Yamaha FG830

first play
YAMAHA FG830 & FSX830C
26
GuitaRist DECEMBER 2016
5
the frequencies. It doesn’t have the power of
its bigger-bodied sibling, but that could be an
advantage plugged in. The Yamaha system
is typically well sorted with quite a piezo-y
tonality (it’s hardly alone there!), but very well
centred EQs and a hugely viable midrange.
Nasally upper-mid peaks can be attenuated, or
muddy lows cleaned up, while the treble and
bass controls can be used as a more general EQ.
The FS’s cramped bridge spacing might
be an issue for some fingerstyle players, but
it’s less of a problem for more general styles:
playing with a pick as you might in some
acoustic versions of your electric set, the
spacing and scale all ‘fits’, and it’s this FS that
gets the most playing time by quite a margin.
Verdict
Neither is perfect, but the acoustic FG830 is
damn close in terms of build with a cleaner
dread-style tonality that would suit virtually
any player, and it’d be money very well spent.
The same applies to the FS, although whether
we’d go for the electro cutaway, or the non-cut
acoustic model that’s £176 cheaper at full retail,
is open to debate. Plugged in, it’s good but a
little piezo-y, and there’s no tuner mute. When
we put on an LR Baggs M-1 Active soundhole
pickup (around the same cost as the acoustic/
electro price difference), the FS sounded
superb; likewise, a quick mic’d recording
produced excellent results. However, that
bridge spacing might just be too tight for a
serious fingerstyle player and it seems a major
oversight on the FS, as does putting the short
scale length into the beginner’s category when
slightly shorter scales are standard on both
Martin and Taylor, not to mention electric
brands such as Gibson and PRS.
Long live the FG – but the FS, in acoustic or
electro formats, is a missed opportunity.
YAMAHA FG830
PRICE: £360
ORIGIN: China
TYPE: Dreadnought-sized steel-
string acoustic
TOP: Solid spruce
BACK/SIDES: Laminated rosewood
MAX RIM DEPTH: 118mm (tapering
to 100mm)
MAX BODY WIDTH: 412mm
NECK: Nato
SCALE LENGTH: 650mm (25.6”)
TUNERS: Individual die-cast chrome
NUT/WIDTH: Urea/43.45mm
(36.5mm)
FINGERBOARD: Bound rosewood,
dot inlays, 400mm (15.75”) radius
FRETS: 20, small
BRIDGE/SPACING: Rosewood w/
compensated urea saddle/55mm
ELECTRICS: No
WEIGHT (kg/lb): 2.02/4.4
OPTIONS: The FGX830C electro
cutaway version costs £536
RANGE OPTIONS: Acoustic FGs:
all-matte FG800M (£213), gloss
FG800 (£268), FG820 (£305),
FG840 (£398), FG850 (£398),
FG820-12 (£351). Electro FGs:
FGX800C (£370), FGX820C (£462)
LEFT-HANDERS: No, check the
FG820L (£351)
FINISHES: Natural (as reviewed),
Tobacco Brown Sunburst, Autumn
Burst – gloss body with satin neck
Yamaha
01908 366700
http://uk.yamaha.com
YAMAHA FSX830C
PRICE: £536
ORIGIN: China
TYPE: ‘Folk’ sized steel-string
cutaway electro acoustic
TOP: Solid spruce
BACK/SIDES: Laminated rosewood
MAX RIM DEPTH: 110mm (tapering
to 90mm)
MAX BODY WIDTH: 380mm
NECK: Nato
SCALE LENGTH: 635mm (25”)
TUNERS: Individual die-cast chrome
NUT/WIDTH: Urea/43.48mm
(37mm)
FINGERBOARD: Bound rosewood,
dot inlays, 400mm (15.75”) radius
FRETS: 20, small
BRIDGE/SPACING: Rosewood w/
compensated urea saddle/50mm
ELECTRICS: Yamaha SRT under-
saddle pickup w/ System 66 preamp
featuring volume, low, mid, high plus
AMF (80-10kHz) small rotary controls,
tuner on/off
WEIGHT (kg/lb): 2.06/4.5
OPTIONS: Acoustic FS830 (£360)
RANGE OPTIONS: Other FS models
are the FS800 (£268), FS820 (£305)
and the FS850 (£398). Other electro
cutaway models are the FSX800C
(£370) and the FSX820C (£462)
LEFT-HANDERS: No, only the
FG820L (£351)
FINISHES: Natural (as reviewed),
Tobacco Brown Sunburst, Autumn
Burst – gloss body with satin neck
PROS A potentially superb, small-
body electro cutaway, let down by…
CONS …cramped bridge spacing,
rather piezo-y plugged in voice and
‘small-handed, beginner’s’ aim
PROS A great modern
dreadnought for the start-up or
more experienced player
CONS Lacks some traditional
dread-like low-end power
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