Now that I had some time to use my Nikon D750 and take some high quality pics. The color is pretty accurate on the blade. The only difference is that the closer to the hilt it's a little more blue than what the image shows. It does get more purple when getting towards the tip. When looking at the blade about 10+ feet away, it looks more even in color.
The plug I took a hacksaw to so that I could shorten it about 50%, and it looks a lot better than the original length. The design of the plug appears to be a new design, and yes it fits the Acolyte. You can see how deep I placed the plug, I didn't care for seeing the tubing in the fork of the emitter.
The blade is 32 inches, and feels just right. It was actually more solid then I expected and heavy as well. I can see that it will definitely strengthen my arms over time as I swing it around. The tip is more clear and if there is a nit picking on the blade itself I would say that it would be nice to see the tip be frosty white like the rest of the blade to keep things uniform. Otherwise no complaints here.
The hilt feels just fine in hand, but does get a little toasty in your hand over time. I'll be curious how this compared to the Phoenix once that arrives regarding heat. I went with Crimson and it is what it is. My only complaint on sound is that there is no separate sound settings for the auxiliary sound (Force Lightening) which in my opinion would be better off having a mute option. It's a bit easy to swing the saber off and trigger the auxiliary sound without wanting it to go off. Hopefully this is considered when the new SaberCore soundboard is being designed.
Otherwise I'm pretty pleased with this as my first saber from SaberForge. I'll be wearing it at work which will go well against my black slacks that I wear. I look forward to taking pics holding it while wearing my Dominion coat shown in my profile pic. I'm not going for authentic StarWars cosplay, but will have a sort of Sith style going in my own way.
~ TD