Godin 5th Avenue Archtop Acoustic Guitar Black

Comments about Godin 5th Avenue Archtop Acoustic Guitar:

I've owned many, many guitars in search of a decent archtop guitar. I tried a lot of Epiphone's, probably upwards of a baker's dozen, all were defective in some way and returned. I even tried to give up my dream of finding a decent "budget" archtop (realizing I wouldn't be able to find one for under a grand) and went for a handful of Gibson Les Paul's. Bad idea... Maybe since their woods were seized, they're quality has stumbled a bit. Lots of string rattling in the nuts, problems with the G string especially, just a mess! So, long story short, I tried one of these Godin 5th Ave archtops. This guitar can be played comfortably up and down the neck with ease. The tone breaks up a bit with really heavy strumming though. The neck feels kind of Gibson-ish to me, but the frets are more comfortable. I've heard this model was based on Gibson archtops from the 1920's and 30's (along with Kay's from the 1950's). Action was low and perfect and the saddle is glued? in place, so there's no worry about having to re-position it when changing strings. Tuning seems to be very stable. All in all, the best value for an archtop... and made in North America to boot. Well done, Mr. Godin!

Comments about Godin 5th Avenue Archtop Acoustic Guitar:

Guitar arrived promptly and looked great as expected. The action was high,but easily adjustable. Once adjusted, it was much more fun to play. It does not stay in tune, but the strings haven't had time to settle in. The tone is what I was looking for with an arch top f-hole guitar. I rate the guitar below my 27 year old Sigma Martin but above my Takemine G series jumbo for ease of play. The tone of the Godin is enough different in style to not be comparable, it is a matter of taste. I like it.

Comments about Godin 5th Avenue Archtop Acoustic Guitar:

It is necessary to remember this is not a flattop guitar. This is an entirely different kind of beast with a different voice and temperment. The slightly less bass and treble gives it a sweet, inherently jazzy voice that will allow you to appreciate the subtle nuances of every note in a chord, rather than just hearing a wall of sound as you would from a flattop.

This guitar is a dream when flatpicking or fingerpicking. Be sure to use to sharper-pointed pick when using one to really improve the sound. Fingerpicking on this guitar is almost like playing a classical guitar (which I own two of and actively pursue), and I just love playing Bach, Tarrega, and Carcassi on this guitar. Moreover, this guitar is good for fingerstyle blues, and jazz. My choppy 7 chords sound like nothing else on this guitar. Basically, my point is this guitar is unbelievably versatile and you can play virtually anything on it.

Not only does it sound good in whatever musical style you prefer, but it's a dream to play, and look at. Everyone I have shown this guitar to so far are very impressed by the appearance and performance. I just can't believe the craftsmanship of this guitar; I can't praise this guitar enough. I got my guitar essentially new at an unbelivably low price that would make you all jealous, but would have gladly paid the list price for the same guitar I received, or more.

All in all, you will be blown away by this guitar as long as you don't make the mistake of compairing it too heavily to a flattop guitar, and remember it is going to sound different. It just screams "intimate acoustic setting" in some of the sweetest tones you can imagine.

Comments about Godin 5th Avenue Archtop Acoustic Guitar:

This guitar is a very nice addition to any collection which does not have a good jazz guitar in it. It holds up very good against any in my collection which includes Gibson, Martin, Taylor, Guild, and Fender.
The size and scale length are very comfortable. I purchased a used one which was modified with a Benedetto floating jazz pickup, an ebony tailpiece and pickguard eqipped with a volume and tone control. It also has a seymour duncan transducer inside the body with seperate volume control, both pickups wired to a stereo end jack. This makes it a very versitile instrument in addition to sounding very good acoustically.
The guitar is top quality construction with a very durable tric case.
I took this guitar to a local music store and compared it to an Eastman Uptown Jazz Guitar which was selling used for $1400. THE Godin matched up very well with very little difference as far as I could tell both acoustically and amplified. I have fitted mine with D'Adario 11 - 50 flat wound strings which play "so smooth".

Comments about Godin 5th Avenue Archtop Acoustic Guitar:

As I stated earlier, I am a big fan of Godin. I like that they are producing quality instruments in North America at prices that people can afford. I'm sure it is difficult to compete with Asian (Chinese) imports and maintain the level of quality that I've seen in their guitars. I hate to see them have to resort to cost cutting measures (like that raised rosette on their lower end instruments and the synthetic bridge on this one) in order to stay in business. I, for one, am willing to pay a little more to see them keep their quality high, and use better hardware and materials, but many people are not. Marketing is an art and this guitar has a target market. It just missed the target in my case, you may very well be happy with it.
Godin 5th Avenue Acoustic Archtop: nice looking, pickguard.
Laminated construction, as advertised. No surprises there.
I think that it would certainly benefit from a solid top, if they could accomplish that at or near this price.
I have bought 5 (counting this one) guitars from Godin and their sister companies Seagull, A&L, S&P. They were all great at their price points. The Art & Lutherie Cedar Folk that I had was a cannon! Kick myself daily for trading it for a Little Martin. At any rate, they have been really good guitars and I am a still big fan. This particular instrument had an issue with the neck. The tension was pretty well adjusted so that there was relief along the neck up to the fretboard extension, but then it flattened out causing the strings to all buzz when played up the neck. the obvious solution was to raise the bridge which put the action well above where I felt comfortable playing. Coupled with that, I hate to say that I really didn't like the tone. It sounded tinny. Perhaps with additional neck/bridge tweaking and a different set of strings I could have coaxed a little more tone out of it, and increased it's playability... but I didn't feel that I should have to invest that much in an unsure outcome. I expected more out of the box from this instrument.
Godin generally produces good guitars at reasonable prices,and if this one had sounded more like the other ones that I have bought from them, it would have been a keeper. It is an attractive instrument, felt good, comfortable to hold... just didn't have the sound I was looking for in an archtop.

