Best guitar review that I have ever seen. I love that you are willing to cut the guitar open and allow us to see everything inside the guitar. Thank you for doing these videos.

This is the first comment I have ever made on any KZfaq video. I found this video absolutely fascinating, I could not believe that anyone would cut open a perfectly good guitar to show us the inside, but I just like the braces was glued to the screen, and watched every detail. Fantastic well done and thank you.

Hey there guys. Just wanted to say thanks to you for doing this review. I've recently purchased this exact guitar and have to say it's by far the best one I've ever played. Tried a lot of guitars before I found the one. I do have to say I near cried when you cut it in half. Thanks for showing us how a quality instrument is made. cheers guys

I have an LL16 and had it for about 5 years [ bought in 2017] travelled a lot I bought it in the ME[Virgin Doha] with a soft bag after about 8 months returned to Sri Lanka [humid] its been the UK over winter time twice and in Asia Thailand now and it has been fine I had the string action reduced after two years in the UK I now have 3 Yamaha's and the LL16 is great what an investment at the price point Not so with my Martin 00028 EC purchased in the UK [in 2015] which has needed the de laminated binding re fixing for two years now playable sounds good but uncomfortable with the constant binding issue I plan to return it for repair once back in the main land UK No body wants the responsibiliry for the repair in Asia due to the high value & potential down side issues as a result the Yamaha LL16 being more durable has been my go to guitar. Thanks for posting keep it up ✌ excellent informative vids 🙏

Yeah❤❤❤ lets support this channel. This really show the craftmanship and quality of guitars.

I’ve had the slightly less blingy LL16 for a couple of years and really enjoy it. Thanks for this detailed review. I know that sound preferences are so subjective but I really do enjoy playing it. Especially love it for the price paid. Incredible value, beautiful look and sound.

this is such a good review. so much detail, articulated so precisely. really appreciate it, gonna be watching more.

I really enjoy hearing your thoughts and descriptions of the sound and playability. really great series!

I was excited to see a new video in this series and when I saw Yamaha I assumed they would do really well. Scratching my head about the back strap, though. Everything else looks really good for a factory machine. Thanks as always for doing and sharing these explorations. Great stuff!

Great breakdown, Chris. I love Yamahas and their specific sound... that "shimmer" that you mention at 16:03 is a big part of it for me.

I play a Yamaha LL16 and I love it. It stays in tune from gig to gig, I just plug it in the DI with no effects. 90 minutes set and still in tune on the last song. I would recommend it for the price, it's well worth it.

Great and fair review. The minutexyou started plsying I said yep, that is MY guitar. i have an LL16D and it sounds identical. Even down to the massive ringing open strings. The sustain in these is mind-boggling to me. Even my wife who really doesnt pay much attention at all to my guitar obsesssiveness and gear said "Wow!" the first time I strummed it. It is what I like about Yamahas. Consistency of value and craftsmanship is 'always' there. You WILL absolutely will get more than you pay for in comparison. You have such a flat, even definition of all strings, you can EQ this to be anything you want it to be. Don't dismiss it's pickups either. They are not cheap 'quackers' by any stretch. Many dismiss Yamaha as being flat or lacking in a specific 'character'. I look at it like dialing in an EQ I want, instead of fixing deficiancies.

Thanks, loved this review. I am a Yamaha fan for the reasons you stated. Best v as lue in the business. I am still enjoying my 1972 12 string Yamaha dreadnought which still plays beautifully. Needed a new saddle and found Yamaha customer service to be outstanding. They had the saddle IN STOCK and shipped same day from their US warehouse. Remember, this guitar is 40 years old!

The most thorough guitar review on the net , thank you I own this guitar and grateful for the info. 😃

YESssss! Guitar Breakdown episodes are back. So killer, thank you guys for doing this again.

I really appreciate your guitar breakdown videos! Im so glad that I found your channel!

Comprehensive review. You guys are awesome! I learn more and more about guitars and guitar building every time I watch one of your videos. Please keep them coming!

