Cordoba Classical Cadet 3/4 Size

Look below for more details. The guitar is completely covered by lacquer/gloos finish

The neck is rosewood

Made in Portugal

Satisfying...depends what your priorities are. This is a beginner/"small hand or gstting lazy at wide fret board" player. The sound is ok, not that great. Then again, it's a low cost model...

Set-up at factory, bla bla bla...

The guitar is ready to play, but it has more than one construction flaw based on the low price it's supposed to have

It may be only my impression, but the sound box seems made of cardboard: one knuckle knock and there's a second sound hole for you...

No need, no care...

This is a low price instrument...if your're looking to call customer support on this one, you must have mistaken it for some other commodity

Cordoba do make good guitars, but this one is part of their cheap niche...

Ok Ok Ok

Up until this section, my comments have been critical. Rightfully so, this guitar goes for about $ 200 / $ 300, so the quality is what you pay for. I found a dent in mine right out of the box, but I didn't really care because this is the kind of guitar you can smash into a wall after a long night drinking...the good part about it is that you can learn to appreciate playing on better instruments...

I didn't plan on buying this model. Samash (Same Ass) sales assistants agreed to buy some guitars from me, and they'd refund me only if I used some of the cash they were giving me. I've been playing now for 18 years, I've traded and bought a lot. In this case, I traded in a Gibson J-185 (beautiful guitar, but very dissappointing once you learn how to "play") and a Cordoba 32EF (Flamenco, anybody?).
I chose this model for specific reasons.

First, after so many years, you don't need a wide fret board to play classical. All you need is nylon strings. I wanted a more comfortable neck. All those wide chord structures were just generating pains in my hand, not to say the possible athritis when I get older...
Second, the price. At $ 300, you get a descent sounding classical. The end result is a low priced instrument you won't worry about if your girlfriend decides to throw it at you once she finds out you were serenading someone else...
Next, I've owned some good guitars (classical/acoustic/electric) over the years, and I've come to one final conclusion...they all sound the same. Sure, there are differences, but unless you're making a lot of money from playing them, why bother with all the maintenance? This is why I got this guitar, so I wouldn't worry about it.

There are times I may remember the better sounds and satisfaction from better instruments I had, but music is mostly humility. Now, when I play my Cadet 3/4, I'm thinking of a girl I'll play for who will cook me dinner and cuddle all night, not some make-up freak who's looking for cheap thrills at the superbowl party held by her ex-boyfriend.

To conclude, I'm an American who grew up In Europe. Therefore, I hate country music, acoustic rock, jock radio hits and all the American zombies parading their support for Republican causes (absolutely repugnant). Get it? Then get a Cordoba Cadete 3/4. At least you can say you're trying...

Standard classical-type shape, but just on a smaller scale. Back and sides of laminate mohagony and a solid cedar top. It looks like this whole guitar was dipped in a vat of gloss finish. Fretboard is rosewood and a little thinner than a normal classical, 50mm, i think, and 18 frets. No electronics or cutaway, which I prefer. Overall, it's very plain, but pleasingly so.

The sound was better than I was expecting for a short-scale, laminate, 200$ guitar. It's relatively balanced between strings, and rather quiet, but I don't mind as i'm only a hobbyist and I play mostly romantic and impressionist era music, although it works well for Bach, too. Not much variety in terms of sound, a little warmer near the fretboard, a little harsher near the bridge. However, the intonation is a bit off, not to mention that this guitar lacks the tonal complexity of a more expensive model. When you play a note, you just hear a note, there's no underlying beauty in the timbre of this instrument.

This thing was probably set-up at Guitar Center where I got it, so there was no need to alter it. The shorter scale-length for the neck makes this guitar very playable as i have rather small hands. The neck is bent upwards ever so slightly, which doesn't bother me, and the frets are well-filed. As i mentioned, the finish looks like it was applied with a fire hose, and there are small marks and flaws here and there on it. Also, on closer inspection, I could tell that the binding strips were lacquered black, so i have no idea what they're actually made of. Probably plywood, or something similar.

The finish is heavily applied enough that I could probably try to juggle three of these without worrying overmuch. As I play softly and don't push this guitar too hard, I doubt I could ever end up even as much as breaking a string. One qualm I have is that the tuners seem cheap and don't hold the guitar in tune very well.

