Heart of a Worshipper International Expounded Upon

Instrument Review

       Fender GJ46sce and Fender GA45sce Acoustic Electric Guitar Review

Fender GJ46sce and Fender GA45sce Features:

  Most of the time it seems like the average acoustic player doesn't really consider Fender acoustics when looking for a mid-high end acoustic guitar. Fender is just so well known for their Stratocasters, Telecasters, Basses, and Amps, that their acoustics seem to get overlooked accept for the beginner models. Believe it or not, Fender does have a line of acoustic electric guitars that are positioned to compete with the basic Martins, Tacomas, Seagulls, Taylors, Alvarez's, and others.

  The Grand Jumbo and Grand Auditorium are both featured here, because we just happened to come across them around the same time, and actually purchased a GA45sce through Heart of a Worshipper, to be given away overseas. I purchased the GJ46sce personally as a guitar to set onstage next to my Martin in case I broke a string or wanted a little different sound. The GJ46sce actually replaced the Wechter Pathmaker as my second acoustic, when our ministry found someone in need overseas, and I only had the Wechter available on short notice (so I gave it away.) These models both continue the trend that companies have been getting into, where they build the guitars in a reputable foreign factory, and just have very high standards as to what products come out of that factory. I'd rather play only American made guitars, because I live in America, and want to support our economy here. The problem is, I just usually can't afford to have a second version of any instrument made in America, because American made guitars are generally much more expensive than foreign models with the same features. So I will usually have 1 each of an American made acoustic & electric solid body, and then 1 each of a foreign made acoustic and electric solid body in my arsenal.

It used to be that you could bank on the fact that a guitar made in America was just about always better made than foreign models. I don't know why, but for years that seemed to be the case. Time and technology continue to march on though, and lately as I have tested more and more gear not made in America, I have not seen that variance in quality. Enter the Fender GJ46sce and GJ45sce.

Construction

This series of guitars first caught my eye when I was cruising a guitar shop, and saw the GA45sce hanging on the acoustic wall. The reason it jumped out over the Seagulls and Ibanez guitars that it was next to, was that it had detail that I had not seen on another acoustic before. These guitars have abalone dot inlays and a rosette that are not in your face, but still very attractive.  They also have the Fender logo in abalone, and that is in your face and gorgeous. It really stands out with the headstock being painted black.

The hardware on these models is gold. It just adds another classy touch to the overall look. But the thing that really is different, and rarely seen on other guitars, is the tortoise shell binding. This beautiful binding isn't just on the front edges of the guitar. It's on the body edges both front and back, and also runs around the fretboard so that it is also bound beautifully. These things all combined work together to create a visually stunning acoustic guitar. I received lots of comments about how beautiful these models were, when I had them on stage or sitting out in the studio and my house. Even sitting next to a much more expensive American made Martin, the Fender always got the second look. OUCH!

Both these models were free of any construction problems that I could find. They were clean inside and out. Even the fretboards were just right, and had no burrs or any other construction issues. After reviewing the Carvin C850 and Wechter, I figured that those two companies must've found a niche in high quality foreign construction, but Fender has kicked some tail here, and created some very high quality instruments in those overseas factories themselves.

The wood on the top is AA solid spruce, and the back wood of these Fenders is solid rosewood. The only thing laminated is the sides, which has a much less impact on the tone quality and projection than the top and back. The spruce tops on both models were very nice, and just basically normal looking nice solid spruce tops. The backs on the other hand were detailed and outstanding. The inlaid center, and grain detail along with the white trim and tortoise shell binding really make it a nice place to spend some time staring at. Too bad no one gets to see that part when you are playing onstage!

The bodies on these guitars are gloss coated, and a gripe I have is that the gloss coating seems to be applied too heavily. Sure it makes the guitar tougher and more resistant, but in my opinion, it also hinders resonance and sustain. I prefer a lighter gloss coat, with a satin back and sides, but that combo does get dinged up a lot easier, even though it sounds better to my ears.

All in all, this is a very nicely equipped and constructed guitar line.

Playability

Setup on an acoustic guitar is a bit more tricky than on an electric. If you can't get the neck adjusted to your liking with the rod, then many times the nut and saddle have to be filed down or even replaced. No big deal, but it is time consuming, and does take some patience. Fortunately for me, both of these Fenders came setup just right for me. The action was nice and low, without being too low and buzzy. I kept the GJ46sce longer, and used it more in various places, so after about 6 months, I did have to adjust the truss rod. That only took me about 1 minute though, and it was back to low action and excellent intonation in short order.

These guitars play fast, and have a fairly small at nut width. It's even a bit smaller than the Carvin C850 we reviewed, which played super fast and easy. The Fenders don't play quite as easy though for some reason, but they were both a pleasure to play, and easily play as well as anything else I've tried (other than the Carvin) in this price range. The bound neck of course has a different feel than an unbound one, but that just goes back to preference. One thing I loved about this line, is that the necks have a satin finish on the back, and it plays much easier than gloss. Way to go Fender! Since many shops carry these models and the whole line in stock, they should be easily accessible for a test run. There are various versions of this line, including a lower priced model with a mahogany back and sides, and even dreadnought style models (GD47.)  

