REVIEW: Yamaha FGX800C acoustic/electric guitar

We reviewed Yamaha’s FGX800C acoustic/electric guitar. 

It’s available in our store! 

Check out the review below! 

Here’s a transcript of the review: 

Today we’re taking a look at the Yamaha FGX800C.  This is a fantastic Yamaha acoustic from the FG line, and the FG line has been known since 1966 as a tried and true folk guitar design – thus, FG, folk guitar. That said, these guitars go beyond just the scope of folk music – they’re really universal and they’re fantastic instruments for the price. Yamaha has really proven themselves as a company that can deliver consistency and quality.  That’s why these guitars are some of the best sellers in our shop.  They’re always really nice performing, never have issues with the FG Series, be it the FG800 or in this case the premium – the really nice FGX800C and the differences that you get with this guitar are some of the really nice modern updates to a classic acoustic guitar.

This FGX800C has a single cutaway design as you can see fantastic access and look and feel that you get from this cutaway design. It has a dreadnought body, so a really full size but still very comfortable acoustic guitar body.  The top is Sitka Spruce, which is a really sought after wood for acoustic guitars.  It’s very resonant.  It has scalloped bracing underneath which adds a lot of nice movement and you can really hear it resonate with the low end. In addition to that, it’ll only build character over time.  These guitars are extremely durable, and as you play through and continue to break into the wood, you get a little bit more vibrancy from the tone of that guitar.  For some reason old guitars just sound great and so this is a really good amazing wood choice that will give you longevity and really clear and beautiful tones. 

Throughout the rest of the guitar neck material on the fretboard is actually walnut – same with the bridge, walnut, and then throughout the rest of the guitar we have the sides and the neck made of nato, which is a unique wood. It’s really rich in color, very sturdy, and on the back of the neck we actually have a very smooth, somewhat satiny feel.  It’s very comfortable and not overly glossy.  I’m not getting stuck to it if my hands are a little bit moist or anything like that. It’s a very comfortable neck. This is somewhat of a thin profile, so it’s really easy to hang on to if it’s your first acoustic guitar.  I think you’ll find it very comfortable and approachable if you’re a long time player.  It’s a fun neck to play on because it’s just so comfortable – kind of easy going as far as the size, not too big or cumbersome, easy to press down on the frets.  

Out of the box, it has pretty nice action, so I’m really happy with the playability of this instrument. Right out of the gate, it has black binding throughout, but another key feature that you get with the FGX800C is actually the electronics.  This is the Yamaha System 66 Electronics, which includes the 66 pickup inside the guitar.  We’ll demo the plugged in sound as well. So far we’ve been using a microphone to capture the tone of the acoustic, the acoustic properties of this guitar, but you can plug this in and play it through a PA system or an amp.  We have the the audio jack right here on the strap on the side and then the controls are up here on the top where you can access them.  It’s got a master volume control, a three band EQ that’s controls for the low, mid, and high frequencies. It’s got a tuner as well,  which is really just very nice to have. Easy, quick to use – you just press the button to access the tuner and tune up you know all in one. This guitar does everything but play itself. It’s got the tuner,  the electronics, even the EQ. The nice cutaway design with the beautiful Yamaha wood selections. Chrome tuners.  We have the strap connect connection point here.  I don’t see an additional strap strap lock on this part of the guitar, sometimes they put them there, sometimes they don’t. I think for me with my acoustic guitars, I prefer to use the method of using the one strap button on the bottom of the guitar and then using some strapping or a piece of string that’s strong enough to fasten it up here on the headstock. It just makes the guitar feel a bit more balanced when you’re standing and playing but also very comfortable to play and sit with.  Like I said, comfortable body shape. It’s a Dreadnought but it’s not overly big – which is known as a slightly larger body style,  but not as huge not as big as they do get. It’s kind of more on the medium side. I couldn’t forget as well when we’re talking about the electronics this guitar uses two AA batteries. I don’t know the battery life,  I think it may depend on how long you spend plugged in, but for an acoustic guitar I think you can expect these to last quite a long time, especially if you’re not playing plugged in exclusively. These batteries will last quite a while. They’re easy to change, you just press the lever and then it pops out, and you can change your two AA batteries and slide it back in. 

If I were to get this guitar, there would be maybe a couple reasons for getting an FGX800C.  I would definitely consider this guitar for like  an “all the time” playing guitar.  I find it really comfortable. I find it really approachable and also sort of diverse. 

It’s got a really rich tone that would sound great for things like bluegrass, folk,  even like rock if you wanted an acoustic guitar for your rock music.  I think this guitar really delivers for anything really that you would want a steel string, six-string acoustic guitar for, especially with the cutaway.  It’s super comfortable and I would choose Yamaha for the reliability.  They’re so consistent in the manufacturing quality of these guitars. I’ve worked on so many FG model Yamahas and I’ve always found them so consistent and so reliable, so I really do give props to Yamaha for being able to deliver that at this price point. 

This is not the cheapest Yamaha available.  it’s a little bit more due to the extra appointments, such as the cutaway design, the scallop bracing,  which is a really nice update.  Of course you get the electronics as well – that’s the difference between the cheapest available.  Many of them do not have electronics, so if you’re looking for an acoustic that has a pickup,  I would highly recommend this one.  Again, if that’s what you’re looking for in an acoustic guitar: reliability,  the ability to play different styles and genres while also being very comfortable –  I think that’s a great feature. Even as an intermediate to advanced player,  just having a comfortable neck, there’s nothing wrong with that. 

If you’re looking for a guitar with a pickup, you’re definitely going to want to consider the FGX800. We also have the FG800, which is another team favorite which does not feature some of those extra appointments, but Yamaha is doing a great job of providing a variety of different instruments to suit a variety of needs at a good price point.