Aria Dreadnought D-80 Ryoji Matsuoka Pickup Rare! MIJ! 1970’s

This guitar has lost its label but tons of research has revealed that this is an Aria Dreadnought from the Ryoji Matsuoka era in the early 1970’s! This is consistent with the D-80 model based on the solid German Spruce top, dual plate Brazilian Rosewood back / sides and Grover tuners. I looked at the headstock under blacklight and could see a very faint but readable “Aria Dreadnought” logo there, you can also see some glue residue in the body where the wooden label that was used for the Matsuoka handmade guitars used to be.  This guitar sold for 80,000 Japanese Yen in the early 1970's, which would have been about a year's salary for a college graduate at the time!  It was near the top of the line, only the D100 with solid back and sides outrank this baby.

The guitar sounds fantastic with a huge, powerful sound like a vintage Martin, you won’t be disappointed. It’s one of those that you can tell with one strum... it’s something special. It features a solid spruce top and laminated Brazilian back with a stunning piece of flamed maple through the center. Equipped with Grover tuners and a vintage under bridge pickup (through end pin).

There are a few condition issues I want to point out although nothing serious. There is some white residue inside the guitar from what appears to be an exploded bag of desiccant. The fret board shows some wear in the lower fret positions but the frets are in good shape. Finally there are some marks on the sides and some light clouding in the finish on the back and sides, see pictures. Comes in a brand new padded gig bag.

Scale Length: 25.5”
Nut Width: 1.75”
Action at 12F (1st): 0.090”
Action at 12F (6th): 0.090”
Truss Rod: Dual action
Overall Condition: 7.5/10

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Internal Use (Bin) - G4