Thoughts, experiences, and opinions requested...

[Pitar]

I came from acoustic steel string guitars (never electric) and play nylon exclusively now.

I have the Yamaha NTX1200R that I put a new nut on with slightly wider notch spacing to accommodate my figolebingers. The guitar comes stock with a 48mm neck width (1-7/8") but the actual string spacing is 39.68mm (1-9/16). I was able to push the spacing out to about 41.25mm (1-5/8") without encroaching on the edge of the neck with the E strings. The board has a radius but it's not a deal breaker for me. The nut was but I resolved that as mentioned.

I normally play a flat board, 1-7/8" classical Yamaha CG110-CE. It's cut and has the factory on-boards. It sounds great to me unplugged as well as plugged through a Fishman SA220. It's a discontinued model, though.

I'm not a player of classical music, nor do I subscribe to the style at all in pose, poise nor purpose. I'm just a rogue finger picker and this CG110-CE works well enough for that. The NTX1200R also suits my purpose and because I usually capo 2 frets to fit my vocal range the neck is everything I need at that position with an appreciably reduced depth and a comfortable modified C profile I prefer. My son, who I gifted it to as a HS graduation present, prizes it. I would not call it a great player unplugged. I did not buy it for that. I bought it as a stage performer and it does that well.

[dkstott]

For my purposes and sound choice, the solid wood was the preferred. Although I have to say that I liked the Studio Cypress a lot. But it was lacking the deep sound that the solid wood provides.

I truly do not miss the built in tuner or tap plate on the Studio.

I was never able to do a side by side GK Studio Negra vs a GK Pro Negra.

The upgrade in the Pro electronic's is also an upgrade in the type of under-saddle pick-up used. The Studio has a Piezo type & it's okay. The under-saddle pick-up in the Pro is much better. I'm pretty sure that the internal mic in the Pro is an upgrade as well.

I traded in my Studio at my local guitar center & received a 5% discount for trading in a guitar that they could resell. I then placed an order for the GK Pro at the store during a holiday period. It was a 15% off holiday celebration event. So I bought my GK pro with a 20% discount with free shipping. So, I didn't pay full price.

Even if I had paid full price, I personally think the upgrade to the Pro was worth it.


Dave

Originally Posted by VLJ

dkstott, I mostly agree, regarding the tap plate thing. I'm not a flamenco player, so I doubt I will scratch the top very much. I don't even scratch the pickguards on my electric guitars. I just find it curious that Cordoba includes tap plates on the GK Studio series but not the Pro series. They used to include them on some GK Pro models, but not anymore.

I would simply prefer that Cordoba include them on all their GK instruments. It doesn't make sense to include them on the Studios but not on the pricier Pro models.

Anyway, since you've had both, do you feel the Pro is worth the extra $900 or so vs the Studio? Solid wood body and sides vs laminates, ebony vs rosewood fretboard, a more ornate headstock design, different rosette, different preamp sans tuner, no tap plates vs tap plates, hardshell humi-case vs a gig bag: does it all add up to a guitar that merits a pricetag more than twice as high as that of its cheaper GK brother?

[VLJ]

Originally Posted by Pitar

I have the Yamaha NTX1200R that I put a new nut on with slightly wider notch spacing to accommodate my figolebingers.

I have those, too.

It's funny that you mentioned the NTX1200R, as that was the very guitar (along with the Takamine TC135SC) I was most interested in when I first began this search. After playing a number of NTX700s and 900s, though, I discovered that I didn't really like the lack of acoustic volume, and I also didn't prefer the slender, radiused neck.

Strange, too, since the Yamaha's neck is closer than any of the others to an electric guitar's neck, which is all I've played my entire life. When it comes to nylons, however, I seem to prefer a more traditional, wider build.

[Red_Label]

Originally Posted by VLJ

I have those, too.

It's funny that you mentioned the NTX1200R, as that was the very guitar (along with the Takamine TC135SC) I was most interested in when I first began this search. After playing a number of NTX700s and 900s, though, I discovered that I didn't really like the lack of acoustic volume, and I also didn't prefer the slender, radiused neck.

Strange, too, since the Yamaha's neck is closer than any of the others to an electric guitar's neck, which is all I've played my entire life. When it comes to nylons, however, I seem to prefer a more traditional, wider build.

I also liked the Yamaha NTX series... until I played them. They sounded dead and lifeless compared to the Cordobas for me. I love the instant, lively response of the Cordobas that I've never found in other guitars under $2-3K.

[Red_Label]

Originally Posted by VLJ

Red Label, the Takamine TC132SC isn't all that far removed from the TH5C, so you might be able to give me some idea as to how it compares to the GK Pro Negra. With its deeper rosewood body and cedar top did your unplugged Takamine sound noticeably bigger and fuller than your GK Pro spruce/cypress?

