Fender CN-60S vs FA-345CE Auditorium
Reasons to Get
Fender CN-60S over FA-345CE Auditorium
Reasons to Get
Fender FA-345CE Auditorium over CN-60S
Other Key Differences
Fender CN-60S vs FA-345CE Auditorium
Shared Features
Fender CN-60S vs FA-345CE Auditorium
Common Strengths
- Expensive Wood
Common Weaknesses
- Solid Side Wood
- Solid Back Wood
- Pickup Alter Switch/Knob
- Locking Tuners
- High-Quality Frets
- Compound Radius Fretboard
- From a High-Quality-Standards Country
- Luminescent Sidedots
- Strap Lock
- 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- Active/Passive Preamp
Table of Contents
Price History Comparison
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Which One is Better Overall?
After going through our comparison algorithm, the results show that the Fender FA-345CE Auditorium is probably the better product overall with its final score of 74 compared to the Fender CN-60S's 70 score, although not by a lot.
The Fender FA-345CE Auditorium wins when it comes to sound, playability, build quality. On the other hand, the Fender CN-60S has the upper hand when it comes to value for the money.
If you got small hands, none of these instruments will make a big difference when it comes to comfortability.
Which One is Better for Beginners?
If you're looking for your first guitar to learn how to play, the Fender CN-60S is the better choice.
The Fender CN-60S meets 4 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness, while the Fender FA-345CE Auditorium meets only 3. This takes into account the type of frets, scale length, nut width, bridge type, fretboard radius, and neck profile to determine the easiest combination for new players.
New Player Friendliness
Fender CN-60S- Comfortable shape
- Easy-to-use bridge
- Comfortable neck
- Soft Strings
- Comfortable fretboard
- Tall frets
- Narrow nut
- Short scale
- Locking tuners
New Player Friendliness
Fender FA-345CE Auditorium- Easy-to-use bridge
- Tall frets
- Comfortable neck
- Comfortable shape
- Comfortable fretboard
- Narrow nut
- Short scale
- Soft Strings
- Locking tuners
Nevertheless, when it comes to choosing an instrument, you should pick the one more compatible with your personal style. Still, below we'll try you to give you our results as objectively as it's possible to help you decide.
Fender CN-60S Overview
- From Fender's 2017 Classic Design series
- Made in Indonesia
- 6 strings
- 25.3"'' scale
- 16" Fretboard Radius
- Solid Spruce top
- Laminated Mahogany back
- Laminated Mahogany sides
- Mahogany neck
- Walnut fretboard
- Bridge pickup: (/)
- Walnut bridge
- Acoustic Fender 'Easy-to-Play' shape with rolled fretboard edges Set neck
- 18 Vintage frets
- 3-In-Line with Amber Pearloid Buttons tuners
- Compare Specs >
Fender FA-345CE Auditorium Overview
- From Fender's 2018 Fender Alternative series
- Made in Indonesia
- 6 strings
- 25.3"'' scale
- 11.81" Fretboard Radius
- Flame Maple top
- Laminated Flame Maple top
- Laminated Lacewood back
- Laminated Lacewood sides
- Nato neck
- Walnut fretboard
- Bridge pickup: Fishman CD-1 Preamp (Preamp/Passive)
- Walnut bridge
- Acoustic C Shape Set neck
- 20 Medium frets
- Open-Back Geared tuners
- Compare Specs >
Sound Quality Comparison
The most important thing that will determine the tone of an acoustic guitar is the wood. Let's take a look at the differences between both .
Woods Used in Both
It's a hard wood with a chocolate color that is often used to give an elegant finish. Since it's quite expensive and rare, it's mostly used for guitar tops. Find out more about Walnut.
Woods Used in the Fender CN-60S
Mahogany is a fairly rare wood nowadays. It's used mostly for bodies due to its relatively lightweight. Gibson popularized it with their Les Paul guitars during their golden years, so this wood has a lot of good reputation behind it. The most expensive type comes from South America and it's still used by Gibson even today. Find out more about Mahogany.
Spruce has a light color with tight grain patterns. It's very stiff but relatively light. It's known for producing a well-rounded tone with a broad dynamic range. Find out more about Spruce.
Woods Used in the Fender FA-345CE Auditorium
Nato a hard and dense wood similar to Mahogany, but cheaper and not quite as hard. Tone-wise, it's also similar, but it doesn't have quite the same attack as Mahogany.
This wood has beautiful patterns only found in specific types of maple.
Lacewood is a very popular tonewood for acoustic guitars because it has a very even and balanced tone. It is also a very hard wood, which makes it durable and resistant to changes in temperature and humidity.
Winner: Tie.
Electronics
The Fender FA-345CE Auditorium comes with a preamp that allows you to connect it to an amp, unlike its competitor. This allows it to have more versatility and sound quality if you want to record with it or play live.
Winner:Fender FA-345CE Auditorium.
Final Sound Quality Scores
Build Quality Comparison
When it comes to build quality, we like to take into account everything used to build the instrument. This includes materials, hardware and the quality control expected depending on the country where it was built. Let's see how the Fender CN-60S compares to the Fender FA-345CE Auditorium.
Country of Origin
The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. Both in this comparison where made in Indonesia.
Indonesia is becoming the most popular country for guitar building because they can make good instruments for a low price. Some people think that they're 'the new China' when it comes to build quality. But the truth is that Indonesian guitars are more consistent, although Chinese quality has improved a lot in the last few years.
