(see rating details)

I was looking for a small body guitar for a while and looked at everything from the Gretsch Jim Dandy to a Gibson Keb Mo. Most small parlor and 00 sized guitars are 12 fret models, with relatively short scale length, and I do not care much for that configuration. In that range of guitars mentioned, and not looking at price, the Gibson did sound the best (although not like a Gibson J45, etc), and this Silvertone was my second favorite, with good projection, and an almost full sized guitar sound. I found this Silvertone 604 at a local music store, while looking at Ibanez and Alvarez parlors, and noted it has a 14 fret neck joint. I picked it up and I really enjoyed the feel of the neck, which has some chunk to it, and the 14 fret neck with the longer, 25"scale length, right between Gibson and Fender standard scale lengths. After having it for a week, I had a minor set up and string change done, and WOW. It plays like butter. The guitar appears to have very good quality. The finish looks amazing with the binding, pin stripe, and blonde pickguard. Even the sound hole is finished in the same color as the binding. This sets the guitar apart from other relatively inexpensive parlors like the Gretsch Jim Dandy and Recording Kings, which are painted black with painted on bindings. And it sounds a whole lot better than these two, for a minimal extra cash outlay. This guitar sounds as good as guitars costing twice as much. I know, I tried a bunch before settling on this one. That being said, small body guitars have a unique tone to them, and the do not sound like a full bodied dread or slope shoulder guitar. It'll give you that acoustic blues tone that I was looking for in a really nice package. Honestly, I can't say enough about this guitar. For $200, I seriously doubt you could be disappointed, and I recommend that if you get one, do a string change and minor set up. It takes it over the top. I think it's one of the best buys in the $150 to $500 parlor guitar market. Plays and sounds well above its price point, IMHO. I just love this thing! In closing, I repeat, it appears to be a solidly made guitar. The finish is top notch, as is the playability, and it has killer looks. Sound rated at 4 stars only because I think people will compare to a larger guitar.

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