Vital considerations for choosing the best acoustic and electro-acoustic guitars
- Check the height of the strings: The simplest way to do this is to press one of your strings on the first fret and at the same time press the same string on the 12th fret and while holding the string on both frets, verify that it perfectly touches the 6th fret. It should not be curved (mounted) nor should it be separated, it should be a friction between the string and the fret.
- Check the wood: check for dents, loose rods, worn paint.
- Shop around: this will allow you to test everything.
- Buy online: only in stores that allow returns for factory defects and at thomann, you have the best terms.
- Tune and play: this will let you know if your guitar sounds as it should, fully in tune.
Differences between acoustic and Spanish guitars
We have prepared a short list of the main differences between an acoustic guitar and a classical guitar. On the outside, it seems that there are not many differences, but if we look at them with a critical eye, these two types of guitars have very marked features that distinguish them.
It's important to clarify that both Spanish and acoustic guitars produce their sound thanks to the acoustic properties of their woods. That is, in a real sense both guitars are acoustic guitars, but at some point in history it was agreed to differentiate them with these names. In addition, both have inherent acoustic properties. Let's start with the differences.
- String material: The first thing that jumps out is the strings: on the Spanish guitar, the strings are made of nylon for the E-I-G-G strings and nylon covered with a metal braiding for the RE-LA-MI strings. In acoustic guitars, on the other hand, all the strings are made of metal.
- The neck: In the Spanish guitar the neck is wider, while in acoustic guitars, the neck is thinner. In addition, the neck of the acoustic has a steel rod that is hidden behind the fingerboard and serves to straighten it when it's bent by the force of the metal strings.
- Soundboard. In acoustic guitars the soundboard is usually larger than in Spanish guitars and the material is denser (heavier).
Differences between acoustic and electroacoustic guitars
What is the difference between the best acoustic guitar and the best electro-acoustic guitar? Both are identical in materials, woods, construction principles and designs. But their difference lies in that the electroacoustic has to project its sound through an amplifier . That is to say, one has an electronic system, while the other doesn't.
Acoustic and electroacoustic guitar parts
The structure of the acoustic and electroacoustic guitar is the same as any guitar built under traditional standards, they have; soundboard, sides, back, soundboard, neck, fingerboard, bridge, bridge and neck capo, headstock, tuning keys, strings, sound hole in the soundboard (some models do not have it). They are the same parts of a conventional guitar.
However, the acoustic guitar incorporates a truss rod that runs through the neck to adjust it when bent by the resistance of the steel strings. In addition, it has steel and not nylon strings. It's also necessary to take into account the electronic system used in electroacoustic guitars.
Amplifying an acoustic guitar
Thanks to modern technology, it's possible to convert an acoustic guitar into an electro-acoustic guitar with a minimum investment. How? Installing a microphone system to amplify it . If you are relatively handy you can even do it yourself.
External passive microphones
One option is to install external microphones: they are placed on the sound hole of the guitar and are fastened with a factory-fitted gasket. What limits this system is that it depends on external consoles to adjust the tones (equalization). However, you can find DiMarzio and Seymour Duncan microphones, which are of great sound quality.
Another thing you should know is that when we refer to it as a (passive) microphone it's because it's not powered by an external energy source (alkaline batteries) but it picks up the mechanical vibratory force of the moving strings through a quartz stone in its core.
Active internal microphones
Another way you can amplify the sound of an acoustic guitar is through internal active microphones. They are the most commonly used for acoustic guitars because of the incredible performance they have. These include: three to six-band equalization (bass, mid, brightness, presence, gain, volume), digital tuner, active format that is powered by a 9.V battery that purges the sound of unwanted noise, and ¼” Jack or Canon XLR connection.
You can install them yourself, but be very careful. Therefore, we recommend you get well informed beforehand (youtube videos, specialized websites…). Also, condenser microphones can be used and you can learn more about them HERE.
Differences between a low-end, mid-range and high-end acoustic/electro-acoustic guitar
It's very important that you learn to differentiate between them. These tips will come in handy when buying an electroacoustic guitar.
- The wood: as in any other type of guitar, in acoustic guitars for beginners, the woods are of lower quality, veneered in inexpensive guitars. In the mid-range, the soundboard becomes solid, while in the high-end everything is exotic, solid, with the best mechanical and acoustic characteristics.
- The most significant difference is the scale of these guitars and by that we mean their ability to tune and produce both octaves and accurate overtones.
String scale
It's the relationship between the distance between the bridge capo and the neck capo, with respect to the height. This is nothing more than physics in the service of music and if this relationship fails, your guitar will not tune, nor will it produce the overtones as accurately as it should. That is the vital difference between cheap acoustic guitars and high-end acoustic guitars.While it's true that the best brands seek that their most economical models have a certain degree of quality, it's also true that they do not make them perfect (it's not profitable), so they do not tune with total precision, nor give all the harmonics that should be produced in each of their frets.
This is quite limiting, especially when you want to perform techniques such as tapping and air or forced harmonics. If your guitar is not of good quality, it will sound out of tune. Not because you are doing it wrong, but because the physical relationship between distance and height is not correct.
The best brands of acoustic and electroacoustic guitars.
Currently, there is a huge number of companies that specialize in the manufacture of acoustic and electroacoustic guitars. Each one stands out for its tradition, investment in R&D, innovative selection or for the quality of its components:
- Yamaha: this Japanese company has been developing high quality guitars for more than fifty years and some of its most recognized models are the APX and silent series.
- Epiphone: an excellent company in all its models, especially the Hummingbird Pro and the EJ-200SCE.
- Taylor: it's perhaps the most emblematic of all acoustic and electro-acoustic guitar manufacturers because they are the most used by virtuoso guitarists.
- Ibanez: although their best stock is in electric guitars, acoustic and electro-acoustic guitars are of good quality and that is why we selected one in our review.
- Washburn: 1983 saw the birth of this company, which has since manufactured guitars with a good quality that are desired by many beginners and intermediates.
- Ovation: founded in 1965, this company has the iconic guitar model with an oval case made of highly resistant polymers.
- Parker: is an important company that has been manufacturing mainly electric guitars for more than 20 years, but also has high quality electro-acoustic guitars.
- Takamine: founded at the foot of Mount Takamine, has one of its best-selling models as the G series, which has high-end features but much more accessible in price.
- Fender: with its more than 50 years is a legend in the construction of acoustic and electroacoustic guitars with modern features.
- Gibson: since 1894, this family has been making iconic guitars such as the Super Jumbo SJ-200 Bob Dylan.
- CF Martin&Company: since 1983, this American company has been manufacturing some of the best acoustic guitars on the market, such as the Dreadnought.
- Baton Rouge: is a young company that is building a name for itself by making high quality guitars, they also have guitars such as Alexandr Misko.
- Lowden: is a company that has since 1974 been manufacturing amazing yet underrated guitars. They are incredible, just like the Baton Rouge, they have harmonics that are hard to believe and their touch is out of this world, Jon Gomm is their most recognized promoter.
The best acoustic guitars for beginners:
The best electroacoustic guitars for intermediate guitarists:
The best proposals for advanced guitarists:
What is the best affordable acoustic guitar for beginners?
Acoustic Guitar Ibanez V50NJP-NT


