i have to say im an acoustic lover and i was surprised when i heard this one. i was basicly in a bind and had just started the recording process for an acoustic album and needed a nice budget acoustic that could give a good sound. Long story short, i found this guitar and all the recordings came out cristal clear with nice tone. trust me, you cant go wrong with this guitar!

1. It has a crisp, bright, ringing like a bell tone, which I personally like. Some may not, but it is the sound I wanted. 2. It is extremely loud. I have a very strong voice and this guitar matches me, un-miked, and we ROCK! 3. The Action. Very nice and low (again, I like that personally), fast, easy and I like that there are no fret markers, makes it looks classy.

Cedar is used for a lot of classical guitars for it's rich and soft tone. I've found this guitar to be excellent for fingerpicking and light playing. When strumming, you will get a nice loud sound but if you really beat on it, it will become muddy. I agree with other reviewers that while I love the satin finish and the soft cedar top, it is very easily dinged, dented and stratched. After my first gig of strumming chords with it, it was covered with scratches and dings from my pick brushing the surface. I personally, enjoy a heavier guitar with solid woods for the sides and back and harder wood for the neck. Sometimes I feel the guitar is slipping away from me or that it's not solid enough to do what I want to. Some enjoy the lightness of the 330S and often it is a benefit. The sound and feel of the 330S is amazing for the price and I would highly recommend it as a begginer/intermediate guitar and to a more advanced player who wants something cheap and simple that sounds good that they can beat up on and not worry about.

I own several guitars, and sadly this is the latest addition to my collection. The guitar is really loud for a cedar top, but the tone is awful. The bass notes have a plastic like quality to them, and the treble notes are very harsh and way too bright. For such a loud guitar, there is almost no sustain. And one more thing, after you have a left a good guitar in its case for a few days, when you pull it out, it smells like the woods its made of. This guitar smells like glue, enough said.

The Takamine GS330S sells for 2 reasons: 1) It is inexpensive and 2) It sounds like a mid to high range guitar.

Dreadnought body, solid cedar top, nato laminate sides and back, rosewood fretboard and bridge. No pickguard or fretboard dots (a plus in my opinion). Looks like a simple guitar to a person who doesn't know anything.

The tone is absolutely beautiful...crystal-clear, earthy, warm. The bass range especially stands out. When you strike a bass note the entire room fills up. I also don't think I've heard a louder acoustic guitar in my life. My wife thought it was hooked up to an amp!

The only thing I will consider a downside is how easily this guitar scratches and dents. I've owned it less than a month and already it has 2 visible scratches on the soundboard. But if you choose the cedar with satin finish you MUST accept this fact. You get the brilliant tone but sacrifice durability. Oh well, look at Willie Nelson's guitar.

Fingerpicking is great on this guitar. People say this is the only thing you can do on it, but I also find that strumming sounds so rich and single note melodies are smooth--probably because the factory set up comes with perfect action.

One more minor thing I've noticed: the first two strigs (E and B) don't seem as loud as the other four. This could be normal, though, so you should ask an expert.

I tried just about every Yamaha, Seagull, and Epiphone in the price range. This one stood out in tone and playability.