I asked Thomann staff for a recommendation for a 7/8 guitar with plenty of bass resonance and low action. This brand was mentioned, and I chose this model, La Mancha Rubinito CM63, for its full width neck.
Its quiet good looks are inviting, and the body speaks volumes. For an intermediate player with a bad back and dodgy shoulders, this instrument is wonderful. The balance between the strings is excellent. The comfortable finger board and the resonant body render the strings responsive to various sorts of playing, from the lyrical to the brash. Glissando and vibrato work well. Trills and other ornamentations can be executed properly and heard clearly. I sense that the instrument would yield subtleties of tone and dynamics beyond my skills. Certainly a gifted young player would find rewards enough for his or her efforts on this guitar.
A minor qualification of the praise: perhaps the strings could be lowered just a little by shaving something off the bridge to make barre chords on the higher frets a bit easier to hold.
For anyone who finds a full concert size instrument difficult to manage, and is looking for a guitar with masses of playing potential at a reasonable price, then La Mancha Rubinito CM63 is well worth considering. If you want a narrower neck, then there are other models in the range that should share the CM63's superb qualities of sound and playability.
