I played one today at my favourite guitar shop. It impressed me a lot! Such a big sound from such a little guitar. And good price too.thinking of selling my Sigma parlour and adding this beauty to the stable.
Sound and feel is subjective, for me the Yamaha is such good value for money, solid wood, well built and sounds wonderful. I ordered a GS Mini and sent it back, it just didn't look, feel or sound near to the new selling price, nice guitar and all that, and of course the brand is renowned for quality. For me the Yamaha CSF3M oozes all you want and need in a small guitar at this price level. If you want a Taylor mini (like I did) then fine, but go and play and compare both and I'd put money on it which you will choose. Both great guitars though, comes down to your wants & needs...and of course your wallet 🙂
I just got this and somehow the video got recommended to me, from Yamaha's site description the stock strings are elixir. Just a day in playing it feeling like it's kinda a bit more bright than I'm used to. I know elixir strings last an extrodinary amount of time but I'm gonna try and go through this one and see whether my old faithful diddario phospher bronze work better with this. I have the classic colorway and I have to say the build quality especially that beautiful paint and the wood grain below all screams higher quality compared to it's competitors. Also a all solid which is a huge pro too. The guitar is so resonant it vibrates so much compared to my old faithful cutaway OM that's got a bit of fret buzz from wear and this is a much smaller guitar I'm truly impressed. One thing for whoever on the fence is the scale length and width all felt much more compact than a regular sized guitar, the width to me is almost like an electric or even a bit less than some of the well known electric models from various brands.
Don’t do it , it’s gonna replace your full size , talking from experience :) Short story I have a Martin 0015 with lr baggs anthem pick up It sounds great but, I find myself using this Yamaha more for gigs . I’ve changed the tuners with Grover’s throw a Seymour Duncan pick up in the sound hole , and now I have a guitar that I can play with and not be worried about.
Agree that Yamaha offers some outstanding, consistent acoustic guitars. The only drawback for me on this one is the narrow nut width. I come from a classical guitar background and I'm used to much wider string spacing.
For traveling electric guitars: Have you tried the brand "Traveler guitars"?, I used to have their Speedster model and was really light and compact and still was a full scale neck, their only drawback was it only has 1 humbucker pickup, I also tried the Steinberger Spirit GT Pro and in my experience was horrible, too heavy, bad neck and weak sound, the tremolo was useless too as it goes out of tune quick, now my travel electric guitar is a Chinese copy of a Strandberg (NK guitars), same body and neck shape for less than 500 dollars and I just upgraded it with Seymour Duncan pickups, it sounds and plays amazing and I'm not worried about traveling with an expensive guitar
I own two traveller guitars and while the neck is good, pain to keep them in tune no matter how good the nut slots and lube is…. Bad tuning system design.
@@carpediem4413 True!, the Traveller speedster I had had horrible tuning problems despite changing tuners and lubing the roller bridge, etc. They have bad design for sure, As for electric travel guitar I still have the NK Strandberg copy and it's great but I recently got an acoustic traveler, the Harley Benton GS-Travel Mahogany, it's awesome and retail price in Europe is 100 euros, check it out!
Yamahas all have a specific 'yamaha' tone, nicely balanced but since I had one for many years I found myself looking for something different. When I was looking for smaller guitar I decided to give Alvarez AP66SHB a try and both me and my guitar tutor are pleasantly surprised. Solid mahogany top, 12th fret and smaller (wouldn't call it a parlor but this yamaha doesn't qualify as one either in my book), very playable and nice change from a dreadnought
I actually recently sold it and bought an Eastman E1-00ss and like it better... But it's an all solid wood so probably wouldn't hold up to the road as well as the Yamaha
I have a small burswood kids electric guitar with an inbuilt amp and jack and headphone jack even. Sometimes use that when traveling because it is REALLY small and my hands are big. But I work around it. I don’t use it for technique practice but more for other trainings.
It’s a really beautiful guitar! Sounds sweet too. Your playing may be selling quite a few of those. I had one of the nylon Silent guitars and really enjoyed it. I sold it after a couple years and moved on to another guitar.
