What do you need to know BEFORE Buying a Guitar?

[@DuendeHr]

As a guitarist and instructor I must admit that your channel is insanely good! I will recommend your channel to my students. Saludos desde Croacia!

[@MerceFont]

Thanks a lot! I appreciate very very much you sharing my content! 🙏🏻

[@kaspianocz6330]

Yes, choosing an instrument is more like choosing a life-partner ❤ nobody is perfect, nor things someone does. Makes sense

[@stupidbots2585]

I would add the string action as an important thing to check when you buy a guitar. I mean actually to check the possibility to bring the action to the desired one even if it is not already like that. This implies to analize the neck curvature, to see if maybe the guitar has a truss rod (there are also many classical guitars that have one) or an other constructive feature who can help adjusting the neck (like the Smallman&Son) and the possibility to adjust the height of the saddle and nut.

[@WhaleBluePRS]

I'm 5' 10" and have found PRS electric guitars are just about the perfect scale length for me. They're 25" (635mm). I'm in the process of spec'ing out a hand-made classical for me. The Alhambra 7P I have is a great guitar but at 650mm (25.59"), it's been challenging to reach notes consistently. Segovia/Sor Study #8 is a perfect example. The short scale should bring that into the realm of being able to actually perform it vs. just being able to work on it in practice sessions only. A typical scale length in Fernando Sor's time was around 630mm (24.8").

[@macleod41069]

Top 3 players in the world play cedar ....Williams, Barrueco and Russell..go with cedar. Also, Gary Ryan who plays with Williams , plays a Stephen Hill cedar which cost 5k euros.

[@pieterlabuschagne7507]

Thanks. I found your advice very good

[@marianolopez4257]

Great advice Merce!! I haven't practiced today and that scary look at 4:16 made me pick up the instrument jaja

[@MerceFont]

hahahha

[@johnlay3040]

Merce gives very good advice on this topic. This will give some ideas to beginners about buying guitar even if they are not equipped to choose. Beginners cannot do some of those things you mentioned. It is better to take someone who can play to accompany you to the shop, or when buying online, it will be good to know some brands which are pretty reliable, e.g. Yamaha C40, Cordoba. KZbin has many videos about recommended guitars for beginners.

[@PavanKUmar-zm4nc]

Greetings, dear Merce!! As always, thank you for sharing such valuable insights and information on what to look for in buying the guitar. Definitely, there’s so much to think, consider and plan. The only considerations/ factors I used earlier (the only time I bought a classical guitar) were the budget and reviews from other guitarists and buyers. I will now have a more detailed and careful plan, for the next guitar, on what to look for and what to test, which I am sure would definitely help to have a worthwhile experience and satisfaction with the guitar. (By the way, I also use Guitar Tuna, and I love it 🙂). Thank you 🙏🏻 for this very useful and informative session/video. Best wishes to you, and have a wonderful weekend and week ahead!! 👍🏻

[@MerceFont]

Thank you Pavan! I'm happy to always bring some new insight on these topics :) I wish you also a great weekend and awesome practice!

[@ASH.Guitar]

You are amazing and your tips so helpfully thank you😊👍🌹

[@douglasthompson8927]

Here in the US it is difficult to find a good classical guitar..fine guitar shops are few and far between..more to the point everyone here pushes online sales which in my opinion is a bad idea...personally I have no desire to buy a guitar I`ve never played and merchants seem to think it`s no big deal boxing the guitar up and sending it back when the customer is paying for shipping both ways. There are a lot of music stores here..most have few or no classical guitars and the ones they have are of extremely low quality..the issue I have overall with dealers here is there are very few decent guitars available at an affordable price..most of the classical guitars I`ve seen are either very cheap and low quality or very expensive..in most of the stores I`ve been to there may be one or two at around $100-$200..if you`re lucky you may find a better one for perhaps $900 then the prices jump to around $5000...there is virtually nothing available between $1000-$5000 at which point they become extremely expensive..most people have to travel long distances to find a shop where they can pick up the guitar and play it to hear what it sounds like.

[@gitarisngasal4678]

0:28 Glad to hear you spell "Van Halen" correctly. Anyway I'm using the Yamaha CG50 that I bought in 1994, it's a very reliable classical guitar. Greetings from Indonesia.

[@massimoraoulbeckers796]

Very recently did I discover your channel and wondered why your name rang a bell. Then I remembered that about 5-6 years ago I did an internship for my academic studies by organising a festival in Maastricht in which you played. Great to rediscover you after such a long time! By now I finished my conservatory studies myself 😊 I was wondering if you know of any stores in the Netherlands that sells a lot of higher-end classical guitars (or at least priced from say 1000 euros onwards), like the ones you mentioned in your video. Thanks for the cool and informative videos. See you around 🎉😊

[@MerceFont]

Oh nice! Which festival were you part of? Hope your internship turned out great :) about the shops I don’t know any of such level in NL, I’d go to Siccas which is one of the best and relatively nearby :D

[@guitarnerd992]

Can I learn to play classical guitar? Properly? on a guitar with 48 mm nut with, in scale 58 3/4 size Thanx for a great channel!

