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TAKAMINE ELECTRO-ACOUSTICSTGCHECKS OUT TAKAMINES LATEST ENTRY LEVEL ELECTRO-ACOUSTIC GUITARS. BUT DID THEY HIT

THE G-SPOT? WORDS: HENRY YATESIn the beginning, Takamine was thename of a craggy old mountain outside

the Japanese town of Sakashita. The mostexciting thing that ever happened therewas when a mountain goat sprained itsankle. The most rock n roll thing about itwas that it was, y know, made of rock. Itseemed a strange place to set up a businessmaking handcrafted acoustic guitars, butthats exactly what happened in 1962 whena family of luthiers opened their premises inthe foothills. Logically enough, the fledglingcompany took its name from the mountainand thus Takamine was born.

No-one gives a toss about that oldmountain these days, but over a 44-year

timeline studded with guitar innovations,awards and artist endorsements, Takaminehas become one of the most prominentnames in the acoustic guitar sector. Youcould argue that Takamines success isdown to the sheer quality of their premiuminstruments (built in Japan to shit-kickinglyhigh standards).

We would counter that its equally downto their G-Series: the entry-level range ofChinese instruments that was introducedseveral years ago to blanket acclaim. Toillustrate our point, we have decided to testthe two latest additions to this burgeoningrange in the form of the EG260C (the blackone, above) and the EG440SC (the blondeone on p.149).

TAKAMINE

EG260CCheap guitars are the lifeblood of rock nroll. And they dont come much cheaper thanthe EG260C, introduced by Takamine lastJune to bolster their budget line. Accordingto the sales rep TG spoke to, you wont ever

see a G-Series electro-acoustic for less thanthis. Theyre not a bloody charity, you know. A quick visual inspection of the EG260Cpushes all the right buttons. The body shapeis known as the FXC. Loosely translated,this means its a little more compact than

your average dreadnought and shouldtheoretically excel at fingerpicked runs. Thebasic outline is complemented by a generoussingle cutaway and a strap pin that doubles

INFORMATION

ORIGIN:ChinaTOP:Spruce (laminate)BODY/SIDES:Mahogany(laminate)NECK:MahoganyFINGERBOARD:RosewoodFRETS:20HARDWARE:ChrometunersPREAMP:TP-4GIGBAG:NoLEFT-HANDER: NoCONTACT:Korg UK01908 857100WEB:www.takamine.co.uk

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Youve gotta loveTakamines simplebut classic approachto guitar design

Thanks to the presence of a TP-4preamp, TG was able to changethe flavour of the tone from a

biting treble to a buttery bass

The EG260C features laminatetonewoods. That didnt stopus getting a great tone,especially through an amp

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as the lead input, while the neck, body andheadstock are all coated in black gloss (wealso had the option to choose from either aSunburst finish or Wine Red). As a generalrule of thumb, TG prefers to see the grain ofour acoustic guitars, but we will grudginglyadmit that the smoky finish works well withthe white binding in this instance. Theres nothing wrong with thecornerstones of the EG260Cs build, with atough-looking heel and a good fretboard

both inspiring confidence. At the same time,we have seen tidier finishes than this. Thesoundhole and the edges of the fingerboardhad a couple of little chips and dents, plusa few specks of white paint you wouldnormally see on a builders transistor radio.None of which will have the slightest impacton playability or tone, however, but it didmake TG feel a bit like we had been given adirty fork in a restaurant. As for tonewoods, the realists among youwill have guessed that its laminate woods all

the way in this price bracket. Thats not theend of the world, though, especially whenyou consider that the EG260C has a spru cetop and mahogany body, with mahoganyforming the basis of the neck and a strip ofrosewood making up the fingerboard. Thechrome tuners also look smart (althoughthey havent got the smoothest actionweve ever felt), while the presence of a TP-4preamp with three sliding EQs and a Gainknob suggests that we should be able to dig

out a workable tone at the very least.That said, an acoustic guitar should

be able to perform without the help ofJim Marshall, so for the moment werestrumming with just the EG260Cs naturalresponse for amplification. Despite claimsof its finger-picking prowess (which isadmittedly pretty good), we actually feltthis guitars strongest suit was poundingthrough chords with a light pick. Its gota great jangle and plenty of sparkle, andit should power a small jam session along

nicely without the need for accompaniment.OK, so we cant pretend this guitar has thekind of heart-stopping raw tone that willbreathe new life into your old riffs or make

you sit in spellbound silence af ter pushingthough an open G chord, but its far morethan competent and retains a hint of themore expensive Takamine models.

Plugging in always covers a multitude ofsins, and in this case the TP-4 preamp caneither be used to complement or combat the

sonic properties of the woods. To tart upthe basic tone (which starts out as a louder

version of what you get unplugged), TG soonfound ourselves sprinkling reverb into theequation, easing up the mid-range, addingmore bass and even exploring what it wouldsound like with just a hint of delay. This isthe real joy of the electro-acoustic format:

you can have a bit of fun with your soundinstead of being defined by your tonewoodsand tied to one sound. Of course, it alsomakes discussing the tone of the EG260C a

slightly open-ended question. Whether itsjangly, bassy or thudding depends on whereyour amp and preamp dials are pointing.

Inevitably, the option of amping thisguitar also makes the physical playingexperience much more expressive. Withevery squeak of every string relayed byindividual piezo pickups beneath the bridge,

you start t o capture the kind of nuances(vibrato, for instance) that are lost in themire when you play the EG260C au naturel.It all serves to cement the impression thatthis guitar should be plugged in wheneverhumanly possible and only played without anamp during a power cut.

