Quote:
Originally Posted by jdinco
I have a couple nice woodies, I have a humidifier in a back bedroom and the guitars hang on the wall. Really no hassle at all. Sure I don't travel with them, but that is what the Emeralds are for. Do you live in a humid area where you have things to deal with that I don't Ray? Just curious. Hate to see a man with out a wood guitar to compliment the CF guitar. LOL The Emeralds would go before my Martin 15sm. So I understand what you are saying.
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No, I live in a place with cold winters, thus dry indoors, and humid summers. The summers tend not to be a problem because the AC regulates the humidity really well. But in the winter, when I had wood guitars, I kept my man cave humidified, but it was a hassle, always having to refill the humidifier tanks, change filters, etc. And it didn't work that well when the heat was really cranking - on some of those days I still couldn't keep the humidity above about 35%. So I'd still case it and deal with humidipaks also. And when it did work well enough, you'd get all sorts of condensation on the windows, which is its' own set of problems.
Also, we relocate for a few months every winter and I can only really take one electric, one acoustic, and a small amp, and I'm not comfortable with the idea of leaving a nice wood guitar in a case for three months with humidipaks - I've heard horror stories and I'd worry about it. Which means I'd have to take the wood guitar and deal with humidification down there too.
I no doubt overthink this. I lived in Arizona too when I was a kid and first started playing. I bought my first decent guitar in Tucson in 1979 (a used 1968 D28). That guitar moved between the Arizona desert, the Olympic rain forest (where I finished my degree) and the Colorado Rockies for about 4-5 years, then lived in Seattle for several years, then moved back to Pennsylvania, where I had it for the last many years I owned it. I knew NOTHING about taking care of it and basically left it out on a stand or wall hanger in all of those places, subject to horrible swings in humidity and temperature, and I didn't wreck it. It needed a neck reset and a pro setup by the time I sold it 15 years ago or so, but it probably would have if I'd taken immaculate care of it too.
So I realize I'm an irrational idiot about this, but when I got another Martin a few years ago (a much less valuable but really nice 000-15M), I knew about this stuff and I worried about it and felt obligated to take much better care of it. And it was a huge relief to get an Emerald, love it, sell the Martin, and just not have to think about it again.
And I've never been more than a one-acoustic guy. And I LOVE the X7, both how it plays and how it sounds and particularly how it sounds to ME with it's offset soundhole. The only thing I miss at all about wood guitars is the aesthetic of them, which is kind of a lifelong thing. But I can get past that. I have some pretty cool wooden electrics that keep me grounded (so to speak). So I'm fine, but the thought will probably come back from time to time.