CF tone

I believe that there is a myth about Cf tone that is no longer true. In the early years, CF guitars were chime-like and somewhat metallic. That was accepted by players in hot, cold, and humid environments as a reasonable sacrifice. Other players liked the different sound and found it to be a diverse voice in the mix.

All of that has changed. Contemporary CF steel string guitars represent years of R & D by a variety of luthiers and the results have been instruments that I think rival the tonal qualities of wooden steel string guitars. My suspicion is that a blind test of cf and wooden guitars would, as often as not, come out as a wash.

As a nylon string player I have not experienced the claim of chime-like tonal qualities in CF instruments. Nylon strings make a big difference. More importantly, shrewd manipulation of the medium and build have pretty much erased the difference between the tonal qualities of wooden and cf nylon string instruments.

I base that judgment, in part, on Blackbird's Rider nylon and the Super OMN. As small as it is, the Rider competes well, in tonal and projection qualities, with a classical guitar. The larger Super OMN is right there.

My judgment is also based on my experience with Emerald Guitars. My X10N and X20-OSN easily matched the dulcet tones of a classical nylon string guitar.
That judgment is further supported by Rainsong's nylon string Parlor.

And so, I think the myth is over. True, there is a wide variety of tonal quality available in cf guitars, but I think that variety is not much different than that found in wooden instruments. That's what I believe.

[Acousticado]

Hard to argue with that!

[J.R. Rogers]

Agreed. Hard to argue with that. I've followed CF with interest ever since meeting Ellis Seal of Composite Acoustics. I have one of their earlier X models which is the thin body and I spent a lot of time with this guitar. Plugged in, it sounded great with the L.R. Baggs pickup and I'm not sure that anyone could tell the difference between the CF and a wood guitar with the same pickup configuration. I hope that in the future we'll see more of this material being used in traditional acoustic guitar construction to solve some of the inherent problems. (I have some ideas and may commission something unique... )

[Alistair Hay]

Originally Posted by J.R. Rogers

Agreed. Hard to argue with that. I've followed CF with interest ever since meeting Ellis Seal of Composite Acoustics. I have one of their earlier X models which is the thin body and I spent a lot of time with this guitar. Plugged in, it sounded great with the L.R. Baggs pickup and I'm not sure that anyone could tell the difference between the CF and a wood guitar with the same pickup configuration. I hope that in the future we'll see more of this material being used in traditional acoustic guitar construction to solve some of the inherent problems. (I have some ideas and may commission something unique... )

You know where to go for unique commissions.

[Ted @ LA Guitar Sales]

Originally Posted by EvanB

I believe that there is a myth about Cf tone that is no longer true. In the early years, CF guitars were chime-like and somewhat metallic. That was accepted by players in hot, cold, and humid environments as a reasonable sacrifice. Other players liked the different sound and found it to be a diverse voice in the mix.

All of that has changed. Contemporary CF steel string guitars represent years of R & D by a variety of luthiers and the results have been instruments that I think rival the tonal qualities of wooden steel string guitars. My suspicion is that a blind test of cf and wooden guitars would, as often as not, come out as a wash.

As a nylon string player I have not experienced the claim of chime-like tonal qualities in CF instruments. Nylon strings make a big difference. More importantly, shrewd manipulation of the medium and build have pretty much erased the difference between the tonal qualities of wooden and cf nylon string instruments...

Certainly the signature, bright CF sound will be mellowed by the use of nylon strings, but I do agree that CF builders have come a long way to leveling the tonal playing field with new materials and voicings. Good time to be interested in CF guitars.

[RBHuckleberry]

Well, I gotta say...


I used to think of myself as a traditionalist. I love mahogany. My three main electrics are set neck mahogany instruments (one with a flame maple top). I love the sound of wood.

Then I met the Rainsong Black Ice-WS1000N2.

Does it boom like a mahogany Dreadnaught? No? Does it have a balanced, pleasant sound that talks tough when you lean into it? Yep.

Does it have the best plugged in sound I have ever heard (I HATE built in electronics as a rule)? Yep.

Is it EXCEPTIONALLY playable? Yep.

I'm so sold on CF, it's not funny. I can't keep my hands off this thing...

[Finger Stylish]

Originally Posted by RBHuckleberry

Well, I gotta say...


I used to think of myself as a traditionalist. I love mahogany. My three main electrics are set neck mahogany instruments (one with a flame maple top). I love the sound of wood.

Then I met the Rainsong Black Ice-WS1000N2.

Does it boom like a mahogany Dreadnaught? No? Does it have a balanced, pleasant sound that talks tough when you lean into it? Yep.

Does it have the best plugged in sound I have ever heard (I HATE built in electronics as a rule)? Yep.

Is it EXCEPTIONALLY playable? Yep.

I'm so sold on CF, it's not funny. I can't keep my hands off this thing...

Love the witness!