Query failed: connection to localhost:9312 failed (errno=111, msg=Connection refused). NGD: Yamaha CSF-TA - Acoustics Discussions on The Fretboard
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UNPLANNED DOWNTIME: 12th Oct 23:45

NGD: Yamaha CSF-TA

grayngrayn Frets: 769
in Acoustics
Usually my NGDs go on about travelling to a cool guitar shop and trying out umpteen guitars before plumping for the one that
took my fancy.  As going to guitar shops is a no go at the moment, I had to, for only the second time in my life, order a guitar over
the phone and wait the 20 hours it took to arrive.  

I'd been looking at some cheap, electro acoustics for a few weeks and had narrowed it down to two models.  A Vintage Raven and
a Fender Tim Armstrong Hellcat.  The Raven because it looks so cool and sounded decent enough on one of Paul Brett's videos.
The Hellcat because I played the 12-string version, a few years ago and was impressed by the quality, for so little cash.  Anyway,
I'd Okayed the purchase with the Mrs, which went well, as there was so little money involved.  But on the morning of the phone call, I had a last search and came up with a preowned Yamaha CSF TA, at Frets Guitar Centre.  A shop I've bought from many times, over the years.  OK it was few quid more but it was still dirt cheap and preowned.  So it got ordered, after a nice chat with Neil at Frets.

It arrived  very well packaged and was eventually pulled out from it's box, housed in a Yamaha hard foam gigbag.  The guitar itself 
is totally mint.  I'm not really sure what CSF stands for but I am guessing it's Compact Sized Folk, for this is a small bodied guitar, 
what everybody is calling "Parlour", these days.  I think the body is more like a pint sized, classical guitar, which I actually like the 
look of.  It has a solid Sitka spruce top with scalloped X-bracing; laminated mahogany back and sides; rosewood bridge; 
natural gloss finish body, 23.63″-scale, a satin finished, nato neck; a rosewood fretboard and a 1.692″ urea nut.

Now the TA in it's title, stands for Trans Acoustic.  So it has that wacky gizmo inside, that Yamaha developed a few years ago.
The gizmo is an actuator, that reactes to the input from the guitar's strings and top and sends those vibrations through the back,
to create two separate effects.  Chorus and Reverb.  You have a pre amp and a SRT piezo pickup system as well.  I have to say though, that before I even turned the TA gizmo on, this little guitar sounds really vibrant and lush.  I've had many, many acoustics over the years, of all price levels and this guitar really suprised me.  Great projection and no mushiness at all and nice separation too, with a very even tone, across the strings.  The Trans Acoustic system is adjusted via a three knob pre-amp, with controls for line out volume, Reverb and Chorus.  If you haven't tried this system out, then I can only describe it as mildy miraculous.  I quickly settled on having both the Reverb and Chorus on at 12 o'clock, so half way on both.  This keeps things subtle but impressive.  The guitar doesn't get any louder but does sound bigger.  Oh yes I forgot, the Reverb covers Room and Hall.  So my half way setting will be full on Room Reverb.

To say I was impressed thus far, would a be an accurate statement.  So now I put the CSF TA through my amp and again, I was 
impressed, that just a simple piezo-bridge pickup could sound so nice.  None of that plastic, quacky sound you used to get.
I'm not saying it would compete with a K&K or other high end transducers but the tone was very clean and quite natural.
With the TA system kicked in, things carried on sounding sweet, so I went completely OTT an wacked it through my pedal board.
I particularly enjoyed some multi echoing and surprisingly, a speedy tremolo effect, sounded very sweet.

Being a Yamaha, the build quality is good here.  Solid and very nicely finished.  It's a plain looking guitar, with cheap, black plastic 
binding.  I do like the bridge design though and the tinted top and abalone rosette work well, to my eyes.  The action is set quite 
low and with the short scale, the string tension is easy on my fingers.  But that does not stop the strong sound that belts out of this
little guitar.  So yes, I am very chuffed with it and especially at the price.





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Comments

  • brojanglesbrojangles Frets: 338
    I'm often tempted by these - the transacoustic thing is loads of fun - and the small size of this looks fun too. 
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