Yamaha Acoustic Guitalele, GL1 – A hybrid between guitar and ukulele (70 cm) with 6 Strings (3 nylon/3 metal wound, commonly known as a nylon string set) and Fitted Yamaha Gigbag – Natural

At this price level I had low expectations, but having respect for the Yamaha brand I took a chance and ordered the guitar, half expecting to send it back it it proved a disappointment.It didn’t disappoint at all. As an experienced player of various full size acoustic guitars I must admit this little guitar is surprisingly well made and pleasant to play for such an economy price.TBH I didn’t buy it for myself, it was supposed to be an alternative instrument for my Ukelele playing partner to progress to. She didn’t like it, because two extra strings aid a step to far for her. Ah we’ll never mind I tried.Also I hope to use it to teach guitar to my 8 year old grandchild but haven’t introduced it to him yet. The body size is ideal for him, and the classical type nylon strings should be easier for him. However the neck width is about the same as a full size guitar and flat rather than radiused, which is not ideal for small hands. Also due to the necessarily short neck the tuning cannot be standard EADGBE like a full size so that’s an obstacle to learning the fretboard for later progression to a full size guitar when he’s older.

This is the second Yamaha GL1 I have bought.Honestly, there's a lot here for a guitarist or a ukulele player.The tone is great, the treble strings sound as they should and you get a surprising amount of bass on the lower bass strings. The matt finish is also nice, it looks especially good on the sunburst model as you can see the real wood beneath the usual surface and it looks pretty good.Good things:Sounds great has a well-balanced tone and has a fast response to the string.The fretwork is excellent and didn't have any rough edges.Binding on the edge of the guitar is a lovely touch, adds a real feeling of qualityThe sunburst effect is great too, my good lady commented on how pretty it was.The strings that come supplied are not terrible.Bad ThingsThe action is a little high. But a few minutes with a file and concentration takes care of that. Just don't take too much off!The strings are close together. Bit of a no-brainer, but I have big hands, and its a squeeze. But that's part of the challenge.It's not a loud instrument. To really make it yell you have to pick hard. But, good for conditioning the fingers.All in, worth every penny and I would recommend it to everyone who wants to try something new.

