Best Parlor Guitar

Are you tired of the same ol, same ol dreadnought body acoustic guitar that EVERYONE and their mother seems to be playing? You're not alone. Grab yourself a part of history and pick something out from this list to find the best Parlor Guitar around.

IN THIS REVIEW

The Best Parlor Guitar
Our Favorite Parlor Guitars
Our Top 7 Picks
Best Parlor Guitar Review
Budget Parlor Guitars
1. Luna Gypsy Muse Parlor Acoustic Guitar
2. Gretsch Jim Dandy
3. Fender CP-60S
Mid-Range Guitars
4. Breedlove Passport
5. Washburn WP11SNS
6. Yamaha CSF-TA Parlor Transacoustic Guitar
Premium Guitars
7. Cordoba C10 Nylon
How To Pick A Parlor Guitar
What Is A Parlor Guitar?
What Are They Good For?
Difference Between Parlor Guitar And Travel Guitar
A Brief History Of The Parlor Guitar
Overall Top choice
Conclusion

The Best Parlor Guitar

Parlor guitars are a great instrument for anyone wanting something a little bit smaller than a typical dreadnought, or other body, style guitar. Most often you will see Parlors used in casual settings like around a campfire or some light couch strumming.

Here are the top 7 best parlor guitars you can get today!

Our Favorite Parlor Guitars

Overall Best Parlor Guitar

Our top pick from this list is the Yamaha CSF-TA Parlor Transacoustic Guitar. Not only is it lightweight and beautiful, but you also get the built-in (seemingly magical) Transtechnology electronics.

This tech gives your guitar chorus and two different styles of reverb...WITHOUT being amplified. You really need to hear it to believe it.

Our Top 7 Picks

Budget Parlor Guitars

1. Luna Gypsy Muse Parlor Acoustic Guitar

2. Gretsch Jim Dandy

3. Fender CP-60S

Mid-Range Parlor Guitars

4. Breedlove Passport

5. Washburn WP11SNS

6. Yamaha CSF-TA Parlor Transacoustic Guitar

Premium Parlor Guitars

7. Cordoba C10 Nylon

Best Parlor Guitar Review

As you can see, we have broken this list down into three categories; best budget, best mid-range, and best premium Parlor Guitars.

Budget Parlor Guitars

1. Luna Gypsy Muse Parlor Acoustic Guitar

All Mahogany

The top, sides, back, and neck of this guitar is all Mahogany. That means you will get a consistent, balanced tone from this instrument. In addition to the great sound, it is a beautiful guitar with a dark, satin finish.

Budget Friendly

You cannot beat the price of this guitar. It sounds great and is incredibly budget friendly. If you can find it under $200 you should snatch it up.

Fret Markers

Proper for the Luna name, this Black Walnut fretboard features a series of crescent moon shaped, mother of pearl inlays. If you love the lunar aesthetic of this brand, you will love these inlays.

2. Gretsch Jim Dandy

You may recognize this guitar from our best acoustic guitars under $200 review. I would say it is one of the best parlor guitars under $500, as well.

Agathis Body

Agathis is a pinewood style of tonewood. It has tonal similarities to a mahogany made guitar. Despite it's small size, you can get some nice, soft, and warm tones strumming this beauty.

Perfect Size

This guitar is great for any player but is perfect for those that have smaller frames and hands. It has a c-shaped neck which makes playing much more comfortable.

Portability

This guitar is perfect for traveling, porch strumming, or around the campfire. It has 12 frets and a scale length of only 24". This guitar can go anywhere with you.

3. Fender CP-60S

Spruce Top

Spruce is one of the most often used tonewoods around. That is because it is able to give you such a great sound regardless of your playing style. You will enjoy the broad dynamic range this guitar will give you.

Rolled Fingerboard Edges

Never worry about rough edges while playing. Fender has crafted a perfectly comfortable rolled edge fretboard. No need for you to have your guitar modified after buying it.

Walnut Fretboard

The walnut fretboard will give you a bright sound you will love. The scale length of this guitar is just shy of 25" and packs in 20 frets for you to play.

Mid-Range Parlor Guitars

4. Breedlove Passport

Fishman Electronics

This guitar is a great choice if you want to play unplugged or, with the help of the built-in Fishman electronics, amplified. The Fishman ISYS+ USB system allows you to hook into a sound system via a standard guitar cable. The USB is for plugging directly into a computer for recording.

Solid Mahogany

You will get all of the highs, mids, and lows you could want from this solid mahogany body and soundboard. The tone is just as deep and warm as the beautiful finish on this masterpiece of an instrument.

5. Washburn WP11SNS

Mahogany Body

The Mahogany back and sides work well with the solid cedar top. You can expect to to get some of the crisp highs that you may not normally get with a cedar tonewood.

Satin Finish

The finish on this guitar is a beautiful satin. It really compliments the natural wood tone. An added bonus is it cuts down on finger print smudges usually found on glossy finish guitars.

