NGD - McPherson Touring
 

I've been watching for a used McPherson Honeycomb Touring to use as my travel/outside guitar over the last year, finally an exact match for my Sable was offered for sale by a new Friend on the AGF. The transaction couldn't have been any smoother. Thanks Matt! I've only had it a few days, but can say that it is more than I expected as far as tone. It is a joy to play and lighter than the Sable which makes it very nice to carry out on the deck or plunk on in the chair.
I play with a pick, so none of my comments are based on fingerstyle. I've owned 3 Emeralds (2-X7's and an X20) plus several Rainsongs and a Cargo over the years. As far as comparisons, as several have mentioned it is what the Cargo could have became, I agree with that, it is a lot better than the Cargo to my ears. I always found the older Rainsongs too sterile for my taste and usually sold them pretty quickly. I haven't played the newer RS guitars that are suppose to be better. I've said several times here on the AGF that I never bonded with the X7, I found it awkward to play for some reason. I've read several comments that the X7 is lush sounding, i wouldn't describe any of the Emeralds that I had as "lush" sounding. I do find the Touring on the lush side as far as tone and find it quite comfortable to hold and play, the edges are nice and rounded.
The Emeralds are prettier, no doubt about that. I don't know of any guitar better looking than the Emeralds. All the CF guitars out there are very good and seem to meet the different needs of a lot of people, I would highly suggest giving the Touring a try if you are looking for a smaller CF guitar with what I consider the best tone of all the smaller guitars I have tried or own.

I’ve owned an ‘08 Cargo (Road Tough finish) since new and love it for what it is, especially for the price I paid for it back then. For its small size, it is a bit on the heavy size which I’ve never minded as a travel/couch guitar and I’ve always felt that the overall very good tone with good bass, a little light on the mids and trebles (but not unpleasantly so), likely has to do with its weight/heavier build. I’ve owned other Emeralds, but have never played an X7, never felt inclined because of my satisfaction with the Cargo.

That said, since you’ve owned both a Cargo and now the Touring both which are the incarnations of Ellis Seal and I accept the notion that the Touring is what Ellis evolved likely as a better guitar than the Cargo (though I much prefer the look of the Cargo, personally never been fussy about the look of the soundhole on any McPherson), I don’t recall ever having read about a weight/heavy build comparison between the two. I’d appreciate your thoughts on this. Thx.

Hey Tom, I haven't had the Cargo for over a year now, missing it was one of the main reasons i was searching for the Touring. I was more than a little surprised when I saw the latest prices they are asking for Cargos on Reverb. I don't remember much about the weight of the Cargo. The Touring does feel like it is a bit on the heavy side for it's size. Much like the Sable I guess. The Touring does appear to me to play easier and a have bit more comfortable neck. I have not looked up the specs, so I have no idea on scale length and such. It really doesn't matter at this point. LOL I liked the Cargo a lot and kicked myself many times for letting it go. It was a carbon burst that was very attractive, the Touring is a fitting replacement I think. Probably not much help with your question....sorry.

Thanks, John. No worries. I’d also owned a tobacco burst CA GXi from ‘08 to ‘12. ‘‘Twas a nice guitar. It was also a heavier guitar which again, I came to believe is a factor in its favorable tone. I’m just speculating, but perhaps Ellis Seal felt that the build structure he designed for CA was integral to the tone he was shooting for and maybe somewhat kept in the design of the McPherson CF Series. Of course, I could be all wrong.:)

I just received a McPherson Touring yesterday (thanks, Phil!) and I'm very impressed. It's more than I've ever paid for a guitar, but it seems to also be more tone than I've ever played on before. I have a Journey Instruments OF660 that I like, too, but I haven't been able to get used to its neck. The Touring neck is much more like what I'm used to with my Taylor GC, and its fullness is really impressive.

Congrats euraquilo, with the price increases I've seen on guitars this year, I figured the longer I wait the worse it will be. Enjoy!

I agree Tom, the McPhersons have bracing I never noticed on other CF guitars, does the Cargos have the same structure? I usually play them more than I stick my head in there to look around. LOL

Unfortunately, I can’t check because my Cargo is at my northern home while I’m now at my southern winter vacation home. I keep a Taylor 214ceDLX here to play. I think I’ve looked inside the Cargo for r bracing in the past and although I don’t really remember, I tend to think there is none. The top isn’t thick at all, so I suspect that the weight comes from the thickness/weight of the back and sides and if so, perhaps that weight was needed to counteract that of the neck for purposes of good balance. Just guessin’.

Congrats on your Touring jdinaz. I’ve been lucky to play one a couple times and think they are great! The neck feels nice, the body, the tone (amazing really). I thought I wouldn’t like the diminutive size but I was wrong.

Nice write up!

Any ideas where I could try a touring or sable in the Los Angeles area? This probably could use another thread, like a LA meet up to fry carbon guitars thread..

Congrats, John! It was a great transaction and always nice to make new friends through shared interests. I purchased it from Kramster a little over a year ago and loved it. Gas is a fickle beast, and I'm sure I'll regret letting it go. I was on the fence for the better part of 3 months before finally listing it. FUN guitar. Enjoy!

LA Guitars, they are also a big Rainsong dealer.

Thanks! i'll have to stop in sometime when I'm in the west side. that may be awhile though. Know of anyone or any places more inland? I'm in the san gabriel valley area.

Congrats on your new Touring jdinaz!

A couple of items:

1. Having both the Touring and the Sable, the Touring is my favorite. Its smaller size is easier for me to handle and McPherson (surprisingly) does not sacrifice much at all in sound to get that smaller size.
2. The Cargo and Touring are pretty much similar in weight.
3. Both the Cargo and Touring have bracing. These "braces" are not separate pieces of material, but instead formed as a part of the top. They are not to provide strength, since CF doesn't need that, but instead to shape the sound (in essence, tune the top).

This is from a review of the Touring regarding bracing (https://americansongwriter.com/mcphe...itar-review/):

Despite the small ¾ size scale, this guitar provides a big sound. The Carbonite body provides a full, rich sound, and when I close my eyes I personally think it sounds like it’s made of wood. A few other players didn’t agree with me but all of us agreed the guitar had an excellent sound. This is primarily due to the patented bracing design, the carbon body material and LR Baggs Element pickup.

I have been the poster who has said in several posts on the subject, that the Touring is what the Cargo would have been, had it been allowed to mature. I stand by that, though the Cargo is still a unique and fine guitar in its own right.

Tony

I was hoping you would chime in Tony, Thanks for the info !

I wanted to read that article but the link is broken...at least for me. But yes, the Touring is a shockingly great guitar in a small package. Such a refined and beautiful sound!