Most popular guitar in the U.S.?

Yamaha FS-700S

Readily available for less than $200 new  and for around $150 used.

• Solid Sitka spruce top
• Nato back and sides
• Rosewood fingerboard
• Rosewood bridge
• Black/white body binding
• Tortoise pickguard
• Die-cast tuners

Jamstar

Ok, you got yourself a guitar, now what?   You want to start making music!

If you are a fan of video games, this might be right up your alley.  (if you aren't a fan of video games, don't worry, we have something for you as well.)

So for video gamers, here is a free application that runs on iPod/iPad as well as Android devices.  It uses the built in microphone of your device to do things like help you tune your guitar and learn to play songs.  It's called Jamstar -

https://jamstar.co/

Now what is really neat, a company called DR makes multicolored strings to help you better keep track of where you want to be when playing along with the lesson on Jamstar -

http://www.drstrings.com/#!multi-color/c1343

The multicolored strings sell for about $10 - $12.  The app has an option to display the strings in color to match those on your guitar.

Truth be told, I don't play video games, so I haven't used this app.  But from everything I've heard, if you are used to playing video games, you may definitely want to give this a try.

Have fun!

p.s. You may want the app for mothing else than the tuner function, it makes tuning your guitar very simple

Some good advice

"Alas for those that never sing, But die with all their music in them!" --- Oliver Wendell Holmes 

Washburn WD7S-Atb

THe Washburn WD7S-ATB is a full sized dreadnaught that looks, plays and sounds great.  It can be purchased new between $149 - $200 new.

The Washburn WD7S-ATB Dreadnought Acoustic Guitar Features:

• Solid Spruce Top
• Catalpa sides back and neck ( A beautiful - SUSTAINABLE - wood with great looks and sound ) 
• Mahogany Neck with truss rod
• Rosewood fingerboard and bridge
• New Crown headstock design
• Multi Lam top binding
• Fully bound neck and headstock
• Chrome die cast tuners

Recording King Dirty Thirty Guitar

The Recording King Dirty Thirty line of guitars offer a vintage look and had a nice raspy tone for blues and ragtime stuff.  The are fun to play and can readily be found brand new in the $175 - $200 range.  The line consists of three sizes - a dreadnaught, a 000, and a parlor sized 0.

• Solid Spruce top
• Rosewood fretboard
• Bone nut and saddle
• Extra-large fretboard dots
• Aged ivoroid body binding
• Satin sunburst finish
• Vintage-inspired tuning keys
• Historic Recording King headstock

So what's the point

I have a handful of guitars that fall into the $300 and less price range, and I also have a Martin D-35.

I am very happy and satisfied with the way all my guitars sound. As a specific example, I recently bought a used Epiphone Hummingbird Artist for less than $200. I am very impressed with the way it plays and sounds. I won't say that it sounds just like my Martin, because it doesn't. It does sound different, but I really can't say that either guitar sounds better or worst. All I can say is they both sound different.

I'm just a hack when it comes to playing, but I enjoy it and manage to entertain myself. For me, the take away is that someone does not need to drop what might be considered a small bundle to take up playing for a hobby.

If you have always wanted to play guitar, there is absolutely nothing standing in your way. As the old Nike shoe commercial used to say - Just Do It!

Vintage Yamaha FG Series

Yamaha has been making and selling the FG Series of guitars for over 40 years.  It is the number one selling series of guitars worldwide.  Over that period of time, the FGs have gained wide spread respect due to their quality, dependability, playability and value.   It is not surprising that there are a lot of these guitars sitting under beds and in the backs of closets. 

There were countless models and variants made, and just about every Yamaha guitar ever made sounds good, and some sound outstanding.  Certain models and years of manufacture are in great demand and command premium prices.  Other models of great sound guitars can readily be purchased for not much more than $100.

One thing you must be aware of when purchasing a vintage Yamaha, or any other brand of guitar, is the geometry of the neck in relation to the body of the guitar.  Over time, that geometry can be alter due to the foces being applied by the strings.  What happens is the neck folds up, resulting in the strings being too high above the fretboard to allow for comfortable playing.

It’s good top be able to examine and play a vintage guitar before purchase.  That being said, a vintage Yamaha has the potential to be an outstanding guitar that can be purchased in the range of $100 - $125.  Many of these guitars are made with all laminate materials, but the design, materials, and construction allow them to sound great.

Epiphone AJ-220S

The Epiphone AJ-220S is an extremely good looking, good playing, good sounding guitar.  The AJ stands for Advance Jumbo.  It can be bought brand new for $199.00.  It's a fairly new model so it might be tough to find one used.

Here are the specs

Top	Solid Sitka Spruce
Body	Select mahogany
Neck	mahogany, glued, dove-tail joint
Neck Profile	SlimTaper™
Fingerboard	rosewood
Fingerboard Inlay	pearloid dot inlay
Scale	25.5”
Nut	1.69”
Hardware	Nickel
Machine Heads	Premium tuners
Colors	Natural (NA), Vintage Sunburst (VS)

Here is a video containing some sound clips -