Playability of Emerald X5 Life

[DavidE]

Im on vacation with my X05 Life again. This time with a working pickup and Yamaha THR acoustic amp. Unfortunately, I find the guitar difficult to play. The tension with 12s is very high, so Im using 11s. Even then the strings feel stiff. The saddle is as low as it can possibly go yet the action is a bit high. A friend tried it recently and without any prompting from said "the action is a bit high, but it's very cool."

Anyone else with this experience? I understand theres no way to adjust the neck and the nut looks pretty perfect. Ill check with Emerald, but can the guitar be heated and the neck angle changed or something? Or is it just what it is? Do they all have higher action and string tension?

Thanks

[ac]

Isn't the X5 Life one of the very earliest versions Emerald produced, maybe the earliest?

Did you buy it new or used?

If I recall, as a new startup, Emerald bought it's necks from Parker, so maybe it is bolted on and can be adjusted or changed.

Now, of course, Emerald makes the neck and body as one piece and does not outsource anything.

It's definitely a question worth an email to Emerald.

[Acousticado]

Also, Emerald now installs titanium truss rods in its guitars.

Yes, Alistair is a very helpful and responsive guy. Email him.

[sam.spoons]

For some reason my X7 Artisan feels quite 'stiff' to play, despite the shorter scale length and 11s fitted. A small truss rod adjustment has lowered the action slightly but it was fairly low as stock with the factory fitted 12s. The only explanation I can think of is that the shorter distance between the nut and machine heads makes the strings more resistant to fretting as you are making a bigger percentage increase in string length than if the non-sounding part of the string was longer. That may me complete rubbish but there must be something 'cos it's definitely harder to fret the strings than my conventional acoustic. Maybe the slightly fatter neck or the extra next stiffness plays a part too.....

However you look at it it's still not hard to play and, fortunately, sounds great with light strings.

[DavidE]

Originally Posted by sam.spoons

For some reason my X7 Artisan feels quite 'stiff' to play, despite the shorter scale length and 11s fitted. A small truss rod adjustment has lowered the action slightly but it was fairly low as stock with the factory fitted 12s. The only explanation I can think of is that the shorter distance between the nut and machine heads makes the strings more resistant to fretting as you are making a bigger percentage increase in string length than if the non-sounding part of the string was longer. That may me complete rubbish but there must be something 'cos it's definitely harder to fret the strings than my conventional acoustic. Maybe the slightly fatter neck or the extra next stiffness plays a part too.....

However you look at it it's still not hard to play and, fortunately, sounds great with light strings.

Mine has a full scale neck, something I prefer over the newer models. Interesting thought on the headstock and total string length. I don't know if that would have anything to do with it.


Alistair was awesome when I had the issue with the pickup. I will get back in touch with him but wanted to see if there were others with the same experience etc... If it's normal for the guitar, so be it but I would think the action should be lower.

[sam.spoons]

Obviously I can't comment on your guitar but I definitely feel that my X7 is harder to fret than with my tonewood guitars (a 1981 Brian Eastwood Custom and a 2010 Rob Aylward Selmer Style) The BE has 11s fitted and a 24⅝" scale and the the RA 10s and a 26½" scale. What leads me to this conclusion is that my previous Selmer style (a Gitane DG255) was fitted with 11's but felt easier to lay than my Brian Eastwood despite it's longer 26½" scale. All my guitars have a similar low action but the Selmers have a tailpiece whereas the Eastwood has a pin bridge. I suspect the difference in string tension (or perceived string tension) between them is due to the extra 'non-sounding' string length the tailpiece introduces to the equation. Either way the Selmer style guitars feel easier to play than my Eastwood, a conventional pin bridge flattop. By the same theory, the shorter nut to tuner length should make the X7 stiffer than a similar scale length guitar with a larger head. OTOH I do feel the extra 'apparent' tension is rather more than I would have expected, especially when the shorter 24" scale is taken into consideration.

[penny]

I have an Emerald T8 and have struggled with the action feeling 'stiff'. It is definitely harder to play than my Larrivee Parlor and my CA CArgo which are both short scale, and even my long scale 000 Martin. I've had it setup twice. I recently tweaked the trussrod a bit myself and gone back to light strings (Martin Retro) and that has made a huge difference. Easier to play but no buzzing.

