Last Updated on October 10, 2025 by Chris
Left Handed Yamaha Guitars
After taking a look at left handed ESP and Ibanez guitars, I thought I’d stick with Japanese guitar companies and see what left handed Yamaha guitars are available to us lefties.
Yamaha aren’t just manufacturers of musical instruments; over the years, they have manufactured all kinds of products from golf clubs to motorcycles!
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The first time I’d seen a Yamaha guitar was in a book my parents had bought me when I first started playing guitar back in the early ’90s, The Guitar Handbook by Ralph Denyer. It was a double-page illustration of the Yamaha SG 2000, featured in that book, that made an impression on the thirteen-year-old me! It looked fantastic!
Since then, I’ve always fancied owning a Yamaha SG, but no luck so far…
Go straight to the left handed Yamaha guitars.
Who Are Yamaha?
The Yamaha Corporation is the biggest musical instrument manufacturer in the world!
They produce many different types of instruments, including:
- Guitars, Basses, and Amplifiers
- Pianos, Keyboards, and Synthesizers
- Drums, Drum Machines, and Percussion
- Violins, Violas, and Cellos
- Brass and Woodwinds
Originally named the Nippon Gakki Co. Ltd. the Yamaha Corporation was founded in 1887, manufacturing pianos and reed organs.
In 1954, Yamaha ran a program of music classes in Japan, forming the Yamaha Music School. Later, in 1966, this became the Yamaha Music Foundation. The program focused on promoting music and music education to the Japanese people at the time.
By 1955, Yamaha built the YA-1 motorcycle, which was so successful that the Yamaha Motor Company Limited was created and split from the main Yamaha company.
In 1960, the Yamaha International Corporation (now the Yamaha Corporation of America) was established, and after starting to produce electronic organs, sports equipment, wind instruments, recreation, and lifestyle products, by 1966, they started building guitars, basses, and amplifiers.
Yamaha continued to grow their guitar division throughout the decades, building on the success of each year to become world leaders in the musical instruments market.
What Do I Think About Yamaha Guitars?
As mentioned before, from an early stage in my guitar-playing journey, the Yamaha SG 2000 really caught my eye, roundabout 1991. I’d heard they were really great guitars with incredible sustain, and the bright orange-colored sunburst of that illustration (not even a photograph!) really stuck in my mind for quite a long time!
Since then, I’d seen that Yamaha had another well-regarded range of guitars, with the Pacifica line, and then later, the cool-looking Revstar line, among others.
I’m a big fan of the Revstar’s aesthetic; they’re really cool looking, and sound pretty cool too!
The Different Types of Yamaha Guitars
Being the biggest musical instrument manufacturer in the world, Yamaha predictably has quite a number of different guitar models available.
When it comes to electric guitars, Yamaha produces five main model types, along with signature models:
- Revstar – The design of the Revstar range draws inspiration from London and Tokyo’s vintage street-racing motorbikes of the 1960s. There’s no denying that these guitars look something special and have a cool retro feel.
- Pacifica – Designed for versatility, the Pacifica range has a pickup configuration that provides tones suitable for just about any genre.
- Hollow Body – The Yamaha Hollow Bodies combine traditional construction with modern electronics to produce instruments of quality and versatility.
Yamaha also produce a large selection of acoustic guitars too:
- STORIA – This range is aimed at the modern beginner player, and feature a shorter neck and a smaller body for comfort and ease of use.
- FG / FS Red Label – Inspired by Yamaha’s Red Label guitars of the sixties, the guitars in this range are designed to provide vintage tone and vintage aesthetics.
- TransAcoustic Guitars – If you like chorus and reverb effects, you can now enjoy these sounds directly from the guitar’s sound chamber, without plugging in to any external effects or amplifiers.
- A Series – These guitars are designed to be played live, or for studio work. They combine tradition with technology for a versatile acoustic sound.
- L Series – These are Yamaha’s high-end acoustic guitar series, featuring their A.R.E. (Acoustic Resonance Enhancement) technology, which basically ages the woods to give them improved tone.
- CSF – One of Yamaha’s travel / mini guitar ranges, the CSF modern parlor guitars are compact guitars designed to provide a full and rich sound, even without a full-size body.
- FG / FGX – The FG / FGX series represents Yamaha’s standard line of acoustic and acoustic-electric guitars.
- F / FX – Aimed at the budget-conscious and beginner players, these affordable acoustic guitars offer developing players Yamaha’s usual quality and tone.
- APX – This guitar range is built for comfort, featuring a thin cutaway body and an electric guitar style neck.
