Had a $3000 Taylor. Sold it and bought a used AC5R at Guitar Center for $900. Sounds and plays just as nice as the Taylor any day of the week. So rich and deep. 5 stars hands down.
Thanks for the great demo Scott! I tried a few Taylors yesterday at Guitar Center and was not blown away. I'm leaning heavily towards the AC5 series because of Yamaha's commitment to quality and their workmanship blows the competition away. Even their $200-$300 acoustics beat everything in that price range! Thanks for helping me make the decision to buy one!
I recently sent mine back to Sweetwater. Generally nice tones, however the nut was too narrow for my liking. I can totally see this working for some players, but it was just too narrow for my tastes.
@@ScottManning7 I’m waiting for them to come out with a deluxe model (LS-TA) with a cutaway , a hard shell case and bone nut/ saddle, I would definitely pay the extra for that
Thanks for doing your review of this guitar Scott. I bought a AC5M for my son for Christmas and can’t wait to see his reaction and hear him play it. Hearing your positive thoughts about the guitar were right inline with pretty much all the other reviews I’ve seen on this series of guitars. I’m a mahogany fan so so got him the M. Hope it sounds just as good. I have an FG820 and FG850 and love the sound of both. Yamaha certainly does have some serious bang for the buck. When I saw this all solid wood guitar made in Japan with a hard case for around $1400 it really caught my eye. I might have to save up and get one for myself too :-)
Great demo, Scott! This guitar has some very good tones and it helped a lot to hear the different variations. I'm still on the verge of going with Yamaha, Gibson or Taylor lol. Cheers!
Thanks for the demo, man! I recently returned a 414CE because I thought it lacked bottom-end when capo’d at the 7th fret. I have the AC5R on order. I hope my copy will be as nice as yours. If mine ends up being as good as my upgraded FG830, I would be thrilled.
"There is a terrible curse that plagues guitar players ...." Yea, a quote from that annoying commercial before seeing your video. Nice sounding guitar despite the annoying commercial.
When you were trying this one out, did you happen to try the A5R as well? I am trying to decide between a dreadnought or a concert. I wish Yamaha (and most builders) would offer more guitars without the electronics. They always sound like yesterday, technology wise. I'd rather get the guitar with no pickup and install something I like or just use a mic. Awesome playing and thanks for the demo.
David, thanks for the kind words. Unfortunately I didn't try the dreadnought. However, I will say that I've spent several years playing in cover duos playing other dreadnoughts. Although the concert may be designed more for solo guitar stuff I would definitely be confident in using it to play simple covers where I'm just strumming open chords. Also, I hear what you're saying about the electronics and I'm pretty sure that Yamaha offers a couple that don't have any, i.e. the LL6M ARE or the FG5 and others. Best of luck!
@@davidlynch4338 Yeah, I sold a Kazuo Yairi and my Gibson J45 is on standby at the moment due to this guitar. It's become my main instrument. I added the Tonewood amp to it and man do the SRT pickup really shine.
the srt is amazing. when i eq it right in my recording daw most people think i recorded with a mic. i cant say that about the picup in any of my other 30 plus guitars. the dred will absolutely have more bass but its a matter of personal tast.
I assume you are asking about the hybrid finger picking stuff? Honestly, it's something I'm still working on. I've never given it the attention that one might if trying to develop a technique. It's just evolved over the years as means to an end and also because I never found a thumbpick comfortable.
I would like to know if the action of the strings is low and comfortable for playing fingerstyle and tapping or if the guitar should be set up by a luthier. Thank you🙏🏻
Hi Matteo. I'm not the type of player that does complex tapping ala Mike Dawes or Andy McKee. However, I do find the action to be comfortable and low. I will say that the frets are medium size which means bending is a bit more difficult. Hope this helps! Good luck.
I would definitely not characterize the neck as "fat". AND I need to correct myself on the profile and say the neck is more of "V" shape. Hope that helps.
Hey Scott I really need your opinion on this . I bought the Yamaha ACR5 but it keeps going out of tune, the intonation seems fine , but it seems high at the bridge and lower at the nut.. I don’t know if that’s normal? Did you have to get any work done on yours? I m thinking about sanding the bridge to see regulate it and hopefully stop tuning problems What would you say about this ? Thank you !
