Long-time player - first serious purchase. Advice please!

[Aimelie]

Popping in to mention that Furch has stopped production of the Blue Plus model (gloss top with transparent pick guard). Probably that’s why you couldn’t find one anywhere.

Oh well. The Blue is still a great guitar and a solid value in the category of all solid wood construction.

Imho, naturally.

[*Sundance*]

Originally Posted by Aimelie

Popping in to mention that Furch has stopped production of the Blue Plus model (gloss top with transparent pick guard). Probably that’s why you couldn’t find one anywhere.

Oh well. The Blue is still a great guitar and a solid value in the category of all solid wood construction.

Imho, naturally.

Yes, I did notice that it is no longer on their website. The transparent pickguard is nice but not a deal breaker for me.

I'm completely torn between the Furch Blue and the Yamaha FS5. Kind of leaning more to the Yamaha to be honest because I already have a cedar top and for some reason just feel drawn to it more than the Furch. I'm sure both are great so it's a tough decision!

[Charmed Life Picks]

Originally Posted by *Sundance*

Yes, I did notice that it is no longer on their website. The transparent pickguard is nice but not a deal breaker for me.

I'm completely torn between the Furch Blue and the Yamaha FS5. Kind of leaning more to the Yamaha to be honest because I already have a cedar top and for some reason just feel drawn to it more than the Furch. I'm sure both are great so it's a tough decision!

I confess to not know too much about Furch, but you can rarely go wrong with Yamaha.

sm

[stillsteven]

Originally Posted by *Sundance*

I'm completely torn between the Furch Blue and the Yamaha FS5. Kind of leaning more to the Yamaha to be honest because I already have a cedar top and for some reason just feel drawn to it more than the Furch. I'm sure both are great so it's a tough decision!

Between those two, I think Yamaha has a slightly better value. You get hardshell case and a more premium finish than Furch's open pore. Furch however has a bolt on neck, an advantage in my eyes and maybe you can upgrade to Hiscox case which is one of the best case around.

[*Sundance*]

Noticed that the Yamaha has a slightly shorter scale (25 inch) compared to the Furch. Is that likely to be a problem with open tunings, which I do like to use sometimes?

[Coler]

Originally Posted by *Sundance*

Noticed that the Yamaha has a slightly shorter scale (25 inch) compared to the Furch. Is that likely to be a problem with open tunings, which I do like to use sometimes?

I play in DADGAD a lot on my 000-28 which has a 24.9 inch scale, strung with Martin Lifespan PB 12s, so I'll say no. I also play thr same guitar in standard an equal amount of time including heavy strumming. Action at 12 is 2.5 (I will lower it just a hair to make 2.4 next time I change strungs) with no issues (buzzing) in either tuning.

[Aimelie]

The Yamaha would be a very fine guitar, of course. It does have a slightly narrower nut width of 44mm versus 45mm for the Furch. Also, don’t forget Furch make Blues with spruce tops and walnut back and sides. (Although that is one combination I haven’t had the pleasure of trying out yet.)

[*Sundance*]

After much more deliberation, I have finally decided on a Furch Blue G CM LR Baggs SPE and my very generous wife has just placed the order. Fortunately it is in stock and should arrive soon.

I've read so many good things about Furch guitars and although I love the look of the Yamahas too, I am sure I won't be disappointed with my choice.

Thanks for all the help. I will be sure to post a NGD thread with photos when the time comes.

[Aimelie]

Holy cow! That’s great.

You’re in for a real treat.



P.S. Did you end up going over budget a little?

[mischultz]

I’d be hard pressed not to pursue the Furch Blue OM. Tremendous value, checks your boxes, and it’s just a great instrument, full stop.

Should’ve read all the way down. I think you’ll be thoroughly pleased.

[Charmed Life Picks]

Congrats, Sundance. Please do give us a report after you play into it a bit.

scott memmer

[*Sundance*]

So, the Furch arrived this week and I managed to persuade my wife to let me spend some time with it to check it over.

First, it looks beautiful and the build quality seems fantastic.

My initial impression when I played it was a bit of disappointment. It didn't resonate as much as I expected and seemed more muted than my SP6. I know that the SP6 is a dreadnought but I still expected more from the Furch.

After playing it some more, I began to appreciate the playability of the neck. I also felt that the intonation was much better than my SP6 and at times I really enjoyed it.

