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Build quality is solid. Tone is really balanced and clean. Unfortunately the strings are very close to each other. It has a standard neck (1 11/16), but the spacing on the strings is very tight. Many of my open chords sound buzzy and muted from my fingers hitting neighboring strings. I’m going to try to retrofit it with a wider nut. So close to being a nice travel guitar!

If I were to hand this guitar to one of my guitar pickin’ friends, without letting them know it cost me a mere $200, I’m willing to bet some serious moola that they’d look at it, examine the beautiful wood and impeccable craftsmanship and then, after playing it, would guess that it was a $1000 guitar. At least!I’m not kidding, it’s that good. I’ve been playing guitar now for over 6 decades, beginning when I was about 15 years old. I started playing an electric guitar in the late ‘50s, then later on, I played a lute for a short spell before hearing Doc Watson play, which prompted me to put my lute in its case and buy a cheap Yamaha flattop at a music store in Chicago. I began digging into old timey and bluegrass style flatpicking. In the past several years, I’ve focused on electric guitars, partly because I have some arthritis in my left hand thumb joint. But more recently I began missing the sound of an acoustic guitar, so I dug out my trusty old Collings dreadnought. It’s the best sounding guitar I’ve ever owned and it was a joy to play it again, but the size and scale — added to the string tension — began irritating my arthritic joint.That led me to searching for a fairly inexpensive small body guitar with a short scale. I spotted this GAEA Acoustic “Parlor” guitar here on Amazon, and I loved the way it looked, but I was wary of purchasing it, because of the extremely low price (especially for an acoustic with a solid wood top) but also because it had only garnered one review and even though it was a very positive one. After examining the photos and reading the specs, I decided to bite the bullet and buy it. I figured at the very least I’d have a beautiful wall hanger, one that I could take to an outdoor gathering without worry about damaging an expensive instrument.Luckily, just as I was about to purchase the guitar, a friend offered to buy it for me in exchange for a drawing I’d done that he was coveting. Oh, happy day, a trade!Suffice it to say, that although I was hoping this guitar would be a decent sounding instrument, I wasn’t ready to be holding and playing a truly fine small body guitar, one with excellent tone and superb playability! I’ll lower the (Bone!) nut just a bit and possibly do the same at the bridge (Bone!) saddle, to get the action just right, but even right out of the box, it’s easy to play. And it’s SO beautiful!The guitar has a very comfortable (“C” profile) neck and, amazingly at this price, it has polished frets with NO burrs on the fret ends! I’ve purchased guitars costing 3 or 4 times this one that have prickly fret ends that need filing. It’s also hard to believe that, at this price point, GAEA has included an armrest! The binding and purpling is impeccable. I peeked inside and the bracing is nicely finished and the kerfing in the lining blocks is uniform and nicely done. The attention to details on this guitar is first rate.The book matched Koa top is beautifully, ditto for the laminated back and sides. As the other Amazon reviewer wrote, "Fretboard and bridge is as dark as ebony” which really sets off the Koa. The strings were a bit corroded, so I removed them to string it up with new a set of Dj’Addario Phosphor Broze EJ19 strings, which are a "Light Top/Medium Bottom" set. However, the fretboard was a bit dry, so while the strings were off the guitar, I applied some King’s Gold Fretboard Oil to the fretboard and to the saddle. The dark wood now looks even more like ebony.The guitar is very lightweight, which reminded me of a 1942 Martin D-18 guitar I once owned many years ago. Because the top is relatively thin and made of solid wood, it will loosen up over time and, of course, with the help of a lot of playing, will become and even better sounding guitar.The gig bag that comes with it, is actually quite nicely made, with structured sides, but it’s not very well padded, so if you value this guitar and intend to take it to gigs, I suggest you purchase a better gig bag or hardshell case.I hope my review will encourage those who are interested in this guitar, but are worried that it might be a cheaply made instrument, will grab one of these GAEA acoustics while the price is so low.

Very satisfied with the purchase. Beautifully finished koa wood. Polished chrome frets with no buzz - neck that needed no adjustments. Neck set correctly. Action set close for finger style playing. Nut is not 1.75" as noted in the listing, but the standard 1 11/16". Fret board and bridge as dark as ebony. Top is thin so does not have the punch or sustain of say a Martin - still produces a very rich balanced musical tone albeit on the mellow side. Strings appeared aged and will replace with light brights. Dare say it's one of the best acoustic guitar deals on Amazon.....