What do you like about your Emerald(s)?

[Aspiring]

I love the visuals and ergonomics.

I love the customized neck. I have the 46mm on my custom x20.

Really like the tone and the weight.

I've had many CFs and my primary use is for being able to take somewhere local and play without feeling I'm missing something vs my nice wood guitars.

The Emerald is one of two I've tried that get me there.

That said it also stays outside right beside my desk in my office and gets play time right up there with my favorite wood guitar


My x30-12 has insane tuning stability on top of the above which is great for a 12.

[tcb37]

I have an X30-12 and X7.
I like that I can just leave them on a stand and not worry about them.
I play them a lot more than anything I have to put away in a case

[Jeff350]

I love my X20 and X7 for a lot of reasons
- At my weekly group lesson/jam someone almost always comments and asks about it because they are such a departure from traditional acoustic guitars
- My background is in mechanical engineering so I really appreciate the innovation from Alistair and team
- I think they are beautiful guitars
- I leave them hanging on the wall year round and don’t have to worry about the dry Colorado air

Both of mine are just plain CF, eventually I’ll save up some penny’s and get a fancier one!

[redi]

Playing both an X7 and an X20-12 this morning:

- X7 fit and finish is impeccable, sound quality and playability is outstanding. SS fretwork is like glass smooth. Granted it is several times more $ than compared to other smaller form factor guitars (GS Mini, CSF3M, E20P, etc.), but it is truly worlds away in sound and playability. To my ear the X7 has big guitar feel/neck and sound from a small body and scale. And an uber-premium level choice.

- X20-12 (repeating myself I know) amazingly stable and never have to tweak tuning like other 12's where it is a near constant thing. I have played "louder" wooden jumbo 12's than the X20 (no idea about the X30-12), but it is fine and feels much smaller than the "D" size, just super comfortable to play. The Emerald sound hole back at the player just bathes your ears in sound. Perfect 12-string set-up, and that is really saying something. I long to try an X7-12.

I have never had an Emerald that did not come perfectly set-up from the factory. Both pre- and post-plek days. Perfect. I have never had to touch a nut, bridge, fret, saddle, truss rod, nothing on an Emerald. Every other brand I have had has always needed something set-up.

No ugly pickguards on Emeralds either... and lately no bridge pins to mess with. And you can't buy better tuners than the Gotoh 510s imo.

Emeralds in general are so stable being CF that you never seem to have to fiddle with the tuning. They're at the same place when you put them down or cased them whenever you pick them back up, regardless of how long they sit idle. Emeralds feel sturdy enough that you don't have to fret about leaving them close by for playing on a whim. I don't feel as comfortable leaving a wood guitar out. You don't see binding coming off an Emerald because it doesn't have any or need any.

Oh, and I think the Hiscox cases are outstanding. Soft cases (bags) are outstanding too but I wish the X7 had a Hiscox as well.

Sometimes I think all the Emerald features get absorbed and taken for granted (by me). They are really very advanced and examples of forward thinking guitars. Most of the wood guitars are technology of the late 1800s plus a bit.

The only downside: They are expensive and get really expensive as you add to the configuration (think Mercedes Benz like). But you get what you pay for and probably century long durability. Upside - order direct and no state sales tax.

[guitargeorge]

I have a X30 12 and for 8 or 9 months it has been sitting on stand where I can see it from my chair. I love that I don't need to be concerned about temp/humidity. I also love how well it stays in tune.

[waterboy]

X30 fan fret.
Sits out all day every day, don't need to worry about it unless the cleaners are coming in. This means that it gets played in passing, which is great.
Can sound much better than I do
Utterly stable, does not drift out of tune.
Ergonomics - plays like a much smaller guitar
No concerns taking it out of the house when I play out (almost zero setup time available). Even coming out of a cold trunk it only needs the most cursory of tweaks to the tuning.
Always gets positive comments
Simply love it....

[dgaemc2]

I agree with Emerald praises from other posters!

I also LOVE the combined Ghost Piezo + K&K on my X20, and the combined Ghost Piezo + Krivo on my X10.

The ability to blend these pickups to optimize amplified tones is very beneficial to me!