Very good value for money.

None. It meets every requirement an acoustic guitar for beginners should have.
Technical Characteristics:
- Weight: 3.7 kg.
- Touch: Normal.
- Woods: Laminated .
- Sound: Good quality.
- Aesthetic finish: Some models have presented problems.
Ibanez has a very good selection of acoustic guitars for beginners. One of the ones we like the most is the Ibanez V50NJP-NT acoustic guitar. It has a very good value for money and can be considered the best acoustic guitar in its price range. Now we'll tell you why.
Wood:
The Ibanez V50NJP-NT acoustic guitar has a laminated Agathis wood top. It provides good mechanical characteristics with a significant density of 450 kg/m3, which gives it a high resistance against breakage. In addition, it's a stable wood due to its low coefficient of expansion.
Another good aspect is the elasticity and bending, which in veneered materials maintain their natural acoustic properties and do not lose their sound. In addition, its neck is made of mahogany, which will not break easily. The sides and back are made of spruce, so it's a little heavy.
Design:
The acoustic guitar has a traditional design and no cutaway. Its measurements are 95x46x14. It isn't very long but its soundboard is large, deep and provides a good volume.
The hardware is silver-plated and the frets are made of brass. The tuning keys are made of steel and are of good quality for an inexpensive acoustic guitar. In addition, it has a black pickguard to avoid scratching the top while strumming.
Ergonomics:
It's a high action guitar, although with a relatively short scale that makes plucking not very difficult at the beginning. The displacement through the neck is comfortable in the phrases (solos) although it requires a little strength to make the chords. Nevertheless, it's an inexpensive acoustic guitar that feels good to the touch.
Sound:
It's an acoustic guitar with great volume thanks to the size of its Folk type soundboard. It measures 44x52cm in its widest and longest part, in addition to its depth (14.cm). These measures provide a good volume.
The projection of its Agathis wood top is very good, full-bodied and with stable vibrations, despite being veneered. But this doesn't detract from the quality due to the contribution of the mahogany in the sides and back, which also add presence to the harmonics.
In addition, the mahogany neck with the rosewood fretboard contributes to improve the sound of this guitar that in its frets 5, 7 and 12 give great quality harmonics to the air, and while tuning you can notice this difference. But, if you want to practice Tapping, then you must mute the strings with the left hand to avoid the out of tune sound, only then you will get a decent sound with Tapping.
Conclusion:
This is a good option for beginners who want to learn scales, rasgueados, air harmonics and some phrasing. It's one of the best entry-level acoustic guitars on the market. Find the best Thomann prices.
Yamaha F310 Acoustic Guitar


