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I know it’s vary early but might be missing just a touch of that culpepper grawl, could just be you being carful and of course let’s give her a few hours or more before judging. And as usual, WTF do I know ;)
Would be nice to hear one of your other flamencas say during the same recording session?
Again, thanx for sharing and let’s see how she develops after shellac and playing in some.
Also the little bit of rasgueo you did sounded pretty good.
Ok, went back and listened to your #128 cypress flamenco video, hopping you used the same recording rig and settings, seems like La Pluma has a deeper bass or perhaps a different cherictor but I like it, you should listen to both recordings, I hear some magic in this new build that’s for sure.
Same strings on #128 and LP?
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I prefer my flamenco guitar spicy, doesn't have to be fast, should have some meat on the bones, can be raw or well done, as long as it doesn't sound like it's turning green on an elevator floor.
Sounds OK to me Andy! It have to open up a bit, especially on the mid range. The basses and high tones come out fast, and the guitar have a pleasant sound overall. Good job!
I like it; strong presence, decent balance; good playing and demo as usual. Give us, please, another audition after finish, etc. What strings do you use? And thanks.
It is actually not the same recording setup, this video was shot straight onto my antique iPhone 6s rather than with a better mic/audio track. I will definitely do a side-by-side comparison with a traditional blanca when it's finished, since I recently acquired a very good one of mine.
Also my next order is for a very light blanca, so I'll get to make a traditional one as well!
Thanks! Before finish it's right around 1kg strung up. I use a little more than an ounce of shellac flakes to finish a guitar, but some of that gets sanded off...it'll be interesting to see how much weight the finish and golpeadores add but I'm estimating it will land around 1025 grams.
So here is me attempting to play the guitar while desperately avoiding tapping or scratching the top in any way, with 8 mm string height at the bridge.
I think I will put strings on it tomorrow! Trying to be patient with the finish :). I'll make a couple of videos and I have some people that want to try it which should be fun.
Hi Andy, great work. Out of curiosity: weight aside, could you attribute a clear difference in tone and/or loudness respect one of your standard guitars because of the composite top? What would you do the same way and what would you do differently?
Well of course I foolishly decided to change more than one variable at a time, so I can't yet isolate the effect of the composite top. But I really like the way the instrument is working as a whole. The overall light weight really cuts the sustain and gives it a good flamenco character. That recording was made as soon as the strings had stretched enough to stay roughly in tune. I pulled it out again today and the sound is developing in a pretty stunning way. The trebles are addictive.
I think probably the coolest thing about this guitar is the dynamic range it's capable of with only a light touch. I am really not a very strong player, but listening to the recording I can almost convince myself that I sound a teeny weeny tiny bit like Jason McGuire. It's because I can pull dynamics and tone out of this guitar that only a really strong player like Jason can with a normal guitar. Overall it's just extremely easy to play, such that I can sound pretty decent on it despite not practicing nearly enough lately. Going back to a traditional guitar I also noticed how "noisy" it sounded, though I do still love the traditional tone. This guitar has a very clean and pure sound.
So I made a little comparison video to one of my traditional guitars. Let me know what you think. I'm honestly not sure which one I prefer. La Pluma is probably a little more boxy sounding... Conde-ish perhaps?
Nice Andy. I do hear a difference here between the two and think I prefer your traditional guitar a little more. the trebles have a lil more of a sonority to them, less veiled from what I’m hearing (through my speakers) That said, be great to hear it in person.
Also whenever I hear a double vs solid top comparison, the solid top always comes out on top for me, even though projection might be better with the double
Ha! I wouldn’t throw ether of them out of bed for getting crumbs in the sheets ;)
I listened on a nice Yamaha shelf system with a subwoofer about six times all the way through the toggled back and forth to get a better idea about their differences.
The Pluma has a lot more body around the lower end but well matched by the trebles. It will be interesting to see how she develops as it is played in.
Listening on my iPhone 8 it was hard to discern a difference, of course they are both Culpepper guitars.
One thing I know from my own lightweight guitars that you can’t factor in on the internet is the feel of playing a lightweight guitar, the visceral experience is hard to describe. Literally everyone who has played my 1100-850gm guitars say the same thing, the looked up at me, You can really feel it… And to be clear I’m not in Andy’s class at all.
And to be more clear I’ve already told Andy I’m interested in purchasing this guitar.
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I prefer my flamenco guitar spicy, doesn't have to be fast, should have some meat on the bones, can be raw or well done, as long as it doesn't sound like it's turning green on an elevator floor.