What's the "Swiss Army Knife" of Nylon String Guitars?

[estallion]

Hey Guys, I'm looking for my first classical style nylon stringed guitar, so I'm out looking for the best deal/choice I guess.

 

Normaly I play my electric guitars exclusively (contemporary, rock, country, blues); I have an acoustic guitar by Ovation (hate it) that I play very rarely, in fact I think the Ovation kind of ruined acoustics for me in the past, as I like their sound, but the round back of my Ovation is always sliding away when I play it sitting down...

 

But now I really want to get a Nylon stringed guitar, not too sure what to shoot for though, I love flamenco but don't think I'll be playing too much of that, rather simple fingerstyle picking.

Most of the playing would be unplugged, but I also want to be sure it can be amplified nicely through an amp....any suggestions?

 

I guess my price range would be up to $2000, but I don't think I need to spend as much, right?

[NotDead]

How much volume do you need unplugged?

 

Some smaller nylon stringers I've used have been really ergonomic with a cool tone, but you couldn't hear 'em 10 feet away from the soundhole.

[Stackabones]

I'm not sure what you mean ... Swiss Army Knife gutbox ... one that does everything, right? $2K is going to give you some headroom. Any really good guitar stores nearby?

[Pascal]

If you are interested in flamenco, I think I remember reading that some people consider "Flamenco negra" guitars (rosewood back and sides as opposed to cypress) to be good verstaile nylon strings that can do anything from flamenco to classical via bossa. I've never played one, so it's just hearsay, but if you can find one around your place...

 

And if you don't plan to play flamenco, any good classical will do, and within this price range, you should have plenty of choice.

 

 

*waits for the upcoming Yamaha recommendation*

[simplygoodmusic]

Lucky for you, Nylon Strings don't vary as much as steel strings or electrics. Unlucky for you, there are still some small variations, but I don't know of one type that does them all.

 

Then again, I know nothing about Nylon strings, so I wouldn't really trust me.

[garthman]

Crafter guitars are IMHO just about the best value-for-money guitars available. They do two electro-acoustic classical guitars that are very good:

 

http://www.crafterusa.com/gallery/ce15_n.php

 

http://www.crafterusa.com/gallery/ce24_nv.php

 

Price around $550.

 

If they are good enough for Katie Melua they are good enough for you.

[guildfire]

If you're gonna spend $2k on a swiss army knife model it better come with a bottle opener.

[zenbu]

for me it`s the old Yamaha Dynamics, I`ve paid so little for most. Of all the ones I own my #40s are probably my favorites, I pad just under $300.oo for all three, they have slightly fatter necks, weigh a little more than the others and have white binding while most Dynamics have black. The synburst backs are outstanding and really show off the solid maple wood beautifully. I paid $45.oo for one, tell me where youse can get an all solid wood, 40+ year old mojo machine for that price. In Japan some players string their Dynamics with steels, they were made with metal winding posts and can handle steels, personally I tried that but found they sound so much better with nylons, personal taste. I know Yanaha exported some Dynamics and they do show up outside Japan so thats what I`d recommend. Most people are after the laminated red labels these days while ignoring the all solid wood Dynamics which went out of production mid `60s when they introduced the first light green label FGs. I like em so much I have 29.

[VintageToneGuy]

I've tried many, many nylons such as: Taylor NS32ce, 34ce, Takamine TC132sc, Fender, Ibanez, etc... This is the best guitar for me and this one is the winner....

 

https://www.carvinguitars.com/catalog/guitars/index.php?model=cl450