---
url: 'https://kalasudha.com/en-int/faq/instruments-artforms/what-should-i-look-for-when-buying-a-student-or-professional-indian-slide'
title: 'What should I look for when buying a student or professional Indian slide guitar?'
author:
  name: rajeevk
  url: 'https://kalasudha.com/en-int/user/fce96177fd193d3a'
date: '2026-10-27T01:07:27+00:00'
updated: '2026-10-28T01:09:16+00:00'
type: website
summary: 'A student Indian slide guitar and a professional one differ most in their strings: a concert instrument adds sympathetic and drone strings to the main strings.'
tags:
  - 'Instruments & artforms'
image: 'https://kalasudha.com/themes/custom/music_agency/assets/icon/logo.svg'
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  site_name: KalaSudha
  'image:url': 'https://kalasudha.com/themes/custom/music_agency/assets/icon/logo.svg'
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  'image:type': image/svg+xml
  'image:alt': KalaSudha
---
 

 FAQ · Instruments & artforms

# What should I look for when buying a student or professional Indian slide guitar?

 Updated 28 October 2026

 

A student Indian slide guitar and a professional one differ most in their strings. An entry instrument plays raga on its main strings alone, and a concert instrument adds sympathetic and drone strings. In a 2020 Premier Guitar lesson, Ryan Lee Crosby suggests a raised nut so the slide clears the frets of an ordinary guitar played on the lap.

KalaSudha sells adapted lap steel and resonator guitars, and specialist instruments with sympathetic strings. We also commission custom concert instruments with sympathetic and drone strings from specialist builders in India. Ask us for a quote, or for one made to order.



 

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## Related pages

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###  Instruments (1) 

- [   Indian Slide Guitar The Indian slide guitar is a lap-held guitar played with a slide and tuned for raga. Brij Bhushan Kabra brought it into raga music, and sympathetic strings…     ](/en-int/instrument/indian-slide-guitar)
 
  

 

 

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