But, the resonance seemed lacking. I then noticed some fret buzz when I had the capo on, or even just with some chords at the lower frets. The action seems ok...not sure I'd want it any higher but obviously something needs tweaked to stop the buzzing. I think the buzzing, which is on the lower strings, is hampering the resonance so I'm sure it should sound much better than it is.

I also noticed that the saddle is quite low so not a lot of room to play with there.

Another thing is that it came with no paperwork of any kind. No certificate of authenticity, no warranty info, truss rod tool, etc. The Furch website says all guitars come with a servicing pack containing this stuff and each guitar has a 3 year warranty.

Obviously, I can pay to get a setup by a tech, and I believe the guitar will sound much more beautiful when setup correctly. However, I am a bit disappointed about the lack of paperwork and attention to detail by the retailer. I am almost tempted to return it and buy it again from elsewhere but this would have to be done pretty soon while I am still entitled to do this.

Would appreciate any advice!

[Aimelie]

Originally Posted by *Sundance*

So, the Furch arrived this week and I managed to persuade my wife to let me spend some time with it to check it over.

First, it looks beautiful and the build quality seems fantastic.

My initial impression when I played it was a bit of disappointment. It didn't resonate as much as I expected and seemed more muted than my SP6. I know that the SP6 is a dreadnought but I still expected more from the Furch.

After playing it some more, I began to appreciate the playability of the neck. I also felt that the intonation was much better than my SP6 and at times I really enjoyed it.

But, the resonance seemed lacking. I then noticed some fret buzz when I had the capo on, or even just with some chords at the lower frets. The action seems ok...not sure I'd want it any higher but obviously something needs tweaked to stop the buzzing. I think the buzzing, which is on the lower strings, is hampering the resonance so I'm sure it should sound much better than it is.

I also noticed that the saddle is quite low so not a lot of room to play with there.

Another thing is that it came with no paperwork of any kind. No certificate of authenticity, no warranty info, truss rod tool, etc. The Furch website says all guitars come with a servicing pack containing this stuff and each guitar has a 3 year warranty.

Obviously, I can pay to get a setup by a tech, and I believe the guitar will sound much more beautiful when setup correctly. However, I am a bit disappointed about the lack of paperwork and attention to detail by the retailer. I am almost tempted to return it and buy it again from elsewhere but this would have to be done pretty soon while I am still entitled to do this.

Would appreciate any advice!

Send it back, I think.

There is no way the saddle should be on the low side on a brand new Furch (generally, new, they are pretty good in this regard, if not just a bit high for a steeper break angle which imparts more energy to the top which then means more resonance.) Could even be in need of new strings…

Also, yes, there should be a certificate of authenticity (with serial number indicated), a little bag of extra bridge pins, an Allen wrench and possibly a long plastic pointy tool for adjusting the LR Baggs pickup (if applicable, in your case).

Did this come from Richards Guitars?

Is the serial number a recent one (or has this guitar been in stock for a while)?

Serial number finder at bottom of page at this link:

https://furchguitars.com/us/guitar-name-decoder/

[*Sundance*]

Thanks Aimelie.

I know paperwork isn't perhaps that important but this is a big purchase for me and part of the excitement is the feeling of receiving a guitar lovingly made by a small group of people at Furch. A certificate would certainly have added to that experience.

I checked the serial number and it dates from April 2020. Not sure if that's good or bad, but it does seem a wee while ago.

Unfortunately I didn't buy this from Richard's Guitars. They were my first choice because I read a lot about their attention to detail and good customer service but they just didn't seem to have many Furchs in stock. If I do return this one, I'll certainly get in touch to check what they have available.

Here is a pic of the saddle. I'm no expert but it seems a bit low to me. I did actually watch a Richard's Guitars video recently where he talked about guitars failing their quality control due to a low saddle.

[Aimelie]

Well, I was just worried that this guitar is new old stock, meaning it was already returned once but not before someone else made some “personal adjustments” (like shaving the saddle down).

It’s hard to say from the photo—better would be to see it in profile and with a ruler next to it for scale and perspective.

The buzzing could probably be taken care of with a truss rod adjustment (if you’re familiar with that).

A string change could do a lot to improve the sound if those are the originals from April 2020.

All this said, I would be highly perturbed not to have received at least the certificate of authenticity (again, I have to wonder if it wasn’t lost during a previous sale to someone). This could also devalue the guitar in case of resale one day.

It’s a shame the seller let this go out this way. On the other hand, you’ll have to decide if the good outweighs the less good and can accept getting someone qualified to set the guitar up properly.