Composit Acoustics

I picked up a black 7i a couple of months ago. My main reason for purchasing was the durability because I travel for work weekly. That said, this is among the best sounding guitars I have ever played.

Using stable materials makes perfect sense to me. Rainsong guitars are another maker of carbon fiber instruments.  Jerome, I hope Santa Claus comes through for you!

Thanks Toney - I am real pleased with this purchase. The CA would be great for your venues, unfortunately they are not making a lefty yet! I suppose you could reverse a dread if you were so inclined.

Wayne - I played some of the older models at a shop in Boone, NC a few months back, but had not played a 7i series before purchasing. I had read reviews of the cargo and other i series (i stands for integrated bracing) and read that these models had a better bass response (and boy, do they!)

I bought mine from Danny at Acoustic Pro Musicians. He is their largest dealer and seems to have the best availability. He was a pleasure to deal with and I highly recommend him. Link to his inventory page with actual pricing (page down for the CA's):

http://www.acousticpromusician.com/new.htm

And here's a link to a video review from Acoustic Guitar Magazine. The review is the 5i, which is identical to mine except for the finish.

http://www.acousticguitar.com/video/pla … leid=23841

Wayne, I checked the dealer list on CA's website and there really isn't anything near you. Most internet dealers have a return policy that allow you to try out a guitar and return it for full refund if not happy (but usually you have to pay return shipping). Danny's policy is a 48 hour trial.

I played a 5SE.  Really cool inlayed graphics all over it.

That 7 is cool.  Does having the tone hole up by your arm bug you at all?

Hey tops, This may be a stupid question, but I'm curious... With an offset soundhole can you change the sound by strumming/picking closer to the bridge or to the upper regions of the top bout. You know what I mean, Like strumming an ordinary soundholed guitar before, over or past the soundhole. I'm guessing it still changes some but how much?

Interesting question (and result) Pix.  I just compared it to my Tak side by side, strumming open in roughly 1/2" increments. Both guitars have a higher pitch when played nearer the bridge (duh) and get deeper as you work toward the fingerboard. Whats interesting is that the Tak levels out while strumming over the normal placed soundhole, whereas the CA just keeps getting deeper. Once I reach the fretboard, they both seem to level out evenly. Another benefit I had failed to realize!

Wayne - I really do like the tobacco burst pictures I saw. At first my thought was that was kind of hokey - wanting to make a carbon fiber guitar look like wood, but the pictures changed my mind. I also thought the blue and red (which were the only colors offered originally on the 7i) were too flashy for my abilities, so when Danny had a prototype black for a great price, I jumped on it!

I played a dread when I was in Boone (Legacy series I believe it was called). It had lots of punch, but I can't say it was that much more than the 7i. You can't go wrong with either model IMO. They are great playing and sounding guitars.