Denver
Grand Auditorium Acoustic Guitar - Satin Natural

Additional Photos:


Details
• Body Shape: Grand Auditorium
• Top: Spruce
• Side: Mahogany
• Back: Mahogany
• Neck: Nato
• Fingerboard: Black walnut
Q & A
Reviews
better than great guitar for the price 0 of 0 customers found this review helpful
denver 44sgac-nat 0 of 0 customers found this review helpful
denver 44sgac-nat 0 of 0 customers found this review helpful
Not a $200 guitar 6 of 6 customers found this review helpful
I've scoured the web for information about this model and nothing exists, so I figured I'd give as detailed review here as I can, so this guitar gets a fair shake. It's not even listed on the Denver website (mind you, they don't seem to have a few models listed there, so I'm not sure if these are coming to their line up or being phased out- hopefully the former and not the latter).
Like the reviewer before me, I've picked up, handled and played many guitars over the decades and I believe I have a good idea of what most people would look for in a guitar. I'm no professional musician by far so take these comments with a grain of salt, but I think the gist is reliable.
First of all, I have to admit to being a bit of a guitar snob but I will also be the first to acknowledge when I'm wrong about it. I've played expensive guitars that have made me shake my head in amazement/disappointment at the price, and cheap guitars that have made me have to double take at their low cost.
I went to my local L&M recently looking for a replacement for my old POS guitar used for travel, campfires, etc. Something I didn't care would get banged around a bit, so in the $200-300 range. I went in with a couple Yamahas in mind as they tend to be very good instruments for what you pay. Unfortunately neither of them were in stock (or maybe fortunately?). So I played around with some others in the price range, but maybe a bit more than I wanted to spend.
The salesperson said "Here- try this and I think you'll be pleasantly surprised". He handed me this Denver. I looked at it skeptically but sat down to try it out. Well, he was correct- the thing plays and sounds really quite good. Upon further investigation, I was more and more amazed at what I was holding when told the price was $200. Solid wood top, not laminate. Actual wood back and sides, again not laminate. A very smooth playable neck and fingerboard with a nice low action. Solid and tight tuners, and the guitar does stay in tune very well- I haven't had to re-tune it in the week or so I've had it at home. So far so good....
As for sound- It is a nice bright and loud guitar due to the spruce top. My cedar topped acoustic has a nice warm sultry sound to it so I like the fact that this one sounds so different. It is not chimy or too tinny however- just the right amount of brightness and volume in comparison. I get the same sonic "feel" from it as I do from my 12 string Ovation. This may actually not suit some people, but I like it. If I were to put a picture to the difference, I'd say the Cedar top reminds me of playing an intimate sit down session in a dark, smokey basement, where this Spruce topped Denver yells loud happy sing-alongs of Sweet Caroline around the campfire (fortunately exactly what I'm looking for in this case). Finger style sounds pretty good out of it as well. Definitely different from the cedar, but good different.
The fretboard is smooth and really fast. I wanted the cutaway so I could reach those higher frets more easily and my hand just flies up there smooth as butter. I've always been a Rosewood fan, but the walnut on this guitar looks and feels fantastic. The Nato neck is also nice and fast. Looks great too. The action was low to begin with, and after I had the folks at L&M set it up how I like, I can honestly say I can't feel a big difference! Not sure how much they even had to do. So, comes out of the box very playable. I did a 3 hour session with it the other day and no finger pain whatsoever, unlike the POS it's replacing- I can only play that one for 15 min or so before it gets bad!
The playability in regards to shape and size- I really like the cutaway and it actually seems easier to hold and play than my dreadnought. I looked at the dimensions and it isn't actually that far off, but maybe a combination of the smaller waste, smaller upper bout and cutaway make it easier to hold while sitting down. YMMV on this one....
As far as fit and finish goes, it is solid and well put together. Not sure how some people feel about the lack of a pickguard, but in my case, it's meant to be a bit of a beater anyway. The sides are "rough", as mentioned by the previous poster. Not sure if this is intentional or not. It made me believe at first it was a laminate, so I was surprised to find out it was actually solid Mahogany. Wow. Anyway, I think it adds to the rustic appeal for me but others may not like it. The saddle and nut look like plastic to me, but they don't detract from the quality:price ratio IMO. Like I said before, the tuners seem to be quite good as well.
The only thing I found that knocked some points off the quality is that the guitar actually had small bits of wood and shavings inside that I had to shake out. Not a lot, but surprising nonetheless. I haven't bothered yet to take the strings off to look inside to see if they're from something broken or unfinished. I'll look into that before the warranty expires though. Also, there was a small piece of plastic or something firmly stuck to the inside of the back, almost as though it had glue on it. I had to use a piece of dowel to reach in and knock it off, and it really did feel glued on. Didn't leave any damage when I popped it off though. I'm stumped on that one.....
The only reason I gave it a 4 on features is because it would be nice to have electronics on it, but that would just push the price up. My other acoustic doesn't have electronics either, so if it came to it, I could get a better quality acoustic pup to use in both of them down the road sometime. I tried the Denver that would be close to this one that has electronics and I could tell I didn't like it after about 30 seconds of playing it. As it was more $, I was happy.
So overall, I cannot recommend this guitar enough for it's price. It would be a great first guitar or a great back up/ knockaround. It is definitely worth more than $200, and if it had a different name on the headstock, I'm confident it would be at least double the price. Maybe triple if the manufacturing was a bit tighter. Hopefully I can say the same thing in the years to come with it as it ages but only time will tell. But still- it only cost $200.....
Very nice playable instrument that sounds good. 2 of 2 customers found this review helpful
Rental rates
This product is normally available for rental. Please contact your preferred location for further information.
1 Day from $4.00
1 Week $7.00
1 Month $14.00
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