Sound Unplugged

The tone of the smaller GA45sce was surprisingly louder and fuller than the larger GJ46sce. I was really perplexed by this, because I bought the jumbo model partly because I thought it would be really loud as a "jumbo" bodied guitar! The smaller bodied model was louder, and the only thing I can figure, is that the GA model was about 1 year older, and had aged more than the bigger GJ model which I purchased brand new. After some time, I noticed that the GJ did open up a bit, but I think because of the thick gloss coating on these guitars, it will take a long while for them to age and open up to their potential. They will open up though. They have solid tops and backs, so eventually they will sound better with age as with any other solid wood guitar.

The tones the two models make are very similar, and now I really wouldn't purchase one over the other (which is a surprise to me!) The sound is very even in the mid and high range. Bass response was lacking as compared to several dreadnoughts I had around, but that is to be expected with guitars of these body types, finishes, and sound hole sizes. It's not that there is no bass, it's just more balanced with the mids and highs than on larger bodied dreadnoughts, and many people like that and prefer that balance. When you strum a high quality dreadnought, the bass sort of shouts at you over the other frequencies. I like that, especially for unplugged playing. These guitars have a more balanced all around tone, and I have read that many guitarists who play various finger styles of music prefer it that way. I'm used to playing the main rhythm acoustic in a praise and worship environment. For me, the bigger bass response of a dreadnought is better. String type and size will also have a large impact on the area of tone, so that too should be considered when deciding on which guitar body size to purchase.

Sound Plugged In

The Grand Jumbo and Auditorium line comes standard with the Fishman Classic 4 ACLR system. I really liked the system. Fishman systems are my preference, and every guitar I've used with one has been very adjustable, and able to be made to sound great. With the Classic 4 ACLR, you've got your basic treble, mid, and bass sliders, and then a few other goodies that make a big difference in sound.

 The other goodies, are a volume slider, brilliance slider, and a body adjustment wheel. The brilliance slider is very useful, and allows the user to get as much brightness to the sound as one would ever need. If used too much, it can also cause the sound to be quacky, which is a big mistake that a huge majority of  acoustic electric guitar players make (when running through a PA.) I have heard so many players with quacky sounding acoustics in churches that it's scary. The only way to describe that bad sound, is that the guitar sort of quacks through the PA, and has the highs and mids accented way too much. On a guitar with less adjustment and laminated woods, that may be hard to avoid, but with the GJ46sce and GA45sce, the user can totally avoid quackiness.

Why? Because that brilliance slider can be used judiciously, and these models have another weapon to fight the quack. The little body wheel that is a great feature, and isn't found on most of the competition.  It's connected to a body mic, which is a little microphone that is glued inside the guitar to the body, and seems to be there to pick up the sound bouncing off the soundboard.  This is perfect for blending in some real mic'd acoustic sound to the undersaddle pickup sound, With wise use of this body wheel, and the brilliance slider, the user can get an excellent quack-free acoustic plugged in sound. It works very well for recording also. This is a good preamp setup. Not the best I've used, but very adjustable and very good. If you can't get a good amplified sound out of this guitar with this preamp, then you need to get someone to help you adjust it.

There were a few things that bothered me about the Classic 4 ACLR system, but they were minor. It would be nice to have a notch filter slider, for getting rid of annoying frequencies quickly on stage. I use that feature with the Fishman on my Martin all the time, and I reached for it several times forgetting that this preamp doesn't have one. I also wished for a built-in tuner, but that is just a convenience I've grown used to. It's also sort of an unreasonable request at this price point for a solid wood top and backed guitar that has a 2 way pickup system.  

All-in-all, the plugged in sound of this guitar leaves little to be desired. Any lack of bass response unplugged, is not there plugged in. In fact, the guitars sound large and bass responsive plugged in. I really think with age, the unplugged sound will come to life too, and catch up some with the great plugged in sound.

Conclusion

 These are desirable mid-priced guitars. The model line is loaded with different body styles, and even has a nylon stringed version. You can pretty much get one in whatever body style you prefer. With some models, there is even a choice between mahogany and rosewood backs and sides. My only real gripe that should be considered, is whether or not there is enough unplugged volume in either of these body styles for what the guitar will be used for. The construction is of high end quality, and the preamp system is way above average. As far as looks are concerned, these guitars are real lookers. People really thought they were beautiful wherever I had them out. Abalone inlays and rosette. Gold tuners. Tortoise shell binding. It all makes for a nice package. The competition is stiff, but if you see one of these hanging on a wall with the competition - Pull it off the hanger, and play it. Examine it closely, and then examine those other competing mid-priced guitars also. You'll probably see as I did, that the Fender Grand Series acoustic electric is just a cut above the similarly priced competition in looks, features, and playability. Surprise!

                                                                          by William Charles

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Last modified: 02/06/08