NGD Lefty Emerald Opus X20

[Songtown]

More pics to come


The Emerald came in on Friday, have not had a lot of time to play it but initial impressions are favorable. Fit and finish are superb and it is a sexy beast. Feels good but the thinner nut width and tighter string spacing are taking some getting used to. If I were ordering one would spec a wider nut. The gloss neck finish it not my favorite. Would like something a little bit more satin with less stick to my hand. The sound is quite impressive. The sustain is pretty amazing. There is a slight mid tone edginess that is the only real clue it is a CF guitar. It is not bad at all just shows up in a few spots if you are listening closely. Overall I would put the sound very close to my Taylor 714ce presentation series. It is a step or 2 behind my McPherson but when you consider the price and more importantly the all weather abilities of the Emerald, it is a bargain and great addition to my stable. As a matter of fact, it sounds so good that I am thinking about selling my expensive Taylor and maybe one of my Larivee’s as Between the X20 and the McPherson I do not see them leaving the case much.

Oh and huge shout out to Alistair and his team! First for making such a fine innovative instrument Secondly for offering in a Left Handed model and Thirdly for fulfilling my silly request for a green gig bag instead of the blue one in the online listing. My favorite color is green and they did not have to take the time to make that adjustment but they did so willingly. [emoji106][emoji106][emoji106]

[Songtown]

[Captain Jim]

Very nice! Yes, Alistair and the crew at Emerald understand customer service. That is a great guitar - I love my X20! The wood guitars don't get much play time these days.

Congratulations!

[jdinco]

Only an Emerald can look that good in black ! Congrats.

[kramster]

Quite Beautacious... put it front of mine and could be a mirror image

[121]

Congratulations, those Emerald X20's are such a perfect guitar.

I wish Emerald would continue making the Opus.
I'm growing to like the Crystal Ice finish better than the gloss finish.

I wish my Artisan X7 and X20 had the Crystal Ice finish head stock like your Opus has.

[Songtown]

Originally Posted by Captain Jim

Very nice! Yes, Alistair and the crew at Emerald understand customer service. That is a great guitar - I love my X20! The wood guitars don't get much play time these days.



Congratulations!

Thanks Captain! You guys did not steer me wrong[emoji41]

[Songtown]

Originally Posted by jdinco

Only an Emerald can look that good in black ! Congrats.

Thanks! I am typically not a black fan but this thing is really beautiful.

[Songtown]

Originally Posted by kramster

Quite Beautacious... put it front of mine and could be a mirror image

Very cool! Feeling fortunate to have one.

[Songtown]

Originally Posted by 121

Congratulations, those Emerald X20's are such a perfect guitar.

I wish Emerald would continue making the Opus.
I'm growing to like the Crystal Ice finish better than the gloss finish.

I wish my Artisan X7 and X20 had the Crystal Ice finish head stock like your Opus has.

Thanks! I guess the grass is always greener or in this case emeralder [emoji851]

I really think the Artisan’s are super pretty. May get one some day.

[Captain Jim]

Originally Posted by 121

Congratulations, those Emerald X20's are such a perfect guitar.

I wish Emerald would continue making the Opus.
I'm growing to like the Crystal Ice finish better than the gloss finish.

I wish my Artisan X7 and X20 had the Crystal Ice finish head stock like your Opus has.

The Crystal Ice finish on the back and sides is still available as an option on the Artisan and Customs. No up or down charge for that. I like it, too. I think it adds an interesting contrast on the non-woody colored models.

[steelvibe]

Congrats on another fine jewel- Superman lives in Donegal

[muser]

Originally Posted by 121

I'm growing to like the Crystal Ice finish better than the gloss finish.

I wish my Artisan X7 and X20 had the Crystal Ice finish head stock like your Opus has.

What's the main thing you like about Crystal Ice?

Originally Posted by Songtown

The Emerald came in on Friday,

Congrats and thanks for the pics! That's a beauty. I can never get enough of photos showing the contrast between Crystal Ice and gloss. Interesting how a Crystal Ice headstock makes it hard to see the CF weave.

Originally Posted by Captain Jim

I like it, too. I think it adds an interesting contrast on the non-woody colored models.

What do you think of Crystal Ice back and sides combined with a gloss woody top, assuming Alistair agrees to do it? It's one of the permutations I'm considering.

Originally Posted by Songtown

I really think the Artisan’s are super pretty. May get one some day.

Are you saying you prefer the gloss look to Crystal Ice, price aside?

[121]

Originally Posted by muser

What's the main thing you like about Crystal Ice?

I don't have any scratches or dings on my Emerald guitars yet, but I think a crystal ice finish would hide these accidents much better than the gloss finish.
The crystal ice finish does not show smudges and fingerprints as does the gloss finish. Most of all, I prefer the appearance of a crystal ice finish over the gloss finish.

[Captain Jim]

Originally Posted by muser

What's the main thing you like about Crystal Ice?




Congrats and thanks for the pics! That's a beauty. I can never get enough of photos showing the contrast between Crystal Ice and gloss. Interesting how a Crystal Ice headstock makes it hard to see the CF weave.




What do you think of Crystal Ice back and sides combined with a gloss woody top, assuming Alistair agrees to do it? It's one of the permutations I'm considering.




Are you saying you prefer the gloss look to Crystal Ice, price aside?

Since the third part of the quote above was to me, I’ll answer it: I haven’t seen a glossy woody with the Crystal Ice back and sides, but I would imagine it would look just fine. Having an Opus, I appreciate the difference between the solid overall color (black) and the texture on the front and back. Maybe it is a part of my “wood upbringing,” where guitars often had a different look to the top and B/S.

The Emerald woodies are spectacular, and to my eye, are set off nicely with the overall gloss.

That said, I really appreciate that Emerald works with their buyers to get each person what they want. What I like may not be what you want, but we can each have our ideal. The combination of having some guitars “in stock” and their ability to make you just what you want is only one of the things that puts Emerald a step above in my book.