Cordoba C5 Classical w/Solid Cedar Top

This guitar was a replacement of an older Cordoba acoustic electric classical guitar. In my search, I looked at different brands since the availability of moderately priced left handed cutaway classical electric guitars was more plentiful than it was 20 years ago. In the end, I decided to stick with Cordoba since it’s consistently one of the best in the classical guitar space. This guitar was actually less expensive than the guitar I had before. Action level was good - especially for someone who has to fight bouts of arthritis in my right hand) and the sound was a very nice surprise even without amplification. (I found some acoustic electrics guitar to have a thinner sound without using amplification.) The guitar body is beautiful and thicker than my prior guitar, which might contribute to the fuller sound. However, the guitar is amazingly light and maneuverable. I also love that this guitar has fret markers which my prior guitar didn’t. Yes, I know at some point, you shouldn’t need them… but I guess I’m not at that point. But the fret markers are on the side of the neck so, they’re only visible to the person playing the guitar (or someone flying a drone above you). One last note. I am grateful to Amazon for making it easy to acquire this guitar. Although Cordoba has many certified dealers, I quickly realized that acquiring a left hand version of this guitar through these dealers was going to more difficult and time consuming than I thought it should be. Acquiring this guitar through Amazon was easy and fast.

Believe the hype. This is a fantastic guitar. It sounds lovely. And the wood is absolutely gorgeous. I’m not a huge fan of the high gloss finish, but this time I don’t mind because it really shows off the grain. The guitar came set up well enough to play, but a few minutes adjusting it made it absolutely perfect. If you don’t know how to sand down the saddle, adjust the truss rod, and file the nut slots, then you might have to pay a luthier to do it. But that’s true of any guitar you buy online (no matter how much you pay for it). The tuning machines are a bit on the budget side, but that is true of all inexpensive guitars. For a hundred bucks you can swap them out for nicer tuners if that’s your concern. I’m going to leave mine as is. They work fine. It comes with Cordoba high tension strings which are similar in tension to the ever-popular D’Addario J45 medium tensions. They sound great too: full and balanced. So you won’t have to immediately swap strings when it arrives. This guitar is a keeper.

Don't be misled about it's price point in thinking it's just a "beginner's guitar" - this is such an incredible sounding guitar for the money, and plays great for all experience levels. I've been playing for 20 years, and for the money, this beats 90% of the classical guitars, and many of just acoustic guitars in general. Build quality is fantastic - neck / frets smooth (not cutting up the fingers), finish is perfectly consistent and smooth, playable right out of the box with a little tune up. Quality tuners. Well-matched woods too - you just hear a certain level of sound when you strum a guitar in tune. Listen for it. The guitar resonates, the sound begins to open up, and conducts a tone that's more than just being in pitch, but "plays" with each other. It's quite exciting to hear, and THIS guitar does that. Amazon is great because the first one I got DID have quality issues, but quick exchanged for another, and all is well. It's expected when made in China, but NOT because the factory or craftsmanship is bad (it's really good), but heck man, an instrument made of wood is shipping over seas to get to you! :] Can't say enough about this guitar, and would highly recommend to anyone at all levels - even experienced players (don't be fooled by their non-5 star reviews, you just acquire certain tastes after playing for so long). Did a side-by-side comparison with 4 others: - a 70's cedar top La Paterie (Cordoba sounded better for money and availability) - 90's comparable Taiwan-made Yamaha G225 (which had better balance, but didn't project as much as the C5) - Cordoba C5 SP (spruce top version) - spruce top version projects more with crisper highs as expected. Here I personally chose the spruce top because I'm an acoustic guitar player, not a classical player. Cedar is a great tone wood for a more mellow balanced sound typical of classical music. Spruce is great for more separation in that sound and for more projection. - Lucero LC200 - this was actually surprising because though the one I got out of the box was junk (cracked during manufacture shipping), it seemed like build quality was quite good. They pushed using higher end materials (bone-like type nut, better strings), but cutting through that, for the price (even cheaper) it's an even better value, BUT crack not-withstanding, the sound was too green and didn't open up like the Cordoba. I feel like even in perfect condition it wouldn't have sounded as good as the C5.

I received this guitar in perfect condition. The finish is flawless and the maple is beautiful. This thin body is a real comfort to play. Sound is very good, clear with lots of sustain. Setup was not great or I would have given it 5 stars. The action was too high. I tightened the truss rod a bit to make sure the neck was flat. I then loosened the strings and removed the bridge. I sanded it down about 4 mm to get the action at the 12th fret to 4 mm. Unfortunately, the high E string snapped when I retuned it. You can imagine my frustration having to run out to buy another string. That said, I don't think much of the Saverez strings. This guitar is sounding even better as it is being broken in. It's also very nice to have a tuner built in. The electronics are good quality and sound great. This is a very nice guitar. Update: 8/8/24. I replaced the bridge saddle which is plastic with a bone saddle purchased on Amazon. The sound is even better now. Plugged in, the high E and B string have better volume and sustain. The balance of sound is greatly improved.

I am giving this instrument 5 stars not because its perfect but b/c i got exactly what i was expecting. A good instrument for a good price. I am the owner of a Music academy and also teach 40 students. I was looking for a guitar that i could recommend to a student and be confident that they would enjoy playing it. I think this is the one. I've had it only 1 day and played it for maybe 4 hours but it feels nice, looks great, and is everything a student could ever need/ want. -body has no imperfections or bowing. The bridge is well in place which i was worried about after reading another review. -neck feels great, not as thick as a typical classical (which is nice) but just as wide. -frets are not a problem although i will smooth the edges just a touch(they are fine I just like a super smooth feel when going up the neck) -plugged in sounds pretty good(not super good but exactly what i should at the price) -tuner in guitar is actually very nice and well lit. Also it came with a clip on tuner... Idk why they include a tuner when it has a built in tuner but its a nice surprice What i will end up replacing (not b/c it needs but b/c i just like working on my guitars) -nut -bridge -saddle -tuning machines -pick ups

Plays beautifully.

I took this guitar anxiously out of the box, tuned it up and played it. I was Not disappointed! This guitar is very well made and sounds beautiful. The cedar top gives it a nice rich tone. It plays with ease and I like the size of the tuning buttons. The tuners are great. All in all, I am very pleased with this guitar and consider it an excellent buy.

I purchased both a Yamaha C40 and this Cordoba C5. Packaging for both was minimal. The C40 arrived damaged but the C5 was OK. I thought the C40 was a decent guitar. It had a good sound and playability was good. It did have a strong smell of glue. The C5 on the other hand is a significant step up in quality. It also came with an allen wrench for adjusting the truss rod. It looks like a whole lot more care was taken in building the C5 over the C40. I think ordering a C40 is a hit or miss. If you can afford the step up in price, go for the C5. If not, you may have to order a couple C40s to find a good one. Anyway, I'm holding on to the C5, its a beautiful guitar with nice tone right out of the box.