Classical guitars

Washburn aren't known for their Classical guitars, but for your money you're getting a solid spruce top (nice bright sound compared to cedar's nice warm sound), good woods in the neck (ebony fingerboard would be perfect but rosewood is quality stuff), and it's only the nato back and sides which drag the price down. It doesn't say if the back or sides are solid wood, but at that price it won't matter much. I'd say it was probably worth the $200 asking price, but I might not think it was worth the original asking price. Being able to play it for a while would make the decision easier.

A :-)

Thanks Alan!

Yeah, I'm pretty sure Sam Ash inflates the asking price by about 300% so that they make themselves look good when the "lower" the price.

I'm not looking for anything special just something that I can mess around with at home and do some recording with. I was also thinking of the Yamaha CS40N which is about $80 cheaper I think and has the same material. I have seen good reviews of this guitar.

I'll have to go into the store to test them out just to find the differences.

Yamaha make excellent musical instruments all the way down to absolute beginner level. I have a Yamaha keyboard, drum synth and Bass guitar, you really cannot go wrong.

A :-)

Yamaha make excellent musical instruments all the way down to absolute beginner level. I have a Yamaha keyboard, drum synth and Bass guitar, you really cannot go wrong.

A :-)

+1

As Alan says, Yamaha are a reliable brand. I've got one of their keyboards and three of their guitars, and they're all good.

I have one of their classical models - the CG101-MS and have been very happy with it (I've had it about 3 years). At the time I was told that it was the entry level solid top model and was given a number of opinions that it was an "ideal starter classical" - i.e. not too expensive but good all round features, and good sound and build for the money. I think that the Yamaha C40 is probably a plywood top but it should still be good for what you pay. With many guitars, you may see "Spruce top" in a description, and the top veneer will indeed be spruce, but unless it says solid top you may well be getting a plywood top. Solid is better in the long run. If in doubt, take a small mirror (i.e. from an old powder compact) and look inside the sound hole. With the solid tops the grain inside matches the one on the top. With plywood you can usually see that they're different.

Which one you buy also depends a fair bit on what you want to play on it - and it can be anything from 'pure' classical to flamenco, folk, blues, rock, etc. If you're aiming for more traditional classical guitar then every little nuance and character variation in tonal quality can be keenly sought after, and the sky's the limit when it comes to price. However, for general use a reasonable solid top is fine. I have a friend who studied for a while at a classical school in London and he speaks kindly about my humble and inexpensive CG101.

Another option is to get a nylon string 'all rounder' which may not be quite so perfect for straight classical but which will take a good thrashing when you're playing other styles. I just bought an Ibanez AEG10NE which I've had trouble putting down since I got it. It's a thin body style so the sound is not as big and rich as a full body, but it's still more than good enough for the practice and playing around the house that I do. When it really comes into its own is when it's plugged in (Fishman/Ibanez pickup/pre-amp combo). The thin body makes it very comfortable to sit and play, and it can handle a wide variety of styles. It also has a narrower neck than a 'proper' classical, which I prefer when playing other styles on it as it's closer to a regular neck width. The guy who I get some lessons from (a profession with 40 years playing and recording experience) has one and he uses it both for gigging and doing backing tracks etc. In his hands it can sing, growl, rock, soar, and do just about anything but cook the dinner...

I saw one write-up which described it as "perfect for those warm willie tones..." :shock: Eh?? ...I like to be warm all over, but... ah! Willie Nelson plays a nylon string, that must be what they mean... :mrgreen:

Anyway, just another thing to look at... sigh..gotta go, just the sight of a picture demands that I go and play it...

Good luck with choosing,

Cheers,

Chris

Thanks for the help guys! I was playing a couple guitars the other day, I don't know the brand of the one that was like $289 but it sounded so good, and even put my son to sleep in his stroller.

I think once I get in there and play the Yamaha it will be the one I buy. I too have a Yamaha keyboard and for $150 it plays very very well (with my limited playing ability, just learning that).

I noticed that when I play "Eyes on Me" it was so much easier to play than the one I posted on you tube with my Washburn D10-SCE.

I think next week I'll head to the guitar shop and start playing the classical guitars and see what sounds good to me.

Being the simplest of the guitar family, I don't think anything serious wrong can happen to it. WYSIWYG.

My Yamaha classical plays well and imo it does sound good too. You can check out any of my song on my soundpage (all of them have been recorded on the Yamaha classical).

Good Luck with your classical guitar purchase !

is anyone here big classical guitar players? Ive played one and its nice, but I prefer 6 steel strings.

is anyone here big classical guitar players? Ive played one and its nice, but I prefer 6 steel strings.

I have a Distinction at Grade 8 for Classical Guitar and play for the Essex and Cambridge Guitar Orchestras.

I've also got a Les Paul clone, a couple of Marshalls, a bag of FX pedals, 6 and 12 string acoustics, a mandolin and a bass, along with my four classical guitars. And a Yamaha keyboard and drum synth.

Well, nobody just plays classical, do they?

A :-)

Well, nobody just plays classical, do they?

A :-)

I play just about everything on my classical guitar except 'classical' perhaps...

I learned classical style for a couple years with a teacher. It definitely takes a great deal of practice and focus to learn to play well, but then again so does playing a steel string.

oddly enough I want one to play video game music :lol:

the stuff from the final fantasy series is just beautiful, and playing them on steel strings just makes it sound a bit too harsh in my opinion.