Awesome, I love your tear down vids, especially excited as I have this exact guitar

Big Yamaha fan here. Had many brands including Martin and Taylor but I'm down to 3 Yamahas now. My 50 year old FG-160 being my favorite. Great company, great guitars.👍🏻

Love these reviews, never seen such in depth reviews anywhere. The only thing I missed from this one was the score card that you usually do at the end, can you please carry on with the scores? Kinda gives a final conclusion and good to compare scores with other guitars 🙂 Keep up this great work!

My dude came thru I've been asking for yamahas. Luv ya guys

A very thorough review. Well done. I do hate seeing the guitar cut in half particularly when I see how terrific it looks inside.

As a guitar player who's lived in Japan for a couple decades, this doesn't surprise me. Japanese people tend to build things with care and pride.

As a Yamaha fan, I think this sums up nicely. Incredible value for money and great craftsmanship from Yamaha. I love the big brands and have owned most of them, but keep coming back to the Yamaha.

These videos are probably the most informative, yet at the same time the most painful guitar reviews I've even seen. That drop test rattles my bones every time.

Awesome review. I have a Yamaha LS 16M and I love it. Would like to see a review on that one.

The L series Yamaha acoustics are really nice guitars. The 5-pc necks feel so good. Both in terms of in-hand feel and sturdiness. I've played this model and their folk sized body. If something happened to my Alvarez Yairi, I think I'd be in the market for one of these, or a Guild. Great value, and a fantastic instrument.

Well done, as usual. Sure looks like an excellent guitar for someone searching in that price range. Thanks for the review!

I have a 1967 Yamaha classical guitar. From what I was able to find out was this was the time when Yamaha first started making acoustic guitars. It is still beautiful and sounds even better.

This is a very timely review as I bought this guitar at the beginning of July in the black finish. I bought it because I’m mainly an electric player but looking to move over to more fingestyle as I get older and wanted to test the water. I have several good performer friends who have very good quality acoustics (Santa Cruz, Bourgeois, Martin, etc) and know what the top end sounds and feels like but didn’t want to go that level at the moment. After trying some of the mid range offerings fromTaylor, Martin, Gibson, Epiphone etc, one friend suggested trying a Yamaha because, amongst others, Bert Jansch played one. Off I went to the Yamaha flagship store in London, I’m in the UK, and tried all of their ranges and the one thing that stood out for me was how and consistent in quality and sound their guitars are irrespective of the price (also tried the Revstar range and nearly came out with one of those too). However, the LL16 sounded great and the salesman suggested I try the LL16D as an upgrade. The D is essentially the same guitar but has more upmarket appointments like the ableone and Ebony but is also, apparently, voiced individually for a more higher end sound. Everything you say is what I found, it lacks some midrange but has great bass and treble and is a very easy guitar to play, the neck is very good and the width is just right. It looks fabulous and the recording I’ve done with it shows it to sit very well in the mix and you can always some midrange if you want to. Mine also came with a very good quality and sturdy soft-shell case that is more than capable of handling transportation. My guitar was made in March this year so maybe they’ve changed the case since you got yours. It’s also made in China whereas the next models up, the LL26D, LL36D, LL56D, are all hand-made in Japan by one Yamaha’s master luthiers and are by all accounts the equal, if not better, than the more common high-end guitars (also much more expensive, the LL56D is around $6000). I plan on doing some open-mics and jam sessions with it so feel more comfortable taking it to pubs and clubs rather than a very expensive guitar. One thing this guitar is not is that it’s a ‘beater’; this is very good quality, great sounding, great playing, and great looking guitar and could quite easily be your one acoustic guitar, certainly at least until you get to a standard where you need to have a much better acoustic guitar. I’m very happy with this guitar and agree with your final thoughts!