Moderately well made and once tuned is playable as supplied, however, I did need to lower the action at both the nut and the saddle, plus deburr the fret ends and polish the rough fret faces (roughness will quickly wear the strings). A little travel guitar when restrung for E-tuning as for me it sounds too much like a ukelele/bango in standard guitalele A-tune. Watch on YouTube, 'How to tune the guitalele like a guitar' by joaotostes of Toca Ukelele Global, for a clear demo - I watched this video before buying a GL1and always intended to restring it for E-tuning.I can recommend the Hannabach, Set 890MT, 1/8 size scale 44-48cm, with the G3 wound option - not cheap but they are good - the wound 3rd string is essential for a better sound, as the monofilament string sounds very like a bango. I had a set on my GL1 and was very pleased with the results, as it sounded much more like a guitar and of course you can use all the guitar music without transposing. The intonation with these strings is quite good - much better than the A-tuned Yamaha strings - but they have less tension than the classical guitar (CG), which might not suit everyone. There is a custom alternative to the Hannabach set that sounds better and has good string tension (see photo): Rotosound ball ended classical guitar set CL1 (circa £6), discard the E1 string and move others up one; for E6 string use D'Addario NYL048W (circa £4). Of course you could use any Medium or Light tension classical guitar string sets. I only tried D'Addario EJ45 and The Rotosound CL1, of which the CL1 worked best for this job. However D'Addario strings tend to be higher tension than the cheaper strings, so perhaps the Light tension EJ43 strings would be good. The Rotosound strings had just the right properties and you don't have to use the ball ends, so if you prefer just trim them and tie as per usual - the NYL048W has an ordinary tie end. However, I think the instrument sounded nicer with the ball ends and even bought a bead to make a ball end for the NYL048W - ball ends allow the strings to sit better on the saddle.The GL1 will never compete with a concert guitar for sound and intonation, but I use it a lot as a handy travel guitar. Albeit I find it more difficult to play than my full size CG due to the narrow string spacing and large margins on the 48mm fret-board , and especially the closer spacing between frets, which together make some barre positions quite difficult for my moderate size fingers.Update 04 Oct 191. The Persimmon brown matt finish is not very durable as it chips and flakes around the black painted edges of the body, and exposes a light grey undercoat that makes it look a tad scruffy.Normally acoustic guitars have a tough beading material around the edges of the top and back where they join the sides - the GL1 has no beading, only a black paint.2. I replaced the compensated Yamaha plastic saddle with an uncompensated bone saddle, and that made a useful improvement to the sound, and the intonation. When using a wound 3rd string it is not useful to have compensation that increases the length of this string relative to the others, which is only necessary when a monofilament string (as supplied by Yamaha) is used. The large diameter monofilament is very stiff and needs extra length to bring the frequency down a tad and yet maintain the tension.Update 19 Dec 19Kinsman KUT14 Tenor Uke hard case for the GL1There doesn’t seem to be a specific hard case for the GL1, hence the need to utilise a suitable Uke case. The GL1 is basically a Tenor Uke body with a longer and wider neck, so length is the main issue.My GL1 has strap buttons fitted and with these the length is a bit close, around 1cm clearance at the head, but that is enough as the case is very strong and the exterior length of 29” fits nicely in my hold suitcase. The tuning heads have sufficient clearance, the necks fits nicely, and the depth is perfect, so for me this case is very good.However, if you have strap buttons fitted and you like lots of space around the instrument, then you might consider a Baritone case, as the Baritone Uke is a few inches longer, slightly wider, but of similar depth to the GL1.The KUT14 hard case is very strong, well padded, nicely made, and is excellent value at around £34 - the only downside being the flimsy and fiddly catches.Overall I am pleased with the KUT14 hard case.GL1 update 28th April 2021I fitted a bone nut with more ideal string spacing and it greatly improves the playability for those accustomed to a spacious CG fingerboard, but it does require some DIY skills.The original plastic nut had length 48mm, same as the fingerboard/neck at the nut area, however the 1st to 6th string spacing was a mere 37mm, which crowds the fingers unnecessarily and leaves very wide margins of around 5mm.I bought the ‘Mr Power 6 String Guitar Real Bone (For classic)’ nut & saddle from Amazon for £4.99 and the nut has a useful string spacing of 41.5mm, which gives margins of around 3mm. The nut length is 52mm so you need to sand off 2mm from each end to fit the GL1’s 48mm neck, also the depth and thickness require sanding to fit, plus the string slots require enlarging a little with nut files or nozzle cleaners to fit the larger diameter strings.What a result: the GL1 is much easier to play, plus the strings slide smoothly over the bone when tuning, and it actually sounds slightly better.GL1 update 25th Dec 21I fitted Alba black classical string tie beads so as to use any make of string and yet enjoy the sound quality benefits of ball ends or 12 hole bridge + very easy to restring. From Amazon £7.99 plus £3.99 p&p.I cut out and fitted a 0.5mm tap plate for protection when tapping/slapping top whilst playing Rumba Flamenca. If using pick or nails you would need thicker or more than one layer, there is enough in the blank to do 3 tap plates/golpeador. Musiclily 200x250 mm blank guitar self adhesive pick guard material £5.83 from Amazon, advertised as 0.7mm. I expected it to dampen the sound a little but no problems at all and it actually significantly improved the intonation (probably dampened some parasitic oscillations in the soundboard).GL1 Update 13th Feb 22 re strings for standard guitar E tuningI have tried several classical guitar string combinations and have found the following diameters work well:1st string 031” to 032” nylon monofilament2nd string 039” to 040”3rd string 028”W nylon multifilament core wire wound4th string 033”W5th string 041”W6th string 049”WI can’t currently source a NYL049W string but had one with the Hannabach 890MT 1/8 set, that has VG bass strings but weedy trebles.I use the following configurations:1) La Bella 427 string set (circa £10) with NYL048W, which gives good tension, a full sound, and a resonant bass. Update 04 Jan 2024: I have been using a set of these strings for over a year now and they still sound good, and look set to last a long time.2) D’Addario EJ43 string set (circa £10) with NYL050W, which gives good tension, a slightly brighter sound, and a tighter bass.3) Update 01 March 2024: D’Addario EJ45FF string set (circa £15) with NYL050W (circa £5) or NYL052W for tight bass. This combination has a tension similar to a CG, and gives a very bright, punchy, and loud sound. WOW, the GL1 comes alive with these strings, combined with a low action, and sounds quite unique: a hint of ukulele but very like a cross between a Flamenco guitar and a steel string acoustic guitar.To restring simply discard the string set 1st string and move the others up one position, then fit either theNYL048W or NYL050W string in the 6E position.Enjoy