About Ashthorpe
Ashthorpe is a Savannah, Georgia-based instrument brand built around a simple idea: make the first guitar, ukulele, or banjo cheap enough that a beginner can commit to trying without a big up-front bet. The company sells direct through its own storefront and through major retailers, and its catalog has grown well beyond guitars into classical acoustics, electrics, acoustic-electrics, left-handed models, ukuleles, banjos, and orchestral strings like violins and cellos, alongside basic percussion.
Where Ashthorpe shows up strongest is the complete-kit starter tier: a guitar bundled with a gig bag, spare strings, strap, and picks, priced at the floor of the market. That's exactly the role its pick plays in our own testing, where it stood out less for premium build than for an unusually large base of owner ratings for something at its price point, evidence that it reliably arrives in playable condition rather than needing a shop visit before a first lesson.
Brand website: ashthorpe.com
What Ashthorpe makes
Ashthorpe's catalog runs wider than the gear we review. The lines we know best from our own testing are marked with a star:
Beginner Acoustic Guitar Kits
Complete starter bundles with gig bag, strings, strap, and picks included — featured on House of Octave
Classical & Electric Guitars
Nylon-string classical models alongside electric and acoustic-electric guitars
Left-Handed Guitars
Left-handed configurations across several guitar lines
Ukuleles & Banjos
Entry-level fretted instruments beyond the guitar lineup
Orchestral Strings
Violins and cellos for student players
Basic Percussion
Snare and bass drums rounding out the beginner instrument catalog
Why we recognized Ashthorpe
The House of Octave Top Brand recognition isn't paid for and can't be applied for. We award it to the brands whose gear consistently stands out in our player-tested category guides. Ashthorpe earned it on the strength of the products below, judged the same way every product on this site is: assessed on build, tone, and playability, weighed against what players actually report over years of use, and ranked on merit.
Ashthorpe gear we rated highly
Ashthorpe 38-inch Beginner Acoustic Guitar Kit
One of our top picks for the lowest sensible entry point into acoustic guitar, and a complete kit rather than a bare instrument: a gig bag, spare strings, strap, and picks all arrive in the box, so the sticker price is the total price. More than nine thousand owner ratings back it up, an unusually large evidence base at this price tier that speaks to consistent quality control. Its 38-inch parlour-scale body is also a genuine fit advantage for a smaller player or a young teenager who would struggle to get an arm around a full-size dreadnought.
Read the 11 Best Cheap Acoustic Guitars of 2026 guide →What earned Ashthorpe the recognition
- The Ashthorpe 38-inch kit is one of our top picks in our roundup of the best cheap acoustic guitars, standing out at the lowest price point on the page
- Ships as a genuinely complete kit, gig bag, spare strings, strap, and picks included, rather than a bare guitar requiring follow-up purchases
- More than nine thousand owner ratings at 4.4 stars, an unusually deep evidence base for an instrument at this price
- A 38-inch parlour-scale body gives smaller players and younger teenagers a genuine fit advantage over a full-size dreadnought
- A Savannah, Georgia-based brand whose catalog has grown from beginner guitars into ukuleles, banjos, orchestral strings, and basic percussion