I have just purchased the Almansa 435 Cutaway Conservatory Guitar with Pickup to teach in my Sutherland Shire guitar classes and I must say I absolutely love it. Prior to buying this guitar, I spent a lot of time researching guitars on the web and of course, went to many music stores and tried many guitars. Some of these guitars I tried (eg. Cordoba 55FCE) were more expensive but they did not impress me as much as the Almansa 435. Here is why:
The Sound:
My biggest requirement prior to buying a guitar was that I wanted one which was a cutaway but that did not sound too thin when played without an amplifier. As mentioned earlier, the guitar is primarily for use in my Sutherland Shire guitar classes and I don’t see the need to use an amp in this scenario.
My other requirement was that I wanted a cutaway nylon string guitar with an inbuilt pick-up with a good sound quality for when I do perform live. Yes, I know…I wanted it all from one guitar! It is really asking for a lot! I actually did not think I was ever going to find such a guitar. All the ones I had tried before I played the Almansa 435 sounded very thin and turned me off. A lot of these guitars were not exactly cheap either! And this was the first thing that really impressed me from the moment I played the Almansa 435 Conservatory Guitar with Cutaway and Pickup at the shop! Even without plugging this guitar into an amp, its sound is full and balanced. The other main thing I found was that the neck (50 mm wide) was very comfortable to play.
The features:
Besides the big and warm sound it produces, the Almansa Conservatory 435 Cutaway has a very beautiful finish. The top is solid red cedar and the back and sides are laminated Indian rosewood. The neck is mahogany, the fingerboard is ebony and the guitar has beautiful gold plated machine heads. In addition, the Almansa 435 also features a Fishman Classica pick up with a built-in tuner. Since buying it, I have been playing it at home through my Mesa Boogie amp and have found that this pickup allows you to create some nice powerful mids and smooth treble sounds.
Summary:
In Australia, the Almansa 435 Conservatory Cutaway with Pickup retails at $1699 and is definitely worth every cent. It is a fantastic choice for a professional musician or an amateur without breaking the budget. Besides using it in my Sutherland Shire guitar classes, I have now used this guitar in a live performance and have found it exceptional. This guitar gets the highest star rating from us at Do Re Mi Studios. For more on Almansa guitars check out http://www.guitarrasalmansa.es/en/.
For more info on other great acoustic guitars check out http://www.sixstringsoul.com/guitar-equipment/acoustic-guitars/
Lars Veileborg says
Hi out there
I have also purchased the Almansa/Kehlet guitar 435 with an in-built pick-up system. And I have the same feeling for this guitar as Paulo above. I cannot get enough of the sound and features of this instrument. I simply love its sound: proud, distinct and rich! I will certainly be playing this guitar for many years!
Can only recommend it to many other players – both professionals and amateurs.