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  #16  
Old 01-08-2013, 06:21 AM
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mikealpine mikealpine is offline
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Sorry...missed the post where you said you were leaning toward "true" classical guitars. Good luck and enjoy!!
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  #17  
Old 01-08-2013, 07:06 AM
steveh steveh is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by wcap View Post
Regarding buying an actual classical..... that is what I would do. A nice classical guitar is a lovely thing that is not just good for classical music, but a great instrument for general fingerstyle playing as well.
+1.

Can't emphasise this enough. One I got my hands on a "proper" nylon guitar I suddenly realised what the "dark side" was all about. Prior to that I much preferred the tonal/harmonic complexity I heard coming from my steel-strings but that was simply because I wasn't comparing apples with apples.

A great classical is every bit as compelling as a great steel-string and suits a multitude of fingerstyle genres. Personally, you're unlikely to find that from a maker who is best known for making great steel strings. As ever, depends on the budget available.

Cheers,
Steve
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  #18  
Old 01-08-2013, 01:26 PM
jimmy bookout jimmy bookout is offline
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In fairness to Taylor, they are very forthright that the Nylon series are NOT classical guitars and will NOT sound like classical guitars. The NS's are made for steel string players who want a nylon string guitar with a faster/narrower neck etc. As far as a Cervantes being more "fragile", it is obviously built lighter than a Taylor Nylon since it is a classical guitar and not a hybrid. Every time I pick up my Hippner classical, I am amazed at how light it is, even compared to my Gardiner Parlor which is physically a smaller guitar than the Hippner. Obviously, the Gardiner is a steel string and has to be built to deal with steel string tension which is MUCH higher than nylon string tension.
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  #19  
Old 01-08-2013, 05:56 PM
Brazuca Brazuca is offline
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Default First (taylor) nylon...

I think I've narrowed it down to the point I'd like a Manuel Rodriguez. Is anyone familiar with them or have them, better yet maybe even sell them. I have a few questions about a few models.
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  #20  
Old 01-09-2013, 12:18 AM
wcap wcap is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by steveh View Post
+1.

Can't emphasise this enough. One I got my hands on a "proper" nylon guitar I suddenly realised what the "dark side" was all about. Prior to that I much preferred the tonal/harmonic complexity I heard coming from my steel-strings but that was simply because I wasn't comparing apples with apples.

A great classical is every bit as compelling as a great steel-string and suits a multitude of fingerstyle genres. Personally, you're unlikely to find that from a maker who is best known for making great steel strings. As ever, depends on the budget available.

Cheers,
Steve
I find that MANY of the things I play on my steel string guitars (even original pieces that were inspired by one or the other of my steel string guitars) actually end up sounding nicer on my classical. And I have a couple of very nice steel strings.

Regarding classicals: In my big obsessive period of shopping for a decent classical a number of years back (maybe 8 years ago or so now) I found that once one got into the approx $1K and above range one was in the realm of significantly better guitars than anything in the <1K range. I didn't find that 3K guitars were necessarily better than some of the 1K ones, and indeed, I ended up liking a 1K Burguet classical best (the guitars I was considering were all Spanish made - Burguet, Bernabe, Loriente, etc).

I have not explored the >3K classical guitar realm though. I imagine there are some truly stunning instruments out there. I'm quite pleased with what I have though.

I guess an important point though is that if all one has experienced are, say, student grade Yamaha classicals, or even LaPatrie guitars (I think the LaPatrie guitars are actually not bad if you are on a tight budget), one really does not have any idea of what a decent classical guitar is all about. Sometimes I hear people say that they think classical guitars are plinky/plunky sounding, or that they are not very loud - but with a decent classical nothing could be farther from the truth! A good classical guitar is super responsive, with a huge dynamic range, and simply lovely tone.

One thing that must be said though in a thread like this is that getting good tone on a classical required good right hand nails and good right hand technique. If you are not accustomed to playing classical guitars, spend some significant time with them before making a purchase decision, or, ideally, have someone who has good nails and good technique play them for you so you can really hear what sorts of sounds the guitars you are considering are capable of.
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