Emerald Artisan vs McPherson Kevin Micheal Sable

[Transylvania]

Wondering if anyone has had the opportunity to play both of these models, and I'm speaking of the larger sized McPherson. Probably a long shot, but interested in hearing your thoughts.

[jdinco]

You should post this over in the Carbon Fiber section, you should get a lot of responses, I think this has been discussed before.....so (I hate to say it) a search may get you fast answers.

I have an Emerald X20, but know little about the Sable.

[Acousticado]

You may also want to post this question in the Carbon Fiber subforum where there's most of the discussion and familiarity.

When you refer to Emerald Artisan, rather than being a particular model of Emerald, "Artisan" is a series of guitars with high gloss, various weave colors and other options, some custom, vs. the Opus series which tends to be only offered in black weave with textured ("Crystal Ice") finish on the back and sides. There are a number of models including the Synergy Harp Guitar and Chimaera doubleneck, but Emerald's main six stringers are the X20 (full-size) and X7 (travel size), although custom versions are possible (e.g. 7 strings).

As for the McPherson Sable, they've dropped the "Kevin Michael" moniker. The only Emerald to compare to this is the X20, which you may have meant without actually specifying.

You're correct, it is going to be a long shot for any AGFer to have experience with both. I can say that the Sable seems to be more scarce in players hands, perhaps in part because it is a lot more expensive than the X20 (maybe aligning with wood McPhersons in price point, but I'm just guessing). It's not a question of quality, playability or tone, because each will have its own uniqueness. I can say that the X20 gets a lot of love among members. Owners of the Sable seem to quite like it.

Hope this helps.

[Transylvania]

Originally Posted by Acousticado

You may also want to post this question in the Carbon Fiber subforum where there's most of the discussion and familiarity.

When you refer to Emerald Artisan, rather than being a particular model of Emerald, "Artisan" is a series of guitars with high gloss, various weave colors and other options, some custom, vs. the Opus series which tends to be only offered in black weave with textured ("Crystal Ice") finish on the back and sides. There are a number of models including the Synergy Harp Guitar and Chimaera doubleneck, but Emerald's main six stringers are the X20 (full-size) and X7 (travel size), although custom versions are possible (e.g. 7 strings).

As for the McPherson Sable, they've dropped the "Kevin Michael" moniker. The only Emerald to compare to this is the X20, which you may have meant without actually specifying.

You're correct, it is going to be a long shot for any AGFer to have experience with both. I can say that the Sable seems to be more scarce in players hands, perhaps in part because it is a lot more expensive than the X20 (maybe aligning with wood McPhersons in price point, but I'm just guessing). It's not a question of quality, playability or tone, because each will have its own uniqueness. I can say that the X20 gets a lot of love among members. Owners of the Sable seem to quite like it.

Hope this helps.

I am indeed speaking to the Artisan X20 model.

Thanks

[Matt McGriff]

Ted from LA Guitar Sales is a good resource for this. He owns an X20 (might be an Opus) and is a McPherson dealer. He is capable of being unbiased and has certainly played both extensively.

[Kerbie]

Thread moved... I'm hoping some of us CF fans can help out Transylvania...

[DavidE]

Originally Posted by Transylvania

Wondering if anyone has had the opportunity to play both of these models, and I'm speaking of the larger sized McPherson. Probably a long shot, but interested in hearing your thoughts.

The McPherson is warmer sounding, but a VERY heavy guitar in comparison. That makes a difference to me. YMMV

[Carbonius]

I wonder if it's the nickel frets that makes the Sable warmer??

I found it odd when I saw a that the Sable has nickel frets. Almost all CF guitars have stainless steel frets. It fits in with the rugged, no maintenance ever theme. HOWEVER... what about the tone? When I played electric guitar and bass, steel strings were more brittle in tone. It was nice to clean up a muddy tone, but maybe not good on an already brighter instrument like acoustic guitar. Well the strings touch the frets, so surely they impact tone to some degree.

Thought??

[steelvibe]

Originally Posted by Carbonius

I wonder if it's the nickel frets that makes the Sable warmer??

I found it odd when I saw a that the Sable has nickel frets. Almost all CF guitars have stainless steel frets. It fits in with the rugged, no maintenance ever theme. HOWEVER... what about the tone? When I played electric guitar and bass, steel strings were more brittle in tone. It was nice to clean up a muddy tone, but maybe not good on an already brighter instrument like acoustic guitar.

Thought??

I could be wrong but I suspect the warmer sound of the McPherson CFs is mostly due to the fact that they are braced like wooden counterparts when most CF from other makers are not, and the offset soundhole. RainSong's also have nickel frets but remain very bright guitars overall.

[jdinco]

Not sure what it means or why, but it seems the heavier CF guitars have the warmer sound. I found CA's the to be the same and pretty heavy.