Martin Guitars

[gregory]

old thread I know. martin tops are are supposedly evaluated\graded, with the better wood going to the higher end guitars. if you tour the factory, you will find that this grading involves holding each incoming top up for a few seconds of visual inspection. then it's placed in the appropriate pile. I have a D41 and have been quite satisfied with it. it is correct that it is an hd28 with inlay and maybe nicer woods. can't say when or if they grade the back\side wood, but in my experience with alot of guitars from different model ranges, it seems as if they do. none of this of course is a guaranty of anything and no substitute for in person evaluation.

[appleburger]

i've got an hd-48 and LOVE it! haven't played a d41 so i can't really make a comparison. i do own a few gibson acoustics and have owned a couple other martins and the hd48 is my favorite so far. maybe its because i didn't have to pay for it! my dad won it in a raffle at the international bluegrass music association convention in 2006.

[The Generator]

And if you want a fresh option of the Martin essence visit Breedlove Guitar Company - Revival Series Guitars
I play a Custom Shop Revival DR, and it's an incredible guitar. The options Breedlove offers are great too.

[fohengr]

Have you ever heard of a Henderson? Wayne Henderson builds guitars that rival the best Martin


www.waynehenderson.org

Doc Watson playing Wayne Henderson guitar
2 min 10 sec
www.youtube.com

[Jose]

Originally Posted by Daystar

Hello ,

I'm Looking for a high-end guitar that will serve well for a long time .
intrested in Martin Guitars especielly but if you have another options i'd be glad to hear .

anyway ,anyone have experience with martin guitars espesielly models D-28. Hd-28 . D-41 ,D-35 ?

I didn't get the diffrance between the models , i heard that the diffrance between HD-28 and D-41 are only cosmetic .is it true ? there\s quite a diffrance in price .

what guitar should i buy ?

If you don't care for decoration and you are looking for classic Martin sound, with a D28 you can't go wrong .I've got one and it is my best investment by far and I'd never sell it.I had others, Taylors, Ovations...Martin was exactly the sound in my dreams.

Anyway here you'll hear many other guitars:

YouTube - Dana Bourgeois Vintage Dreadnought Guitar Demo @ House of Musical Traditions

[Victory Pete]

I have 2 Martins, a 1998 HD-28 and a 2005 D12-28. Great sounding guitars, although the HD-28 came with a Corian nut and a Micarta saddle, I changed them to bone, big improvement in the sound, I also put in ebony bride pins, again an improvement. Martin now uses bone for the nut and saddle. They do seem to get better sounding with time, also the wood turns a nice golden amber.
VP

[gregory]

I've had a 1997 D41 since new. Still plays and sounds very good. Yes it is an ornate hd28. Maybe the wood is cosmetically better but maybe no more than the natural variation from guitar to guitar. IMO it takes more effort each year to find an example with acceptable woods. As to what guitar you should buy - There are many shops both large and small making instruments whose quality rivals Martin. I would evaluate my needs as to body shape, nut width, string spacing, scale, tone woods, etc. - and only then worry about the brand.

[gehauser]

Originally Posted by Daystar

Hello ,

I'm Looking for a high-end guitar that will serve well for a long time .
intrested in Martin Guitars especielly but if you have another options i'd be glad to hear .

anyway ,anyone have experience with martin guitars espesielly models D-28. Hd-28 . D-41 ,D-35 ?

I didn't get the diffrance between the models , i heard that the diffrance between HD-28 and D-41 are only cosmetic .is it true ? there\s quite a diffrance in price .

what guitar should i buy ?

I have a 1976 D-35 and a 2008 HD-28. The classic Martin sound for bluegrass musicians is the D-28, or HD-28 (H means herringbone, which has herringbone pattern in the top trim and also has scalloped braces, giving it a fuller, richer, louder tone than the regular D-28). My old D-35 has a sweet sound that has improved much with age. My HD-28 has tight bass sound, with good punch across the full frequency range. The D-35s have a three piece back compared to 2-piece back of the 28s. I prefer the sound of the 28s for like aged guitars. My D-35 is getting to the age where it really sounds sweet, however, and has a unique tone all its own.

Martin is a great company these days - about a year ago my D-35 needed a top crack fixed and a neck reset - the lifetime warranty covered these repairs.

I know the D-18s have a brighter sound, and are said to be excellent for recording.

I have some DX1s which sound good in the woods, but for recording they are bass-heavy and boomy and hard to work with.

Purely for sound, I would go with a new HD-28 if I were you, and not look back. It sounds great and records very well, finger-picked or flat-picked.

[ableton123]

I own a SWMDGT. But my friend just bought a d28. Sounds fantastic!

[rectifier]

Originally Posted by Victory Pete

They do seem to get better sounding with time, also the wood turns a nice golden amber.
VP

Can only 100% agree with this. I bought my Martin HD28 in around 2004 - had it shipped from their factory, had never played it (which some say is foolish) - it arrived, looked beautiful, smelt more beautiful and played.. well so so. I think I wrote a bunch of posts on here about issues with it around that time and I have had some intonation problems since. Now in 2010, this guitar sounds absolutely incredible, I am not sure on the technicality of acoustic guitars, but it has opened up - it looks better but more importantly it sounds way way WAY better than it did in 2004. I don't keep it in the case any more - I did for the first few years.

I say it sounded so so initially as I already had a Martin D-15 and was expecting something to knock that guitar's socks off and it didn't. Once I had the bone saddle placed on the D-15, that guitar sounded absolutely wonderful. But now you can hear the difference. As I am a noob recording person in untreated room, the D-15 still records easier and I use it to write on but the HD-28 has that unique rich sound the D-15 cannot compete with. I love them both. (but secretly crave a Gibson acoustic yeye I know.) Doesn't detract from the Martins in any way, they are super guitars. Just talking about them now makes me want to go have a noodle.. I hope I can keep playing these for the rest of my life, they have a special rapport with me.

Martin is quality. Just remember these guitars are almost living.. they need time to get better.