YAMAHA APXT2 3/4-Size Acoustic-Electric Guitar

Great products

This guitar was recommended to us by my daughter’s guitar instructor. She is 8 years old and just started lessons. This guitar fits her very well and is perfect for a small child learning to play. Seems to be very nice quality. Has a built in tuner and amp plug. It also comes with a soft case!

I’ll use it while camping … great sounding little guitar and the fret board is comfortable.

Compact size, great sounding guitar in this small form factor.

Having now played this guitar for 3 months, I am amending my original review to include new comments and opinions – all of them good.

As one of my photos shows – this really is a SMALL guitar. There are 3/4 guitars which aren’t actually that diminutive. A Yamaha 3/4 classical is significantly larger than this APXT2, as is shown in a photo. It is perfect for young players or for an adult who wants to ‘couch noodle’.

The instrument uses laminate contruction. Combined with its body size, the sound isn’t especially individual but it is well balanced. With its shorter scale, I wasn’t sure if the strings might tend to be too slack, but there were no such problem. The action is a tad high for my tastes, but the quality of fretting is superb. Even when I used a Shubb capo as far down as the 10th fret (!!!!) there was no hint of buzz nor stopped notes. When I restring there won’t be any problem lowering the action and the trussrod is easily accessed via the soundhole if necessary.

I am happy to say that of all the guitars I’ve owned and played over the years, the fret job on this little APX2 is up there with the very best – and that includes high-end instruments such as a Faith jumbo, a Faith parlour, a Taylor T5z, and a Taylor 12 string. FULL MARKS AND 6 STARS TO YAMAHA FOR THAT.

The silk finish for neck and back looks good and the neck is extremely comfortable with a definite ‘C’ profile but without being too thick nor skinny. Just right. The high gloss soundboard is definitely very glossy and, like everything else, is well finished with no discernible flaws.

The EQ isn’t the most sophisticated that I’ve ever encountered (1x volume and 1x tone). There is also a tuner with an excellent, clear display but which doesn’t mute the guitar at the amp when it’s being used. Played through a DVMark, a Yamaha THR5a and a small Laney Ironheart amp, the sound is excellent. Maybe because its a 3.4 size or because the body is laminate, but I found that when playing electro and by using the tone control AND playing between the saddle or the lower end of the fretboard, I could get a much wider range of tones than I expected. The more I have played this guitar, the more I have liked it and come to love it.

The gig bag is adequate and of good construction.

Hopefully, the attached annotated photos will provide evidence for my comments. I added two more photos for this updated set of comments. This is an extremely good LITTLE guitar and as long as you don’t want a booming bass, it is a fine instrument.

This is not typically your main acoustic. This is a little 3/4 size to toss in the car (gently) or take to something casual. Something to figure songs out with.. Or your main parlour guitar. For what it is it is beautiful in its own way. A little joy to play! I have very large hands and I don’t have trouble with the size. The strings are factory but sound good. I use 13-56 strings on my main guitar so this is a nice break. It’s smaller size is comfortable but the sound is obviously smaller than a full size but much better than most acoustic travel guitars. It sounds nice. As a begginer guitar, it is perfect. The electronics are great. However, the gig bag is just to carry it, and will not protect it.. At all! The tuners are plastic but stay in tune. For the price it is fun and a good deal. Can you hook this up to play live? Sure, it will not be a deep rich sound but even unplugged it sounds nice. To sing over it? I would go for something full size with better projection.. Much quieter than a full size. Or simply plug it in! Intonation is good and string height is fine for a beginner. You aren’t going to be bending/shredding with this! This is a very nice traveler. I suggest you try one at a music store and you will see what I mean about the sound. 3/4 size sound, but a good sounding travel guitar. I own a backpack guitar by Martin and this is so much better. For what it is, and used for, I love it.

I’m at a point in my playing where I wanted to upgrade to something a bit nicer as my “travel” guitar. It was important to be a smaller size, have a cutaway, and have the ability to plug in. After looking at various options I decided to give Yamaha a try. I’ve always heard good things and the few I’ve played seemed to be decent quality.

Right out of the box, it needed a quick tune up. Popped in 2 double A batteries and turned on the built in tuner. Love the display, will come in handy for dropped and alternate tunings. Once that was done, I started plucking away. Action was good to go from the box and the strings were pretty decent though I suggest giving them a wipe down before using. Neck has a smooth feel and no breaks or dings detected. Plugged into an amp just to test the pickup. No issues there but be careful how high the volume knob on the guitar is set.

I did take a star off because there are a few things I feel could have been better. First thing I noticed is the wiring kind of flops around inside the guitar. I noticed this when inspecting the body and rotating the guitar. Not a huge deal as I don’t plan on shaking my guitar to death but it could have been secured better. I’ll probably address when I change strings. Second, the tuning machines feel and look a bit cheap and aren’t aligned perfectly. Again, not a major issue. Third thing is the nut looks like it could have been cut better on the low E. Action is ok but you can tell it’s the highest string. It is a 200 dollar guitar so things like this are to be expected.

It does come with a gig bag which isn’t very padded.

Overall happy with the purchase. Will update if anything pops up.