CF Culture

There is, I believe, a CF culture, a body of people with unique characteristics. For example, the willingness to accept new guitar materials and forms. Another example is a common need for an instrument that can handle extreme climates--from Alaskan cold to desert heat. Yet another defining characteristic of the CF culture is travel--a lot of people on this forum move around a lot. Those characteristics have made this a particularly interesting forum.

The CF culture has taken on an interpersonal nature. People here have gotten to know each other and so we know when the Captain is hoisting sail, when the Kramster is hanging around the pool, and when Jon is just hanging in England.

[fazool]

I currently have no need for another guitar, at all. I have everything I need now and have gone the longest period GAS-free in the past six years. No desire, no cravings and no urges.


The only thing that could give me GAS is exactly what you talked about : the CULTURE of a CF guitar. The whole concept of leaving a guitar out all winter next to my fireplace, and playing outside in the rain.

The only guitar that has caught my fancy is an Emerald X20 Opus. So, if I ever find a used one on the market I will likely take the plunge into the CF culture.

[bsman]

I think that it probably involves a certain lack of respect for authority and convention as well. I grow tired of all the cork-sniffery in the guitar world, and find that there is something so elemental about carbon fiber guitars. There is no Brazilian rosewood or Honduran mahogany to color the sound - what you get out of it is precisely equal to what you put into it. I like that. I still take out my custom shop 000-15 now and then to show it a bit of love, but find that my CFs (an Emerald X7 and Rainsong Shorty) are so much more convenient, accessible, and immediate.

[CRM]

Originally Posted by bsman

I think that it probably involves a certain lack of respect for authority and convention as well. I grow tired of all the cork-sniffery in the guitar world, and find that there is something so elemental about carbon fiber guitars. There is no Brazilian rosewood or Honduran mahogany to color the sound - what you get out of it is precisely equal to what you put into it. I like that. I still take out my custom shop 000-15 now and then to show it a bit of love, but find that my CFs (an Emerald X7 and Rainsong Shorty) are so much more convenient, accessible, and immediate.

I think you hit the nail on the head...........I went from 7 wood guitars to 1 CF Rainsong Smokey........I went thru at least 60 guitars since 2006 from all the big name builders and the little guys and I can say with out a doubt I am GAS free!!!!!

[Captain Jim]

We got culture??

I like guitars. I did the wood thing, trying some different tone woods, but I just couldn't get into the "cork sniffery." (thanks, BSman) I liked the whole premise of carbon fiber before ever getting my hands on one. And, when I did, I discovered I like the tone. Then, my Emeralds opened my mind on what a guitar should deliver: not just great tone, playability, and looks - but comfort unlike any wood guitar I've owned.

Yeah, we travel. We do find ourselves in different climates. I like having a no-fuss guitar that handles that. For me, the guitar is a constant: no matter where we find ourselves, pulling out that familiar instrument is like a bit of home. Carbon fiber is ideal for me. With or without culture.

[David Eastwood]

Hmm. Interesting thoughts.

I'm slipping gently toward retirement - maybe a couple of years out. One of the things I intend to do is rekindle my guitar playing - used to be one of the great joys of my life, not so much recently with the challenges of the corporate world.

To me, the Emerald X20 is the perfect instrument to accompany me into the next phase. It's beautiful. It's ergonomic. It's climate-proof, in any reasonable sense of the phrase - I live in Minnesota, so that matters.

It's also more money than I've ever spent on a guitar before, in nearly 50 years of playing, and I'm totally comfortable with that.

And it's different. How folks get excited over innumerable variations of the Martin D shape is utterly beyond me. Still further beyond me (is there a level of beyond-ness beyond 'utterly'?) is the total lack of logic around 'tonewoods', bracing patterns, moon phases and whether the material the end-pin is made from matters.

I just have to wait until September. You're going to get really tired of me before then

[Captain Jim]

Originally Posted by eatswodo

Hmm. Interesting thoughts.

I'm slipping gently toward retirement - maybe a couple of years out. One of the things I intend to do is rekindle my guitar playing - used to be one of the great joys of my life, not so much recently with the challenges of the corporate world.

To me, the Emerald X20 is the perfect instrument to accompany me into the next phase. It's beautiful. It's ergonomic. It's climate-proof, in any reasonable sense of the phrase - I live in Minnesota, so that matters.

It's also more money than I've ever spent on a guitar before, in nearly 50 years of playing, and I'm totally comfortable with that.

And it's different. How folks get excited over innumerable variations of the Martin D shape is utterly beyond me. Still further beyond me (is there a level of beyond-ness beyond 'utterly'?) is the total lack of logic around 'tonewoods', bracing patterns, moon phases and whether the material the end-pin is made from matters.

I just have to wait until September. You're going to get really tired of me before then

Oh, no. I've found, the more you hang around here, the more you learn about all the great carbon fiber guitars. The more you learn, the more excited you get. The X20 is my favorite guitar... I think you're making a great choice.

[Bghd]

This is a happy place, away from the mega details of wood. But I wonder, is it inherently a bit sniffy because it is CF only? Doesn't matter to me tho. I'm really happy with my CF for all reasons listed above. The extra width neck I ordered has eliminated any muting issues, and I could go on and on but it's all been said.