[Purfle Haze]

Originally Posted by sam.spoons

The only explanation I can think of is that the shorter distance between the nut and machine heads makes the strings more resistant to fretting as you are making a bigger percentage increase in string length than if the non-sounding part of the string was longer.

I have had an opposite experience. On my guitar with a shorter-than-standard scale of 24.5", light strings have less tension than they do on a fule 25.4 scale. I have moved to mediums, which don't seem as flabby as the lights.

Might your nut slots need adjustment to be lower?

[sam.spoons]

Originally Posted by Purfle Haze

I have had an opposite experience. On my guitar with a shorter-than-standard scale of 24.5", light strings have less tension than they do on a fule 25.4 scale. I have moved to mediums, which don't seem as flabby as the lights.

Might your nut slots need adjustment to be lower?

On two near identical guitars one with a 25½" scale (Martin D) and the other with 24¾" (many Gibsons), and assuming similar setups, the longer scale will feel harder to play as string tension must be higher to achieve the same pitch. For some reason my Gitane DG255 (26½" scale, fitted with .011"s) felt easier to fret and bend strings than my Brian Eastwood Custom (24¾" .0011"s) despite the string tension necessarily being higher. My Eastwood has always been set up for best playability as was the Gitane. I would have expected the Gitane to be noticeably harder than the Eastwood but it wasn't. It's accepted that playing a Strat 'upside down' Hendrix style (i.e. a RH guitar played left handed) changes the playing dynamos as the longest non-sounding string length is on the low E rather than, as on a RH Strat played RH, the high E. From that I surmised that the non-sounding part of the string must affect the feel of the sounding part. As the Gitane has a tailpiece there is a considerable length of non-sounding string behind the bridge compared to the Eastwood's pin bridge. It's harder to experiment now as I have sold the Gitane and my Rob Aylward Selmer is set up for .010s. while the Eastwood and Emerald both have .011"s fitted.

I will pay some attention to the nut slots though (I'm fairly sure they're good but maybe a second opinion from my luthier mate.....). Playing with a capo at I is a good way to take the effect of nut hight out of the equation. I'll try comparing the three guitars that way and also check action hights to make it all a bit more scientific. Will report back......

[ac]

My X7 was set up by Emerald and it's like playing an electric it's so easy to play. The only guitar I've had that was close to this playability was my Olson. The X7 actually plays easier.

You need someone who knows how to do a full set up for you. It will be like a different guitar--especially easy because of the 24 inch scale.

I have no buzzing at all with lights.

It's a great guitar.

[sam.spoons]

Don't get me wrong ac, I love the X7 but, as I bought new, it was as set up by Emerald. The neck is pretty much flat (virtually no relief) the frets seem good, not in need of dressing, and the action is pretty low. It doesn't play like my electrics, never will unless I fit a set of .010s with a plain third. Also the neck is a tad meatier than my electrics. It plays very well for an acoustic but requires more effort than a Strat or Les Paul, and that's how it should be. All my guitars are different, all have their qualities and idiosyncrasies, they sound and feel different and shine in different areas. My curiosity leads me to want to know why the X7 feels different in the way it does, logic suggests it should have a lighter action than my longer scale instruments (at least when fitted with the same string gauges) but it actually has a heavier one.

I've tried it with a capo and also gauged the nut hight and it's is pretty much perfectly cut.

[sam.spoons]

My luthier mate confirms what I had guessed (and explained the physics behind it). If the string tension was equal (say you had heavier strings or were tuned to a higher pitch) a shorter scale length will be harder to fret than a longer scale length. Imagine apiece of bamboo rested across two supports 24" apart and imagine pressing down on the middle, now move the supports to 6" apart and do the same. The stiffness of the bamboo represents the string tension, and it doesn't change when you move the supports closer. So, a shorter scale length with the same strings will have a lower tension than a longer SL for the same strings and tuning but the stiffer feel of the shorter length will go some way to compensate. The non-sounding length also affects this feel, take two guitars, identical except one with and t'other without a tailpiece, the guitar with the tailpiece will feel softer to play. Thinking of the string as a spring, on the longer guitar with a tailpiece and large headstock (my Gitane) the movement required to fret a string causes much less change of length of the spring than on the very short X7. So it's not surprising that my X7 feels 'stiffer' than my longer scale guitars.