I owned a D-41 and sold it to pocket the difference after I'd played the LL16D. It is a stellar guitar and easily holds its own with ANY Martin, including my friend's D-45. It may not 'surpass' the great Taylor/L'Arrrivee/Martin/SantaCruz/Collings but it sure does feel and sound fine for several times less money. And it's NOT just about the money. It flat out sounds great, has a fine neck superior build, and I'll be upgrading further up the LL line to the handmade. I like all your videos and truly appreciate the efforts. Can't currently order one of yours, but working on it. Thanks for this cool dissection! I really push mine when strumming, and find that the bass capacity is enhanced by bringing up the action a bit. I typically play classical as well, so no problem. The scooped mid thing levels out a bit too--and I agree with the shimmer. This guitar does that. The staunch bass of say, an Alvarez Artist Jumbo (even in maple) is bigger than this guitar can offer though. When I really pounded barre chords I find the LL16D keeps up with any Martin, as I mentioned. For balance my L'Arrivee 10 Koa / Mahogany is unsurpassed, but I just use it for mellow shows and studio. Anyway. Thanks again for your thoughtful expertise, and evoking a response. Fun!

It’s interesting that the Yamahas have been around so long that you don’t hear all the hype that’s around newer brands. They’ve always been good value well made instruments even 50 years ago. Thanks for the review.

Great video as always 😊! I have some more red spruce tops for you ! I’ll never forget I sold you a red spruce top a few years ago on eBay. To driftwood guitars in good old Florida. I am a luthier myself from Baltimore Maryland. I love all your videos. !! Keep up the great work !! Thanks 🙏

Excellent work, thank you. I never understand why Yamaha instruments keep getting relegated to tier two status. They are all built very well, play great and last. Yamaha knows musical instruments. Witness their pianos and the Red Label acoustic guitars as further examples

I own this and had a bone nut and saddle installed. Took it to the next level. Conversely I got the mahogany Ll16M and kept the urea nut and saddle. Very unique tone. In both cases the jumbo body adds depth and projection. I also added my fave buffalo horn pins.

I enjoy your “guitar breakdown” videos (what happened to the final rating though?) and find them very useful. This one confirms what l’ve been hearing for a long time about Yamaha acoustics in general and their LL series in particular, ie that they compete with much more expensive instruments in sound & playability and are very well made. One other make which seems to be building up a very good reputation is Eastman. I’d love to see a “breakdown” episode dedicated to one of their all solid acoustics, perhaps something like their E 8 or the older AC 420. Thank you for your interesting, no frills channel.

I’m glad you did a Yamaha. I’m a fan of Yamaha guitars. I would love to see you do a video on a Eastman guitar.

Nice review first one I have seen of yours and I am impressed.

Nice. I have an LL16-12 (12 string). I was in the market for a Taylor to replace a GA4-12 that I foolishly sold several years ago. I was prepared to spend up to $2000, but a friend admonished me to not ignore Yamaha (and to specifically check out the LL series) and I found one on Reverb for about $700 shipped. Less than half of what I was ready to pay for a Taylor and I couldn't be happier. It sounds absolutely wonderful and is now my forever 12-string acoustic. I'm still mostly a Taylor man (I have a 414 Fall Limited as well), but I'm here to tell you not to pass up a good Yamaha.

You did a great job on this review! It's truly a lovely guitar and it highlighted your lovely playing quite nicely! Quick request, do you think you could add the Phil McKnight sock test to help us see how the fret ends "feel?" It's a smart way of revealing what kind of adjustments, if any, are needed. Might I suggest focusing just a bit on the fret work... just a little. Any high spots, the "scratch" test when bending notes, fret sprout, sharp ends, that kind of thing. Thanks again for the great review, Chris!!♥

Thank you for this incredible review. I really love my Yamaha A3M and my LLTA. They're my daily players among my Taylor's, Martin, PRS, Breedlove and Rainsong (carbon fibre) The Yamaha are at the top. 👍

I bought the twelve-string version of the LL16 three years ago and it is the best guitar I’ve ever played! And it’s my favorite guitar to pick up and play. It was the best $900 I’ve ever spent on myself!

I've played many guitars over the years and always impressed when I pick up and play a a Yamaha acoustic guitar .

Amazing super informative and profesional review. Thanks, I have learnt lots. Subscribed.

