Being slightly obsessed with numbers, I was curious about the distribution of 1729 serial numbers and 267 date codes I’ve collected. I found the COUNTIF and COUNTIFS functions in MS Excel allowed me to count cells in a range based on certain criteria; such as model number, text, or even count cells that have anything in them.
These functions allow the chart to be automatically updated (live) because it’s using data from other sheets in the file. The only time I have to edit the chart is if I add a new model to the other sheets.
I also use Conditional Formatting to automatically add a color to cells based on what Yamaha model number I enter. I tend to be a visual person, so organizing by color makes it easier to see for me.
After breaking the numbers out into model numbers, I figured I would take it a step further and break it out into Labels. This is where it gets interesting. You can see what models used each label, and how long a model was made.
You’ll probably notice there are duplicate total numbers. Those a “sanity” checks, calculating the same thing but in a different way. They are to catch any errors or if I add a new model and don’t add it to the chart.
I hope you enjoy this new way of viewing the history of vintage Yamaha FG guitars.