R
Richard Monroe
Well-known member
Hello folks! A buddy of mine recently aquired a brand new Zager ZAD-80CE, and I had the pleasure of playing and testing it a little in my studio. Something short of a full test, but a little more than a couple of casual strums. First, let me say that I have no association with this company, nor am I being compensated in any way for any comments, positive or negative, I might make about it.
The company is a small volume shop, with pretty much all building and setup done by luthier Denny Zager (remenber "In the Year 2525"- yes, that Zager).
The model I played is their top of the line, a Venetian cutaway dreadnought with solid cedar top, rosewood sides and back, rosewood fretboard, medium jumbo frets,Grover tuners, and a Fishman active piezo pickup system with onboard EQ. The company's web site makes claims about some revolutionary EZ-play system, which as near as I can tell, means the guitar is set up well. Rosette and neck inlays are abalone, the pickguard is tortoise shell, and the binding is very good. It retails for $795, on sale for $745.
It was shipped with extra light Martin strings, which I have very little use for, and the case is by Martin, extra charge, around $100. The basic review is this- No buzzes, intonation and setup are good, the guitar is very pretty, tone is excellent, and it sounds good plugged in. These guys have no dealer network, and are shipping direct. Is it as good as my Taylor 710CE? No. Is it better than any acoustic I have seen in its pricerange? Yes. It absolutely trashes equivalently priced acoustics by Takamine, Seagull, Martin, Ovation, or anybody else I've played. If I were looking for an acoustic guitar under $1000, at this time, I would go straight to Zager and look no further. This is a budget acoustic which has been largely overlooked by mainstream guitar-picker media, but is more than worth a look.- Richie
The company is a small volume shop, with pretty much all building and setup done by luthier Denny Zager (remenber "In the Year 2525"- yes, that Zager).
The model I played is their top of the line, a Venetian cutaway dreadnought with solid cedar top, rosewood sides and back, rosewood fretboard, medium jumbo frets,Grover tuners, and a Fishman active piezo pickup system with onboard EQ. The company's web site makes claims about some revolutionary EZ-play system, which as near as I can tell, means the guitar is set up well. Rosette and neck inlays are abalone, the pickguard is tortoise shell, and the binding is very good. It retails for $795, on sale for $745.
It was shipped with extra light Martin strings, which I have very little use for, and the case is by Martin, extra charge, around $100. The basic review is this- No buzzes, intonation and setup are good, the guitar is very pretty, tone is excellent, and it sounds good plugged in. These guys have no dealer network, and are shipping direct. Is it as good as my Taylor 710CE? No. Is it better than any acoustic I have seen in its pricerange? Yes. It absolutely trashes equivalently priced acoustics by Takamine, Seagull, Martin, Ovation, or anybody else I've played. If I were looking for an acoustic guitar under $1000, at this time, I would go straight to Zager and look no further. This is a budget acoustic which has been largely overlooked by mainstream guitar-picker media, but is more than worth a look.- Richie