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BigM555 · 07-17-2007, 12:06 PM

Damn, had a good reply started and my browser crashed!

Anyway, I own a LaPatrie and they are pretty decent guitars for the money. They used to be one of the few that were made of solid woods in their price range but now it seems others are filling that niche.

I actually just ran across the Almansa brand on the weekend. Played two different models but don't remember what they were. One was about $250 and the other $750 (CDN). Both sounded very good with the $750 model having a pretty significant edge in being full bodied and additional sustain. It seems that where they are cutting corners is on aesthetics. I noticed several runs in the lacquer, tear outs with obvious repairs, staining or contaminants under the lacquer. All just cosmetics stuff but I thought it was out of place on the $750 model. There were just as many finish flaws on it as there was the $250 model.

A few years ago I was looking for a "good" classical and was frustrated that I couldn't find anything of really good quality under a grand, and anything performance grade about double that. It seems the quality just isn't there on lower end classicals like it is with electrics (this might have changed recently). I almost ordered a Casa Montalvo Cocobolo Concert Classic from Berkeley Music Exchange. Closest thing now seems to be the Engelmann Classic Plus. He was willing to ship it across country for me to try out. If I didn't like it he had no problem taking it back if I paid the shipping, pretty reasonable. Nice guy. About double your price range though (there was an awesome sale back then).

I was also impressed by the Esteve classicals back then but they seem in short supply these days. Not sure what the story is there. Prices were still higher than your $500 price point though.

Check out this article for some possibly more up to date info.

Edit: Or maybe not....just realized the article is from 1999. Still some good advice in it though.

07-17-2007, 12:06 PM	#5
BigM555 I SS.org Salute You! Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Ontario, Canada Posts: 1,639 Real Name: Mike Main Seven: RWG RG777 Rig: GP100 -> MESA 20/20 Thanked: 26	Damn, had a good reply started and my browser crashed! Anyway, I own a LaPatrie and they are pretty decent guitars for the money. They used to be one of the few that were made of solid woods in their price range but now it seems others are filling that niche. I actually just ran across the Almansa brand on the weekend. Played two different models but don't remember what they were. One was about $250 and the other $750 (CDN). Both sounded very good with the $750 model having a pretty significant edge in being full bodied and additional sustain. It seems that where they are cutting corners is on aesthetics. I noticed several runs in the lacquer, tear outs with obvious repairs, staining or contaminants under the lacquer. All just cosmetics stuff but I thought it was out of place on the $750 model. There were just as many finish flaws on it as there was the $250 model. A few years ago I was looking for a "good" classical and was frustrated that I couldn't find anything of really good quality under a grand, and anything performance grade about double that. It seems the quality just isn't there on lower end classicals like it is with electrics (this might have changed recently). I almost ordered a Casa Montalvo Cocobolo Concert Classic from Berkeley Music Exchange. Closest thing now seems to be the Engelmann Classic Plus. He was willing to ship it across country for me to try out. If I didn't like it he had no problem taking it back if I paid the shipping, pretty reasonable. Nice guy. About double your price range though (there was an awesome sale back then). I was also impressed by the Esteve classicals back then but they seem in short supply these days. Not sure what the story is there. Prices were still higher than your $500 price point though. Check out this article for some possibly more up to date info. Edit: Or maybe not....just realized the article is from 1999. Still some good advice in it though.