A ⅞ guitar is a smaller version of regular size guitars that is targeted mainly at kids, women, and people with small hands. The size difference between ⅞ guitars and standard regular size guitars are the smallest.
These guitars are specced almost exactly as standard size guitars and they play surprisingly well. In terms of size, the scale length of a ⅞ scale guitar is 24 inches which are shorter than the 25.5 inches scale length of standard six string guitars.
⅞ guitars are not widely produced by most guitar manufacturers given their limited appeal.
However, they are still great guitars and if you have a tough time trying to stretch and play a standard size guitar, these guitars can be very helpful for you no matter if you are a child or an adult.
Now that you know the basics of 7 8 guitar let’s look at some of the top models available currently in the ⅞ guitar size.
Already know what these guitars are you want to get one for yourself? Don’t worry I got you, the top 3 of the best ⅞ guitars I recommend are: Ortega Guitars 6 String Family Series, Cort 6 String Acoustic Guitar, and the Dean Baby ML.
Best ⅞ Guitars You Can Get Right Now (Classical, Acoustic, & Electric)
Ortega 6 String Family Series: Best Classical 7/8 Guitar
Ortega Guitars are a semi-popular brand of guitars that are really starting to get their footing in the industry recently thanks to good quality guitars they produce which are affordable and play well.
This 6 string classical guitar from Ortega is really good mainly because of the features it offers at the price giving this guitar great value for money. Let’s look at the features in an in-depth review.
As a guitar of the family series, this is a great beginner-friendly instrument that is fit for all members of the family regardless of their age.
For the younger ones, a smaller guitar makes it easier for them to play and for older family members the smaller guitar lets you do crazy stretches when you are playing and lets you have complete control over the instrument. Let’s take a look at the specs and features of this guitar.
Body & Build
The body of this guitar is made from Mahogany with a laminated spruce top. The neck is also made from Mahogany which gives this guitar a quality sound thanks to the good wood selection.
The walnut fretboard may feel unfamiliar when you hear it first, but it really lets you play this instrument easily. The body is resonant and has a nice binding on the side.uk
In terms of the build quality, this guitar does really stand tall and even though it is manufactured in China, it still is quite durable if you maintain it well.
In terms of the other structural parts such as the bridge and the nut, they are also average build and do their job well and just about that.
Sound, Tone, & Playability
The sound and tone of this guitar are good and as a classical guitar, it really has a very soft and resonant tone that is deeply focused on the low and mid-range frequencies.
The round and warm tones of this guitar are best for a variety of musical styles. It is in your and the guitar’s best interest if you just stick to fingerpicking on this guitar.
In terms of playability, this guitar really shines as the neck is really smooth and the overall feel of the guitar is suitable for everyone.
The tuning stability is good which is a great feature given that it is the thing that is absent in most budget guitars.
The strings are also quite nice and provide a good tone. In case of string breakage, you can easily change the guitar strings too.
Cordoba Dolce
If you talk about ⅞ classical guitar, this is it. The Cordoba Dolce is probably the best ⅞ classical guitar you can buy. This guitar is great in terms of its specs, and build quality, and it is one of the best guitars you can buy from Cordoba.
As a part of their dolce range of guitars, they have gone to great lengths to make this guitar as good as it possibly can be. That quality is reflected in this guitar and also in its price tag.
When you are just starting out your journey in music, this guitar can be a perfect beginner’s guitar for you as it is specced perfectly for people to pick it up with the intention of learning how to play guitar.
Let’s take a closer look at the features and quality of this guitar so that you can see how this guitar is great for beginners.
Body & Build
The body of this guitar is made from laminate mahogany wood for the body and sides with a solid cedar top. For your information, any guitar that has a solid top is always better than a guitar that does not have it.
A solid top gives the guitar more resonance making the sound a lot better. The neck of this guitar is also made from cedar and the fingerboard from Morado wood all of which gives this guitar good playability and tone.
