This answers a lot of my questions. As someone who's very involved with classical music (not classical guitar though) , I always wonder about how a certain player gets their tone, how ligado is so pronounced with pros, how rich the basses sound etc. I have limited resources (I have a cheap flamenco guitar) and this makes me realize that I shouldn't get so caught up with getting the right tone since it's not ALL in the hands.
@@poodle3507 I'm happy to hear that Poodle, I am a person who really believes in the guitar I play on. Depending on the guitar I am performing on, I can produce a certain tone, each guitar gives me inspiration in a different way. I highly recommend practicing on a good guitar, as it can even help find your sound more easily! Cheers!
Great player, but in my opinion its more accurate to compare blanca with blanca, not with negra. The sound on the negra always seems to be "better", because its more lasting. I think these are two different worlds.
Thanks Jan! At the moment these are the guitars I have. In general I think we can feel free to compare anything we want really, just to see the difference in the tone and colour of each guitar, I say why not! Even comparing a great Blanca with a great Negra would be amazing I believe, but at the moment I don't have both, hopefully when I do I can make more videos like this one comparing more sounds. Cheers!
@@LucianoGhosn to be clear, what I wanted to express is that it would be very interesting to see you comparing negra with negra, because than we could see how important are not only the woods used in the guitar, but the construction aspects, special "tricks" which great luthiers use to achieve their sound goals. Of course we are free to compare everything and your channel seems to be very interesting. Cheers
Basically the comparison between two such different types of guitars... In this video, and with the sound quality of TH-cam, i actually liked the blanca better. Less sustain means better definition of the notes. More clarity.
Of course there are differences especially the feeling while playing and the playability too, but any guitar in your hand will sound great Luciano. Maestro❤❤
Exactly! The feeling when playing on a cheap guitar is very different, it doesn't give me any motivation to play at my best. The Lester brings the best out of me I feel. Thank you Esmail so happy to see you here more often, love your sound in playing also! Cheers!
I am 55 years old and very determined to learn playing the guitar. When I see you playing I realize I might never possibly play so heavenly but in some strange way it makes me try even more. Your guitars are wonderful creations. Mine are very cheap ones but I love them deeply because it took 55 years of my life to explore the magical world of notes and music, despite the fact I have been singing all my life. Back to my practice now. Ty so much for the great videos. Stay safe and happy. Hugs from Greece.
Thank you so much Joanna! Don't think too much about technique though really, I am trying to keep my focus on music lately, (Of course technique is necessary), but I try not to obsess with it too much that's all, which is my suggestion to you. With so little, if it's done at the right moment and with the full spirit, so much more can be said. Cheers!
This is a personal experience when playing one begins to develop a ear and feel for the guitar, once you’re played a high quality instrument you will immediately be able to distinguish the sound of what’s either good or not for your liking. Thank you for your insight and great technique.
Great as always! It always amazed me how very few talk about the size & measurements of the guitar. We are all born different physically it is like buying a shoe size 11 for a size 8 foot. Teachers never focus on this issue while the player finding it hard to enjoy playing. To a certain limits you can adapt but the question is not can i play high action oversized guitar for 15 minutes rather can i play it & enjoy playing everyday for hours. Enjoyment and relaxation only can bring creativity. I see some flamenco players adapt to playing long scale guitars by using the capo more than others which indicates that they struggled with playing the same size fit all guitars. Some guitarists play super low action guitars with crazy buzz which again indicates that they struggled with playing the fit all guitars so they try to compensate by using a very low action that might sound too noisy for other people. For beginners out there keep in mind these points when buying a guitar: 1. Action ( Height of strings ) and whether there is a room to shave on the saddle. 2. Scale length (Not everyone is physically going to enjoy playing for hours a 660 scale). 3. Some guitars can take lowering the action and tension of strings while still ring and project while other guitars will be muted and not produce tone ( heavy built). 4. Type of strings used on that specific guitar ( You might need to try lower tension strings to bring warmth and ease of playing). 5. The strings spacing on both the saddle & nut ( Sometimes wide spacing can slow you down moving between strings).
Totally agree with you Ronny! That's why I made this video as I though its a subject that need way way more attention than it has! The points you mentioned are perfect yes, especially the 2nd and the 5th. Luthiers always get to decide for us by saying something like, "I think guitars are perfect with the 660mm that's why I build always using this scale." I hate that! Because then we are the ones who end up stretching to the max to reach out the notes, and some people actually get injured sometimes from that! I'm totally fine with the measurement, if I am the one asking them, but no the other way around. And the 5th point about the spacings, don't get me started on that one.. You know what I do now to avoid this? I have created (I made by myself, on my own), saddles that I file a hole down were the string can rest, to create the spacings I want. I have different saddles varying from (58.5mm, 59mm, 59.5mm, and 60mm). That way I choose whichever one I please, and also depending on the nail length, I could switch between one and the other. Because sometimes, if I file my nails a little bit shorter than usual let's say, I'll then switch to the nut with narrower spacings, so it's less movement on the fingers and it can fit better for shorter nails. Something like that. Cheers!
@@LucianoGhosn Creating grooves to adjust spacing is very good idea! i will try that. I have suffered my whole life trying to play the regular 650 & 660 scale lengths. I have developed shoulder pain and many many times wanted to quit the guitar but i just love it. Unfortunately i can't afford paying lots of money for custom built guitar so i find myself enjoy playing even shorter than 650 sometime 630 guitars which is one of the Cordobas. The problem with all the shorter scale guitars is that they sound crap and i understand the physics of short strings will not produce the same sound of longer ones but i prefer playability over the loss in sound quality as you mentioned in this video. I think it easier to make a good sounding guitar with longer scales & bigger bodies than making a good sounding guitar with shorter scale & smaller body.
My decision for avoiding aches has been to tune down. I'd use 432hz A instead of 440hz or 442hz, and take years time to let the guitar tune in. The tuning itsself allways affects the wood. The method of tuning, even using a meter, is as follows: all tuning is started with the "A" note first. When you pick a string and look at the meter(The ones with the actual needle -indicator are the ones to look for): the indicator is supposed to never go a bit above the desired hz. Say we were tuning the A string= we pluck the string, and when it causes the indicator to go further than the exact reading of the hz your chosen "A" is: we allways tune the string down enough for us so we can pluck the string so that it will not surpass the exact hz chosen. Not a microbit. It is acceptable and okay to be a little bit low, but not a bit high= as in when tuning an instrument. Read that again untill you can memorize it. This way is built the orientation that is like the instructions, or even betterly said: the allowance: for the build of the guitar to adopt the tuning of strings for playing. The instrument is made of wood and there is metal, sometimes plastic, bone: all subject to tempetature changes. When the globe Earth on which the instrument is kept together with some forces: spins around which we have named the year: a lot happens in the air the instrument has. Now, for the "health" of the instrument it is good if it is granted with allowance to "live" and not to be forced to try to change the forces of nature in any forcefull way. Many people would say that there is no way to tune a guitar and have it still be in tune after a complete year of just having stood somewhere. However, when a guitar been tuned correctly, it has almost like "grown" to its own uprightness, and will not change into another from that orientation. This orientation is now being underlined that it isn't neccessarily what anyone buys from a store, and any tunable instrument can find its ultimate uprightness, with the proper nourishing, and the means have been described above: the correct orientation in applying for the well ringing of the instrument. Each instrument is an individual piece and the only thing common between instruments is the way in which a player is supposed to approach them as individuals of inreplacable value. I admit it that I easily tune my guitar so that I tune the desired "A" on the A -string so, that I bend the a -string a half of a halfnote or a halfnote: at the 4th or 3rd fret, and tune the "A" there. It sounds close the "C tuning", but not exactly. Then I might practice phrazing on an instrument tuned in such fashion: to music in ordinary tuning, totally free of pain or difficulty in playing, and it sounds warm and is feeling okay, the strings feel pretty well in my controll, and it feels and seems like the strings were communicating with the wood of the guitar a lot more. Then I might tune up to the normalest pitch for performing or practicing before, but then I set them a little lower again after I've finnished, so that the instrument was definitely not forced by the tension of the strings, quite the opposite: the strings are asking the guitar to give its shape and sound. One can easily tune an octave down from the usual tension, make that trick with tuning down, pull the strings, tune them again. Then when the guitar is tuned up to normal usual tension, coming back one octave down doesn't happen just like that! You can do it first: tune down an octave each string, but after 20 minutes or the next morning: some of the strings will be tight. This is the life of the neck. You know now about the means of giving it exersize. A cheap guitar -neck comes loose from giving it fine exercize! A well tuned guitar allows the guitarist to bend the neck down or up for a tonal effect, without the sense of endangering the health ot the guitar. A tuned guitar bounces back to your hands when dropped to the ground(soil, not stonefloor!), and too tight strings will brake the neck near the headstock if the guitar falls. So to submit to the laws of nature is the way to orientate. Do not force the guitar, but apply for its ever fines character by you know how now: never surpass the limits you give to thy instrument!
