Cordoba Luthier GK Pro Negra/Barbera Transducer Upgrade

The Córdoba Luthier GK Pro Negra with a Barbera pickup is the ultimate nylon string instrument to bring along to any gig. We worked closely with Córdoba and Rich Barbera to create this GK Pro Upgrade. We’ve replaced the existing compression-type bridge pickup with the Barbera Soloist saddle pickup for superior response and string separation, decreased feedback sensitivity, and reduced microphonic body noise both on the stage and in the studio. Our exclusive version of the Córdoba Luthier GK Pro Negra still features the same great guitar and Fishman Prefix ProBlend on-board preamp/internal mic system. This enhanced configuration works so well, the Gypsy Kings now use GK Pros with Barbera pickups as part of their frontline instrument compliment on stage.

This soft cutaway electrified flamenco guitar is made for the stage. Built with a solid European spruce top and solid Indian rosewood back and sides, it features an ebony fingerboard, rosewood bridge, and durable but thin high gloss PU finish. It features a Spanish heel and slightly thinner body depth, neck, and nut width than a traditional Spanish guitar. The Córdoba Luthier GK Pro Negra with Barbera pickup also features aesthetic touches, such as a rosewood headstock veneer, Córdoba’s arches icon, and a mother-of-pearl weave rosette inspired by a 1920’s Domingo Esteso guitar. The GK Pro includes Córdoba’s humidified hard-shell case.

This guitar offers a bassier and more robust tone than the bright, snappy sound of a ‘blanca’ flamenco guitar. Because the neck geometry allows for little or no relief, this guitar offers lower action for greater playability than a traditional classical guitar. As with all Córdoba Luthier series guitars, the GK Pro is equipped with a two-way truss rod built into the neck for accurate action adjustment. Whether it’s something wild and fiery like flamenco, or perhaps something subtler like fingerstyle jazz or bossa nova, the GK Pro Negra shines.

We select each GK Pro Negra for our stock and take into consideration not only sound, build quality, and appearance, but the potential for optimizing its playability as well. As with any guitar we sell, the Córdoba Luthier GK Pro Negra with Barbera pickup undergoes an extensive setup to ensure you have the best possible playing experience right out of the case… we guarantee it! With its comfortable body shape and classic tonewood combination, this model is the perfect choice for exploring the nuances in sound that can only be captured with nylon strings.

The Barbera Soloist Upgrade to the GK Pro Negra

The Barbera Soloist guitar pickup in our GK Pro Negra upgrade represents a revolutionary departure from the traditional undersaddle technology that’s commonly available today. That’s because the Soloist saddle itself is the pickup. The saddle pickup does not alter or detract from the guitar’s acoustic sound. The pickup installation is simple and non-invasive to the guitar. We tie it into the GK Pro's Fishman Prefix Pro-Blend on-board preamp. The combination of the Pro-Blend's internal mic, blend control, notch filter and EQ, along with the Soloist, provide the player with endless tonal possibilities.

Unlike traditional compression-type undersaddle pickups which sit between the saddle and the pickup, the Soloist transducer makes direct contact with your guitar’s strings. Each of the 6 individual micro acoustic structures in the saddle independently responds to the vibrational energies of each of the 6 strings on your guitar. String outputs are individually voiced for a well-balanced string-to-string output. This selective sensitivity yields a focused clarity and accuracy of tone, reproducing the guitars’ sound clearly and transparently. And again, unlike undersaddle pickups, string balances don’t depend on the flatness of the saddle slot or the compression of a transducer beneath the saddle. Because the sensors within the Barbera Soloist saddle are not being compressed between the saddle and the bridge as in an undersaddle pickup, the amplified tone is very open and natural sounding. Soloist pickups are highly responsive to playing dynamics, enabling the effective use of a wide range of expressive playing techniques.

As an added benefit, Soloist pickups reject microphonic body noise (finger squeaks, bumps, thumps, extreme low end boominess, etc.). The elimination of this non-musical noise in the amplified signal provides an extremely high level of clarity and tonal purity in the amplified sound. It also greatly decreases feedback sensitivity. This enhances and extends the possibilities for the use of an amplified acoustic guitar both on the stage and in the studio.