|
|
#1
12-12-2005, 12:58 PM
|
|||
|
|||
Some early impressions and a clip of the Emerald 7-string
Last week I took delivery of and Emeral Opus X30 7-string. I bought htis guitar at leasr in part based on the opinions of Emerald that I read on this site, so I know that many of you are familiar with the company. For those of you who are new to the company, they are based in Ireland. They are building carbon graphite guitars which are meant to compete with Rainsong and CA. Here's a link to their site
http://www.emeraldguitars.com/ The scale length is 25.5 inches. It has a B-Band system for internal electronics. The price in Euros is XXXX plus shipping. Translated into dollars at the current rate of exchange,that comes out to $XXXX including $200 for shipping. They normally ship in a gig bag, with a Hiscox case optional. So if you want a good case, be ready to spend more. After playing for a few days I have bit firmer opinion. As a 7-string player, it's probably the best option available, but that's not saying much since there are so few choices out there. If I was looking at a 6-string in that price range, there are a LOT of alternatives, so I'm not sure where these would fit in. The stability is really impressive. They're very well balanced and I find the tone very sweet. They are pretty much indestructible and impervious to the weather (a nice feature in an acoustic). On the other hand, they're not especially loud and given the size (it's huge), that's a bit of a disappointment. They have a smaller size, apparently just a bit bigger than an OM. I bought their demo guitar so I got both a good deal and the Hiscox case, but if I was ordering one from scratch, I would have gone for the smaller X10. Eventually (meaning when I have a lot more disposable income) I could see selling this one and getting and X10 to replace it. Here's a photo and a clip I just recorded with it this morning. I don't own any great mics for recording acoustics, so I just ran the B-Band straight into my Tascam setup. I'm not a great acoustic player, so this may not be the best representation of what the guitar can do, but it is a fair representation of where I'm at with it at this point. http://www.jimsoloway.com/TascamDemos/Emerald-02.mp3 
Last edited by Bill Nichols (CaptBill); 12-13-2005 at 04:33 AM. 
|
|
#2
12-12-2005, 03:34 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Jim,
I've got some pretty detailed pictures of the 6 string Emerald Opus.. but i just don't have a site to host them on... would you mind hosting them for a while so that everyone can see the guitar..... I imagine that it's going to be pretty hard for anyone here (in the US) to actually see the guitar, much less play it before purchasing.... at least if we show them pictures, they'll have a better idea of what to expect with an Emerald.
|
|
#3
12-12-2005, 04:02 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Quote:
|
|
#4
12-12-2005, 04:15 PM
|
||||
|
||||
|
Hi Jim...
Listening to your clip it's easy to see how the bottom string fits in the scheme of the guitar. Very nice to have the low string there (tuned to ''A''?). For not being much of a player (your words not mine), I wish you were closer so we could play together. Larry J
__________________
Baby #1.1 Baby #1.2 Baby #02 Baby #03 Baby #04 Baby #05 Larry's songs... …Just because you've argued someone into silence doesn't mean you have convinced them…
|
|
#5
12-12-2005, 10:36 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Quote:
|
|
#7
12-13-2005, 07:38 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
I don't use software and there's no compression. I record with a Tascam 788 and do everything on that. I've developed a trick for making solo guitar clips sound big that involves creating a multi-track stereo track and then spreading the reverb to the far outer edges of the stereo image. That's actually a bit of a simplification, but it's gives you the general idea.
I'm getting ready to replace my 788. I'm considering using a computer, but only if I can learn how to do that same methods in that environment. Last edited by Jim Soloway; 12-13-2005 at 07:50 PM.
|
|
#8
12-14-2005, 07:40 AM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Jim.. I've been using an Akai DPS 24 for about a year and a half now.... It is the greatest recording unit that i've ever used....
Before that i was a Roland man, and used all of thier products... 1680, 1880, and the mother of them all the VS2480.... with akai.... everything is SOOOOO simple... and it sounds SOOOOO good... If you're looking at getting into computer recording, you must first realize that you're not just talking about buying a computer... but you're talking about buying a mic pre amp, an analog to digital converter, and a compressor... JUST to get started.... and by the way... it goes without mentioning that if any of those pieces of gear are crappy.... which most of those pieces of gear are, if you're looking in the "Affordible" price range..... that your recordings are going to turn out crappy too... I'd really look into getting a Dedicated Audio Workstation... they're truly AWESOME... especially the Akai DPS series... my 2 cents....
|
|
#9
12-14-2005, 08:23 AM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Until recently I was pretty sure that I was going to simply upgrade from my 788 to the new Tascam 2488. If I stay with a dedicated station, that makes the most sense to me. I'm very well versed with the operation of the Tascam. I've used my 788 a lot recording electric guitars, and it does a great job at that. Since that the primary function for me, anything else is pretty much a bonus.
The reason was interested in checking out computer recording is two fold first I own almost all of the gear and second because cost of a simple USB interface has dropped so low that it makes experimenting with the computer a trivial investment. I realize that ti could get much more expensive later, but I culd actualy get started for about $200.
|
