Cort MR710F MD acoustic guitar – A budget Brazilian?
Madagascan rosewood anyone?
Cort has become known for making some pretty good electric and acoustic guitars at a very moderate price point. This new acoustic guitar model the MR710F MD features Madagascar rosewood and a Fishman Presys Onboard Preamp System.
Madagascan Rosewood
The MD in MR710F MD appears to be Cort’s model number for Madagascan rosewood, as the MR710F acoustic guitar range already exists and the key difference for this new iteration is the use of this reddish wood for the back and sides of the guitar.
Supposedly (and I have nothing tangible to base this upon) Madagascan rosewood is very similar in tone to Brazilian rosewood, which itself is now practically banned as an export material. Do not try to take any out of Brazil! Even vintage guitars that are built using Brazilian rosewood can be seized by customs officials if you don’t have the correct paperwork.
Because of all this, guitar manufacturers are always looking for ways to get around the limited legal supply of Brazillian rosewood. It would appear Madagascan rosewood is the wood of choice for modern guitar builders in mimicking the Brazilian variety.
Cort MR710FMD acoustic guitar with Madagascan rosewood back and sides. · Source: http://www.cortguitars.com/uk/
Fishman Presys
The onboard Fishman Presys preamp has a three-band EQ, phase correction and a handy LED tuner, all of which is attached to an internal Sonicore pickup. The system strives to get as close an acoustic guitar tone as possible and I would imagine it will sound similar to most onboard acoustic guitar pickup systems: not perfect, but fine for gigs where using a microphone is not an option.
Design
The MR710F MD is a dreadnought-style acoustic with what is called a Venetian cutaway, which allows for better upper fret access on the 20-fret neck. It has a Sitka spruce top and the soundhole is inlaid with a multiple abalone centre rosette.
This model promises quite a lot of guitar for the price with some useful features, so not a bad deal at all on the face of it. This might be a very competitively priced acoustic for gigging players on a tight budget.
RRP USD $599
Find out more at the Cort Guitars site.
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