I ve just tried a Yamaha LL16 ARE brand new in a shop. I played it for an hour or so, any genres of music and style. Even though I own a much more expansive Martin HD-28V I was shocked of how good this guitar sounds! Now I m thinking of buying one, it’s really awsome!
I was playing mine and remain so happy with it. Being rosewood and Engelmann it has a refined sound. It is also wider in the lower bout than a Martin dreadnought and has a slightly longer scale, so it holds up for volume and power. It handles drop tuning really well too. Just a great guitar!
My take on the slight clearance within the saddle slot. Better to have it loose than too tight. The last thing you want is a saddle not actually seating. If it doesn't seat at any point along its length, there would be a loss of vibration delivery. I just watched a Sean Daniel demo of the "Fivcil" guitar yesterday and upon visiting their site I noticed that they are using cow bone for both nut and saddle. Apparently, budget oriented makers have picked up on Yamaha's determination not to go away from "urea" for this series and the FG line up.
Bought the LL16 12 string and was so impressed that I bought the LL16D. The Deluxe is all black gloss has different bindings and lots of abalone. Oh... Its sonorous like a grand piano. My third Yamaha guitar. Highly recommended. Also have the AC5R-ARE that is a step or so above these LL16 not to make them seem a poor choice but with a larger price comes incremental improvements. All great guitars, choose what fits your budget. Cheers.
Ooh, I have been looking at the Japan made AC5 too. I am waiting to play one when it comes in stock at my local music store. I do have 4 dreadnought type guitars though …
Two yers ago I bought the LL 16 12 String too, and be still blown away of build quality and the sound! I changed the very white urea saddle to a creamy bone, but afterwards more of the reason that it fit the color of the binding timber, because I can not hear a difference in sound…. and I have good ears… so I believe there is more of psychoacoustic going on at this topic. Last year I bought a used LL TA (Transacoustic) which is exact a LL 16 but in sunburst and two added build in effects (Reverb and chorus) which sound fantastic with right amount of effect and also very good without, definitive comparable with some dreadnought‘s in much higher price ranges. I love my two Yamaha‘s beside al my other guitars.
The 6 series do sound very good too. Same quality solid top and construction as the 16 series. Yamaha redesigned their bracing for these guitars and they sound really good 👍
You've got good taste: Eastman and Yamaha are both fantastic builders. The LL16 is a great guitar, especially at its price. Yours sounded great, too, especially when you dropped down into DADGAD. Quite a rumble to it. Thanks for the nice review!
Thankyou. I am still very keen on the Yamaha. It has lovely overtones, strong bass as you would expect from a dreadnought sized body and so far has been very stable here in humid Sydney.
Thanks for sharing your experience with great comments....yes I love Yamaha guitars and in fact I also have a Yamaha piano which is so well made .....not sure where to buy the LL16 model in Melbourne as most stores don't have them in stock.... cheers 🦘🦘😀
My pleasure! They are great value and judging by the popularity of this video and other reviews, they are popular. I hope one turns up soon in Melbourne and you can try it.
Hi, it does have the five piece neck, but the wood is almost the same colour, so it doesn’t show in the video. It is unusual that it is not the 2 darker strips.
Yamaha has really picked up their game with their guitars now which is one reason I turned a friend on to this model in particular. For it's price point, it's a great sounding guitar, and you get Yamaha's attention to quality, and details.
100% agree. I ignored Yamahas for decades, but since they changed their bracing, the got really good. This LL16 stacks up against more expensive guitars for tone and volume, and refinement imho.
Yes indeed,Don here from Hamilton NZ on my Wife's tablet-SUSAN, I bought a second hand LJX6C about 7 weeks ago, I googled the series first, because I had NO Idea of these series, as in my 55 years of playing acoustic guitar's I'd Never Ever seen these before, mine had a Small amount of damage, got that fixed & WOW, such a Quality sound, so I would Imagine your guitar would be another step up again, and thanks for the video 😊😊😊
Yamaha have made these higher end models for many years. Have always been among the best makers. Just a strange bias against them implying that they are just cheap intro level instruments. Just ignorance, I think. Anyway, just my two cents. People will form opinions, and I really dont much care. I love my Yammies, and thats all...lol.
Get one! Or two!! I have both the rosewood and mahogany versions and they are great! If you can find them. I understand that Yamaha no longer make these LL16s. I hope to be proved wrong. I really do.
Thanks for your comment. I would like a mahogany version of this great axe too! I just took the Yammy to an Irish session and it was great. Loud and lots of bottom end. Though I would go for an LS I think if I was to get another. Just for variety. I will check if these are still for sale here on Australia. They are a steal for the price considering the rock solid quality, solid woods and the ebony fretboard. They are beasts.