Winner: Tie
Nut Material
If you want your guitar to stay in tune and sound good, you need a well cut nut. Nut quality can be inconsistent even when comparing two copies of the same model. The best way to make sure you're nut will be well done is by getting a nut made by an expert company like TUSQ or Micarta.
The Fender CN-60S has a Plastic nut. This is a low-quality nut that you might want to consider upgrading soon. Bone and TUSQ nuts are the best for guitars with a fixed or simple tremolo bridge.
On the other hand, the Fender FA-345CE Auditorium comes with a Ivory Tusq nut. Ivory used to be considered the best material for guitar nuts due to its beauty, durability, and the rich harmonics and sustain you could get from a guitar with it. However, the way to obtain it is simply unethical. Enter TUSQ ivory nuts, which are made synthetically to imitate ivory. Technically, it's better than ivory because it is consistent piece-to-piece, while natural materials can vary a lot, even if they're made from the same.
Winner: Fender FA-345CE Auditorium.
Fret Material
Most fret wire is made of nickel silver. This material eventually wears down after a lot of use and most instruments end up needing a complete fret replacement. However, some expensive models come with stainless steel frets. This is what you should aim for if you can afford it.
Unfortunately, none of them come with stainless steel frets.
Winner: Tie.
Tuners
Both come with regular tuners. The Fender CN-60S's are 3-In-Line with Amber Pearloid Buttons while the Fender FA-345CE Auditorium's are Open-Back Geared
Winner: Tie.
Here is the list of features that were considered when choosing the winner in the Features subcategory:
Fender CN-60S
- Expensive Wood
- Solid Top Wood
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in Indonesia
- No High-Quality Nut
- No Top Brand Pickups
- No Electronics
- Low-Quality Material Saddle
- Laminated Side Wood
- Laminated Back Wood
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
Fender FA-345CE Auditorium
- Expensive Wood
- Ivory Tusq Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Electronics
- Ivory Tusq Saddle
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in Indonesia
- Laminated Top Wood
- Laminated Side Wood
- Laminated Back Wood
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
Final Build Quality Scores
Playability Comparison
Let's now compare their playability. Bear in mind that the instrument will feel different depending on your hand size and play style. That's why you should always test before buying. But if you can't or want a second opinion on it, we can still take a look at each of the important measurements of the instrument for you. This way, we can predict how easy a guitar might be to play, or how different it will feel compared to the other.
Remember that, even though the difference might seem small, every inch counts when it comes to feeling of the instrument in your hands. Any variation can completely change how comfortable a guitar feels in your hands.
Nut Width
The nut width will affect the separation between strings at the nut. In this comparison, both have a nut width of 43mm (1.693'').
This is within the most common range of nut widths for a 6-string guitar. It offers a good balance of string separation at the nut. It's the size that most guitarists prefer as it gives them just enough space to play open chords without muting the strings, but without spreading the strings too wide and making bar chords difficult to perform.
Scale Length
The scale length is one of the things that influences playability the most. This is the distance between the nut and the bridge and will affect everything from low action allowance, difficulty to perform bends, fret separation, and even tone.
In this case, both have a scale length of 25.3".
This is considered a long scale, but slightly shorter than what's commonly found in acoustic guitars.
Since the distance between bridge and nut is relatively long, strings will feel stiff and more difficult to bend, but the tone will feel brighter. It will also be less likely to produce fret buzzing and rattling when strumming hard.
Lastly, remember that you can also affect the tension of the strings by changing your string gauge. You can use a thicker gauge for more tension and a lighter one for less tension.
Neck Profile
No single neck shape is better than others. However, most people tend to prefer a thinner necks because it doesn't get in their way when playing fast and most hand sizes can adapt to it pretty well. However, some people still prefer thicker necks for a better grip, especially if they have big hands.
Both the Fender CN-60S and the Fender FA-345CE Auditorium have a C-shaped neck. This is what you'll find in most modern guitars. Most people feel like the thickness of a C neck is simply the less intrusive one for playing fast, while at the same time allowing you to grab the neck easily for resting if you want to.
Fretboard Radius
Most guitar fretboards are not flat; they usually have a curve or arc across their width. A curved fretboard will make it easier to perform chords without muting strings, while a flatter one will make it easier to play single notes, which is good for bending and soloing in general. The best fretboards have a compound radius that varies across the fingerboard, but they're not common since they take a lot more work to build.
In this case, the Fender FA-345CE Auditorium's fingerboard radius is smaller, which means it's more curved than the Fender CN-60S's. This extra arc will make playing chords easier in this model. You won't be as likely to mute the strings, especially if you have big hands. However, playing single notes and bending will be easier on the Fender CN-60S.
Hand Size Comfortability
Everyone has a different hand size, and that's why it's recommended to try a guitar before buying, even if others tell you that it's comfortable to play. However, we can know whether a guitar favors small or large hands just by knowing its exact measurements.
After taking into account the scale length, nut width, neck profile and fretboard radius, we can conclude that both in this comparison favor small hands .
Fender CN-60S:
Fender FA-345CE Auditorium:
Fret Size
The Fender FA-345CE Auditorium has Medium frets, which should be taller than the Fender CN-60S's Vintage frets.
Some people prefer taller frets because they result in more sustain since the strings get pressed cleanly without interference from the fretboard. However, if they're too tall—like Jumbo frets—, you might change the pitch of the strings accidentally if you press too hard because you won't be touching the fretboard with your fingers. This is also why some guitarists with a heavy grip prefer smaller frets. They like to feel the fingerboard to avoid pressing down too hard and getting out of pitch.
