Customer Reviews

Recording King Century Studio Series 12th Fret OOO-Style Acoustic Guitar (Mahogany)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have wanted a slot head 12 fret for a long time, but every time I buy an older one I end up sinking a lot of money into the luthier to bring it up to speed and newer ones like those available from Larrivee and Taylor were way out of my price range. I bought one of these a month ago and have been very pleasantly surprised by the tone and looks and playability of the guitar. So much so that I posted a few youtube videos of a buddy playing my ROS 16 just so other people could get an idea of what a great guitar this is. Check them out.

This guitar is very nice for the money. Can recommend it for beginners and it is comfortable to play and is well constructed. Lots of bang for the buck her. Even a great guitar for long time guitarists to use for camping, a beater, a beach guitar. As mentioned lots of guitar for the dollars....Nice detail, solid spruce top.

I will start out by saying I am a guitar snob, have very little use for cheap mass produced instruments as most sound just like a cheap mass produced instrument. Playability is generally horrible only matched by the often flat tones they generate. I drive peice of junk cars to have nice guitars, currently a James Goodall Mahogany Dread, Collings MF mandolin and a custom ordered Weber Mandola. Not planing on taking my Goodall, I was looking around for a camping guitar to replace a Baby Taylor that I must say is a complete peice of junk. I wanted a smaller body with laminate back and sides and solid top. I popped into a local store and played the Ros-06 and was very impressed by two of the three I played so got on line and rolled the dice on the online order. With the return policy its a pretty safe bet. Anyway, the guitar arrived in two days and I was thrilled to see there were no issues with fit and finish and no damage. I have to say I was not expecting much as far as tone, having been exposed to Chinese guitars in the past, once I played it away from the din of the music store. I was blown away at how nice this guitar is to play and how fantastic is sounds. It is clear in highs to lows, the base is great for a smaller bodied guitar and incredibly loud for a laminate backed guitar. The tones ring like a "real" guitar. Again I am a snob so I must say I am a taken aback by how good this guitar sounds. For the $375 I paid for this guitar I could not be happier and would recommend it to anyone who is looking for a good fingerpicker. I have also spent some time struming and even hit a little bluegrass and it has hung in there nicely. Hope this helps anyone trying to decide if this is a good gamble.

I got interested in this guitar mainly for the specs. It's a OOO sized 12 fret slot-head with a 1 13/16th" wide "V" backed neck. It also has butterbean type tuners, pyramid style bridge, gloss solid wood finish and bone nut and saddle usually found on much more expensive guitars. All this might not make any sense to most of you looking for a starter guitar, but for an experienced player its' a rare guitar suitable for a couch player like me who likes to play fingerstyle. It's basically a poor man's Martin OOO-28VS, or Santa Cruz OOO for 1/10th the price.

I bought mine as a dealer closeout on-line, but I wanted to offer my impression to those thinking about buying one here.

The guitar was pretty much as I had expected. It's made in China, so there's some carelessness here and there with the rosette and binding. The neck was fitted rotated about 3 degrees to the left but the fretboard was level with the body. The frets are very thin vintage style of some dubious dark metal and while the ends aren't sharp or stick out, the tops have an unpolished feel and crunch a bit when bending a string. The nut slots took the most amount of adjustment, they were cut very shallow for most of the strings. The string pegs were a horror show, many were bent with masking tape wrapped around them to keep them in. They will need to be replaced with higher quality ones. The tuners seemed fine and I didn't have any problems stringing it for the first time ever. Basically, the quality is what I would expect for a guitar priced this low.

I basically spent about 2 hours with it, setting up the neck, adjusting the nut, restringing it and I had to level a high fret causing a bit of buzzing. When finished I was surprised at how well it played. The tone is just OK (hopefully because it's still new), there's a lack of presence in the treble strings which might be due to a rounded saddle, but it has the loudness and projection of my other 12 fret which I really like. The wider string spacing at the bridge and nut makes this a pleasure to fingerpick with and the size is just right for couch playing, but what I really liked was the "V" shape of the back of the neck. It felt quite prominent only at first, but it's a nice comfortable amount of bulk to hang on to compared to contemporary flatter necks.

So to sum up, if you're looking for a beginner guitar, don't buy this unless you have unusually large hands. The width and flatness of the fretboard isn't suitable for beginners and it doesn't hold up to strumming very well. Recording King has other models with narrower necks you might look at. Never having bought a guitar at this bargain price level, I can't say if this guitar needed more work to set up properly than other brands might at this price.

But if you're a veteran player owning more than a few guitars and you've always wondered about a guitar with these specs, it's well worth trying out, just be prepared for flaws and that it may need more work to set up than a pricier brand.