I've been shopping for a mid-priced guitar that I can gig and practice/learn some basic setup skills on and been really impressed with some of the Alvarez Masterworks stuff - even more so than Yamahas in the same price range. If you're looking for a candidate for the next lovely assistant to be sawed in half, I'd love to see a Masterworks MF60 OM, or any of the series. Thanks for all the great videos!

Awesome video, very informative. I would have loved to see a review/cutting of a Red Label Yamaha to see how it compares !!

Very nice review. I could see myself owning one of these one day. I'd have to change out that pickguard though!

Thank you for your very informative video! I learned a lot about how guitar’s are made. I play a Yamaha AC5R, and many of the construction features are present in my model Yamaha. The Yamaha acoustics rival the big expensive brands, thank you for reinforcing my opinion about this. I own Martin, Alvarez, Seagull, Beard and Michael Kelly guitars. The Yamaha is the best sounding unplugged of all my guitars. I have a powered pickup system different the piezo in LL16. I prefer the availability of volume and tone control on body of guitar so I don’t have to go to my amplifier for adjustments during a live performance. The Yamaha pickup system equals the Fishman Aura in my Martin. I liked and subscribed to your channel. I look forward to viewing more of your videos in the future ✌️❤️🎸 Rob from Long Island

Gooood afternoon from central Florida! Hope everyone has a great afternoon!

Wow, premium content! Thanks.

Great series, Chris and Matt! Good to see Yamaha lives up to their reputation as an outstanding instrument builder. It would be great to see a breakdown of the Seagull Artist Tuxedo Black. North American build with solid mahogany back and sides, a maple neck(!), and a Richlite fretboard and bridge(!). Priced around $1500

Wow... what an excellent and comprehensive review and presentation. Thank you

I've owned Yamaha for years and the LL16 in 6 and 12 strings. Changed the pins to tusq, and Elixer phos/bronze 12-53 strings and it changed everything.. Brought out the mids - and harmonic balance. Recommended for the money.

Really informative, guys, and much appreciated. I'd love to see a review of a Yairi Masterworks DYM95 or similar model. I have a DYM96 and love it.

Great review! I have many Yamahas. 1 electric EG112.. love it! I also have an APX-500C ..fun guitar!! But, the stars of my show are an FGX-800C. That’s in a natural finish! I was at GC one day for strings. I saw it, played it, fell in love with it. The preamp is awesome. The bad news, I loved it so much, 3 days later, I bought the same model in a different finish. My Martin was sold, and I didn’t really regret it. Those FGX -800 Cs give me better sound. I have had many FGs, 75, (2)180s red and gold label. And of course, I have an FG411-S12. It just booms! Wifey bought me that. I was jammin at a local music shop, she came back to where I was knocking down some Neil Young. She stops, looks at me and says, “that’s soooo you”… She went back later that day, put it on layaway, and it became her gift to me! One of several more to follow. Anyways, my point is that this new LL, very pretty until you see that non matching binding. That would be a deal breaker for me. It looks much narrower in the bouts, which I think would be wonderful. The Engelman spruce does sound really thick and lush. Nice outtro on Blackbird too! Yamaha guitars are built solid, they take a beating at my hands, but they keep on playing. Peace!

Great review. And fair. It certainly makes Yamaha look like a strong choice

I have a beat up 79 Yamaha 000 that's all plywood. I put a bridge doctor in it and maintain the frets and action and I'll say with absolute confidence and plenty of reference, it sounds just as good as any 3-4k Martin I've ever played.

I have an LJ56 Custom ARE, and though I hated to see a beautiful guitar cut up, glad you chopped a Chinese factory made guitar vs the premium Japanese handcrafted guitars! Great review, I need to sneak a boresnake camera around the inside of my guitar and make note of the grain orientation and glue squeeze out and see how it compares. Keep up the great work, fascinating videos!

Nice review! I don’t even play and still enjoy your content very much.

