Aria AC-100F

As far as I can tell, only a few of these ARIA Concert Flamenco Guitars (Model AC-100F) have been made simply because Flamenco guitars are in far less demand than comparable Classical Guitars. The Aria AC-100F is built in Spain to Aria's founder and CEO, Shiro Arai's, exacting specifications to create instruments of extraordinary quality. These guitars are hand-crafted using traditional techniques passed down through generations of Spanish luthiers. The Aria AC-100F F;amenco Guitar features a very tight-grained two-piece solid spruce top that gives these traditional Flamenco guitars deep, rich tone and ideal resonance and powerfull projection when playing passionate gypsy flamenco music. This guitar roars! I feel that this superb guitar offers simply the best quality-for-money Spanish Flamenco guitar available for your investment...in my opinion, much better sound and value, for example, than the equivalent Esteve, Alhambra, Almansa, etc. guitars. Built in Spain under the supervision of Aria founder and CEO, Shiro Arai, the AC-100F generally has a street value of $1000-$1200...IF you can find one. This Aria AC-100F Flamenco Guitar sounds, looks, and plays so well that it feels like it becomes part of me as I play it. This elegant instrument is hand-constructed with all solid woods...two-piece solid Spruce top with clear tap plates above and below the soundhole; solid Sycamore back and sides; mahogany neck; impeccable high-gloss amber finish (like Conde Hermanos flamencos); Ebony fingerboard; Rosewood bridge, headplate, and bindings; good quality gold-plated tuners and elaborately-inlaid soundhole rosette. The scale length is 650mm. The nut width is 52mm. The Aria AC-100F is truly outstanding structurally and cosmetically...a classic work of the luthier's art!

As a professional solo guitarist, this guitar features the broad tonal spectrum I love...warm, rich bass tones that can growl like a lion...and alternately stinging treble tones that project loud and clear. The neck is perfectly straight with no string buzz at normal playing levels. I play this guitar acoustically in front of a microphone plugged into my Roland Blues Cube 60 amp that uses three 10" speakers. Wow! What a powerful combination that cancan rattle the rafters in any auditorium! I use this guitar for most all of my acoustic guitar performances which includes flamenco, classical, contemporary ballads and romantic, easy-listening guitar solos and jazz standards...and for playing on my back porch in the summer time! The Aria AC-100F is perfect for me because it is a wonderfully versatile instrument that speaks eloquently for virtually all types of easy-listening solo guitar music.

The Aria AC-100F guitar seems to be made like a fine Swiss watch...with impeccable hand workmanship that shows no glue drippings inside or other signs of assembly-line production. The two-piece solid Spruce top is perfectly bookmatched and features a nice tight grain. I can see no manufacturing flaws on this guitar whatsoever.

As you may know, Flamenco guitars are constructed to be much lighter than comparable Classical guitars and, like any handmade classical/acoustic guitar they should be handled and played with respect. As a result, this guitar should continue to age to perfection with just nominal care. It helps to keep a fine classical or flamenco guitar like this in a humidity-controlled environment to help protect against the wood splitting and protect it in a high-quality hardshell case during travel in hot or cold climates. And ALWAYS wait for the guitar to warm to room temperature when coming n from the cold weather before opening the case. Extreme temperatiure changes can reek havoc on the exotic woods used in classical and flamenco guitars!

I believe that Aria has a toll-free 800 number for customer support but I have never had occasion to use their Customer Support Hotline, so I cannot comment of the quality of Aria's service. Hopefully, I will never have to call.

Overall rating: 9. I compared the workmanship, privce, tone, projection and handling to other Flamenco guitars costing hundreds of dollars more and found that the Aria AC-100F Flamenco Guitar offers the best value for tone, handling, and superior workmanship. If you can find a better Flamenco Guitar than the Aria AC-100F for the money, buy it.