Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Full Version)

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Armando -> Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 9 2008 10:51:46)

Hi all

Finally i have managed to record a short videoclip of my latest guitar, the Reyes Model blanca.

I'm curious about your opinions.

here's the link:

http://www.spanishguitars.ch/videoclips/Guitarra_3.wmv

best regards

Armando



XXX -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 9 2008 10:57:53)

nice! but the rasgeado was off [8D][8D] (i know it was just a demonstration of the guitar)



Matic -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 9 2008 11:00:09)

Ole! AMAZING, Armando.
You impressed me and I'm thinking of learning the falseta, it sounds great.
[:)]
Please, upload some more if you can.

Matic



Matic -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 9 2008 11:11:26)

oh, and rasgueado was spot on![:)][8|]



XXX -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 9 2008 11:41:27)

(sorry to comment again, armando)

matic, you make me feel very bad :)
it would be spot on if you accepted 14-beat compas, and ending on around 8 (which was intended to be the 10 i guess). the rasg itself ends on (or around) 12 instead of 10. i could be wrong of course.



TANúñez -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 9 2008 12:19:34)

Deniz,

When Armando asked about your opinions, he was talking about the guitar not the playing or compas. What are you thoughts on the guitar?



TANúñez -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 9 2008 12:22:25)

Well done Armando. It has a very nice sound. When was this one completed?



Conrad -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 9 2008 12:27:32)

Armando, the guitar and playing sounds great, thank you, sir! And the rasgueado is fine, actually.... It ends on "12". Just the playing that I like... the kind that makes one think and pay attention! haha

Congratulations on your guitar, Armando. And how about this...a luthier who can really play, always a bonus!! [:)]



Doitsujin -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 9 2008 12:31:31)

Ay tio. Nice! Thanks for the video. Nice playing! ole!



Armando -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 9 2008 12:55:24)

Hi all

The guy on the videoclip is not me, it is my former guitar teacher, playing somewhat in a rush. However it still sounds muuuch better than if i would play.

I'm just the Luhier: Here are some pics of me:

http://www.spanishguitars.ch/home/index.php?id=35,0,0,1,0,0

best regards



Doitsujin -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 9 2008 13:00:17)

How much is this model? Sounds good to me.



XXX -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 9 2008 13:01:14)

Tom,

my general comment was "nice" (about guitar and playing), and as you read i already mentioned that i know that this thread is about the guitar mainly. My second comment was not to armando, but to matic, in which i again even apologized for commenting again on the compas. Sorry but that is the maximum diplomaticness i can get out of me [;)] hey but again, sorry if that offended anyone.

@Conrad: LOL!



Armando -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 9 2008 13:33:34)

Hi Doitsuijn

Thanks for your interest.

So far my guitars were not for sale. This Reyes model is a prototype guitar.
I'm still trying to improve my building skills. Actually i don't have commercial interests. I'm also not able to build a number of guitars, as i build them all in my sparetime. A guitar like this one takes me around seven month to build.

If i would build another model like this, it would be done only on order. The price would be around 4000US$ incl. de luxe case.



TANúñez -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 9 2008 13:48:35)

quote:

sorry if that offended anyone.


No offense on my part Deniz. Just wanted to make sure Armando got the feedback he was looking for and didn't want this to turn into a "how is my playing" thread. All is good.



gj Michelob -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 9 2008 14:52:51)

If i may, Armando, a very nice blanca for all intents and purpuses... but not a Reyes. Initially i misunderstood your thread and thought you were sharing a new guitar you purchased, a Manuel Reyes, and while i listended to it on your clip a few times, wore my earphones to catch the exact subtle sound, could not believe that this was a Reyes. I thought that that lyrical quasi-classical guitar sound yet raucuos and nutty that Reyes alone was able to develop and distinguish all his blancas with, was just not there.

So, my comment is that if this is a guitar you and Jose made, you are making some very fine sounding blanca, but not a Reyes, at all.

Which begs the question, why is this a Manuel Reyes model, have you followed his blueprints? Tom Blackshear has a plan available for examination, have you based your work on it, other blueprints, your own perception and plans?

This is quite an interesting point to me. As the Flamenco world is becoming sensitive to Reyes, as Strings are obsessively to Strad, one wonders what research went into an "after A. Stradivarious" or "after M. Reyes" instrument, before it is named after the great luthier (?)



srshea -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 9 2008 18:39:41)

Sounds great, Armondo! Of course it's hard to get a truly accurate and nuanced sense of how a guitar sounds from a quick video camera recording, but even still you can tell that that's a nice sounding guitar and, most importantly, definitely flamenco. Good job!



michel -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 10 2008 0:19:18)

hi armando, as srshea already said it's not easy to have an opinion on a short video but the sound is really great (i also like the falseta!) and the instrument looks very nice also, congratulations [:)]



Anders Eliasson -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 10 2008 1:03:19)

Hi Armando.

