Yamaha FG-700S Solid Top Acoustic Guitar Review

We know what you are thinking, “Yamaha? Don’t they make motorcycles?”

You are correct, Yamaha does make motorcycles. High-performance motorcycles, in fact.

Yamaha has a huge inventory of high-quality products that include musical instruments. They make everything from pianos to saxophones and do so with an eye towards customer satisfaction and quality performance. 

An interesting fact is that Yamaha originally started out making pianos and organs long before making motorcycles and jet-skis. Making the transition to acoustic guitars was a natural progression in their development.

So, it should come as no surprise that Yamaha makes some of the finest acoustic guitars on the market. Yamaha has been producing great acoustic guitars for the past fifty years. Due to their affordability and design, Yamaha became a popular choice for beginners, but their quality construction also attracted the attention of experienced players.

One of the earliest Yamaha acoustic guitars was the FG Series which was introduced in 1966. With this guitar, Yamaha shook the world of guitar-makers by proving you could make a high-quality acoustic guitar at a low cost to customers.

Since then, Yamaha has continued to deliver acoustic guitars that are low-cost and high-quality which produce beautiful sounds comparable to any of the more pricey acoustic guitars.

If you are not convinced about how good a Yamaha acoustic can be, we invite you to come along as we review the…

Our rating: (4.5 / 5)

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Yamaha FG-700S

As we stated earlier, Yamaha originally made pianos and organs. Because of this, the company is no stranger to the different kinds of wood used in making musical instruments. As well as being intimately familiar with the trades and techniques of established luthiers.

The design and construction of the FG-700 reflect the long history Yamaha has in wood-working.

The guitars back and sides are made from Nato wood. Many people are unfamiliar with Nato since it has only started being used in acoustic guitars within the last 15 years. It was always around, but the demand for mahogany kept Nato wood from gaining prominence.

This wood is just like mahogany in terms of musical and tonal properties. In fact, most seasoned guitarists and musicians have a very hard time telling the two kinds of wood apart. The tone is super-warm and full-bodied. Nato offers excellent resonance and harmonic definition in the same ways you would expect from mahogany.

The top is made from solid Sitka Spruce. Sitka Spruce is known to enhance the tone and offer added sustain. It is a very stiff wood that produces a strong and focused tone with a solid balance between the high, mids, and lows.

Perfect for finger-picking styles, Sitka Spruce is crisp and clear, at the same time warm and round. Spruce top acoustic guitars are great for folk and bluegrass styles because the wood has so much balance and no unwanted overtones.

The Yamaha FG-700 acoustic guitar features a dreadnought-shaped body. Dreadnoughts are large-body guitars which give you lots of resonance and fullness in tone, as well as, in clarity.  

Yamaha went a step further by incorporating their newly developed non-scalloped X-bracing. This unique design system from Yamaha helps to maintain the top wood’s durability and strength while bringing more of the natural sound of the wood and the instrument to life.

The sleek Gloss finish adds beauty to an intense sound.

For the neck of the Yamaha FG-700, the company went with Nato as well. Using the same wood for the body and the neck means greater overall stability and strength where the neck is set in. The Nato neck also helps to maintain warmth and sustain.

The finish on the neck is Satin, which makes it smooth and easy to play.

The fretboard is made of rosewood. Rosewood is always a nice compliment to most neck woods because it doesn’t add its own character to the sound. Rather, rosewood fretboards further refine the natural tone of the neck and body woods.

There are 20 frets, and the scale length is 25-inches. The neck is easy to play, and the action is quick.

The Yamaha FG-700 features die-cast chrome tuners that do a great job of keeping the guitar in tune for extended periods of time. These are Yamaha tuners that are the same as the one found on their higher-priced models. They are reliable and durable.

The bridge is made of rosewood, which helps to maintain tone balance and means that the pegs fit super-snuggly so that your strings don’t slip or lose tension.

Both the nut and the bridge saddle are made out of plastic and have a thinner width than normal. This makes the guitar easier to play and gives you a more comfortable grip on the strings.

Also see: Yamaha FSX730SC Acoustic-Electric Guitar Review

The Yamaha FG-700 acoustic guitar has a warm tone with louder and more pronounced low and mid-range frequencies. The bass on this guitar has a great response. The treble is clear and crisp. The mid-range is lively and defined.

While the low and mid-ranges are louder than other acoustic guitar models, the overall tone and sound are best described as bright or crisp. The low-end is definitely there, but it is clear and clean, not mellow and round.

The brightness and warmth of the Yamaha FG-700 are what make it great for finger-picking styles and lighter strumming patterns.

An excellent guitar for solos and lead riffs, it sits perfectly in the mix with other instruments.

Bluegrass, country, and folk are ideal for this guitar thanks to its tonal balance and clarity.

The Yamaha FG-700 is also highly versatile, which makes it a good fit for beginners. You don’t need to be a musical expert to hear how the tone is natural and even.

Dreadnought acoustics are great for their volume, comfort, and ease of playability. The Yamaha FG-700 is superbly constructed to provide a sound that has no frills or specialty. Pure acoustic goodness is what you can rely on.