The Takamine EG260C might not be aworld-beater in the electro-acoustic market,

Cheap guitars are the lifeblood of rock n roll,and they dont come much cheaper than theEG260C a comfortable workhorse guitar withbags of amplified character

Takamines G-Seriesguitars have alwaysoffered great valuefor money

The EG440SCs TP-4Tpreamp features a

chromatic tuner,invaluable for dark stages

For 60 more, the EG440SCincludes a solid spruce top anda tidier finish. We felt the tonehad more character too

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but you would be extremely naive to think itwould be at this price. Instead, its a solidlybuilt, comfortable workhorse guitar withbags of amplified character and a name onthe headstock that you can be proud of. Andfor 239, can you really argue with that?

FOR:Cracking price and solid performance

AGAINST:You couldnt quite call itaspirational, though

TG RATING:

TAKAMINE

EG440SCJust as there are degrees of wealth, so thereare degrees of poverty. Takamine realisethis. Thats why the G-Series works on a

sliding scale, starting out with models likethe aforementioned EG260C, then creepingup in increments to the more expensiveinstruments from Korea (beyond that,

youre out of the G-zone and into Japaneseprices). At 299, the Takamine EG440SCresides somewhere in the middle. You mightdescribe it as a guitar for someone whoslying in the gutter but looking at the stars.

This electro-acoustic looks very differentto the EG260C and thats less to do with thenatural finish than the body shape. In this

case, were looking at a cutaway example ofthe NEX a signature Takamine body shapethat has a rounded top profile, a narrowwaist and a rounded bottom like those ladiesin the hip-hop videos. Were told that thedimensions of the soundboard should give abalanced response over the bass, treble andmidrange, and thats exactly what you wantfrom an acoustic. The cutaway meets thefretboard just a little higher than the EG260C

too, implying that access to the upper fretsshould be as good if not better.

So what else does the additional 60quid get you? For starters, a far neaterfinish. From the fretboard to the soundhole,there is very little to criticise here in theconstruction stakes. Although, once again,we did find the gold tuners gave a slightlyjerky adjustment of pitch. Other wise, thetime we spent with the EG440SC didntreveal any hidden nasties and, quite frankly,you would expect nothing less when youthrow 300 sheets at a firm like Takamine.

More important than the finish arethe raw materials. TG wasnt surprised todiscover that the EG440SCs back and sidesare made from laminate mahogany (you

The EG440SC is a truly gorgeousguitar from top to toe and morethan justifies squeezing your

parents bank account for theadditional 60

The TP-4 preamp maintainsTakamines awesome

reputation for greatsounding pickup systems

dont actually start seeing solid bodiesuntil you get a little higher up the pricerange), but we were pleased to find a solidspruce soundboard on this model. Inevitably,using fewer chunks of tonewood producesa more even and responsive sound than aplywood mash-up and should make a marked

difference to the EG440SCs performance.The neck and fingerboard are less exciting,following the usual mahogany/rosewoodformat on virtually every G-Series model.

Finally, in the spec stakes we weredelighted to clock a swanked-up preampin the form of the TP-4T (the additional

T refers to a chromatic tuner that tellsyou to tighten or slacken via a small LEDscreen). Were hoping it shouldnt take muchtweaking to dig out a decent sound.

The moment you play a chord on theEG440SC you can tell the quality has gone upa couple of notches. Despite the larger bodysize, this was a tighter playing experiencethan many of the acoustics we have triedin this sort of price bracket and instantlyoffered a more compressed unamplified

tone that doesnt let the bass swamp thesonic spectrum or allow the treble to cut yourthroat. For once, TG would actually agreewith the manufacturers blurb. This is asupremely balanced instrument that lets thequality of the spruce and mahogany shine. Italso complements its tone with an enjoyablefretboard and neck profile we didnt reallythink about what our fretting hand wasdoing, and thats always a good sign.

Sometimes TG plugs in an electro-acousticin the hope that we can sort out its raw tonewith a bit of EQ action. In this instance, weplugged in the EG440SC in the hope that itsgorgeous unamplified tone wouldnt be lostsomewhere between the piezo pickups andamp speakers. Fortunately, it wasnt. If you

want to stick to the blueprint, simply setyour levels at half-mast and get str umming.If you would prefer a bit more bass or addedbite, its easy enough to do that too. Thecritical point is that wherever you set theEQ, you will always hear the subtle flavourof the tonewoods working hard beneath thesurface. We guess you could say that it givesthis guitar a real sense of identity.

As with the EG260C, the other majorbenefit of plugging in is the increased levelof subtlety. Moving bass notes, trills andghost notes were all noted and conveyedto the amp, encouraging us to play withpanache. The only downside is when youunplug and go play in the park. Despite theEG440SCs physical comfort, TG couldnt helpfeeling like Superman without his powers.

Theoretically, this review isnt acompetition between these two Takamineguitars. But its inevitable that when youplay two similarly-priced instrumentsback-to-back youre going to find a favourite.Having said that, it should be fairly clearfrom what weve said that youre looking atour favourite guitar of the pair. The EG440SCis a gorgeous guitar from top to toe andmore than justifies squeezing your parentsbank account for the additional 60.

FOR:Real character to the tone and great

attention to detailAGAINST:Tuners are a bit jumpy

TG RATING:

INFORMATION

ORIGIN:ChinaTOP:Solid spruceBODY/SIDES:Mahogany(laminate)NECK:MahoganyFINGERBOARD:Rosewood, with abalonedotsFRETS:20HARDWARE:Gold tunersPREAMP:TP-4TGIGBAG:NoLEFT-HANDER: NoCONTACT:Korg UK01908 857100WEB:www.takamine.co.uk

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