…high-end Yamaha acoustic/electric guitars haven’t taken off in the US? It’s not as if Yamaha instruments aren’t known in the States. But what you most commonly find in US shops are the sub-$1000 guitars.
I’m a little embarrassed to say this, but I didn’t know Yamaha had a whole lineup of high-end acoustics until I started doing research for a new acoustic-electric last year, and I happened to go their site to see Yamaha’s handmade line of acoustic and acoustic-electric guitars. These appeared to be on par with any American high-end acoustic with respect to materials and design, and they’ve been building these for years!
When I finally made my decision on a new acoustic-electric and comparing many different brands I ended up buying a Yamaha APX900, which is just about the best stage acoustic I’ve ever played! But a couple of months after I got that wonderful guitar, I saw a press release that Yamaha picked up Steve Lukather and he was playing their LJX26CP model. Curious, I looked through the Yamaha site and saw this beautiful lineup of various handmade guitars.
The LJX26CP is a handmade, medium-jumbo guitar with a natural finish. Here are some specs:
| Top | Solid Engelmann Spruce A.R.E. |
|---|---|
| Back&Side | Solid Rosewood |
| Neck | 5ply (Mahogany + Padauk) |
| Finger Board/Bridge | Ebony |
| Body Depth | 100 -125mm (3 15/16″-4 15/16″) |
| Nut Width | 44mm (1 3/4″) |
| String Lengh | 650mm (25 9/16″) |
| Tuning Machine | Open Gear |
| Color | Natural |
| Finish | Gloss |
| Preamp | System62 |
| Standard Accessory | Hard CaseX |
The very cool thing about this guitar (and others in the new lineup) is the new SRT pickup system, which is an improvement over the incredible ART system, which is what I have in my APX900. I chose the APX900 over all comers because of this pickup system. It is by far the best pickup system I’ve ever used in any acoustic, hands-down. But SRT goes even further than this by adding microphone modeling and other tone-shaping features to further enhance the natural sound of a guitar while plugged in. I wish I had that in my APX!!! OMG!
What got me thinking about Yamaha guitars was recording this song:
With this, I mic’d my APX900. It sounds pretty good, but I really had to do a lot of EQ and other adjustments to get a richer sound. As you can tell, the tone is pretty bright, which works pretty good, but I really don’t like applying EQ to guitar tracks as I want to capture the natural sound of the guitar, whether it’s an acoustic or electric. Anyway, I was thinking to myself that it would be great to have a guitar that has a killer tone both plugged in and unplugged. That’s when I thought of the LJX26CP.
What I wanted was to have my cake and eat it too. While my APX900 sounds absolutely fantastic on stage, from what I’ve been able to gather on the LJX26CP is that it also sounds killer unplugged!
So circling back to my original query, it’s amazing that these amazing guitars with amazing electronics haven’t caught on more here in the states or why Yamaha hasn’t invested more in marketing their top line in the States. Maybe they think the market’s too saturated. Who knows? It’s not as if the guitars are completely inaccessible. You can special order them, and if you’re in Europe or Asia, you can get them online. But as someone once told me, “There’s room in this world for people who are good.” That totally applies to gear. And if Yamaha brought these guitars to shops, I have no doubt that they’d do well here. It just takes getting the word out and coming up with messaging that differentiates it from the competition.
Without a doubt, the big differentiator for Yamaha’s guitars is the SRT system. As if ART wasn’t impressive enough in previous models, SRT looks like it will blow ART away! I definitely want an LJX26CP! Luckily for me, the local shop where I get a lot of my gear is a Yamaha dealer, and they can order one for me. I sure wish I could play it before I order it; hopefully, they’ll have a return policy, or allow me to not buy it if I don’t like it. Chances are that I will indeed like it.
In any case, from personal experience with Yamaha guitars over the years – my first acoustic was a cheapo Yamaha FG335 that my dad gave me for my 18th birthday. Those inexpensive, it had a fantastic voice that was comparable to high end acoustics. I performed and recorded with it for years! To me, Yamaha totally gets it with acoustic guitars, and even its budget models sound and play great, plus they’re very well-built.
For more information on the Yamaha guitars that have the SRT pickup system, visit the SRT site! You’ll notice that the site’s in Japan. It took me A LOT of digging to find that site. There are clips and interviews on the site that will provide you with tons of information on the line.
Guitar Gear 
Funny you should mention Yamaha! Just the other day, on another forum, a member started a thread entitled “What Was Your First Guitar.” Turns out mine was a Yamaha SG2000 (electric), which I purchased during the early 80’s. It was a smart-looking guitar . . sort of a mix between a LP and an SG . . all black with gold hardware. Turns out Carlos Santana endorsed this particular model for a bit before moving to PRS. The Yamaha is long gone, but I just recently noticed that they are now collectibles. The story is, during the times, Gibson’s quality had slackened, and the Yamaha’s were actually a better-made instrument.
Those SG2000’s are indeed collectibles! I’ve got that on my list to get one day! As I mentioned in the article, my very first guitar – that wasn’t a hand-me-down from my cousin 🙂 – was an FG335. I still have it, though it needs some work, and to this day it still has a deep, rich tone.
My thought is that if Yamaha puts this much quality into their low- and midrange guitars, then it follows that the high-end will be absolutely stellar!
Love them yamaha acoustics. I don’t understand why you don’t want to eq your guitar after the fact as I’m sure you use eq live on the board and the guitar you covet has all this majic built in which in my mind is like automatic eq.. but don’t let me spoil your gas..
As always, Great song..
I lucked into a great deal on a handmade in Japan Yamaha acoustic. CPX15wa
http://usa.yamaha.com/product_archive/guitars-basses/cpx15wa/?mode=model
Insomnia had gotten the best of me and I found it as a closeout in an online store. The electronics aren’t as good as your apx900 but I found I prefer to mic and eq later in pro tools.
I used in in a song for my grandmothers memorial service.
[audio src="http://dl.dropbox.com/u/4612032/One%20More%20Star%20%28Gram%27s%20song%29.mp3" /]
Cool memorial song, Chris, and the guitar sounds great!
As far as not wanting to EQ, it’s always been one my things. But I should qualify that I actually do some minimal EQ, but with this song, I had to do a lot more shaping than I like. Usually, I just prefer adding some mild delay and reverb, with just a touch of emphasis in a specific area but that’s just me. And no… you ain’t spoiling my GAS. 🙂
I only plug in when I’m performing, and the ART system is killer!
I think your guitar has a larger body than mine. It has a real nice sound.