Lucida Artista LG-797 Picado

Purchased in 2005 for $600 with case.

I have played this guitar for 2 years. All solid wood flamenca blanca - cypress back/sides and spruce top. This is a factory made guitar from Valencia, Spain.

I think this may have been discontinued recently, but it is a great value.

A very flamenco sound for the price. You cannot find a better deal for a new guitar. It does not have the Granada sound, though - but that would cost $2000.
It has great volume as well.
My instructor plays a Contreras, but has several other flamenco guitars back to '69. He was very impressed with the sound, especially for the money. It is a very good student guitar - not a concert model.

I had to lower my action a little at the nut and saddle. The workmanship is very good considering it is factory built. I have seen a lot of Cordoba models selling for more money that are not nearly as well finished.

The body is a little larger than your standard classical. I have a Ramirez FL2 and the Lucida is slightly larger, with 654mm scale length, and slightly longer neck. The neck is also a little thicker and more rounded that my Ramirez. I find the flatter Ramirez neck more comfortable.

I have had this guitar for 2 years, and I feel it will last.

No experience with CS.

I have been playing flamenco for 2+ years. I purchased this online, so I did not have an opportunity to play it beforehand. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the workmanship is very good, and the sound and quality is very good for the price. You can not find a better new student guitar at this price.

All solid woods, ebony fretboard, spruce top, cypress side/back, ebony re-enforcement strip, rosewood vaneer overlay on headstock, and not so special tuners.

Sound is very good for its price range but it CANNOT hang with my Felix Manzanero or any concert guitar for that matter. For a $400-$600 guitar this would have to be near the best in that category.

There was a defect in the finish on the underside of the guitar. Brush marks on the inside part of the headstock. Crappy tuners and strings. Other than those issues, everything else was nice.

I have been playing for quite sometime, flamenco for 3 years but classical and electric since the late 80's. I also own a 1965 Felix Manzanero blanca with pegs, A.Morales blanca with pegs, Schector C-7 electric. I sold mine last year so I would not buy another. It was my first flamenco, I loved the sound when I got it, then I found a good deal on the Manzanero and realized the Lucida was just a good student guitar. If you are a beginner flamenco guitarist then get this guitar...if you already play flamenco well enough to know you are not just in a phase then save your money and spend $2-3k on a luthier guitar. All that said...I am not trying to talk the guitar down, I just don't want to talk it up to more than it is. For the price range you can't beat it. I would take it over a Cordoba or a Yamaha for sure.

Purchased in 2005

All solid wood cypress and spruce.
Ebony fretboard and support along back of neck.
Finish is very nice glossy, but not too thick of coat.
Tuners are good but not the best, but at the price I paid I do not care.
I paid $540 on eBay for shipping, new guitar, and TKL Pro case!

Amazing sound, nothing comes close to this guitar for what I paid.
I use Pro Arte strings with copper wound composite bass strings to produce bright trebles and lows.
Action is great for fast playing.
Sound suites many styles.

Construction is beautiful.
Style is simple but classic.
Action is for fast playing.

Guitar is built to last.
Play it wherever, whenever!

Don't know about warranty, not worried.

If you see one for sale, buy it. Sounds amazing a great guitar for those seeking a great deal. Next closest guitar is a Conde Hermanos for $2800!
I'll take this one thank you.

Made in Spain, year 2005. Solid Spruce top and Cypress back/sides, good body size for 170 lbs person. It has Jumbo frets (that I personally prefer). Yes, it's a handsome but simple blanca, very well crafted, contructed, flawless. It will last for years.

This guitar produces an amazing combination of flamenco sound, full, rich, good projection, good attack, nice, clear and solid tone. Trebles are excellent. Yes, good volume! I use Savarez 540R strings on this guitar and I think the strings really bring the guitar to the next level of sound and volume. In my opinion, this guitar suits any style of musics, from flamenco (ofcourse ;) ), classical, to mix or free style (like myself). It's also pretty easy to handle - good playability. I would compare this guitar with those of same type that cost around 1.2K. I must give the sound of this guitar a 10 because you and I can never find another guitar at this price and can produce that sound quality.