- CPX – These guitars combine the pickup systems of the APX series with a larger body, designed for a louder, fuller acoustic sound.
- APXT2 – Featuring just one model, this guitar is a 3/4 sized version of the larger, best-selling APX500.
- JR – The JR is a 540mm scale length compact guitar modeled on Yamaha’s FG series.
Not bad! So which ones can we buy in left handed configuration?
Left Handed Yamaha Electric Guitars
Seeing as Yamaha is the world’s biggest manufacturer of musical instruments, you wouldn’t be surprised if they had the world’s biggest range of lefty guitars.
Unfortunately, it’s quite the opposite! Yamaha actually has quite a small range!
In 2021, there was only one left handed Yamaha electric guitar; the Pacifica 112J model.
Yamaha updated their 2022 range of guitars with a couple of Revstar models that were available for the first time to lefty guitarists!
They redesigned the original Revstar with new finishes and a slightly bigger, chambered body, developed by Yamaha’s Acoustic Design process to improve tone, clarity, and resonance.
These newer models also feature new switching and tonal options, for a more versatile instrument.
The Revstar lineup is divided into three tiers; Revstar Element, Revstar Standard, and Revstar Professional. Unfortunately for us lefties, the Japanese-made Professional tier is unavailable. Also, it appears that the P90 versions are also unavailable.
Pacifica 112JL
This is Yamaha’s entry-level guitar from the Pacifica range and features in LeftyGuitarist.com’s Top Left Handed Guitars for Beginners. It’s a fantastic beginner’s guitar, well-built, versatile, and well-suited to the budget-conscious guitar player.
Unfortunately, it’s not officially available in the USA, though you may be able to get one through the likes of Reverb or eBay.
$363.80 MSRP, Made in China
Pacifica Series
- STRINGS: 6
- SCALE: 648mm (25-1/2″)
- NECK: Bolt-on Maple
- NECK FINISH: Satin Polyurethane
- BODY: Alder
- FINGERBOARD: Rosewood
- RADIUS: 350mm (13-3/4″)
- FRETS: 22
- NUT TYPE: Urea
- BRIDGE: Vintage-Style Tremolo
- NECK PICKUP: Single Coil/Ceramic
- MIDDLE PICKUP: Single Coil/Ceramic
- BRIDGE PICKUP: Humbucker/Ceramic
- CONTROLS: Master Volume, Master Tone, 5-Position Switch
- TUNERS: Die-Cast
- FINISH: Gloss Polyurethane – Yellow Satin Natural, Black
Check price/availability at:
Revstar Element RSE20L
This is Yamaha’s stripped-back, entry-level Revstar, which features dual humbuckers as well as the Dry Switch, which acts as a high-pass filter, that was available on the original Revstar models.
$549.99 MSRP, Made in Indonesia
Revstar Series
- STRINGS: 6
- SCALE: 628.6mm (24-3/4”)
- NECK: Set-in 3-Piece Mahogany
- NECK FINISH: Satin Polyurethane
- BODY: Chambered Mahogany
- FINGERBOARD: Rosewood
- RADIUS: 304.8mm (12″)
- FRETS: 22 Jumbo
- NUT TYPE: PPS
- BRIDGE: Tune-O-Matic
- NECK PICKUP: VH3n: Humbucker / Alnico V
- BRIDGE PICKUP: VH3b: Humbucker / Alnico V
- CONTROLS: Master Volume, Master Tone (Push-Pull, “Dry Switch”), 3-Position Lever Switch
- TUNERS: Die-Cast
- FINISH: Gloss Polyurethane – Black, Swift Blue
Check price/availability at:
Revstar Standard RSS20L
This is Yamaha’s standard series Revstar model, which adds carbon reinforcement to the neck, as well as a new 5-way switching system that offers a subtle phase shift on positions 2 and 4, unavailable to the original models.
These two-pickup guitars have the flexibility of a three-pickup guitar, adding versatility with a new range of sounds.
These models also feature a Focus Switch, which activates a passive boost to create the effect of an overwound pickup, adding even more sonic options with darker highs and increased mids and lows.