It's a great sounding folk size acoustic guitar.

Like all beginner guitars, not all harmonics work.
Technical Characteristics:
- Weight: 3.5 kg.
- Touch: Pleasant.
- Woods: Solid .
- Sound: Clear, with body.
- Aesthetic finish: Good quality.
Yamaha has been a benchmark in the manufacture of high quality instruments. Introducing the Yamaha F310: a Folk-sized guitar with excellent volume.
Wood:
The Yamaha acoustic guitar has a nice variation in its combination of woods:
- The sides and back are made of tropical pine: this wood performs well and has valuable mechanical characteristics, such as a density of 530 kg/m3. This means that the wood is strong and withstands intensive work. As it should be, since the Yamaha F310 is an acoustic guitar for beginners with which you will not only learn to play, but also to take care of it.
- Its soundboard is made of American spruce, which gives it great sonority.
- The neck is mahogany, very resistant, and the fingerboard is rosewood. Both pieces together provide a pleasant sound quality to this plucked string instrument.
Design:
The Yamaha F310 is a classic folk guitar with an American western design. It has an oversized soundboard for voluminous sounds. Yamaha has left the natural color of the spruce on the top, and it's something we like because you can still see the betas (lines of the wood) that are uniform and that's good, because it shows the quality in the selection.
Therefore, as a tip we always recommend you observe the betas on the top of your new guitar and if they are uniform, you can be confident in the quality of its sound.
The hardware is chrome-plated, with Yamaha quality tuning keys. The frets are brass, medium Jumbo size (you can see in the electric guitars article the section on frets HERE). It also features the typical black pickguard on the underside of the lid to avoid scratching the cover.
Ergonomics:
The Yamaha F310 is an easy guitarto play. It has a very good feel due to its scale of 634.mm long and 4.mm high. It's also a guitar with a good physical distance/height ratio.
It's very smooth when doing chords (although the bars will always be difficult for beginners). The neck of the Yamaha F310 is comfortable and allows a smooth ride, although access to the last frets is not easy.
Its weight is what we like the least. It weighs 4.kg and may cause some back pain during prolonged use. However, the Yamaha F310 is an entry-level acoustic guitar that must be able to withstand wear and tear, so the weight of the wood and components is justified.
Sound:
We must admit that the Yamaha F310 projects a warm and stable sound, which is the result of the American spruce top. When you play it, you can feel the vibrations that the pine brings to the rims and back, as well as the spine arrangements (internal support rods) that give it excellent projection.
The quality of its sound is also perceived through the neck: by making harmonics in the air, it projects these sound frequencies in a pleasant way. The Yamaha F310 is an acoustic guitar that has been designed to withstand the carelessness of a beginner, but without compromising on sound quality.
When you perform the phrases (dotted) the sound is clear, differentiated, unmixed and completely audible. In the chords the volume is immense but stable, this is very difficult to find in an acoustic guitar, but Yamaha has achieved it. The arpeggios have a lot of body, the bass is clearly perceived, although the treble is a little harsh in its sound, but it doesn't represent a problem either.
Conclusion:
The Yamaha F310 is an excellent choice for those who want to buy an acoustic guitar with a modern blues vibe. It competes for the title of best acoustic guitar in its price range and is one of the brand's most popular. Find the best Thomann prices.
We also recommend you check out the affordable Yamaha C40.
Epiphone DR-100 Acoustic Guitar


Great guitar, one of the best on the market for beginners.

