Home • Conti Guitars

If you can find a archtop, buy it.

Play Them From a Roadhouse to the White House.

(without a mortgage on your house)

Breathtaking Design. Maximum Playability.

Savings Opportunity

We are able to offer fully featured Conti Guitars at value pricing as they are only available direct from Conti Guitars. If our guitars were offered through the typical distributor/dealer network, the price would assuredly double, and in some cases actually triple. However, even at our value pricing, the cost may sometimes exceed one’s budget. To that end, we make efforts to discount guitars when certain events allow us to do so. On a random timetable, new guitars are played by Robert or one of his assistants at a variety of events such as:

trade shows,
educational videos, or
selected live performances

Although we exercise great care in handling our instruments, they sometimes incur minor cosmetic surface scratches that are usually imperceptible after buffing. As a matter of common business ethics:

Although demo instruments are essentially still new, we do not return those instruments into inventory as “brand new.”
Although the subject instruments may have been played for only an hour or two, we always advise every potential purchaser of any scratches, nicks, etc.

Making our demo instruments available at a substantial price reduction (when we are able to do so) provides folks an opportunity to acquire a high quality instrument at great savings. These instruments receive the same quality control as new instruments, including a full pre-shipping inspection and set-up, and our signature personalized “owner introduction video” wherein Robert Conti actually plays and introduces you to your new instrument!

Missed this opportunity?

Sunburst Entrada - $977

This instrument was played less than a dozen times, only by Robert, or his assistant guitarist in our video studio. As a demo, it is discounted from $1,149 down 15% to $977.00. That’s a savings of $173.00 off our regular value pricing.

No Middle Men

Your dream archtop at any budget.

We don’t believe you can find a comparable feature rich guitar at this price anywhere.

$ 1149

Laminate Maple Top
Laminate Maple Back & Sides
Wilkinson Imperial Tuners
Maple Neck
24 Fret Ebony Fingerboard
Ebony Pickguard
Kent Armstrong Humbucker
Gotoh TOM or Ebony Bridge
Floating Ebony Bridge Base
Ebony or Gold Finger Tailpiece
Quality Gig Bag (HS Case avail.)

$ 1849

Solid Spruce Top
Solid Maple Back & Sides
Grover Imperial Tuners
Maple Neck
24 Fret Ebony Fingerboard
Ebony Pickguard
Kent Armstrong Humbucker
TonePros TOM or Ebony Bridge
Floating Ebony Bridge Base
Ebony or Gold Finger Tailpiece
Quality Gig Bag (HS Case avail.)

" Three Conti " Club

Dr. Gary C Smith

"I want to thank Robert Conti for his excellent products! The guitars (I have 3! 2 Equity Models and now an Entrada) amps(I have a Henriksen) and the educational materials! I brought my Equity models to a well known guitar technician in Southern California and he said, “I’ve never worked on finer guitars!!. He sets up guitars for all the studio pros in LA. My Entrada came out of the box and played perfectly, as did the 2 Equity models. I have all Conti’s educational materials and am looking forward to more. Thanks again."

Michael Simoni

"Wanted to let you know that I'm excited to be the owner of THREE of your guitars. The Conti Guitars make a great addition to my collection. Played them through all of my jazz amps, and the sound is incredible, no matter which one I played through! Couldn't have asked for anything more - and yes, the wife loves them too!!!"

" Two Conti " Club

Our Worldwide Owners

An instant success in 2009, the Conti is the go-to archtop for players around the world. And like our jazz guitar learning resources, we let our patrons do the talking. Take some time to read comments and see photos from a sampling of elated Conti Guitar owners worldwide. We hope to see your photo here soon!

Jerry with his Conti Entrada Archtop Guitar

This guitar is simply the best!

“Hi, my name is Jerry McKinnon and this is a picture of me with my wonderful Conti Entrada guitar. This guitar is super excellent when it comes to sound, playing ability, and needless to say -appearance. I’ve owned many guitars, but this guitar is simply the best! Thank you Robert Conti for your excellent products. For those of you thinking about getting one, do it. You will be extremely happy.” -Jerry McKinnon – New Braunfels, TX

Joseph Ahmad with his double pickup Conti Heirloom Archtop Jazz Guitar

Each note is tuned to perfection!

“Thank you so much Mr. Conti. I am very excited to start practicing with this guitar and hopefully showing it off at some jazz gigs in the near future. I am very grateful that you were able to personally go over the optimal conditions for the life time health of the instrument as well as the features. I must admit, the guitar sounds and chimes are breathtaking, each note is tuned to perfection! Once I plugged it into my amp and played that first Gma7, I knew right away that this is a “surround sound” instrument. The light reflecting off the gorgeous Antique Sunburst color creates a warm, welcoming atmosphere to the listeners. This is meant to be played in front of a jazz audience, big or small! It feels like I am playing an epic, ancient artifact at times! What an absolute pleasure to explore chords and melodies with this luxurious instrument. You just can’t get a better sound than this. Many thanks to the Robert Conti team for the complimentary video and I will continue to tell it’s legendary tale through YouTube! Thank you once again, and I look forward to continuing my studies of jazz guitar and

Skjalg holding his Conti Heirloom Archtop

It is so easy to play…

“My new Heirloom arrived safely in Norway some days ago and I couldn’t be happier! It is an incredible guitar. It was thoroughly packaged and the support and follow up from Conti Guitars was top notch so I felt in good hands all the way. Also very special to have a personal video from Mr. Conti himself playing and advising about the guitar. The sound is so inspiring and it is so easy to play it is incredible.. Highly recommended!” -Skjalg Reithaug – Norway

