Orangewood Guitars: The Complete 2023 Buyer’s Guide

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If you’re interested in learning more about Orangewood Guitars, you’ve come to the right post!

Unlike brands like Ibanez, Fender, Epiphone, Gibson, and others, Orangewood is not a household name.

In fact, many guitarists don’t know of this brand.

Regardless of how much you know about Orangewood guitars, I hope this article helps you learn more about them.

Orangewood is a guitar company based in Los Angeles.

They produce a line of guitars and ukuleles.

It is also one of the new wave guitar companies that sells directly to its customers through its website.

This business model has a lot of positives.

For instance, they can market higher-quality guitars for a lower price, removing the markup that retailers build into their pricing.

However, it also has a major downside.

Because you won’t find these guitars at Guitar Center or other major guitar retailers, you probably won’t be able to play an Orangewood guitar before buying it.

The good news is that Orangewood Guitars offers free shipping and a 30-day return policy.

So shipping won’t add to your cost, and you can return the guitar if you aren’t pleased with your purchase.

I’ll discuss this more in the following sections.

But first, let’s talk about the quality of these guitars.

Quality

Some aspects of a guitar’s quality are subjective.

What I like in a guitar you won’t always like and vice versa, of course.

However, there are standard metrics most people look for in a high-quality guitar.

Generally, wood type is a consideration in the quality of a guitar.

High-quality guitars also have good intonation meaning they produce an accurate pitch up and down the neck and can stay in tune.

Intonation mainly has to do with good manufacturing and a good set up.

So how do Orangewood guitars stack up against these metrics?

What sort of quality are Orangewood guitars?

$295 vs $7000 Guitar | Cheap vs Expensive | That big a difference?

Orangewood Guitars are manufactured in Asia and assembled in Los Angeles by Orangewood’s expert technicians before being shipped out to the buyer.

On their website, they say:

“Every guitar is thoughtfully set up by our expert technicians in Los Angeles, saving you time and money.”

If you’re unfamiliar with the concept of a guitar setup, know that the setup is extremely important.

A guitar technician or luthier sets up a guitar by making sure:

  • the frets are level and don’t cause the strings to buzz,
  • the action (the distance between the neck and strings) is at an optimal level,
  • and the guitar is otherwise prepped for playing so you get the best sound you can get from your instrument.

Getting a guitar set up by a professional is John Mayer’s number one recommendation to new guitarists.

So the fact that Orangewood sets up their guitars is promising.

You can also see which materials Orangewood uses in each of their guitar models on their shop page.

Every popular wood type has its pros and cons, and the best wood type for you will depend on what you’re looking for in a guitar.

You can read about guitar wood types and their pros and cons here.

However, note that Orangewood uses the same materials as some guitars made by bigger name brands like Taylor and Martin.

Also, some Orangewood guitars come with hard-cases.

In short, Orangewood guitars seem to be high-quality, especially for the price. 

How much do they cost?

Orangewood guitars range from $195 USD to $945 USD.

They also have mid-range guitars with the following prices: $295, $395, $495, and $695 USD.

The Ava Mahogany Live which goes for $945 USD is a really charming, all solid Mahogany grand concert guitar.

It also comes equipped with the award-winning LR Baggs Anthem pickup.

This along with an ebony bridge and fingerboard, and first-class guitar strings, make it seem like a great deal.

Orangewood Guitars Payment Plans

Orangewood also offers payment plans through a financing company called Affirm for purchases made on their website.

Apparently Affirm is currently not available for buyers in West Virginia or Iowa.

But for the rest of the US, Affirm allows buyers to split the cost of their order into three, six, or twelve monthly payments.

These splits are handled directly through Affirm. 

On Affirm, loans for three months have a 0% APR.

Loans for six or twelve months have a 10–30% APR depending on the customer’s credit.

But all loans through affirm have zero late fees.

On Orangewood’s website, when placing an order online, just select Affirm as your payment method during checkout.

After filling out a few personal details, they’ll tell you within a few seconds if they have approved you for a loan.

This makes these guitars more accessible especially if you lack the funds to make a full purchase up front.

And although some guitar retailers may offer financing plans, the built-in aspect of this financing option is another positive aspect of Orangewood’s fully online business model.

Return Policy

Like I mentioned above, the return policy for an instrument you can’t play before you buy like an Orangewood guitar is really important.

That said, let’s take a closer look at their policy.

Around the holidays, Orangewood sometimes extends their return policy.

So if you’re considering buying around Thanksgiving or Christmas, be sure to double-check their policy.

Regardless, Orangewood’s year-round return policy is 30 days and covers the standard return shipping cost.

The only thing you’ll have to cover is a $15.00 restocking fee which will be deducted from return.

Also, you must return an Orangewood guitar in its original shipping box, and they can’t accept returns if you installed the pickguard that comes with every Orangewood guitar.

So, it is best to wait until you’re sure you want to hang onto this guitar before gluing on that pickguard. 

Conclusion

I hope this guide has helped you evaluate whether an Orangewood guitar is for you.

Although an Orangewood guitar isn’t on my list of recommended guitars, they seem to be a great addition to anyone’s collection looking to experiment with a new brand and a new sound.

Do you have an Orangewood guitar or do you have more questions about them?

Let me know in the comments!

2 Responses

  1. Kenneth R says:

    Not every orangewood guitar comes with a hard case in fact most are soft gig bags. They are fairly nice but not hard cases. Nice article other wise.

    1. Hi Kenneth,

      I updated the article accordingly. Thanks for the edit!

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