Je possède cette petite yamaha que j'adore. 😍 J'ai une question sur le son de la ?Fender ? Quelle configuration avez-vous pour obtenir ce son qui est exactement ce que je recherche. Merci par avance si vous prenez le temps de me répondre. 🙏🙏🎸🎸
This is probably the best review I've seen of this guitar. I have one too and love it. Out of curiosity, it looks like you have 80/20s on the low E, A, and D strings, and phosphor bronze on the G. Is there a tonal reason for that (or just what you had on hand)? So far I've enjoyed phosphor bronze the most on mine, but always interested in the effect of string choices.
Are Faith Mercurys any good? I've got one without a piezzo which I think is very nice, very basic, but well made and uses solid woods and decent hardware.
I just bought a GS Mini Koa Ltd, I was leaning towards the CSF3, but I already have a LL16 which I love. Just looking for a smaller guitar I can deal with everywhere. I dont' know if I made the right choice, but it's a different tone from Yamaha's one, which seems to be family like between LL16 and CSF. Martin has got some interesting guitars in this category, but I can't handle the pickups.
The moment you know it’s definitely not a ‘travel guitar’ is when you try to take it on a plane. I’ve travelled for over a decade with the Yam SLG110s. I’ve been able to put it in overhead lockers with ease, and had no issues with security. Unless it can fold/come apart or is so slim/short it’s not full size, it’s not a travel guitar.
The Taylor GS Mini"s are a remarkably good sounding little guitar ,but they're overpriced.If its truly a travel functioning intent the "carbon fiber"products make a lot of sense.Yep,its not wood😌
I forgot my guitar on a 2 week camping trip so I stopped at a guitar store to get something I could sell later. (2 weeks of campfires without guitar was too much). I ended up with a used LAVA Me. I was going to get a baby taylor but honestly the LAVA sounded better to me. I was surprised. It's carbon fiber there's no worries about temperature or humidity. I'm not selling it. Perfect travel guitar.
Several years back I was browsing around a Guitar Center and picked up a GS Mini. Immediately bonded with it and have been toying with the idea of buying one since.
The moment you know it’s definitely not a ‘travel guitar’ is when you try to take it on a plane. I’ve travelled for over a decade with the Yam SLG110s. I’ve been able to put it in overhead lockers with ease, and had no issues with security. Unless it can fold/come apart or is so slim/short it’s not full size, it’s not a travel guitar.
@@tz7813 travel guitar means “more portable than a full size “ not necessarily “ take it on a plane”if you need something that you can use as a carry on bag probably the only few choices are ,something foldable or a guitalele. The slg is not an “acoustic” you don’t have the body and is silent unless it’s plugged on a p.a. You can’t bring at a camp fire 🔥
I’ve owned this and a GS Mini Koa Plus. This is hundreds less AND all solid. Sounds so much better to my ears.
Gorgeous guitar that has a sweet, crisp sound that I love. Thanks for the great review and for playing it so beautifully.
I played one today at my favourite guitar shop. It impressed me a lot! Such a big sound from such a little guitar. And good price too.thinking of selling my Sigma parlour and adding this beauty to the stable.
I have one of these CSF3M's in this colour also. It's a fantastic 4/5th size acoustic. Yamaha make great product.
I have this very model. Every time I consider selling, I realize how much I like it.
Sound and feel is subjective, for me the Yamaha is such good value for money, solid wood, well built and sounds wonderful. I ordered a GS Mini and sent it back, it just didn't look, feel or sound near to the new selling price, nice guitar and all that, and of course the brand is renowned for quality. For me the Yamaha CSF3M oozes all you want and need in a small guitar at this price level. If you want a Taylor mini (like I did) then fine, but go and play and compare both and I'd put money on it which you will choose. Both great guitars though, comes down to your wants & needs...and of course your wallet 🙂
I just got this and somehow the video got recommended to me, from Yamaha's site description the stock strings are elixir. Just a day in playing it feeling like it's kinda a bit more bright than I'm used to. I know elixir strings last an extrodinary amount of time but I'm gonna try and go through this one and see whether my old faithful diddario phospher bronze work better with this. I have the classic colorway and I have to say the build quality especially that beautiful paint and the wood grain below all screams higher quality compared to it's competitors. Also a all solid which is a huge pro too. The guitar is so resonant it vibrates so much compared to my old faithful cutaway OM that's got a bit of fret buzz from wear and this is a much smaller guitar I'm truly impressed. One thing for whoever on the fence is the scale length and width all felt much more compact than a regular sized guitar, the width to me is almost like an electric or even a bit less than some of the well known electric models from various brands.