I need to add a important detail to the ever so important means of orienting to the fashion in which a instrument is: tuned: do not spin the tuner too soon after having picked the string. This is where all trouble begins, or doesn't begin. Each sound has its "ADSR", its "envelope". This is "attack, decay, sustain and release". Attack is caused by the fashion in which a string is plucked, then that first impact shimmers down(decay) and we hear its sound sustained(sustain), untill the sound wears off(release). Now, sorry to say: most stringers start spinning the tuner almost before they pluck the string, like they wanted to assure everyone of their lack of discipline and of their chosen recklessness, or no one knew to teach them the actual way yet so they do not have any idea of its being in existence(quite this last, I think). The strings are first spun around the poles in the tuners helping with the hand keeping the string tight enough for it to wound smoothly. Then the string isn't tightened, just merely put in place respectively to the measure, the lenght of the neck. Then the sound we hear is not taken by us from the string, but the string asks it from the instrument. We hear the instrument first, and the instrument lets us hear the string. The note we want to hear: we want to hear not from the string, but from the instrument: by the player. Okay so were never supposed to start to tune the instrument by manipulating the string during the Attack or the Decay of the envelope(ADSR), but during the sustain, when we hear the string allow the body of the instrument to make sound. Especially with a new instrument, and with new strings: the attack and decay can last for seconds, and this is the heart of tuning, the heart of controll, touch, feel and quality, this is even the heart of playing: the actual metaphysics, well, common physics of playing instruments. Anyone who thinks of this, why not experiment: will realize that here we have the mechanics of instrument orientation. The more well the instrument gets tuned, the more player will have controll over the ADSR by plucking skill. Many have no nerve at beginning wait fof the attack amd the decay to go, before they actually are capable of really tuning the instrument, instead of spoiling it by fighting its fundamentals. The attack and decay can go the quicker the better the instrument is tuned. And yes, a synthesizer -sound is 20% as "deep" in harmonics compared to a good guitar ! :) Think of the "note" as the light of a candle : on a table in the middle of a large tall stone room with no other furniture. When you light the candle, the heart of the candle starts to light up, it catches the fire and starts to grow into its ultimate as a lit candlelight. If you blow at it gently, strenghtening the blow gradually, it first starts to shiver, then goes off. Or if the candle is off, the light will just die off. The note on an instrument also "lights up", rings, and dies off. When we tune the instruments, our tool is the ringing note, note the one at the stage of lighting up, nor the one that's allready dying off. When this technique has not been mastered, it shows, and the guitar neck look like propellors of aeroplanes, are broken and so forth. So when people think about comfortability in playing, they were better of being aware of this that the tuning is made not by the attack, not during the decay, not "from up to down[never, ever]", but during the sustaining of the pucked string. Same when you tune another string comparing it to another string: compare it to the sustaining string, not attack/decay -phase of the plucked string. And yes, this required the nerve and time it does, and more practice teaches skills to do it more efficiently, and a well prepared instrument works more smoothly and more quickly. And being actually intact with the science of sound is a lot more fun than anything else!? Sorry for some typos! I hope I have transmitted a really valuable point in having to do with musical instruments mastering ! :)
@@vaeiskione When i started playing the guitar ( Not flamenco) i went with the herd mentality that D'addario EJ45 really good then one time decided to try the rectified version which is the EJ29 & EJ30 and wow the warmth just got me and will never tolerate anything but rectified trebles. The normal clear plastic trebles feel dry and tight with no dynamics anymore. One thing i have noticed always is i can bring air and nice sustain when i adjust any new guitar to lower action and lower strings tension. I see some beginners with good technique wasting half of their energy tying to push the stiff high action strings down. Guitar is a quiet and short sustain instrument and you need to apply energy all the time to ring the instrument. I think lots of beginners think that the flamenco aggressive sound comes from too much power applied on instrument and that is misleading. I think every beginner should start with lower softer action until they get how much power do they really need to apply. Some humans born with natural balanced relaxed biomechanics so when they starting playing guitar the progress is faster and their habits will be healthier vs some who are born with different bodies and even have trauma in life and make them stiff and rigid so when you combine that with stiff guitars they develop stiff unbalanced technique where they push and use the wrong muscles. It took me while to isolate and utilize my palm/ arm muscles and isolate them from the big shoulder muscles and still struggle with that. I have observed some folks when i give them the guitar for the first time and can tell that they have a good balanced musculature vs when i started i was filled with musical expressions trying to manifest but my biomechanics and traumatized brain were out of balance.
The cheaper one has a brighter more stimulating sound . The more expensive one, a warmer more sedating quality . For my money I like the cheaper one better, especially as when I saw Segovia, he literally put me to sleep, and I can do that luckily @ home . 😎
Whatever is good for you! Of course paying 500EUR or 8,000EUR is completely 2 difference things, but the 8,000EUR guitar, "If you choose the right one", then it could be for a lifetime. Cheers!
@@LucianoGhosn There are a lot of cheaper guitars than 500 Euros. Some might say 500 Euros can get you a really good guitar. Two things said here ring true. 1) The skill of the artist flavors the sound, 2) If the instrument inspires you, there is greater joy in playing. I would be curious of your thoughts of cheap strings on an expensive guitar vs Premium strings on a cheap guitar.
in my opinion Luciano Ghosn is the best flamenco Analyst !!! feel Lucky I didn't buy my first flamenco guitar yet , what a frustration would be if I did without knowing these important information , the video of guitar measurement was also extremely helpful , gracias Luciano
You should have told us something about the price range of both guitars. The deVoe should be about ten times the price of the Postigo guitar. I have a Postigo guitar and a Conde Media Luna and the Postigo can hold up extremely well against the Conde. In terms of cost/benefit, the Postigo is unbeatable.
I agree, it's a shame Luciano is comparing a blanca with a negra... But, the sound is so much superior with the Devoe, even if one discounts the wood differences. Maybe Luciano will do a new video with similar wood species? Excellent playing from him, as always! A real talented player! Respect! :-)
La diferencia es monumental, sencillamente una guitarra es para un estudiante en sus seis primeros meses de aprendizaje en los que puede decidir si realmente va a continuar tocando la guitarra varios años y la otra guitarra es el siguiente paso y definitivo para toda la vida en el que se garantiza una pulsación profesional, un sonido de concierto además de una inversión… Sin duda alguna un vídeo magistral de demostración y aprendizaje para las personas que no conocen el mundo de las guitarras profesionales y creen que lo que se paga es una firma… ENHORABUENA LUCIANO !!! ❤️❤️❤️
Cuanta alegria me das verte aqui Jordi!! Estoy muy contento que te haya gustado este video especialmente a ti! Me acuerdo cuando estuvimos en la Solera Flamenca la primera vez, que me das 1 guitarra cada 10 segundos para comparar con otra, así que ya entiendo porque te ha gustado este video! Jajaja Es verdad 100% lo que dijiste. No es solamente la firma que pagan cuando compran guitarras así, pero muchísimo mas trabajo detrás, y confianza en la "ARTISTA" que ha construido la guitarra. Ojalá en el futuro cuando tendré otras guitarras, no hace falta que sean baratas o caras, pero me encantaría hacer mucho mas videos tipo así, porque a mí también me encanta las comparaciones entre un Luthier y otro! Gracias Jordi un abrazo muy fuerte!!
you really kick ass man! i can imagine how damn hard must be for the hands to play like that! i really love flamenco style,i reputate it the most difficult stuff to perform on a guitar ever,especially the fantastic marvellous rigth hand skill.to me playing like that is an authentic form of art on a guitar.really awesome! all the best number one!
I have TWO Lester devoe guitars, a Blanca and a Negra. Although I love playing them both, they both sound different. Not necessarily one better than the other, my Negra is a bit deeply richer being that the sides and back are Brazilian. But the Blanca, although not as rich, is also just great to play.
Thank you for the video. I'm still wondering how old wood can improve a guitar. Is it just about the sound quality, or do we also choose older wood for the overall quality of the guitar?
#1) Quality wood #2) the build/craftsmanship #3) size and tone wood for body, neck and fretboard 4) tuners ...Spruce top Rosewood combo always more focused and defined. The Devoe holds focus even through the vibratos. Bravo 👏 I would love to hear a Quality Cedar top paired with a Redwood back and sides. Warmth and depth I think
Thank you Mark! I am also very proud of this Lester DeVoe, there is a limit to how much can be shown from a video, but something can be noticed there for sure. I would love to show more guitars, especially ones from Mr. DeVoe, but at the moment that's the only one I have. Maybe in the future when I can get more guitars I might be able to do more comparisons and sound demonstrations as well! Cheers!
The "cheap" blanca has rusted old strings, the D string is rusted all the way. Would have sound much better/ brighter with decent strings. Also would be nice/ more fair to compare Blanca against Blanca, Negra against Negra I think.
Do you only use the nail or the flesh for a golpe? Or do you interchange them when you prefer a certain sound? If so when do you use the flesh/nail if using a golpe?
Hello good job Luciano, t would have more sense if you had compared 2 "blanca" or 2 "negra" because comparing a blanca and a negra shows many more differences than those you mentioned. The construction, the sound, the attack, etc.. and dimensions are not the same and you have rightly pointed this out. For the rest it's perfect, good video.
