YAMAHA FG840 Solid Top Acoustic Guitar

It’s magical…. What a beautiful sound, What an extrodinary looking guitar!

I was shopping Taylors, Martins, Guilds in this general price range and all the way up to the $2.5K + range.
I stumbled across this and watched a demo comparison on U Tube, it was a shoot out comparison.
This is EVERY BIT as GOOD as any of them I demo’d and it looks better, much better, amazing in fact when you see it in person! The Flame Maple back and sides wow!

I don’t care how much you have to spend, if you are looking for quality amazing guitar you need go no farther. At this PRICE for this Guitar__ it’s a STEAL!!!

I have added to this collection an FGX830C in Rosewood, cutaway Electric Acoustic. Everything Yamaha makes is over the top, I also use their THR series amp. I’m not a salesperson for Yamaha, just an average Joe… but I have played some fine guitars in my day, nothing comes close to this FG840, only a close 2nd second would be the FGX830C

Came out of the box from “Musical Village”, they did an “Amazing Setup” BEFORE it shipped, SIMPLY extraordinary job guys! The action and playability of the FG840 as a result of their set up, is a World of Difference.
I play Acoustic Blues and I play every day for 3 hours, right out of the box it was Boom, lets go!

Packed very well and got here 1 day ahead of time via UPS.

YUP – It’s a DEAL, actually it’s a STEAL!

Recently back from The Guitar Center, it’s like Disneyland…what a selection! I sat down for over an hour, played Taylors 214CE DLX, Taylor 314ce, a 514 and an 814, played various Martin’s. They did not sound better, I was prepared to drop up to $3-5K, they simply could not beat the performance, sustain or build quality.

This guitar is amazing. I’ve only seen 2 videos on YouTube where people has reviewed this model, and after being skeptical of buying it, I don’t regret making this purchase. The sound is full, and also is very bright. It doesn’t matter which chord I play, every single note is clear. The sustain is amazing, and the sound fills the room.

Here is the breakdown of the guitar so far.

1. The sound is amazing. It has crisp highs, nice mids, and ample bass. I am very impressed on how balanced the tones are. Everytime I strum a chord, I get chills. I absolutely love it.

2. In addition to a great sound, I needed a guitar of great quality, and the quality control on this model is phenomenal. The neck is super sturdy, very stable, and the action of the strings are awesome. I have bigger fingers, so for my personal preference, I will lower the action just a little bit so it will be easier to play. Also the Solid Sitka Spruce Top and the Flamed Maple Back and sides, gives a really beautiful appearance, and I love the gloss finish, and the finish on the neck is amazing. I can slide all the way down the neck and my fingers don’t stick to it. In my opinion, with the quality control, scalloped bracing, and the sound, this guitar is worth more than 400 dollars. If I were to put a value on this, it’s worth at least 900 dollars. It’s that good all the way around.

Cons: I can’t say anything bad about this guitar. The only annoying thing is there is a small piece of wood floating around in the body somewhere. I’ll slightly shake the guitar and I can hear it, but that is no big deal.

Honestly, I had a debate between getting the FG830, FG840, or the FG850. All of them had a great sound, but the tones from the other two guitars didn’t fit my style of playing. I am a beginner/improver, so in a way, I’m still learning, and all of them would have served me well, but I just loved the sound from the FG840 that I couldn’t pass it up for myself.

Get this guitar. You will not be disappointed.

Update – 11-26-2017

To this day, I am still impressed, and the more I play it, the better it sounds. The lows and mids are starting to add overtones. The bass is more boomy and I absolutely love it. The guitar is being well played “I play at least 2 hours a day”.

Build quality and durability: I am extremely impressed. I have accidentally tapped my guitar on hard surfaces, and dropped my capo on the top of the guitar, and guess what, not a scratch, or dent. That’s amazing. This continues to show that this guitar is quality built. I’m super happy with this purchase.

Update 12-17-17

Guitar still plays and sounds great. Although now I have a dent on the top of my guitar now because it got hit excessively hard on accident by the bridge, but the dent is not noticeable unless you’re really looking for it. Just a dent in the finish. Again, very durable top. Very impressed. Great guitar for 400 dollars. Going to try Elixir custom lights soon. Hopefully it sounds good with those strings.