$849.99 MSRP, Made in Indonesia
Revstar Series
- STRINGS: 6
- SCALE: 628.6mm (24-3/4”)
- NECK: Set-in 3-Piece Mahogany with Carbon Reinforcement
- NECK FINISH: Satin Polyurethane
- TOP: Maple
- BODY: Chambered Mahogany
- FINGERBOARD: Rosewood
- RADIUS: 304.8mm (12″)
- FRETS: 22 Jumbo Stainless Steel
- NUT TYPE: PPS
- BRIDGE: Tune-O-Matic
- NECK PICKUP: VH5n: Humbucker / Alnico V
- BRIDGE PICKUP: VH5b: Humbucker / Alnico V
- CONTROLS: Master Volume, Master Tone (Push-Pull, “Dry Switch”), 5-Position Lever Switch
- TUNERS: Die-Cast
- FINISH: Gloss Polyurethane – Black, Swift Blue
Check price/availability at:
Left Handed Yamaha Acoustic Guitars
Yamaha is also a big name in acoustic guitars and has many different models available to our right handed friends. However, there are just two different left handed Yamaha acoustic guitars available to lefty guitarists:
Yamaha LL16L ARE
$1,420.00 MSRP, Made in China
LL Series
- STRINGS: 6
- SCALE: 650mm (25 9/16”)
- NECK: Mahogany & Rosewood 5ply
- NECK FINISH: Matte
- BODY SHAPE: Yamaha Original Jumbo
- TOP: Solid Engelmann Spruce with A.R.E.
- BACK: Solid Rosewood
- SIDE: Solid Rosewood
- FINGERBOARD: Ebony
- RADIUS: 400mm (15 3/4″)
- FRETS: 20
- NUT TYPE: Urea
- NUT WIDTH: 44 mm (1 3/4″)
- BRIDGE: Ebony
- ELECTRONICS: Passive System + SRT Piezo Pickup
- CONTROLS: None
- PICKGUARD: Tortoise Pattern
- TUNERS: Die-Cast Gold
- FINISH: Gloss Natural
Check price/availability at:
Yamaha FG820L
$603.60 MSRP, Made in China
FG Series
- STRINGS: 6
- SCALE: 650mm (25 9/16″)
- NECK: Nato
- NECK FINISH: Matte
- BODY SHAPE: Traditional Western
- TOP: Solid Spruce
- BACK: Mahogany
- SIDE: Mahogany
- FINGERBOARD: Rosewood or Walnut
- RADIUS: 400mm (15 3/4″)
- FRETS: 20
- NUT TYPE: Urea
- NUT WIDTH: 43 mm (1 11/16″)
- BRIDGE: Rosewood or Walnut
- ELECTRONICS: None
- CONTROLS: None
- PICKGUARD: Tortoise Pattern
- TUNERS: Die-Cast Chrome
- FINISH: Gloss Natural
Check price/availability at:
Yamaha APX700IIL
$972.20 MSRP, Made in China
APX Series
- STRINGS: 6
- SCALE: 650mm (25 9/16″)
- NECK: Nato
- NECK FINISH: Matte
- BODY SHAPE: Thinline Cutaway
- TOP: Solid Spruce
- BACK: Mahogany
- SIDE: Mahogany
- FINGERBOARD: Rosewood or Walnut
- RADIUS: 400mm (15 3/4″)
- FRETS: 23
- NUT TYPE: Urea
- NUT WIDTH: 43 mm (1 11/16″)
- BRIDGE: Rosewood
- ELECTRONICS: System64 + ART 1-Way Pickup
- CONTROLS: Vol, 3-Band EQ, Tuner, Mid FQ
- PICKGUARD: None
- TUNERS: Die-Cast Chrome
- FINISH: Gloss Natural
Check price/availability at:
Left Handed Yamaha Bass Guitars
Unfortunately, even though Yamaha make bass guitars for right handed people, they don’t make any lefty ones at the time of writing.
Left Handed Yamaha Classical and Nylon Guitars
Yamaha makes several classical models. Unfortunately, none of them are made in a left handed version at the time of writing.
Final Thoughts
Just because you’re the biggest musical instrument manufacturer doesn’t necessarily mean you offer the most to your customers. Especially if your customers are left handed guitarists!
They should look at companies such as ESP, Gibson, Schecter, Martin, or Taylor which offer lefty guitarists a huge choice.
However, with the two lefty Revstar electric models, their entry-level Pacifica, as well as a handful of acoustic models, Yamaha hasn’t expanded their lefty range in the last few of years.
It’s a shame we can’t get a lefty Professional Revstar or any of the higher-specced Pacifica models. Let’s hope the future will bring us more choice.
Historically, Yamaha has offered other lefty models to those that are available today, such as SG and RGX models, among others, but you’d have to check the used markets to find any.
Yamaha also produces bass guitars and silent guitars, but at the time of writing, none are made in a lefty configuration.
What do you think of Yamaha guitars? Do you own any left handed Yamaha guitars? Comment below!
Image credits: yamaha.com