Don't change the factory set-up. Perfectly low action, just a very little buzz on bass strings; but this does not bother me. I actually like it that way. It also makes it easier and faster to play. It has lacquer finish, a little thin, which is to me also another nice thing about this guitar (I wish it was French finish though :)). I don't really like thick and shinny lacquer finish.

The Picado flamenco is built to last, well constructed. It's a solid blanca.

I'm not sure about the warranty and how to get it from the US.

Well, at this price, I must give this guitar a 10. I have not seen any other guitars at this price that can be compared to this one. It's not the best guitar I ever played; but definitely it's the best guitar of this price range. I compare it with some other good guitars with prices ranging from 1.2K or obove. Specifically I did compare this guitar, one on one, with Antonio Aparicio AA90 Flamenco (~1.3K), and I think the Picado is better.

This is a 2004 model, made in Spain, 19 frets, solid woods all over.

WOW! What a sound from this guitar. Had an Alhambra prior to this one, and for a Flamenco guitar this really projects! Great volume and sustain. Even with this trait, still sound like it should. Bright and Spanish. It is on the level of my Yari or Ramerez.

Has a good low action with great balance for the fretting. My teacher was very impressed by it.

This has a lifetime warranty that I don't think I will ever have to use. The store where it was bought was surprised at the great quality of the tunners. This guitar will last a looooong time.

Again, this has a lifetime warranty that I don't think I'll ever have to use.

I have only been playing Flamenco for two years, but have learned a lot in that short time about the quality of the guitars. It makes a great addition to the Yairi, Ramerez, Alveraz, Dean, and Aria guitars in my home. If the need arrived to select a new Flamenco guitar, hands down, it would be this one.

This is the best buy for the money, I've searched for many months for a new flamenco, I've played some of the most expensive guitars in the world and find the Lucinda Picado better than all of them in sound, looks and feel.

I play an extreme virtuoso style a crossbreed of Spanish Flamenco, Romanian Folk and traditional classical. I am dynamically everywhere, the Picado responds to all my expressions from very light harp like etheral tones to growling low power chords to 64th note scales that are crisp sharp and clean and even volumed notes (This is the most balanced volume guitar between the lower and higher octaves I've ever played). Muted the notes all project easily.

The action is low and very conforable. If I hit it too hard and let it ring I get a very slight rattle on the low open E but this is normal I add the octave with it and create the "Flamenco Growl".

Everything about it is absolutely awesome. It is brand new so time will tell how it will withstand performing and active intense practicing.

I've been playing for over 27 years and am an extreme virtuoso. I have owned many very expensive custom made instruments, this is with out a doubt the best Flamenco/Classical I've ever seen and played. From now on I will only play Lucinda guitars.

.Solid Spruce top
.Solid Cypress B/S
.Ebony fretboard
?Mahogany Neck
?Synthetic Bone Nut & Saddle
?Rosewood Bridge with Bone Inlay
?Rosewood Headstock Overlay
?Rosewood Binding with Golden Trim
?Transparent Tap Plates Installed
.Gold tuner

Crisp/bright, clear & loud ...Just the way I like ... I play variety of music styles, so this guitar fits my need very well. Bass reponse is OK. Well balance over all sound.

It doesn't provide a lot of sustain before its flamenco root not design for but regardless, it has quite a bit of overtone ...

Low action ... Very smooth & easy to play (without any setup)
No string buzz anywhere
Can't find any faults with the finish
The stock strings probably not the best ...so I'd suggest you to try out other brands (Hannabach Carbon Trebles Med-High with Savarez Corum, High, bass set ...or try the Hannabach 827 Flamenco, Medium)
The tuner could be better in my opinion.

Very light construction but well built. You should treat your instrument with care anyway. Shouldn't be a problem. I'd recomment a hard case for it though.

N/A ...No info on the builder. It's made in Spain (somewhere) :)...
I bought it from MusicBrokers (AZ) on eBay. They're great! Very friendly & they went extra mile (experdite shipping) for me. I definitely would recommend them.

It's a very good guitar for the money. Nice low action, good sound (not just for Flamenco music). It seems well built. The Cypress wood smells nice too :D !!!... I've played some Cordoba (forgot the model, but not impressed) and other higher price models Aria, Alhambra, Esteve ... Some sounds good as a classical guitar ...but I'd prefer the sound of the Picado. It depends on your taste, really.

I replaced the strings and it sounds better to me. I would change the tuner later.

