I don’t know about you, but if I see one more gray smartphone, house, or gray-clad coder-bro in a dark gray Tesla, I think I might lose my mind. Me? I love the hues of spring, of nature, and custom-color Fenders. Dark gray? It might as well be color-wheel shorthand for surveillance capitalism, Zuck’s hoodie, and bad sci-fi-movie set design.

Some of the fascination with gray in modern industrial design probably derives from its association with carbon fiber—a super-light, ultra-strong material that, incidentally, makes really nice acoustic guitars. Carbon fiber acoustic guitars can be great instruments. They could care less about extreme heat or cold. They take endangered woods out of the guitar-building equation. They can sound lively and powerful. Better still, they’re tough enough to live with a klutz like me without ever gathering a ding, scratch, or dent. Unfortunately, many of these instruments never get a chance from purists and traditionalists, because, well, let’s just say they’re not the color of wood.

With its new Vintage Series guitars, though, RainSong may have built a carbon fiber guitar even hard-boiled traditionalists can appreciate. RainSong achieves this appeal simply: by grafting a layer of spruce to the carbon fiber top. But the V-DR1100N2 reviewed here has virtues beyond a simple facelift. It’s a tuning-stable, punchy, playable, and super comfortable guitar that you can take on a cross-country road trip without a worry about how long it sits in a hot trunk.

Diet Sandwich If you’re not familiar with the process of carbon fiber construction, RainSong hosts an illuminating video on YouTube that details the V-DR1100N2’s build process. Like most carbon fiber guitars, the RainSong is constructed using thin carbon fiber sheets and molds. The method sometimes seems to meld the arts of plastic injection molding and baking a pastry. But the end product is anything but delicate. The RainSong is super light and incredibly sturdy.

The V-DR1100N2 sacrifices little in way of weight or durability by adding a bookmatched layer of spruce to the top, which is just a few millimeters thick and makes up the thinner part of the carbon fiber/spruce sandwich. It’s affixed to a sheet of carbon fiber with adhesive and baked into a rigid whole. Interestingly, RainSong’s top uses no bracing, relying instead on the inherent rigidity of the carbon fiber to resist the tension of the strings. And it doesn’t take a PhD in physics to imagine the resonant potential of such an unencumbered soundboard. The back and sides of the guitar are actually a single piece of carbon fiber, which is then affixed to the top and the single-piece, truss-rod-reinforced carbon fiber neck.

The neck on our review guitar features RainSong’s N2 profile. (The dreadnought body can also be ordered with the slimmer, truss-rod-free N1 profile neck, or the NS neck, which joins the body at the 12th fret. There is also a 12-string option.) The N2 profile is a thick, satisfying, vintage-styled shape that evokes ’50s Martins and some Gibsons of the same era without ever feeling too hefty. The truss rod lets you adjust the neck relief, but the strong carbon fiber construction also means the neck requires a less substantial heel, which facilitates access to the upper frets.

The body itself is a pleasure to cradle. The shape is unique—combining elements of a square-shouldered Martin Dreadnought and a round-shouldered Gibson J-45 into a slim-waisted silhouette that is more curvaceous than either of those classics. The carbon-fiber construction enables the use of soft edges on the back that feel super comfortable against the ribs. Factor in the light weight, and you’ve got a big-bodied acoustic that you can play for hours on end without fatigue.

Focus and Force It’s hard to know if the spruce section of the RainSong’s top has much effect on the sonic make-up. I suspect that the resonant, brace-less carbon fiber top has greater influence on the sound. But regardless of materials, the RainSong has a forceful voice. In terms of pure volume, it can rival the output of a mahogany-and-spruce J-45 while sounding a little less loud than a rosewood-backed Martin dread’. But the biggest distinction between those classic dreadnoughts and the RainSong is apparent in its midrange focus. That’s not to say the RainSong doesn’t possess a strong bottom end. Sixth-string notes ring distinctly and with great articulation. But you hear fewer of the piano-like frequency overtones that define a dread’ like a D-28, and a lot more presence and sustain in midrange and high harmonics.

Depending on your tastes and the application, this is no bad thing. With so much midrange presence and high-end zing, the RainSong excels at adding shimmer and animation to rhythm strumming—retaining sparkle when you use a thin pick and a light touch, and great string-to-string detail and resistance to note blur and compression when you attack with a heavy pick and weightier hand. In the studio—and in busy mixes—this kind of balance can be invaluable. It’s also useful in fingerstyle situations, where the RainSong’s ringing, precise trebles dovetail sweetly with the modest but resonant low end.

The Verdict When guitarists talk about versatility, they’re usually referring to a breadth of tone possibilities. The RainSong V-DR1100N2 is certainly versatile in this respect, spanning sparkling, mid-centric, and ready-to-layer strumming tones with balanced, ringing, flat and fingerpicked sounds. But the RainSong’s versatility also extends to its practicality. It can travel long, hard miles with you in the back of a car without inducing anxiety over wood or finish cracks. And that same toughness means you can leave it lying around a house full of slobbering dogs and reckless children without visions of splinters dancing in your head. Expensive though it may be, the RainSong V-DR1100N2 is a guitar that will reward your investment with lasting playability, satisfying sounds, and a cockroach’s ability to survive.

Made in Canada, this two-voice guitar features a chambered Mahogany body, carved Swamp Ash top, 25.5” scale Mahogany neck and Rosewood Fingerboard.

Godin Guitars launches the Radium-X as part of its high-quality guitar lineup. After over 30 years of hand-crafting award-winning multi-voice guitars, celebrated by players worldwide, we are proud to introduce the Godin Radium-X! Designed to be ultra-versatile, the Godin Radium-X delivers both electric and acoustic tones.