When it comes to string bending though it's the change of tension that causes the change of pitch so it all sort of balances out, the longer scale/overall length of string needs more deflection to achieve the same change in tension so the short scale feels easier to bend (I strung a uke up with steel strings, t'was a cheap telecaster shape and I had a daft notion of doing Ukelele Quo. It bent way out of tune just fretting the strings...... hopeless. Then they pulled the bridge off ).

Anyway, going back to the OP, your X05 life has a standard 25½" scale length but it has a very short nut to tuner distance (i.e. a very compact headstock) and that will make it feel 'stiffer' than a guitar with a normal length headstock. Have you tried .010s these guitars sound good with light stings, the change from .012s to .011s didn't compromise the sound at all as far as I can tell so I'm considering .010s for my X7 when I next change strings

[ac]

I'm missing something. Less tension, all other things begin equal, should be easier to play than greater tension. There are countless threads here at AGF of players switching to shorter scale guitars and immediately noticing there is less effort needed to fret and play and loving the short scale especially for that reason.

But from what I'm reading above, I'm hearing the opposite.

Since physics dictates there is less tension with short scale when tuned to the same pitch, I can only assume there might be something about the neck shape, or a difference in the way you are holding the body of the much smaller X7 that changes your arm/hand position and makes fretting physically more difficult in that way. That's my best guess.

BTW, mine was also ordered from Emerald direct, but I specified what my setup preferences were in advance as I pretty much only use fingers so my action is just about as low as is possible on an acoustic. With a pick, I'd definitely need it much higher. I couldn't ask for a better setup that's why I suggested having someone else take a look--but I assumed you didn't specify your action prefs.

If your setup wasn't specified, most builders, and I assume Emerald also, will set the action a bit high to accommodate those pick players who have a strong attack. A higher action is the safe way to send out a guitar if the player's style isn't known. A lower action for someone with a hard attack would be upsetting because the combination with a low action would produce buzzing.

[DavidE]

I did hear back promptly from Alistair. As the saddle is as liw as it can go, i cant bring the action down further which is disappointing. I'm sure others would find it to be low enough, but I'd like it lower. I am going to try 10s on it. I have a set with me on vacation. Too bad I forgot my string cutter!

[Doubleneck]

The

Originally Posted by sam.spoons

My luthier mate confirms what I had guessed (and explained the physics behind it). If the string tension was equal (say you had heavier strings or were tuned to a higher pitch) a shorter scale length will be harder to fret than a longer scale length. Imagine apiece of bamboo rested across two supports 24" apart and imagine pressing down on the middle, now move the supports to 6" apart and do the same. The stiffness of the bamboo represents the string tension, and it doesn't change when you move the supports closer. So, a shorter scale length with the same strings will have a lower tension than a longer SL for the same strings and tuning but the stiffer feel of the shorter length will go some way to compensate. The non-sounding length also affects this feel, take two guitars, identical except one with and t'other without a tailpiece, the guitar with the tailpiece will feel softer to play. Thinking of the string as a spring, on the longer guitar with a tailpiece and large headstock (my Gitane) the movement required to fret a string causes much less change of length of the spring than on the very short X7. So it's not surprising that my X7 feels 'stiffer' than my longer scale guitars.

When it comes to string bending though it's the change of tension that causes the change of pitch so it all sort of balances out, the longer scale/overall length of string needs more deflection to achieve the same change in tension so the short scale feels easier to bend (I strung a uke up with steel strings, t'was a cheap telecaster shape and I had a daft notion of doing Ukelele Quo. It bent way out of tune just fretting the strings...... hopeless. Then they pulled the bridge off ).

Anyway, going back to the OP, your X05 life has a standard 25½" scale length but it has a very short nut to tuner distance (i.e. a very compact headstock) and that will make it feel 'stiffer' than a guitar with a normal length headstock. Have you tried .010s these guitars sound good with light stings, the change from .012s to .011s didn't compromise the sound at all as far as I can tell so I'm considering .010s for my X7 when I next change strings

The X05 has a 24" scale length. The nut and saddle provide the axis for the string tension any length beyond would be irrelevant. If you have "say a low "E" open note" on the 6th string of a guitar with a 24 inch scale with the same strings it will be easier to push down than a scale length of 25.5. That is just physics. If it is not compared to your longer scale length guitar, your set up is better. That can be nut depth relief or saddle height. You would need to compare each with your shorter length guitar and see where the setup is lacking