Could you suggest any models in the 1000€ to 1500€ price range? I visited a guitar shop yesterday with the intention of upgrading from my Yamaha C40 to a guitar in the $1000 to $1500 range. To my surprise, I was quite disappointed as I felt that my current guitar was better than the ones I tried at the shop. The available options didn't meet my expectations, and I found them to be of lower quality and lacking uniqueness. 😞 I wanted to Alhambra P 7 or 10 but as i said what i tried was no big deferent for me
Thanks for informative comparision which was very good. Also I have a question, what is the name of the chord at 12:45, Bm..? Thanks if you are going to reply... The improvisation was really good tho
I bought a machine made for 175 Euro and I just love it! I can‘t make it sound like a 2000 euro guitar though. However, I‘m pretty sure I can make the 2000 euro guitar sound like 175 euro guitar ;)
You explained very well man but I'm wondering what is the difference between for example my guitar Alhambra 4PA (negra with laminated back and sides) with price of 500 euros and for example some guitar with similar specs which costs 700 or 800 euros but with SOLID back and sides?
Fascinating. Knowing nothing of Spanish guitars I would have thought the action and playability would have been as crucial as the sound and throw rather than physical comfort.
Luciano, thank you for working with You Tube in your different presentations for the guitar. It seems that many guitar makers try and make a good impression with their work for the market place. And based on the different economic needs of players, there will always be guitars of different prices and qualities that are offered to the buying public. I think the basic differences are going to be decided on how much time is spent on how the instrument is treated in its voicing. The tone/voice is the ultimate choice for higher end guitars. Less expensive guitars are designed to fill the niche for certain economic needs but not to spend time beyond practical measures, to make a profit. Lester DeVoe is a consummate maker of fine guitars, even bordering on collectibles while he is still alive. So anyone who chooses to purchase one of his works of art, will certainly have a guitar that can keep going for the life of the player, in sound and collect-ability. However, there will always be a market for inexpensive guitars, with some players feeling the need to trade up on occasion.
Great video... Thanks! I saw that you played some guitars by Francisco Sanchez. Can you talk about his guitars? I own one of his blancas. He seems to be very underappreciated at the moment.
One couldn't possibly get more out of the instrument than your own playing. Crisp and clear with no drag. Otherwise nylon strings can sometimes sound like a 'thud'.
I never thought that I ever prefer a Blanca before a Rosewood guitar, in this case I do. Love the Blanca guitar, powerful it fits the flamenco Music. Good that it is cheaper
Great advice to go with the most comfortable one. I had some guitars which where not fitting for my hand and it was so difficult to play and after each bar chord I had to stretch my hand for 5 minutes.
Just a little improvisation and then you smash it out of the park !! I totally agree the guitar has to fit you ie comfortable to play I’d probably struggle playing your lester Devoe yet alone owning one did like the Blanca though 👍🏻 I’d like to see a comparison of two Negra’s cheap and sell all your belongings one 😉
Hahaha I tried to play something simple enough just to see the sound of both happy that you like it! Yes, I think my Lester DeVoe, since it's on the bigger side, it will be uncomfortable to many people actually! Even I am not a huge fan of playing on it on stage! For recordings it's perfectly fine, but it is actually considered to be not the right choice to use on stage! When I have more guitars I'll try to do that of course! Cheers!
O maior, pra mim, foi Moraito. Os que vieram depois impressionam mas não o superam. Mas o jeito com que você toca me agrada mais que muitos. Resumindo, você e Moraito me agradam ouvir em 1º lugar.
Hola Luciano, Entre una alhambra 7f y una alhambra 5fp Piñana... Para alguien que ya sabe tocar guitarra pero no flamenco... Cuál recomendarías para empezar? La 7f es más cara por 145 euros. Y el presupuesto no es tanto el problema sino que no quiero comprar algo demasiado exagerado para mí.. Algo que me dure unos 3 o 4 años y luego subir a una guitarra mejor. Muchas gracias de antemano
Entonces creo que es mejor conseguir el que te resulte cómodo, el precio no importa, podría ser el más barato, si es más cómodo te recomendaría ese. Siempre busca la comodidad en ese presupuesto, no el sonido. Saludos!
Thanks for the comparison. You play very beautifully. But as the comparison goes, it would be more fair if you would use at least strings of the same age and quality. The strings on the blanca were visibly very worn down. Also it would be good to take the same care with tuning the guitar - it makes a big difference. As to things you say: well, as has been confirmed by some very experienced luthiers, my cheap Chinese made blanca has a wood of absolutely rare and stunning quality. So it depends really. Also it‘s always a bit unfair comparing a blanca with a negra, even if they were of the same price range. What you say about the volume is a bit confused, sorry. There is the apparent volume (for the player) and there is the projection. A bigger guitar may have a bigger apparent volume but the smaller one a better projection and be perceived as louder by a more distant listener. I have an old blanca, that is quite flat (max depth 9cm!). The top is not much bigger than that of an original Torres guitar. This guitar has a tremendous projection and also fullness of sound. And this although it is ‚only’ 640mm scale length and fitted with medium tension strings. So there are no simple explanations for different aspects of the sound. Your video would be stronger without the lengthy comment, just showing what the one and the other sound like. And in the end it boils down to few simple facts: the one costs almost 10000 €, the other probably less than 1000€. Is Lester DeVoe 10 times better? No. You can drive home in a Rolls Royce, but a simple Seat will do, too. Maybe some people will like the simple Seat even better...and have less worries ... I‘m not meaning to say that everything was wrong, but unnecessary claims are unnecessary claims. And, as I said: your playing is just beautiful, thanks!
I enjoyed your video very much!! Thank you! I am in the market for a classical guitar, as mine although beautiful sounding, the intonation is off and has always bothered me. I could hear that the cheaper guitar was not in tune completely, this to me is the most important part of the guitar, more than anything else. Thanks again!
Me encanta el video porque he tenido muchas dudas en la compra de una guitarra flamenca.Pensaba que la diferencia estaba en las maderas y en el grosor del cuerpo.Entonces que diferencia hay entre una guitarra clasica y una flamenca?Yo creía que las flamencas tenian un cuerpo más estrecho y eso le daba ese ataque fuerte de sonido para contrarrestar la voz del cantante aunque eso le fuera negativo a la hora de mantener el sonido en el tiempo.Al tener menor caja,menos dura el sonido, pero si tu guitarra(suena de muerte)tiene una caja de resonancia más ancha...que diferencia hay entre guitarra clasica y flamenca????? Muchas gracias de antemano
Me alegro mucho Alberto que te ha gustado el video! La diferencia es el tipo de madera (en algunos casos) y la forma de construcción. Las guitarras flamencas suelen tener una respuesta mucho más rápida que las guitarras clásicas. Si preguntas, Es posible tocar flamenco con una guitarra clásica? La respuesta será sí, pero sonará desordenado. Si lo desea, estoy seguro de que puede encontrar excelentes artículos en línea sobre este tema si desea entrar en más detalles. Saludos!
Great playing. Yes the more expensive guitar plays louder, but I think you meant its dynamics. When I listen to the comparison of the two, that's what struck me the most apart from the timbre. The dynamic range of the sound is greater on the more expensive guitar, on the cheap guitar it is narrower.
Wowww...that was some spanish shredding......what was it you said about choosing a guitar again..i wasnt paying much attention to what you were talking about
The more expensive has a much richer sound and sounds more modern, the cheap one sounds bright and more old school I would say,but with your playing, they both sounded great!!
Thank you Aida! I haven't published it anywhere yet no, but I have used it in competitions in Spain! Haha Hopefully I can record the whole thing soon, I'm glad you like it. Cheers!
Luciano eres un gran guitarrista una pregunta la jose Luis postigo conozco a ese hombre pero no es luthier solo le pone etiqueta con su nombre a la de otros luthier por cierto la lester es un guitarron!!
Muchas gracias David! Sí es correcto, la Jose Luis Postigo es una marca, no él mismo construye las guitarras. La Lester es algo increíble estoy de acuerdo! Saludos
the more expensive guitar is louder (and probably much more confortable to play), clearer, bears/amplifies different frequencies and makes the sound more "capsuled". the tasto effect. also, the top is punchier. BUT the cheaper one is more balanced, the sound is somewhat drier, and it feels a LOT lighter.
Some people think incorrectly that if a guitar is cheap then it has to be bad. It’s not true. If you are a beginner or an amateur you can find high quality guitars for under $300, or used under $100. You just have to make sure the brands are reputable. Yamaha, Washburn, Gibson, and many other discontinued brands. Usually ones made in Korea or in Taiwan are better quality. If the brand is good even China is ok. Yamaha makes some guitars in China and they’re good. But if they are bad non-brands then they are really bad. I have to correct myself and add something: I am talking about mainstream traditional “classical guitar” or normal steel string guitar. Flamenco is different and much less common so I am sorry but that’s probably not to be found there. But to learn flamenco you don’t even need to have a flamenco guitar at first. Just learn to play the basics first. Lol
I have found that some cheap guitars have better intonation than those that are hand built . . .probably because a robot is putting in the frets?!? My little Yamaha, for example, has great intonation. . .but not a great sound quality (but acceptable for $349!). . .I have had many expensive guitars that just could NOT be tuned. Usually the D and B strings are funky but Gs too. The Marlon Navarro negra I have now is about as good as I've ever had. I love your videos. I wish yo come do a mater class in Memphis, TN . . .Wee could go to Graceland and some old recording studios!!!
