Masaru Kohno Guitar
 

Hi, I'm thinking to buy a vintage Kohno guitar. Wondering anybody here own or may have played one of Kohno guitars?

Wellcome any kinds (negative or positive) of feedback.

Thanks!

Kohno's name alone will push up the price, as does the Ramirez name, and it is widely accepted to be a guarantee of very good to high quality, though, not that it is a guarantee of being the absolute best. The list of stellar Japanese luthiers is long. Kohno wasn't the only one who studied under the Spaniards. If you have the choice of a five-fan or seven-fan braced top, I don't know from experience that one is automatically superior to the other, but if anyone knows the distinction, please comment.

Masaru Kohno has a rabid following on delcamp - the thread with the most info is here https://www.classicalguitardelcamp.c...p?f=11&t=56508

Another good resource is http://www.vintagekohnoguitars.com/

Some believe the best Kohnos are from the mid 60s. These guitars generally have a standardish scale length (646-656mm, tho there are a few 630mm out there), almost exclusively spruce tops, and a variety of bracing patterns - 5 and 7 fan, some have a treble bar. I've often heard them compared in sound to Fleta guitars of the same vintage. Famously Kohno won the Liege Concours National de Guitares contest in 1967 which put him on everyone's radar.

Kohno's guitars that were hand built by him from 60s are considerably more rare and that may explain part of their appeal.

Once he got famous in the 70s and 80s he tended to build longer 660mm guitars, with double ebony reinforced necks with both spruce and cedar tops. It is my understanding that these guitars were built in a small shop setting, with Masaru overseeing a small team that he had personally trained. These guitars are often said to have a louder, more piano-like sound, and are more numerous.

I myself have two Kohnos, one from each of the above eras. They each have their own personality and both are wonderful.

I find the spruce topped '68 No 7 to have a softer voice, with a lot of character in both the basses and trebles. The trebles are very sweet when you go up the neck, and almost have a quack to them like a good cedar topped guitar does.


https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7896/...445b56dc_b.jpg20180317_132532 by Tristan Koehler, on Flickr


https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7886/...1e0af899_b.jpg20190302_154822 by Tristan Koehler, on Flickr

The '77 No. 20 is very similar to the '68, except that it has a bit less character, a bit more fundamental, and a lot more volume. The guitar is easily as loud as my Hill Signature (double top). If it has a draw back, it's the 660 scale combined with a thick and deep neck - 53mm at the nut. It's a bit of a handful truthfully. If you were a very skillful player or had longer fingers that might not be an issue.

A few more gratuitous pics sorry I can't resist:-)


https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7847/...aed0a285_b.jpg20190217_102601 by Tristan Koehler, on Flickr


https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7892/...21cd9dd4_b.jpg20190217_102645 by Tristan Koehler, on Flickr


https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7830/...c810422e_b.jpg20190217_102932 by Tristan Koehler, on Flickr

In the late 80s and 90s Kohno went back to the 650 scale, except for a few custom orders. He died in 1998. I haven't tried any guitars from this period.

Also there are a few Kohno guitars from the 50s around - but I believe those are from before he went to Spain and really honed in on his craft.

Hope that helps didn't mean to ramble on for so long.

TK

Hi TK, your two Kohnos just look like brand new, they've been kept in excellent condition.

Kohno used five-fan, seven-fan even nine-fan braced top in his 60's guitars from what I heard. But I am not sure.