Excellent video. It explained so much that coincides with my impression of the LL16D. I bought this guitar second hand for a good price, less than half price a year and a half ago. The guitar was in good condition, one small imperfection. My first impressions, visually, it is gorgeous and considerably upmarket with all the pearl inlaying. When it came to playing however, the beefy neck was, for someone like me with smaller hands, a little challenging. I wasn’t aware of the unusually long scale length either, and I have to say that was challenging for me as well. The set up from the previous owner, or perhaps the factory if he never changed it, had slightly higher action, then I would prefer making it just a little bit hard to play. but I didn’t change it as this happens a lot with a Guitars and I just sort of get used to it. So right off the bat, this is not my go to Guitar. Tonally, your assessment of a mid scoop sound was spot on. My son who is an on again off again guitar player committed immediately., “ dad, that sounds bright”. That was my impression as well. I brought the guitar to work a few times where some of us jam at lunch and I will say it was definitely the loudest guitar there (note to self: mission accomplished ha ha). The guitar has now been in its case in the closet for close to year, and it is likely to be on the chopping block soon. I appreciate the workmanship which for a mass-produced guitar is great, but when I heard you playing James Taylor on the Yamaha, I just looked over at my 1970 Gibson, J 50 and said “ you will never be replaced”. :)

I had a Yamaha LS16R. Very similar but not exact. A guitar I kick myself for selling. These are made so well, no not perfect, but amazing for the money. Great video but painful to see a nice guitar cut up. Thank you again

Great review! Would love to see your thoughts on the similarly priced Recording King RD-342.

Great content as always. Please do an Eastman Dreadnaught. Cheers from Canada!

*I had an LA-8 Yamaha way back. I never found a guitar that sounded as good no matter how much I spent or how far I traveled to find guitars.* *Then I found the LL16 A.R.E. It was nearly the same sound. Definitely the exact same feel. So I was over the moon.*

Always had a soft spot for yamaha acoustics. My very 1st guitar was a 700 series ,I believe.i got it for Christmas as a teen in the early/mid nineties.i drug that thing around and played it to death.until the black painted binding had worn completely off around it.i didn't even own an electric for the 1st 4-5 years of playing guitar.my calluses were epic.It played easy,had good projection etc..when I look back I still wish I owned the beat up old beast.i have a really nice acoustic.but I'm definitely considering picking up a new yamaha.i don't know if my budget will allow for this.but I think I'd be happy with a $500-$600 model honestly.

I recently bought a 2013 LL16 12 (pre ARE) I LOVE IT!

1 minute in he answers the martin/taylor comparison question. Brilliant.🎉

Very great and nice sound ! Absolutely stunning !

Good to hear your take on the scooped sound. I settled on a Yamaha A3 because all the other guitars sounded super middy which is too much for me.

I'm glad you did a Yamaha review. I have 3 Yamaha's from high end to med and I love them all. I actually sold my Taylor cause I played the Yamaha more. The Taylor was lovely, but it sat off to the side cause I liked the way the Yamaha played. With that being said... It hurt me to watch you cut that guitar in half 🙂I am amazed like many others that Yamaha's are not given the love that some of the other brands are considering the quality.

Love this review. I chose the Yamaha AC5M over the LL16 because it's electronic I like better. I'm still am looking for a LL16 /LL26 to get in the future.

Excellent review as always. I would love to see a video on Eastman Guitars. Specifically the Eastman E8OM-TC :)

Excellent video full of great info! Pls do one on the Breedlove Organic.

Great review. I played one for a good while (2nd hand mint £450 in the UK). Fabulous guitar which I would have kept forever excpet I had too many guitars and I'm on a one-in one-out. Mine was before torrified, but it had some age on it and also before they added the abalone binding. Even at its full price it is an incredible guitar, and I cannot praise it highly enough. Fabulous to play. You're on the money with the bracing issue. I happen to have an HD35 which is scalloped and can't be beat, but the issue is that unscalloped bracing can be fine - it depends on the top stiffness (amongst other stuff). Incidentally, mine had the exact same 'buzziness' - I think that's the shimmer you got hold of there. Nothing like a Taylor, mind you.

