Yamaha fg8x0 vs Martin dread jr
 

If you could only have one of these as your first/only guitar which would you choose?

DJr no question. Better neck and the better tone… but that’s just this guy’s opinion [emoji846]

I have both. The Yamaha is by far the best value. I've found the Martin slightly easier to play due to the short scale and the 1 3/4 nut width. The Martin requires seasonal adjustments. The Yamaha has always been perfect since it was taken out of the box. No tweaks. No fuss. The Yamaha has more depth but its a full size dread. For a beginner I'd recommend the Yamaha. For a seasoned player, the Martin. The Martin didn't impress me until I cut a bone saddle. Now it sounds bigger than it is.

I can play most chords, and some scales. I don’t own a guitar yet but I practice on my uncles when he visits and I have it narrowed down to these two. I like to primarily play rhythm.

Which one do you reckon has more growl? It’s not possible for me to play any at this time to compare, unfortunately.

We do have a lot of tools here and am good with my hands so some modification doesn’t intimidate me.

I've had the Dread Jr, and it's a fine guitar, but if I were just going to have one guitar between the two, I'd go with my FG830. The Junior requires more care being all wood, and is a non-standard scale length, so I wouldn't want it to be the only guitar I have and play. Just my personal preference.

Yamaha FG800. Get a bone nut and saddle and some ebony bridge pins for it. You'll not need to upgrade for a long time. Great guitar out of the box. All 11 of my Yamaha guitars get the nut/saddle/pins upgrades.

I've owned two FG700S guitars and both were fantastic. I regrettably sold the first to a coworker who was getting started. Her husband's friends who all played guitar remarked at how well it played and sounded. I did a setup on it with Tusq nut and saddle. Ebony bridge pins. The second one I traded for my large pedal board. The pawn shop I traded it to sold it for $249. And yes, retail was $199. They're that good.

My drummer has an FG800 he wanted me to check out and set up for him. Right out of the box it's pretty darn good. Of course, if it were mine I'd change the aforementioned parts, but Yamaha FG gets my vote. They sound great. Play great and will make the Martin Jr look bad. And sound bad too.

The Martin Jr is a 15/16 size dreadnaught, the Yamaha FG series is a 1 1/8 size dreadnaught. To me, the size made a big difference.

The Yamaha I had was a FG830. Sound was incredible, much bigger than the Martin Jr, but what a beast. It is a really big guitar.

The Martin sounds good particularly when plugged in. The amplification makes up for the smaller body size. My brother said " the Martin plays itself" and it does, easiest playing guitar I have played.

I sold the Yamaha to a buddy who is built taller and lankier than me and he loves it.

Best to take them on a test drive.

try both and decide for yourself - you're the only one that has to live with your decision

Thanks for the input guys. Unfortunately I’m not able to play them. The nearest place is a guitar center 40 miles away and we don’t have a working vehicle here.

I appreciate the input. It’s hard to tell from YouTube videos.

My two cents, try an FS800 series…the FS is slightly smaller, more comfortable to play (to me anyway), and still sounds deep and rich. I think the FS is a better comparison to the Jr. and a darn fine guitar.

Lots of love for the Yamaha but my opinion still stands...

and since you asked :)

They did revamp them in 2019 to have scalloped bracing so that may help them tonally but I've picked up all of them in the series and nothing wowed me. The dreadnought did sound the best of them all, but that richness probably comes from a deeper body and overall cavernous space. Even then it doesn't top the DJr.

-The Jr is all solid and will sound better with time
-The Jr has a more breathable finish, and 1/4" bracing- very lightly built
-The Jr bag is crap so I would personally be replacing with a deluxe gig bag or hard case
-The Jr has a Richlite finger board and bridge (does not bother me one bit)
-The Jr is a few hundred more Benjamins but I'd pay it over the Yamaha even still

Nobody can make up this decision for you but you may want to order from Guitar Center, send the first one back, and finally try the other. My prediction is that if you start with the Yamaha and then the DJr you will keep the Jr, but everyone is different. Personally I hate a full size dread comfort wise so that count out the best sounding of the Yamahas. I also prefer the Martin neck by a continent mile. I'm not talking about electronics at all, so my opinion does not factor that in.

Yamaha guy is right about pins and saddles. I always upgrade at least the saddle and sometimes the pins. The nut typically gets left alone but that is just me.

I won’t be plugging in at all. It would be the version without electronics. I’m a bigger person about 6’3” if that matters.

I really want to choose the one I will feel more in my chest when strummed. I know neither is the best option for that- but a budget is a budget.

My uncles guitar is an old guild dread. I love how I can feel the vibrations.

I think the best version of the Yamaha is the 820 with mahogany back and sides. Nice upgrade over the 800 and warmer tone than the 830.

I gave my 22 year old grandson that same Yamaha for Christmas.


Plays great, needed only a bit of attention at the nut, setup otherwise quite adequate even for a beginner.

I'm not sure I'd want a 24“ scale to be my only guitar, however good an instrument it was. So out of those two it would have to be the Yamaha for me, and some budget left over for setup, bone nut and saddle etc. But choosing only between those two seems like a slightly contrived situation, as the price of the D Junior would also put you in the ballpark of the Yamaha L series, the full size Martin X series, the plainer models of all-solid Eastman, and quite a few more.