Im looking forward to buy this as my backup guitar...nice review Sir
Don’t do it , it’s gonna replace your full size , talking from experience :)
Short story
I have a Martin 0015 with lr baggs anthem pick up It sounds great but, I find myself using this Yamaha more for gigs .
I’ve changed the tuners with Grover’s throw a Seymour Duncan pick up in the sound hole , and now I have a guitar that I can play with and not be worried about.
Agree that Yamaha offers some outstanding, consistent acoustic guitars. The only drawback for me on this one is the narrow nut width. I come from a classical guitar background and I'm used to much wider string spacing.
Look at the Richwood P50.
Will dry out over time (20 years) and then the top will 'open up' as they say and you will get alot more warmth. Will be classed as vintage lol!
Great playing my man...
Sounds beautiful 😊
For traveling electric guitars: Have you tried the brand "Traveler guitars"?, I used to have their Speedster model and was really light and compact and still was a full scale neck, their only drawback was it only has 1 humbucker pickup, I also tried the Steinberger Spirit GT Pro and in my experience was horrible, too heavy, bad neck and weak sound, the tremolo was useless too as it goes out of tune quick, now my travel electric guitar is a Chinese copy of a Strandberg (NK guitars), same body and neck shape for less than 500 dollars and I just upgraded it with Seymour Duncan pickups, it sounds and plays amazing and I'm not worried about traveling with an expensive guitar
I own two traveller guitars and while the neck is good, pain to keep them in tune no matter how good the nut slots and lube is…. Bad tuning system design.
@@carpediem4413 True!, the Traveller speedster I had had horrible tuning problems despite changing tuners and lubing the roller bridge, etc. They have bad design for sure, As for electric travel guitar I still have the NK Strandberg copy and it's great but I recently got an acoustic traveler, the Harley Benton GS-Travel Mahogany, it's awesome and retail price in Europe is 100 euros, check it out!
Yamahas all have a specific 'yamaha' tone, nicely balanced but since I had one for many years I found myself looking for something different. When I was looking for smaller guitar I decided to give Alvarez AP66SHB a try and both me and my guitar tutor are pleasantly surprised. Solid mahogany top, 12th fret and smaller (wouldn't call it a parlor but this yamaha doesn't qualify as one either in my book), very playable and nice change from a dreadnought
The Kala parlor guitar is surprisingly nice
Love that you're playing such a small acoustic yet using such a large knife to open the box. Also i just bought one of these after watching this
Still have it? If so your honest opinion would be appreciated.
I actually recently sold it and bought an Eastman E1-00ss and like it better... But it's an all solid wood so probably wouldn't hold up to the road as well as the Yamaha
@@jeffreyparker4353 I have tried a couple Eastman guitars and they are pretty nice!
I have a small burswood kids electric guitar with an inbuilt amp and jack and headphone jack even. Sometimes use that when traveling because it is REALLY small and my hands are big. But I work around it. I don’t use it for technique practice but more for other trainings.
It’s a really beautiful guitar! Sounds sweet too. Your playing may be selling quite a few of those. I had one of the nylon Silent guitars and really enjoyed it. I sold it after a couple years and moved on to another guitar.
Je possède cette petite yamaha que j'adore. 😍 J'ai une question sur le son de la ?Fender ? Quelle configuration avez-vous pour obtenir ce son qui est exactement ce que je recherche. Merci par avance si vous prenez le temps de me répondre. 🙏🙏🎸🎸
Thanks for helping me decide! This is exactly what I’m looking for thanks! Also what was the effect you were using during the beginning track?
