Yamaha CPX700 Electro Acoustic Guitar

Top - Solid Spruce
Body - Nato
Neck - nato
Fingerboard - Rosewood, 22 Frets
Scale - 650mm
Machines - Chrome
Bridge - Rosewood
Pickup - SYSTEM56 - New Contact Pickups (1 way system)
Controls - 3 Band EQ, Volume, Tuner

Like all CPX models the new Yamaha CPX700 comes with a slightly smaller body than a full-size jumbo, larger than it's cousin, the APX series.
The handsomely crafted guitar features a solid spruce top and nato back and sides and produces a bright, richly textured sound - one that, thanks to the solid spruce top, will gradually mature.
But that’s only half the story, because the instrument’s new one-way pickup system, in combination with a 3-Band EQ (with integrated tuner, provides a perfect amplified sound too.
The headstock is slim and angular, fully bound in cream plastic, the front has a gloss finish, showing the wood grain through. The Yamaha logo and an impressive Compass motif shine out brilliantly on white and green Abolone, and the small black truss rod cover also says Compass, the Series to which the CPX guitars belong.
The back of the headstock is satin natural, with 2 rows of 3-a-side machine heads, in Chrome, they are unbranded die-cast style.
The Nato neck has a satin paint job, making for smooth, free flowing polayability. It's got a D profile, not at all a fat neck, but not overly thin either. Top nut width is 44mm, action at the 12th fret is 4mm on the bass side, and 3mm on the treble, string spacing at the bridge is 54mm, making it a good finger picking model.
The Rosewood fingerboard is fully bound in cream plastic, with noce green Abolone dot markers and the expected immaculate fretwork, a good height, well rounded and polished up. The Rosewood itself is also good, a nice tight grain and buffed up to a waxy finish.
The neck joins the Nato body at the 14th fret on the bass side, and the 17th on the treble. A Chrome straphook is present at the back of the heel joint. On the upper bout near the neck is the battery compartment, and go around a little further and you'll fine the impressive Yamaha AMF EQ unit.
This has a volume rotary control, and sliders for the 3 band EQ and presence controls. It also has a built in fully chromatic tuner, which seems to be a feature on most electro acoustics these days.
The body itself is big, a little small than a Jumbo, it is about 400mm at its widest. It's a deep body as well, tapered from the neck at 100mm to the bottom at 110mm. The top is solid Spruce, and both the top and back are bound in cream plastic.
The top has a sparkly green Abolone soundhole rosette and a Rosewood bridge with 6 black bridge pins. The lower straphook doubles up as the output jack socket.
It's sounds lovely too, crisp and sweet, whilst picking, loud and booming whilst strumming. The larger soundbox of the CPX Range gives rise to a satisfyingly warm low end and clear, ringing highs. The pickup is excellent quality too, accurately recreating the guitars natural tones to perfection without any hum or feedback.
An impressive instrument that's been a staple of Yamaha's acoustic guitar range for over 10 years now, it's probably their best selling model in this class.
Large bodied, big sounding, great playing and good looking.

£409