Good to see a guitar from you. It has been a while ago.

The guitar is beautifull and sounds very flamenco.



dckh -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 10 2008 1:05:48)

Hi Armando congrats for your work!
The guitar look nice and same to have a good response :)
I hope to see you one time !

Un saludo from Genf

Daniel



Armando -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 10 2008 9:09:41)

Hi all

Thanks for all the feedback. The guitar wasn't built togehter with José Romanillos as some of you might have understood. The guitar is built based on a blueprint drawn by Tom Blackshear. I just not followed the blueprint in all details of the construction. For some details i have apllied building techniques which i have learnt from José Romanillos.

GJ Michelob

I know that the guitar doesn't really sound like a Reyes. First of all i never had the chance to even touch a real Reyes Guitar and secondly, i'm aware that it's impossible to copy the sound of a particular guitar by just following a blueprint. This is also not my goal. The Reyes model is just a step on my path of searching my personal design and sound.


However the building of the Reyes model gave me a lot of useful insights into the Reyes design and construction. I have experienced that all my flamenco guitars that i've built so far, have the same basic sound character. This was surprising to me because each of them has been build to different specs, even using different construction methods. This experience indicates, that the "soft skills" of guitarmaking have a very fundamental influence on the final tone of the instrument. The question is, whether or not the builder likes the fundamental character of his instruments. In my case, i still didn't exactly arrive where i would like to be, allthough i'm quite happy with the result of my latest guitar. The most motivating thing is the fact, that the sound quality of the guitar improved compared to the previous ones. So from that point of view it is a success for me anyway.

regards

Armando



gj Michelob -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 10 2008 11:08:23)

thank you for your detailed reply, Armando. I agree that your guitar possesses a rather pronounced flamenco edge, inspired as it is to the work of master Reyes. In fact, your instrument stands out as a beauty of its own. Do keep up the excellent work you do.
Cheers



Tom Blackshear -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 10 2008 16:20:35)

quote:

ORIGINAL: Armando

Hi all

Finally i have managed to record a short videoclip of my latest guitar, the Reyes Model blanca.

I'm curious about your opinions.

here's the link:

http://www.spanishguitars.ch/videoclips/Guitarra_3.wmv

best regards

Armando


Nice sound and very flamenco. I would think you might thin the top ever so slighly around the bridge area, not more than .1 mm feathered out from the middle, otherwise keep the top even in its thickness all over without thinning around the edge. This will give it a little more boldness as well as mid range strength. Pay close attention to the fan brace sizes, shapes, and tapers. The strut to top mass is good from just about any fan brace placement but the Reyes style has a good voice with this placement.

I believe Jose thins his tops toward the edge but a flamenco guitar of this style should be more toward the middle. It will give good articulation with it, if the fan braces are shaped right.



Armando -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 10 2008 20:53:11)

Hi Tom

Thanks for your feedback

In regards to the top thickness and the tapering as well the design and shape of the fan struts i followed exactly your plan.

The differencies are the neck body construction, and the arangements of the individual lining blocks which are done in the Romanillos style.

regards

Armando



Anders Eliasson -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 11 2008 0:38:18)

quote:

I know that the guitar doesn't really sound like a Reyes. First of all i never had the chance to even touch a real Reyes Guitar and secondly, i'm aware that it's impossible to copy the sound of a particular guitar by just following a blueprint. This is also not my goal. The Reyes model is just a step on my path of searching my personal design and sound.


However the building of the Reyes model gave me a lot of useful insights into the Reyes design and construction. I have experienced that all my flamenco guitars that i've built so far, have the same basic sound character. This was surprising to me because each of them has been build to different specs, even using different construction methods. This experience indicates, that the "soft skills" of guitarmaking have a very fundamental influence on the final tone of the instrument.


I totally agree and I like your description.
Plans are good to work from and as you say, you learn something from a plan, but the sound is yours. I have built different styles, but they have that same basic sound and feel, so to me its totally clear that the builder is much more important than the plan. The fact that the guitar sounds better, most probably is because you are now a better builder, but this you will find out in the future.

Keep up the good work.



Trev -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 11 2008 0:58:13)

Sounds very flamenco to me. I like the low end range of her (microphone proximity effect aside). Enjoy!



Tom Blackshear -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 11 2008 4:42:30)

quote:

ORIGINAL: Armando

Hi Tom

Thanks for your feedback

In regards to the top thickness and the tapering as well the design and shape of the fan struts i followed exactly your plan.