The forced harmonics are not quite accurate.
Technical Characteristics:
- Weight: 2.86 kg.
- Touch: Pleasant.
- Woods: Solid.
- Sound: Clear, good brightness.
- Aesthetic finish: Good quality.
The quality of the Epiphone DR 100 makes it one of the best the best acoustic guitars for beginners. Let's take a look:
Wood:
The Epiphone DR 100 acoustic guitar has the following combination of woods:
- It has Spruce wood in its soundboard and provides a wonderful acoustic capacity and resistance.
- The sides and back are made of mahogany, a much more resistant wood than spruce, with very good elasticity so the vibrations are firm.
- Its neck is made of Okohume, a rare wood of which the molecular structure has slight separations (pores) that improve the sonorous capacity of musical notes.
- Its fingerboard is made of traditional rosewood.
Design:
The Epiphone DR 100 maintains a folk style, with a large, deep soundboard that gives it that country feel. Its fingerboard is inlaid with pearl-colored dots that serve as a guide for locating the frets. The hardware is silver-plated, with high quality premium Epiphone tuning keys. The frets are made of nickel, which is a material that provides greater durability.
Ergonomics:
The Epiphone DR 100 is one of the most comfortable acoustic guitars for beginners that exist because despite its large size, it's not very heavy (2.86 kg) and adapts very well to the standing position and much better if you are sitting. Its dimensions 106.7 x 47 x 14 cm and its scale of 64.77cm with a string height of 0.4mm make this guitar a soft instrument, comfortable to play both chords and phrases.
Sound:
With a soundboard measuring 50x40cm and a depth of 14cm, it has a unique sound power. In addition, its spruce top together with the internal bars are responsible for the uniformity of its sound, which acquires roundness thanks to the mahogany of its sides and back.
The most characteristic detail in it are the pores that the Okohume wood naturally contains, this enriches the sound of the harmonics and at times gives shape to the forced harmonics (they are slight pinches that are given to the strings).
The phrases are very audible due to the sum of its woods and the same happens with the chords and arpeggios, it's a very complete guitar for a beginner. With volume, body, very balanced, with very audible harmonics.
Its sound is very similar to the Hummingbird Pro, but for a much lower price.
Conclusion:
This is a guitar that we like because its touch is pleasant and the harmonics are very good. For us, it competes for the title of best value acoustic guitar . Interested? Take a look at thomann's best prices.
Takamine GD11MCENS-2


Takamine offer us a high quality electro-acoustic guitar that we will examine here.

It has an excellent preamplifier and the forced harmonics can be heard very well.
Technical Characteristics:
- Weight: 3 kg.
- Touch: Professional quality.
- Woods: Solid .
- Electronics: Clear, full-bodied, excellent brightness and bass.
- Aesthetic finish: Good quality.
Wood:
- The Takamine GN20 CENS acoustic guitar has a solid cedar top, a wood with excellent mechanical properties and good elasticity, which is responsible for the vibrations necessary for the sound projection.
- In addition, the sides and back are made of mahogany, a very common wood in Takamine instruments, and rightly so, because its volume capacity and durability are wonderful.
Design:
On the outside, the Takamine GN20 CENS is a guitar with an attractive design. We like its natural color, which is light and with a matte polyurethane finish to highlight all the characteristics of the wood. As a matter of fact, the glossy polyurethane helps to hide imperfections in both wood and finishes. Matte, on the other hand, highlights imperfections. This is a good indication of Takamine, which has nothing to hide.
A detail that pleases us is the arrangement of the capo on the bridge, placed in two parts, which besides adding aesthetic value, is a factor that improves the scale of the instrument.
The hardware is silver plated, the precision tuning keys are great for tuning to keep it in tune for a long time, and the frets are jumbo sized nickel for added durability. Finally, a factor that we love is the Cutaway that allows easy access to the last frets.
Ergonomics:
Its dimensions are 109.7 x 49.5 x 14.7 cm. Despite being a large guitar, it weighs only 3.kg, so it's easy to carry it on your shoulders to play standing up and not burden your back. It‘s also comfortable, soft to the touch and easy to wear. The slim “C” neck is very easy to play, with a scale of 67.4cm and a height of 4.mm make this guitar sweet to the touch.
Sound:
Its woods give it a wonderful volume and warmth. It has a good gain and presence: chord notes can be distinguished and arpeggios have an incredible sonority. Phrasing has great volume: every single fret sounds crisp, with no fretting (unless your technique fails you). In addition, beautiful harmonics can be heard when plucking the strings on some frets.
The octaves are frankly well heard, giving the corresponding notes. The overtones in the air are exquisite, delightful to our ears. On the other hand, the forced harmonics are of expected quality, although it lacks for Tapping. But this is normal for an entry-level product.
Like all electro-acoustics, this guitar has a preamp included, which in our case is an active TP-4TD (uses 9.V alkaline) containing three sensitive sliders for bass, mid and brightness. In addition to a volume knob (Gain) and built-in digital tuner.
This device is highly sensitive and because it's active, it has the ability to compress frequencies to eliminate excess noise.
Conclusion:
The acoustic qualities of the woods, the scale and this preamp are the elements that make the Takamine one of the best value for money acoustic guitars on the market. Interested? Find the best prices at Thomann.
What is the best value for money acoustic guitar for beginners?
As surprising and contradictory as it may seem, we recommend buying the Takamine guitar. The reason? Due to its price and features, we believe it's the best acoustic guitar for beginners.
The best electroacoustic guitars for intermediate guitarists
In this section, we have selected three wonderful guitars. Although there are some who consider them guitars for “beginners” (because of their affordable price and materials), for us they have so many qualities that clearly deem them appropriate for intermediate guitarists. These three classical guitars are three golden nuggets that we have found: they are inexpensive guitars of which the sound and feel are barely different from an 800 € guitar.
Takamine GF30CE-B-2


