Beautiful sounding guitar from master builder Matsuoka. solid spruce top and high quality rosewood back and sides (appears solid to me as well), mahogany neck. This one has some beautiful green accents in the binding, rosette and and headstock. Made in the Hauser style It is characterized by a smaller and thinner body, more transparent sound, and elongation in the high frequencies than in the normal series.
The guitar is in good condition overall with a few minor cosmetic issues. There are some stickers on the side of the neck to mark the fret positions that could be easily removed. The neck shows some chipping of the top finish layer which can be seen but barely felt. There is also a tight crack on the top as shown, it’s about 3” long and doesn’t move with pressure so I left it alone. There are a few light scratches here and there also, see pictures. Guitar plays and sounds great! Comes in a hard case, case has some Tolex peeling but is solid.
Scale Length: 650
Nut Width: 51
Action at 12F (1st): 2.5mm
Action at 12F (6th): 3mm
Weight: 1534 grams
Overall Condition: 7/10
USA Seller, check my feedback to see how I value my customers and see my other listings for more rare Japanese Guitars and other unique gear! i use recycled packaging for reduced environmental impact and ship all items 100% insured against loss or damage.
Ryoji Matsuoka is a well known Japanese guitarmaker who has been producing guitars in Nagoya, Japan since the 1960s. Nagoya is Japan’s 4th largest city and a major industrial port city located on the main island of Honshu in Aichi prefecture..
The Nagoya/Aichi/Kani area (Kani is the prefecture next to Aichee) is one of Japan’s major musical instrument making centers. The city and the outlying areas have a long classical guitar making history with many small shops producing guitars. Major guitar and violin makers include Matsumoku Industrial, Suzuki, Takaharu, Sada Yairi, Kazuo Yairi (Kani), Daion, Yamaki, Ibanez/Hoshino, and Ryoji Matsuoka. Additionally, there are numerous small guitar shops and factories that contract to larger firms, such as Yamaha in Hamamatsu.
Matsumoku (not to be confused with Matsuoka) was the largest guitar maker in Nagoya for many years, until it ceased operations in 1987. Matsumoku manufactured guitars and guitar parts for many well-known labels including Epiphone, Yamaha, Westone, Aria, Vantage, Ventura, Washburn, Greco, Lyle, Electra, and Skylark.
Unlike Matsumoku, the Ryoji Matsuoka guitar works was a small scale guitar manufacturer with under 15 employees. It is still in operation and sells low to mid-priced classical guitars. The current operation is overseen by Ryoji’s son: Toshiaki Matsuoka. The last that I have heard is that Ryoji is still involved with the company and is the chairman of the board.
For a few years during the 1960s and early 1970s , Matsuoka produced the higher end Aria guitar models for Shiro Arai, founder of Aria . These Aria models either have Ryoji Matsuoka's name on the label or are marked RM with a red stamp on the neck block. Matsuoka also made some models for Ibanez, including a few steel string flatop and archtop models.
During the early 1970s, Matsuoka produced Fleta, Hauser, Kohno and Rubio (David, not GV Rubio) models. From 1975 to 1980 the company produced their own line of guitars: the concert, artist and artisan series.
Internal Use (Bin) - C4
Beautiful sounding guitar from master builder Matsuoka. solid spruce top and high quality rosewood back and sides (appears solid to me as well), mahogany neck. This one has some beautiful green accents in the binding, rosette and and headstock. Made in the Hauser style It is characterized by a smaller and thinner body, more transparent sound, and elongation in the high frequencies than in the normal series.
The guitar is in good condition overall with a few minor cosmetic issues. There are some stickers on the side of the neck to mark the fret positions that could be easily removed. The neck shows some chipping of the top finish layer which can be seen but barely felt. There is also a tight crack on the top as shown, it’s about 3” long and doesn’t move with pressure so I left it alone. There are a few light scratches here and there also, see pictures. Guitar plays and sounds great! Comes in a hard case, case has some Tolex peeling but is solid.
Scale Length: 650
Nut Width: 51
Action at 12F (1st): 2.5mm
Action at 12F (6th): 3mm
Weight: 1534 grams
Overall Condition: 7/10
USA Seller, check my feedback to see how I value my customers and see my other listings for more rare Japanese Guitars and other unique gear! i use recycled packaging for reduced environmental impact and ship all items 100% insured against loss or damage.
Ryoji Matsuoka is a well known Japanese guitarmaker who has been producing guitars in Nagoya, Japan since the 1960s. Nagoya is Japan’s 4th largest city and a major industrial port city located on the main island of Honshu in Aichi prefecture..
The Nagoya/Aichi/Kani area (Kani is the prefecture next to Aichee) is one of Japan’s major musical instrument making centers. The city and the outlying areas have a long classical guitar making history with many small shops producing guitars. Major guitar and violin makers include Matsumoku Industrial, Suzuki, Takaharu, Sada Yairi, Kazuo Yairi (Kani), Daion, Yamaki, Ibanez/Hoshino, and Ryoji Matsuoka. Additionally, there are numerous small guitar shops and factories that contract to larger firms, such as Yamaha in Hamamatsu.
Matsumoku (not to be confused with Matsuoka) was the largest guitar maker in Nagoya for many years, until it ceased operations in 1987. Matsumoku manufactured guitars and guitar parts for many well-known labels including Epiphone, Yamaha, Westone, Aria, Vantage, Ventura, Washburn, Greco, Lyle, Electra, and Skylark.
Unlike Matsumoku, the Ryoji Matsuoka guitar works was a small scale guitar manufacturer with under 15 employees. It is still in operation and sells low to mid-priced classical guitars. The current operation is overseen by Ryoji’s son: Toshiaki Matsuoka. The last that I have heard is that Ryoji is still involved with the company and is the chairman of the board.
For a few years during the 1960s and early 1970s , Matsuoka produced the higher end Aria guitar models for Shiro Arai, founder of Aria . These Aria models either have Ryoji Matsuoka's name on the label or are marked RM with a red stamp on the neck block. Matsuoka also made some models for Ibanez, including a few steel string flatop and archtop models.
During the early 1970s, Matsuoka produced Fleta, Hauser, Kohno and Rubio (David, not GV Rubio) models. From 1975 to 1980 the company produced their own line of guitars: the concert, artist and artisan series.
Internal Use (Bin) - C4
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