I got the sunburst one , and it’s the second one already , I have insurance with guitar center so I was able to send it back and get a different one , but the same problem happened
@@E-man100 I didn't have to get any work done on mine. I got mine from Sweetwater. My advice would be to have a local luthier look at it unless you're really comfortable making any necessary adjustments. I asked a local luthier here and his response is below. Good luck! The truss rod is NOT for adjusting the action. The truss rod is to counter the 160 or so pounds of tension from the strings to keep the correct amount of relief in the neck when tuned to the desired pitch The nut slots should then be checked to ensure the are deep enough to have easy action over the first 5-6 frets but not so low that the strings produce fret buzz on the 1st fret when played open. This is checked by fretting each string at the 3rd fret and while holding that you check the clearance between the string and the 1st fret. So yes, the strings are always closer to the frets at the nut than at the last fret by the sound hole. When the truss rod is set correctly and the nut is checked, the action is then lowered by shaving some material off of the bottom of the bridge saddle, taking care to keep the bottom of the saddle flat and level.
Seems that if you don’t own this acoustic guitar your out of touch with what’s happening. I’ve had some nice guitars that include Martin and Taylor. Now I have my Yamaha AC5R. For at least 1k less than the rest. Spend your $$ wisely.
Had a $3000 Taylor. Sold it and bought a used AC5R at Guitar Center for $900. Sounds and plays just as nice as the Taylor any day of the week. So rich and deep. 5 stars hands down.
Nice! Congrats Mike! They really are great guitars for the money.
I just ordered one. Can't wait to play it.
Congrats!
Thanks for the great demo Scott! I tried a few Taylors yesterday at Guitar Center and was not blown away. I'm leaning heavily towards the AC5 series because of Yamaha's commitment to quality and their workmanship blows the competition away. Even their $200-$300 acoustics beat everything in that price range! Thanks for helping me make the decision to buy one!
Dave, I'm glad the video helped! Good luck with your new guitar!
They have some $300 guitars that destroy $1100 Mexican Martins
@@ScottManning7hola amigo me podrías ayudar con valor de esta guitarra en dolares estoy pensando adquirir una y no se en cuanto esta su precio
@@ricardoorobio7323 espero que esto ayude
www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/AC5RVN--yamaha-ac5r-are-concert-cutaway-vintage-natural
Well done, definitely the best rundown I’ve seen of this guitar
Thanks Dave!
Sounds beautiful! Thank you for a wonderful review. Looks like I'll be adding another guitar to the family. 😁
Thank you for the kind words Annie and good luck with your new guitar!
I recently sent mine back to Sweetwater. Generally nice tones, however the nut was too narrow for my liking. I can totally see this working for some players, but it was just too narrow for my tastes.
Wow this model in their TA line would check all the boxes for me, great playing👍
Thanks Tony! I would also like to check out some of their TransAcoustic Guitars.
@@ScottManning7 I’m waiting for them to come out with a deluxe model (LS-TA) with a cutaway , a hard shell case and bone nut/ saddle, I would definitely pay the extra for that
Thanks for doing your review of this guitar Scott. I bought a AC5M for my son for Christmas and can’t wait to see his reaction and hear him play it. Hearing your positive thoughts about the guitar were right inline with pretty much all the other reviews I’ve seen on this series of guitars. I’m a mahogany fan so so got him the M. Hope it sounds just as good. I have an FG820 and FG850 and love the sound of both. Yamaha certainly does have some serious bang for the buck. When I saw this all solid wood guitar made in Japan with a hard case for around $1400 it really caught my eye. I might have to save up and get one for myself too :-)
Great! I'm glad the review was helpful. I hope your song enjoys his new guitar! I'm sure he will, it's a good one.
Very nice tone through the head ear hearing thingees!
Love the ribbon and the condenser ribbon blend. Got my AC5R this January 2021.
Congrats! It's a great sounding instrument with a lot of tonal options.
Great demo, Scott! This guitar has some very good tones and it helped a lot to hear the different variations. I'm still on the verge of going with Yamaha, Gibson or Taylor lol. Cheers!
Thanks very much and best of luck!
Thanks for the demo, man! I recently returned a 414CE because I thought it lacked bottom-end when capo’d at the 7th fret. I have the AC5R on order. I hope my copy will be as nice as yours. If mine ends up being as good as my upgraded FG830, I would be thrilled.
Good luck Chris! Yamaha definitely makes some great guitars for the money.
I most likely will be. Mine sounds like a dream.
So how do you like your AC5R vs the 414ce?
"There is a terrible curse that plagues guitar players ...." Yea, a quote from that annoying commercial before seeing your video. Nice sounding guitar despite the annoying commercial.
Schon gespielt.Danke.
great demo. Thanks
Thanks!
dude those lead riffs at 16:33 are sweet! nice playing!
Thanks John! I appreciate that!
Nice review. I'm considering this guitar. I play electric and nylon string. Really nice tune in the intro.
Thanks! It's a really well made instrument.
Great job on your 1st review Scott.
Thank you!
Great picking soulful playing Sir.
Thanks very much. I appreciate the kind words!
Love the playing!
