On 2003-06-05, Ed Ford rated this Godin La Patrie Collection a 5...(5018)
Purchase: I purchased this guitar from World of Strings in Long Beach California. I paid $485.00 with case.
Pros: I am impressed with both the playability and the depth of the sound from an instrument at this price. I have tried Classical Guitars, various brands (some very expensive) and prices at a number of stores and have not found anything in this price range that came close the sound I hear from this unit. The top is solid cedar, the sides are a rosewood laminate and the back is sold rosewood. When the 6th string is sounded you can feel the vibration in the back and can hear the difference in tone when the back is allowed to resonate freely, which yeilds a deep rich tone.
When I checked the Intonation open strings versus harmonics, and fretted strings (12th fret) versus harmonics, it sounds virtually perfect.
Being a novice classical guitar student I liked the fret markers on the side of the fingerboard, something the majority of classical guitars I looked at did not have. Frankly I confess that I also liked the truss rod in the neck (though I haven't needed to have any adjustments), something the manufacturer (Godin Guitars) said they included in order to make the neck thinner, easier to play.
Cons: There is almost nothing that I didn't like.
The tuning macines do feel a little sloppy. Still, however, allowing for having new strings (normal tension) which are still stretching, the guitar seems to hold its tune well. There has been a little drifting, but I would attribute that mostly to the new strings and maybe a little to the play in the tuning machines. I am going to take the instrument back to the store and see if they can tighten them up some. It won't take much.
Also the back of the neck could have been a little smoother (2 or 3 minutes work with 0000 steel wool fixed that), though that is being more picky than anything else.
Quality: Other than what I consider really picky, minor issues, the construction and quality of this guitar greatly exceeds the price I paid for it. I would have expected it to cost at least twice what I paid. Having a solid wood back contributes enormously to the sound. The fit and finish is excellent. All told, it is a very pretty instrument to play, to listen to, and to look at.
Review Summary: I would certainly recommend that anyone thinking of a classical guitar (unless they are looking at high level performance grade) give this guitar very serious consideration. There are also lower priced models in this brand which also sound very good, and have received very good reviews. I checked those models out, before I actually bought this guitar. Since I have bought and played this guitar for the last week, I can testify that those reviews were very accurate, indeed.