Comments about Godin 5th Avenue Archtop Acoustic Guitar:

I'm very happy to have a guitar that reminds me of my first Harmony archtop but plays like I'm now used to. And happy it is Canadian made! Pleased I made the decision to add this one to my collection.
Adjustable bridge, tight tuners
Very impressed that it shipped with a card and initials of each person who worked on the guitar.
Great price!

Comments about Godin 5th Avenue Archtop Acoustic Guitar:

I am new to the guitar and I may not be the best judge but I do love this guitar. I looked at a lot of accoustics and the price range is huge! anywhere from $150 to $1000 and although I can see and hear some differences, I did not understand the huge price differences. The 5th avenue was right in the middle. The quality of wormanship is great and it sounds wonderful. It's a good looking guitar and the fit to my body feels just right....not too big or small. I think this guitar is wonderful and I am very happy wih my purchase.

Comments about Godin 5th Avenue Archtop Acoustic Guitar:

I grabbed this guitar because I wanted a quiet instrument to play late into the night while the rest of my home was asleep. I chose it to play finger-picking blues and plain-jane strumming. This guitar came with all the great reviews. The youtube videos impressed me. I ordered and waited.

Unfortunately, it sounds, to my ears, like a plastic box. There's no soul. The tone is totally dead, almost no resonance. It doesn't sound anything like the parlor guitars it's supposed to emulate. Instead, it sounds like a toy. It sat in my closet off and on for about two years. I dig it out every few months to give it another shot. I dug it out again tonight . . . I've had enough. I'm heading to the local guitar shop tomorrow to trade it in.

I suppose I'm a bit pamperred as I play a pretty high-end classical/nylon most days. I regularly play, however, a bottom-line, laminate Alverez for fun . . . and it's loads of fun by comparison to this Godin. I take the Alverez camping, and it has a six-inch, charred hole to prove it. The Alverez still sounds like an instrument . . . more instrument than this 5th Ave.
This guitar sounds like a plastic toy.
Sturdy . . . but so is plastic.
Not as good as all the reviews let on.

Comments about Godin 5th Avenue Archtop Acoustic Guitar:

I am a great fan of archtop guitars- I own three- and I have long been a fan of Godin guitars, who produce instruments of exceptional quality and value. When I saw that my local music store had the new Godin archtop in stock, I immediately started doing a mental inventory of my collection, figuring out what I could sell to buy this instrument. But playing it changed my mind. It's not at all of what I think of as an archtop guitar- though it may be just what you're looking for.A little background. Flat top guitars have a resonating surface made form a thin layer of cedar or spruce or some other light wood. They're designed to vibrate as easily as possible. Traditional archtops, on the other hand, have a top carved from a much denser wood- traditionally maple. Whereas the classic flat top guitar sound is big and boomy, and designed to produce a big sound that ranges from bass to high treble, the traditional archtop sound is more percussive, and more midrangey. It's designed to punch through an orchestra in its rhythm role.This guitar may look like an archtop, but it sounds very much like a flat top guitar- and I think that was intentional. Archtop guitars are becoming more and more popular with the rock and alternative crowd- something that I think goes back to Elvis Costello's "Monkey to Man" video. If the typical modern player picked up a traditional archtop he or she would probably find it unplayable- .013 gauge strings and a high action are a far cry from the low action and skinny strings most players favor.So Godin has produced something with a very traditional look- think Mother Maybelle Carter for the black version- with the light action and even sound of a flat top- ad they're done a very good job of it. The instrument I tried had the quality you'd expect of a Godin, along with a good balanced tone and a very easy playing neck. If you're looking for something a bit out of the ordinary for that band you're fronting, you might give this one a try. If you're looking for that traditional archtop sound, the Loar LH-300 is a better choice.

Comments about Godin 5th Avenue Archtop Acoustic Guitar:

By accident I found a used 5th Ave. in my hands at a pawn shop in Colorado. So right was the feel, and so pleasant the tone that I bought one from MF when I got home. I almost feel guilty that it's such a nice instrument. Beautiful, warm, jazzy tones. Though it's not a flattop tone, I still use it to play country, folk and oldies. The feel is superb, and the sweet tone makes me want to practice for hours. It also makes for nice wall art. This is my second Godin (1st is a Radiator) and I can see them becoming my endorsement guitar manufacturer.