EKO Rio Bravo 6

Full lenght of neck holds 21 frets.

Sound can be a bit week in volume, i have fitted a pick_up and use 11 gauge strings.

Guitar had a damaged neck when i first got hold of it,that was about 4 to 5 years ago. Never have i had to do any other work on it since, the action has stayed perfect, it still has it's looks,body fine and neck inlays perfect. Those that see it want to play it.

I have used it at gig's, i can rely on not having a back_up, this guitar will last forever, i have many guitars which are all nice, but this has it's own something.

Been playling since the mid sixties, i own a Crafter 12 str acoustic, Epiphones nd a Hummingbird,aWashburn plus some electrics. If the EKO got damaged or stolen it could not be replaced.

My Eko Rio Bravo is a basic dreadnought 6 string acoustic, thin necked, no electrics, and for the price quite beautifully finished. It cost my mum ??45 brand new in 1977.I will try to be objective about this review but hopefully you will forgive an element of wistful sentimentatlity in describing a friend of 30 years standing.

The sound is a little thin in comparison to more expensive instruments, although it has deepened with age. It benefits from regular string changes - typically a beginner's or occasional player's instrument (like me) so string changes tend to be less regular than on a pro's guitar. Buy some decent strings,change them every couple of months and the sound won't dissapoint.

There are better sounding guitars - but my rating is on the basis of the proce also.

The action is terrific. I have seen so many beginners struggle over the years and give up because their first guitar was cheap but impossible to play well. This is a cheap guitar that is easy to play.

The quality after 30 years is nothing short of miraculous. Some minor scratches and bumps only - each tiny flaw now adding to the charm.I have never had to reset the guitar or have it serviced. The fret board is quite worn now but nothing that affects the tone or look.

If I'm honest I don't think the sound is good enough for live playing other than busking or entertaining your friends.

However it has been played for literally thousands of hours over a period of 30 years and I can't see why it won't last another 30. In contrast I bought a Simon & Patrick for ??600 just over a year ago and the neck has already warped and its unplayable - just as well I didn't skip the Eko!

The sound is consistent and it remains beautiful to look at and to touch.

Never had the need. I see they have a website - so maybe still in business. By the way I also have an Eko Ranger 12 string which is a pretty lousy instrument and so rarely gets played.

I have been playing since receiving this instrument as a gift in 1977. I also own a S&P 6 CW Spruce (see above), a Fender Telecaster, an Eko Ranger 12 (see above) and an ancient classical guitar of uncertain origin inherited from my mother.

I had grown so used to the sound of this guitar it was almost a part of me- it was really difficult to find another instrument that I preferred, but the S&P has a much superior sound (shame I can't play it now). After 30 years I would be heartbroken if it were stolen or lost - both of my boys learned to play on this guitar too.

I bought this guitar new in Bristol, England, in 1975. It was made in Recanati,Italy.
It seems to have a laminate top and solid dark wood back and sides.
The fret board is rosewood.
There are nice inlays.
It has a laquer finish with a contrasting line down the back of the neck.

The sound is thin and middly. It tends to get lost when playing with others. However, I have quite a thin voice, so it goes well with me!

I've never had it adjusted or set up and the action is still great.
The neck is really thin and I find it easy to play.

It's been sat on, dropped, clanged, dinged and the scratchplate fell off years ago, but it carries on.

I've played this guitar every day for thirty years and it has given me enormous amounts of pleasure. I think something happens when one plays the same instrument for many years - it seems to remember me somehow.

My Rio Bravo 6 is a Dreadnought made in Recanati, Italy, somewhere around the late 70s. It has a rosewood fingerboard with pearloid inlays. No cutaway, mahogany back and sides and a "timber Douglas" top, any of which I completely ignore if solid or laminated. I read somewhere that this top wood has something to do with pine.
It has no electronics or transducers. The tuning machines are enclosed type silver, no frills there. Locking pins type bridge. Height adjustable by screws, awesome!
Unscalloped braces. Case included.