@@turrafirmaguitarchannel I may try to find an LS myself. The prices have gone up a lot since I bought my two some years ago. In fact, they are around twice the price these days. I'm in the UK. They do have real power for harder strumming. I have other acoustics of the same or perhaps even better quality, but these get played much more. I once owned a 2012 Martin D-18. That is my benchmark for all other guitars. Some say that these LL and LS series are overbuilt. Personally, I think that's a good thing. Less likely to have problems with the tops bulging etc.
I am thinking about getting the LL16 but there is none to found locally. I don't like buying acoustics online and don't like shipping back if it doesn't work out. I found a used one online in Tennessee, so I am just staring at it online. If I get the LL16 it will complete my acoustic lineup. Dreadnaught Guild d50 and smaller body Yamaha AC3M DLX are my other two main acoustics. I have two lower end guitars and they both sound lower end, no love lost there.
I have bought guitars online and I like to see a photo of the saddle height and a measurement of the action at the 12th fret. If those things are OK I will take a punt. Did you end up getting an LL16?
@@turrafirmaguitarchannel Haven't bought the LL16. Those photos are a good idea. There is no rush to buy. I am a bit curious about the rosewood vs. mahogany difference. Does it really matter all that much?
Yep, I don’t like under saddle pickups either. There are are a lot of emperors without clothes plugging in acoustic guitars with under saddle pickups in my opinion. Re the loose saddle here, I have a snug fitting bone saddle in this guitar now and I think it sounds better.
Thankyou! The LL16 series are made in China. The higher number LL guitars are made in Japan. I have never played a Japanese one, apparently they are more hand made, like a custom shop.
Hi as they are all similar large body size I think they would all be similar for vocal accompaniment. It would be a case of which tone you prefer. Maybe think about trying smaller body sizes to see if those sit better with your voice. All the best from Australia 👋🇦🇺
That was very interesting it's saddĺe being as lose as it was (quality control??) Yes even the best of guitar maker's slip up sometimes, & its a simply fix, which is why I make & fit these myself if necessary & before I buy I always check them first, if there's a problem there I Always ask for a discount or the store can fix it for you, Otherwise....?
Thanks for your comment. I also keep a supply of saddles and tweak them myself. I did wonder if the loose fit was on purpose with this Yamaha? In any case I replaced it with bone and it fit a bit more tightly.
Yes, Martin D28 is 25.4” vs 25 9/16 on the Yamaha. It’s confusing that Martin mix decimal and imperial in their measure. 1/10 inch is 2.54mm, plus the extra 1/64” is .397mm, so that makes the Yamaha just a fraction under 3mm longer.
thank you very much for the reply Of course I understood I didn't think it was a different series or one of the first, I was very happy I bought two of them from LS 16 and the l l 16 d
@@turrafirmaguitarchannel thank you Sir for the comparison video. I have an E3DE just swapped out the bridge pins for bone ones it sound better to me now.
Hi, the LS16 is better as it has solid rosewood back and sides, the LS6 has laminated back and sides. The higher the number in the L series the higher the quality and materials.
Well firstly I think about the LS16 a lot. I almost bought one at my local music shop soon after I got the LL. It was lovely and loud for a small body guitar. The body is actually quite deep. Anyway, I went back a week later and it was sold. I then discovered it was bought by my guitar buddy Chris who did the humidity video with me! I think the LS16 would be great for recording, where you generally want to remove that extra bass anyway.
Hi, Yes sorry for being greedy! I now own the LL16 in burst and the Ls16 in natural. They are amazing guitars - I am happy to bring the Ls16 around sometime if you want to do a comparison video for your channel (it's guitar buddy Chris using my dodgy youtube handle ;)
The LL16 has 1 3/4 inch nut and not super slim, but I don’t feel it is chunky. I think you would like the Blueridge neck, that is the slimmest neck I ever had on an acoustic. Good luck finding a guitar!
I ve just tried a Yamaha LL16 ARE brand new in a shop. I played it for an hour or so, any genres of music and style.
Even though I own a much more expansive Martin HD-28V I was shocked of how good this guitar sounds!
Now I m thinking of buying one, it’s really awsome!
I was playing mine and remain so happy with it. Being rosewood and Engelmann it has a refined sound. It is also wider in the lower bout than a Martin dreadnought and has a slightly longer scale, so it holds up for volume and power. It handles drop tuning really well too. Just a great guitar!
My take on the slight clearance within the saddle slot. Better to have it loose than too tight. The last thing you want is a saddle not actually seating. If it doesn't seat at any point along its length, there would be a loss of vibration delivery. I just watched a Sean Daniel demo of the "Fivcil" guitar yesterday and upon visiting their site I noticed that they are using cow bone for both nut and saddle. Apparently, budget oriented makers have picked up on Yamaha's determination not to go away from "urea" for this series and the FG line up.
