Entrada Archtop Guitar

I absolutely love this guitar. It's hands down the best guitar I've ever purchased. The feel, the tone, the craftsmanship—everything about it is top-notch. It plays like I'm dipping my fingers into a bowl of warm butter—smooth, effortless, and just a total joy every time I pick it up. I seriously can't put it down. The finish is stunning in person—the Natural Blonde with the Ebony Midnight Package gives it such a classy, timeless look. You can tell this guitar was built with care and attention to every detail. And I have to say—this was by far the best customer service I have ever received on anything I’ve ever purchased, period. Mike was incredible to deal with. Friendly, responsive, and genuinely passionate about making sure I was taken care of every step of the way. The “Meet Your Guitar” video that Robert made, playing my actual guitar before it shipped—just wow. I’ve never heard of customer service like that before. It was personal, thoughtful, and made the whole experience feel special and one-of-a-kind. That kind of attention and connection is something you just don’t see anymore. If you're thinking about getting one of these guitars, don’t hesitate! You’ll get not just an amazing instrument, but a level of service and care that goes way beyond expectations.

I received my Entrada the other day and have to say this is one beautiful guitar, sounds great, looks great and plays like butter. Anyone looking for a great archtop at a fantastic price, look no further than a Conti Guitar. Great people to deal with, thank you.

My experience with Conti guitars is different than most owners. I knew nothing about the company. I came to my guitar walking into a local guitar shop and seeing it hanging on the used guitar wall. Upon initially seeing it, it was right up my alley taste wise regarding the type of guitars I like, although I thought it was going to be very expensive because as we all know…these guitars could pass as high end boutique guitars. After the pleasant price tag shock, I took it home. The craftsmanship and specs of this guitar are well thought out; I really appreciate that it’s a full 2 octaves with an ebony fretboard. I wanted to change the bridge & tailpiece to the ebony ones as mine came with the metal ones. And this is what really impressed me with Conti guitars…as a second owner…the customer support is still strong. These guys really stand by their guitars. I love this guitar for my vintage type R&B, soul & jazzy tones.

I have been playing my Conti Entrada now for some six weeks and can only confirm all the positive reviews and experiences: the top-notch build quality, the overall feel and touch of a precious instrument, the great sound both acoustic and amplified, and the looks – what a beauty!

On top of that – and for me personally perhaps the most important aspect – is the Entrada’s playability. I have read comments that its neck plays like butter; and that’s exactly it. The neck shape, the gorgeous ebony fingerboard, the comfortable frets and perfect fret end work, and set-up make the Entrada an exceptional experience and pleasure to play.

To be honest: I was expecting to receive a great instrument. But I felt unsure, if its playability would suit me. There was no need to worry. The Entrada’s neck is one of the best, perhaps the best I have ever played.

Moreover, the small body size (15″), the relatively thin body – almost like a semi-hollow – the weight, and the good balance make the instrument very comfortable to play, both sitting and standing.

A further interesting and positive observation is that the Entrada poses way less feedback problems than my other archtops.

My first thoughts were that this instrument is too good for me, for my level and my limited talent. But then I realized that it felt much easier to play certain licks and lines, chords and pieces. My humble conclusion is that an instrument should support the player. And this is what the Entrada does very, very well.

Finally, the whole buying process was a very positive experience. The great support from the Conti team, it’s kindness and helpfulness, always answering still another question of mine, and finally the kind and very informative personal video by Robert Conti – all that was amazing. Thanks to the whole team!

I took delivery of my sunburst Entrada with gold finger tailpiece about a week ago. From the day I ordered to the day I sat and watched Robert playing my guitar to it in my hands was five business days. Packing and shipping we’re phenomenal as the Guitar was heavily padded and packed better than any guitar I have ordered online before.

Fit and finish is outstanding with details like triple binding. And fret work that is simply perfect. The action on my guitar was perfectly set to low action and the thing is a joy to play. I had a ES -125 TDC as a kid that I called the “pencil neck” and now at 65 years of age I know that my Conti Archtop Entrada is every bit as good or better than my 125!

The point where the neck joins the body is as smooth as glass and the tailpiece is simply stunning. And the sound from the Kent Armstrong is smooth as silk yet with gain sounds very full an robust. This is without a doubt the finest guitar I have ever played. My search is over!

Thank you Robert and team so much! Once I’ve gotten some of Robert’s jazz lines mixed in with the blues I’ll post some sounds.