I normally play open string chords, oftenly detuned. I really play hard.
No string buzzes with a really low action, just a little truss rod adjustment to make. Nice for flat and fingerpicking. Incredible tone when playing softly, amazingly loud guitar and beautiful tone when cranking up. Perfect string to string volume balance. I'll never rig a mike on this thing.

It's finished in a moderate gloss lacquer. Nice job there, just a drop of excess glue inside. Satin neck plays better but I have no complaints about this one. I couldn't tell about the factory setup, since I purchased it used. The shop had it just rightly put. Beautiful pearl inlays on the headstock. Nut is very slightly shifted towards the treble string side. The tuning pegs are crappy, but they do their job to keep the beast in tune. Comprehensible if you consider these guitars were never intended to be top shelf.

This guitar will definitely withstand live playing. Except that I will not amplify it internally, so I guess I'll have to find an alternate solution. Being manufactured a long 20+ years ago, the breaking in is already there. No identifiable flaws.

N/A. It is a real tough job to get data about this guitar since the Eko company has been on and off for a while. I even wrote them to ask for specs and they didn't even answer my mail.

Been playing for 16 years, I own a Yamaha Pacifica (another secret weapon) and a Warwick bass. I think I couldn't replace this guitar, ever. It's a cozy little instrument. It was the last of at least 50 guitars I tested, including expensive Takamines, a few low end Taylors (not the baby Taylors, but the 100 series) and a bunch of Fenders and Yamahas for up to 5 times more money and this beauty was a keeper. I'm usually a brand comsumer (yeah, shame on me), so I have to hear a BIG difference to go for a budget priced instrument instead of a fancy one. This guitar has exceeded all my expectations.

Made in Italy 1971, 12 frets, it has a pick but it dose not work, very attractive guitar to look at with it's thin Rosewood neck it is easy to play those really difficult cords.

I play maily flamenco and blues, People may say it is not righ play spannish muisc on a steel string guitar, i much prefer playing flamenco on this guitar as the sound rich and really spills out the emotions of the flamenco sound. I had it refreted a couple of years ago, needs to be refretted by a professional as the last refretter did a good but sloppy job. I am going to be trying to learn a bit of blues grass as the today i heard it played on my eko and it was really full of life.

I acctually got it back today from the guitar doctor as the nut had broken from old age, i did'nt acctually know the model till today when i got back from the doc and did a serious search on the internet and found out all it's particulars, the doc said it was well worth fixing as it is a lovely old guitar.(i still need to phone him and let him know what a treasure he just worked on)the doc also gave it a thumbs up for the action fit and finnish.

I bought this from a busker who used to make a living playing at parks, shopping centers .ect been though alot as the bridge had cracked and the body battered. This guitar has lots of old scars but still sounds Great. I am sure it will never let me down.

i found out that they are still around, i was giong to send them a pick of the guitar to identify it but the net proved to be faster, i am going to try my luck and see if they will give it a makeover. www.eko.it for those of you who might be interested ( only thing is can you speak spannish, or will they speak english)

i have been play for about 5 years in total. (had a break for a couple of years), i would cry and be very upset if it were stollen. As everyone eles said, it is one of a kind guitar and something that you can't put a value to. Only the owner of one of these guitars will ever know what i am talking about because i now realise that they are very few and i feel blessed to be one of them.

1970 Italian made, Purchased in Rome, No Pickups, Dreadnought Design, Retangular Abalone (MOP) inlays in odd frets, Rosewood body, 19 total frets (15 to body), Acoustic 6 string (steel), Natural Spruce top, String-through body bridge, Simple Tuners (keep great tune), came with hard cover, felt-lined case.

Used for primarily acoustic blues/folk music. Sounds better with medium or medium/light gauge strings. Just trying Martin Light gauge Silk & Steel strings. Nice, rich sound. Of course, lighter gauge strings are easier to bend, hammer, and pull. No dislikes after 30 years.

The guitar was puchased from an Italian shop and was in perfect condition. I tried many of the models on the shop without looking at price and this one fit "like a glove".

I've had the guitar for over 30 years and it has held up to parties in my younger years. Great tuning that very seldom goes out. I can play for hours and it never needs to be adjusted. Solid and reliable.

