# Yamaha CGS102A Half-Size Classical Guitar – Natural: A Review
If you are looking for a quality classical guitar for your child or yourself, you might want to consider the Yamaha CGS102A Half-Size Classical Guitar – Natural. This is a 1/2 size guitar that is suitable for beginners and young players who want to learn the basics of classical guitar. In this article, we will provide you with some information about this product, including its features, benefits, target audience, comparison with similar products, and some customer reviews. We hope this will help you make an informed decision before buying this guitar.
Features
The Yamaha CGS102A Half-Size Classical Guitar – Natural has the following features:
– Spruce top: This is a common wood for classical guitar tops, as it provides a bright and clear sound with good projection.
– Meranti back and sides: This is a type of mahogany that is durable and resonant, giving the guitar a warm and balanced tone.
– Nato neck: This is another type of mahogany that is strong and stable, ensuring a comfortable and smooth playability.
– Rosewood fingerboard and bridge: This is a popular wood for classical guitar fingerboards and bridges, as it offers a rich and complex sound with good sustain.
– Open gear tuners: These are traditional tuners that are easy to use and adjust, keeping the guitar in tune.
– Nylon strings: These are the standard strings for classical guitars, as they produce a soft and mellow sound that is ideal for fingerstyle playing.
– 21″ scale length: This is the distance between the nut and the bridge of the guitar, which determines the tension and pitch of the strings. A shorter scale length means less tension and easier playability, especially for smaller hands.
– 1.9″ nut width: This is the width of the fingerboard at the nut, which affects the spacing between the strings. A wider nut width means more room for finger placement, which is helpful for classical guitar techniques.
Benefits
The Yamaha CGS102A Half-Size Classical Guitar – Natural has the following benefits:
– Quality construction: Yamaha is a reputable brand that has been making musical instruments for over a century. The CGS102A is built with quality materials and craftsmanship, ensuring durability and reliability.
– Affordable price: The CGS102A is one of the most affordable half-size classical guitars on the market, making it a great value for money. You can get a decent instrument without breaking the bank.
– Easy playability: The CGS102A is designed to be easy to play for beginners and young players. The nylon strings are gentle on the fingers, the scale length and nut width are comfortable for smaller hands, and the body size and shape are ergonomic and lightweight.
– Classical sound: The CGS102A delivers a classic sound that is suitable for various styles of music, such as folk, pop, jazz, or classical. The spruce top and meranti back and sides produce a balanced tone with good projection and clarity.
Target Audience
The Yamaha CGS102A Half-Size Classical Guitar – Natural is mainly targeted at:
– Children aged 6 to 8 years old: This is the recommended age range for this guitar size, as it fits their body size and hand span. Children can learn the basics of classical guitar with this instrument, such as chords, scales, arpeggios, fingerpicking, etc.
– Adults with small hands or short fingers: Some adults may also find this guitar size comfortable and convenient to play, especially if they have small hands or short fingers. They can enjoy playing classical guitar without straining their hands or wrists.
Comparison
To help you compare the Yamaha CGS102A Half-Size Classical Guitar – Natural with other similar products, we have prepared a table below that shows some key features and specifications of four half-size classical guitars from different brands.
| Product | Yamaha CGS102A | Cordoba Requinto | Hohner HC02 | Stagg C510 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $136.87 | $199.00 | $99.99 | $79.99 |
| Top Wood | Spruce | Solid Canadian Cedar | Spruce | Linden |
| Back & Sides Wood | Meranti | Mahogany | Catalpa | Linden |
| Neck Wood | Nato | Mahogany | Mahogany | Nato |
| Fingerboard & Bridge Wood | Rosewood | Rosewood | Rosewood | Maple |
| Scale Length | 21″ (535 mm) | 22″ (580 mm) | 21″ (530 mm) | 20″ (510 mm) |
| Nut Width | 1.9″ (48 mm) | 1.85″ (47 mm) | 1.77″ (45 mm) | 1.77″ (45 mm) |
| Tuners | Open Gear | Gold with Pearl Buttons | Chrome | Nickel |
| Strings | Nylon | Savarez Cristal Corum High Tension 500CJ | Nylon | Nylon |
As you can see, the Yamaha CGS102A has some advantages over the other products, such as:
– A spruce top that is more responsive and versatile than linden or catalpa
– A meranti back and sides that are more resonant and durable than linden
– A rosewood fingerboard and bridge that are more rich and complex than maple
– A 1.9″ nut width that is more spacious and comfortable than 1.77″ or 1.85″
– An open gear tuner that is more traditional and easy to use than chrome or nickel
The only product that can compete with the Yamaha CGS102A is the Cordoba Requinto, which has a solid cedar top that is warmer and darker than spruce, a mahogany back and sides that are similar to meranti, a rosewood fingerboard and bridge that are identical to Yamaha’s, a slightly longer scale length that gives more tension and volume, a slightly narrower nut width that gives more accuracy and speed, and gold tuners with pearl buttons that give more elegance and style. However, the Cordoba Requinto is also more expensive than the Yamaha CGS102A, so you have to decide whether the extra features are worth the extra cost.
Customer Reviews
To give you an idea of what other customers think of the Yamaha CGS102A Half-Size Classical Guitar – Natural, we have selected some representative reviews from Amazon and summarized them below:
– Positive reviews: Most customers are very satisfied with this guitar, praising its sound quality, playability, durability, and value for money. They say it is a great guitar for beginners and children, as well as adults with small hands or short fingers. They also appreciate the craftsmanship and appearance of the guitar, saying it looks and feels like a real instrument.
– Negative reviews: Some customers are not happy with this guitar, complaining about its tuning stability, string quality, fret buzz, or intonation. They say it goes out of tune easily, the strings are too hard or too soft, the frets are uneven or sharp, or the notes are not accurate. They also criticize the packaging and shipping of the guitar, saying it arrived damaged or defective.
Conclusion
The Yamaha CGS102A Half-Size Classical Guitar – Natural is a quality classical guitar for beginners and young players who want to learn the basics of classical guitar. It has a spruce top, meranti back and sides, nato neck, rosewood fingerboard and bridge, nylon strings, 21″ scale length, 1.9″ nut width, and open gear tuners. It offers a balanced tone with good projection and clarity, as well as a comfortable playability for smaller hands. It is also affordable and durable, making it a great value for money.
If you are interested in buying this guitar, you can click on this link to order it from Amazon. You can also check out some other half-size classical guitars from different brands in this comparison table. We hope this article has helped you learn more about this product and make an informed decision. Thank you for reading!
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