Taylor Limited Edition Grand Auditorium Tonewood Guitars
Taylor Guitars introduced a limited run of Grand Auditorium shaped guitars in a trio of stunning tonewoods. Options include quilted sapele (for projection and warmth), flamed mahogany (visual appeal and strong mid-range response), or blackheart sassafras (striking blonde and brown hues, plus dry, woody response), paired with a premium Sitka spruce top. Each model features a dramatic, hand-crafted Florentine cutaway and a new appointment package to accent the hand-selected woods. These limiteds feature a rich appointment package—Indian rosewood binding and curly maple edge trim, and “Capstone” inlay of mother-of-pearl and rosewood on the fretboard and rosette. Each is equipped with Taylor’s award-winning Expression System 2 electronics, featuring a piezo pickup design for authentic amplified acoustic tone. The guitars come in a hardshell case.
www.taylorguitars.com MSRP: Starting at $2,178
Yamaha FS730S Concert Acoustic Guitar
The Yamaha concert-sized FS730S features die-cast tuners, a solid Sitka spruce top, and rosewood back, sides, fingerboard and bridge. The guitar is perfect for players with smaller hands, anyone from first time buyers looking for a guitar to grow with to experienced players seeking a smaller, yet great sounding, smooth-playing acoustic. FS730S projects like a dreadnought despite its small size.
www.usa.yamaha.com MSRP: $495
Yamaha JR2S Three-Quarters Size Guitar
Perfect for travel, students, or anyone who finds a smaller profile guitar more comfortable to play, the JR2S is a smaller (3/4-size) version of Yamaha’s solid top steel string folk guitar. It features rosewood fingerboard and bridge, mahogany back and sides, and a nato neck. The sold spruce top delivers superior tone and projection. JR2S provides great quality at an attractive price. It comes with a backpack-style soft case with a spacious compartment suitable for lesson books or tablet computers.
usa.yamaha.com MSRP: $300
Yamaha Silent Guitar
Yamaha’s innovative SLG200 Silent Guitars provide professional sound and feel that is perfect for travel, stage, and studio. The state-of-the-art design includes a satin mahogany neck profile, rosewood/maple top bouts, easy-access control panel, onboard tuner, and six-crystal under-saddle piezo pickup that can be blended with modeled SRT sounds with onboard reverb and chorus effects for just the right tone. The SLG200’s top bout can be removed allowing the instrument to neatly collapse into a slim sturdy gig bag. The Silent Guitars are available in steel or nylon versions and in three different colors.
www.usa.yamaha.com MSRP: Starting at $1,015
Jamstik+ Smart Guitar for iPhone, iPad, or Mac
Jamstik lets you to practice guitar and create anywhere, anytime. Minneapolis tech company Zivix has launched an updated version of its Jamstik that uses Bluetooth Smart technology for quick and easy connections and low latency. Also for improved performance, Jamstik+ has a newly designed magnetic pickup and increased battery life. The new Jamstik+ will begin shipping in late July/early August.
www.jamstik.com MSRP: $279
D’Addario’s NYXL String Sets
D’Addario has added nine new sets to its line of NYXL guitar strings. With the added sets—12-60, 12-54, 13-56, 11-56, 11-52, 9.5-44, 9-40 (balanced tension), and 10-46 (balanced tension)—there are a total of 15 NYXL sets available. These break-resistant, high-carbon steel core and plain steel alloy strings provide strength and up to 131% greater tuning stability than tradition nickel-wound sets. Other advantages include higher output and enhanced mid-range frequency response for a modern tone and familiar nickel-plated steel feel.
PRS Guitars 30th Anniversary SE Custom 24 Model
PRS Guitars is celebrating its 30th anniversary with the launch of a Floyd Rose-equipped SE Custom 24—a quality instrument at an affordable price. The anniversary guitars feature a special commemorative bird inlay package, quilt maple veneer, SE HFS and SE Vintage bass pickups, and a push/pull tone control for coil-tapping with a three-way blade switch. The guitar’s 1000 series Floyd Rose tremolo is made to the exact specifications as the “original” Floyd. The instruments are available in black cherry, grey black, Santana yellow, Trampas green, and whale green.
www.parsguitars.com MAP: $899
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ESP LTD SN-1000 Series
ESP has introduced its LTD SN-1000 Series of six guitar models, based on an ESP model previously only available in Japan. The models feature bolt-on construction, a fast-feeling U-shape neck, and Fishman Fluence pickups. LTD SN-1000FR/FM/Maple comes in aqua marine finish, and has a lightweight, tonal basswood body and flamed maple top, along with maple fretboard with 24 jumbo frets. It features a Floyd Rose Tremolo. The FR/FM/Rosewood model offers the same features with rosewood fingerboard and copper sunburst finish. FR/Rosewood also has the Floyd Rose Tremolo with alder body, maple neck, a 24-fret rosewood fingerboard, and two Fishman modern humbuckers. It comes in a charcoal metallic finish.
For less extreme playing styles, the SN Series has three models outfitted with a Wilkinson VSVG vintage tremolo system. LTD SN-1000W/Maple/PW offers adler body, maple neck/fingerboard with 22 extra jumbo frets, a set of Seymour Duncan Custom 5/ SSL-3/ SSL-3 pickups, and comes in a pearl white finish. W/Rosewood offers the same features with a rosewood fingerboard and a charcoal metallic finish with white pickguard. W/Maple/TSB is aldler-bodied, includes Fishman Fluence single pickups, and comes in tobacco sunburst finish.
www.espguitars.com MSRP: $1,286 (W/Maple/PW, W/Rose/CHM); $1,429 (FR/FM/Maple, FR/FM/Rosewood); $1,572 (FR/Rosewood) and $1,643 (W/Maple/TSB)
ESP Koa Wood Guitars
ESP has launched two guitars with exotic Hawaiian koa wood tops. Koa is has a distinctively beautiful reddish tint and recognizable grain pattern. It is known for providing balanced sound, adding brightness and tone without taking away from a guitar’s warmth. LTD-EC-1000 KOA provides a koa veneer top on a mahogany body at 24.75-inch scale. It has a five-piece mahogany/bubinga thin u-shaped neck and 24-fret ebony fingerboard, and black hardware. It includes Seymour Duncan Custom 5 (neck) and Jazz (bridge) pickups. M-1000 KOA is a 25.5-inch scale instrument using the same woods. It has 24 extra jumbo frets, and adds a Floyd Rose tremolo as well as DiMarzio ST-2 custom passive pickups.
www.espguitars.com MSRP: $1,429 (EC-1000), $1,786 (M-1000)
To see all the other instruments and tech from Summer NAMM click here.
