Ventura Guitar Review: 2023 Edition

If you’re looking for a Ventura guitar review or are wanting to learn more about this rare guitar brand, you’ve come to the right post!

Ventura Guitar Review: Background

I wouldn’t say that they’re completely shrouded in mystery. But there are certainly some things that we don’t know about Ventura guitars. After all, they’re not exactly the most mainstream brand. And all the info that we have on them isn’t entirely confirmed.

Ventura worked during the 1960s and the 1970s. Many refer to them as a Japanese brand. Although their instruments were made in Japan, C. Bruno & Sons distributed them in the US. The brand worked up until the early 1980s. It’s not totally clear why they stopped.

Kaman Music Corporation, a Japanese company that still owns Ovation to this day, was the owner of the Ventura brand. And, at that point, they also owned C. Bruno & Sons.

But the info on this is scarce. It all ultimately leads to one source. What we know with certainty, however, is that C. Bruno & Sons was an older company. And I’m talking really old, starting in the 1830s.

Essentially, Ventura was one of those Gibson and Fender knock-off brands from the 1970s. Ibanez used to be in the same basket but later moved on to make its own stuff.

For the most part, Ventura had solid-body electric guitars. But they also had plenty of acoustic guitars. There were also electric bass guitars as well as banjos and mandolins.

Buying Ventura Guitars: What You Should Bear in Mind

Don’t get me wrong, these instruments aren’t bad. In fact, they’re pretty decent for knock-offs from the 1970s. But what may be an issue is that some sellers overrate them.

There are usually a lot of name-drop attempts. Online ads mention how this particular model was manufactured in Ibanez factories. Or, more precisely, factories that worked for the Ibanez brand.

This may be true to some extent. Some of the Fender copies may have come out of these factories. The same goes for some of the hollow-body models.

If you plan on buying them, just be careful. They’re far from a bad choice. But some can get pricy for no apparent reason. 

Line of Products

So with this in mind, let’s take a look at some of their products. We can’t really mention all models as there are no concrete records of all of them. But we can take a closer look at some of them.

Electric Guitars

Ventura had some pretty awesome Les Paul copies. For instance, there’s the Alpha Omega model that’s like an LP Special. In fact, it’s probably the closest to Gibson’s The Paul model. The only difference is that it came with a bolt-on neck.

And, to my knowledge, all of their electric guitar models had bolt-on necks. Even the copies of ES-335 had bolt-on necks.

They also had some pretty interesting SG copies. For instance, the V-1005 model came with some unusual yet awesome features. It even had binding on the fretboard. And, what’s more, the fretboard edges were rounded out at the top fret.

However, in my opinion, Fender Stratocaster copies were better. Since Ventura already focused on bolt-on necks, they were better at copying Strats. V-1006 is a fine example. It even came with some interesting natural finish options that looked incredible.

There have been plenty of other copies. This also includes V-style guitars. However, there’s hardly any info on these available online. And other than conventional LP, SG, and Strat copies, you’ll have a hard time finding anything else.

Acoustic Guitars

For the most part, Ventura’s acoustic line had dreadnaught-style models. There have been some nylon-string models as well. One such example is the V-1600F which is a flamenco guitar.

The V-6 model is your average dreadnaught guitar. In my experience, they are actually pretty decent. But, on the other hand, it’s nothing super incredible or unique. It’s just your standard acoustic steel-string guitar.

I could say that about pretty much all of their acoustic guitars. Sure, there are some 12-strings, and there are models that collectors will like. They’re good but they’re not worth obsessing about.

Ventura Guitar Review: Are They Worth It?

Generally speaking, they’re not bad. However, it’s hard to make a judgment since they’re somewhat rare. Additionally, the company had a lot of different guitars to offer. And it’s not like you’ll have a super consistent experience with all the models.

But, in general, I think that they’re all pretty decent guitars. Some of them were comparable to Fenders of the 1970s.

At the same time, some of them can be overpriced. As I mentioned, sellers like to beef up the price with unconfirmed manufacturer information. If these instruments are a few hundred dollars, then it’s okay. But if you see an ad showing an instrument going for $1000 or even more, that price is hard to justify.

As I already mentioned, for the most part, these are pretty ordinary guitars. Sure, some of them might have sentimental value. And some particular models may have historical value. After all, they’re the part of the so-called lawsuit guitars which were so widespread back in the day. But if you’re looking for a good functional guitar, I think you can get a better deal with some cheaper brands today.  

Ventura Guitar Review: Conclusion

I hope this article has helped you get a better sense of this guitar brand and Ventura guitars’ strengths and weaknesses.

And if you want to read more about guitar brands on this site, check out:

• Martin Vs Taylor: Which Brand is Better
• Larrivee Vs Martin: Which Brand is Better
• Seagull Vs Breedlove: Which Brand is Better

Lastly, feel free to message me in the comments below if you have questions about this or another guitar-related topic!