Fame Santos Deluxe

The Fame Koa Deluxe in the test report of "Guitar Acoustic".

Excerpt: With the Koa Deluxe and the Santos Deluxe Fame present two acoustic guitars with an exotic look. Especially the Santos rosewood body of the Santos Deluxe gives the guitar an extravagant look with wow effect. However, since the appearance of both koa and santos rosewood is very individual, one cannot infer the entirety of a guitar from its appearance. Both guitar models come with deluxe features such as full solid woods of high quality, armrest, elaborate fingerboard inlay, fancy tuners and Fishman pickup system. That's way more than you'd expect at a sub-$1,000 price point. As different as they look, as different the two sisters sound. While the Koa has a warmer, fuller sound, the Santos sounds leaner and brighter. Amplified, both can be used in a band context as well as a solo instrument. The Koa Deluxe comes in a sturdy, chic case, as well as a soundhole humidifier, which makes the guitar's woods happy. A case can be ordered as an option with the Santos Deluxe. So, let's go to the guitar test in Cologne - or by delivery directly to your home!

Download the complete Fame Koa Deluxe review from Guitar Acoustic 03/21 here for free!

Finest woods for an incomparable sound experience

Due to its light spruce top made of AAA-grade, the acoustic guitar produces a clear sound that is very strong in the mid and treble frequencies and has a long-lasting finish in the overtones. A multi-layered binding of padauk and maple borders the fine-grained top wood and forms a perfect transition to the dark body of santos rosewood, which enriches the sound with powerful bass frequencies. A noble high-gloss finish also allows a deep insight into the coarse grain of the body wood and emphasizes the contrasting color play of the striking inclusions and lines.

Functionality, versatility and quality

Due to its medium sized Grand Auditorium design the Fame Santos Deluxe is suitable for powerful strummings as well as for delicate pickings and offers the player an extremely comfortable handling with the help of an elaborately manufactured armrest. The gold Fame 334MDM tuners also highlight the quality of the guitar and allow for easy and clean tuning due to their 1:18 ratio. A finely notched bone nut with 43 mm width in combination with a corresponding saddle ensures clean intonation over the entire scale length of 650 mm.

The love is in the detail

One of the biggest highlights of the Fame Santos Deluxe is the wooden Island Vine inlay, which extends over the entire fretboard and with its fine vines forms a tasteful contrast to the dark ebony. The headstock is decorated with a fine floral motif, which harmonizes perfectly with the golden tuners and the manufacturer's logo, thus emphasizing the instrument's value in a discreet way. The entire work is rounded off by an eye-catching abalone soundhole rosette and ebony bridge pins with abalone dots.