1975. I had signed up for a "hum and strum" guitar course (8 weeks) at our local high school. The teacher wanted the whole class to have Yamakis and that is how I got mine with a hard case $250.00. It has a solid spruce top and I think the back and sides are mahogany but am not sure. There are 20 frets on the neck. I am not an expert on guitars and I just play chords on it but I love the tone of it. A few years ago a friend and I used two play at church,he had a Yamaha and I thought my guitar outclassed his. I think the body style is a dreadnought. A few years ago after leaving the guitar alone for about a year I opened the case and the top had bubbled. However it did not seem to affect the sound quality and there are no rattles when I tap the top of the guitar. Again after leaving the guitar for two years I decided to put new strings on it and when I opened the case the bubble on the guitar was gone. I used to put d'angelico light strings on the guitar but the guy at the music store sold me a set of D'Addario EJ16 Phosphor Bronze Light and I think they sound great. It came with an allan wrench for adjusting the neck which I leave alone. The one area though where my friends Yamaha outclassed mine was in the neck of the guitar. I always found it easier to play barred chords on the Yamaha,I think the Yamaha neck was finer. I don't know if that can be corrected or not. I have played other guitars in music shops but for what I can afford none beat mine for sound.

I just strum the guitar. I play religios music,folk, and country and western. It has a rich,deep, full sound.

I just found barred chords a little difficult,other chords were fine. I found the assembly quality of the guitar excellent.

Everything is fine with the guitar and the top has not bubbled since I have restrung it. Maybe it absorbed moisture? I don't think so but who knows.

I have a Korg Micro Six guitar tuner