Can anyone tell me about crossover guitars?

[DownUpDave]

When I was looking for a crossover it was because I wanted the narrower nut width.....48mm vs the standard of 52mm and a radiused fretboard. These two features seem to define the major difference between a crossover and a clasical. I bought a Cordoba C10 Crossover, all solid spruce and rosewood. It is identical to C10 except for the 48mm nut width and radius fret board.

Hope that helps. I really enjoy this instrument. I played a Fusion maple 12 and it was nice as well, laminate back/sides as opposed to solid wood.

[Red_Label]

Originally Posted by pfizer

Been a while since I've checked back, so sorry everyone.

Yes, I do keep hearing good things about Cordoba guitars, the Fusion series in particular, as well as Yamaha and Cervantes. I'll try to see if I can try one out locally but since I live in the Philippines, good guitars are a little hard to come by.

I should've mentioned in my first post that I don't really play classical or flamenco. I have nerve damage in my hands and I can't really play my old Taylor steel-string like I used to so I figured getting a nylon-string with a steel-string-like feel might be good. I also heard about the Martin 000C Nylon which is specifically aimed at steel-string players looking to experiment with a nylon string i.e. myself.

Also, I kinda want something loud and resonant even when unplugged and with a slim neck profile (which is different from neck width) -- I mostly play electric these days so I'm more used to slimmer neck profiles like Ibanez and Musicman.

Really appreciate the suggestions guys, keep em coming!

Cordoba is your answer. As mentioned above, the Yamahas are great playing guitars, but only sound good plugged-in. The Cordobas are very lightly built, which makes them loud and responsive. Takamine makes a few great crossover models as well, but they still don't project like Cordobas do in my experience.

[lodi_55]

You like playing Taylors so I would check out the Taylor series. My 414 and 712 Nylon are my go-to gigging guitars, but there are several series both below and above those.

[pfizer]

Hi guys, checking back in here again!

Anyone here with opinions on or experience with the Martinez MP14 Crossover?

Someone's selling to me for 745 USD brand new.

It's got a solid spruce top, Indian rosewood and Cocobolo back/sides, with a
Fishman Presys pickup.

Never really heard of the brand before but it's got the 48mm nut width and single-cutaway body that I'm looking for.

[PraisePicker]

After many hours playing every nylon string during several visits to McCabe's guitar shop looking for a nylon to compliment my steel strings, I decided on a Cordoba GK Studio Negra Flamenco model. It's 12 frets to the neck just felt right for a nylon compared to the 14 fret nylon models. And besides, it had a cutaway, a low action and pretty decent sounding electronics.

After a while I wondered if I had made the right decision. While I could muscle the wide, flat fret board, it was less than inspiring as time went on. As it turned out, McCabe's has a pretty decent trade in policy, so long as the guitar is in reasonably good condition. Long story short, I traded up to a C10 Crossover model. The slightly narrower, radiused fret board is a dream. I think the sound is incredible and the solid woods are beautiful to behold.

It does not have electronics, but there are a many after market options. (That is a thread in itself) It is a 12 fret without a cutaway. So... I carved out my own Thurmon style, multi-dimensional sound port/cutaway. It gives me all the access to the upper frets I need and has not negatively affected the sound in any way. The only difference I can distinguished is that the guitar is slightly louder than before.

[john bange]

maybe I missed this...the crossover guitars most always have a fret board radius. Going from a 2" nut to a 1 7/8 nut is not that hard to adapt to...add in going from a flat fret board to a radius fret board can effect both hands for a while.
I have an old Ovation classical around here somewhere. I can really feel the difference to my Martin crossover when I first pick it up...it goes away soon enough, though.