Takamine G340
My Review Of The Takamine G340
I love guitars and writing reviews! It’s a great combination! I get to play all kinds of different guitars and write about them. It’s just perfect!
I especially like helping the beginner guitarists out there since they really need the most help in choosing the right guitar. I’ve always said you need to purchase as the highest quality guitar you can afford to keep you motivated. After all, it’s difficult enough to learn how to play guitar without trying to play an instrument that doesn’t really sound good in the first place. So, I went hunting for the perfect guitar in the mid-range price that would be excellent for any one. Not just a beginner. I ended up landing on the Takamine G340 Acoustic Guitar and here’s what I found…..
“First, Here’s What You Need To Look At When Buying A Guitar”
- What Is The Top Of The Guitar Made Of?
- What Is The Hardware Made Of?
- What Type Of Wood Is Used On The Fretboard & Bridge?
- What Type Of Wood Is Used On The Back & Sides Of The Guitar?
- What Material Is Used For The Nut & Saddle?
What Is The Top Of The Guitar Made Of?
This is arguably the most important part of the acoustic guitar. It is where the guitar gets its sound. The two most popular guitar tops are spruce and cedar. They tend to have the best resonance and give the greatest harmonic content over time. All good quality guitars come with what they call a solid top. This just means that the top has been cut out of a solid piece of wood. Many of the lesser expensive guitars these days come with laminate tops. This is basically a fancy way of saying “plywood”. It’s a layer of thinly cut spruce or cedar laid on top of laminated wood. This is less desirable since the guitar tends to not age its tone well over time.
The Takamine G340 comes with a high quality laminate spruce top. Although it’s a laminate… I was impressed with its sound quality.
What Is The Hardware Made Of?
The main hardware on a guitar are the tuning pegs or machines they call them. The most common being chrome die-cast metal. The tuners are also a make or break part of the guitar. After all, if the tuning pegs don’t hold? The guitar will go out of tune often. This can be really frustrating. Especially for beginners since they may just think they sound awful when its actually the guitar that is just out of tune.
The Takamine G340 comes with high quality gold plated tuners with a 18:1 ratio. Most tuner come in a 15:1, 18:1 & 20:1. The higher number indicates more turns per rotation. The higher number helps for fine tuning. This is very desirable since it alleviates the need to go up and down several times with your tuner before the string is in tune.
What Type Of Wood Is Used On The Fretboard & Bridge?
The fretboard and bridge are arguably going to be where the guitar gets the most wear over the years. The bridge is where the strings are placed through the body of the guitar where the pull pins are located. It’s very important that a good wood is used.
The fretboard or fingerboard is pretty obvious why this would get a lot of where… It’s where your fingers will be doing the walking. Oil and grime can build up over the months from just playing. So, it’s important to clean your fretboard often to help it last.
The Takamine G340 comes with a rosewood fretboard and bridge. Rosewood is a very strong wood and is the most common used on all guitars because of this fact. Even the highest quality guitars use rosewood.
What Others Are Saying….
“I am just learning guitar but, so experienced friends suggested the G340. Six months later i can play a few tunes and thought I was ready to get a more expensive guitar. I could not find one under $1000.00 that sounded better. I looked for about 2 weeks and for my ear it’s not out there”
Rating: 
“I have been playing guitar for 5 years now and this is the best guitar I could find for the price. It has a beautiful sound and the structure is sturdy”
Rating:
“‘m an intermediate player and own a Martin as well, this guitar rocks in terms of looks and playability. The sound is good too, works well for both rhythm and finger picking. “
Rating:
5 out of 5 Stars Based on 3 reviews
What Should You Expect To Pay And What’s Included
The Takamine G340 retails for $359. However, I’ve seen most online and mortar stores tag it for under $200
The Takamine G340 comes as is and DOES NOT INCLUDE A CASE However, Amazon has a great package that includes a MBTAGCW1 Hard Case, Planet Waves Care Kit, A set of D’Addario EJ16 Strings, guitar picks, strap and a string winder and cutter called the Takamine G340 Acoustic Guitar with DPS/Planet 16 Pick Sampler D?Addario EJ16 Strings Planet Waves DP0002 String Winder Ultra Stand PWS100 Strap Planet Waves Care Kit MBTAGCW1 Hard Case
The case is excellent, the guitar picks are standard, the strings are high quality, the strap is less than desirable, the care kit is standard and the string winder and string cutter is an awesome combo. I own the very one myself.
“Here’s My Final Thoughts On The Takamine G340 Acoustic Guitar”
Sound
Excellent! As you would expect from Takamine. This one is quite a upgrade from the Jasmine S35. However, I would still put it in the beginner category for guitars. I noticed a difference in sound right away. Much more smooth and balanced than the Jasmine. Very pleasing to the ear. People who listen will be hard pressed to know that it is a guitar under $200. I would have to say I was mostly impressed with the low tones of this guitar since it was just a standard dreadnaught I wasn’t expecting to have such great lows.
As you can see from the video to the right the quality of this guitars sound. Depending on the speaker of you computer of course. Check it out!
Action
I gave this such a high rating because of the price range. This is a very workable action that was easy to play even on the higher frets. Played with a lighter gauge string this action will rival the best of them. Of course I haven’t played many bad actions from Takamine. Even the Jasmine was great in my book. Try it out at your local Guitar Center. You’ll see what I mean. 
Reliability
The G series guitars by Takamine is where you’ll really start to see the good craftsmanship using higher quality woods and little more time spend on crafting the guitar. You really can’t go wrong with the reliability of this guitar. Although not one of the most popular models… This is a guitar I’d definitely recommend. Even for the more intermediate guitar player who’s ready to invest in a little higher quality.
Impression
My overall impression is 5 stars considering the price. I would definitely recommend this guitar over the Jasmine if you’re willing to spend a little more. It just has a higher quality of sound and craftsmanship. Plus, it has the Takamine name. Which speaks for itself. No one will even notice that you’re playing one of Takamine’s lower end guitars.
I didn’t see any bad reviews. However, I didn’t see many review either. This is one I’d check out at your local music store. I was really impressed. If I didn’t see the price tag? I’d think I was playing an $800 guitar seriously!
Find The Best Price On The Takamine G340 Here
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