Ok – I’ve had the Conti Entrada for a little over a week. A video review will do this guitar the justice it deserves but for now, I’m going to write out some bullet points to talk to later and to let Robert Conti know how things are going here.
Packing and shipping:
The guitar was meticulously packed both in the case and the case within the box. Great care went into packing the instrument.
All that was needed out of the box was to tune the guitar and go. The service level at the company is impeccable. The instruments gets completely set up and then Uncle Bob takes it for a test run (which I have on video). A pro player’s hands are the last one’s on it before I take it and play it.
Aesthetics:
Looks matter to me A LOT because it goes to quality.
No picture I can show you can really hammer home how impressive of an instrument this is.
The aesthetic is flawless.
The finishes are flawless at every little detail point as well. The details with the border binding around the guitar – flawless. The mother of pearl inlays with the abalone – flawless. The border around the fretboard (which I just noticed) flawless.
Did I mention that I got a whiff of the wood smell when removing the cover on the guitar? Don’t let the laminate finish fool you. It’s a high end laminate finish but beneath it is a three-ply maple body and it’s really well built.
The gold hardware is the highest quality and it really shows in person. What really jumps out at me is the way the tune-a-matic bridge looks especially compared to the cheaper ones on the budget guitars. You can’t even compare them.
The use of ebony on the guitar from the fretboard to the pickguard to the tailpiece matches beautifully with the blonde finish on the guitar (and that’s not even the best part)
I love the headstock on the guitar and really like the way it’s dressed – especially with the chalice.
Last – and more of a personal preference thing – I like the single pickup configuration. I never play bridge pickups and with a guitar like this, I prefer the simplicity of a single pickup and think a pick up switch detracts from the look. Not a criticism but not a fan on an archtop.
Playability/feel, etc:
My personal preference for an archtop is a thin body so the Entrada works perfectly for that.
The body size is PERFECT. It is an extremely comfortable instrument to hold and the size of the body puts my right arm in a very comfortable resting position making the guitar very easy to play.
The neck is amazing. The feel of it reminds me of my old ’60s Gibson archtop from years back and I’ve never owned a guitar with the nearly flat fingerboard radius. My technique may suck for now but it’s clear that this guitar wants to play fast and is built for it. I especially noticed it when switching strings playing some lines (felt like the transitions were easier).
This is also the first 24-fret guitar I’ve owned and the accessibility to the higher frets (by design) was a great move on Bob’s part. The shallow cut just isn’t for looks, it’s functionality.
It’s a sold guitar but comfortable (not a brick like my Epi Les Paul). It’s plays like a dream whether I’m doing single note lines, chord melody or just banging on some chords.
Sound:
Remember I said earlier how the quality of the parts would indicate how the thing would sound – all I had to do was tune up the guitar and strum an open E chord and I knew I was on a completely different level. That was unplugged
The natural resonance and sustain blew me away. The whole damn guitar vibrated and just kept going. Warm, rich and full.
Plugged in – amazing. The Kent Armstrong Vintage ’57 is the perfect pickup for this instrument given that it nails that old school, warm PAF sound. The tones are crystal clear and harmonically rich. The pickup is also very responsive to dynamics and pick attack. I put this into my crappy Line 6 Spider practice amp and it made that sound good. With my 16 watt Class A tube amp – blew me away.
Along with the pickup is are volume and tone knobs that are very responsive to small adjustments. The tone knob has a very wide range of sounds you can get from it. LIke the rest of the guitar, the electronics are high end (CTS linear pots – 500K and I assume a CTS .0047 green capacitor)
This is a terrific instrument – a truly high end pro-quality instrument at a price where the bang for the buck factor is enormous. This thing punches above its weight class. You don’t have to spend $2,000 and up for an all-wood archtop in order to get a high-level instrument. These retail at $1,389 – by comparison, Gibson ES-335s are almost twice that and you’re not getting the quality or service level. For what I play and what I want, this gives me everything I could have asked more if not more. Perfect right out of the case. Now to learn to play the thing.

Finally had a chance to sit down with my new Conti Entrada guitar. After owning several hundred guitars since 1967, I have owned every kind imaginable. Here is my first impression:
The guitar is very well designed and built. Nicely appointed, and the setup was spot on. The sound of this guitar, as with any good guitar is determined by the guitar itself but also what you drive it through. I usually play through a Fender tube amp like the Blues Junior. The sound of the Entrada Conti guitar is well balanced and very sweet, on the warm side. Amazingly sonic unplugged, and one of the best necks I have ever played on. Very light and easy to hold, and easily worth twice the asking price. This guitar reminds me of my Benedetto Bravo without the sticker shock Well done guys, well done.

Yesterday I received my Entrada Guitar in best condition. Thanks for your care and very friendly support along the whole process. I appreciate that a lot, since it is not very common these days. The guitar is very well constructed, very light and resonant. And a real elegant beauty in any case. For my personal taste the action is a little too low, because I play a lot of fingerstyle and am used to a higher action on my steel strings. I add a foto today and will send a short video some days later, when I have the occasion to record something. Again - I´m very satisfied and happy with this purchase. Best regards from southern Germany!

"I played my first gig with my new Conti Entrada last night. Truly a joy to play! The action was right where I expected it to be and the response over the whole fretboard was even. No "hot" or "dead" spots. I would recommend this guitar to anyone! Thanks for your personalized attention!"