Though some might not immediately
think of Yamaha when asked to list the
biggest and most enduring acoustic guitar
brands of all time, the fact is that Yamaha
has built acoustic guitars for more than a
half century. And in that time, the company
has thrived by maintaining a line of guitars
for everyone from beginners to professionals.
Countless guitarists cut their teeth on the
beautifully built and affordable FG series in
the ’70s and ’80s, and some of the world’s
best players—including folk fingerstyle veteran
Bert Jansch—have used Yamaha’s high-end
L-series guitars to craft masterpieces.
This well-established commitment to serving
players of every stripe continues to fuel
Yamaha’s success, as evidenced by the new
A-series guitars, which are a worthy inheritor
to the company’s reputation for affordable
performance. The A3M cutaway dreadnought
reviewed here features solid tonewoods and
an S.R.T (Studio Response Technology)
microphone-modeling preamp, making this
a guitar for serious gigging players, but at a
price that won’t leave you destitute.
Pretty and Smart
The A3M is a subtle and simple design—very
tasteful and organic looking. I am a sucker for
wood bindings and wood inlays, so I immediately
liked the look. The small fret-marker
dots and die-cast chrome hardware are equally
functional, attractive, and subdued. The
pickguard, which looks inspired by Gibson’s
flashier acoustics, seems like a less natural
fit, given the understated nature of the rest
of the design. The solid mahogany back and
sides and solid Sitka spruce top all have the
look of well-selected timber. The mahogany
is rich and dark, while the ebony fretboard
and bridge and the lighter wood binding all
complement each other wonderfully—and
the wood-inlay rosette is charming, too.
My first impression after picking up the
guitar was that it’s built extremely solid—it
feels like a little tank. The guitar isn’t heavy,
though the pickup system does add some
heft, but it feels of a piece and is exceptionally
well balanced. While slightly chunky, the
mahogany neck is super comfortable. While
string spacing at the saddle is slightly wider
than usual, the 1 11/16" nut is a little narrow
for my taste, and narrower than most
fingerstylists prefer, which suggests the A3M
is aimed more at strummers. Nevertheless, the
guitar plays very nicely and easily, and flatpickers
will love the narrower neck.
Beautiful Plugged in and
Unplugged
The A3M has a great acoustic tone that’s
clear and complex. Bass tones are not woofy,
but well defined. Trebles are both brilliant
and detailed. In standard tuning, the A3M
sounds tight and focused and capable of great
range—sweet when played fingerstyle, and
punchy with a flatpick. And in DADGAD,
the guitar takes on a lovely, almost growling
resonance that can be delightfully dark. With
a capo, the A3M keeps its mojo intact and
stays resonant and rich.
The S.R.T System 63 Modeling Pickup
System is impressive, too. It features
models of three killer microphones—a
Neumann U67, a Neumann KM56, and
a Royer R-122—with two mic-placement
options for each (selected with the Focus/
Wide button), a 3-band EQ, a Blend
knob, a Resonance knob, a built-in tuner,
and a feedback-control system. Easy to
use and navigate, it offers rich, deep,
natural tone, offers a really cool way to
mix up your amplified tones. The Focus
(close-mic) option models the sound of
a microphone situated a few inches from
the guitar. The Wide option emulates
the sound of two mics—one close and
another a few feet away. The models are
accessed via a 3-position slider. You can
EQ the tone to taste as well, but I loved
the sound so much flat that I rarely did.
Each model is truly unique, and you can
really hear a difference between Focus
and Wide, too, so you have a lot of
jumping-off points for achieving a mood
or playing to the acoustic qualities of a
performance space.
My favorite model was the Neumann U67
in the Wide position, which added oomph,
sizzle, bite, power, and gorgeous resonance.
It’s perfect for solo gigs. Though I can imagine
the KM56 in the Wide position working
well for acoustic ensemble gigs and the R-122
in the Focus position lending punch if you
were playing with a bassist and drummer.
There are two additional shaping tools—
Blend, which facilitates a mix between the
basic pickup sound and the model, and
Resonance, which sounds like a really tasty
and realistic reverb reacting to the guitar’s
body vibration. Turning the Resonance
knob clockwise increases the body resonance,
and turning it counterclockwise
decreases it. I liked it at about 2 o’clock,
but I can imagine some live situations
where you’d want to decrease the resonance
significantly—especially in a particularly
lively room. Moving the Blend to slightly
favor the model, meanwhile, helped alleviate
some piezo quack and add a little extra
character and space to the tone.
The anti-feedback function works
pretty seamlessly, as well—and I noticed no
change in tone when I engaged it. Further,
I had to turn up
really loud to get any feedback
in the first place. The tuner is easy to
use, cuts the pickup off when engaged, and
is accurate and responsive.
The Verdict
I would not hesitate to make the Yamaha
A3M my only gigging guitar if I was on a
budget. It’s an all-solid-wood workhorse. It’s
easy to use and understand, and exceptionally
playable. But the sound shaping potential of
the S.R.T. system places this Yamaha among
the standouts in its class. And at around 800
bucks, it does a
lot for the money. If you’re
looking for a deal on a strictly acoustic guitar,
the A3M may have more bells and whistles
than you need. But if you’re a gigging guitarist
on a moderate budget, the A3M is worth
putting on your short list.
Buy if...
you need a great-playing,
terrific-sounding, performance-ready
guitar on a budget.
Skip if...
you don’t need electronics or
you’re a fingerstylist in need of a
wider fretboard.
Rating...