Now that's a knife! Dang Conan
This is probably the best review I've seen of this guitar. I have one too and love it. Out of curiosity, it looks like you have 80/20s on the low E, A, and D strings, and phosphor bronze on the G. Is there a tonal reason for that (or just what you had on hand)? So far I've enjoyed phosphor bronze the most on mine, but always interested in the effect of string choices.
I sell these and Gs minis. Like both but I prefer the Yamaha
can you make a video on how you record these guitars ?
i'd love to know how you manage to sound so clean and crisp.
I have the csf tr ans acoustic best gigging guitar
Are Faith Mercurys any good? I've got one without a piezzo which I think is very nice, very basic, but well made and uses solid woods and decent hardware.
Just had a look myself, and they're pretty expensive... Not many available either! (edit: I mean the electro acoustics not the nkd version)
Great intro song. Great way to start a day.
What effects and instruments were using on the backing track of the intro, thanks.
If the electric acoustic version then it has some built in chorus and i believe reverb in the guitar itself.
Is the acoustic in a non-standard tuning in the intro?
How and where did you get this for £220?
If you wanna sell it on if you still have it. Let me know please?
8:19 It sounded like you almost played "All I Want for Christmas is You" then ended it in a killer run to save face lmao
Hello where can i buy this guitar ….
What pickups do you have in that strat?
I've got 3 travel guitars and the only one I would like to sell is the not foldable one
You turned the GAS on again then?
Hi thank you for beautiful review. Can you please advise nut width as I mainly play finger picking and string tension...
Thank you Kerol
I just bought a GS Mini Koa Ltd, I was leaning towards the CSF3, but I already have a LL16 which I love. Just looking for a smaller guitar I can deal with everywhere. I dont' know if I made the right choice, but it's a different tone from Yamaha's one, which seems to be family like between LL16 and CSF. Martin has got some interesting guitars in this category, but I can't handle the pickups.
The 1f is also lovely and a bit cheaper
The moment you know it’s definitely not a ‘travel guitar’ is when you try to take it on a plane. I’ve travelled for over a decade with the Yam SLG110s. I’ve been able to put it in overhead lockers with ease, and had no issues with security. Unless it can fold/come apart or is so slim/short it’s not full size, it’s not a travel guitar.
More videos on acoustic...cheers
That knife is way too small
The Taylor GS Mini"s are a remarkably good sounding little guitar ,but they're overpriced.If its truly a travel functioning intent the "carbon fiber"products make a lot of sense.Yep,its not wood😌
I forgot my guitar on a 2 week camping trip so I stopped at a guitar store to get something I could sell later. (2 weeks of campfires without guitar was too much). I ended up with a used LAVA Me. I was going to get a baby taylor but honestly the LAVA sounded better to me. I was surprised. It's carbon fiber there's no worries about temperature or humidity. I'm not selling it. Perfect travel guitar.
Several years back I was browsing around a Guitar Center and picked up a GS Mini. Immediately bonded with it and have been toying with the idea of buying one since.
Taylor gs mini is so much better than this Yamaha, I tried both and no comparison in sound I actually think that Gs mini mahogany is a good deal
subscribe well deserve ✌🏻
This isn’t a “travel guitar.”
Why not?
It is , same size of Taylor gs minu
The moment you know it’s definitely not a ‘travel guitar’ is when you try to take it on a plane. I’ve travelled for over a decade with the Yam SLG110s. I’ve been able to put it in overhead lockers with ease, and had no issues with security. Unless it can fold/come apart or is so slim/short it’s not full size, it’s not a travel guitar.
@@tz7813 travel guitar means “more portable than a full size “ not necessarily “ take it on a plane”if you need something that you can use as a carry on bag probably the only few choices are ,something foldable or a guitalele.
The slg is not an “acoustic” you don’t have the body and is silent unless it’s plugged on a p.a.
You can’t bring at a camp fire 🔥
@@leodileodileo in 2024 flying is an almost inevitable part of ‘travel’. If you think otherwise, good luck with your purchase!😂