Eatswodo, same with me. Spending that much was a true leap of faith for me also, but I don't think you'll be disappointed.

That said, where's Ted been? Hope he's OK, maybe just tired of reading Emerald accolades.

[Pine]

Originally Posted by Bghd

. <SNIP>

That said, where's Ted been? Hope he's OK, maybe just tired of reading Emerald accolades.

He’s no longer a sponsor. Ted was a pretty volatile guy. I wonder if that caught up with him?

[jcub]

I am a long time forum lurker and have an Emerald Amicus winging its way across the Atlantic as we speak. I play an Ovation Elite, Chapman Stick (aluminum and bamboo models), Switch Vibracell Electric Guitar among several virtual instrument controllers (Zendrum, LinnStrument). I have encountered many who believe the only valid musical instruments are traditional instruments made of traditional materials. A series of peer reviewed studies casts serious doubt on this belief - here is one (http://www.pnas.org/content/109/3/760). As each technological leap is made, nostalgia for the previous technological leap causes a strange resistance to the interloper technology. I have seen this in the synthesizer community with the current affinity for "real" analog synthesizers. My suggestion is to ignore the critics and just keep making music.

[bsman]

Originally Posted by Pine

He’s no longer a sponsor. Ted was a pretty volatile guy. I wonder if that caught up with him?

I don't recall him ever bad-mouthing Emerald. IIRC, he simply acknowledged he didn't carry them and expounded on the qualities of those CFs he does carry.

[Pine]

Originally Posted by bsman

I don't recall him ever bad-mouthing Emerald. IIRC, he simply acknowledged he didn't carry them and expounded on the qualities of those CFs he does carry.

Hey Bsman. No, I wasn’t talking about Ted’s attitude toward Emerald, but rather that he tended toward being pretty reactive. I was just speculating, and probably shouldn’t have.

[Braindead]

I think CF guitar lovers are down to earth, sensible, pragmatic people! I am not a snob. I have never paid extra for a label sewn to the front of my shirt, actually, I am just the opposite. Pay me if you want me to advertise your product. I found that my Seiko keeps better time than my $1800.00 Rolex (a present). In my current 30 year profession of photography and video, A $40.00 gadget bag by Amazon is made better and lasts better than A $300.00 bag made in England.
I am going to hurt some feelings BUT how can even those with deeeep pockets justify $5,000.00 for a wooden guitar? At some point, guitars must reach the point of diminishing return. Are you paying for the guitar as a work of Art? I don't see them as investments. They are beautiful but....
I know vintage guitars have an increased value as collectables but this is an exception.
My first decent guitar (opinions vary) was a new six steel string Framus. It developed cracks within the first year. I was crushed. That guitar was a huge investment to someone making $2.75/hr. It was not to be my last guitar failure.
Switch to today. I have three wooden acoustics that stay in their case with humidifiers. One of those has started to show it's age even with little play. Leaning against an opened drawer on my desk is Slick. Slick is an adopted CA "OX" which according to the frets has seen a lot of action. Slick does not even have a stand and I think his case is in my garage but I am not sure. His voice probably has not mellowed or improved with age but the lack of change is a good thing to me. In my presence, Slick was played by a very accomplished guitarist....WOW. Other than Slick's unwieldy body against my unwieldy body, I am happy. All things being equal, I would not trade my $1500.00 CA guitar for your $5000.00 wooden guitar. You see, I am down to earth, sensible and pragmatic!

[Captain Jim]

Originally Posted by jcub

I am a long time forum lurker and have an Emerald Amicus winging its way across the Atlantic as we speak. I play an Ovation Elite, Chapman Stick (aluminum and bamboo models), Switch Vibracell Electric Guitar among several virtual instrument controllers (Zendrum, LinnStrument). I have encountered many who believe the only valid musical instruments are traditional instruments made of traditional materials. A series of peer reviewed studies casts serious doubt on this belief - here is one (http://www.pnas.org/content/109/3/760). As each technological leap is made, nostalgia for the previous technological leap causes a strange resistance to the interloper technology. I have seen this in the synthesizer community with the current affinity for "real" analog synthesizers. My suggestion is to ignore the critics and just keep making music.

I have a word for those who think "the only valid musical instruments are traditional instruments made of traditional materials": wrong. I suppose you could toss in: close-minded and fearful of something new (OMG - what if this "new thing" is better than what I have?? I would be so embarrassed!)

Where would this world be if we all thought nothing could be improved upon? Still in the Stone Age?

Welcome to the light side!

[jcub]

Originally Posted by Captain Jim

I have a word for those who think "the only valid musical instruments are traditional instruments made of traditional materials": wrong. I suppose you could toss in: close-minded and fearful of something new (OMG - what if this "new thing" is better than what I have?? I would be so embarrassed!)



Where would this world be if we all thought nothing could be improved upon? Still in the Stone Age?



Welcome to the light side!

Thank you! I think it is the typical push/pull between tradition and novelty. In music, it relates to whether it is considered artistically “valid.” The electric guitar and synthesizer were not considered valid at first. Even the acoustic electric was initially looked at with suspicion. The most amusing comments about alternate materials are that they sound “plastic” - I am not even sure what that means! It sounds good or it doesn’t. Wood instruments are beautiful to look at and can sound fantstic. Same with other materials.