Luciano thanks for your amazing playing.The strings on the expensive guitar are new. They are crispy of course. Let alone the qualities of woods. Anyway, thanks for your videos. Keep them coming pls. Cheers.
I am also fan of rosewood back and sides even in steel string guitars not only classical. Rosewood gives more trebles and reverbration which is characterised by people as lush sound. However the cypress creates focused and loud midrange and might be liked by flamenco players. So the cheap guitar gave good sound almost in the whole frequency range only the the A and especially the low E was a bit blunt and shorter in sustain.
I love Negras so much as well yes! However I have to say that my favourite guitars ever are the Blanca's from Manuel Reyes. I feel his guitars just can't get any more complete, and flamenco! Thanks for watching Farkas. Cheers!
Very nice video presentation. I do agree with other comments that to be truthful, you have to compare like for like (same blanca's). Very good advice for buyers though. I have found strings make a big difference. But that is a study in itself. Paco de Lucia was very studious about string choices.
Thanks for watching! I read many comments about that, yes. I just wanted to compare prices in this video, I don't think it would've sounded so different if I had played on a cheap 500EUR Negra guitar anyway.. But these are the guitars I have at the moment, maybe next time I'll borrow a Negra for a better comparison. Strings are definitely important too yes. Cheers!
Hi Luciano, Thanks for the great video as always! Speaking of sound- you have a very nice sound quality in your videos. I know this is mainly due to your fantastic playing, but any information you could give on your recording setup? Are there any special plugins, EQ, compressor etc. you use?? Muchas gracias!!
On the cheap guitar seems to be are 100 years strings, on DeVoe are new Knobloch strings. Isn't it? Other wood = other sound (blanca..or negra, fingerboard type) Big guitar = louder , more bass, it's just physics. If somebody can play so good like Luciano the cheap guitar also good enough (with good string, perfect setup) The very high price of the expensive guitars not really goes together with the "sound". I have a Yamaha CG182SF (50 EUR) and also has a Hermanos Conde A1 Media Luna (4.000.-EUR) and I like more the Yamaha. The spanish luthiers are mostly good advertisers, there's a huge amount of text on handmade guitars, but much of it is also idle chatter. There is no such thing as a completely handmade guitar, because what can and should be done by machine is done by machine. What can only be done by hand, (fret bending and gluing is done everywhere) The rest is largely marketing. How old is the wood not important , just the humidity and the density determining. The price of rare trees has gone up a lot because the furniture industry is buying them up. This does drive up prices, but it is also a function of supply and demand because of the visual appearance.
Have you ever played a Felipe conde fp14? Have you tried 2 or more of the same kind of guitars (same brand same model) to notice differences? Of so it might be an interesting topic/addition for an upcoming video
I have tried many Conde's before, in the past, but I can't remember if they were fp14 or the what model exactly I played on.. Of course if I have the guitars with me then I would be more than happy to do more videos like these! Cheers!
So happy to hear that! I was really doubting myself if I should continue doing these types of videos, but I feel they're getting good response till now and that makes me really happy I'm glad! Cheers!
Hi Luciano! Great content brother! Thank you! Also great idea I'm looking forward of more stuff like this! But I think the fair thing would be to compare two negras cheep and expensive as blanca and negra are two worlds even in the same price range! ❤️
Thank you for watching Josip! Very happy you're liking the new content, very glad to know that! I love sound to do comparisons in general, I think comparing anything is ok really, I don't mean to make any guitar seem less good, I just always like to hear difference in sound whether it's Negra to Negra, or Negra to Blanca, it's always very interesting I feel! I'll try to do more like this in the future, I just need many guitars to do that! Haha Cheers!
I think that you should have compared them with fresh set of strings for both guitars. The strings on the cheap one look rusty and old. Nice video though 🖐🏻 .
Is the echo in the microphone, in spanish guitar performances in general, or is it the mere echo of the room, that a good guitarist with a good guitar may allow the audience to hear? I actually remember never having tried bursting guitar in a bigger room, eventhough I have experienced church echo in choir, and even played percussion in churches. Thanks, Janne from Finland
Hey Janne, the echo "Sustain" is from the guitar usually, and of course I re-enforce it a little bit with the "Reverb" effect to make it sound as if it's being played in a hall. My taste in the sound is having little bit more sustain in the guitar in general, except if I'm playing Bulerias, Seguiriyas, etc.. Palos That require the sound to be more dry. Cheers!
@@LucianoGhosn Usually the blanca is designed for more attack and quick decay. It has to avoid long sustain compared to classical. A few things has to be done (thinning soundboard and sides, separating zoquetillos, lightweight the fan, the fretboard and more. The cypress sound nature has a bell like tendency and a little flat equalization characteristic. Indian rosewood by nature deep the bass, warm the midrange and add sustain to the design. A blanca can be made with long sustain and more "classical " approach. When a classical guitar (indian-spruce-mahogany) change to have quick attack , high percussion and quicker decay by changing interior design, to me that is a negra. If I were a fantastic player like you I will have both blanca and negra but custom made to achieve maximum woods and artist possibilities.
While I can hear the difference, the fact that it is Spanish music and the fact that you play so well that to me, it didn’t matter much whether the sound was coming from the cheap or the expensive guitar.
The expensive one sounds deep and warm and the cheaper one has more treble. The cheap one sounds more like a flamenco guitar with that bright snap, and the dearer one more classical.
Video contents: 👇
1- Video Introduction: (00:00 - 1:39)
2- Cheap Guitar Sound-Test: (1:39 - 3:15)
3- Expensive Guitar Sound-Test: (3:15 - 4:56)
4- Difference: (4:56 - 7:18)
5- Wood Quality/Age: (7:18 - 9:32)
6- Tuning: (9:32 - 10:24)
7- My Recommendation: (10:24 - 12:17)
8- Cheap Guitar Sound-Test 2: (12:17 - 13:13)
9- Expensive Guitar Sound-Test 2: (13:13 - 13:55)
10- Cheap Guitar Sound-Test 3: (13:55 - 14:17)
11- Expensive Guitar Sound-Test 3: (14:17 - 14:41)
12- Video Outro: (14:41 - 15:15)
I hope that you enjoy the video!
Cheers!
Luciano
This answers a lot of my questions. As someone who's very involved with classical music (not classical guitar though) , I always wonder about how a certain player gets their tone, how ligado is so pronounced with pros, how rich the basses sound etc.
I have limited resources (I have a cheap flamenco guitar) and this makes me realize that I shouldn't get so caught up with getting the right tone since it's not ALL in the hands.
That Lester DeVoe sounds like honey compared to the cheap guitar
@@poodle3507 I'm happy to hear that Poodle, I am a person who really believes in the guitar I play on.
Depending on the guitar I am performing on, I can produce a certain tone, each guitar gives me inspiration in a different way. I highly recommend practicing on a good guitar, as it can even help find your sound more easily!
Cheers!
@@poodle3507 Exactly! I always used to say, this Lester DeVoe is my Caramel. ❤️
Thanks for the reply Luciano, I'll try my best to get my hands on a good guitar
Great player, but in my opinion its more accurate to compare blanca with blanca, not with negra. The sound on the negra always seems to be "better", because its more lasting. I think these are two different worlds.
Thanks Jan! At the moment these are the guitars I have.
In general I think we can feel free to compare anything we want really, just to see the difference in the tone and colour of each guitar, I say why not! Even comparing a great Blanca with a great Negra would be amazing I believe, but at the moment I don't have both, hopefully when I do I can make more videos like this one comparing more sounds.
Cheers!
@@LucianoGhosn is volume one of the differences? Could you do a comparison between a great blanca and a great negra?
@@LucianoGhosn to be clear, what I wanted to express is that it would be very interesting to see you comparing negra with negra, because than we could see how important are not only the woods used in the guitar, but the construction aspects, special "tricks" which great luthiers use to achieve their sound goals. Of course we are free to compare everything and your channel seems to be very interesting. Cheers
Basically the comparison between two such different types of guitars... In this video, and with the sound quality of TH-cam, i actually liked the blanca better. Less sustain means better definition of the notes. More clarity.
plus you can clearly see that on the blanca the strings are one big dirt. respect for the video btw.
Of course there are differences especially the feeling while playing and the playability too, but any guitar in your hand will sound great Luciano. Maestro❤❤
Exactly! The feeling when playing on a cheap guitar is very different, it doesn't give me any motivation to play at my best. The Lester brings the best out of me I feel.
Thank you Esmail so happy to see you here more often, love your sound in playing also!
Cheers!
@@LucianoGhosn thank you so much dear Luciano. Keep it up ❤
@@El_Esmail You're welcome, same!