The differencies are the neck body construction, and the arangements of the individual lining blocks which are done in the Romanillos style.

regards

Armando


Then, it's just a matter of tweaking the fan braces a little and finding the proper top flex which you probably already understand. Perhaps it's the recording or the players nails but the sound seems a little tight to me. But it should loosen up a little with age. The articulation should have good snap to it without any bouncing effect on the strings. It should provide a great picado pull through.



Armando -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 11 2008 13:04:17)

quote:

Then, it's just a matter of tweaking the fan braces a little and finding the proper top flex which you probably already understand.


Tom

If the guitar sounds tight, then i would assume the top is too stiff. I don't think that's the case. The spruce used was of average stiffness and rather lightweight. The bracing is as indicated on the plan.

I've learnt at the Romanillos course to determine the reight stiffness of the soundboard, but when it comes to fine-tuning i must admit that i have no idea how to tune a soundboard to the better. I also have the feeling that the key to the right tone is exactly there, but i'm still missing knowledge in this area.

regards

Armando



Tom Blackshear -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 11 2008 14:11:22)

quote:

ORIGINAL: Armando

quote:

Then, it's just a matter of tweaking the fan braces a little and finding the proper top flex which you probably already understand.


Tom

If the guitar sounds tight, then i would assume the top is too stiff. I don't think that's the case. The spruce used was of average stiffness and rather lightweight. The bracing is as indicated on the plan.

I've learnt at the Romanillos course to determine the reight stiffness of the soundboard, but when it comes to fine-tuning i must admit that i have no idea how to tune a soundboard to the better. I also have the feeling that the key to the right tone is exactly there, but i'm still missing knowledge in this area.

regards

Armando


I think Jose approaches this issue a little differently if I'm not mistaken. In 1995 at the GAL convention Jose basically approached the top stiffness in sort of a esoteric way; not really giving thicknesses but showing how he bent the top with his fore-finger and thumb according to top stiffness, or if you can add any more to this.........

In the case of this flamenco design, it takes very little top thickness difference to make it work. But the idea is to cause the top flex to be loose enough that you can dig into the treble end with good separation without it fighting back too hard. The treble end should be fairly loose but not too much so. This way it provides excellent rasgeado, thumb, and picado technique with good snap, not unruly bouncing of the strings. If you have this already, then you are on the right path.

Same way with the bass side; good deep bass but not like a classical that booms but more wide open, deep and flat, and easy for the thumb work.



Tom Blackshear -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 11 2008 14:41:50)

quote:

ORIGINAL: Armando

quote:

Then, it's just a matter of tweaking the fan braces a little and finding the proper top flex which you probably already understand.


Tom

If the guitar sounds tight, then i would assume the top is too stiff. I don't think that's the case. The spruce used was of average stiffness and rather lightweight. The bracing is as indicated on the plan.

I've learnt at the Romanillos course to determine the reight stiffness of the soundboard, but when it comes to fine-tuning i must admit that i have no idea how to tune a soundboard to the better. I also have the feeling that the key to the right tone is exactly there, but i'm still missing knowledge in this area.

regards

Armando


Second part: I tune my tops to the key of G with it decending to a more prominent F#; both are necessary for better or more even sound in the playing scale.

If the top is tuned higher like G-G# then it is too thick. You can taper the edges and bring down the Key a little but I wouldn't suggest that it be more than .1 mm difference on the very outside edges.

But I build my tops an even thickness with a little relief around the middle to get the top flex right. Normally, they are about 2 to 2.1 mm thick, and built very flat, not domed under the bridge. The fan brace pattern makes up from its voicing without the dome, and it provides better snap in the articulation.

The outside bass strut for the 6th string is a little thinner in height toward its top near the sound hole. this promotes a deeper bass sound, so again, there is no need for a domed top. If you get this strut too uneven or too thin at the sound hole area, then it might cause the bass to bloom too much or go dead.

If this happens then take a short flat stick and go in and level the top of this strut a little toward its bottom end and this will normally level out the sound, but remember not to take too much off of the height. I use a flat stick with 400 sandpaper stuck to it. Usually a couple of light swipes do the trick.



aarongreen -> RE: Videoclip of my Reyes Model Guitar (Dec. 11 2008 18:33:52)

Hi Armando
Very, very nice. Sounds really good... clear, fast and articulate. I have seen a number of Reyes' and his guitars are near and dear to my heart. They tend to have a real aristocratic voice as well as juevos to spare. In any case you seem to be in the right ballpark which is good to see.

aaron



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