I own LS-Ta which is transacoustic version of that in Jumbo size. Very stable and enjoyable. Had to do some adjustments and changed to solid pins as you advised before. Great guitar for 700$ used plus adds

Great review. I’d love to see one on the Easton e1d or e2d guitars.

Awesome video as always guys !!! really beautiful guitar !! Any thoughts on the Takamine GN93 CE?

Sounds pretty dang good! And just so people know, martin had non scalloped braces for decades and still does on some models. A bone nut and saddle, good SOLID PINS. That thing would sound amazing

Great stuff. Yamaha exceeding price expectations since the mid-seventies. I'd be interested in seeing a similar review of modern Sigma guitars.

Great guitar. First order of business for mine was ordering directly from Yamaha a bone saddle and nut from an LL26. Then put ebony bridge pins. Awesome bang for buck.

It’s about time you started cutting guitars in half again.

Oh awesome video. Please please do a guitar breakdown on an Eastman E6 or E8 Dread or OM and or Seagul s6! Similar price ranges to the Yamaha and really great budget friendly guitars!

Thanks for the breakdown/anatomy analysis. Appreciate it! Not everyone can do it....

New subscriber after seeing this wonderful review!!! I'm an ASCAP songwriter and not a good musician, but I enjoy a great-sounding guitar that's reasonably priced.

Zager! Please review a Zager. I would like to see a mid level model of his reviewed. Love these videos. Hate to see a perfectly good guitar cut in half but it is necessary for the type of reviews you do. Keep em coming!!!

Although the bridge and nut are plastic (actually synthetic polymer), they are a special type of plastic and are specifically blended to sonically match the guitar. On forums people have tried to swap these out for bone/tusq/etc with diminished results. Tusq nut/saddle are technically a 'plastic' also.

Very interesting tests!

I’ve the LL6 and I love it. I don’t think I play well enough to drop a grand on a guitar but out of the 4 guitars lined up next to my living room chair, all of them are Yamaha.

I have one of these, in the folk size. It's my favorite. I use an external pre-amp to play live.

Love these reviews!!

I agree that Yamaha is a very under rated company for a lot of things. I think it sounds best for a singer song writer task. The ducking of the mids will help the vocals fit better, were as something like a Martin would be better for a solo acoustic act.

Ooohhh I was waiting for this guitar, it's one of my favorites I know it's going to hurt, but I wanted to see it anyway, a hug

Re: Torrefied woods: I agree that treated woods do make a difference on a new instrument. However in my experience non-treated spruce tops need a few months (I have heard 6 months, mostly) to mature to the same point. I use Western Red Cedar for the tops in my guitars and find about 4 months is needed for maturing provided the guitar is played regularly.

To me - and this is not a criticism - this guitar sounds like the old '70's plywood Yamaha guitars. It sings like my old FG 200 and 180. Kudos to Yamaha for recreating that with solid wood.

I have this guitar ! and Love It! If this model was in a cutaway I would buy that as well I play it more than my Gibson Hummingbird Pro that’s how much I love this guitar ! This was a great! Review ! Cutting it open with the saw was a mind blower 👍👍👍 Thank You!

Great idea for a series. Can you do the Takamine GD93 sometime? It's a great guitar for the price and would love to see an in depth review like this!

Great review! I agree that the solid wood Yamaha guitars have a similar sound profile to Taylor guitars. Not as distinct as a Martin or Gibson, but still a great sound. Would love to see y'all review an Eastman guitar.

It definitely has great sustain. It does sounds great and better than several more expensive ones. My High school graduation present in 1980 was a Yamaha acoustic, still going strong. I changed out nut,saddle, bridge pins.

Thanks for the awesome video. I learn a lot from these series. Can you do a Alvarez Masterworks Elite next? Also I wanted to ask if you could also do a video o guitar woods or type combinations for an acoustic guitar duo. Example, would a Sitka Dreadnought play well with a Mahogany Parlor.

Excellent vid, like this concept to review guitars. I would like to see how the handmade and affordable kremona acoustic guitars stack up to the yamaha. Thank you