Blast from the past - Touring the old Composite Acoustics Factory

[Earl49]

FWIW, I own a recent CA Cargo, an early N1 Rainsong WS-1000, a Rainsong PMJ-1000 hybrid, and a recent Blackbird Lucky 13. I am happy with all of them for different reasons. I have also played a number of full sized Composite Acoustics guitars like the Gx and Ox at my local music store. I've also seriously considered a Blackbird El Capitan in eKoa after trying one. So I own several of the CF / composite manufacturers. My Rainsong needs are fully covered, except for a 12-string.

I'm currently pondering an Emerald Opus X12-20 mostly because no one else makes a carbon fiber / composite 12 string right now. If Rainsong ever brought 12-ers back, I would likely go that way due to my long familiarity with Rainsong. McPherson is out of my price range compared to the Rainsong and Blackbird offerings, and I've never seen a Levoira or Journey in person.

There, I think I've mentioned all of the current brands on the market. Is balance restored to the force?

[Captain Jim]

No mention at all of the Journey OF660?? Oh, wait... there it is. Nevermind.

Oh, and... Emerald!

[Ted @ LA Guitar Sales]

Originally Posted by Earl49

If Rainsong ever brought 12-ers back, I would likely go that way due to my long familiarity with Rainsong.

Rainsong made an amazing 12-string, several actually. The Jumbo body was a natural for 12-strings, and the WS was a favorite with stage performers. At my request, Ashvin added the Dreadnought to the 12-String lineup and that is what I own, it's a an excellent all weather companion to my Gibson B45-12.

BTW, Ashvin never said they were done building 12-Strings for good, if/when the time is right, I'm sure we will see an even better version of their 12-Strings.

...There, I think I've mentioned all of the current brands on the market. Is balance restored to the force?

Not yet, but we're on our way.

[Irishrep]

Lets be happy for everyones success.

[pandaroo]

Originally Posted by Sharon M

What a shame this sub forum is coming to this, I need to agree with Ted this has become theEmerald forum now so there is no reason to read here anymore for me. Used to be the first place I read every day but lately all that's here only pertains to one brand so, unless you own that brand this forum is no longer interesting.

Hi Sharon, I'm sorry to hear that you got this impression here. I don't think this subsection is one sided if you scroll through the history of the threads in this sub section of this forum.

[pandaroo]

Originally Posted by Ted @ LA Guitar Sales

Sadly the conversation on this sub forum is being dominated by folks loyal to Emerald, so it no longer represents reality

I feel that Emerald had made changes and they came up with some interesting stuff and as such been the talk of the town. I have known Emerald's existence for several years now and have owned 2 Rainsongs, including one I recently purchased from you and a Journey CF before I finally got an Emerald because their recent offering caught my attention.

I do remember Rainsong used to dominate this forum for a while especially when the Shorty or the Parlor was first introduced. You certainly garnered enough demand from here to do limited editions for the AGF community. I also remember that in 2011, AGF awarded the Shorty the AGF guitar of the year.

So IMO this sub section is just going through a phase just like all the other CF builders had their moment when they came up with something new and has done enough to catch the attention of the community here.

[Kerbie]

This thread began as a discussion of the videos about the older CA models. Being a CA owner, I found them very interesting.

Then the thread sunk into an argument where accusations escalated quickly and, in my opinion, sometimes without sufficient reason on either side. Customers became "friends" and opinion became "bashing."

The thread has a lot of good information in it and I'd rather not start trying to heavily edit it. I understand the customer service successes of Emerald and I understand allegiances in other directions. Can we just drop the personal attacks and move forward?

If someone prefers a different moderation of this thread, please communicate it to me or another mod by PM... not by posting publicly. Otherwise, I suggest we discuss CA builds or related topics without making accusations about each other.

Being a carbon fiber fan, I think this section is one of the highlights of the AGF. I sincerely hope all readers will view it objectively and with interest. And I hope no one will be dissatisfied enough to leave it.

[goufousdoufous]

For what its worth, I've never played an Emerald, nor a Rainsong, nor a McPherson, but I own a Pre Peavy CA Legacy Performer that sounds as good or better as any Dreadnaught on the market regardless of the name on the head stock. I play a lot of bluegrass and Celtic music, and the CA Performer Legacy holds its own with the best. In fact, better. It doesn't fall out of tune when the humidity or temp changes.

Ted, I really enjoyed the videos. I've been curious for a long time how they made their guitars. You satisfied my itch.

Goufous