I normally would try out the guitar before buying it, and this is an exception (mostly from reviews of other owners). If you like bright (not overly) sound & ease of play, and not too expensive, it's a very choice. I highly recommend it.

PS: It seems that the prices of this model (LG-797) & the Concerto (LG-777) have been increased steadily the past 2 years. Perhaps due to higher demand, still a good buy.

The previous reviewer, Donald Frahm, did an excellent job of accurately describing this guitar's features, so I will not attempt to duplicate his efforts. My only comment is that I also am unsure what tuners they put on this guitar, but I am not particularly impressed with them. They have a soft and vague feel to them and the guitar needs to be retuned frequently. I must also state that I've only had the guitar a month or so and have not yet played it extensively. The strings it came with are of higher tension than I prefer and this may contribute to the tuners' less than stellar ability to hold tune, but I'm a cheapskate and will play them till they die.

Ay, Dios mio! This guitar has a better sound than a lot of guitars that cost 3 times as much. The tonal range is not quite as impressive as some of the higher priced, big name instruments, and it seems to have less bass, but with the right attack on the strings you get a fantasticaly crisp, woody tone. I compared it to my ridiculously excellent Alhambra 7fc and noted that it has a slightly shallower body depth. Perhaps this gives it less bass, I don't really know. Nevertheless, this instrument has a perfectly balanced sound from the basses to trebles. The tone is clear and sharp and the intonation accurate. And both the B and G strings, the usual weaklings of the bunch, sounds just as good as the others.

I bought this guitar sight unseen from a vendor on ebay after hearing some very good things about this model and being in an area where it's impossible to find a decent nylon string, let alone a flamenco.
I am really impressed by the workmanship on this guitar. Like Donald's, mine also has a little something under part of the golpeador. No big deal. I also noticed three very, very small puncture-like holes on the back of the neck. So small you have to look really carefully for them. Again, no big deal. The finish around one of the tuners was a little less than finished, but again, you have to look really closely. The wood is all nicely matched and my only nitpick is that the sides don't look quite as nice as the rest of the wood. That said, I will say that the workmanship on this guitar is astonishingly good. There is not a single sloppy blob of glue inside or out, the binding is perfect, the neck is straight, the frets are level, the action is perfect, and the lacquer finish is nicely and lightly applied.

I've only had it a month or so, so I can't say much about its reliability or durability. It appears to be very well made and I baby my instruments anyway, so my only concern is how it will react to the dryness of a cold winter climate.

I cannot speak for Lucida, as I've had no contact with them whatsoever. The ebay vendor, SurfCityMusic, however, was excellent to work with and I'd highly recommend them. $480 for the guitar, a decent enough hardshell case and shipping halfway across the country.

This is the best value in a guitar that I've ever come across. I got it thinking I'd keep it at work, but it's just too nice to leave in the office.

This is a 2002 Spanish-made flamenco style classical guitar. It features a solid spruce top, solid cypress sides, and solid cypress back. The neck is Honduran cedar with an ebony fretboard and an ebony reinforcing strip on the back. Very attractive inlaid rosette. Rosewood bridge and 4-ply rosewood overlay on the headstock. Binding front and back with fairly intricate purfling. Gold colored tuners of decent quality - possibly Gotoh. Being a flamenco guitar, it also has the golpeador, a thin clear plastic guard on the top for tapping.

The Lucida Artista name is just a marketing brand. There's some mystery surrounding the actual manufacturer of the Lucida Artista line. I've heard both Admira and Prudencio Saez mentioned as possibilities. Whoever is producing these is making a fine quality guitar at an astoundingly affordable price.

Excellent tone and sufficient volume for playing unamplified for a small audience. The basses are strong, while the trebles are ringing with overtones. Again, not what I'd expect from a guitar in this price range.

The action is set at 3mm at the 12th fret for the sixth string. Very fast, easy playing neck. No dead spots or buzzing. There are a couple of minor flaws in the finish. On the front, there is a small particle stuck under the golpeador. On the back, there's a very small flaw in the binding near the heel of the neck. Neither is bothersome.

It's well built but needs careful handling, as do all acoustic guitars.

N/A

This is about as good as it gets for a classical under $1000. They seem to be in short supply. My advice would be that if you see one, buy it!