Some products are game changers, such as the Yamaha NS10 speaker, whose iconic white cone and black enclosure are so synonymous with professional recording studios that companies building speakers completely different to the NS10 still borrow from its aesthetic. Yamaha Rev 7 reverbs and SPX90 effects units are now imitated in software plugin form, while their electric guitars are a consistent top-seller from the budget beginner models to full-blown professionally spec’d guitars. The Storia series of Yamaha acoustic guitars are one such product destined to be witnessed on stage, imitated, loved and gawked at, as well as relied upon for years to come. The Storia series comes in Storia 1, 2 and 3, but are all equally spec’d instruments. The Storia series is designed to be aesthetically pleasing as well as pleasant players, so are as much a piece of furniture as they are a musical instrument.
The concert size of the Storia guitars makes them really comfortable to play, keeping them lightweight and curved against your body. All three still boast a 25” scale length, so the guitars don’t feel as small as they actually are, and you’ll feel as at home with a Storia as the Storia will feel in your home. They entrance like artwork and won’t occupy as much space as a full-size acoustic guitar so is perfect for musicians and students with little space, or need to travel with their guitar slung across their back. The sound remains full bodied and resonant but with the controlled dynamics of a smaller acoustic guitar.
The Storia 1, 2 and 3 all feature mahogany back and sides, as well as matching Yamaha passive pickups beneath the saddles, which is connected via a line out on the bottom strap-pin. Storia 1 has a semi-gloss spruce top with mahogany back while Storia 2 & 3 both feature gloss mahogany tops with progressively darker stains. Brass bridge pins secure the strings on all three models, and champagne gold, open gear tuners keep the guitar classy from head to toe. Comfortable string height and a rounded edge on the Storia 2 where the fretboard meets the main wood of the neck make for a very comfortable play for guitarists of any level, while a narrow neck makes playing a breeze for smaller handed players or complex chord voicing. The Storia 1 & 3 have more stand necks and fretting, and are no less comfortable the their rounded counterpart. The low profile frets are nice and easy to glide around on. Full strummed chords are easy to change, but fiddly arpeggios and noodling are equally easy on any of the Storia guitars. They’re truly a balanced and equal set of steel-stringed acoustic guitars in every sense of the words.
Aesthetically, the guitars look great. Each model’s interior has a variation in colour, and the Storia logo looks beautiful between the six Yamaha FS50BT strings that come as standard. The Spruce top on the Storia 1 provides a slight variation on tone and resonance, and each model features a different sound-hole inlay in mahogany, abalone and finally a black and wine red in the Storia 3. Head to toe these are beautifully made, but primarily beautifully designed guitars. The frets inlays are fairly inconspicuous and creative, and don’t pop out at you like some pearl or white get markers might on darker fingerboard. The subtle markers complete the guitars streamlined look and feel.
The Storia series of acoustic guitar do away with the ideas of progressively, more technically spec’d guitars, instead providing three equally well-assembled and designed guitars for an attractive price. They’re comfortable, sound great and will look beautiful in your lounge or study, even if they’re only played occasionally. Varying finishes, binding and inlays distinguish the models to suit your aesthetic, and different tone woods provide slightly different tones that are balanced out by the passive Yamaha pickup.