In terms of build quality, this guitar is made in China, which makes it feel a bit iffy, but if you are a beginner and just starting out, you won’t run into any problems when playing this guitar. The build quality overall is stable, with some tuning stability issues here and there.
Sound, Tone, & Playability
The sound of this guitar is very resonant and full, thanks to the solid top of this guitar. It is quite loud by itself, and you can use this guitar to play shows and accompany singers in an acoustic environment.
In terms of the tone of the guitar, it is bright and warm, something that is influenced by the wood choices of this guitar combined with the quality strings.
Given that the tuning stability is average on this guitar keeping a check on your tuning regularly can help you enjoy this guitar a lot. The playability is also very good and beginner-friendly. You can start learning guitar on this instrument, and you will be fine.
Cort 6 String Acoustic Guitar
Cort is one of my favorite guitar brands because they make quality instruments at affordable prices.
I personally have owned Cort guitars and played them for years with no problems. So I do have a liking towards the brand itself.
As a brand that shines in the affordable range of guitars, there is no question that this model from Cort is a great fit for you if you want a ⅞ acoustic guitar.
In terms of the specs and features, Cort seldom disappoints as they are well known for providing quality guitars at affordable prices. So, let’s look at the detailed specs of this guitar and show you how this is a great beginner-friendly guitar that is great for people of all ages.
Body & Build
This guitar is made from Mahogany for the body and the neck with a solid Spruce top. The fingerboard is also made from mahogany which is a bit strange but it does hold up quite well with good maintenance.
One of the key things that you have to ensure with a Mahogany fretboard is that the wood is soft and rough using your guitar would probably just yank the frets out of your fretboard. So, take that with a grain of salt.
The build quality otherwise is pretty good and overall standard just be sure to maintain your guitar regularly oil the fretboard and keep the strings and the frets clean for maximum life of your guitar.
The tuners are not perfect but they do get the job done in terms of keeping your guitar in tune, so make it a habit to tune your guitar when you sit to play the instrument.
Sound, Tone, & Playability
The sound of this guitar is pretty good, the solid top gives it good resonance while the mahogany fretboard does dampen the sound a bit which gives it a warm and kind of vintage vibe.
You can change that with a set of new strings, which can be super bright strings if you want to brighten up the sound or just regular strings to keep your guitar sounding nice and warm.
In terms of playability that’s where this guitar shines because Cort guitars in my experience are quite easy to play thanks to the manageable string tension and the low action.
Given that this guitar has a shorter scale length too makes it even better and easier for you to play the instrument.
Washburn Apprentice G-Mini 5
Washburn makes quality guitars for a long time, they fly under the radar sometimes when it comes to quality instruments, but they do make great instruments that you can really enjoy playing.
Their collaboration with Nuno Bettencourt and Ola Englund are some of my favorite guitars from this brand. So, when it comes to quality you can bet on these guitars because they are played by many professionals.
When it comes to the Apprentice G-Mini they market this guitar as a travel guitar that is fit for everyone from beginners to seasoned musicians looking for a small touring guitar. This guitar overall has a very classic look that almost mimics classical guitars, so let’s take a look at its specs.
Body & Build
The spruce top on a Mahogany body is kind of a quintessential spec for this range of ⅞ size acoustic guitar because most of these guitars hold the same specifications. The engineered wood fretboard however is not very nice as it may be prone to cracking over time. Other than that, the wood choices for the body and neck are nice and quite solid.
The build quality is really nice on this guitar because it is marketed as a travel guitar and you can’t travel with something that breaks easily.
The tuners are something that you have to be careful with and the headstock because when tragedy strikes these are the first things that give up/break.
So, even though it’s a great guitar that you can take anywhere you want, maintaining it a bit and traveling carefully would help you out a lot.
Sound, Tone, & Playability
The sound of this guitar is really bright and loud which is perfect for you to use this guitar in live situations to accompany yourself or another singer. As I mentioned with other guitars often restringing your guitar can help you get a better tone that you like if you don’t like how it sounds out of the box. Given this guitar has bronze strings you may not like it by default.
