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Old 03-30-2016, 06:35 AM
John F. John F. is offline
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Join Date: Oct 2006
Posts: 217
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I'm not sure how much help this'll be, but here goes.

I recently bought a Emerald X7-OS that was advertised here. I'm really hesitant to compare guitars unless I get to play them side by side, but with CF guitars, I've found that to be impossible. I've played Cargos a few times in stores, and a few years ago got to play a Shorty and Blackbird Lucky 13 side by side. I had never played an Emerald, or even seen one in real life, before I got mine.

The Emerald appears to be really well made. Its a really comfortable guitar, and the scale length is fine. I like short(er) scale guitars--my other 2 guitars are a J-45 and a Huss and Dalton DS--shorter scale (24.7?). I have not A/B the Cargo and Emerald, but from what I can remember having played Cargoes, I'd choose the Emerald.

The Emerald X7-OS sounds OK. I haven't experimented with strings, but at this point, it sounds OK. Its pretty good for a small CF guitar, like the Cargo is, but it isn't great. I haven't played a Shorty or Lucky 13 in years, but I remember being blown away by how good they both sounded.

I haven't played or seen a Rainsong parlor, so I can't compare.

If you need a small CF travel guitar (and I did), I'd recommend the Emerald. Its a neat little guitar. If you can go a little bigger, try a Shorty or Lucky 13. I thought they were both great, and if I knew at the time that I'd wouldn't be able to find one again to try, I would've bought either the Shorty or Lucky 13.

My Emerald is the only Emerald I've ever seen, so I have no idea how the bigger Emeralds sound.

Good luck. It is nice to have a guitar you can leave out, and take anywhere without worrying.
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