Any suggestions for high end / high quality capos?

[Lidia]

Hello fellow guitarists! I would welcome some recommendations regarding high end / high quality capos. My intended use: fingerstyle playing on an acoustic six (steel) strings guitar with a standard neck width. Any views? Thank you, Lidia

[llew]

hi Lidia and welcome to the AGF! Lots of options but the Elliott Capo is one of my favorites.

[Zissou Intern]

I have two Elliotts, an Elite and a McKinney. They both work very well, with no change in tone. I prefer the aesthetics of the McKinney with the latch vs. the push button, but that's just me.

[tommieboy]

The G7th Heritage Capo their proprietary ART comes to mind as I have one.

https://www.g7th.com/heritage

Tommy

[TBman]

Welcome to the forum Lidia!

I'm sure there are plenty of members who will sell you their PlanetWave NS for $150.

Seriously though if I wanted to splurge a bit on a capo I would look at the fine yoke style capos on the market.

I have a Thalia, which is really a bit too heavy for a capo so I can't recommend it.

[619TF]

Shubb is the best. Maybe not "high end expensive" but definitely high end results. Either the classic or a yolk style. $20 vs about $60. Up to you.

[dnf777]

$50 will get a G7 performance 3 capo. You cannspend more, but theres no finer capo out there, IMO. I have a beautifully crafted Eliot that now resides in its fine leather case. It is a fine capo, but takes two hands to adjust and is much slower changing or removing.

[fartamis]

I have practically all tried it, for me the Shubb remains the best of the best. I've had mine for over 20 years and still going strong.

[RLetson]

As usual, it depends. Do you need to stow and redeploy the capo often? Do you need to change its position quickly between tunes? Do you mind the relative non-adjustability of spring-clamp designs?

In six decades of playing, I've used just about every kind of capo design (including a ligature-and-peg cejilla for a flamenco guitar), but the only kind in my kit bag for the last 25 years or so have been Shubbs. But everybody's mileage varies, and some of us don't even have odometers.

[erhino41]

I can and will recommend Thalia capos.

[Bill R]

Hello Lidia,

As you have begun to discover, you will receive a very diverse set of responses on capos from forum members, the vast majority of which will be well-meaning opinions based on personal experience.

A high quality capo, one that does well what a capo is designed to do, does not necessarily equate with high end, which one might assume to mean an expensive or flashy capo.

Here are a few things to keep in mind regarding capos. Most, but not all steel string acoustic guitar fingerboards have a fairly similar degree of curvature (called fretboard radius), typically between 12 and 16 inches. It's important that any capo you consider be appropriate for this type of fingerboard.

Another consideration is the ability to adjust tension on a capo. Since the thickness of guitar necks can vary considerably among brands, this allows the user to get just the right amount of tension to prevent string buzz without pulling strings out of tune. Many clamp-on style capos generally don't allow for this.

You mention that your guitar has a standard neck width. This likely means a 1 11/16" or 1 3/4" nut width. Most standard capos will work just fine assuming the string spacing at the bridge is not overly wide, in which case the capo may not be wide enough to capo much beyond the fifth fret or so.

No doubt capo decisions may be influenced by the appearance of a capo. For example, I prefer gold or brass metal capos, because they match the gold tuners on my acoustics.

I suggest you consider trying a few different styles, perhaps based on recommendations from forum members to see what you prefer in terms of function and aesthetics.

I've been using Shubb capos for decades and find them quite satisfactory on my acoustic guitars. They are very functional, not too expensive, easy to use and work well.

Happy hunting and welcome to the forum.

Bill

[Brent Hutto]

In experience, the style of capo that can be adjusted to provide the least change in tuning and least effect on the tone of the guitar would be the smallest yoke-style capo you can find that fits your guitar. For instance the Kat Eyz capo (which I own) or the Elliott Elite are very good ones.

But they are annoying to put on and off the guitar and they're somewhat pricey (the Elliott moreso than Kat Eyz). And they hang underneath the neck and can get in the way of your fretting hand in certain positions. The best blend of convenience, ease of adjustment and staying out of the way of your fretting hand is the Planet Waves NS Pro, which also has the advantage of being inexpensive.

[TBman]

Originally Posted by erhino41

I can and will recommend Thalia capos.

I think you can do that without quoting me. We're all allowed our opinions without any passive aggressive nonsense going on.

[blindboyjimi]

I have 3 G7th Heritage and 3 Elliot Elites. These are the best.

[Rudy4]

Originally Posted by Lidia

Hello fellow guitarists! I would welcome some recommendations regarding high end / high quality capos. My intended use: fingerstyle playing on an acoustic six (steel) strings guitar with a standard neck width. Any views? Thank you, Lidia

As you have already observed, there's a wide range of opinions about the "best" capo.

You might want to go back and read some of the long reviews and topics which try to solve this age-old question.

While doing your studying I'd suggest you get the D'Addario NS Pro to use in the meantime. I like side adjust capos, and this one will work well and let you get a feel for a side adjust capo to see if you want to stick with that style.

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/det...-black-ns-capo

My favorite side adjust capo is the solid bronze Dunlop Victor, but I have a feeling they may be phasing them out:

https://www.musiciansfriend.com/acce...op-victor-capo