Fender Highway Series Parlor vs Yamaha CGX102
Reasons to Get
Fender Highway Series Parlor over Yamaha CGX102
Reasons to Get
Yamaha CGX102 over Fender Highway Series Parlor
Other Key Differences
Fender Highway Series Parlor vs Yamaha CGX102
Shared Features
Fender Highway Series Parlor vs Yamaha CGX102
Common Strengths
- Expensive Wood
Common Weaknesses
- Solid Top Wood
- Solid Side Wood
- Solid Back Wood
- Pickup Alter Switch/Knob
- Locking Tuners
- High-Quality Frets
- Compound Radius Fretboard
- 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 Highway Series Parlor is probably the better product overall with its final score of 83 compared to the Yamaha CGX102's 71 score, which is a significant difference.
The Fender Highway Series Parlor wins when it comes to sound, playability, build quality, value for the money. This means that it wins over the Yamaha CGX102 in every aspect.
If you got small hands, you'll probably feel more comfortable playing the Fender Highway Series Parlor.
Which One is Better for Beginners?
If you're looking for your first guitar to learn how to play, the Yamaha CGX102 is the better choice.
The Yamaha CGX102 meets 5 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness, while the Fender Highway Series Parlor meets only 4. 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 Highway Series Parlor- Comfortable shape
- Easy-to-use bridge
- Tall frets
- Comfortable neck
- Comfortable fretboard
- Narrow nut
- Short scale
- Soft Strings
- Locking tuners
New Player Friendliness
Yamaha CGX102- Comfortable shape
- Easy-to-use bridge
- Tall frets
- Comfortable neck
- Soft Strings
- Comfortable fretboard
- Narrow nut
- Short scale
- 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 Highway Series Parlor Overview
- From Fender's 2023 Highway series
- Made in Mexico
- 6 strings
- 24.75"'' scale
- 12" Fretboard Radius
- Mahogany top
- Chambered Mahogany back
- Chambered Mahogany sides
- Mahogany neck
- Rosewood fretboard
- Bridge pickup: Fishman Fluence Acoustic Pickup (Preamp/Active)
- Modern Viking bridge
- Acoustic C Shape Neck-Through neck
- 20 Narrow Tall frets
- Fender ClassicGear tuners
- Compare Specs >
Yamaha CGX102 Overview
- From Yamaha's 2013 CG & CGX Classical Guitars series
- Made in China
- 6 strings
- 25.6"'' scale
- Flat Fretboard Radius
- Spruce top
- Nato back
- Nato sides
- Locally-Sourced Tonewood neck
- Rosewood fretboard
- Bridge pickup: SYSTEM68 + ART 1-Way Pickup (Preamp/Active)
- Rosewood bridge
- Acoustic C Set neck
- 20 Medium frets
- Chrome tuners
- Weight between 3.7lbs (1.7kgs) and 3.85lbs (1.7kgs)
- 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
Rosewood is an almost purple-looking wood that is used mainly for fretboards since it's heavy, rare, and expensive. It's sometimes used on acoustic guitar bodies to create stronger warm tones. Find out more about Rosewood.
Woods Used in the Fender Highway Series Parlor
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.
Woods Used in the Yamaha CGX102
This is just a generic wood whose origin hasn't been disclosed. Commonly found in cheap guitars.
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.
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.
Winner: Fender Highway Series Parlor.
Electronics
Both come with electronics that allow you connect them to an amplifier or interface for recording.
Winner:Tie.
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 Highway Series Parlor compares to the Yamaha CGX102.
Country of Origin
The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. The Fender Highway Series Parlor is built in Mexico while the Yamaha CGX102 is made in China.
Mexico has been for a long time where Fender has built their semi-premium series. If you don't want to overpay for a wellp-built instrument, a guitar built in this country by a good brand always offers good value for the money.
China has a bad reputation when it comes to building quality. However, times have changed and now respectable brands use China's cheap labor to build good instruments for a lower price. Don't discount a guitar only because it was built in China, but also expect more quality from countries like Korea.
Winner: Fender Highway Series Parlor
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 Highway Series Parlor has 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.
On the other hand, the Yamaha CGX102 comes with 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.
Winner: Fender Highway Series Parlor.
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 Highway Series Parlor's are Fender ClassicGear while the Yamaha CGX102's are Chrome
Winner: Tie.
Here is the list of features that were considered when choosing the winner in the Features subcategory:
Fender Highway Series Parlor
- Expensive Wood
- Ivory Tusq Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Electronics
- Ivory Tusq Saddle
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in Mexico
- Laminated Top Wood
- Laminated Side Wood
- Laminated Back Wood
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
Yamaha CGX102
- Expensive Wood
- Electronics
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in China
- No High-Quality Nut
- No Top Brand Pickups
- Low-Quality Material Saddle
- 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, the Yamaha CGX102 has the wider nut with 52mm (2.047'') vs 42.9mm (1.688''). This is a 9.1mm (0.359'') difference
This means that it will be more difficult to do bar chords on the Yamaha CGX102, especially closer to the nut. However, it's also easier to play without muting strings accidently. This favors people with big hands.
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.
The Yamaha CGX102 has the longest scale: 25.6". The Fender Highway Series Parlor is only 24.75" long. This is a 0.85'' (21.6mm) scale length difference.
This longer scale means that the strings need more tension to get in tune. This is good if you want to avoid fret buzz, which can happen when the strings are too loose and touch the frets while vibrating. This is especially important when playing in lower tunings. This will also let you reduce the gap between fretboard and strings (low action) to make them easier to press down. However, this higher tension will also make it harder to perform bends and vibratos as the strings will feel stiffer.
This also means that the frets have a longer separation between each other, so this will make it harder for people with smaller hands when playing some chord positions.
Another characteristic of a longer scale is that it makes the guitar sound 'snappier' or brighter. This is due to the extra separation between harmonics and overtones produced by the tension. This influences tone more than any other factor (except the pickups).
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 Highway Series Parlor and the Yamaha CGX102 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 Highway Series Parlor's fingerboard radius is smaller, which means it's more curved than the Yamaha CGX102'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 Yamaha CGX102.
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.
And after taking into account the scale length, nut width, neck profile and fretboard radius, we can conclude that the Yamaha CGX102 favors large hands more than the Fender Highway Series Parlor.
Fender Highway Series Parlor:
Yamaha CGX102:
Fret Size
The Fender Highway Series Parlor has Narrow Tall frets, which should be taller than the Yamaha CGX102's Medium 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.