@@LucianoGhosn لقاء العمالقة 😂
تحياتي لكم الإثنين
I am 55 years old and very determined to learn playing the guitar. When I see you playing I realize I might never possibly play so heavenly but in some strange way it makes me try even more. Your guitars are wonderful creations. Mine are very cheap ones but I love them deeply because it took 55 years of my life to explore the magical world of notes and music, despite the fact I have been singing all my life. Back to my practice now. Ty so much for the great videos. Stay safe and happy. Hugs from Greece.
Thank you so much Joanna! Don't think too much about technique though really, I am trying to keep my focus on music lately, (Of course technique is necessary), but I try not to obsess with it too much that's all, which is my suggestion to you.
With so little, if it's done at the right moment and with the full spirit, so much more can be said.
Cheers!
Free lessons for you 🌹
55, you are a girl ... a good age to begin with the guitar, because the guitar is life ... and we are more sensitive
I'm in the same boat! I'll never be that good but I'll enjoy trying!
Joanna, it is not yet too late. you can compensate it by putting more time in practice.
This is a personal experience when playing one begins to develop a ear and feel for the guitar, once you’re played a high quality instrument you will immediately be able to distinguish the sound of what’s either good or not for your liking.
Thank you for your insight and great technique.
Your playing always puts a smile on my face, no matter which guitar you use.
So happy to hear that! 😁
Great as always! It always amazed me how very few talk about the size & measurements of the guitar. We are all born different physically it is like buying a shoe size 11 for a size 8 foot. Teachers never focus on this issue while the player finding it hard to enjoy playing. To a certain limits you can adapt but the question is not can i play high action oversized guitar for 15 minutes rather can i play it & enjoy playing everyday for hours. Enjoyment and relaxation only can bring creativity. I see some flamenco players adapt to playing long scale guitars by using the capo more than others which indicates that they struggled with playing the same size fit all guitars. Some guitarists play super low action guitars with crazy buzz which again indicates that they struggled with playing the fit all guitars so they try to compensate by using a very low action that might sound too noisy for other people. For beginners out there keep in mind these points when buying a guitar:
1. Action ( Height of strings ) and whether there is a room to shave on the saddle.
2. Scale length (Not everyone is physically going to enjoy playing for hours a 660 scale).
3. Some guitars can take lowering the action and tension of strings while still ring and project while other guitars will be muted and not produce tone ( heavy built).
4. Type of strings used on that specific guitar ( You might need to try lower tension strings to bring warmth and ease of playing).
5. The strings spacing on both the saddle & nut ( Sometimes wide spacing can slow you down moving between strings).
Totally agree with you Ronny! That's why I made this video as I though its a subject that need way way more attention than it has!
The points you mentioned are perfect yes, especially the 2nd and the 5th. Luthiers always get to decide for us by saying something like, "I think guitars are perfect with the 660mm that's why I build always using this scale." I hate that! Because then we are the ones who end up stretching to the max to reach out the notes, and some people actually get injured sometimes from that!
I'm totally fine with the measurement, if I am the one asking them, but no the other way around.
And the 5th point about the spacings, don't get me started on that one.. You know what I do now to avoid this?
I have created (I made by myself, on my own), saddles that I file a hole down were the string can rest, to create the spacings I want.
I have different saddles varying from (58.5mm, 59mm, 59.5mm, and 60mm). That way I choose whichever one I please, and also depending on the nail length, I could switch between one and the other. Because sometimes, if I file my nails a little bit shorter than usual let's say, I'll then switch to the nut with narrower spacings, so it's less movement on the fingers and it can fit better for shorter nails. Something like that.
Cheers!
@@LucianoGhosn Creating grooves to adjust spacing is very good idea! i will try that. I have suffered my whole life trying to play the regular 650 & 660 scale lengths. I have developed shoulder pain and many many times wanted to quit the guitar but i just love it. Unfortunately i can't afford paying lots of money for custom built guitar so i find myself enjoy playing even shorter than 650 sometime 630 guitars which is one of the Cordobas. The problem with all the shorter scale guitars is that they sound crap and i understand the physics of short strings will not produce the same sound of longer ones but i prefer playability over the loss in sound quality as you mentioned in this video. I think it easier to make a good sounding guitar with longer scales & bigger bodies than making a good sounding guitar with shorter scale & smaller body.
My decision for avoiding aches has been to tune down. I'd use 432hz A instead of 440hz or 442hz, and take years time to let the guitar tune in. The tuning itsself allways affects the wood. The method of tuning, even using a meter, is as follows: all tuning is started with the "A" note first. When you pick a string and look at the meter(The ones with the actual needle -indicator are the ones to look for): the indicator is supposed to never go a bit above the desired hz. Say we were tuning the A string= we pluck the string, and when it causes the indicator to go further than the exact reading of the hz your chosen "A" is: we allways tune the string down enough for us so we can pluck the string so that it will not surpass the exact hz chosen. Not a microbit. It is acceptable and okay to be a little bit low, but not a bit high= as in when tuning an instrument. Read that again untill you can memorize it. This way is built the orientation that is like the instructions, or even betterly said: the allowance: for the build of the guitar to adopt the tuning of strings for playing. The instrument is made of wood and there is metal, sometimes plastic, bone: all subject to tempetature changes. When the globe Earth on which the instrument is kept together with some forces: spins around which we have named the year: a lot happens in the air the instrument has. Now, for the "health" of the instrument it is good if it is granted with allowance to "live" and not to be forced to try to change the forces of nature in any forcefull way. Many people would say that there is no way to tune a guitar and have it still be in tune after a complete year of just having stood somewhere. However, when a guitar been tuned correctly, it has almost like "grown" to its own uprightness, and will not change into another from that orientation. This orientation is now being underlined that it isn't neccessarily what anyone buys from a store, and any tunable instrument can find its ultimate uprightness, with the proper nourishing, and the means have been described above: the correct orientation in applying for the well ringing of the instrument. Each instrument is an individual piece and the only thing common between instruments is the way in which a player is supposed to approach them as individuals of inreplacable value.
I admit it that I easily tune my guitar so that I tune the desired "A" on the A -string so, that I bend the a -string a half of a halfnote or a halfnote: at the 4th or 3rd fret, and tune the "A" there. It sounds close the "C tuning", but not exactly. Then I might practice phrazing on an instrument tuned in such fashion: to music in ordinary tuning, totally free of pain or difficulty in playing, and it sounds warm and is feeling okay, the strings feel pretty well in my controll, and it feels and seems like the strings were communicating with the wood of the guitar a lot more. Then I might tune up to the normalest pitch for performing or practicing before, but then I set them a little lower again after I've finnished, so that the instrument was definitely not forced by the tension of the strings, quite the opposite: the strings are asking the guitar to give its shape and sound.
One can easily tune an octave down from the usual tension, make that trick with tuning down, pull the strings, tune them again. Then when the guitar is tuned up to normal usual tension, coming back one octave down doesn't happen just like that! You can do it first: tune down an octave each string, but after 20 minutes or the next morning: some of the strings will be tight. This is the life of the neck. You know now about the means of giving it exersize. A cheap guitar -neck comes loose from giving it fine exercize! A well tuned guitar allows the guitarist to bend the neck down or up for a tonal effect, without the sense of endangering the health ot the guitar. A tuned guitar bounces back to your hands when dropped to the ground(soil, not stonefloor!), and too tight strings will brake the neck near the headstock if the guitar falls. So to submit to the laws of nature is the way to orientate. Do not force the guitar, but apply for its ever fines character by you know how now: never surpass the limits you give to thy instrument!
I need to add a important detail to the ever so important means of orienting to the fashion in which a instrument is: tuned: do not spin the tuner too soon after having picked the string. This is where all trouble begins, or doesn't begin. Each sound has its "ADSR", its "envelope". This is "attack, decay, sustain and release". Attack is caused by the fashion in which a string is plucked, then that first impact shimmers down(decay) and we hear its sound sustained(sustain), untill the sound wears off(release).
Now, sorry to say: most stringers start spinning the tuner almost before they pluck the string, like they wanted to assure everyone of their lack of discipline and of their chosen recklessness, or no one knew to teach them the actual way yet so they do not have any idea of its being in existence(quite this last, I think). The strings are first spun around the poles in the tuners helping with the hand keeping the string tight enough for it to wound smoothly. Then the string isn't tightened, just merely put in place respectively to the measure, the lenght of the neck. Then the sound we hear is not taken by us from the string, but the string asks it from the instrument. We hear the instrument first, and the instrument lets us hear the string. The note we want to hear: we want to hear not from the string, but from the instrument: by the player.
Okay so were never supposed to start to tune the instrument by manipulating the string during the Attack or the Decay of the envelope(ADSR), but during the sustain, when we hear the string allow the body of the instrument to make sound. Especially with a new instrument, and with new strings: the attack and decay can last for seconds, and this is the heart of tuning, the heart of controll, touch, feel and quality, this is even the heart of playing: the actual metaphysics, well, common physics of playing instruments. Anyone who thinks of this, why not experiment: will realize that here we have the mechanics of instrument orientation. The more well the instrument gets tuned, the more player will have controll over the ADSR by plucking skill. Many have no nerve at beginning wait fof the attack amd the decay to go, before they actually are capable of really tuning the instrument, instead of spoiling it by fighting its fundamentals. The attack and decay can go the quicker the better the instrument is tuned. And yes, a synthesizer -sound is 20% as "deep" in harmonics compared to a good guitar ! :)
Think of the "note" as the light of a candle : on a table in the middle of a large tall stone room with no other furniture. When you light the candle, the heart of the candle starts to light up, it catches the fire and starts to grow into its ultimate as a lit candlelight. If you blow at it gently, strenghtening the blow gradually, it first starts to shiver, then goes off. Or if the candle is off, the light will just die off. The note on an instrument also "lights up", rings, and dies off.
