What are the Different Types of Acoustic Guitar Body?

Since forever, I've been an advocate for choosing a guitar size that fits the physical form, the size of your hand, and its usage. If you're going to be a singer-songwriter as well, the acoustic guitar shouldn't overpower your vocals either. Have a look at the various body types and sizes of acoustic guitars and write down the unique sound and practical application for each style.

Travel / Junior Guitar Body

The smallest acoustic guitars are travel and junior guitars. These are perfect for a young beginner just learning how to navigate the fretboard. Their short scale length means more relaxed string tension, and their compact size means that the guitar sits closer to the player's body and makes it easier to get the picking hand over the bout areas (the curved ends top and bottom of the instrument)

These are also great options for the serious semi-pro and pro who need a guitar for flying on an airplane or on a tour bus. These guitars tend to have less bass response as a result of their size compared to full-size guitars but tend to project well enough for casual practice sessions.

In this division, Yamaha has available the 3/4 size JR2, APXT2, and APXT2EW models.

Classical/Flamenco (Nylon-String) Body

These nylon-string guitars come in several distinct sizes. There are three types of "school" classical guitars: 1/2 scale, which is the smallest, 3/4 scale, and 4/4 scale, which is full-size. It opens up the instrument to all ages and allows them to continue into a subsequent body size as their stature and performance increase all with the same familiarity.

In standard classical and flamenco nylon-string models, the size will be the same, but their tonewoods are varied, between solid cedar tops and solid spruce, as well as mahogany versus rosewood back and sides. The mahogany and cedar will both provide rich, warm tones, with lots of bass, while the various mahogany/spruce combinations also augment treble and add clarity to the low end.

Yamaha classical guitars include the CG/CGX Series instruments and Indian guitar Yamaha F310.

There are two categories within the medium-size guitar category: the concert and "grand auditorium"-bodied medium-size steel-string guitars. These have broader shoulders and a more reentrant body bout than instruments in the small guitar category.

In my view, these are the best acoustic guitars for players who want to be able to articulate fingerstyle and chordal strumming on the same instrument. They are very well-balanced in tone, being low, mid, and high, and their very manageable size and shape work well for a player of any age. More medium-body guitars can also be found with cutaways that provide additional access to the upper frets. These cutaway styles do not cut short the lower body bout or the instrument depth, but because of the smaller volume sound chamber, they may be slightly less loud and bassy sounding.

Yamaha concert-body guitars include APX Series instruments.

Large Body Types: Dreadnought and Western Guitar Body

Dreadnought guitars are always steel-string because they're full in the upper as well as the lower bout of the body. These instruments, with their strong, articulate sound particularly pleasing to singer-songwriters and bluegrass musicians, emphasize projection that's important for an acoustic combo. Yamaha flagship FG9 and electro-acoustic guitars online represent very epitomical forms of such instruments.

Western body-style guitars- think once again steel-string-are very similar to dreadnoughts and sometimes even include a cutaway for easy access to the upper region of the fretboard.

Extra-Large Guitar Body Type

The largest acoustic guitar types are known as jumbo guitars. Projection, low-end response, and fat, warm tones issued from these performance workhorses, which you can think of as being the Clydesdales of guitars.

It's very common to hear female artists playing jumbos. Their low-end response and midrange warmth offer a nice balance to the vocal frequencies. Guitar instrumentalists also like the fullness of the sound they offer in playing with jumbos. When it's the only instrument onstage, you need all the bandwidth you can get!

Some jumbo guitars, such as Yamaha CPX Series instruments or Yamaha F280 Guitar, feature cutaways on the body for easy access to higher frets.

Explore the different types of guitars and find the one body type according to what suits you the best. Buy the Best Electro Acoustic Guitar and acoustic guitar from Yamaha Music India.