[@livindadrm]

Timely for me as I am ready for an upgrade. Very helpful and well presented tips. Thank you 🥂🎶

[@MerceFont]

Nice! Good timing then! happy for you! :)

[@francoisvictor6044]

Hi Merce, good afternoon. I really enjoy watching your videos and at the same time, I encouraged my students to do so. Concerning buying a new guitar I think also the body of a guitar is important too. For example, I am living in Seychelles in a tropical country as you know humidity is so high and very hot. I bought a guitar overseas when I back to my country and finally, I saw the body of the guitar is bent. What should I do now? Regards Francois

[@user-himenes]

Hey may be you can make a video about muting strings and phrasing in general? Im trying to learn something about it but your videos are like the most helpful and detailed

[@MerceFont]

Thats such a nice coincidence! I'm just finishing next week tutorial about damping techniques :D So next Saturday you got it in the channel! :)

[@user-himenes]

@@MerceFont wow! im so so exited, waiting impatiently

[@neuvlo]

This video is actually useful for choosing a guitar and goes beyond the usual cedar vs spruce debate. What is your opinion on cutaway classical guitars? Do they "make sense"?

[@MerceFont]

Hi neuvlo, that's a very interesting question! Of course they make sense, that's the reason they exist! It all depends on the type of music you play. In the classical guitar world it doesn't fit so well because we play our instrument always 'acoustic' so without amplification (with exceptions of course, one has always to adapt to certain situations). For classical musicians is very important to curate and develop a good instrumental sound as this is what supports our musicianship. A great musician with a terrible sounding guitar will lose a lot in quality hence, we always use full body guitars to preserve the harmonic richness, sustain and variety of colors. Cutaway guitars obviously take a big part of the resonating body away for sake of playability and this is mostly because is used as rhythm guitar, accompaniment (voice or other instrumental groups) and on top of that, it is very frequently used plugged into an amp, so the natural loudness of the guitar becomes a secondary thing and even the sound qualities can be equalised through great amps/peamps. Also, many cutaway guitarist they play standing, and I must say that playing classical guitar on high positions standings, even if not impossible, is really uncomfortable. I think there are really many practical reasons as well as technical reasons why the cutaway exists. For guitarist that play with cutaway guitars, is more important the whole mix of gear rather than just the purity of one single element of the whole combination, which, in my opinion makes total sense. :)

[@neuvlo]

Thank you so much for your thoughts Merce! As I will never play in front of others neither a double top nor electronics are what I will be going for, still the easier access via cutaway is tempting. Again, thank you for sharing your videos with us!

[@mpanga2916]

We are missing your lessons on sharps and flats how to play them 😊

[@Thefare1234]

Good advice. I think the difference between 640mm and 650mm is not noticeable. 630mm and 635mm are better for small hands.

[@MerceFont]

Well, depends on the repertoire one plays it might not be that noticeable to pass from a 65 to 64mm or the contrary, it might feel like night and day. When one plays repertoire not thought for guitar, like a lot of the baroque repertoire we have, or composers like Rodrigo, Tedesco, ponce and many many others, then even a couple of cm can make a world of difference. Thats why in the video I mention that is very personal, because everybody has different hand size and different capabilities to stretch the fingers in various ways, so it is all about finding the comfort size for yourself :)

[@HumbleIdeas]

hi. Can you recommend a few riffs or short lines to test the tonal quality of guita in the shop? Although i play classical for many years i get very nervous at the shops when testing guitar, i don't which to be so lame and use pieces like Romance de Amour or Lagrima stuffs.. Lol.

[@MerceFont]

I think the best is for you to play your repertoire, what you are practicing, so you can really feel the differences. So time for you to pick up new pieces!! 🙌🏻😁

[@apgrox123]

Great video Merce! Informative and funny.. I watched the whole video even though I just brought a new guitar few weeks back!

[@MerceFont]

Nice! you must be so happy with it! :D

[@RodrigoDe2]

Muy buena información Merce! las medidas de las manos y el instrumento es así!! las opciones que das para la elección todo, te felicito!!👏👏👏👍☝

[@MerceFont]

Muchisimas gracias Leandro! :)

[@pathfa1883]

What's name of your guitar? Thank you, amazing video

[@richardfreeman5889]

I'm wondering if you sacrifice sound with a smaller instrument. Thanks

[@PavanKUmar-zm4nc]

Yay!! Eagerly looking forward to 👍🏻

[@brendanadamson9408]

tapping just under the brigde the with the flesh of finger like a drum on the sound panel of the guitar to hear the box resonate/vibrate

[@MerceFont]

That's also a nice tip!! Thanks for sharing Brendan!

