Emerald X20 nylon pricing ???
 

The X20 Opus seems very attractive and affordable at list price of $1650

The X20 Opus nylon has a list price of $3100.

I'm a bit surprised at how huge the jump is for nylon.

I know it's lower volume production, slotted headstock, different bracing but it seems disproportionately higher (compared to other manufacturers' nylon offerings).

As I understand it they are much more labour intensive to build.
I remember reading that each headstock is hand carved from a solid block.
I’m guesing that’s not an apprentice job, so possibly only made by the hands of the master himself (?)

It might be nice if they were able to offer a more budget Opus version with a paddle headstock.
(You can wrap nylon strings round regular posts can’t you ? )

Yup, that hand carving really drives the price up. A paddle head nylon string could work - you can wrap them around regular posts, and some nylon sets are even available with ball ends for a pin bridge.

The X20 Opus version is a good deal if you don't need the pickup, the color, or full gloss body. If you want those, then you have to pay for them. BTW, the Crystal Ice "satin" finish on the back and sides is quite nice, now that I've seen it in person. It feels smoother than it looks.

The slotted headstock, custom neck/fret width, color, and finish can all raise the price of an Emerald nylon string guitar. My first Emerald X10 nylon had a paddle headstock, standard carbon fiber weave, and was priced in line with other available cf nylon string guitars. The slotted headstock is mostly a matter of style. My Rainsong Parlor has the paddle head and it works just fine.

I don't know if Alistair would be inclined to make a basic X20-OSN. As Fazool notes, there may not be enough demand for a production model. However, there does seem to be a demand for Emerald custom nylon string guitars--I can testify to such demand as I'm on my 4th one

The X20 I have on-order is essentially an Opus but with “vertically-aligned” (unidirectional) CF weave, and gloss on the body top and headstock top, as per the June Select Series model. This change renders it a “Custom”. I’m glad to know the crystal ice b&s finish is nice and not too rough.

Yeah,,, I’m not sure those vertical weave ones sound as good Tom....

Haha, time will tell, Jon.

I don’t think they’re as strong either, prone to folding in the centre is what I heard.... just sayin’ Tom.


:D

I like the Crystal Ice finish on the back and sides. Not a price thing, I just think it looks good and is practical.

Not a price choice for me either, and I agree about the practicality aspect. After selling my tricked-out Chimaera, I still wanted an Emerald, but decided to return to a minimalist approach with this X20, but just a little different with the V-A weave and CI b&s finish. I’ve always liked the no fuss, no muss, “road tough” finish on my ‘08 Cargo, so I figured I’d try the CI finish on the b&s for this guitar. I’m sure I’ll be happy.

Back to the OT, I agree that the much smaller quantity produced along with the build changes necessary for a nylon, plus that exquisite headstock is what drives up the cost. A cheaper version is likely possible where the biggest savings would be in building with a more conventional headstock. If just black weave, that would save some too.

Faz, as you likely know, Emerald is very flexible, so if a less expensive nylon is really of interest to you, it wouldn’t hurt to chat with Sean about what is possible.

My original intention was to go with a nylon X20 but ultimately didn't because I'd never even seen an Emerald in any form. After some posts on this forum and correspondence with Sean, I nearly went with the regular headstock and pin saddle but was afraid that my choice of nylon strings with ball ends might be pretty scant. I ended up shelving the nylon version and went with a steel stringed Artisan X20 and have been extremely happy. A nylon version, with it's beautiful and pricey slotted headstock could still be in my future now that I'm more comfortable knowing of Emerald's quality.

Well I can’t really agree with that idea,
it would have to be a “custom” order, so therefore be more expensive thus negating the budget features.

It would be a leap of faith to order a non-returnable custom model that you may or may not really like.
Far better (IMHO) to just buy a stock one and eat the return postage if it isn’t all you hoped.

OR, get a steel string X20 for starters and fall in love with everything about it, like everybody else here that’s got one.

Then, once you become an Emerald fan, order a nylon one with confidence ! ;)

I'd go with this. An email costs nothing and then you'd know what is possible or not. I agree, Emerald is flexible and good to work with.

Dear Fazool,

On the face of it, yes it does look like a very serious increase in price between the Steel and Nylon X20. Actually the Nylon is a bit of anomaly on our website as we list it as a production model, but essentially each one is built like a custom build. We build the soundboard structure in a different and more time-consuming manner to make it lighter and more responsive.

The headstock is hand-carved from a solid block of carbon fibre which we laminate with over 60 layers of carbon. It's a very expensive block of carbon and time-consuming to carve. Alistair agonised over whether he should make a simpler headstock design that would be more economical, but in the end he just loves the headstock design and the process that goes into building it - So we went the premium approach. The custom tie bridge is built in a similar fashion to the headstock.

Altogether a Nylon takes well over twice the hours of a steel string to build and this is reflected in the price.

If you are looking for a lower cost approach to a Nylon then we can start off with an X20 Artisan and add any of the above customisations to meet your desired price point. Alistair has often built Nylon guitars with a standard headstock and pin bridge along with the standard neck dimensions, the only modification we do is to alter the top structure. With this you get the same tone at a much lower cost.

We package together our designs in the way we feel makes the best product, but in guitar building there is no one size fits all, so we have worked very hard over the last 19 years to create ways to be as adaptable as possible.

I hope this answers your question and if you have any follow-up questions, we are always available to assist you as best we can.

Kind Regards,

Sean

Thank you Sean for the excellent explanation


Now my GAS is getting worse!