When we tune the instruments, our tool is the ringing note, note the one at the stage of lighting up, nor the one that's allready dying off. When this technique has not been mastered, it shows, and the guitar neck look like propellors of aeroplanes, are broken and so forth.
So when people think about comfortability in playing, they were better of being aware of this that the tuning is made not by the attack, not during the decay, not "from up to down[never, ever]", but during the sustaining of the pucked string. Same when you tune another string comparing it to another string: compare it to the sustaining string, not attack/decay -phase of the plucked string. And yes, this required the nerve and time it does, and more practice teaches skills to do it more efficiently, and a well prepared instrument works more smoothly and more quickly.
And being actually intact with the science of sound is a lot more fun than anything else!?
Sorry for some typos! I hope I have transmitted a really valuable point in having to do with musical instruments mastering ! :)
@@vaeiskione When i started playing the guitar ( Not flamenco) i went with the herd mentality that D'addario EJ45 really good then one time decided to try the rectified version which is the EJ29 & EJ30 and wow the warmth just got me and will never tolerate anything but rectified trebles. The normal clear plastic trebles feel dry and tight with no dynamics anymore. One thing i have noticed always is i can bring air and nice sustain when i adjust any new guitar to lower action and lower strings tension. I see some beginners with good technique wasting half of their energy tying to push the stiff high action strings down. Guitar is a quiet and short sustain instrument and you need to apply energy all the time to ring the instrument. I think lots of beginners think that the flamenco aggressive sound comes from too much power applied on instrument and that is misleading. I think every beginner should start with lower softer action until they get how much power do they really need to apply. Some humans born with natural balanced relaxed biomechanics so when they starting playing guitar the progress is faster and their habits will be healthier vs some who are born with different bodies and even have trauma in life and make them stiff and rigid so when you combine that with stiff guitars they develop stiff unbalanced technique where they push and use the wrong muscles. It took me while to isolate and utilize my palm/ arm muscles and isolate them from the big shoulder muscles and still struggle with that. I have observed some folks when i give them the guitar for the first time and can tell that they have a good balanced musculature vs when i started i was filled with musical expressions trying to manifest but my biomechanics and traumatized brain were out of balance.
The cheaper one has a brighter more stimulating sound . The more expensive one, a warmer more sedating quality . For my money I like the cheaper one better, especially as when I saw Segovia, he literally put me to sleep, and I can do that luckily @ home . 😎
Whatever is good for you! Of course paying 500EUR or 8,000EUR is completely 2 difference things, but the 8,000EUR guitar, "If you choose the right one", then it could be for a lifetime.
Cheers!
@@LucianoGhosn There are a lot of cheaper guitars than 500 Euros. Some might say 500 Euros can get you a really good guitar. Two things said here ring true. 1) The skill of the artist flavors the sound, 2) If the instrument inspires you, there is greater joy in playing. I would be curious of your thoughts of cheap strings on an expensive guitar vs Premium strings on a cheap guitar.
I like the cheaper ones sound and it has good attack
in my opinion Luciano Ghosn is the best flamenco Analyst !!! feel Lucky I didn't buy my first flamenco guitar yet , what a frustration would be if I did without knowing these important information , the video of guitar measurement was also extremely helpful , gracias Luciano
Thank you Josuee! I'm very happy to read your comment, this is the point of me doing these videos!
Cheers!
You should have told us something about the price range of both guitars. The deVoe should be about ten times the price of the Postigo guitar. I have a Postigo guitar and a Conde Media Luna and the Postigo can hold up extremely well against the Conde. In terms of cost/benefit, the Postigo is unbeatable.
40 years a player here.
Wonderful playing, but a bit like comparing apples and oranges because of the woods used in construction
The deVoe is superior in its quality of tone woods and sound production - but even the cheaper guitar sounds great in your hands Luciano!
Thank you Trevor! It's not very bad considering it's price of course I agree!
Cheers!
Both sound good but yes the quality is different. Thanks.
I agree, it's a shame Luciano is comparing a blanca with a negra... But, the sound is so much superior with the Devoe, even if one discounts the wood differences. Maybe Luciano will do a new video with similar wood species?
Excellent playing from him, as always! A real talented player! Respect! :-)
La diferencia es monumental, sencillamente una guitarra es para un estudiante en sus seis primeros meses de aprendizaje en los que puede decidir si realmente va a continuar tocando la guitarra varios años y la otra guitarra es el siguiente paso y definitivo para toda la vida en el que se garantiza una pulsación profesional, un sonido de concierto además de una inversión… Sin duda alguna un vídeo magistral de demostración y aprendizaje para las personas que no conocen el mundo de las guitarras profesionales y creen que lo que se paga es una firma… ENHORABUENA LUCIANO !!! ❤️❤️❤️
Cuanta alegria me das verte aqui Jordi!! Estoy muy contento que te haya gustado este video especialmente a ti! Me acuerdo cuando estuvimos en la Solera Flamenca la primera vez, que me das 1 guitarra cada 10 segundos para comparar con otra, así que ya entiendo porque te ha gustado este video! Jajaja
Es verdad 100% lo que dijiste. No es solamente la firma que pagan cuando compran guitarras así, pero muchísimo mas trabajo detrás, y confianza en la "ARTISTA" que ha construido la guitarra.
Ojalá en el futuro cuando tendré otras guitarras, no hace falta que sean baratas o caras, pero me encantaría hacer mucho mas videos tipo así, porque a mí también me encanta las comparaciones entre un Luthier y otro!
Gracias Jordi un abrazo muy fuerte!!
@@LucianoGhosn si deberías hacer video comparando guitarras de varios luthieres con reputación👌👌
@@pedropicapiedra109 esto me encantaría por supuesto! Pero falta las guitarras! 😆
you really kick ass man! i can imagine how damn hard must be for the hands to play like that! i really love flamenco style,i reputate it the most difficult stuff to perform on a guitar ever,especially the fantastic marvellous rigth hand skill.to me playing like that is an authentic form of art on a guitar.really awesome! all the best number one!
I have TWO Lester devoe guitars, a Blanca and a Negra. Although I love playing them both, they both sound different. Not necessarily one better than the other, my Negra is a bit deeply richer being that the sides and back are Brazilian. But the Blanca, although not as rich, is also just great to play.
Thank you for the video.
I'm still wondering how old wood can improve a guitar. Is it just about the sound quality, or do we also choose older wood for the overall quality of the guitar?
The cheap one for me is the expensive one at the moment haha.
#relatableAF
❤🤣🤣
#1) Quality wood #2) the build/craftsmanship #3) size and tone wood for body, neck and fretboard
4) tuners ...Spruce top Rosewood combo always more focused and defined. The Devoe holds focus even through the vibratos. Bravo 👏 I would love to hear a Quality Cedar top paired with a Redwood back and sides. Warmth and depth I think
Thank you Mark! I am also very proud of this Lester DeVoe, there is a limit to how much can be shown from a video, but something can be noticed there for sure.
I would love to show more guitars, especially ones from Mr. DeVoe, but at the moment that's the only one I have. Maybe in the future when I can get more guitars I might be able to do more comparisons and sound demonstrations as well!
Cheers!
Nice video! But the "cheap one" has very old rusty strings! It would be nice to have new and the same kind of strings in the both of them!
To my ear, the expensive one has distinctive sounds on each string and very focus, and very harmonised and balanced when played in chords.
Exactly Akam! I think it's beautiful!
I could not say beyond reasonable doubt that the expensive one was better, the cheaper one had a certain soul to it.
@@pleasepermitmetospeakohgre1504 I agree with that.
Yes. The subtleties of each string were lost on the less expensive guitar.
The "cheap" blanca has rusted old strings, the D string is rusted all the way. Would have sound much better/ brighter with decent strings. Also would be nice/ more fair to compare Blanca against Blanca, Negra against Negra I think.
Do you only use the nail or the flesh for a golpe? Or do you interchange them when you prefer a certain sound? If so when do you use the flesh/nail if using a golpe?
Hello good job Luciano, t would have more sense if you had compared 2 "blanca" or 2 "negra" because comparing a blanca and a negra shows many more differences than those you mentioned. The construction, the sound, the attack, etc.. and dimensions are not the same and you have rightly pointed this out. For the rest it's perfect, good video.
