Admira Virtuoso Classical Guitar

Given to me as a Birthday present by my wife seven years ago, and she won't tell me how much she paid! I'm sure the guitar was virtually new at the time being carefully wrapped in its original factory bag with tags & stickers. The shop, a small specialist classical guitar shop in Lewisham, South London, ordered it in specially.
Made by Enrique Keller SA at Guipozcoa, northern Spain.
Label reads "Admira Virtuoso - Artesania - Fabricado en Espa?a. My one features a Cedarwood top (which still wafts a lovely smell at you when you open the case)! Otherwise it has the standard Rosewood back & sides, a "Samaguilla" neck, Rosewood fingerboard, and gold finished tuning pegs with pearl buttons. Frets appear to be the standard nickel silver variety.

Having tried all different types of strings to see which suited best, I must say that the D'Addario Pro Arte (EJ45 Normal tension) seem to suit this guitar very well. Admira guitars are, I am led to believe, quite light in construction if you were to compare it to, say, an Alhambra of the same range (Although you would expect to pay a lot more for the Alhambra here in southern Spain where I now live). The inner bracing, the visible back struts, are small and thin so the guitar does not have the strength or depth at the lower end that you may find on other guitars, but I think this a matter of personal taste. Apart from this small gripe, the instrument has a very likeable "singing" quality, with lots of harmonics appearing on the sustain (a details mentioned by "Damjan" on an earlier review). It does not need to be played hard to give you a satisfying sound, but put some welly into it and ot will reward you with a surprising level of volume on the upper strings. Overall sound, very good, sustain lacking slightly I think due to the weight of construction. This may improve by changing the bridge support and nut from the plastic one supplied to bone perhaps? As I myself like the sound I'll give it a nine!

The finish is Enrique Keller's secret blend of synthetic varnish, applied thinly enough to allow the wood to do its natural thing. Very impressive pieces of wood used, the aforementioned cedar top having a good, tight, even grain (and the smell)...
Back and sides are a deep, dark rosewood with some lovely grain patterns running through. The samaguilla neck is nicely shaped and flat enough at the back to allow the hand to sit comfortably. The Rosette is attractive enough, actually inlaid marquetry, not a sticker! Fret finish is ok, no highs or lows to buzz away although you don't get that hand finished look that you would find on a much more exepensive instrument but Admira's selling point is that they offer a good overall package for the money.
Tuning pegs are ok, no problems so far, the buttons have a few little rough edges which could be smoothed off with a fine file.
I found the action, for me, a little high which I solved by filing down the white plastic support on the bridge. The nut could be better, the angle of the grooves do not follow the natural direction of the strings which causes little "clicks" when tuning the lower (A & D) strings. With a little finishing work and replacement of the bridge saddle and nut you would give this good instrument a nice tweak. Must get round to doing it.
Overall very good - solid, no rattles or loose bits, the little problems are just niggles!

An instrument of this standard warrants investing in a hard case. So far I've managed to keep it looking in very good condition considering it is nearly eight years old, but the finish looks as though it could put up with worse treatment than I give it. Every two or three string changes I rub in a little lemon oil into the fingerboard which cleans away residues and keeps the wood looking "healthy" and dark. Other than that I keep a microfibre cloth to wipe off the finish - I haven't used any polishes of any description but the finish is still looking good.

Not had to, so far.

I also have an old Ovation celebrity which was bought cheap as a restoration project - totally different type of sound and playablility but I like to switch between them to stay "flexible". I've grown very attached to the Admira and I would be very upset if anything happened to it. If funds allowed I would buy another Admira, perhaps a Spruce model so as to have another type of sound to hand.
My bottom line opinion - if you want a good instrument but do not have unlimited funds, go for an Admira.

Made in Spain, don't know when, I've had it for a while. Classical style. According to the website, this model now has a solid spruce top and sycamore sides and back. Neck is made of Samanguila (Never heard of it before). Nut appears to be made of plastic, which is fine with me. The thought of bone gives me the creeps.

I haven't learned any classical pieces yet, but I can say that I love the way "Dust in the Wind" by Kansas sounds on this guitar and I love all sort of fingerpicking. I'm sure it would sound even better with new strings. :)

Excellent intonation, string height is fine with me. The frets could have been filed a bit so as not to make their presence known as you slide your hand up and down the neck, though.

