Electric Nylon String Guitars

[JeffS]

I realize a comparison between a Gibson Studio Classic or Sands electric classical and a Godin electric classical may be apples and oranges, but I would like to hear what any of you have experienced between the two different type guitars.

Also, do you play the electric classicals (Gibson, Sands, or Godin) through standard guitar amps such as a Fender DR Reissue or a Music Man RD50? If not, what type of amplification do you use?

Thanks,
Jeff Stovall

[RonBloor]

I have a Gibson CE and just sold my Godin Multiac Nylon.. I don't have a Kirk Sand, but have played my friends and to me it has a similar sound to the Gibson. That is mostly because they have the same pickups in them. I'm talking about mid 80s Gibson/Sand Guitars. The Multiac has a very different sound with the RMC PUs, but I don't want to start another anti-rmc debate ... I can't really comment on the amps you mention.
My friend (who is a non-chetboarder) wants to sell his Kirk Sand Guitar. He mentioned this to me this morning. It is a mid-80s model, so it has the Gibson style of PU in it.. He also has a Gibson Studio (classical neck), which I believe he also want to sell.. Anyway, if you or someone else has an interest in them, I can give you his number/email...

[albertgen]

I have a Gibson Sudio CEC that I play through a Bass exciter then to a Fender Deluxe amp. Sounds pretty good to me. Al

[Phil Waldron]

I have a Gibson CE electric classic (s/n A083) which makes it one of the first as well as a Kirk Sand. While I love the old Gibson classic it has no comparison to the Kirk Sand ... but neither does the price ... LOL. The Gibson has a tendency to be a little bass heavy which can be EQ'd out. The bigger problem is its sustain. You have to really be careful on the volume settings because it has a lot of sustain. The Kirk Sand seems more balanced and the volume decay much more controllable. Just my opinion and love them both. Phil

[JeffS]

Thanks for the replys. I had a Gibson CE back around 1992. I didn't like the narrow neck; I think the CEC would be much better in that respect. I never was able to get a good tone from it - I think it had some electronics problems that would have been covered under warranty, but since I didn't like the neck I sold it. It had a noticeable hum that may have been a grounding problem. I never got a very good sound when playing it through a guitar amp - at that time I had a MM RD50 110. I didn't have an acoustic amp or a PA system, so I had no other way to evaluate it. As noted earlier, it was very bassy and the sustain was hard to manage.

I've never played a Kirk Sands or a Gibson Studio Classic; I assumed they would be much better than the Gibson CE.

[albertgen]

I used to have a Gibson CEC and it was a great guitar, but I always had trouble trying to EQ it and control the bass strings. I loved the guitar but later sold it and bought a new Gibson Studio Classic CEC when they came out. I think it is a better guitar although their is something special about the Gibson CE too! Al

[simon way]

I had 2 Gibson Nylons - a CE and then a CEC the CE was one of the signed ones Chet gave away in '87 - it had belonged to Phil Everly and somehow had got traded in to Guitar-Guitar in Sherman Oaks Ca in '92. I loved it until I found the CEC was better for my left hand and got a '96 model instead with the dual tone control - definitely a better instrument. I tried some Godins too and thought they were very playable but the sound was less substantial.
I met the great luthiers at the Pimentel shop in Albuquerque NM in 2008 and ordered a custom cutaway classical made of Flamenco materials - Englemann Spruce top and Cypress back and sides. Ebony fingerboard. Robert Pimentel put a Fishman under the saddle and the result is fabulous - very beautiful sound, very low feedback tendency even though it has a 4" deep body and I run it through a Radial Tone Bone PZ Pre which is a wonderful pr-eamp for any acoustic guitar or bass. That's my bit of experience to contribute. Certainly I want to try a Sand and something with a Prismatone to compare, but it can be just fine to install an under-saddle pick up with a great pre-amp, which I personally prefer outboard not inside the guitar. Simon Way