Been playing for a good while now, also own a Seagull M6 Cedar GT, which I got before my conversion to the world of classical. I like that this guitar is so enjoyable to play, but I wish it had a little more...presence. I compared it to some LaPatrie classicals (I really liked their Collection model) and even a used Hauser concert model going for 8000$. Although I felt that most of these other guitars sounded better than the 3/4 Cadet, few were as playable, and I was also looking for something I could bang around, and wouldn't have to take excessive care of. In that regard, I feel that I got exactly what I was looking for, and would recommend it to anyone looking for something with similar specifications.

Straight forward nylon string guitar in a slightly smaller size. As the website states this guitar is of all solid woods! Solid cedar top and solid mahogany back and sides, mahogany neck, with a traditional laminated heel. Rosewood fingerboard and binding in a minamalist design. There are no position markers anywhere on the neck, keeping with tradition and not a problem. The woods on my example are all AAA quality. Very nice indeed. The gloss lacquer finish is good, but not excellent. Inside the guitar, it is a bit sloppy and there are some signs of glue. Kerfing is not notched. There is no back strip. Brace work is very clean though. The guitar has a shorter 580mm scale length and a 50mm neck width. This probably contributes to it's tone and easy playing action. Tuners are of good quality, but plain. Overall the workmanship and materials used are of high quality as you would expect from a guitar maker who's tradition is historical. I give it an 8 for its no frills simplistic beauty.

OK the sound...Fantastic! Complex, rich and surpisingly loud for such a small guitar. Resonates nicely and it balanced. I did A/B tests at the music shop in a sound room against guitars costing thousands of dollars more. It held it's own. While it is not to be compared with a Ramirez or various other high end guitars, it far exceeded the tone of guitars costing 50% more. It has great projection and a unique personality. It is not a professional grade model and not meant to be. It is aimed at students who want a nice solid wood guitar. I find it to be spot on for my needs and I have been playing for 30 plus years. It is very expressive and will age nicely. Very comfortable and easy to play due to it size. I will mostly use this guitar for recording some soft jazz, bossa nova and latin flavored tunes. It records especially nice and you would never know it is a smaller guitar when listening to it recorded voice on CD.

Very well made. Action is great and frets are nicely done. The neck profile is very comfortable. Since I am primarily a steel string and electric guitarist I find the slightly narrower neck pleasing.

Seems fine..time will tell. I will keep it from harsh environments as I do all my guitars

Unknown at this point and time.

Just what I wanted in a quality inexpensive nylon stringed guitar with smaller dimensions....I thought I would sacrifice lots tone and volume, I was wrong...this guitar is superb.

Small size guitar - 3/4 size.
No pickup, No Cutaway.
All laminated wood I believe, Cedar top, Mahogany sides and back, Rosewood fretboard, Not sure about neck - it looks like Mahogany.
Lacquer finish, nickel plated tuners. Plastic bridge. 19 frets

I gave it a 7 because it is a basic guitar with no extra features,
but nothing wrong with it otherwise.

I went to the store looking for a full size classical guitar with a cutaway and pickup and atleast a solid top . I played the high priced guitars in excess of US 5,000 and they sounded pretty good but then I tried this little ol' Cordoba Cadet I was just blown away with the sound projection and tone. Its warm and clear and loud.
I think it is better in tone and volume than the high priced guitars (both classical and Flamenco styles).

The entire guitar just resonates when you strike a chord. You can literally feel the entire body vibrate but this was not true for the other high end guitars.

I was perplexed and still am not sure why this guitar sounded louder and better because this guitar is all laminated wood. I looked inside the guitar hole and found very little bracing (maybe because it is a smaller size guitar) and wood generally thinner; so maybe that is why it vibrates without restriction.

Action is good. Not too high or low. I will lower it a bit though.
I will replace the bridge with one made of bone or some better material. I found the lacquer to be quite even except by the where the neck joins the body (not really a concern for me).

Time will tell how long it will last.

No need for support yet.

I have been playing guitar for about 23 years.
I will use this guitar for gigging and yes recording Flamenco stuff.
I dont like the tone of Flamenco guitars (too trebley) so I use classical guitars. I wish it was a cutaway with a pickup. I will add the B-Band A3 series pickup to this. Dont be scared to try this guitar even though it is small in size. Dont worry about what people might say when you are on stage. They and specially you will appreciate the sound.