Let's see. My uncle bought this guitar in New York City way back when, probably in the 70s, gave it to my father, and it's been sort of living with me since I "adopted" it. It could use new strings, and the fretboard could use a cleaning, but otherwise you wouldn't know it's as old as it is. It holds its tuning even though it hasn't been in its case in years and has bumped into things a few times. There's one small nick in the finish that is the result of my clumsiness one day. It's in the Southeast, US now, home of high humidity. No buckling, no warping, no problems.

Warranty? We don't need no stinking warranty! Actually, I've never seen the warranty for this guitar. But I haven't needed it. *This* is the way to build guitars.

I've been playing on and off for about 16 years. I have three electrics: a Strat copy -- big and heavy for someone my size -- I'm 5'3", still have my first electric, which is approximately a 23.75" scale guitar with virtually no heel and one humbucker made by a company called Des Lauriers, a Washburn BTM that I got recently to be nice to my bad back) I kinda wish it was possible to get the proper specs for this, since it's possible they're making it differently now. If it were lost or stolen? I'd probably start saving money and looking for an Admira dealer.

Spec Check for Admira Virtuoso Classical Guitar.
Year: 2000
Country of Make: Spain
Top: Solid European Spruce
Back & Sides: Solid Rosewood (Indian I think for all Rosewood bits)
Neck: 3 Piece Mahogany
Bridge: Rosewood
Fingerboard: Rosewood
Headstock Veneer & Heel Cap: Rosewood
Nut & Saddle: Bone
Tuners: Gold with imitation Pearl buttons

Since I only play classical and improvised fingerstyle on this one, the sound is absolutely mind-blowing; sweet, bell-like highs and mellow, chocolatey lows. Since this is a Spruce top, it needs a couple of years of playing in befor things really start happening. I opted for this instead of a Cedar top as Cedar starts of with a fully developed voice and is played out after 10-15 years. But this guitar is absolutely fantastic and will continue to improve as the years wear on. This guitar has also tremendous harmonic response, when playing lead on one string, the harmonics of the other strings sing out in the background providing a beautiful ambient sound. This is the result of carefully arranged bracing (traditional Torres fan bracing, I believe) and it's nothing short of stunning. The volume too is phenomenal. All the other guys in the Guitar Ensemble and my guitar class want to have a shot at playing my guitar (well what can you expect since they have shoddy Yamahas). My friend almost nicked it to use for his exam! Gotta give it a 10, there's no way out of it.

This guitar came set up brilliantly and i haven't needed to have anything done on it to improve it. The action on this is good but i found it difficult at the start when I made the transition from my shitty $100Aus classical to this one because the action was a tad higher. I quickly got used to it and have no problems. The top is perfectly bookmatched and very tightly grained. The best acoustics you will notice have a very small amount of space between each grain (slower growth), it is constructionally stronger. If looked at closely, the top is densely quilted and looks stunning. This guitar has no real flaws except for the slight runs of glue inside the soundbox between the kerfing and bracing but that's really nit-picking. The neck is also fantastic, designed with the classical player in mind; the centre of the back of the neck is carved flat for resting the thumb so the playability is easy. The heel has had more carved out of it for better top fret access too.

Live playing would not hurt this guitar but you would have to mike it,buy a soundhole pickup for it or even have a piezo fitted if you can be really bothered. I've had this guitar for a year now and nothing has been bodged up and the tuners work as smoothly as soap. The finish is not too thick but it should last for ages. The top is finished thinner for tonal reasons but it is unlikely that it will wear off. It's a really dependable guitar and I wouldn't hesitate using it as a first acoustic.

Never needed any because of the solid build but it had a 1 year warranty which would have been enough for a guitar this quality.

Been playing for 6 years and I also own a crappy Valcencia TC-40 (the guitar mentioned) which I don't play anymore, an Epi Les Paul Special 2 and a 10W Squier amp. This is my first good guitar and now I don't know what I'd do without it. I always wanted a Spanish guitar and when I went to buy it, i compared it to Yamaha's and others. The Yamahas had a piss weak tone and a too fat-ass neck for my liking, when i tried this one I wouldn't have anything else. If someone stole it, I'd find 'em and have them shot for stealing my baby, but on a more sane note, I would buy the same one again since they don't come any better for the price. I love everything about it, what got me to buy it was the feel, the look, the sound and the price (I got it for $500Aus a day before the damn GST kicked in and originally it was $800Aus). I think this is limited edition or something since I've gone all over the place and found only one other one. A truly great guitar, must be tried if come across.