Which Martin?

TravisinFlorida said:
I know a guy that owns a 000, which I have played a couple of times. I don't like how his guitar sounds, but I think that is just a personal preference or maybe I just have'nt played it enough.
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Yeah I like my guitar. I have been acoustic a lot lately. It is great for building up those fingers
 
astoebe said:
I would like to add to all of these posts that every acoustic sounds different. You can't say something about a model as a whole really. I've played some high end Taylors that I love, some that weren't great, some Martins I loved, some I thought sucked, some Takamines I thought were good, some that sucked......even some of these were the same model. I travelled around playing alot of acoustics before I settled I mine, which I played for a good period of time before deciding to buy it (it's a Taylor 414mace...maple instead of the usual Ovangkol on the 400's) and I would put it up against any acoustic out there pretty much when it comes to sound and feel.....HOWEVER, I would never tell you that Taylor 414mace's are all the bomb.....some of them might not be that great. They all have different wood, different feels, different sounds. You might find a 110 you love and an 810 you don't like so much.....ok, I think I got what I was trying to say across....i digress.....
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This is true. I played three DX1's when I bought one for my son. I liked one better than the other two. But they were similar. Most Martins, Taylors, and other brands that make a whole lot of guitars are pretty consistent, so that it is possible to characterize their sound and quality. One thing we all agree is that you have to play it.
 
DXK2 Martin Issues

I purchased a DXK2 Acoustic (now discontinued it is not the DXK2 AE). Was really happy with it in the beginning. Had that rich full early Dylan acoustic sound which I like. And the beautiful color of the "Koa" wood pleased me. I kept asking the dealer and others, "This doesn't feel like real wood. Is it? Do you think this is real wood? What kind of satiny finish is this?" No response. I later learned the HPL stands for High Pressure Laminate, a compressed composite printed with a wood grain pattern. Eh, still, it sounded nice to me. For a while.

Recently, I took it to my guitar teacher and asked him to show me the proper way to change strings on a guitar after a lifetime of "just doing it." The guitar had been sounding dull to me and no longer rich. I figured it needed a new set of strings. After the strings were removed, my instructor did his standard inspection and found that three of the top braces were loose. Really loose. And the bridge was starting to come up off the body/top of the guitar at the bottom away from the strings. Ever so slightly, though.

I contacted Martin and they told me to register the guitar if I hadn't already and then take it to one of their certified Martin Dealers. Did all the above. Troy at Boulevard Music in Culver City (great guy) said he could fix it and would call Martin. Martin says I never registered the guitar. Then I received a letter from Martin saying my serial number provided didn't match the model.

I have more work to do to see if I can get this guitar fixed but bottom line, I'd rather buy an older Martin with real wood and most likely the spruce top. I hope this helps you in determining which guitar to purchase.




Which of the following would you consider "best" for over-all acoustic recording work. Styles of play from easy listening/folk, light rock and a little classical. I really like the "Martin" sound with a little shimmer to it if you know what I mean.

Martin DXK2 (unusual looking wood type "Koa"?)
 
An 11 year thread resurrection is heading for a record,

I reckon you would qualify for necro-post of the week.

You could try starting your own thread.

Buy a Martin that you feel comfortable with and like the sound of.
 
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