Hello,
I’m new to Bachido and mostly in a “lurking” phase as I don’t own a shamisen yet. It’s my hope that I will be able to purchase one later this summer but for now I’m reading through Kyle’s book and fantasizing about the different models currently available in the Bachido store. (A Made-in-Santa-Cruz shamisen is on the way, yes?)
Now seems as good a time as any to ask members who own or have owned multiple shamisen from Bachido, which do you like best? and why?
Hello MMXIX: I will be obliged to help in any way that I can. Firstly, if you are just beginning to play Shamisen, I would recommend the beginners Shamisen located in the Bachido store. This is how I began playing, and gradually upgraded to a Tsugaru style. The difference with the beginners Shamisen is the following: The neck is thinner, The dou is smaller, the itomaki are not as big, and the skin is thinner.(It cannot withstand the hard pressure of tsugaru playing.) The style of this Shamisen is the Naguta style. I personally believe this is great for beginning because it is so easy and simple to get started. The setup is relatively very easy and fun also. As you progress, you may wish to upgrade, but for now I think you should go with the beginners. Glad to be of any help! 
-Connor
Thank you for your reply!
I am not well versed in the differences between Naguta and Tsugaru style, but count on the Bachido community to help educate me:
The Beginner’s Shamisen is now on my radar. 
You mentioned moving on to Tsugaru style, may I ask which shamisen you play now?
Hello MMXIX, I’m glad to see that I could be of help. That topic I posted was from almost 2 years ago. As you can see, I used to have a Naguta style Shamisen. Since then I have Progressed to the Tsugaru style. Now you ask: “What is the difference with Naguta and Tsugaru style?” Well I’d be obliged to tell you. Firstly, Naguta is an older version of the Shamisen. They mainly used them for geisha and kabuki theaters. The neck of the Naguta style is thinner than Tsugaru style, and the body (Dou) Is smaller than Tsugaru. The Skin (Kawa) is thinner and looser than Naguta, thus creating a more mellow/hollow sound. The tuning pegs (Itomaki) are smaller than Tsugaru style which gives it’s distinctive look. Here are some videos for you to see how different they look and sound. Enjoy! 
(Naguta)= Nagauta Shamisen (using Ripple) Ogie-bushi Yashima | 長唄三味線（リプル張り） 荻江節 八島 - YouTube (Tsugaru)= Tsugaru Shamisen (using Ripple) - Tsugaru Jongara-bushi Kyokubiki - 津軽三味線（リプル張り） 津軽じょんがら節曲弾 - YouTube (If you ever have any questions at all, feel free to ask me)
I bought the beginner nagauta from Bushido and I’m happy as a complete beginner with it ( with no musical instrument background) as my skills increase and maybe when I go back to Japan In near future I’ll get a big boy Tsugaru .lol …but for now I’m happy with learning all about shamisen with my naugauta