Bought the LL16 12 string and was so impressed that I bought the LL16D. The Deluxe is all black gloss has different bindings and lots of abalone. Oh... Its sonorous like a grand piano. My third Yamaha guitar. Highly recommended. Also have the AC5R-ARE that is a step or so above these LL16 not to make them seem a poor choice but with a larger price comes incremental improvements. All great guitars, choose what fits your budget. Cheers.
Ooh, I have been looking at the Japan made AC5 too. I am waiting to play one when it comes in stock at my local music store. I do have 4 dreadnought type guitars though …
Two yers ago I bought the LL 16 12 String too, and be still blown away of build quality and the sound! I changed the very white urea saddle to a creamy bone, but afterwards more of the reason that it fit the color of the binding timber, because I can not hear a difference in sound…. and I have good ears… so I believe there is more of psychoacoustic going on at this topic. Last year I bought a used LL TA (Transacoustic) which is exact a LL 16 but in sunburst and two added build in effects (Reverb and chorus) which sound fantastic with right amount of effect and also very good without, definitive comparable with some dreadnought‘s in much higher price ranges. I love my two Yamaha‘s beside al my other guitars.
Sounds quite good. I have a used LL6M ARE that I love. I'm going to have a setup done at some point.
The 6 series do sound very good too. Same quality solid top and construction as the 16 series. Yamaha redesigned their bracing for these guitars and they sound really good 👍
Sounds great Congrats! nice review, appreciated! ❤
Thanks Margie! Much appreciated 💖👋🇦🇺
You've got good taste: Eastman and Yamaha are both fantastic builders. The LL16 is a great guitar, especially at its price. Yours sounded great, too, especially when you dropped down into DADGAD. Quite a rumble to it. Thanks for the nice review!
Thankyou. I am still very keen on the Yamaha. It has lovely overtones, strong bass as you would expect from a dreadnought sized body and so far has been very stable here in humid Sydney.
It sounds absolutely beautiful, and nice playing too, kind regards Don 😊
Many thanks!
Thanks for sharing your experience with great comments....yes I love Yamaha guitars and in fact I also have a Yamaha piano which is so well made .....not sure where to buy the LL16 model in Melbourne as most stores don't have them in stock.... cheers 🦘🦘😀
My pleasure! They are great value and judging by the popularity of this video and other reviews, they are popular. I hope one turns up soon in Melbourne and you can try it.
Billy Hyde in melbourne have these in stock...
@@Wobbz9413 thankyou...🙂
У вас есть майтон, зачем вам ямаха.?
Hi, it does have the five piece neck, but the wood is almost the same colour, so it doesn’t show in the video. It is unusual that it is not the 2 darker strips.
I have a Crafter that is exactly the same as the Yamaha, lovely guitars. 💓🎸.
Yamaha has really picked up their game with their guitars now which is one reason I turned a friend on to this model in particular. For it's price point, it's a great sounding guitar, and you get Yamaha's attention to quality, and details.
100% agree. I ignored Yamahas for decades, but since they changed their bracing, the got really good. This LL16 stacks up against more expensive guitars for tone and volume, and refinement imho.
Yes indeed,Don here from Hamilton NZ on my Wife's tablet-SUSAN, I bought a second hand LJX6C about 7 weeks ago, I googled the series first, because I had NO Idea of these series, as in my 55 years of playing acoustic guitar's I'd Never Ever seen these before, mine had a Small amount of damage, got that fixed & WOW, such a Quality sound, so I would Imagine your guitar would be another step up again, and thanks for the video 😊😊😊
Yamaha have made these higher end models for many years. Have always been among the best makers. Just a strange bias against them implying that they are just cheap intro level instruments. Just ignorance, I think. Anyway, just my two cents. People will form opinions, and I really dont much care. I love my Yammies, and thats all...lol.
Really...picked up their game? Always been consistent. John Denver turning in his grave.
Get one! Or two!! I have both the rosewood and mahogany versions and they are great! If you can find them. I understand that Yamaha no longer make these LL16s. I hope to be proved wrong. I really do.
Thanks for your comment. I would like a mahogany version of this great axe too! I just took the Yammy to an Irish session and it was great. Loud and lots of bottom end. Though I would go for an LS I think if I was to get another. Just for variety. I will check if these are still for sale here on Australia. They are a steal for the price considering the rock solid quality, solid woods and the ebony fretboard. They are beasts.
@@turrafirmaguitarchannel I may try to find an LS myself. The prices have gone up a lot since I bought my two some years ago. In fact, they are around twice the price these days. I'm in the UK. They do have real power for harder strumming. I have other acoustics of the same or perhaps even better quality, but these get played much more. I once owned a 2012 Martin D-18. That is my benchmark for all other guitars. Some say that these LL and LS series are overbuilt. Personally, I think that's a good thing. Less likely to have problems with the tops bulging etc.