UPDATE: It's now 11/11 and I've had it 8 months or so and I'm still very positive on the guitar and would still recommend it. Re-reading the previous, I may have given the impression that the craftsmanship was terribly sloppy which isn't so. It's just that it doesn't compare to the quality level of the Taylor and Larrivee guitars that I've owned. Additionally, a trip to a good luthier is advisable for any price guitar.

That said what still makes me pick up the guitar and have fun with it is simply the wonderfully cheery and bright tone of it and how easy the guitar is to play.

I bought this guitar after reading about it on a guitar forum. I have heard a lot about this brand but have not seen them in my local store. I bought one since Amazon has such a great return policy. Let me tell you I was NOT disappointed. It is great! I have read others that say it is great for the price, but this is a great sounding guitar period!

I love the wider nut spacing. The guitar has such great overtones. Anyway I am happy I have another great guitar in my collection.

I've waited nearly a year after purchase to review this guitar. Even instruments costing 10x this amount still have a break in period, so it's only fair to assume that this would as well. Right out of the box, the sound was a bit thin and disappointing. But I attributed that to the strings being a fresh pair. It came equipped with a set of DiAddario phosphor bronze .12s, which is what I normally use anyway, so I didn't bother to change them. As the months rolled on, the guitar began to open up more and more. The lows became richer, the highs gained more sparkle, and it quickly became my go-to acoustic guitar for songwriting.

I had shopped for a OOO-style guitar for weeks before making a "why not?" decision to purchase this model. With Amazon's stellar return policy, it seemed like a no-brainer. A year later, it sounds better than any of the Gibsons or Larrivees I had been coveting. However, they all have their unique voices. I happen to like this one, but that doesn't hold true for someone else's ears.

The fit and finish aren't absolutely perfect, but they're better than any low price guitar I've seen. But it's excellent in the places it matters: body binding, fret dressing, etc. It could still use a professional setup to correct some slight intonation problems in the upper register, but being a 12th fret guitar, you probably won't be noticing those issues very often. There's nothing "cheap" about this guitar. Not the sound, or the looks, or the feel. Friends who play it assume the cost was 3-4x the amount I paid for it.

I'm now looking to purchase one of the higher-end Recording King OOO models and use this as a backup. I see no reason not to trust that their all solid wood guitars will be even better than this model.

This a great guitar...for the money (yes, it's low end), for the sound (ringing clarity), for playability (superb), for the look (time honored Martin herringbone appeal). I bought this guitar used as a low end guitar to play around the house. Didn't want to break the bank, and so stumbled on Recording King at local store. Fit and finish and woods vary by models up and down their line (cheapo to fine), but the RO 16 for me was the best balance of quality to price. It is a pleasure to fingerpick, responds well to my light touch, and doesn't overdrive easily with harder pressure. Big E string intonation could be a bit better at 12th fret, but this is common on even higher end guitars...beveling back the saddle to compensate should solve. Would rather have had ebony fretboard, but the rosewood is warm and inviting. Being plain, and having great fit and finish coupled with smooth sound, it could easily pass for a Martin...the herringbone and top wood are especially stunning. Still has music store "too new" strings on; it will be interesting to try various alternate strings for different tone. In open C tuning it has booming bass, which is uncommon on low end guitars; this guitar has great ringing quality and sustain -- not the cardboard deadness of many low end axes. Great midrange. A little "tinny" in treble, but I'm betting that playing in the strings will relax that, as will different gauge/brand strings. I someday will add a pickup, but the goal here was a great playing well balanced guitar that didn't break the bank...found it.

I bought this a month ago and am Loving it. This was my first slot-head. I found the guitar setup nicely. I found a couple drops of glue on the top. The abalone stars are nice and the herringbone purfling make the look. The picture looks like the guitar is Orange but it isn't its natural. The sound is awesome. Plenty of bass for finger-style playing. I enjoy the wide string spacing both at the neck and bridge. I use 1 3/4 nut now on a silvercreek OOO. I was concerned the spacing would be too wide but it only help my playing. Perfect intonation. I bought a nice case for $69 and Im happy. Now my favorite Guitar. Recording kings are nice, quality guitars for the money.

Very simple, these are great guitars. I have the ROS-16. Very balanced tone, very comfortable neck, very well made. I got this one for the wide nut and finger style playing without having to go to nylon strings. The solid woods are key to its responsiveness and overall tone. The absolute most amazing thing about my guitar is that I have had it for 5 months now, play it 6 out 7 days for 1+ hours... I have had to tune it maybe three times. I keep putting it on the tuner thinking it has to be off but nope. That is great kudos for the guitar head to toe (tuners, the pitch of the head, the nut, the bridge, etc). Even my Fender and Gibson have to get tuned every time out of the case. Like all brands, check them out, their is just enough variation in woods, shapes and necks to find the one that is right for you, still all for under $400. I can't say enough good things. If you know guitars, you wont be disappointed. Good luck with your decision and may the guitar gods be with you!