It has a rounded, balanced sound and excellent construction.

None.
Technical Characteristics:
- Weight: 3.3 kg.
- Touch: Excellent.
- Woods: Solid .
- Electronic system: It's good, but the natural sound is wonderful.
- Aesthetic finish: High quality.
Takamine is a great company with a tradition marked by the quality of its acoustic guitars. One of their great models is the Takamine GF30CE-B-2, which is a guitar that has a balanced and warm sound, with a wonderful feel.
Wood:
In this Takamine acoustic guitar, we find a high quality solid spruce top, a very resistant wood, with excellent response to vibrations. The company has also opted for laminated mahogany for the sides and back, which, being a dense wood, provides greater resistance to shocks.
The company has also placed X-shaped reinforcements so you can be sure of the great quality you have if you decide to purchase it.
For the neck, Takamine has continued with the mahogany rule, but reinforced, which is not common in mid-range guitars. The quality of this company is a rule for them and they share it with their followers. The fretboard and bridge are made of Ovangkol, a wood that has become necessary for takamine to reduce costs, but without detracting from the quality of the construction of their powerful acoustic guitars.
Design:
The shape of this acoustic guitar is what Takamine has dubbed the Artist FXCI and we love it. Its body is proportionate, with curves that contribute to ergonomics and is very balanced. Its neck, though slim, is proportionate to the guitar's design and has a distinctive Takamine beauty.
The hardware is nickel-plated, with Jumbo medium frets and precision closed style tuning keys. The bridge capo has an unusual design and is split in two, which we love because it not only contributes to a different visual impression, but also provides what it needs in sound to be an intermediate and even advanced level guitar.
The Cutaway is the great option for any guitar with these characteristics because it's aesthetic, and adds aspects of ergonomics that are valuable for the guitarist. Finally, its satin black color is beautiful, polished, with high quality paints and high resistance polyurethane protective cover; it's magnificent.
Ergonomics:
This is a guitar weighing 3.3kg , relatively comfortable to carry. Its size is 111.7×15.24×50.8 cm, ideal for an intermediate level guitar.
The scale is 64.3 a little shorter than most acoustic guitars, but with a string height of 4.mm. This guitar has an excellent feel and this stands out in all Takamine's instruments. Chords are very easy to play and everything gets better with phrases (solos) and arpeggios thanks to the Cutaway. All of its frets are accessible and a delight to the touch.
The tapping technique is something that every intermediate guitarist is looking for and this acoustic guitar has a different comfort level than others in this range, it's something that every semi-professional will be grateful for. In terms of ergonomics, this guitar has a remarkable balance.
Sound:
The sound is what we like the most. In acoustic guitars we love warm sounds with good presence of mids and lows, but without strident brightness, and this is what the Takamine GF30CE-B-2 guitar has. The strumming is spectacular, it has a good sustain on open chords and the air notes give off very rich harmonics.
This guitar is equipped with a Takamine TP-4TD active preamp that has three faders for bass, mid and treble that do a good job. One aspect to be thankful for is the built-in digital tuner that has an accuracy of 0.01 and that puts it in the first division.
Conclusion:
We love this acoustic guitar, it's the link between the mid and high ranges. We like its feel and for Fingerstyle styles it's wonderful. In addition, both natural and forced harmonics conspire to make you experiment in the style of Eric Mongrain.
Words to define it? Rounded, balanced, delightful, is what we can say about this Takamine guitar. We recommend it for those who want a guitar that is the prelude to the higher ranges. It's one of the best mid-range electro-acoustic guitars you can buy. If you want to see the best Thomann prices, follow the link.
Yamaha apx1000


It has good sound and its materials are very resistant.