Thank you!
The FGX5 Red Label released one year after this kind of over shadowed the brilliance of this guitar. I love mine way more than I do my Martin
Returning my FGX5 to get this guitar. I hated the Atmosfeel system
Thanks
Nice playing...
Thanks Phillip!
Beautiful song and don't think I didn't catch some of those tasty licks
Thanks David!
great video :)
Thank you!
When you were trying this one out, did you happen to try the A5R as well? I am trying to decide between a dreadnought or a concert.
I wish Yamaha (and most builders) would offer more guitars without the electronics. They always sound like yesterday, technology wise. I'd rather get the guitar with no pickup and install something I like or just use a mic.
Awesome playing and thanks for the demo.
David, thanks for the kind words. Unfortunately I didn't try the dreadnought. However, I will say that I've spent several years playing in cover duos playing other dreadnoughts. Although the concert may be designed more for solo guitar stuff I would definitely be confident in using it to play simple covers where I'm just strumming open chords. Also, I hear what you're saying about the electronics and I'm pretty sure that Yamaha offers a couple that don't have any, i.e. the LL6M ARE or the FG5 and others. Best of luck!
This SRT pickup is it man. It'll age well.
Thanks@@maykolllopez1585. Nice to hear some good feedback about it. I am pretty sold on the guitar either way.
@@davidlynch4338 Yeah, I sold a Kazuo Yairi and my Gibson J45 is on standby at the moment due to this guitar. It's become my main instrument. I added the Tonewood amp to it and man do the SRT pickup really shine.
the srt is amazing. when i eq it right in my recording daw most people think i recorded with a mic. i cant say that about the picup in any of my other 30 plus guitars. the dred will absolutely have more bass but its a matter of personal tast.
Serious question.. how long did it take you to feel comfortable picking that way in the beginning of the video?
I assume you are asking about the hybrid finger picking stuff? Honestly, it's something I'm still working on. I've never given it the attention that one might if trying to develop a technique. It's just evolved over the years as means to an end and also because I never found a thumbpick comfortable.
I would like to know if the action of the strings is low and comfortable for playing fingerstyle and tapping or if the guitar should be set up by a luthier.
Thank you🙏🏻
Hi Matteo. I'm not the type of player that does complex tapping ala Mike Dawes or Andy McKee. However, I do find the action to be comfortable and low. I will say that the frets are medium size which means bending is a bit more difficult. Hope this helps! Good luck.
@@ScottManning7 thank you
So when you say the neck is a D profile, do you think it’s a fatter neck or a slimmer neck?
I would definitely not characterize the neck as "fat". AND I need to correct myself on the profile and say the neck is more of "V" shape. Hope that helps.
What strings do you use on this guitar sir?
I have D'Addario Phosphor Bronze EJ16 .012-.053 on the guitar. Those are my favorite acoustic strings.
Tkss 👍🏼
Hey Scott
I really need your opinion on this .
I bought the Yamaha ACR5 but it keeps going out of tune, the intonation seems fine , but it seems high at the bridge and lower at the nut..
I don’t know if that’s normal?
Did you have to get any work done on yours?
I m thinking about sanding the bridge to see regulate it and hopefully stop tuning problems
What would you say about this ?
Thank you !
I got the sunburst one , and it’s the second one already ,
I have insurance with guitar center so I was able to send it back and get a different one , but the same problem happened
@@E-man100 I didn't have to get any work done on mine. I got mine from Sweetwater. My advice would be to have a local luthier look at it unless you're really comfortable making any necessary adjustments. I asked a local luthier here and his response is below. Good luck!
The truss rod is NOT for adjusting the action.
The truss rod is to counter the 160 or so pounds of tension from the strings to keep the correct amount of relief in the neck when tuned to the desired pitch
The nut slots should then be checked to ensure the are deep enough to have easy action over the first 5-6 frets but not so low that the strings produce fret buzz on the 1st fret when played open. This is checked by fretting each string at the 3rd fret and while holding that you check the clearance between the string and the 1st fret. So yes, the strings are always closer to the frets at the nut than at the last fret by the sound hole.
When the truss rod is set correctly and the nut is checked, the action is then lowered by shaving some material off of the bottom of the bridge saddle, taking care to keep the bottom of the saddle flat and level.
Great Scott , thank you so much for that 🤟🏼🤟🏼
Seems that if you don’t own this acoustic guitar your out of touch with what’s happening.
I’ve had some nice guitars that include Martin and Taylor. Now I have my Yamaha AC5R.
For at least 1k less than the rest. Spend your $$ wisely.
How does this compare against Yamaha FSX5
I haven't played an FSX5. Unfortunately, I can't help you. Good luck.
@@ScottManning7 thank you