Carbon Fiber guitars….

[onewilyfool]

How many of you have carbon Fiber guitars??? My friend who is a great guitarist, just got one , and swears by the sound???…Any enthusiasts here?

[j45nick]

I only have a small one--an Composite Acoustics Cargo, which is a short-scale, small-body travel guitar. It has a surprisingly lively sound, and is a great little all-around guitar. It has in built-in pickup, and sounds pretty good plugged in as well.

 

I'd love to play a full-size one.

[ksdaddy]

I played a CA for about 30 seconds in a store. I was preoccupied by a deal cooking on the side and didn't give it a chance. I liked my brief brush with one and would jump at the chance to try one again.

 

I know this is not directly related but there were a few Applause guitars that escaped with plastic tops and integral bracing. Wonderful tone. I have a few.

 

I'm not a techno geek, not impressed by space age materials and not looking for the newest fad. I'm never an 'early adopter'. Having said that, I will say this, loud and proud:

 

The notion that a guitar must be made of wood is absurd and archaic.

[fortyearspickn]

I've tried them out 2 or 3 times in our GC. They sounded surprisingly good. I was torn between getting one and a third Gibson - but mostly because the composites (carbon graphite) can take a lickin and keep on tickin. They are virtually indestructible under normal conditions, like being dropped off a tailgate in the rain into a BBQ grill. But, while their prices are no doubt fair - I just couldn't spend that much and not get a Gibson. I don't have a pickup anymore. It rarely rains in San Antonio. And I have a gas grill. But - as far as sound/tone. I thought it could compete with many wooden guitars i a blind test taste. I thought it sort sounded like a Baby Taylor. If I were to buy a 4th guitar - in this price range - it would most likely be a composite.

[matalie]

I play a Rainsong Hybrid Dread. It is my main gigging (playing in church) guitar. It sounds fantastic, is incredibly resonant and through my aura pedal, the fishman electronics sound great in the mix. The guitar is also able to take a licking from a music stand or a trombone on the stage without getting dinged up.

 

And the best feature of all is that I can leave it in my car for an hour in the Florida heat without stressing out. I would never leave my Gibson, Taylor or Martin guitars I have owned and played out with in my car in the heat of course.

If you are playing in extreme environments and your wood guitars are unstable (tuning, action, humidity) then a CF guitar is worth a try.

 

Fwiw, I've been playing for over 15 years and have always been a fan of alternative materials in guitars. The two players that were my mentors early on both played Ovation and Adamas guitars and they sounded beautiful and were really well made and just nice guitars. I have owned 10 or so ovations and Adamas guitars ranging from a celebrity to a $3000 Adamas and sold them all, as they all left me longing for something. I'm sure I'll own another some day, but I always moved on in the past. But not with the Rainsong. I can't imagine ever getting rid of it, except as a trade in for another one.

[kelly campbell]

I was surprised by the sound but would probably never buy one. They are very heavy, at least the ones that I have checked out.

[duluthdan]

Played a friends Rainsong while fishing from his boat. Though it seemed to be built like a tank, and could take on the elements, it was not a guitar I would gravitate towards at all. It kind of sounded like a tank now that I think about it. It was loud, and there was nothing I really liked about it, other than it was a good fishing boat guitar. Never tried to see if it would float.

[BigKahune]

... The notion that a guitar must be made of wood is absurd and archaic.

 

+1

 

Carbon fiber is great for environmental extremes. There's a bit of a trade-off in the sound: wood guitars usually have a warmer sound, while CF guitars tend to sound brighter, like a piano, and some sound a bit brittle. A couple of years ago I bought a used Rainsong 12-string (JM-3000). Plays great and sounds surprisingly good. Word got around about how nice they are and when Rainsong stopped making 12-strings (due to their new neck design) they became very hard to find. I liked my 12-string so much I recently purchased a Rainsong 6-string jumbo JM-1000N2. The new N2 neck has truss rod to let players tweak their relief. Rainsong presence has grown and they now offer a range of guitar shapes and sizes. There are some other makers like Composite and Emerald. Just like wood guitars, you've got to play them to find one you like - but there are great sounding CF guitars out there. I think the deeper bodied CF guitars sound the best.

 

 

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[tpbiii]

We have two Legacy CAs. I was first introduced to them at Everett's picking barn near Atlanta in a jam session with Shane Blackwell. Of course Shane is a A-list flatpicker who can probably make a cardboard box sound good, but that guitar really got my attention. There were several prewar Martins in that session, and the CA worked fine -- a J-45 would not have, although other Gibsons would.

 

I bought both of ours used during the period when CA was out of business. Both have pickups -- we don't have pickups in our vintage guitars.

 

They are not a prewar AJ or Herringbone, but they are strong and their tone is surprisingly good. They are great guitars for the beach, in the heat, and for gigs where it would be really problematic not to plug in.

 

What's not to like? They are really useful.

 

Let's pick,

 

-Tom

[ksdaddy]

They are not a prewar AJ or Herringbone, but they are strong and their tone is surprisingly good. They are great guitars for the beach, in the heat, and for gigs where it would be really problematic not to plug in.

 

Exactly. Hothouse flowers are good for bragging rights but if a guitar can't go WITH you, what purpose does it have?

 

Not advocating abuse, just saying they need to be USED. That's how memories are made, not by admiring them in a climate controlled vault.