Solid Cedar Top

Anytime you can get a solid top as opposed to a laminate top, you know you are getting a quality sound. The solid cedar soundboard on this Washburn gives off a beautifully dark and rich tone that will satisfy even the most critical ear.

6. Yamaha CSF-TA Parlor Transacoustic Guitar

Gig Bag

This guitar is small enough to go anywhere and, with the included gig bag, it can get there safely.

Yamaha Trans Technology

This guitar includes Yamaha's own proprietary Trans Acoustic Technology. This unique electronic system gives you access to built-in chorus, room reverb, and Hall reverb WITHOUT needing an amp!

Solid Sitka Spruce

You can't go wrong with a solid wood soundboard. The top of this guitar is a solid sitka spruce that will give you the dynamic range that you want from an acoustic guitar.

Premium Parlor Guitars

7. Cordoba C10 Nylon

Nylon String

This is the only nylon string guitar on this list. There is nothing quite like the soft, warm, classical tone of nylon strings. They are perfect for finger picking.

Handmade

This instrument is hand crafted by a small team following traditional Spanish techniques for . This makes each guitar a unique piece of artwork in it's own right.

Cordoba Case

If you are spending premium guitar money, you will want to keep it safe. Fortunately, this guitar comes with a solid Cordoba case.

How To Pick A Parlor Guitar

If you've made it this far you, no doubt, are interested in what a Parlor guitar can offer you as a musician. Here is how you can pick one out.

What Is A Parlor Guitar?

According to Mottola's Cyclopedic Dictionary of Lutherie Terms, a parlor guitar is one that is more narrow than the current standard. That may seem a bit vague but one look at a parlor guitar and you will know right away what it is.

While their body sizes and shapes may vary a bit, they are very narrow, a little longer than a ¾ size guitar, and kind of pear shaped.

What Are They Good For?

You will often see parlor guitars played by folk artists and singer/songwriters. Because of their size, they are not quite as loud as larger guitars. This is not a disadvantage as it lends itself to the more folksy and singer/songwriter styles.

What To Look For

What do you want out of a parlor guitar?

Body

Parlor guitars have a pretty distinct look. While the exact shape may vary from instrument to instrument, they are all very narrow, with a body that almost looks like a pear or a figure eight.

When picking one out, you will want to consider your own body characteristics and how it will interact with the shape of the guitar body.

Tonewood

The tonewood used in a guitar has a direct effect on the tone that guitar produces. You will want to figure out what your desired sound is and pick out a tonewood accordingly.

Quality Tuning Machines

Finally, if your guitar won't stay in tune, then you aren't going to sound good. Check out the quality of the tuning machines. Even if the stock tuning machines are substandard, you can always purchase a higher quality set from an aftermarket vendor.

Difference Between Travel And Parlor Guitars

You will often see parlor guitars and travel guitars confused with one another. Aside from them both being smaller than standard sized guitars, they are not too terribly similar.

Travel guitars are more along the lines of a miniature guitar. For example, their nut width is typically smaller than that of a parlor guitar; whose nut width is the same as a full sized guitar.

Parlor guitars are usually more narrow and long than a travel guitar. Oddly enough, travel guitars usually have more frets than a parlor. Aaaaand they usually have a similar scale length.

It isn't hard to see why they are confused for one another. But just look for the narrow and long guitar and you know it's the parlor.

A Brief History Of The Parlor Guitar

The history of the parlor guitar goes all the back into the 19th century. From the 1840's until around the 1950's they were wildly popular in all forms of music, such as country, folk, and blues.

Who's This For?

The parlor became popular because of it's small size. It was easier for women to play and was marketed as such. It was also popular with the general public because it was cheaper to make and, thus, cheaper to buy.

What's In A Name?

The term "Parlor Guitar" is in reference to a room in a home. Richer families would have a parlor room, typically used for entertaining. Music would be a provided form of entertainment and since the guitar did not take up a lot of space, it was a perfect fit.

Why Are Parlor Guitars Popular Again?

There are a few reasons why they are popular now. First, they've made appearances throughout time with various artists. So they never really went away.

Some notable players are blues legend, Robert Johnson, folk icon, Joan Baez, John Mayer, and Ed Sheeran. As far as the current rise in popularity, credit can probably go to Ed Sheeran.

Another moment that brought the parlor guitar back into the public eye didn't even take place on planet Earth. You read that right.

In 2013, astronaught Chris Hadfield was aboard the I.S.S. He brought along his own parlor guitar while he was in space. A video of him playing "Space Oddity" by David Bowie went viral, as you can imagine it would

Our Favorite Parlor Guitars

Overall Best Parlor Guitar

Our top pick from this list is the Yamaha CSF-TA Parlor Transacoustic Guitar. If for no other reason than the magic of the Yamaha Transacoustic sound system, this guitar is the best parlor guitar on this list and definitely one of the best parlor guitars under $1,000.

Conclusion

Parlor guitars are a whole lot of fun. They are super convenient to transport with you, have beside the couch for casual playing, or play on stage. These guitars sound great and are a great buy. Pick one out above and let us know which one you picked in the comments below.

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