Alhambra 10-F

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Alhambra 10-F

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michel

Posts: 315
Joined: Apr. 14 2008
From: france

Alhambra 10-F

Hi everybody

a simple question:
I play a alhambra 10 F since 8 years (i bought it "second hand" for a good price), i like the sound, sometimes when the weather is very dry or very humid the resonance changes (my subjective feeling). I'm getting more and more involved into flamenco, i play one or two hours a day as an amateur. is my alhambra good enough or is it worth looking for a better, handmade instrument by a spanish luthier, is there a great difference?

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Apr. 17 2008 10:29:53

avimuno

Posts: 598
Joined: Feb. 9 2007
From: Paris, France

RE: Alhambra 10-F (in reply to michel)

Hi Michel

I've had an Alhambra 10F for quite some time now. I literally learned to play flamenco on that guitar. It has great emotional value to me, which is why I intend to never sell it.
To be quite honest though, it cannot compare with a hand-made concert guitar. There are absolutely no point of comparison.
The sound of the Alhambra is very thin compared to concert guitars (very much like comparing a cheap strat copy to a Gibson ES 335) and the pulsation is way too low, which will never give you a very powerful sound (powerful as opposed to simply loud). The overall feel of the Alhambra is one of a production guitar (obvious comment, but it does feel very generic and lacks personality and duende).
I would definitely invest in a good guitar if I was you. Shop around to find what you like, and make sure to try a bunch before buying if it's at all possible. I find that guitars are a very personal thing and not all concert flamencos will suit your playing style (for example I tend to prefer the old-world feel of a Reyes compared to a Conde, but I still enjoy Condes).
Also, although I tend to have a little something for Spanish guitars, there are some amazing non-Spanish builders out there. I had a Kenny Hill 'Reyes' for a bit and it was just a great guitar for the money. I tried an Aaron Green which was a killer! I also played a Blackshear that was simply out of this world. Many foro users have only praises for Anders.
Shop around until you find something that you'll cherish... it's a great pleasure to shop for a concert flamenco.
Hope my little experience and humble suggestions help.

Regards.

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Apr. 20 2008 2:41:11

Anders Eliasson

Posts: 5780
Joined: Oct. 18 2006

RE: Alhambra 10-F (in reply to michel)

Hi Michel.

I have tried a couple of 10F. They are good and correct guitars, but Avimuno is right in what he says. A good Luthier made guitar will teach a lot more and will inspire you to devellop your playing. The Alhambra has litlle headroom and poor dynamics. It doesnt push you very far.

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Blog: http://news-from-the-workshop.blogspot.com/

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Apr. 20 2008 8:26:50

PhilW

Posts: 8
Joined: Sep. 7 2007

RE: Alhambra 10-F (in reply to Anders Eliasson)

I too had one and agree totally with the last two statements - I sold mine.

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 7 2009 16:33:02

Stephen Eden

Posts: 914
Joined: Apr. 12 2008
From: UK

RE: Alhambra 10-F (in reply to michel)

i would just like to add there are alot of luthiers that are not spanish that make great flamenco guitars!! and also some great spanish luthiers that dont live in spain than make great flamenco guitars

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 8 2009 2:49:04

pacowannab

Posts: 35
Joined: Mar. 3 2008

RE: Alhambra 10-F (in reply to michel)

I agree that Tom Blackshear's guitars are "out of this world".

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 8 2009 10:06:11

Trev

Posts: 47
Joined: Aug. 25 2005

RE: Alhambra 10-F (in reply to michel)

I have Ramirez "10F". The same guitar which Ramirez put their label on as a student model. The guitar has a very comfortable feel and helped me develop. But yeah, the guitar has no real headroom and sounds dull next to a primera model guitar. I played it against a friends Aaron Green just last night. Although they had about the same volume, the Green had so much more definition and clarity, especially when playing it hard.

Trevor

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el_palido

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 8 2009 16:49:06

avimuno

Posts: 598
Joined: Feb. 9 2007
From: Paris, France

RE: Alhambra 10-F (in reply to michel)

Totally agree with you SEden... I didn't want to suggest that Spanish luthiers are better, it's a pointless argument, just expressing my personal experience (mind you... I've dealt with guitars built in China and Korea, not exactly the best examples of flamenco guitar making lol).

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 17 2009 20:20:35

avimuno

Posts: 598
Joined: Feb. 9 2007
From: Paris, France

RE: Alhambra 10-F (in reply to michel)

I also totally agree with Anders.
Get a guitar with a high tension... it will hurt at first but your fingers will grow more strong and your playing will have more dynamics as the years go by.
If you listen carefully to Paco, Manolo, Gerardo and Vicente (although I am taking extreme examples), their sound is the result of very strong hands with guitars of very high tension.

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 17 2009 20:23:30

Anders Eliasson

Posts: 5780
Joined: Oct. 18 2006

RE: Alhambra 10-F (in reply to michel)

Well, just to correct. I didn´t talk about high tension guitars.

Many pro players play relatively soft guitars. They have very strong hands though. Even a soft guitar can have a lot of headroom if it accepts being played very close to the bridge and still sound good. The you find tension moving backwards. The problem with not so good guitar is that they dont sound good when playing close to the bridge, so you just end up with a sloppy guitar.

Guitars with a high pulsation are used by very few players, because you can only play them hard and they feel to stiff

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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 18 2009 0:08:34

naguabo

Posts: 13
Joined: Nov. 27 2006

RE: Alhambra 10-F (in reply to Anders Eliasson)

quote:

A good Luthier made guitar will teach a lot more and will inspire you to devellop your playing.

My questions is- What counts as a good luthier made guitar? Some luthiers are quite large and make a boat load of guitars a year (at least thats my understanding).
Are these guitars still "good luthier made guitars"?

I am thinking specifically of the Hermanos Sanchis lopez 1F.
In your opinion would this guitar make the cut? It seems like there are a lot of these guitars made each year. (again, maybe I'm totally wrong...)

thanks

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 23 2009 13:31:38

jshelton5040

Posts: 1500
Joined: Jan. 17 2005

RE: Alhambra 10-F (in reply to naguabo)

quote:

ORIGINAL: naguabo

My questions is- What counts as a good luthier made guitar? Some luthiers are quite large and make a boat load of guitars a year (at least thats my understanding).
Are these guitars still "good luthier made guitars"?

A luthier who makes his guitars by hand can turn out between 10 and 20 guitars a year. With two of us working every day we are able to produce 8 to 12 a year. The lifetime production of a real luthier will be a few hundred guitars.

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John Shelton - www.sheltonfarrettaguitars.com

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 23 2009 15:16:37

Anders Eliasson

Posts: 5780
Joined: Oct. 18 2006

RE: Alhambra 10-F (in reply to michel)

I´m in the same boat as John. Some 10 guitars a year.

Hermanos Sanchiz Lopez are not luthier made guitars they are small production guitars. I leave it it up to you to decide what will work for you, but its definately two different types of fish we are talking about.

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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 24 2009 0:05:39

Stephen Eden

Posts: 914
Joined: Apr. 12 2008
From: UK

RE: Alhambra 10-F (in reply to michel)

The luthiers that make a 'Boat load of guitars' are factories! using computer aided machines to do the bulk of there work. Necks and bridges are the main ones. All the 'big names' work this way. unless of course you have to wait years to get one.

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 24 2009 1:06:05