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Verified Purchaser zZounds has verified that this reviewer purchased this specific product from us.

I was somewhat undecided for awhile but the beauty of this guitar won me over, no where else can you find a solid wood guitar with all the features that this guitar has for $1000.00. This is the first I'd heard of a Alvarez Masterworks Elite, and I am glad I did. I played over 100 guitars while making my decision, my Alvarez sounds better than 99% of the Martins, Taylors, Epiphones, Gibson's, yes I played them all in this decision, and just as good as the other 1%, of course this is just my opinion, I have played guitar for nearly 50 years now, so I have heard a lot of guitars! This is my second Alvarez, and my second guitar purchase from zZounds, unless they come up with another amazing elite design my next purchase will be a Yairi. In my opinion you cant go wrong with this guitar, I purchased the OM model, Shimmering highs and warm bass, very articulate whether your strumming or finger picking, all in all an amazing guitar!

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Verified Purchaser zZounds has verified that this reviewer purchased this specific product from us.

I've been a lead singer in bands for decades who always wanted to learn to play guitar. I've owned a few. I had an American made Strat that I wish I hadn't sold. I had an acoustic/electric Washburn I also wish I hadn't sold. But when my little brother and bandmate passed away a few years ago, I grieved that we'd never get to jam together, and on what would have been his birthday last year, I bought this Alvarez in his memory and vowed to learn.I'm still a lonnnng way from the skill level I want to be, but, having been around musical instruments, particularly guitars, all my life, I fell in love with this Masterworks Elite OM from the moment I laid eyes on it. After a trip to the local luthier's to get it set up, I fell in love all over again the moment I laid ears on it.The tone is SO much richer and fuller than I'd expected. It really has a voice of its own. Resonant bass. Shimmering highs. Sustain forever and stupid low-action that even a newbie with early stages of arthritis can wrangle.Sadly, Alvarez has retired this line, which was exactly the midrange price-point I was ready for. Solid wood top, back, and sides; great electronics; and top notch components all around. Just tremendous value for the money. And SOOOooooo beautiful when the sun hits it. Plus the forearm bevel is a lifesaver!The MF60ce Shadowburst Masterworks OM is probably the closest thing to it that's still available, but around for $500 more, and not available at zZounds as far as I can tell. And that's important to me. I have rarely encountered better service, in-person or online, as I have with zZounds. Their payment options are insanely generous (why isn't the rest of life like this?), and when I did have issues on two occasions, they had me fixed up and taken care of IMMEDIATELY.Honestly, THANK YOU, zZounds. I will probably never shop anywhere for instruments or gear again if I can at all help it. For example, if something tragic happend to my Shadowburst (God forbid, since I just made my last payment...) I would probably level up and replace it with an Alvarez WY1 Yairi Folk Cutaway Acoustic-Electric Guitar, which IS available through zZounds, just to keep my business here.And NO...I've received NO enticements to say any of this. But this purchase was a deeply personal one, and zZounds came through from start to finish.So, sorry if this Alvarez was your dream guitar. I'd give any of their midrange models a try, and I would NEVER hesitate to trust zZounds with your business.

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