I've never had to contact cusomter support. I understand that the company was sold in the late 70's and in the 90's returned to Italy.

I don't think that I could ever replace this guitar. I've played it off and on since I bought it in 1970. Like most guitar players, I stop in to the local shops to play some of the other guitars and I've come across some that compare to mine, but at a significantly higher cost.

Manufactured in Italy, this guitar was purchased new, but shop-soiled, from a music shop in Oxford (UK) in 1968. There is a manufacturers label inside the body but although the model is identified, there is no serial number in evidence. Superficial damage had been caused by over exposure to sunlight, as it had,seemingly, been in the shop window for some time! The finish had "bloomed" and there were several places where the veneer had split and lifted slightly on the top. Fairly conventional in appearance with non-brand-named tuners and a rosewood (I think) fret/finger board with MOP rectangular inlays.The neck dimensions suited me down to the ground, it could have been made to measure. I've yet to find one that suits better. Just luck, I guess!

Great for "Jangley" folk/country material, and equally good for finger-style blues. Superb tone, in fact I've played guitars costing #500/#600, that did not sound or play as well as this old instrument. It has suffered 35 years of abuse, having lived in a soft "gig-bag" for most of the time. The initial damage to the finish has not worsened, and restorers have advised me to leave well alone, as there is no guarantee that repairs would not affect the sound.

Initial set up was not bad, but "setting up" improved the action no end. The bridge is now starting to "come away" from the top, so it is possible that some repairs will have to be undertaken soon. At purchase the fret wires needed a little attention at the ends, but on the whole it was quite well turned out, "shop-soiled" condition considered! It holds it's tuning very well indeed. I think it's just about due for a re-fret!

It has stood the test of time, having been abused in pubs,clubs and at social gatherings down the years. To date I have not come across another similar model. I was begining to think that it was the only one in the world! Every time I think I have discovered another Rio Bravo 6, it turns out to be the Ranger 6 model. They do look similar, but I think the ranger is a much more robust instrument.

They no longer exist, do they? Never had any need to contact them anyway.

I started playing about 46 years ago, and currently also own a Washburn "Festival" EA20. If it were lost or stolen, I would not be able to replace it; certainly not with anything sounding as good, for the sort of money that I could now afford to lay out. At the time that I purchased it, the main consideration was "price", and this was the best buy for the cash which I then had available.

Bought new, circa 1981. 21 Fret w/ body join @ 14. This is an Italian made, standard dreadnought shape. Laminate, w/ rosewood neck & string through body bridge. Tuners are cheap and the keys produce nasty sharp edges every time it takes a ding. Can't fault their performance, though. Stays in tune better than any other guitar I've owned. Nice M.O.P inlay on headstock and all beading & finishes have survived 21 years of modest abuse.

This is the main problem. The guitar does what it's told perfectly well with a clean, but unexciting tone. But it doesn't inspire. It's a beginners or a second guitar. I've always been an electric player and had a pretty decent Ibanez Artist fo 15 years, which had all the warm tones I ever wanted. The Eko has plenty volume, but no life of it's own. However, since selling the Ibanez, I've been playing a lot of slide, which sounds good and harsh. Elmore James watch out...

Never changed the factory set up. Great action & easy to play. Some buzzing on top frets that I could have fixed years ago, but never bothered.

Ha Ha Ha. Maggie Thatcher has come and gone but this baby lives on. It's survived two toddlers; assorted acts of drunkeness; had aromatic cigarettes dropped on in; been dropped and sat upon. All beading and finishes are intact. It's a f**king miracle.

The sound's not good enough to gig with, and I can't imagine many people would pay to hear me play, but this guitar is tough as old boots.

I think they went bust years ago.

This guitar has stuck around for far too long and I deserve something that sings back to me like my old Artist used to. That said, if you're a beginner, I can't imagine anything better. It plays really well and won't restrict learning. It's better than any budget instrument I've ever played, but doesn't have an inspiring tone. If it got lost or stolen I'd be pretty stoical about it. Life must go on.