We have always felt that it lacks volume when not connected and also the pulsation is hard.
Technical Characteristics:
- Weight: 3.2 kg.
- Touch: We find it a little hard.
- Woods: Solid .
- Electronic system: Lacking.
- Aesthetic finish: Good quality.
Wood:
- The top of the apx1000 guitar is made of high quality solid spruce, which gives it a good projection when strumming.
- The sides and back are made of flamed maple, a rarely used wood (Yamaha has become accustomed to using exotic woods with success). It has a good resonance and balanced sound.
- The neck is made of nato (cork oak), which has proven to favor the sound of harmonics.
- The fingerboard is typical rosewood.
Design:
It's a small guitar (94x48x42.cm) and its soundboard is 8.cm at the narrowest part and 9.cm at the widest part. The neck is a slim Yamaha enhanced C-type neck and the fretboard has mother-of-pearl inlays on some of its frets.
The soundhole is ovoid, leaving behind the traditional round shape. The hardware is chrome plated, with Jumbo size frets and the tuning keys are precision tuning, which brings great quality to this instrument that is really good.
Ergonomics:
With a 650.mm scale and a height of 5.mm at the top of the strings, we have always found it to be a hard guitar to play, although it's small and its weight is acceptable. However, we feel that ergonomics and sound should always be a priority. Chords require extra strength, as do phrasing and this detracts from a guitar that should be +10.
Sound:
It's a good sounding guitar when not plugged into the amp. The solid spruce top gives it that characteristic body that every guitar should have and the flamed maple sides/back have a good balance in the vibrations.
The neck's nato does its job well in projecting harmonics, the chords are rich in nuance and the phrasing has character, with very balanced brightness, mids and lows. This is an instrument in which strumming sounds really good and that's what we like most about it.
Perhaps the most reputable feature of this guitar is the active preamp (System 63 STR). It's one of the best on the market. It's composed of a four-knob knob for Volume, Bass, Mid, and Glows that work very well.
In addition, it incorporates a knob for the microphone format that allows you to switch between passive electric piezo, and three different types of active piezo (we honestly don't find a big difference in sound).
One thing we like is that it incorporates a knob for resonance that allows you to give more body to the sound when it's connected. Another highlight is a button to disable feedback (this is an outrageous hum that arises when external sound monopolizes the inside of the soundboard) . It also comes equipped with the always useful built-in digital tuner, which many appreciate.
Conclusion:
This guitar is highly acclaimed and we do not deny that it has a good sound and good value for money, but there are other models that are better in every way and are within the same price range. Take a look at thomann's best prices.
Epiphone EJ-200SCE


It has none of the faults of its sister C40.

We don't have any because they corrected everything.
Technical Characteristics:
- Weight: 4.3 kg.
- Touch: Excellent.
- Woods: Solid .
- Electronic system: Excellent brightness, midrange, bass, versatile.
- Aesthetic finish: High quality.
The Epiphone EJ 200 SCE electro-acoustic guitar is a real gem and has qualities that we love. Want to know why?
Wood:
The Epiphone EJ 200 SCE woods are very similar to those of the Yamaha apx1000:
- Solid spruce top with great projection.
- Maple sides and back (not flamed), solid maple neck, sturdy and firm.
- Rosewood fingerboard.
Despite the similarities between the Apx1000 and this Epiphone, the extreme difference between them lies in their design.
Design:
The Epiphone EJ 200 SCE acoustic guitar is large (110x53x11cm). Its size makes it a total Jumbo, with an impressive sound capacity. It has a cutaway that allows access to the last frets. The hardware is gold-plated for aesthetic beauty, with precision tuners and Jumbo size frets. Both the bridge and pickguard have beautiful details that stand out to the eye.
The fretboard has mother-of-pearl inlays on some of the frets, so this guitar is not only of great build quality, but also aesthetically pleasing.
Ergonomics:
The scale of the Epiphone EJ 200 SCE is 648.mm, with a height of 4.mm at the top of the strings. This gives it a wonderful softness. The chords do not require much force and the phrases are very sensitive to touch. Weighing in at 4.3kg, this guitar can be a burden, but its sound quality is well worth it.
Sound:
The sound of the Epiphone EJ 200 SCE is better than many guitars using the same type of woods. The reason? It's the configuration of the internal hoops and spinets, with a lower hoop of 43.cm, upper hoop of 32.cm and a depth of 11.cm. In addition, the fan-shaped spinets on both sides make this guitar a true glory of sound.
But that's not all, because the Epiphone EJ 200 SCE's preamp is just another amazing thing. The Epiphone esonic2 is something unusual, a jewel of modern technology that every guitar should have. At first glance it looks simple: it has no sliders or knobs for bass, mid and brightness, but it does have the selector for (nanomag, blend and nanoflex), three sound options that will make you jump with excitement. In addition, two knobs for master equalization, one for the nanomag and one for the nanoflex.
This mechanism, in addition to the master station, is composed of two fundamental microphones : one located under the bridge, and the other located on the soundhole, at the edge of the fingerboard. It also features two ¼” Jack connectors to separate the two microphones.
As if that were not enough, it contains a button to activate the Phase that inverts the sound and it's heard just like that, inverted. You have to listen to it. Another element is the built-in digital tuner which is of superb quality.
Conclusion:
The Epiphone EJ 200 SCE is a guitar that every intermediate guitarist should have in their arsenal. Without a doubt, this is an impressive guitar for its mid-range price. It's far superior to Epiphone's Hummingbird Pro and is similarly priced. Without a doubt, it's one of the best mid-range electro-acoustic guitars on the market. Interested? check out the best prices at Thomann.
Editor's recommendation:
The best intermediate electroacoustic guitar
The time has come to tell you which is the best choice of all, and believe us it's not an easy task, because we have a Takamine that is superb in construction and sound. However, the Epiphone is impressive in construction, sound, aesthetics and preamp. So, the best mid-range electro-acoustic guitars are the Epiphone EJ-200SCE.
Best options for advanced guitarists
Takamine TSF48C