With a Seymour Duncan Jazz SH-2 at the neck and a Bare Knuckle Boot Camp True Grit Zebra at the bridge, the Radium-X is designed to be a powerhouse of tone. This diverse magnetic pickup combo is capable of delivering powerful, warm distortion to clear, glassy tones, appealing to a wide range of players and musical styles. The Radium-X’s stunning acoustic voice comes courtesy of a custom-designed LR-Baggs X-Bridge tremolo with six built-in “HEX” saddle transducers.

Welcome to Recording Dojo—PG’s new monthly column pertaining to recording and engineering, with guitarists in mind. Think of this column as your place to develop better audio-recording skills, experiment with new techniques and gear and, most importantly, mindsets. So bring your best self forward and your willingness to learn … the dojo is now open.

Let’s begin our training with compression: a confusing topic for guitarists as players and as engineers wanting to make their recordings more professional. Compression has five core parameters: threshold, knee, attack, ratio, and release—or TKARR. I’m going to explain this metaphorically, as if you are at a major event, say, the Grammys, and you’ve just won. You’ve condensed a lifetime of “I’d like to thank” into 15 seconds, and you’ve been regally whisked offstage by an anonymous beauty in a ball gown.

The next thing you’re instructed to do is leave backstage, go through the giant ballroom (where a band is playing and people are partying), and go to the press room for photo ops and post-win interviews. You walk down the long hallway towards the ballroom door, where a burly 6'8" doorman stands behind velvet ropes. The doorman is the threshold and the velvet ropes are the knee.

In order for you to get into the ballroom, the doorman has to let you in. As you arrive at the door, he takes his hands off the ropes (hard knee), crosses his arms, coldly stares at you, and says, “What are doing here? This is for Grammy winners only.” Ouch! He doesn’t recognize you. He only listens to Siberian reggae bands. High threshold. So high that you can’t pass though. Conversely, if, as you approach, he gently unfastens the ropes (soft knee), says “I’m a huge fan,” and moves aside without you having to break stride, you have crossed the threshold and are now inside the ballroom. This is a well-set threshold, only allowing in those who are authorized. Or perhaps, as you arrive at the ballroom entrance, you notice that the doorman has passed out, the ropes have long been knocked over (no knee), and anyone can enter. Low threshold.

As soon as you enter the ballroom, within a millisecond, a waiter comes up to you: “Champagne? The press room is on the other side of the ballroom.” That’s quick attack. You notice there’s a string quartet playing Haydn’s Op. 76, and the volume is comfortably loud (low ratio, somewhere between 1.5:1 to 4:1). Almost as soon as you enter the ballroom, you’ve got your libation and move directly to the press room—quick release. You arrive at the press room with your wits about you, ready to talk about your big win.

Or, upon entering the ballroom, you mill around in the crowded room looking for directions and you’re in the middle of the ballroom before a waiter comes up to you and shouts: “Drink? Press room is over there.” That’s medium attack. The band is an ’80s cover band and the volume is rather loud for the room (medium ratio, 5:1 to 9.5:1). You eventually find your way to the press room and arrive slightly stunned, but ready.

Another version: Upon entering the ballroom, you’re immediately lost in a sea of people, shouting for directions and hopelessly trying to be heard above the Mötorhead tribute band. Your ears are ringing. Time passes, and you somehow find the press room door and a waiter shoves a drink in your hand just before you leave the ballroom. Slow attack. You arrive, dazed and confused, in the press room (high ratio, 10:1 and above).

These simple scenarios should help you understand the parameters of compression. It’s very important you know that all of these scenarios are equally and musically valid, and by no means exhaustive. Want that “When the Levee Breaks” drum sound? Low threshold, high ratio, quick attack/release. Want your acoustic to sound natural and dynamic? High to medium threshold, medium attack/release, medium to low ratio. Remember, the focus of this article is to explain the five parameters of compression (TKARR). Based on their highly varied and different designs, not all compressors give you access to every parameter. So, this will be our subject next month!

A collaboration honoring Grammy-award winner and guitar virtuoso Christone "Kingfish" Ingram featuring his signature humbucking pickups.

"The Kingfish Telecaster Deluxe guitar gives me a sense of comfort when I’m playing across genres; everything from blues to smooth rock, it’s all about versatility. For me, it is important for people to play other genres,” said Christone “Kingfish” Ingram. “One of my favorite features on the Tele are my signature pickups because they’re a solid option for players in all genres. Being a blues player is a beautiful thing, but it’s about more than that. I’ve always been into heavy tones from my influences like Gary Moore and various blues players like Freddy King. I hope this Tele inspires players of all genres to dig in and rock out.”

The Kingfish Telecaster Deluxe guitar has been designed to the artist’s specifications with an emphasis on power and personal flourish. The heart of the instrument is the Kingfish Signature Humbucking Pickups, custom wound for velvety lows, punchy mids and a snarling high end. The custom pickups will also be sold separately, making it that much easier for players everywhere to achieve Christone’s signature tone. Finished in mesmerizing Mississippi Night, the guitar looks as stunning as it sounds and the custom color is more than meets the eye. This mystifying shade of purple harkens back to the deep night skies Kingfish would often marvel at while growing up in Clarksdale, Mississippi. The Kingfish Telecaster Deluxe features an alder body. The “V”-shaped roasted maple neck gives the instrument a distinctly vintage feel and the comfortable 12” radius rosewood fretboard allows for huge bends and scorching riffs up and down the neck. A custom “K & Crown” logo on the pickup covers and Kingfish’s signature autograph on the headstock rounds out the instrument’s personalized touch.