I am thinking about getting the LL16 but there is none to found locally. I don't like buying acoustics online and don't like shipping back if it doesn't work out. I found a used one online in Tennessee, so I am just staring at it online. If I get the LL16 it will complete my acoustic lineup. Dreadnaught Guild d50 and smaller body Yamaha AC3M DLX are my other two main acoustics. I have two lower end guitars and they both sound lower end, no love lost there.
I have bought guitars online and I like to see a photo of the saddle height and a measurement of the action at the 12th fret. If those things are OK I will take a punt. Did you end up getting an LL16?
@@turrafirmaguitarchannel Haven't bought the LL16. Those photos are a good idea. There is no rush to buy. I am a bit curious about the rosewood vs. mahogany difference. Does it really matter all that much?
I have never been a fan of undersaddle pickups, for that reason, that saddle was looser than I'd like it to be myself. Full contact.
Yep, I don’t like under saddle pickups either. There are are a lot of emperors without clothes plugging in acoustic guitars with under saddle pickups in my opinion. Re the loose saddle here, I have a snug fitting bone saddle in this guitar now and I think it sounds better.
Beautiful sounding guitar. If you change out the bridge pins to say bone, it'll sound. even better.
I might try bone pins, as the Engelmann could handle the zing. Whereas ebony pins are more mellow.
@@turrafirmaguitarchannel Yeah i agree, Ebony pins do have a more mellow sound to them.
Very good demonstration! Where is this Yamaha guitar made? In Japan or China?
Thankyou! The LL16 series are made in China. The higher number LL guitars are made in Japan. I have never played a Japanese one, apparently they are more hand made, like a custom shop.
Sounds good.
Здравствуйте, что на Ваш взгляд предпочтительнее будет под вокал ymaha LL- 16,ll-16m или FG-3. лучше будет взять.
Hi as they are all similar large body size I think they would all be similar for vocal accompaniment. It would be a case of which tone you prefer. Maybe think about trying smaller body sizes to see if those sit better with your voice. All the best from Australia 👋🇦🇺
👍👌🆗, спасибо,привет из России.
That was very interesting it's saddĺe being as lose as it was (quality control??) Yes even the best of guitar maker's slip up sometimes, & its a simply fix, which is why I make & fit these myself if necessary & before I buy I always check them first, if there's a problem there I Always ask for a discount or the store can fix it for you, Otherwise....?
Thanks for your comment. I also keep a supply of saddles and tweak them myself. I did wonder if the loose fit was on purpose with this Yamaha? In any case I replaced it with bone and it fit a bit more tightly.
That is a long scale length... I guess it's suited to altered tunings....
Yes, Martin D28 is 25.4” vs 25 9/16 on the Yamaha. It’s confusing that Martin mix decimal and imperial in their measure. 1/10 inch is 2.54mm, plus the extra 1/64” is .397mm, so that makes the Yamaha just a fraction under 3mm longer.
Perché non ha il manico a 5 strati???
Hi, yes my guitar has 5 piece neck, but the colour is almost identical, they did not use the darker wood on my one.
thank you very much for the reply Of course I understood I didn't think it was a different series or one of the first, I was very happy I bought two of them from LS 16 and the l l 16 d
How does the ll16 compare to the Eastman e3de
Hi Justin. The E3DE has not had much time out of the case since I got the Yamaha. I will do a comparison video. Stay posted!
@@turrafirmaguitarchannel thank you Sir for the comparison video. I have an E3DE just swapped out the bridge pins for bone ones it sound better to me now.
What is better ls6 or ls16
Hi, the LS16 is better as it has solid rosewood back and sides, the LS6 has laminated back and sides.
The higher the number in the L series the higher the quality and materials.
What do you think about ls16?
Well firstly I think about the LS16 a lot. I almost bought one at my local music shop soon after I got the LL. It was lovely and loud for a small body guitar. The body is actually quite deep. Anyway, I went back a week later and it was sold. I then discovered it was bought by my guitar buddy Chris who did the humidity video with me!
I think the LS16 would be great for recording, where you generally want to remove that extra bass anyway.
I just ordered one today. Thanks You for your help
Hi, Yes sorry for being greedy! I now own the LL16 in burst and the Ls16 in natural. They are amazing guitars - I am happy to bring the Ls16 around sometime if you want to do a comparison video for your channel (it's guitar buddy Chris using my dodgy youtube handle ;)
yeh its a good sounding guitar man might get it👌 but it just had a bit too fat neck for my feel fk great sounding guitar
The LL16 has 1 3/4 inch nut and not super slim, but I don’t feel it is chunky. I think you would like the Blueridge neck, that is the slimmest neck I ever had on an acoustic. Good luck finding a guitar!