Could you suggest any models in the 1000€ to 1500€ price range? I visited a guitar shop yesterday with the intention of upgrading from my Yamaha C40 to a guitar in the $1000 to $1500 range. To my surprise, I was quite disappointed as I felt that my current guitar was better than the ones I tried at the shop. The available options didn't meet my expectations, and I found them to be of lower quality and lacking uniqueness. 😞
I wanted to Alhambra P 7 or 10 but as i said what i tried was no big deferent for me
Thanks for informative comparision which was very good. Also I have a question, what is the name of the chord at 12:45, Bm..? Thanks if you are going to reply... The improvisation was really good tho
Awesome playing! The negra has a beautiful tone. If you don’t mind me asking, what string height do you like at the 12th fret?
I bought a machine made for 175 Euro and I just love it! I can‘t make it sound like a 2000 euro guitar though. However, I‘m pretty sure I can make the 2000 euro guitar sound like 175 euro guitar ;)
You explained very well man but I'm wondering what is the difference between for example my guitar Alhambra 4PA (negra with laminated back and sides) with price of 500 euros and for example some guitar with similar specs
which costs 700 or 800 euros but with SOLID back and sides?
Fascinating. Knowing nothing of Spanish guitars I would have thought the action and playability would have been as crucial as the sound and throw rather than physical comfort.
I believe those two things are the same.Just lost in translatkon.
Luciano, thank you for working with You Tube in your different presentations for the guitar. It seems that many guitar makers try and make a good impression with their work for the market place. And based on the different economic needs of players, there will always be guitars of different prices and qualities that are offered to the buying public.
I think the basic differences are going to be decided on how much time is spent on how the instrument is treated in its voicing. The tone/voice is the ultimate choice for higher end guitars. Less expensive guitars are designed to fill the niche for certain economic needs but not to spend time beyond practical measures, to make a profit.
Lester DeVoe is a consummate maker of fine guitars, even bordering on collectibles while he is still alive. So anyone who chooses to purchase one of his works of art, will certainly have a guitar that can keep going for the life of the player, in sound and collect-ability.
However, there will always be a market for inexpensive guitars, with some players feeling the need to trade up on occasion.
Great video... Thanks!
I saw that you played some guitars by Francisco Sanchez. Can you talk about his guitars? I own one of his blancas. He seems to be very underappreciated at the moment.
cheap? expensive? you didn't say the price of either guitar
One couldn't possibly get more out of the instrument than your own playing. Crisp and clear with no drag. Otherwise nylon strings can sometimes sound like a 'thud'.
I have an Ortega R220 that sounds great to me and feels great too for 1k but I haven’t played many classical guitars ,it’s made in Spain.
I never thought that I ever prefer a Blanca before a Rosewood guitar, in this case I do. Love the Blanca guitar, powerful it fits the flamenco Music. Good that it is cheaper
That Davoe sounds amazing and those trebles are lovely
Great advice to go with the most comfortable one. I had some guitars which where not fitting for my hand and it was so difficult to play and after each bar chord I had to stretch my hand for 5 minutes.
Just a little improvisation and then you smash it out of the park !! I totally agree the guitar has to fit you ie comfortable to play I’d probably struggle playing your lester Devoe yet alone owning one did like the Blanca though 👍🏻 I’d like to see a comparison of two Negra’s cheap and sell all your belongings one 😉
Hahaha I tried to play something simple enough just to see the sound of both happy that you like it!
Yes, I think my Lester DeVoe, since it's on the bigger side, it will be uncomfortable to many people actually! Even I am not a huge fan of playing on it on stage! For recordings it's perfectly fine, but it is actually considered to be not the right choice to use on stage!
When I have more guitars I'll try to do that of course!
Cheers!
Equilibrium is the most important and hidden point, because it's really hard to build guitar with propper geometry of neck, scales and body
You make the world come alive with your knowledge of music . 🌍✨🎸
Luciano you should make lesson videos for beginners i want to learn how to to play that beautiful instrument. I love flamenco guitar.
Most happiest flamenco player I ever seen !!!
O maior, pra mim, foi Moraito. Os que vieram depois impressionam mas não o superam. Mas o jeito com que você toca me agrada mais que muitos. Resumindo, você e Moraito me agradam ouvir em 1º lugar.
I have smaller hands and would live to play fingerstyle. Is it okay or will I have to change my playing style.
What is music name of sound test 2? it sounds amazing
Both nice guitar and guitarist good played too good job my friend 😊
Hola Luciano,
Entre una alhambra 7f y una alhambra 5fp Piñana... Para alguien que ya sabe tocar guitarra pero no flamenco... Cuál recomendarías para empezar? La 7f es más cara por 145 euros. Y el presupuesto no es tanto el problema sino que no quiero comprar algo demasiado exagerado para mí.. Algo que me dure unos 3 o 4 años y luego subir a una guitarra mejor.
Muchas gracias de antemano
Entonces creo que es mejor conseguir el que te resulte cómodo, el precio no importa, podría ser el más barato, si es más cómodo te recomendaría ese. Siempre busca la comodidad en ese presupuesto, no el sonido.
Saludos!
@@LucianoGhosn Gracias!!
interesting introduction ! where to find a full song?
Thanks for the comparison. You play very beautifully. But as the comparison goes, it would be more fair if you would use at least strings of the same age and quality. The strings on the blanca were visibly very worn down. Also it would be good to take the same care with tuning the guitar - it makes a big difference. As to things you say: well, as has been confirmed by some very experienced luthiers, my cheap Chinese made blanca has a wood of absolutely rare and stunning quality. So it depends really. Also it‘s always a bit unfair comparing a blanca with a negra, even if they were of the same price range.
What you say about the volume is a bit confused, sorry. There is the apparent volume (for the player) and there is the projection. A bigger guitar may have a bigger apparent volume but the smaller one a better projection and be perceived as louder by a more distant listener. I have an old blanca, that is quite flat (max depth 9cm!). The top is not much bigger than that of an original Torres guitar. This guitar has a tremendous projection and also fullness of sound. And this although it is ‚only’ 640mm scale length and fitted with medium tension strings.
So there are no simple explanations for different aspects of the sound. Your video would be stronger without the lengthy comment, just showing what the one and the other sound like.
And in the end it boils down to few simple facts: the one costs almost 10000 €, the other probably less than 1000€. Is Lester DeVoe 10 times better? No. You can drive home in a Rolls Royce, but a simple Seat will do, too. Maybe some people will like the simple Seat even better...and have less worries ...
I‘m not meaning to say that everything was wrong, but unnecessary claims are unnecessary claims. And, as I said: your playing is just beautiful, thanks!
I enjoyed your video very much!! Thank you! I am in the market for a classical guitar, as mine although beautiful sounding, the intonation is off and has always bothered me. I could hear that the cheaper guitar was not in tune completely, this to me is the most important part of the guitar, more than anything else. Thanks again!
I am a flamenco beginner, I don’t know wich guitar should I buy
Alhambra 3F or 4F or 7FC
Me encanta el video porque he tenido muchas dudas en la compra de una guitarra flamenca.Pensaba que la diferencia estaba en las maderas y en el grosor del cuerpo.Entonces que diferencia hay entre una guitarra clasica y una flamenca?Yo creía que las flamencas tenian un cuerpo más estrecho y eso le daba ese ataque fuerte de sonido para contrarrestar la voz del cantante aunque eso le fuera negativo a la hora de mantener el sonido en el tiempo.Al tener menor caja,menos dura el sonido, pero si tu guitarra(suena de muerte)tiene una caja de resonancia más ancha...que diferencia hay entre guitarra clasica y flamenca?????
Muchas gracias de antemano
Me alegro mucho Alberto que te ha gustado el video!
La diferencia es el tipo de madera (en algunos casos) y la forma de construcción.
Las guitarras flamencas suelen tener una respuesta mucho más rápida que las guitarras clásicas. Si preguntas, Es posible tocar flamenco con una guitarra clásica? La respuesta será sí, pero sonará desordenado.
Si lo desea, estoy seguro de que puede encontrar excelentes artículos en línea sobre este tema si desea entrar en más detalles.
Saludos!
Amazing playing! What songs do you play in 13:13?
Great playing. Yes the more expensive guitar plays louder, but I think you meant its dynamics. When I listen to the comparison of the two, that's what struck me the most apart from the timbre. The dynamic range of the sound is greater on the more expensive guitar, on the cheap guitar it is narrower.
True, its sustain is also on another level. It can maintain the notes very clearly and stably. Great investment!
Wowww...that was some spanish shredding......what was it you said about choosing a guitar again..i wasnt paying much attention to what you were talking about
Luciano, do you occaisanally perform with a cheap guitar?
The more expensive has a much richer sound and sounds more modern, the cheap one sounds bright and more old school I would say,but with your playing, they both sounded great!!
Have you published your Granaina anywhere? It is so beautiful! I would love to get the score....
Thank you Aida! I haven't published it anywhere yet no, but I have used it in competitions in Spain! Haha
Hopefully I can record the whole thing soon, I'm glad you like it.
Cheers!
maybe a comparison bewteen high quality Blanco vs Negra next? ^_^
I wish Michael, I need the guitars to do that! Haha
Luciano eres un gran guitarrista una pregunta la jose Luis postigo conozco a ese hombre pero no es luthier solo le pone etiqueta con su nombre a la de otros luthier por cierto la lester es un guitarron!!
Muchas gracias David! Sí es correcto, la Jose Luis Postigo es una marca, no él mismo construye las guitarras.
