Evan's Emerald Nylon Guitar Adventures

Pictures of my Emerald X10 can found on the google search, Emerald OSN, p. 6, six items down.

[Fixedgear60]

Originally Posted by Fixedgear60

Thanks Evan.... your post reminds me of all our adventures together over the years. Like you I have bought high and sold low and have written off the difference as a rental fee. We have been fortunate to have worked with Michael, Ted, Joe, Alistair..ect over the years. Here is a list of those adventures for others who might be curious:

Emerald Guitars
* 2 X5os (k&K & b-band)
* x7os woody (b-band)
* Amicus (K&K)

Peavey
* Cargo Raw with elec (the guitar that started it all for me)
* OX (elec)

Blackbird
* Steel Ryder(elec)
* L13 (K&K)
* BTU (K&K)
* Clara (K&K)

Rainsong
* Steel p12 (elec)
* Nylon p12 (elec) on its way

McPhearson
* 2KM(elec)

After all these years I have paired it down like you to just two keepers... thought I had it down to just one the KM until nylon string entered my world through my BTU uke...

It has been a fun ride ... but I am not skilled enough to play more than one guitar at a time.... funny how your ear evolved over time....

Thought I would update the list:

Emerald Guitars
* 2 X5os (k&K & b-band)
* x7os woody (b-band)
* 2 Amicus (K&K)

Peavey
* Cargo Raw with elec (the guitar that started it all for me)
* OX (elec)

Blackbird
* Steel Ryder(elec)
* L13 (K&K)
* BTU (K&K)
* Clara (K&K)
* Savoy (K&K)
* El Capitain (K&K)
* Farallon (K&K)

Rainsong
* Steel p12 (elec)
* Nylon p12 (elec) on its way
* JM3000 - 12 string
* JM1000 - 6 String

McPhearson
* 2KM(elec)
* Touring

Have gotten down to one acoustic. The last man standing through all this is the McPherson Touring and everything else has moved along except a couple of outdoor ukes and my trusty 52 re-issue Tele with EC Fender Vibro Champ amp.

It has been fun but not been tempted for a while and very content with my Touring. Just the savings on strings and all those accessories... have been worth it :-).

Fixed;

You have been a first scout in testing carbon fiber guitars. And you've been very generous in sharing your experiences with this and the old McNichol forum.

You've been doing some hard and impressive travelling. I thought I'd been giving carbon fiber guitars a good run, but you have gone a much longer distance.

Is the Rainsong nylon on its way or was that an older listing? I really liked my Rainsong nylon parlor and it was the final competition with my Emerald 10. I ended up with the Emerald because while the projection and tonal qualities were pretty close the Emerald was much more comfortable.

Were any of the 7s nylon?

Thank you for the update, it's always good hearing from you.

[Fixedgear60]

Hi Evan,

Thank you for your kind words... I feel like we all took this journey together over the years. The x7os woody was the second generation (not the current). The only nylon was the Rainson P12 (some ukes) and I had it for a year or so. It was a very inviting guitar and enjoyed it but in the final analysis, the McPherson Touring really struck home in the following ways:
* Very warm and amazing sound for such a small guitar
* Small enough to travel but large enough to be an everyday guitar and fully equipped to gig.
* LOVE the neck on it. It is a very fast neck almost electric in how thin with a wonderful statin finish.
* VERY comfortable to play with the rough back finish really sticks to you.
* LOVE the scale. I have smaller hands and find this makes it easier to stretch for complex chords.
* Very understated look and classy... IMHO
* Comes with everything you need... 2 cases, strap, soundhole plug..etc

Just a well-designed, comfortable, and sounding guitar. I do enjoy visually watching the amazing design transformations happening at Emerald Guitars but every time I get interested I strum my Touring and thankfully it goes away. :-). One thing that I have learned in this post COVID world is to get back to basics and focus I the people and things you love.

Fixed;

I know you've been around the CF world of guitars and it means something that you've latched onto the McPherson. Unfortunately, McPherson does not deal with nylons. That probably saved me some money.

[Fixedgear60]

Originally Posted by EvanB

Fixed;

I know you've been around the CF world of guitars and it means something that you've latched onto the McPherson. Unfortunately, McPherson does not deal with nylons. That probably saved me some money.

The journey really was about a self-discovery of what I find enjoyable in a guitar in the final analysis. Knowing that you are a nylon guy is half the battle :-). The McPherson group has a conservative business plan for their guitar business. I have asked them about any plans for more niche guitars like a 12 string and no plans. I would guess that nylon is in the same category as a 12 string and is too small a niche. Their business is booming so they seem to know what they are doing. Their manufacturing process is very smart with pre-formed necks and back/sides and focuses its labor on the important areas of the top, dressing the necks/frets and fitting the bridges (you get two) and nut.

Interesting that I found out about them from a neighbor who loves their bows. Matt is an interesting guy.

As always, enjoy your journey in the nylon world and always learn something from your posts.

The various business plans revealed in this forum are interesting. As you point out, the McPherson folks hold to a conservative model, sticking with the tried and true. Emerald is at the other of end of the scale, experimenting with just about everything.

What makes those plans interesting is that they both work. McPherson has a loyal and steady following of people who respect the builders knowledge and work. Emerald respects the desires of players and has indulged a number of custom requests that have led to a cluster of desired options.

My journey is, at the moment, going through some flux. I was prepared to sell the Emerald X10 and move to a custom X7 but the 10 wasn't selling and I was having second thoughts. At the same time I was selling the last of my wooden instruments--the idea being to purchase a Journey if the wood sold well, which it has.

So now my journey has come down to pressing James and Rob on some customization. Journey does offer a paint option which I want. I would also like a different electronic option than the one offered, a change that is not too difficult, but not an standard option with Journey guitars. I would also like a RoadTrip version of the classical guitar, i.e. not a foldable neck, a difficult change and one that might not happen in my lifetime.

The truth of the matter is that I am willing to purchase the standard Journey classical guitar with the paint option and without the upgraded electronics or change to RoadTrip construction. But it would be nice to move the guitar toward my inclinations and it might be a good time for Journey to experiment a bit with its nylon offering. We'll see.

Testing the water.