The Takamine was a very good guitar. It was mellower sounding than the Cordobas. So if that's what you're going for, that might be the way to go. But your choice of strings has a large bearing on your tone, so it's my belief that you'd love the GK Pro Negra as well.

[dkstott]

VLJ wrote

"hardshell humi-case vs a gig bag"

My GK Studio came with a hard Styrofoam type Cordoba case. It was nice & light. But I had concerns about how well it would maintain humidity during the cold dry months here in New England.

My GK Pro came with the brown humi-case. It's a nice case, although I do not use the humi-pack feature. I use Oasis type humidifiers.

[VLJ]

dkstott, I'm just going by what the Cordoba website and the online retailers say, which is that the Iberia Series guitars come with "deluxe gig bags."

Did you ever have a chance to compare your GK Pro Negra to a GK Pro (cypress) or GK Pro Maple? I know Red_Label seems to go with spruce-cypress for all his Cordobas, but I haven't read how you came to choose the Negra over the cypress or maple.

[dkstott]

VLJ

I owned the Cypress Studio model and liked it a lot & I owned it for several months. Tried several different types of strings on it. But something about the sound was lacking for me.

During my search, I did compare the Cypress Pro to the Pro Negra. The Cypress Pro is a very nice guitar, but it still did not provide me with the sound that I desired.

I finally came to the conclusion that I wanted the "warmer & deeper" sound that the rosewood on the GK Pro provides.

Hope that helps

Dave

[riffmeister]

Here's a little ditty I recorded with the new Cordoba 55FCE negra.

Guitar -> Fishman Platinum Pro EQ -> Soundcraft mixing board -> QSC K12 PA speaker -> Zoom H4n about 1.5 feet away from the PA speaker.

http://soundclick.com/share.cfm?id=13489241

Nice sounding guitar! I like it!

[Red_Label]

Originally Posted by VLJ

dkstott, I'm just going by what the Cordoba website and the online retailers say, which is that the Iberia Series guitars come with "deluxe gig bags."

Did you ever have a chance to compare your GK Pro Negra to a GK Pro (cypress) or GK Pro Maple? I know Red_Label seems to go with spruce-cypress for all his Cordobas, but I haven't read how you came to choose the Negra over the cypress or maple.

Yeah, the only Cordoba negra that I've owned was the 55FCE Ltd Ziricote. Obviously, it was a thin-body model, but it was great and slightly mellower/warmer than the FCWE Reissue and 55FCE Maple thin bodies that I owned. All were great sounding guitars, and though they didn't have the deep tone of the thicker bodies, they were surprisingly loud and responsive... and not as large of a difference in tone between them and the thicker bodied Cordobas that you'd think. I preferred all of them to the thicker-bodied Breedlove, Takamine, Rodriguez, Yamaha and other nylons that I've owned.

[VLJ]

riffmeister, your clip sounded fantastic. Truly.

I went and played a bunch of Cordobas again yesterday, at two different stores. Other than the occasional Yamaha NTX700 or super-low-end Lucero or Ibanez, Cordoba is the only brand my local stores seem to carry in nylons. Still haven't seen a GK Pro of any flavor, though.

Deciding I may have to eliminate some of my must-have criteria, I tried the C5-CE (cutaway with laminate mahogany), C7 (non-cutaway with laminate rosewood), C9 (non-cutaway with solid mahogany), GK Studio (laminate cypress), GK Studio Negra (laminate rosewood), and 55FCE (laminate maple) with the amber tint.

Two things struck me. One, the C7 sounded surprisingly good. I thought it sounded punchier and more authoritative than the far pricier, solid-woods C9. So, now I'm trying to talk myself into considering the C7-CE as a cheap alternative. The idea doesn't thrill me, but the thing is just so affordable that it begs consideration.

The other thing that stood out was the 55FCE. The two other times that I played it, man, I felt that the neck was a bit too thick, with the U-shaped profile. Yesterday, however, after swapping it back and forth with the GKs over and over and over, I think I ended up actually preferring the 55's thicker neck. I know I preferred its contoured neck heel, but then the GK Pros have that same heel. The sound of the 55 really surprised me. It doesn't have the low-end punch of the C7 or even the C5-CE, and the GKs also have more bottom end, but that's it. Otherwise, that little guy is astonishingly loud and full sounding, with the best trebles of the entire lot.

It's obviously the most comfortable to play, as well, with that super-thin body. I also like that the 55s are made in Spain, and their necks are cedar.

