Alvarez Artist Series AG70CE 12-String Grand Auditorium Acoustic-Electric Guitar – Black Gloss

Twelve strings, professional-grade electronics, and a striking Black Gloss finish — a 12-string acoustic-electric built to fill a room and hold its own on any stage.

Who This Guitar Is For

There is a sound that only a 12-string acoustic can produce — that wide, shimmering wall of chorus and overtone that turns a simple chord into something immersive and cinematic. The AG70CE is built to deliver that experience at a level that justifies calling it a professional instrument. The solid A+ Sitka spruce top is graded and selected independently by Alvarez's team, paired with East Indian rosewood back and sides that add depth, clarity, and sustain to the spruce's natural brightness. The FST2 forward-shifted bracing system handles the additional tension of twelve strings without choking the top's resonance, producing a broad spectrum of tone with genuine projection. The cutaway Grand Auditorium body gives you upper-fret access that 12-string players rarely get on non-cutaway instruments, and the LR Baggs StagePro Bronze delivers that full, shimmering voice to the PA with natural accuracy. The Black Gloss finish sets it apart visually — a deep, flawless black over the spruce top that looks high-end from any angle. Whether you are a devoted 12-string player, a 6-string guitarist ready to add a new dimension to your playing, or a performing musician who wants one spectacular acoustic-electric in the arsenal, the AG70CE is a guitar that commands attention.

Key Highlights

• Solid A+ Sitka spruce top — hand-selected and independently graded, delivering the open projection and broad tone that 12-string playing demands
• East Indian rosewood back and sides — adds depth, sustain, and crystalline clarity that complements the spruce top's natural shimmer
• FST2 forward-shifted bracing system — balances structural strength under 12-string tension with maximum top resonance and tonal projection
• LR Baggs StagePro Bronze — side-mounted professional EQ with the renowned Element undersaddle pickup, backlit tuner, volume, bass, treble, and phase controls
• Cutaway Grand Auditorium body for upper-fret access without sacrificing overall tonal balance
• Deep Black Gloss finish — applied over the spruce top for a dramatic, premium aesthetic rarely seen in this price range
• Real bone nut and saddle for improved sustain, intonation stability, and tone transfer
• Bi-level East Indian rosewood bridge increases saddle downward pressure for more efficient string-to-top energy transfer
• Dovetail neck joint meeting the body at the 14th fret
• Ships with D'Addario EXP36 strings

Great Fit For

• Dedicated 12-string players who want a solid-top instrument with professional electronics at a sensible price
• Singer-songwriters whose arrangements call for the fullness and shimmer that only a 12-string delivers
• Performing musicians who need a stage-ready acoustic-electric with a reliable, natural-sounding pickup system
• 6-string guitarists ready to add a 12-string voice to their setup for recording or live work
• Players who want a visually bold instrument — the Black Gloss finish looks striking under stage lighting
• Folk, rock, country, and Americana players who want the layered, chorus-like acoustic sound in a versatile Grand Auditorium body

Sound, Feel, and Stage Performance

Unplugged, the AG70CE sounds the way a well-built 12-string should — wide and shimmering on open chords, surprisingly articulate on single-note lines, and full-bodied even when played at lower volumes. The solid spruce top responds to the additional string load with authority, not strain, and the FST2 bracing keeps the bass frequencies clear and defined rather than letting them bloom into a low-end wash. The rosewood back and sides add a crystalline quality to the high-frequency shimmer that is particularly noticeable on chord inversions and fingerpicked patterns — individual notes within chords retain their identity even in the midst of the full 12-string chorus effect.

Plugged in, the LR Baggs system captures that full voice with remarkable fidelity. The Element pickup translates the natural complexity of 12-string tone without flattening it into a one-dimensional piezo signal, and the StagePro Bronze preamp gives you enough control to shape the amplified sound for any room. The Grand Auditorium body shape is a practical choice for a 12-string — large enough to produce real bass response and volume, but slightly more manageable than a jumbo or dreadnought when you are sitting with the guitar for a long set. The cutaway is a meaningful addition: upper-fret soloing on a 12-string requires clean access, and the AG70CE provides it without the visual awkwardness that retrofitted cutaways can produce.

Specifications