With the new 3rd Avenue instruments coming in, we thought it would be good to see how they stood against some comparable instruments from other manufacturers. To do this we have taken into account the build quality, features and price of each product.
First off, we have the Ukuleles.
The 3rd Avenue STX40BK and the STX40PU in black and purple finishes respectively. The obvious comparison here is against the Mahalo 2511 range. Both are colourful, robust ukuleles made with the classroom in mind.
Following this, the Classical Guitar
At just £32.99 the 3rd Avenue Classical Guitar Range is near half the price of competitive models. Despite this big price difference there isn’t a big gap in quality. The 3rd Avenue Classical Guitars are just as smooth to play as competitors products with no sharp-fret ends or badly installed hardware as you might expect for a guitar of this price. Aside from price, the 3rd Avenue Classical Guitars are fitted with a strap button. This enables you to play with a guitar strap: A feature often overlooked by other brands when it comes to classical guitars. With the majority of other Classical Guitars, the only option really is to drill into the guitar and attach a strap-button or use a strap that attaches to the sound-hole. Unfortunately, the 3rd Avenue series does not include a ¼ size guitar, meaning guitars from Valencia or Stagg may be better for you if the smaller size was required. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Nothing's perfect.
Now for the Acoustics
Similarly to the Classical guitars, the range of 3rd Avenue Acoustic guitars are much more affordable than competitors models. For example, the Stagg SA20D comes in at £84.00: Over twice the price of the 3rd Avenue equivalent. Along with this, the 3rd Avenue Acoustic guitars come with a bag, a strap, spare strings, picks and a pickguard. Other, much more expensive guitars, will come with only the guitar and none of the accessories. That’s not to mention the finishes that this comes in, there is the traditional Natural, and Sunburst which is a very popular choice, as well as the more modern looking Blueburst.
Finally,
Finally, the 3rd Avenue Junior Electric Guitar Pack. Quite simply there is no comparison to make. This guitar is very unique, there aren’t many ¼ size guitars available, so it’s hard to try to compare this with others! While I may be a bit bigger than the target audience of this guitar, I think that this guitar feels very nice and would make learning electric guitar a breeze for younger players. As it comes with all the accessories you need to get started it is incredible value for money.
Hopefully this will give an insight into the aspects of the 3rd Avenue instruments that sets them aside from, or puts them alongside, comparable instruments from other brands.
