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  #16  
Old 10-22-2020, 09:20 AM
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Simon@Caulfield Simon@Caulfield is offline
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Given what's found in newspapers, you might be happier just getting to your findings.
Thats true. Its hard to do lab tests when the country is on lockdown and you live 90 miles away. 😂
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  #17  
Old 10-26-2020, 10:36 AM
martingitdave martingitdave is offline
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I have limited experience with Carbon fiber guitars. I've only owned two. But, so far I have not found one that is a true substitute for my Martin dreadnoughts for playing folk and bluegrass. Frankly, I would love to find one because I really buy into the benefits of carbon fiber. My most recent Rainsong with wood veneer was the closest, which is ironic given the OPs comments.
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  #18  
Old 10-26-2020, 03:14 PM
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Originally Posted by martingitdave View Post
I have limited experience with Carbon fiber guitars. I've only owned two. But, so far I have not found one that is a true substitute for my Martin dreadnoughts for playing folk and bluegrass. Frankly, I would love to find one because I really buy into the benefits of carbon fiber. My most recent Rainsong with wood veneer was the closest, which is ironic given the OPs comments.
Find a way to play the Emerald X30. It’s a monster guitar.
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  #19  
Old 10-26-2020, 09:40 PM
martingitdave martingitdave is offline
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Find a way to play the Emerald X30. It’s a monster guitar.
I will keep my eye out for one.
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  #20  
Old 10-30-2020, 03:24 AM
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Straight-up carbon-fiber weave for me too.
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  #21  
Old 10-30-2020, 03:29 AM
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Originally Posted by martingitdave View Post
I have limited experience with Carbon fiber guitars. I've only owned two. But, so far I have not found one that is a true substitute for my Martin dreadnoughts for playing folk and bluegrass. Frankly, I would love to find one because I really buy into the benefits of carbon fiber. My most recent Rainsong with wood veneer was the closest, which is ironic given the OPs comments.
Dave, try to find a used Composite Acoustics Tim Stafford Signature Model (it has Onboard Aura) guitar to audition. You can see Tim play one with his bluegrass band, Blue Highway, often on the RFD-TV channel or look for Youtube videos of the band. I bought one of these new but sent it back as the neck-relief and neck-flare was just not comfortable for me to play. The tone, however, both acoustic and amplified, was really good!
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  #22  
Old 10-30-2020, 08:00 AM
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The more I play my Emerald X30, the more certain it’s the equal of any acoustic guitar I’ve ever played.

Yes, that’s a bold statement but its based on decades of playing as many acoustic guitars as I could find, spending vacations going to many of the great guitar stores across the country.

I’ve play only a handful of other CF brands and they didn’t sound like a wooden guitar, the X30 does, unamplified. Played plugged in, with the K&K mini, and it gets even better.

No one is more shocked at what I’ve written than myself. It’s that good.
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  #23  
Old 11-02-2020, 02:41 PM
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I get your point OP...I think McPherson has done what you mention, they do brace their guitars and haven't slapped any wood on their guitars yet. And to me they have the best tone. I'm sure a lot of work goes into making all the CF guitars sound their best.
how do you think that McPherson has the best tone! I really want to agree with you but I have not been able to play them side by side.
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  #24  
Old 11-02-2020, 08:49 PM
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how do you think that McPherson has the best tone! I really want to agree with you but I have not been able to play them side by side.
I've owned 3 RS's, 3 Emeralds and a Cargo, for me and me only the McPherson sounds the best of all of them by a big margin, and the big thing is that it suits my requirements better than the others. I know that is not true for all CF players.....it would be boring if we were all the same. LOL I love my Sable !
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  #25  
Old 11-03-2020, 05:03 AM
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I've never played a McPherson, but from a technical point of they have quite a clever bracing setup. Id imagine it allowed for a lot of options for fine tuning the top to dial in the tone/projection.
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  #26  
Old 11-03-2020, 02:01 PM
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Originally Posted by sgavy View Post
I've never played a McPherson, but from a technical point of they have quite a clever bracing setup. Id imagine it allowed for a lot of options for fine tuning the top to dial in the tone/projection.


I think a large size McPherson carbon would have suited me well. But, the 15” Lower bout model Sable can’t compete with a banjo or Mando. I learned the hard way.
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  #27  
Old 12-21-2020, 10:03 AM
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Originally Posted by martingitdave View Post
I have limited experience with Carbon fiber guitars. I've only owned two. But, so far I have not found one that is a true substitute for my Martin dreadnoughts for playing folk and bluegrass. Frankly, I would love to find one because I really buy into the benefits of carbon fiber. My most recent Rainsong with wood veneer was the closest, which is ironic given the OPs comments.
Here I beleive lies the answer to the OP question. Market share. When studying who is buying a product a mfg says well we have our CF fans and repeat buyers. But we would like to try to grab some of the more traditional players. The benefits of CF
Go without saying. But we have centuries of wood guitars . The sound
The timbre if you will of a wood guitar
Is what we all know. It's what we compare the sound of a CF guitar to. For a long time
I just couldnt warm up to the sound of a CF guitar. Too digital, to "plastic" like to my ear...all of them.
This is not what a guitar is suppose
to sound like.
Manufacturers are finally getting this right. Or close. I too like the looks of the wood veneer topped guitars. And
Physics seems to dictate this process
Should somehow "mellow" a CF guitar some... make it sound more Iike a wood guitar. Thus drawing more
traditional players to the market.
Which I think is their reasoning.
Now if taylor made a wood guitar with a spruce top
Laminated with carbon fiber on top.. well wouldn't that.be
Something...

Last edited by varmonter; 12-28-2020 at 07:09 AM.
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  #28  
Old 12-21-2020, 10:41 AM
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Originally Posted by revj View Post
...But yet the trend is the Carbon world is let's just make it look pretty, put a thin piece of wood on their to make it pretty...which works against everything of conventional wisdom of making a good sounding guitar...
I've got to disagree. I believe that the extra layer of wood stiffens the top a bit and warms up the tone. Does it look cool? Of course, but I think that adding a wood veneer also addresses tonal qualities. I truly believe that my "Vintage" Rainsong dread has a warmer, less "plastic" tone than my previous Rainsong guitars...
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Last edited by RP; 12-21-2020 at 11:06 AM.
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  #29  
Old 12-21-2020, 06:17 PM
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Originally Posted by varmonter View Post
For a long time
I just couldnt warm up to the sound of a CF guitar. Too digital, to plastic like to my ear...all of them.
This is not what a guitar is suppose
to sound like.
Have you ever played a digital guitar? Or a plastic one?

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Originally Posted by RP View Post
I've got to disagree. I believe that the extra layer of wood stiffens the top a bit and warms up the tone. Does it look cool? Of course, but I think that adding a wood veneer also addresses tonal qualities. I truly believe that my "Vintage" Rainsong dread has a warmer, less "plastic" tone than my previous Rainsong guitars...
Words are funny things, aren't they? There's that plastic pejorative again...
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  #30  
Old 12-22-2020, 03:13 AM
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Words are funny things, aren't they? There's that plastic pejorative again...
Mea culpa. Yeh, I was having a brain freeze at the time and couldn't find the word I wanted; that's why I put the p-word in quotes. It's a word that lacks accuracy but some/many could relate. The alternative was to say that the Rainsong Vintage is more wood sounding, but that really wasn't what I wanted to say either. A while back, an AGF member talked about the Rainsong's wood veneer models and why the extra layer firms up the top and gives it a more wood-like tone. It made sense...
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