Update – 3-20-18.
Now after owning it for 6 months now, I do see some flaws that have just begun. First off, the sound of the guitar continues to get better. The tone is beginning to mature a little bit, the resonance of the top has greatly improved, so the sound of the instrument is not the problem.

The issue – The nut and saddle – rate a 2 of 5

I have done 5 string changes on this guitar since I bought it, and the G, B and high E string is all beginning to buzz. And as a disclaimer, I’ve taken it into a Luthier and the neck relief is perfect and frets are level. Neck is straight, not twisted, so the neck is very good.

It seems like the G, B and high E strings are shaving the notches on the nut, causing the nut action to get crazy low. Not enough to where the strings are touching the first fret, but when the string is plucked it will buzz openly.

Now, what’s even more weird, is when I press on the B and high E strings, the buzz continues up the entire neck, and as I said before, the relief is good, so no issue there. The strings are cutting into the saddle, which could be causing the buzz issue. I’m going to have a bone nut and saddle put on and see if the problem goes away, and have a proper setup done.

This guitar has potential. Has a great sound, but unhappy that the plastic nut and saddle has already begin to warp. Still a 5 star guitar for the price.

Update 5-20-18

Well, I think this will be my last update on this guitar, and if anyone wants to leave a comment, or ask any questions, feel free to do so.

I want to change my comments on the nut and saddle in terms of the string buzz issue. The issue was not caused by the nut or saddle.

I did a string change today, but before I did so, I decided to wipe down the guitar, clean off the frets, and clean it off as if I first got it. After cleaning the guitar, I saw a video on how to properly install the strings into the bridge. Turns out I wasn’t properly seating the strings in the bridge, and some said improper installation of strings could cause string buzz. So, I did that, and guess what, no more string buzz. I think cleaning the guitar helped too.

To be totally honest, this guitar continues to improve in sound as I improve to grow in my skills. The tone is definitely coming alive, and seems to start having the tone of a well played guitar. The chords are becoming more rich and deep on the low end, while keeping the balance of the mids and highs. The neck is still rock solid to this day, and I feel like this guitar will continue to play well even 5 years from now. It’s that good, and the tone will continue to get better over time.

For my needs and the level I’m at, this guitar will probably be with me the rest of my life, and maybe I’ll upgrade to an all solid wood guitar one day.

Get this guitar. You will not be disappointed.

1-30-23 update

Still great guitar. The top has darkened in color since I bought it. Sounds warm and boomy, and I added a bone saddle and ebony bridge pins.

My guitar does have a belly behind the bridge about 1/8 inch, which has raised the action. The bridge doesn’t tip forward though. The neck is still straight as well. I have the saddle down quite far to where there is 6/64 on the bass side and 5/64 on the treble. If I were to lower the saddle all the way down, then the action would be to low.

Took the guitar to a Luthier and he said since the guitar can still be set up, he doesn’t recommend any actions done, such as a neck reset or heating the top to lower the belly buldge. He feels the guitar can last another 20 to 30 years if properly humidified and kept in a room with consistent temperature.

Still a great guitar for beginners and those who are looking for a practice guitar, or if you want to take it to the campfire or play in church.

Another suggestion would be, if you plan on adding electronics to this guitar, be sure to get a system where you can control bass levels. The bass is naturally so present in this guitar that it will have feedback issues. That’s why this guitar is great for folk music and bluegrass players that like a boomy bass response but don’t have the money to buy a Martin D18 or D28.

The price has increased since i bought the guitar, but still great value. I still recommend this guitar if you want a great quality guitar at a low price.

This is such a great guitar for the money. I am a Martin and Gibson acoustic player mostly, but I always loved the way Yamahas sounded playing them and just wanted to add a Maple backed guitar to the Arsenal that wasn’t a J200 for the brightness they bring. It sounds great. I feel sustain could be better, but that could perhaps be a function of the wood being layered and not solid on backs and sides. However, I would buy this guitar again and again especially considering the price.