Ken Schultz with his Left Handed Conti Entrada

Build quality is perfect…

“Beautiful to look at, and beautiful to play! Today is International Left Handers Day and look what FedEx delivered! My beautiful Port Wine Entrada – Left Handed of course. The sound is just like the looks, beautiful, clear and crisp, even without an amp. It arrived earlier today and I can’t stop playing it. The build quality is perfect and the Port Wine finish is exquisite. The entire Robert Conti company is so customer/player oriented, it is a pleasure to do business with them. They called when they received the order, and once it was delivered to be sure everything arrived in perfect condition, which it did. The video of Robert holding my Entrada (and playing a right handed identical model) was great.” -Ken Schultz – Frederick, Maryland

Philippe with his Conti Entrada Archtop Guitar

Passion more than business…

Comments on Pre-Ship Video https://youtu.be/neBbjQk_m5Y A big thank you for this very long video for my new guitar. What a pleasure to see you play it. Thanks also for all your very detailed explanations. I see that your passion is really intact and it confirms to me that I made the right choice. Fedex announces a delivery next Monday in the evening and I can not wait to receive it. I would love to record a video clip in response to your attention, as well as some pictures. Another big thank you and especially for your final medley in tribute to this French music that you like (I also like Francis Lai and Michel Legrand who left us recently). See you soon, I’ll have fun with this guitar, I’m sure! Wishing you the best for the future! Comments After Receipt of Entrada Hi Robert and Steve, thank you very much for your great and very kind attention. The guitar arrived in perfect condition. No trace of a scratch. The sound is really good, I’m even more surprised by the semi-acoustic sound of the instrument. Note that I wanted an Entrada and not a Heirloom, because I wanted a guitar with

Larry Zumwalt with Conti Heirloom Archtop Guitar

I Love This Guitar!

Happy 4th of July 2019 to all of you Conti Guitar players from an El Dorado County California Combat Infantry Veteran! I call my new baby My Little Blonde. She will never sound as good as she did when Mr. Conti played her and sent me my video, but I’ll give her my best effort as she is my main axe from now on. She plays like butter and the pickups sound fantastic. I am not a real jazzer, so I needed the two-pickup model for my vocal backup and solo act. I play a variety of clean old jazz standards like Ain’t Misbehavin, Country, Country Rock, Rockabilly and Classic Rock and Roll. I needed a clean jazz guitar going direct into the amp along with the ability to get the other sounds when jamming or gigging with others. I’m mostly into chords and rhythm for backing up my vocals but I can play some lead when called upon. The Conti Heirloom fulfills all of my wishes. It is a joy to play and I have sidelined all my other guitars for now! On a side note, my friend Tom ordered an Entrada the day after I let him play

This guitar is simply the best!

October 10, 2019

Each note is tuned to perfection!

September 29, 2019

It is so easy to play…

September 3, 2019

Build quality is perfect…

August 13, 2019

Passion more than business…

July 29, 2019

Set Up To Stringent Specifications

When you’re Robert Conti, you play a lot of notes.
When you play a lot of notes, you need a neck that plays like butter.
When you need a neck that plays like butter, you better have a good luthier.

Prior to shipment, every Conti Guitar is scrutinized by a highly qualified luthier with 30+ years of experience. Each instrument is set up to Robert’s specifications and fully inspected.

Personalized Pre-Shipping Video Intro

As an integral part of our First Class Owner Service, before your guitar is shipped, you will receive a personalized high quality video, wherein Robert Conti plays and introduces you to your new guitar – a truly, memorable and unparalleled service in the guitar industry.

Only The Most Desirable Features

We introduced the first generation Conti Guitar to be the most affordable, feature rich archtop on the market. However, we certainly understand that the solid wood model may still be out of reach for some aspiring jazz guitar students. As such, the laminate model is by no means stripped down. See info below for what we believe are the most important features that you’ll find on both the solid and laminate models.

(Mouse over images for info)

Ebony Fingerboard

Not only richer looking, but feels great under the fingers allowing you to execute those burnin' Conti lines with precision and ease.

MOP & Real Abalone

The colorful luster of the inlays contrast beautifully with the bold ebony fingerboard. Don't settle for a plain, unattractive guitar when you can have a well dressed instrument sure to impress any audience.

Output Jack Placement

Logically positioned output jack 4" from end pin. This saves your pants from fraying when you're playing in a sitting position.

Shallow Florentine Cutaway

What good are 24 frets if the cutaway hinders you from accessing the entire fingerboard? If you've seen Conti perform, you know he makes use of each and every one of those 24 frets - so now can you.

Low Playing Action

You don’t want your axe fighting you with every note you play. The long slim neck on all Conti Guitars allows the lowest action possible, which creates that “plays like butter" feel for hours of playing enjoyment without fatigue.

Preferred Gauge Strings

Having played jazz guitar for 5+ decades, you can imagine that Conti has tried every string that exists. While strings are a personal preference, we believe you’ll enjoy the balance achieved by his pre-configured gauges.

The Journey

Through the course of many prior years, numerous guitarists have solicited my advice on how to find a great sounding jazz guitar with excellent playability at an affordable price. I’ve observed many aspiring jazz guitarists who have unknowingly limited their potential by playing an inferior instrument, almost always due to the constraint of high prices. On the other hand, I have also seen dramatic improvements in skill levels even when entry level guitarists begin using a quality instrument that is set-up to play easily. In 2006. . .