Art Lutherie a L Ami Wild Cherry

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In my contempo visit to my local guitar shop I tried, amongst others, the Art and Lutherie Ami guitar.

The first thing that struck me was the size of the Ami. Growing up in a guitar globe where the Dreadnought comes standard, the Ami, based on the parlour shape of the early 1900s, felt actually small.

But that didn?t take away from the sound of this slightly-unlike-than-your-average-guitar little instrument.

What this Review will Encompass

All of my reviews on SixStringAcoustic.com cover both sound and playability. In item, this review will:

Talk over the sound of the Ami, both in terms of its materials and my personal experience of it;
Provide videos to requite y'all some impression of the sound of the Ami;
Discuss the playability of the Ami, both in terms of my experience and in terms of the materials used and other specs;
Provide user reviews to give you lot other people?southward views on the Ami;
Give you lot my opinion on the value for coin of the Ami and what type of guitarist the Ami would exist almost suited to

The Sound of the Ami

More and so than I was expecting when I commencement saw the size of this guitar, it really packed a decent punch.

Which I guess shouldn?t surprise me that much given that a lot of blues artists used this shape of guitar dorsum in the twenty-four hours.

Now information technology of form isn?t going to be able to produce the volume of say a dreadnought shape but certainly wasn't lacking?attitude.

What started out well-nigh feeling like a toy guitar turned out to exist quite a lively instrument but with a warm tone suited well to that bluesy sound.

The Materials

Top (soundboard): Cedar.?Role of that warm tone comes from the Cedar top ? which isn?t the warmest top you lot?ll ever go (endeavour Mahogany) but is definitely warmer sounding than your typical spruce peak. So if y'all like it warm then this is a expert thing but if you lot prefer a brighter sound then this may not be your thing. That beingness said, the sound is probably on the brighter side of warm (if that makes sense) so information technology?s quite well counterbalanced.
Back and sides: The back and sides of the Ami are laminate wild cherry. This besides helps to produce that sound somewhere in the middle of warm and bright. The Seagull S6 Original is fabricated from very like materials ? and that?s no surprise when you learn that Art & Lutherie are a make of Godin guitars (equally is Seagull).
Span: The bridge is made from Rosewood. This is one of the best wood for bridges and does a nifty chore transferring the vibration of the strings into the soundboard.
Nut and Saddle: The nut and saddle are fabricated from a cloth chosen TUSQ by graptech. This is a synthesized fabric that is designed to imitate os ? merely without the potential inconsistencies of os. My experience of TUSQ has always been positive.

Bank check out the videos below to go an idea of the sound

Here are 2 videos that demonstrate the audio of the Ami.

Video 1

Video 2

Playability of the Ami

Overall the Ami was smooth and nice to play.

Only I did have 2 complaints. Firstly the action and secondly the admission to the higher frets.

The Activeness

Equally is almost ever the case, particularly with lower priced guitars, the action of Ami was set also high for my liking. This made it a scrap of an attempt to play and information technology could have been fifty-fifty smoother and nicer to play with a lower action.

That said, some people practice like a higher activity. And, since it?s easier to lower the activeness than it is to raise it, I completely get why it is set upwards this way.

My tastes prefer a lower action then the first thing I would do with this guitar if I bought it would exist to lower the action. So I believe it would be a very prissy guitar to play ? especially for the price.

Access to the Upper Frets

More so than on near other non-cutaway acoustic guitar?s I take played, I establish it quite hard to play anything past the 12^thursday fret on the Ami.

The big reason for this is that the neck joins the trunk of the guitar at the 12^th fret. Nigh guitars these days join at the 14^th fret. The Ami joins at the 12^th equally it is based on a parlour shaped guitar.

Not a problem if you don?t tend to play up there but if you lot do you could discover it a bit frustrating.

The Size

It was quite a novelty playing such a small guitar. And actually quite fun.

It may not be that suitable to everyone. In one of the videos above it really appears to be quite awkward to handle. So if you are a smaller person and so this would be awesome?merely if you are a larger person then it may become quite bad-mannered to play.

I am 6 ft, 185lbs. And so pretty average size for a guy. I institute information technology a little bit awkward just not likewise bad. Something to adjust to only quite fun nonetheless.

Fretboard

The fretboard is made from rosewood ? definitely no complaints in that location. The fretboard felt nice nether the fingers.

Nut width

The Ami has a nut width of ane.72? (43.7mm). This is a pretty standard width these days but is also quite a narrow width. This is well suited to the size of the guitar and also makes it nice and easy to play for anyone with smaller hands.

The Type of Guitarist the Ami is best Suited to

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The Ami really excels when it comes to playing audio-visual blues, folk, slide & fingerstyle ? but don?t necessarily put information technology into a genre box. You lot could certainly employ the Ami for anything you lot wanted if you?re looking for a more unique sound.

The Ami would also be well suited to beginners (provided the action was adjusted beginning). Information technology?s priced right and the smaller size will make the instrument easier to handle for beginners.

The smaller size likewise makes it a keen option for kids ? whether just learning or already starting to master the instrument. I would definitely recommend this guitar to whatsoever parent looking to go a guitar for their kid.

Value For Money

Absolutely!

If this guitar is the type of thing you are looking for and fits into your upkeep then it?south a great option.

Yes, I had a couple of complaints, but for a guitar that costs less than $400 there are going to be some things that aren?t perfect.

And to exist honest my biggest complaint is surrounding the summit of the action. And this is something that can exist easily adjusted. In fact some shops may accommodate it for you when you buy it. Otherwise you can accommodate it yourself if you know how or get someone to adjust it for yous subsequently you purchase information technology.

Overall you go a quality musical instrument for the price.

More than Info and Where to Buy

If y'all want to learn more about the Art & Lutherie Ami, or if you're fix to purchase, or want to research current prices and availability, check out the links below.

>> Art and Lutherie Ami?at Amazon.com

If yous desire to check out another under 500 acoustic guitar options or want to come across how the Ami?compares to other guitars in this price range, check out my top 5 guitars nether 500?at the link below.
>> Six Cord Audio-visual'south Superlative 5 Guitars Under 500

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Source: https://sixstringacoustic.com/art-and-lutherie-ami-guitar-acoustic-guitars-under-500-review-series