[chasAK]

My RainSong has lots of volume and sustain. The tone is better than I thought a carbon fiber would have. Mine has a 15 inch lower bout with a 4 inch depth. But make no mistake it is not wood. The tone on mine seems to drop off fast on the low E string from the open E to the 5^th fret, at least in comparison to my j45. I use mine in my study, which has humidity problems and for taking out side. It has a decent tone but I would not say much more. It has a lot more volume and stronger sustain than my J45. Mine is anolder RainSong a PM5 (or, S) 1000. It is great for my uses.

 

 

[Yggdrasil]

I've had 2 Cargos & now have an Emerald T8.

 

All parlor size guitars, bought for traveling- I can leave one in the Jefferson Campervan year-round without worry.

 

Also keep one around for dry Canadian winters and to haul onto the deck in the summer.

 

The tone delivered by all 3 is more than acceptable, considering the environmental resilience of the guitars.

 

 

 

[matalie]

I was surprised by the sound but would probably never buy one. They are very heavy, at least the ones that I have checked out.

 

Not my rainsong. When it came in, I thought the dealer had forgotten to put the guitar in the box. It is light as a feather. I doubt it weighs 3 pounds. And that's mostly tuners and electronics. It's not neck heavy, either. Nicely balanced.

[GuitarLight]

I've had my RainSong CF DR100 since 2001. It is surprisingly good in sound and tone. They sound different than wood guitars but in a very good way. They are durable and can be played anywhere, in any heat or humidity conditions and they hold their tuning even outdoors on a misty damp day. The high quality tone they produce is extremely stable. A dirt dry ten degree humidity level won't even touch them. And 95 degrees on a hot humid day....well you may sweat, but the RainSong won't even flinch even after a hammering play. They sound sweet, clean and very clear in tone..almost mesmerizing and hypnotic, very pure, but they do not have the wood tone if this is what one is addicted to. But what is lost in wood tone, is more than made up for in very premium quality crystal clear sound. They are excellent for recording, and produce a very clear sound without heavy boom sometimes associated with wood guitars when recording, even tho the base is rich and full. When hooked up to an amp, they perform and sound equally as well or better than many wood guitars as feed back seems to be less of a problem with them.

 

My Rainsong is also the lightest weight guitar I own..indeed as light as a feather.

 

I had the saddle adjusted at set up for a butter low action. It has stayed exactly there for over ten years.. No truss rod in it. None needed. The neck, and butter action has not budged even under the hardest of weather conditions, seasons, or hard hammering plays.

 

I wanted one to leave out on the stand every day of the year without worrying about winter heat and dry humidity conditions. As my music store salesman once said to me when I asked him if they need much care...He jokingly dais...Well, yea they do..you'll need to dust them once in a while if they are left on the stand! ..he was right. Take it ANYWHERE, play it under any conditions, and it will preform more than professionally. And they are an eye grabber. Everyone has commented on my glistening jet black carbon fiber RainSong dread. They all seem to think is is a very cool looking guitar...yet its sound matches its beauty. A wood guitar it is not. A good guitar..it definitely is!

 

At the time I bought my Rainsong CF, there were no hybrid models, there were no truss rods, just 100% CF top, back, sides, neck, fret board, head stock and bridge....just what I wanted! Nothing to warp or go bad! I always say you gotta look ahead!

 

I jokingly imagine many years from now, if I reach 90, there will be but one guitar left in my stall, the Rainsong. Because it is featherweight and easy to lift and carry, and requires zero maintenance, other than perhaps a re-fret, and the frets have held up extremely well, another ten years or so..then maybe a re-fret if needed! Other than that, it's a great guitar you will play till you are perched in a rocking chair...even then, they will have to pry it from my cold dead hands...and by God, I'll expect my family to bury it with me! LOL!

[BluesKing777]

I often wonder what the carbon fibre guitars do under impact - do they shatter into 'shards' like the F1 grand prix cars seem to do?

 

 

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2013/08/30/automobiles/wheels/F1-Spa-Belgium-crash-2012/F1-Spa-Belgium-crash-2012-blog480.jpg

 

 

 

I could get one to keep in my car - that is probably where I would be living if I get another guitar...... :mellow:

 

 

 

BluesKing777.

[GuitarLight]

I often wonder what the carbon fibre guitars do under impact - do they shatter into 'shards' like the F1 grand prix cars seem to do?

 

 

http://graphics8.nyt...012-blog480.jpg

 

 

 

I could get one to keep in my car - that is probably where I would be living if I get another guitar...... :mellow:

 

 

 

BluesKing777.

 

I don't know if they would shatter, they might. But I do know mine didn't leak. I placed it sound hole side up in a small pond in my back yard. They float nice. But it got away from me and floated to the middle of the pond. But it came ashore by next morning. Wasn't even out of tune but some birds had bombarded it with droppings. Rinsed right off.

[j45nick]

I often wonder what the carbon fibre guitars do under impact - do they shatter into 'shards' like the F1 grand prix cars seem to do?

 

 

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2013/08/30/automobiles/wheels/F1-Spa-Belgium-crash-2012/F1-Spa-Belgium-crash-2012-blog480.jpg

 

I could get one to keep in my car - that is probably where I would be living if I get another guitar...... :mellow:

 

BluesKing777.

 

 

I suspect it might shatter when your wife drove your pickup truck over it, after beating you about the head and shoulders with it. ("I told you not to bring home another guitar!")