Stage Comfort Without the Compromise
If you've ever fought with a big-bodied dreadnought on a cramped stage — or found yourself wishing your acoustic felt a little more like the electric you learned on — the Yamaha APX600M might be exactly what you've been looking for. It's a thinline cutaway acoustic-electric that takes Yamaha's well-established APX heritage and wraps it in a smooth natural satin matte finish. The result is a guitar that looks understated and plays easy right out of the box.
The APX600M is the matte-finish variant of the popular APX600, carrying the same core specs with a different look and feel on the neck and body. That matte finish isn't just cosmetic — on the neck especially, it makes for a noticeably smoother ride up and down the fretboard compared to a high-gloss equivalent. Players who spend a lot of time on stage tend to appreciate that detail.
This guitar is well-suited to players who gig regularly and want something comfortable and stage-ready, electric players making the jump to acoustic, or anyone who just wants a reliable acoustic-electric that won't fight them during a long practice session.
A Body Built for Playing, Not Just Looking
Yamaha's APX shape is a thinline cutaway — meaning the body is notably shallower than a traditional dreadnought, and the cutaway gives you clear access all the way up the neck. The slim profile naturally sits closer to your body, which reduces the awkward reach that full-depth acoustics can create. For electric players in particular, this body style will feel familiar almost immediately.
The spruce top is paired with a non-scalloped X-type bracing pattern, which Yamaha designed to maximize body resonance even in a thinner shell. The oval soundhole placement — a distinctive APX feature — is engineered to reinforce lower-mid frequencies and give the guitar more presence in the low end than you might expect from a thinline body. It's a smart design solution for a guitar that spends most of its time plugged in.
Back and sides are Nato, a locally sourced tonewood that Yamaha uses across much of the APX600 line as part of their sustainable wood sourcing approach. Nato delivers a warm, balanced tonal character that complements the spruce top's natural clarity.
Playability: Scale, Spacing, and Neck Feel
The APX600M runs a 25" scale length — slightly shorter than the standard 25.5" you'll find on many acoustics — with a nut width of 43mm (1-11/16"). That narrower string spacing is a deliberate design choice that reduces finger stretch and makes chord transitions faster and more comfortable, especially for players with smaller hands or those coming over from electric guitar.
The neck is finished in the same matte satin as the body, which gives it a dry, fast feel rather than the sticky resistance you can sometimes get from gloss necks in warm or humid conditions. The rosewood fretboard adds warmth to the upper register and provides a smooth playing surface. No specific neck profile name is published by Yamaha, but players consistently describe the neck as slim and electric-like in feel.
System 65 Electronics: Plug In and Play
The APX600M is equipped with Yamaha's System 65 preamp and SRT undersaddle piezo pickup — the same transducer technology found in Yamaha's higher-end A Series guitars. The SRT pickup uses individual elements for each string, which helps it capture a more accurate, natural-sounding signal compared to a single-element piezo bar. The result when plugged into a PA or acoustic amp is a clean, clear acoustic voice with minimal the coloration that sometimes plagues budget piezo systems.
Onboard controls include volume, a 3-band EQ, a mid-frequency sweep knob, and a chromatic tuner — all accessible from the guitar's side-mounted preamp panel. Die-cast chrome tuners handle the other end of tuning reliability. Whether you're running into a house PA at an open mic or your own acoustic amp at a rehearsal, the System 65 gives you enough control to dial in a workable sound without a lot of extra gear.
Product Features:
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Body Style: APX thinline cutaway with oval soundhole and ABS/abalone rosette
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Top: Spruce with non-scalloped X-type bracing
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Back & Sides: Nato (locally sourced tonewood)
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Neck: Locally sourced tonewood with matte satin finish; rosewood fretboard
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Scale Length: 25" (634mm) with 43mm (1-11/16") nut width and 10mm string spacing
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Electronics: Yamaha System 65 preamp with SRT undersaddle piezo pickup
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Controls: Volume, 3-band EQ, mid-frequency sweep, onboard chromatic tuner
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Hardware: Die-cast chrome tuners (TM29T); black ABS bridge pins with white dot
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Finish: Natural Satin matte on body and neck
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Binding: Ivory and black body binding
Brand: Yamaha
Model: APX600M
SKU: APX600MNS
Condition: New
Since 1872, C.A. House Music has been helping musicians across the Ohio Valley find the right gear -- with real advice from a team that actually plays. We're your authorized dealer of all the big names in guitars, keyboards, band instruments, drums, pro audio, and more. With four family-owned and operated locations in Ohio and West Virginia (plus a full online store), you don't have to go far for instruments, lessons, rentals, and repairs. No matter your musical needs, our team of musicians wants to help you Play Music for Life.