It's wonderful, great sound, robust build, it's amazing.

Heads.
Technical Characteristics:
- Weight: 4.1 kg.
- Touch: Excellent.
- Woods: Solid .
- Electronic system: A tubes, the best.
- Aesthetic finish: High quality.
Takamine is an icon of quality and tradition. This time he offers us an incredible guitar. We tell you all about it below
Wood:
- The top of this guitar is solid spruce. The wood has been carefully selected to be free of imperfections. In fact, because of its natural color, you can look at all the wood and see that it's free of grommets (small circles in the wood) and knots (knot-like lines), which are common imperfections in the middle and lower ranges.
- Solid rosewood rim and rosewood hoops: this is something that has never been common to use for the sides and back, but only on the fretboard, but Takamine has decided to go all out and put the best of its woods in this part of the guitar to make a unique soundboard.
- The neck is made of mahogany, which is almost the only wood that can guarantee eternal durability.
- The fingerboard is something totally atypical (ebony) and this configuration is one of the most exotic we've seen, but great.
Design:
Grand Auditorium type, the Takomine TSF48C is a large (110x53x11.cm) and heavy (4.1kg) guitar, but very worthwhile. It has a cutaway that allows you to reach the 21st fret with ease, as well as nice eagle-shaped mother-of-pearl inlays in various positions on the fingerboard. It has the rosette in the shape of a black raven illustrated according to Native American culture.
The hardware is chrome-plated, with high-precision Takamine Premium tuning keys and Extra Jumbo frets for durability. In addition to the professional glossy polyurethane finish, which highlights all the virtues of its design.
Ergonomics:
It's a comfortable guitar, with a scale of 647mm and 4mm of height in the highest part of the strings. Therefore, the chords do not require much strength and the phrases are extremely easy to play on the different parts of the fretboard. The neck is slim and the hand travel is comfortable in any of its parts. Despite its size and weight, it's a guitar that you can enjoy both standing and sitting and that you will surely feel quite comfortable.
Sound:
It's wonderful all the way through: the bass is prominent and perfectly balanced with mids and brights that are strident, with great presence. The volume is incredible, so much so, that you can play it in a medium sized auditorium and everyone will be able to hear you perfectly without plugging it in.
The arpeggios are very clearly distinguishable and the strummed chords let us perceive the harmonics we expect to hear. When the phrasing is performed, the quality of the notes is impressive, and some really beautiful harmonics come out.
Both air and forced harmonics are perfectly in tune and the same is true for the tapping notes: there is no need to mute the strings at the bridge because the sound is superb.
It uses a cooltube preamplifier (CTP-3) which, as its name suggests, is a tube amplifier, which is the most advanced technology for processing sounds and purifying them so that it's clean throughout. It offers three sliders for bass, mid and brightness equalization, one slider for volume and one for auxiliary volume (if something fails).
It also has three knob potentiometers where one is for regulating the incidence and working force of the 12AU7 tube for low voltages. Another knob is for midrange frequency control, while the third knob (Notch) is for regulating the main gain. In addition, it has an activation button and one to activate signal cuts at -6Db and -12Db that serves to capture other sound thresholds and improve according to your taste.
Conclusion:
The tube preamp is impressive and together with its construction, it captivates us in every way. We recommend it for any advanced guitarist who wishes to enter the world of Fingerstyle. If you want to see the best Thomann prices, follow the link.
Taylor 214ce-K DLX


Very attractive aesthetics, quality construction, materials and sound.

