Collection: Alvarez

About Alvarez

Alvarez has built acoustic guitars since 1965 and is owned by St. Louis Music in St. Louis, Missouri. The line runs from the Regent student models up to the Yairi guitars handmade in Japan, and every series shares the same design ideas: the FS6 forward-shifted scalloped bracing, a bi-level bridge and solid tops graded by the Alvarez team. In Canada Alvarez comes through SFM, so the stock listed here ships from their Montreal warehouse within a couple of business days.

Regent and Artist Series

Regent is the entry point: the RD26 dreadnought, RF26 folk/OM and RC26 classical, all with a gig bag included, plus the RS26 student guitars, the RT26 travel guitar and two accessory packs. Artist Series is the solid-top range and the widest part of the catalogue. The AD, AF and AG models cover dreadnought, folk/OM and grand auditorium bodies, the AJ80CE is the jumbo, the AP66 and AP70 are parlors, and the ABT60 baritones and AB60CE acoustic bass round out the shapes. Most come in cutaway acoustic-electric versions, in Natural, Shadowburst or Black, and a few in 12-string or 8-string form. The Delta 00 and Delta DeLite are the small-body blues guitars, and the ALJ2 Little Jumbo is the travel model.

Artist Elite and Masterworks

Artist Elite adds an armrest bevel and upgraded appointments to the Artist platform, on dreadnought, grand auditorium, baritone and bass bodies. Masterworks is the all-solid-wood series: MD dreadnoughts, MF folk/OMs, MG grand auditoriums and MP parlors, several with herringbone trim, and each ships in the AFC30 FlexiCase. The MDR70 is the round-shoulder dreadnought, the MG66CE and MG70CE Custom add an armrest, and the MF70 60th Diamond models are the limited anniversary OMs with abalone diamond inlays. The Masterworks MU55 ukuleles are built from solid bamboo.

Laureate Series

Laureate is the traditional, bench-made series. The LD dreadnoughts, LF folk/OMs, LP parlors and LT 12-fret 000s use hand-selected Sitka tops, ebony bridges and fingerboards, blue abalone inlays, a single-level bridge and hand-sanded FS6 bracing. Every Laureate here is acoustic-electric with an LR Baggs pickup and comes with the AFC30 FlexiCase. Finishes are Natural, Sunset and Daybreak.

Yairi

The Yairi guitars are made in Japan. The DYM, FYM, GYM and PYM Masterworks models are dreadnought, folk/OM, grand auditorium and parlor bodies with a hardshell case, and the HD versions use Honduran mahogany. The CYM75 is the Yairi classical, the DY1 and WY1 are the Stage models, the YB70 is the Yairi baritone, and the DYMRJP is the round-shoulder dreadnought built with JP Cormier.

Ukuleles

Alvarez ukuleles use a dovetail neck joint and a slotted rosewood bridge. The Regent RU22 and RU26 series cover soprano, concert, tenor and baritone sizes in mahogany or spruce, with cutaway pickup versions and the RU22CP and RU90CP packs. The Artist AU70 and AU90 lines step up to spruce and acacia tops, the AU66 models come in Shadowburst, and the AU60E is the bass ukulele.

Shop Alvarez at Blackout Audio

Orders over $199 ship free on most items across Canada, and in-stock models leave SFM's Montreal warehouse within a couple of business days. If you are deciding between two body shapes or two series, contact the team and we will tell you which one suits your playing.