Yamaha FG700S Vs FS700S: Which Is Better? (2023 Edition)

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If you’re curious about the Yamaha FG700S Vs FS700S guitars and which is better for you and your situation, you’ve come to the right post!

Yamaha’s F and FX Series

For quite a while now, Yamaha has been making some incredible acoustic guitars. When it comes to steel-string ones, the F and FX series stand out in popularity.

The reason for this is, of course, the affordable price. However, what’s important to note is that Yamaha keeps their quality at a pretty decent level. And, above all, these models are fairly consistent.

Anything labeled as FG, FX, FGX, FS, or similar, is your go-to guitar. These are, for the most part, versatile all-purpose instruments. They’re mostly marketed for beginners or intermediate players. However, they also come in handy as backup instruments or even workhorse guitars for some gigging.

There is, of course, some variety of choices within these series. But for the most part, they come with the classic body formation. You’ll have a spruce top along with a mahogany back.

In my opinion, you can’t go wrong with these instruments. Those that I find especially useful are models with active electronics. Additionally, the combination of price and quality is really good.

Yamaha FG700S

Yamaha FG700S - The World's Most Popular Guitar?

For a while, FG700S has been known as the most popular beginner guitar. But, from my experience, it can serve you well beyond the novice stage.

First off, the guitar comes with a dreadnaught body shape. The top is solid spruce, sporting a rosewood bridge with a plastic saddle on it. The back and sides are laminate nato wood and so is the neck.

We also have a rosewood fingerboard on the neck. Going further, there’s also a regular plastic nut on the guitar.

Everything is rounded up with a pretty decent-looking binding. It all fits pretty nicely with the colors and shades of its top and sides.

Overall, this is your average beginner-to-intermediate model. The instrument’s popularity was no surprise as it was fairly cheap. But for this price category, it did more than well.

Most notably, the guitar has a pretty full tone (as you can hopefully tell from the video above). The dreadnought body brought a slight boost to the bottom ends. But at the same time, you will notice the crispiness and clarity in the high ends.

Yamaha FS700S

Kraft Music - Yamaha FS700S Acoustic Guitar Demo with Jake Blake

Then we have FS700S, which brings a different twist to the FG700S model. Essentially, if you know the features and materials of FG700S, you’ll know FS700s. This also goes for its aesthetic traits, as well as the hardware.

However, they’re not identical guitars. The main difference here is the body shape. FS700S is a Grand Concert or 00 guitar. It’s slightly shallower and more compact. Its overall volume is smaller. Additionally, the scale length is shorter.

As a result, the tone gets slightly brighter, giving it more punch. For the most part, I’d say that it’s more of a lead instrument.

Yamaha FG700S Vs FS700S: Which Is Better?

One thing that I should mention first here is the fact that these guitars are no longer in production. So you can only find them used. And although both are pretty decent, this is the main reason why I wouldn’t consider getting them.

Sure, buying a used guitar can be great if you get a good bargain for it. And if someone near you is selling either of these for a good price, then, by all means, get it. But if you’re planning to go out of your way to find one, I think there’s no need for that. After all, you can find a guitar model of the same style in almost any guitar store these days.

But going back to these models, both FG700S and FS700S are within the same quality tier. Technically, you can’t go wrong with either. But one might suit your needs more than the other.

FG700S is a dreadnought, so it’s a larger one. This brings some boost to the bottom ends. You’ll get that massive and boomy kind of tone. It can sound great if you’re performing on your own without other instruments.

On the other hand, FS700S comes with a Grand Concert, or 00, shape. This brings a tighter tone. You may not have some of the boomy bottom ends. Instead, you’ll have more controlled basses. Also, in my experience, such guitars usually pierce through the mix better. With its clarity, it comes in handy as a lead instrument.

The size and the shape of the body are important factors here. If we’re comparing these two models, a lot of players prefer FS700S. This isn’t unusual as a Grand Concert shape is smaller and usually feels more ergonomic.

But, as I said, you can’t go wrong with either. They both serve their purpose.

Alternatives That I’d Recommend

Because these two models are no longer in production, I have recommendations for alternatives. Luckily, there are plenty of guitars within this price and quality tier.

These days, Yamaha has FG800 and FS800 as continuations of these two guitars. FG is a dreadnought while FS is a concert one. We have an almost identical configuration that we had with the old models. FG800 is your go-to acoustic guitar for beginners these days.

If you’re willing to give a few bucks more, Yamaha has upgraded versions of these two. Aside from some improvements in aesthetic features, FG820 and FS820 come with mahogany back, sides, and necks. If we’re talking about the $200-300 territory, these two would be my choice.

Another one that I should mention is Seagull S6. Although a bit pricier, it’s probably the best bang for the buck. These Canadian-made guitars come with a cedar top and cherry back and sides. The headstock design might seem weird, but it keeps the instrument in tune.

There are a few other models worth checking out. Fender’s CD-60S is another cheap but great dreadnought. It comes with your regular spruce top and mahogany back and sides. And, interestingly enough, it has a pretty comfortable neck. It feels like it was made for electric guitars.

Yamaha FG700s vs FS700s: Conclusion

I hope this article has helped you think through this guitar comparison and which is best for you!

And if you want to read more about Yamaha guitar comparisons on this blog, then check out:

Lastly, feel free to leave a message in the comments below if you have questions about this or another guitar-related topic!

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