Yamaha AE2000

[Manu_78]

Hello

I'm new on that forum and I would like to share some informations about my guitar : the Yamaha AE2000
I also hope that it could be interesting for other guitarists playing with it or looking for it.

The guitar is similar to the Gibson L-5.
[Edit] Its scale is 640mm (25.2"). The owner's manual is wrong when it says that the scale is 600mm. I hope that there is no other mistake in it !

I enjoy playing with Thomastick 12-50

Yamaha issued three versions of the AE, and my owner's manual explain the differences betweem them:

• The AE2000 is a full-solid guitar.
• The AE1200 has a solid top.
• The AE1200 has a “solid pressed spruce top”.
• The AE2000 has a “solid planed spruce top”, but also “solid back and sides (birch+beech)”.

I don't know exactly what the difference is with the AE1200S (S for solid, I guess)

The bridge is made of Granadilla, a kind of african blackwood (AE2000) or striped ebony (AE1200) and the fingerboard is made of selected black ebony.

Others details of the guitar show the quality of the craftmanship and luthier's work : f holes with white binding, 3 pieces binding around the top, around the neck, around the head.

My guitar is almost 40 years old (1983) but remains in very good condition, aesthetically speaking.

I removed the pickguard because it was not straight anymore, somehow concave a litlle bit (I don't know what it is made of, something similar to tortoise).

In some limited areas, lacquer has also turned a little bit white, but slightly.

It's difficult to explain the shape of its neck and how comfortable it is. I would say that it is quite thin, but not as much Ibanez can make it (I can compare with an AS200 whose neck is more flat).

I would say that with a “flat” neck like the Ibanez, I'm encouraged to play with the wrist below the neck, like classical guitar players are used to. The neck of my Yamaha is more like a soft C. The wrist can turn around it freely.

How is the sound? Well... like a good archtop.

I would say that, either unplugged or with my amp, I really appreciate it. But also other fellow musicians I played with gave me a good feedback about it.

I play the guitar on a Schertler Unico 250w or a Carvin xv112. Both preserves a good clear sound, but differently, and the purpose is also distinct.

The guitar provides a lot of harmonics, smooth jazz sounds but also bright sounds, as both humbuckers can be splitted into single coil. The range of clear sounds is wide, and it's not forbiden to play blues, funk, or even pop rock with it.

I can also say that Paul Weller and The Edge played that guitar. Bireli Lagrène, too, but I guess that Yamaha endorsed him to do so and it's going on.

Well, if I had to keep only one guitar, it would be my Yamaha AE2000.
I hope that I can share here some pictures of it and the owner's manuel as well.

I also hope that others could share their experience of it.

Thank you for reading (I didn't meet any success in a french forum, and I hope that I could meet more abroad).

Keep safe.
Emmanuel












Style Council Roskilde Festival 1985

U2 / The Edge

Another comment about AE2000 given by The Edge in Guitar World '87 interview:

"I also use a new Yamaha guitar that I've recently been given called an AE2000, which is a big, almost-jazz guitar in style, the big cello wide-body, single-cutaway and F-holes. It uses really tough, big gauge flatwound strings and it sounds sort of classical. I fell in love with it."

Used for the solo of "In God's Country" on "The Joshua Tree" album together with the "symphonic" preset of a Yamaha SPX-90. Only time it was used live was the conspiracy of hope tour in 1986 to play "Pride" on it. You can also see this guitar in the video official "with or without you" even it was not used for recording on this song.

[2bornot2bop]

I owned 4 or 5 AE1200S models. Why so many? I eased my way into buying jazz arch tops by cutting my teeth and buying AE1200S models. Yes they're solid tops. The poly is a bit heavy and typical Japanese of that era. But still a great guitar for jazz playing. I had 1 blonde, 1 wine red, and the rest were sunbursts. Two had the dreaded milky finish as seen on yours in the photo. Shame too because otherwise a stellar guitar. My blonde came with both ebony and TOM saddles. Pretty kewl ebony bridge on these. Seriously heavily built.

[customxke]

The materials listed show two different scale length measurements. I don’t think 23.5” is accurate.

[2bornot2bop]

The materials listed show two different scale length measurements. I don’t think 23.5” is accurate.

Look at the booklet. 25 1/4"

[neatomic]

welcome aboard manu_78...quite a good & informative opening post!!

stick around

cheers

[Manu_78]

Look at the booklet. 25 1/4"

Yes, I trusted the schema and I certainly made a mistake when I converted inches into millimeters.
Thank you.

[gitman]

With heavy strings and a strong pick attack these guitars can really deliver a strong punch - they are VERY solidly built and their feedback threshold is much higher compared to most Gibson archtops of similar size. They might not be the most pick-sensitive guitars out there but they represent excellent value for the money.
Sidenote : Los Angeles studio-legend Tommy Tedesco took his Yamaha archtop to every session he was called for and he thought of this guitar and his Tele as his "Swiss Army Knife" duo ....

[DB's Jazz Guitar Blog]

I have played an AE 2000 for several years in the beginning of my jazz career. In fact I owned two of them at some time. Solid carved tops on both of them. Well built guitars but on the heavy side.

In the end I preferred the thunk of laminates and I sold them both and switched to a Gibson Tal Farlow and ES 175.

They were fine guitars but did not exactly sound like an L5 though, contrary to what you sometimes read.

Bireli Lagrene played a Yamaha 1200s in 1994 at the Jazz in Marciac Concert.

DB

[citizenk74]

Nice guitar! I've never encountered a Yamaha product of any kind that was not built as well as anything could be.

[arielcee]

Welcome!
Had an ae1200 myself with Thomastik 12s. Great guitar and I should've kept it!
Real easy to play, great feel, very good acoustic sound. Pickups maybe a slightly opaque.

I'm with Ck74, big fan of Yamaha stuff. I had a killer LP (sl500), still have a G50 ii amp (favorite amp ever probability).

Welcome to the forum! Lots of friendly folks here so definitely stick around.

[feet]

what a fascinating post. really enjoyed it. thought there was a byrdland cousin out there for a minute. i do peek at used yamahas on occasion because i assume they are a safe bet for a high quality guitar at a decent price. i have one of their bb basses and that thing is amazing.

[Tonegurus]

Cool guitar!

[citizenk74]

Cool guitar!

[Manu_78]

Thanks to someone who eventually sold one, I was sent the booklet of his AE1200s.
I'm happy to share it here.
The bridge seems to be what makes the only difference with AE2000