Heads.
Technical Characteristics:
- Weight: 4.2 kg.
- Touch: Excellent.
- Woods: Solid .
- Electronic system: Excellent brightness, midrange, bass, versatile.
- Aesthetic finish: High quality.
Taylor has a huge range of guitars and they are all excellent, but we have our eye on the Taylor 214ce-K DLX which is simply spectacular value for money.
Wood:
Taylor has been experimenting with wood for some time. The Taylor 214ce-K DLX guitar is the result of some daring testing:
- The top is made of solid Hawaiian Koa, as are the sides and back. This is unusual and unique to Taylor, but results in warm, enveloping colors and sonic nuances. There is a very characteristic feel to this guitar and of course, a nice volume and projection.
- The neck is made of sapele wood, another Taylor oddity that has proven to work especially in ergonomics.
- Finally, the fingerboard is made of ebony, which is the most commonly used wood in high-end electroacoustic guitars, for its sound quality, durability and softness to the touch.
Design:
The Taylor 214ce-K DLX is a Grand Auditorium guitar. It's large (114x50x14) and heavy (4.2kg), but it's justified by the high quality of its woods, resistance and sound. In addition, the hardware is chrome-plated with special Taylor tuning keys and extra jumbo frets.
Its fingerboard has pearl inlays that add to the aesthetics and the color of the instrument is the natural color of the African Koa wood, making it beautiful in every sense of the expression. It has a Venetian style cutaway and a tortoiseshell pickguard to prevent scratches in the paint.
Ergonomics:
This is a guitar in the purest Taylor style, comfortable throughout. Chords, arpeggios, everything is easy to press and there are few guitar brands that have reached this level of ergonomics. Its scale is 648×3.7mm, which makes it the guitar with the lowest profile among electroacoustic guitars.
Sound:
It's the Taylor quality but with the nuances of the African Koa. It offers a warm, full-bodied sound with balanced volume. The vibrations of the wood are a delight. The strummed chords sound great and the phrasing sparkles harmonically in every way.
Both forced and air harmonics are perfect, and the tapping is fully in tune. With the addition of a Nubone neck capo and Tusk bridge capo, this guitar takes on an impressive sound.
As far as the electronics are concerned, its preamp is an original Taylor Expression System 2, which is characterized by being divided into three internal microphones that are located under the bridge and each one has a personal configuration that comes from the factory. In addition, the central knob is composed of three knobs, one for volume, one for brightness and one for bass. It offers great sound quality and is undoubtedly one of the best guitars on the market.
Conclusion:
This Taylor guitar is one of the most used by concert guitarists, for the soft quality of its touch. If you are a concert guitarist, it's a great choice. Check out the best prices at Thomann.
Our Recommendation:
The best guitar for advanced levels
We chose the Takamine TSF48C. It has everything you need for your recording sessions and live concerts.. The best part? The best tube preamp on the market for electro-acoustic guitars.
We recommend you to check our website. There you will find reviews of the best instruments on the market and guides on how to recognize an original Gibson, accessories such as capos, guitar straps and many others. For example, you can see our reviews of Alhambra guitars, Fender Jazz Bass and Fender Precision Bass electric basses. Also articles on all kinds of accessories, such as a guitar string or pick.
Acoustic and Electroacoustic Guitar Technical Characteristics
MODELS | Weight | Woods | Sound | Touch |
---|---|---|---|---|
Ibanez V50NJP-NT | 3.7 kg | Laminated | Good sound quality | Normal |
Yamaha F310 | 3.5 kg | Solid | Clear, full-bodied | Pleasant |
Epiphone DR-100 | 2.86 kg | Solid | Clear, good brightness | Pleasant |
Takamine GD11MCENS-2 | 3.1 kg | Solid | Clear, full-bodied, excellent brightness and bass | Excellent |
Takamine GF30CE-B-2 | 3.3 kg | Solid | Good, but the natural sound is wonderful | Excellent |
Yamaha apx1000 | 3.2 kg | Solid | Lacking | A little hard |
Epiphone EJ-200SCE | 4.3 kg | High quality solid | Excellent brightness, midrange, bass, versatile | Excellent |
Takamine TSF48C | 4.1 kg | High quality solid | Tubed, it's the best | Excellent |
Taylor 214ce-K DLX | 4.2 kg | High quality solid | Excellent brightness, mids, lows, versatile | Excellent |