La Lester es algo increíble estoy de acuerdo!
Saludos
the more expensive guitar is louder (and probably much more confortable to play), clearer, bears/amplifies different frequencies and makes the sound more "capsuled". the tasto effect.
also, the top is punchier.
BUT
the cheaper one is more balanced, the sound is somewhat drier, and it feels a LOT lighter.
Great playing and explanation, I needed that
Glad it helped! Thanks for watching!
Some people think incorrectly that if a guitar is cheap then it has to be bad. It’s not true. If you are a beginner or an amateur you can find high quality guitars for under $300, or used under $100. You just have to make sure the brands are reputable. Yamaha, Washburn, Gibson, and many other discontinued brands. Usually ones made in Korea or in Taiwan are better quality. If the brand is good even China is ok. Yamaha makes some guitars in China and they’re good. But if they are bad non-brands then they are really bad.
I have to correct myself and add something: I am talking about mainstream traditional “classical guitar” or normal steel string guitar. Flamenco is different and much less common so I am sorry but that’s probably not to be found there. But to learn flamenco you don’t even need to have a flamenco guitar at first. Just learn to play the basics first. Lol
What is your opinion on Yamaha guitars I love to buy and play with?
I have found that some cheap guitars have better intonation than those that are hand built . . .probably because a robot is putting in the frets?!? My little Yamaha, for example, has great intonation. . .but not a great sound quality (but acceptable for $349!). . .I have had many expensive guitars that just could NOT be tuned. Usually the D and B strings are funky but Gs too. The Marlon Navarro negra I have now is about as good as I've ever had. I love your videos. I wish yo come do a mater class in Memphis, TN . . .Wee could go to Graceland and some old recording studios!!!
Fantastic review. Thanks a lot!
Luciano thanks for your amazing playing.The strings on the expensive guitar are new. They are crispy of course. Let alone the qualities of woods. Anyway, thanks for your videos. Keep them coming pls. Cheers.
I am also fan of rosewood back and sides even in steel string guitars not only classical. Rosewood gives more trebles and reverbration which is characterised by people as lush sound. However the cypress creates focused and loud midrange and might be liked by flamenco players. So the cheap guitar gave good sound almost in the whole frequency range only the the A and especially the low E was a bit blunt and shorter in sustain.
I love Negras so much as well yes! However I have to say that my favourite guitars ever are the Blanca's from Manuel Reyes.
I feel his guitars just can't get any more complete, and flamenco!
Thanks for watching Farkas.
Cheers!
Another “cheap” option would be Quiles guitars. E.g. PF-2. Amazing guitar! Not to forget Hermanos Sanchis Lopez 3-F.
More than just enjoyed it! Thank you again maestro!
Happy to know that Andreas! Glad to know types of videos are getting good response!
Very nice video presentation. I do agree with other comments that to be truthful, you have to compare like for like (same blanca's). Very good advice for buyers though. I have found strings make a big difference. But that is a study in itself. Paco de Lucia was very studious about string choices.
Thanks for watching! I read many comments about that, yes.
I just wanted to compare prices in this video, I don't think it would've sounded so different if I had played on a cheap 500EUR Negra guitar anyway.. But these are the guitars I have at the moment, maybe next time I'll borrow a Negra for a better comparison.
Strings are definitely important too yes.
Cheers!
Great playing on both
Lester de Voe sounds so much better
Hi Luciano, Thanks for the great video as always! Speaking of sound- you have a very nice sound quality in your videos. I know this is mainly due to your fantastic playing, but any information you could give on your recording setup? Are there any special plugins, EQ, compressor etc. you use?? Muchas gracias!!
On the cheap guitar seems to be are 100 years strings, on DeVoe are new Knobloch strings. Isn't it? Other wood = other sound (blanca..or negra, fingerboard type) Big guitar = louder , more bass, it's just physics. If somebody can play so good like Luciano the cheap guitar also good enough (with good string, perfect setup) The very high price of the expensive guitars not really goes together with the "sound". I have a Yamaha CG182SF (50 EUR) and also has a Hermanos Conde A1 Media Luna (4.000.-EUR) and I like more the Yamaha. The spanish luthiers are mostly good advertisers, there's a huge amount of text on handmade guitars, but much of it is also idle chatter. There is no such thing as a completely handmade guitar, because what can and should be done by machine is done by machine. What can only be done by hand, (fret bending and gluing is done everywhere) The rest is largely marketing. How old is the wood not important , just the humidity and the density determining. The price of rare trees has gone up a lot because the furniture industry is buying them up. This does drive up prices, but it is also a function of supply and demand because of the visual appearance.
Here the quality difference is much easier to hear than in the other comparison video. Maybe I like Rosewood better than Cypress.
Have you ever played a Felipe conde fp14?
Have you tried 2 or more of the same kind of guitars (same brand same model) to notice differences? Of so it might be an interesting topic/addition for an upcoming video
I have tried many Conde's before, in the past, but I can't remember if they were fp14 or the what model exactly I played on..
Of course if I have the guitars with me then I would be more than happy to do more videos like these!
Cheers!
Any comments on Antonio Sanchez , model : 1015 .
Hola Luciano
El video deja claro que cuando se sabe tocar le sacas partido a cualquier guitarra.. Saludos
Jajaja hasta un cierto punto creo, pero luego necesitamos una buen guitarra para poder expresarnos muchísimo mas!
Saludos!
Dear Luciano can you please make a tutorial for a second pice with Tabs 🌺
Loving this type of videos!
So happy to hear that! I was really doubting myself if I should continue doing these types of videos, but I feel they're getting good response till now and that makes me really happy I'm glad!
Cheers!
Didn't wanna bother myself with the wood age issue so I went for cheap laminated wood soundboard, at least I know what I'm getting with these XD
Thank you for sharing this knowledge. I must say you can make the less expensive guitar sound amazing.
Thank you Corcoran! I try my best but of course but there's a limit to where I can get.
Cheers!
Hi Luciano! Great content brother! Thank you! Also great idea I'm looking forward of more stuff like this! But I think the fair thing would be to compare two negras cheep and expensive as blanca and negra are two worlds even in the same price range! ❤️
Thank you for watching Josip! Very happy you're liking the new content, very glad to know that!
I love sound to do comparisons in general, I think comparing anything is ok really, I don't mean to make any guitar seem less good, I just always like to hear difference in sound whether it's Negra to Negra, or Negra to Blanca, it's always very interesting I feel!
I'll try to do more like this in the future, I just need many guitars to do that! Haha
Cheers!
I like the cheaper blanca guitar better, has the flamenco sound. The Negra sounds like a classical guitar
Like day and night but the price difference too.
I can hear a clear difference. The question is if I would hear it as much when I play it.
You will hear it more.
I think that you should have compared them with fresh set of strings for both guitars.
The strings on the cheap one look rusty and old.
Nice video though 🖐🏻 .
Is the echo in the microphone, in spanish guitar performances in general, or is it the mere echo of the room, that a good guitarist with a good guitar may allow the audience to hear? I actually remember never having tried bursting guitar in a bigger room, eventhough I have experienced church echo in choir, and even played percussion in churches. Thanks, Janne from Finland
Hey Janne, the echo "Sustain" is from the guitar usually, and of course I re-enforce it a little bit with the "Reverb" effect to make it sound as if it's being played in a hall.
My taste in the sound is having little bit more sustain in the guitar in general, except if I'm playing Bulerias, Seguiriyas, etc.. Palos That require the sound to be more dry.
Cheers!
@@LucianoGhosn Usually the blanca is designed for more attack and quick decay. It has to avoid long sustain compared to classical. A few things has to be done (thinning soundboard and sides, separating zoquetillos, lightweight the fan, the fretboard and more. The cypress sound nature has a bell like tendency and a little flat equalization characteristic. Indian rosewood by nature deep the bass, warm the midrange and add sustain to the design. A blanca can be made with long sustain and more "classical " approach. When a classical guitar (indian-spruce-mahogany) change to have quick attack , high percussion and quicker decay by changing interior design, to me that is a negra. If I were a fantastic player like you I will have both blanca and negra but custom made to achieve maximum woods and artist possibilities.
While I can hear the difference, the fact that it is Spanish music and the fact that you play so well that to me, it didn’t matter much whether the sound was coming from the cheap or the expensive guitar.
love that por gernaina part😍
Thank you!
Cuál es la diferencia en precio entre ambas?
The cheap guitar looks like it has old strings. A fresh set on both guitars might have provided a better comparison. Still... thanks for the video!
The palo santo guitar sounds really great.
Thanks!
The expensive one sounds deep and warm and the cheaper one has more treble. The cheap one sounds more like a flamenco guitar with that bright snap, and the dearer one more classical.
where i can find your compositions? Saludos desde Sevilla :D
Lu iano you are so great you can make my GK negra sound like a devoe...love your playing
I don't think so! Haha But of course I appreciate your nice comment!
Cheers!
a fantastic touch, flawless playing, wonderful sounding on both guitars. No matter the price
Thank you Nima!
Definitely a difference. The sound is more round and with deeper resonance. Nice guitar.
Totally, thanks!