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Alhambra is a Spanish maker located in Muro de Alcoy, in the province of Alicante, that has been successfully making nylon string guitars for over 40 years. Along with its standard classical instruments, Alhambra is known for its electros like the 5P CT.

And while some feature a slightly thinner-than-classical-standard neck width, to most electric players, and many steel-string players, the classical neck still feels massive and invariably has a flat fingerboard. The Crossover, however, is a full-depth cutaway released in 2007 that aims to bridge the gap between steel and nylon: a purpose-designed electro for those used to steel-strings.

Build

Visually it displays a strong steel-string vibe thanks to its natural finished spruce top which contrasts the dark chocolate-coloured rosewood back and sides. The white face is contrasted again by an ebony bridge with its maple 'V' inserts, which mirror the V-shaped, 'A' logo'd maple insert in the rosewood headstock facing - the inlaid rosette is suitably dark and gothic too.

Construction is very clean, the maple edge bindings and inner purflings are sharp and not over fancy. The head and main shaft of the mahogany neck is one piece - with a central ebony strip for reinforcement, there's no truss rod - while the heel is a separate piece and has quite a complex carve as it joins the cutaway body.

Internally you can see a fairly classic Spanish-style foot, kerfed mahogany linings top and bottom, mahogany back braces and spruce top strutting (and hidden standard seven fan braces). It all looks very clean and considered. The fretwire is cleanly installed on the radiused ebony fingerboard.

Another break from tradition, though hardly radical, are the side-only dots at the third, fifth, seventh and ninth frets and the neck joins at the 12th so position orientation should be easy enough.

While the scale is fairly standard at 650mm things are slightly narrower than usual, in Spanish terms, at the nut which is just over 48mm wide (as opposed to 50-52mm or more) and a gnat's under 60mm at the 12th. Yet at 20.4mm at the first fret, and 25mm at the 10th, you'll not feel the neck is over large. The shape is quite flat-backed with square shoulders and we have to say the neck is very comfortable and easy - especially compared to a quality concert classical.

You can order the Crossover with various Fishman preamps (see spec check) to manipulate the undersaddle piezo. The E5 system here is Fishman's top-end Prefix Premium Blend and includes both under-saddle piezo pickup and a separate gooseneck mic that is installed on the bass side shoulder. The two pickups meet up on the pretty complex control panel that flips out for swift battery changes and also access to a mono/stereo switch.