Jasmine S35 Acoustic Guitar Review

Tom Martin

Published September 15, 2014

Last updated June 8, 2021

If you are on a tight budget and you are looking to get the most bang for your buck for your child or teens first full-sized acoustic guitar, your best bet is the Jasmine S35. This model costs around $100 but plays like a guitar in the $300 price range. It’s well built, has great tone and sound, and is easy to play because of its slim neck and lightweight body. It’s not a perfect instrument, but it is a great model for a beginner at a great price.

Appearance

The S35 is a dreadnought shape with a matte satin finish. The top is select spruce top while the back and sides are agathis. It also has a rosewood fingerboard and bridge, full body binding and chrome tuners.

Playability

The slim neck and light weight make this a pretty comfortable and easy to play for kids and teens. Sometimes acoustic guitars can be a bit bulky for people with smaller bodies, but this guitar doesn’t have that problem. It’s light and plays relatively easy.

Sound

It is a budget instrument so you aren’t going to get the same sound out of it that you would get from a high-end guitar, but for what it is the sound is pretty great. For this price range, I don’t think you are going to be able to find a model that sounds better than this one, the intonation is good, and projection is robust.

Quality

Despite being inexpensive, the S35 is very well built. It is a little surprising how good this guitar is right out of the box. Generally, the action is pretty low, which is good for beginners, and if you don`t like it, you can adjust the truss rod pretty easily. Even though it is a cheap guitar, it doesn’t really feel like it was made cheaply, which doesn’t usually happen with instruments in this price range.

Things to look out for with the Jasmine S35

Some people complain that the action on the Jasmine is too high for a beginner, but that can be adjusted easily by changing the strings or adjusting the truss rod.

A recurring problem with most budget guitars is that they go out of tune quickly, this is a bit of a problem with the Jasmine, but I wouldn’t consider it a considerable deterrent. For a beginner learning to tune the strings is an important skill, so if you are limited by budget this still your best option and you can consider the frequent retuning as part of the learning process.

Overall

It is an excellent beginner guitar for kids and teens who want to get their first full-sized guitar but aren’t at the point that they are ready to invest a lot of money. The S35 is a great quality budget model with good sound and easy playability for beginners. It’s also cheap enough that you don’t have to worry if anything happens to it or if your kids lose interest in learning, yet it is good enough quality that it is enjoyable to play so there is less chance that they will give it up.