In the end, as much as the C7-CE might be the most sensible choice, I think it's now down to the GK Pro Negra vs one of the 55s. Can't decide between the FCE Negra (zircote laminate), the amber-tint FCE (flamed maple laminate), or the pricier FWCE Reissue with solid cypress.

I just wish there was a local store that carried the GK Pro line. I really need to try one of those things and see how much better they sound and feel, compared to the Studios. Until then, however, breaking down the GK Pro Negra vs, say, a 55FCE Negra, it seems to go like this:

GK Pro Negra

Pros: All solid woods, and the only one with solid rosewood, which I prefer; deeper body, so a slightly fuller acoustic sound (possibly a lot fuller, since I've never played a Pro Negra); better rosette; nicer headstock design

Cons: Thinner neck profile; mahogany neck instead of cedar; no tap plates; more expensive; deeper body makes it less comfortable to play; Chinese-built

55FCE Negra

Pros: Much cooler look, with that zircote body; thicker, more reassuring neck; more comfortable body; more "alive" sounding (perhaps not, though, since I haven't tried a GK Pro); traditional flamenco cedar neck; factory-installed tap plates; more affordable; Spanish-built; lighter weight

Cons: laminate body, unless I switch to the much pricier solid cypress 55FWCE; blah rosette; blah headstock, (again, unless I switch to the FWCE, which offers the same headstock as the GK Pro); less low-end punch

I think I've just about eliminated the Takamine, for fear that it won't be as comfortable to play nor as "alive" sounding as the Cordobas. I'll probably also eliminate the C7-CE on the simple basis that I want to love what I buy, and I just don't have enough desire for that instrument to feel great about choosing it over the others.

So, now it's down to the GK Pro Negra vs one of the Espana Series 55s, and I'm almost equally torn between the FCE amber tint, FCE Negra, and FWCE Reissue.

I believe this is where Red_Label may again prove to be of assistance, at least where the 55s are concerned. He's owned just about all of these models, and I seem to recall reading where he said the one guitar that he let get away, the GK Pro, is the one he'd choose as his one-and-only, if he was forced to make a choice.

[VLJ]

Just left another message on Tom Prisloe's machine, and sent him another e-mail. His phone recording still says, "Tom Prisloe with Pavan guitars," which would seem an odd thing to include if he's no longer in the Pavan business.

In any case, this was my final attempt to contact him. If he again fails to get back to me, I'll consider the Pavan option closed.

Edit: Tom finally returned my call. Turns out he was traveling abroad and his phone wasn't working overseas.

In any case, he is still in the Pavan business and can specify whatever he wants for the build, up to and including a TP-30 with a cutaway, a 52/50/48mm nut, electronics/no electronics, tap plates, spruce or cedar, low or high action, etc. He charges an additional $100 for the cutaway TP-30. No charge for the tap plates. Cases are purchased separately, and he charges $60 to ship to California.

He just received a large shipment of Pavans, but there were no TP-30s with cutaways in this shipment. He says he will place his next order in February, for an early March delivery. He requires a $300 downpayment to place an order, with the balance due once he gets ready to ship the guitar to the buyer.

[Gitfiddlemann]

VLJ,
Thanks for the update on Tom Prisloe. Good to know.
I've also taken note of your info on the TP-30s. Something I might consider for myself in the future, now that I know Tom is still involved.
A TP-30 with cutaway, 50mm nut, low action and cedar top would be high on my list of options. ;-)

[rob2966]

I have been very happy with both of my Cordoba instruments. My first one was a F7 (chinese made, laminate back and sides). It was an amazing guitar for the price I paid, great sound and very playable.

I traded it in for a Solista Flamenca (made in Spain, solid wood) and am very happy with it, although it was a significant jump in price. Most notable differences were: chunkier neck on the Solista and noticeable volume increase when standing in front of the guitar (not as much when playing it).

If you don't play flamenco then no reason for the golpeadors (as others have said). Overall, I don't think you can go overly wrong with anything in the Cordoba lineup.

Later
Rob

[VLJ]

Originally Posted by AndreF

A TP-30 with cutaway, 50mm nut, low action and cedar top would be high on my list of options. ;-)

Yep, those would be my exact specs. No electronics, and I'd have him replace the white ebony tuning buttons and rollers with ebony pieces.

He said that he prefers spruce to cedar, but his advice is to stick with cedar if that's what the customer thinks he prefers.

Interestingly, he doesn't specify either a cedar or mahogany neck. He simply has the builder in Spain use whichever is the higher grade on hand. He says the Flamenco Negras nearly always have cedar necks, because that's what the builders traditionally use for flamencos, but it's 50/50 as to which wood will be used for the TP-30 necks, and he feels there is zero tonal difference between the two. He just wants the best piece of wood, whether cedar or mahogany.