In terms of playability, this guitar is very good, thanks to the good build quality, short scale length, and bronze strings. You can play this guitar as a beginner and you will be able to play on it well for a couple of years.
As a traveling musician, this can be a solid backup performance guitar or even your main guitar if you like the tone a lot.
Dean Baby ML
Do you know Dimebag Darrell?
Well, if you plan on buying this guitar then it is kind of crucial for you to know who he is if you don’t already. The ML series from Dean was his ax of choice and if you know anything about him as an artist, you would know just how influential he was during his run with Pantera.
The baby ML series is just a smaller version of the same guitar that you would buy if you got the standard size. This 7 8 electric guitar is a great beginner guitar size if you are passionate about your love for metal music.
Other than the Ibanez Mikro, this is the only other amazing small guitar size electric guitar I have seen; let’s look at its specs.
Body & Build
This awesome guitar is built from basswood, which is great for electric guitars it also comes with a quality maple fretboard.
The shape of this guitar makes it a stylish guitar that is better for playing when you are standing. To be very honest, if you plan on playing contemporary Christian music on this guitar, it is really not a good fit for the genre.
The build quality is as solid as it gets given that it is an electric guitar. This guitar truly excels in terms of the build quality because of the good tuners and bridge that hold the tuning stability quite well.
You can play this guitar anywhere and take it out for shows because that’s where it truly belongs, on the stage. You don’t have to worry about the build quality of this model, it is really solid, literally too!
Sound, Tone, & Playability
When it comes to the sound, that is where this guitar shines thanks to the great pickups onboard this guitar. The high output self-made pickups from Dean are genuinely good for metal and rock music. In terms of playability, the super-fast neck on this guitar helps you shred your heart out as well as get started on guitar as a beginner.
Thanks to the Tune-o-Matic bridge and die-cast tuners, this guitar plays really well and stays in tune while you go bonkers on your instrument. The low action makes this a great guitar for beginners and also a dream for metal players as it allows you to do whatever you want with your guitar with low noise and easy playing features.
Who Are Best Suited For ⅞ Size Guitars?
⅞ size guitars have the least possible difference in them compared to standard guitars. That makes these guitars have a wider appeal and more uses than other smaller guitar sizes such as ¾ guitars or ½ guitars which are more directly specified for children.
⅞ guitars have great features and they are built with the same quality standard size guitars are made. The build quality makes these guitars sturdy and playable by people of all ages without any fear of breaking or damage.
In general, these guitars are best suited for people with small hands that have difficulty playing standard-size guitars easily. These guitars are also suited for teenagers that have the same problem of playing regular guitars.
In general, these guitars are also often purchased by women who have trouble playing regular guitars as physiologically, women have smaller hands compared to men.
So, in general, ⅞ guitars are best for anyone really that has trouble playing regular guitars. The thing you should keep in mind with these guitars is that the benefits of the shorter scale length can also become trouble if you don’t know how to set up your guitar properly.
Another thing to keep in mind would be that due to the shorter scale length, tuning your guitar down or using alternate tunings on these guitars would be difficult and quite problematic. So, these guitars are best kept and played in standard tuning.
Final Thoughts
⅞ guitars are great for a variety of people with different problems with standard-size guitars. The guitar manufacturers try and go above and beyond to deliver to every need of guitarists so that they can easily play these instruments without any trouble.
So, if you find the need for these instruments, feel free to buy any of the guitars in this list as they are all curated and perfect for you regardless of your age.
If you have any questions or queries about ⅞ guitars, feel free to leave a comment down below. For more information about guitars and music, you can check out my other blogs. Till then, wishing you the best in your musical journey; thanks for reading!
Anindya is a Self-taught Musician and a Home Studio Owner who likes sharing his two cents on Guitars, Gears, and Music. You can find his Music on Spotify, YouTube and Facebook.