Originally Posted by: erahn1949[p]One thing I'm wondering about is the guitar. Is the one I'm using really right for me? How do I know? Based on what I've read in the forum it would seem that the guitar action is very high and I'm too new to know right from wrong. Any thoughts / ideas / opinions? I'm not against getting another guitar if it will make a discernible difference.
Yamaha's F335 won't afford boasting rights for those to whom that kind of superficiality is important, but it's a competent enough instrument for purpose, and beyond, with the following inescapable caveats.
A. it's a Dreadnought (ugh!), and B. it may well be in need of a setup and certainly new strings if it's still wearing the originals from two years ago? Don't underestimate the importance of regular string changes not only to tone, but to both playing feel and fretting tension (elasticity).
Not a lot you can do about the body size and shape other than it either fits you or it doesn't. Optimum posture can make the best of a poor fit, but if the guitar shape and size doesn't fit, IME you'll never be comfortable with it. How will you know? It's intuitive. If it doesn't feel right when you hold and play it, on balance of probability it isn't.
I like Yamaha instruments and own several from the brand myself, but an aspect of Yamaha's entry level acoustics I'm not so keen on is their narrow 10.5mm string spacing. It is both a pro and a con. You might want to try another instrument with the more conventional wider 11mm string spacing?
Anyone wanting to optimise their progress, especially with age conspiring against it, needs to consider everything they can place on the scales weighing in favour of that.
[br]Start with a set of new strings, quality 12-52s, and at the same time have someone [u]competent[/u] check it over to ensure the saddle and nut are ok, the frets are level (denting or flattening of the lower frets used for open chords isn't uncommon with beginners with surprisingly little use) and its neck relief is correctly set. From the gist of your post, it sounds as if it may not be. GL & let us know how you get on.
