Looking for advice on Nylon String Guitars

[epevets1]

I have a Cordoba Fusion Orchestra 12 guitar. of my 8 guitars, this is the only one with nylon strings. I don't play it an awful lot, but when i do, i enjoy it. i landed on this guitar after checking several other not-to-expensive models. it seemed to have the sound and feel i was looking for at the time. the nut width is 1.87 and i like Martin Magnifico hard tension strings. it gives me just about the brightness i want. I paid $750 for it a few years back. a friend recently acquired a Taylor 714se-n sunburst. it seems to have mower power and projection, and has about the same brightness that i like. it has the same nut with as my cordoba. the Taylor is about 4x the price of the Cordoba. I am mildly interested in upgrading, but also think i ought to stick with what i have. i'll be 70 in january if that provides any prospective. my other guitars include a Martin D28, Martin 00018, martin DM and a Gibson J-45 (1946) - all with soundhole pickups. i usually play the steel string guitars when i play out, but have played the cordoba out once or twice. Any thoughts that might help me make up my mind?

ep;

It's really hard to address your question because there are so many available really nice classical guitars--and new ones keep showing up.

In the last year I've had players suggest guitars that I'd never heard of: Hanika Basis; Kremona; Dontecho Ivanoc. My computer tells me that every name is a miss spelling--My computer never heard of them either.

I took a dip in the Kremona pool and was really impressed. The Kremona site has what I think is one of the best specifications listing for its various models.

[epevets1]

thanks, but i was only asking about 2

[N4640W]

Every guitar you mentioned you own is narrower at the nut than a classical nylon string. If you’re going to go newer, go with the narrower-‘transitional’ nylon Taylor. Shifting back and forth from nylon to steel is much harder if the spacing at the nut is wider. I’ll be 70 in Jan. also. I have a phenomenal nylon classic that I don’t play enough for that very reason, i.e. big hand stretch. The number of doors open to us are narrowing. I venture you’ll play the narrower nut nylon more often than a classical due to familiarity and ease. If your Cordova Fusion nut is narrow like a steel string and you are happy with the sound, why go through the expense. Try brighter strings. Having said this, I am a great practitioner of acquiring “things I don’t need that I can’t live without”. “Life is short-the art is long”.

[Always Learning]

Epevets1,

70 years young... congrats

As for you question about stepping up to a more expensive cross-over nylon... You said that you like the sound of your current Cordoba, or it was because of how it sounded that you purchased it in the first place... Has it started sounding less than what it once did..?

if the answer is yes, then sure if you like the sound and projection of the Taylor I say go for it if you have the moolah. But if that Cordoba Cross-over still sound sweet, why change?

I too am up in years, slightly older than you. I have very small hands, my medius (middle or flipping the bird finger), index (good ol' pointer) and annular (this is the finger that wears that gold tourniquet that stops the circulation) are only 3 inches from the base of palm to tip. I purchased a Cordoba C 10 Parlor (7/8) 630 scale/50mm nut classical to help with 4 fret stretches, because for the past 21 years I have suffered severe nerve damage to my left arm and hand. I figured that the small scale and slightly narrower nut would help me in that regard. Well it has and it hasnÂ’t. I find that my fingers trip over each other and more often than not tend to mute higher strings that need to be sounded. I now usually play my standard 650/52mm classical.
Guess it all boils down to what you are used toÂ… I do on occasions pull the Cordoba off the wall, but my go-to will always be my standard sized Amalio Burguet 2M Studio.

But like I said, if that $2600 cash is burning a hole in your pocket, hey go for it.

Best of luck

I think the Taylor is a more fragile instrument. I believe that the better the guitar the more fragile the instrument. That may not be universally true--but it's my experience. The heat where I live would make owning a Taylor a constant worry whenever playing outside of a controlled environment.

[ckmurf]

The 1 7/8” so-called crossover size is very popular among steel string guitarists who typically play steel strings. I took the opposite approach, which has served me well- after decades of fingerstyle on a classical guitar I have added wider neck steel strings. My Santa Cruz H is 1 13/16, my Finocchio 00-28 is 1 7/8”. I make the steel strings accommodate the nylon by going wider instead of the other way around. Everyone who plays my Finocchio at first scratches their heads in wonder of how ridiculous… after 10 minutes they think it’s brilliant. YMMV.

[lodi_55]

Ah, nylon crossovers!

I've had a few Taylors nylons in the past and I own two currently. I feel like Taylors take some heat (right or wrong) for not projecting quite as well as other nylon hybrids. Whereas they might be true, I really think the quality of the tone is top notch. And if you play live like I do, you don't want a hybrid or classical that is a real tone monster. Just makes it that much tougher in a live environment.

Not sure if you have shops that carry Taylor Nylons, but you can find some good new and used 2 series that sound great and wont break the budget out there.

I have a 414 FLTD Nylon and a GC FLTD as well. One is a 14 fret, one is a 12 fret.

Good luck!

I like the sound and the looks of the Taylor nylon string guitars. Unfortunately I live in a desert and often play out which means the guitar goes from a protected environment to the wilds, which is not good for well made wooden instrument.