Yamaha SA2200 Brown Sunburst

I bought an SA2200 from GuitarGuitar, Edinburgh last week and it's arguably the finest professional instrument I've ever laid my hands on. That doesn't mean you have to be a professional to play it... but if you happen to be a professional musician then this guitar will allow you to ply your trade with marvellous satisfaction. Fwiw, I'm not a professional musician: just a 'bedroom' player who now plays guitar with marvellous satisfaction. I picked up two guitars when I was in the store: an Ibanez semi-hollow and the SA2200. I should add I live in Glasgow and I drove to GuitarGuitar in Edinburgh specifically to try out the Yamaha as it wasn't stocked in GuitarGuitar here in Glasgow, nor at any of their other stores for that matter; it seems I bought the last one in their entire inventory (at the time of purchase). As for the Ibanez, it was alright, no complaints. But when I picked up the Yamaha I could tell straight away that it was in a league of its own. It just oozed premium quality like nothing else. I duly plugged the SA2200 into the adjacent Boss Katana amplifier and began playing around. It looked great, it felt great and it sounded great as well. I knew straight away I'd be buying the guitar. It just so happens I was in the Glasgow store the week before trying out a Gibson ES-335 along with a Gibson ES-339. To cut a long story short, I bought the 339 but returned it the next day as it was too small. It seemed alright when I was sitting on the tall guitar stool in the shop, but once I was back home and sitting on my couch, the ergonomics were all wrong: I found myself having to contort my body somewhat to play past the seventh fret. Thankfully, the store took the guitar back, which allowed me to focus on the Yamaha guitar. I mention this simply to draw attention to the ostensible difference in quality between the Gibson guitars and the SA2200. Having spent time with the two Gibson guitars and the Yamaha guitar within such a short amount of time, I feel as though I'm in a good position to compare them, and the results are in... the Yamaha guitar is ostensibly better. I'm inclined to think personal preference should always trump objective differences in situations like this but the two Gibsons felt somewhat budget-friendly compared to the SA2200. I wouldn't go so far as to pin it down to the lack of block inlays on the Gibson guitars... but dot inlays on those Gibson beauties look cheap. Fwiw, I've got a 2015 Gibson Les Paul ES short scale bass that has block inlays and so does my 2017 SG Standard so it's not as if Gibson didn't know about them; I reckon it was a marketing or pricing decision as much as anything. Like I say, there's more to it than the choice of inlay, but it's certainly indicative. And no doubt, if the SA2200 had been made by Gibson it would have cost a whole lot more than it did! The only issue with the Yamaha guitar as far as I'm concerned is its weight, which is a bit on the heavy side. Sure, it's not as heavy as a Les Paul, but considering there's a lot of fresh air inside the guitar, it's heavier than you'd expect. My couch soaks up the weight when I'm playing so that helps, but I can imagine it being a long night if you had to gig with it standing up. Weight aside, I still maintain that the SA2200 is arguably the finest professional instrument I've ever laid my hands on; I used to own a Gibson ES-175D that would certainly rival it, but I sold the guitar after eventually conceding it was too chunky for me. If you're in the market for a 335 alternative, and you don't mind it being a bit on the heavy side, and you happen to have the pennies, the SA2200 is worth a demo at the very least. Sure, if you really want or really need a Gibson 335 or any other 335 alternative in particular then by all means, go with that. But do yourself a favour and try the SA2200 first... because it might be the last 335 you'll ever want or ever need. The Yamaha SA2200 semi-hollow electric guitar? Recommended!

Great guitar my all time favourite Well made sounds great Looks great Now I need a better amp Underrated guitar Absolutely fantastic

The SA2200 is, by some way, the best semi-acoustic I have ever played and astoundingly good value when compared with certain other brands.

Great of an example of a Yamaha master built instrument. Comes with the Luthiers signature card. Fretwork is perfect, setup the same. has a strong acoustic resonance in the body. It is built using Yamaha's proprietary method of acoustically treating the wood before assembly. Pickups are strong and full and there is a very wide range from the tone controls. Goes all the way from a bright bite to a smooth dark tone. The coil tapping is a bonus. Came in a very nice case. Love it.

Have heard nothing but positive reviews about this guitar,and now understand why. Quality in every aspect.