[@MarcosDana]

Muy buenos todos tus videos y que fantástico tocas felicitaciones!

[@MerceFont]

Muchas gracias Marcos! un saludo y que espero que pases una feliz semana!

[@FilmFlam]

Excellent advice. Thank you.

[@MerceFont]

You are very welcome Rich! Thanks for watching :)

[@dromeus21]

Hi merce! What is your opinion about the the Paco Castillo guitarrs (Valencia region)?

[@MerceFont]

Hi dromeus21, unfortunately I have never played any Paco Castillo yet... :)

[@scottkleyla7752]

Study:10/25/2022INDIANA,yes MAESTRO,Thank You

[@lk8398]

thank you

[@MerceFont]

thanks to you for watching :)

[@stanniesvb]

Are there classical guitars with a larger than normal size? I am 2.02 meters long myself, and a teacher once recommended me to go look for a larger guitar.

[@MerceFont]

Hi Stan! Sure there are! The easiest road is to look for guitars from 65cm and 66cm. You might even find somewhere a 67 but that's already uncommon. For big handed players usually I've seen often that they play either a 65cm or 66cm and the fretboard is extra wide so that they can comfortably place the fingers on the fretboard without damping strings unwillingly and many other little problems that might come with having big hands. In that case tough, you might want to speak directly with a guitar maker, he/she will know how to help you :)

[@stanniesvb]

@@MerceFont I am afraid I do not have the budget to buy a custom made guitar, im just a poor student after all... But good to know that it is possible at least!

[@levalaleen5241]

Does nut width matter? 52 mm vs smaller?

[@MerceFont]

yes of course it does matter. Most of the time the guitar maker will make it proportional to the rest of the guitar, but within certain dimensions one can always ask for a wider fretboard if you feel it more comfortable or narrower if you prefer to reduce a bit some vertical stretches :)

[@Insidia85]

What about your guitar? Is it spruce or double top? How much did you play it? Who was the liutaio?

[@MerceFont]

mine is spruce, traditional construction made by Daniele Chiesa, you can check his current prices on sites like Siccas :)

[@Insidia85]

@@MerceFont thank you Mrs Font!

[@alvintarrer6914]

Good job ✌️☕️☕️☕️

[@Duncan-Mac-Raven]

So I'm a guy that is 175 centimeters (5'9") tall, and my piano player slender fingers for a guy are 20 centimeters (8") wide when spread. I find a 3/4 guitar is right on the money for me, the guys say that I've got a girly guitar, but in private, they say the like the size better.

[@WhaleBluePRS]

I'm 5' 10" and have found PRS electric guitars are just about the perfect scale length for me. They're 25" (635mm). I'm in the process of spec'ing out a hand-made classical for me. The Alhambra 7P I have is a great guitar but at 650mm (25.59"), it's been challenging to reach notes consistently. Segovia/Sor Study #8 is a perfect example. The short scale should bring that into the realm of being able to actually perform it vs. just being able to work on it in practice sessions only. Hope that helps.

[@NotoriousFunk]

Hi, what's the name of the luthier that built the guitar you have?

[@MerceFont]

the maker is called Daniele Chiesa

[@NotoriousFunk]

@@MerceFont Owww thank you, Italian as me, i think i played once one of his instrument, i liked your sound and wanted to know more.

[@lorenzobernardi_guitar]

Bravissima Merce :) Un abbraccio da Trento

[@MerceFont]

Grazie Lorenzo!! un abbraccio anche a te! :)

[@saritaguerrero97]

The best 🎶

[@rabendranath]

Sometimes you have so many options, so many guitars you like... And so little money 😂 Just kidding! Thank you once again Mercé! I learned quite a lot today, "No such thing as a perfect guitar"... So true! One might think that spending $4K will get you perfection, only to find little flaws along the way... Just like with us humans 😅

[@MerceFont]

Thanks to you for watching and writing here! A pleasure to read your comments and feedback :) Wish you a great weekend!

[@johnroberts1141]

I find the action of classical guitars to be much too high, making them more difficult to play. I much prefer the low action of flamenco guitars. Those who play flamenco guitars are not afraid of fret buzz, we embrace it.

[@woodmelui326]

Yeah, too many people promote the "1 size for all strategy", which is irrational

[@rethcidonl.elmedulan4961]

👍💖❤❤❤❤

[@MerceFont]

☺️